Below the Line: The Beasts

The New York Times takes a closer look at the 'Beasts' of Beasts of the Southern Wild in this Awards Season Carpetbagger feature:

“The big challenge was always to not make it look like a pig, but to show as much of the actual animal as possible,” Mr. Tintori said. “In some of the earliest versions of the costume, there was too much fabric on top of the animal. But what reads best on film is seeing the light hit the skin and hair and see all the muscles moving. That was something, with our budget, we couldn’t replicate in CG.”

Via New York Times

Smithsonian American Ingenuity Award for Visual Arts

Benh Zeitlin receives the Smithsonian American Ingenuity Award for Visual Arts tonight at a special ceremony in Washington, DC.  The awards recognize and honor individuals who have exemplified innovation in a range of fields including social progress, natural and physical sciences, education, technology and youth achievement. Among the honorees are: Jack Andraka, a high school senior who has invented a way to detect a lethal type of cancer; Anne Kelly Knowles, a history enthusiast who challenges the way we look at geography and its historical influence; and Bryan Stevenson, a lawyer who has dedicated his life to giving a voice to youth behind bars.  The full list of honorees can be found here.

Benh was profiled by Smithonsian.com to discuss how his unconventional approach to filmmaking.

"Beasts is Zeitlin’s feature film debut, a small miracle of deliberate outsider art that entranced and exhilarated audiences during its limited theatrical run this past summer. Unruly, unbound by studios or the usual Hollywood conventions, this paean to childhood perception and human resilience exists in its own hermetically sealed world, physically and metaphorically. Zeitlin made the movie on a $1.8 million shoestring in southern Louisiana with hand-held 16-millimeter cameras, jury-rigged sets, untrained actors and a grass-roots collective of artists from around the country. By ignoring received wisdom and gambling on his own powers of invention, he offered further proof that innovation is about breaking rules."

Congratulations to all the honorees.  It is truly an honor to be recognized amongst so many amazing people who are changing the world for the better.

You can read the full article here.

Beasts on Award Season

Tonight marks the official start of what the film industry calls awards season, beginning with the New York based fete, the IFP Gotham Film Awards.  Beasts is nominated for 3 awards including the Gotham Audience Award, which is the most important one for us considering your contribution to our nomination!

We are humbled to be part of the awards conversation and so excited for the actors and crew who are being recognized for their work on Beasts. Beyond the accolades, awards season buzz allows us to get more coverage about the movie and ultimately share it with a larger audience.

Quvenzhané Wallis and Benh Zeitlin were recently interviewed about awards season for the November issue of The Wrap where Benh had this to say about his star:

"You know she takes it in stride...She doesn't have this ultimate goal in life to win this and that if it doesn't happen it's a disaster.  And her parents keep her grounded.  She's not doing campaigning during the week.  She's staying in school and not letting it take over her life.  I think she's starting to sense what it means, but not in a way that it feels like she has to stop being herself or stop living the life that she already has."

Read the full article here.

Beasts on Vinyl!

The Beasts of the Southern Wild soundtrack has struck a chord (pun intended!) with so many of you.  Whether the music brings you back to the film or resonates with you on a personal level, your response to the music has been overwhelming.

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A co-collaboration between long time friends, Dan Romer and Benh Zeitlin, and featuring a track from the Louisiana based Lost Bayou Ramblers, the soundtrack was conceived and executed with the same DIY spirit of the film in mind.  In a recent interview with Artist Direct, Dan Romer recounts the recording process:

We were trying to make the sound of an orchestra using the smallest things we could, which was essentially one microphone up to one string player at a time. We did most of it instrument by instrument. We had every single piece on a separate track so we were able to tweak things to no end. In one case, we did end up building a completely new composition out of single pieces we recorded for other songs. That actually ended up being used over the levee scene.

The end product is a stand alone piece of music that manages to evoke a raw and emotional story of its own.  At least, that's what you've been expressing to us!

And it's why we're so excited to announce that the Beasts of the Southern Wild soundtrack will be released on vinyl and CD on Tuesday, December 4th.

The vinyl is available for pre-order at this link.  You might consider purchasing it as a holiday gift for the music lover in your life!

In the meantime, check out the below featurette on the music of Beasts!

We caught up with Beasts of the Southern Wild director Benh Zeitlin and co-composer Dan Romer to discuss the score and Romer's "scientific ability" to match sound to what Zeitlin showed him onscreen.

Quvenzhané Wallis receives Key to the City!

In a ceremony last night, Quvenzhané Wallis was acknowledged and honored with the key to her hometown, Houma in Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana, for her work in Beasts of the Southern Wild.

It's a proud moment for everyone at Beasts HQ!

Photo via Fox Searchlight