May 2013 - James Franco to Star in 'Every Thing Will Be Fine'
March 2013 - PushYourArt - 3D Art Contest 2013
March 2013 - Robby Müller receives ASC International Award
January 2013 - Wim at National Film and Television School in London
November 2012 - Wim Wenders and Ang Lee meet in Berlin to talk 3D
May 24 Robert Redford Joins Wim Wenders' CATHEDRALS OF CULTURE Project
Salk Institute
Robert Redford has joined Wim Wenders' 3D project ‘Cathedrals of Culture‘, a documentary series of six films, each by a different director.
Redford, who has been earning rave reviews in Cannes this year for his performance as the abandoned sailor in All Is Lost, will direct the episode dedicated to the Salk Institute in La Jolla, California, a building by architect Louis Kahn.
Said Redford, "The Salk Institute has spoken to me since I first laid eyes on it. The result of a collaboration between an artist and a scientist, it epitomizes a design that understands how dramatically creativity drives discovery. I thank Wim Wenders for this terrific opportunity".
Wenders commented: "I’m utterly happy and excited to welcome Robert Redford as one of the fellow directors for our series. The six of us will each dedicate all our attention, craft and art to an outstanding building, not only trying to uncover its soul, but also making the best possible use of this wonderful new tool we’ve been given: 3D."
British director James Marsh, Danish filmmaker Michael Madsen, Brazilian Karim Ainouz and Austrian helmer Michael Glawogger, along with Wenders and Redford, will each helm a 26-minute episode in the series, allowing the audience to experience the intimate exchange between the buildings and their users.
The 'Cathedrals of Culture' series will air in 3D and 2D in 2014.
May 7 James Franco to Star in Wim Wenders' 'Every Thing Will Be Fine'
James Franco
LONDON – James Franco has signed to star in director Wim Wenders’ 3D project Every Thing Will Be Fine. Franco will play a writer who accidentally causes the death of a child in the story that follows him over the next 12 years as he looks for the footprints of the accident on his life, as well as on the life of the child’s mother....
James Franco is a busy guy, but he seems willing to make time for the right project, and that includes working with one of the best-respected filmmakers in the European cinema.
It was announced Tuesday that Franco has signed on to star in "Every Thing Will Be Fine," a new film from director Win Wenders. The celebrated German filmmaker is best known for the movies "Wings of Desire," "Paris, Texas," "Until The End Of The World," "The American Friend," and the Oscar-nominated dance film "Pina." Wenders has most recently been working in documentaries, short pieces, and European television projects, and "Every Thing Will Be Fine" will be his first dramatic feature since "Palermo Shooting" in 2008.
In "Every Thing Will Be Fine," Franco will play an author who accidentally finds himself implicated in the death of a child. Over the next twelve years, the author struggles to make peace with himself as he watches the effects the child's death has on its family, as well as the toll responsibility takes on himself.
Unusual for what seems like a small scale and personal story, Wenders has announced "Every Thing Will Be Fine" will be shot in 3-D. Wenders told a reporter, "I’m convinced that the medium lends itself really well to an intimate story."
The film is slated to begin shooting in August on locations in Montreal. Bjorn-Olaf Johannessen wrote the screenplay, and Gian-Piero Ringel will produce through Wenders' production company Neue Road Movies....
Wim Wenders at the PushYourArt Public conference at Palais de Tokyo in Paris
PushYourArt is the first international competition involving artistic creation and technological innovation. Theme for this year was the 3D relief.
Following the reception of more than one hundred application from all over Europe, the prestigious jury selected 10 candidates to participate in a 3-day Master Class with 3D experts and contemporary art specialists in Paris.
Wim Wenders came especially to Paris to have a special encounter with the candidates. Fervent advocate of the 3D, he asked the candidates about their artistic projects and touched on several topics: the genesis of his movie Pina, the artistic potential of the 3D and the current use of this medium by the film industry.
Wim Wenders also gave a public conference at Palais de Tokyo on Saturday March 23rd. Over 250 spectators attended the conference and watched If building could talk, a 3D movie of the German director presented in 2010 at the Biennial of architecture of Venice.
Watch an Interview with Wim and find more info on the PushYourArt WEBSITE
Fore more info and additional photos of the Master Class, CLICK HERE
Mar 17 Cinematographer Robby Müller receives ASC International Award
Wim Wenders honoring Robby Müller at the Eye Institute in Amsterdam
The American Society of Cinematographers honored cinematographer Robby Müller with the ASC International Award. As Robby Müller could not travel to Los Angeles to receive the award in person for health reasons, the ASC and the Netherlands Society of Cinematographers organized a special event at the Eye Institute in Amsterdam for him. Wim Wenders MC'd the evening and talked about their numerous collaborations. The evening concluded with a showing of ALICE IN THE CITIES, as kindly requested by Robby himself.
Nov 29 Wim Wenders and Ang Lee meet in Berlin to talk 3D
Wim Wenders, Ang Lee and moderator Thomas Schultze, Assistant editor in chief of the Film magazine Blickpunkt Film.
3D CINEMA - A REVOLUTION IN EMOTIONAL STORYTELLING
Directors Ang Lee (BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN) und Wim Wenders met at the Akademie der Künste in Berlin to exchange thoughts about 3D as a medium for feature length motion pictures. The summit of the two 3D enthusiasts was co-hosted by Twentieth Century Fox of Germany who are distributing Lee's new film 'Life of Pi'. Filmed in 3D, LIFE OF PI makes brilliant use of the technology to take us inside of the story. (Avatar director James Cameron speaks of the film as a 'masterpiece').
Wim Wenders:
"3D is a fantastic instrument for story-telling. It takes the audience inside the situation on the screen." Wim Wenders promises to further develop and expand the use of 3D technology for his new feature film 'Every Thing Will Be Fine', which is in the developing stages and will start shooting soon. Currently Wim Wenders is shooting the first part of a Neue Road Movies produced 3D documentary tv series, "Cathedrals of Culture", which intents to capture 'the soul of buildings. Focusing on ten archetypal buildings across Europe it will feature 10 directors and ten films. Wim Wenders segment has him looking for the soul of the Philharmonic Concert hall in Berlin, Germany.
"Notes From a Day In the Life of an Architect" showing in Venice
Wim Wenders' short film about the Swiss Pritzker Architecture Prize winner Peter Zumthor will show at the Venice Architecture Biennale from 29.8 - 25.11 at an old lighthouse. (map)
Peter Zumthor is an architect admired throughout the world, and one whose uncompromising approach to his work leads him to reject the trappings of star architecture. German filmmaker Wim Wenders meets the architect at work in his small studio in the village of Haldenstein, Switzerland. Wenders' film seeks to bring to light the combination of poetry, practicality and radical simplicity behind Zumthor's work.
Alanis Morisette's new video 'Guardian' is a tribute to 'Wings of Desire'
Alanis Morisette: "This video is a tip of the hat to Wim Wenders' 'Wings of Desire'. It is the 25th anniversary of the film having been released. The full-circle poetry of my having written 'Uninvited' for its remake, combined with my love of the original movie, combined with my love of Germany, having lived there for three years as a child, combined most importantly with how this video is such a visual extension of the song 'Guardian,' which is so close to my heart."
"Guardian" is the first single off Alanis Morissette's upcoming album Havoc and Bright Lights, available for pre-order on iTunes on July 31.
Wim Wenders' exhibit Places, Strange and Quiet extended to August 18th
"When you travel a lot, and when you love to just wander around and get lost, you can end up in the strangest spots. … I don’t know, it must be some sort of built-in radar that often directs me to places that are strangely quiet, or quietly strange.” Wim Wenders
Art Collector Harald Falckenberg, Wim Wenders, Donata Wenders and Dirk Luckow (director of the Deichtorhallen Hamburg) photo by Thies Rätzke more images
photos: Henning Rogge / Deichtorhallen
March 12 3D cinema pioneer and Pina stereographer Alain Derobe dies
March 10 Wim Wenders awarded Honorary Ring by the City of Wuppertal
Wim Wenders bears the Honorary Ring of the city of Wuppertal. Mayor Peter Jung awarded Wim with the title on March 10 during a ceremony at the historical Stadthalle. It was also meant to be a thank you for the idea to incorporate Wuppertal into the movie Pina, Jung said. Wim Wenders was moved by the honor: "Wuppertal grew close to my heart. I owe a lot to the city." more (German only)
Wim Wenders' Laudatio for photographer James Nachtwey in Dresden, Germany
Snow fell on Dresden the evening before a ceremony commemorating the city’s catastrophic destruction nearly seventy years ago. On the night of February 13, 1945, Allied bombs claimed 25,000 lives, many of them civilians. Inside the reconstructed Semperoper opera house of the Saxon capital, the atmosphere was dignified. A very warm welcome was given to the recipient of the third Dresden International Peace Prize: the photographer James Nachtwey. Mikhail Gorbachev was honored in 2010, and Daniel Barenboim the year after.
As a white shroud covered the ashes of the past, a large and often emotional audience listened to Wim Wenders’ brilliant tribute to James Nachtwey, the director’s favorite photographer along with Sebastião Salgado. One could feel in the auditorium a shared sense of civil and professional commitment to the community. source: lalettredelaphotographie.com
Click here to read the Tribute to James Nachtwey by Wim Wenders.
February 26 Wim and Donata on the Red Carpet at the 84th Academy Awards
Producer Gian-Piero Ringel, director Wim Wenders and his wife Donata Wenders on the Red Carpet enroute to the 84th Academy Awards ceremony at the Kodak Theater in Los Angeles. Pina, Wim Wenders' 3D film for the late Pina Bausch, was nominated in the category Best Documentary Feature. Although it did not win, we were all excited and proud for Pina having received the recognition of being nominated for the most coveted prize in cinema. Thank You.
February 26 The shop at wendersimages.com is now open for business
You can now purchase postcard sets and posters on www.wendersimages.com, Wim Wenders' and Donata Wenders' website which is solely dedicated to the photographic work.
February Learning to Read a Dance (in 3D!)
".......A woman wearing little more than an accordion stands on stage and shouts, “Soon it will be spring again!” What an inspiring announcement. The world’s dark stage will be transformed with life and color. And so begins Pina—director Wim Wenders’ tribute to German choreographer Pina Bausch—one of the most enjoyable experiences of my life at the movies.
Buy two tickets. Bring someone who doubts that movies can surprise us anymore. Invite someone who, like me, has never appreciated modern dance, and you may see them leave the theater with more music in their steps. Bring somebody who isn’t yet excited about stereoscopic cinema; they’ll change their minds......"
January Pina now playing in New York / Los Angeles
click on image for larger flyer
December 26 New York - Christmas Box Office: 'Pina' Scores Top Holiday Debut
For New York's specialty filmgoers, it was a very "Pina" Christmas. According to Rentrak estimates, the Wim Wenders-directed documentary that looks at the work of dance artist Pina Bausch grossed $88,399 from three screens in New York over the 4-day holiday weekend frame, averaging a fantastic $29,466.
"Pina opened to rave reviews and we are thrilled with the numbers," a Sundance Selects rep said today. "The film will stay exclusive in NY until an expansion to top markets early in January."
December 19 Theater on Film - Pina critiqued in the New Yorker
by Anthony Lane
".......The question is, What do you get from “Pina” that you could not get from watching the Tanztheater live? Answer: More than you could possibly believe. This is not just a matter of the al-fresco scenes, or of our proximity to the dancers, near enough to hear them pant. There is also Wenders’s decision to shoot the film in 3-D, and, in so doing, to goad stereoscopic technology into its first leap since “Avatar.” Not before time; 3-D was stalling badly, but now we are back on track, thanks to Scorsese’s “Hugo” and to Wenders, who takes no more than a minute to flourish his credentials. Dancers file across a stage, then loop around a transparent curtain. We watch for a moment from the wings, as they process toward us, and our vision carries us down the line of people and through the veil. You can trawl through cinema and find few more beautiful, more unforced, or more fleeting representations of the bourn between the living and the dead......"
December 3 Pina wins European Film Award for Best Documentary
The 24th European Film Awards were presented on 3 December2011 in Berlin, Germany. The winners were selected by the over 2,500 members of the European Film Academy. Wim Wenders' PINA took home the prize for Best Documentary. more information
November 19 How Los Angeles Invented the World
Was Ever a City More Bewildering?
Wim Wenders, John Singleton, Richard Rodriguez, and Others Grapple With the Hidden, Violent, Beautiful, Sunny, Dreamy Mystery That Is Los Angeles
Images of Los Angeles in art, film, television, and advertising have captivated global audiences for decades. This weekend, a group of filmmakers, critics, historians, and writers visited Zócalo at the Getty Center to participate in three panels exploring how L.A. has shaped the world.
The half-day Zócalo/Getty conference, entitled “How Los Angeles Invented the World,” was part of Pacific Standard Time, an initiative of the Getty with arts institutions across Southern California. Directors William Friedkin (To Live and Die in L.A. and The Exorcist), Wim Wenders (Paris, Texas and The Million Dollar Hotel), and John Singleton (Boyz n the Hood), essayist Richard Rodriguez, critics Kenneth Turan and Richard Schickel, and some the country’s most prominent curators, historians, and journalists filled the Harold M. Williams Auditorium to capacity, with an overflow crowd watching in a nearby simulcast room...
October New York Film Festival - HBO Directors Dialogue
At the 49th New York Film Festival "Pina" director Wim Wenders sat down with Associate Program Director Scott Foundas for an HBO Films Directors Dialogue about the film, 3D cinema, and his career and process.
October 3 Wim talks about Peter Przygodda, who died on October 2, 2011.
Peter and I went back for 42 years.
He edited my student film, „Summer in the City“ in 1969
and since then we worked on more than 20 feature films together.....
SEPTEMBER 22PINA is awarded the Gilde Film Prize 2011 in Leipzig
Pina receives the main German Arthouse-Cinema-Prize - the Gilde Film Prize - during the Filmkunst Messe at the Alten Landratsamt in the German city of Leipzig. Pina won in the category Best Documentary.
Pina celebrates its US premiere at the Telluride Film Festival. The festival's website states the following about the Festival Program Guide:
"It’s a secret. What's playing in the Telluride program is not revealed until you reach the mountains. In what has become our tradition, three distinguished artists will be honored with a silver medallion, one presented each night of the Festival.... FESTIVAL WEBSITE
Just a week from now, PINA will premiere in Canada at the Toronto International Film Festival. The premiere is slated for September 8. Visit the FESTIVAL WEBSITE for screening times.
July 4thWim talks about Peter Falk and their cooperation on Wings of Desire
June 11thToronto International Stereoscopic 3D Conference
MAY 26The 'Deutsche Dokumentarfilmpreis 2011' goes to PINAmore at dokville.de
MAY 26Interview with Wim Wenders in the British Journal of Photography
“Taking pictures is a very solitary thing, at least for me,” says Wenders. “That’s why I wouldn’t even want to have an assistant with me, because the very presence of somebody else would make that more important than my relation to the place. And to immerse in a place is strictly only possible when you are on your own. You can fake it and you can pretend to want to listen to a place but as soon as there is someone else there, even if it is just a bystander looking at what you are doing, it is over. You are no longer in the privileged position of being a listener.”
APR 15 - MAY 14 Places, strange and quiet - Photographs by Wim Wenders
Haunch of Venison - London
"When you travel a lot, and when you love to just wander around and get lost, you can end up in the strangest spots. … I don’t know, it must be some sort of built-in radar that often directs me to places that are strangely quiet, or quietly strange.” Wim Wenders
From his iconic images of exteriors and buildings to his panoramic depictions of towns and landscapes, this book presents the full range of Wenders’s photography.....
Get the catalogue: English / German
See the works and installation photos at the Haunch of Venison Gallery Website
APR 26My week in pictures: Wim Wenders -
A week in the life of the film director
click on image
to view
Wim
Wenders and Neue Road Movies on Facebook, Twitter and
YouTube
Wings
of Desire and Paris, Texas on BLU-RAY
Criterion's
Blu-ray edition of Wings of Desire is downright heavenly...... The print is in pristine
condition, with nary a nick, mark or speck of
dirt to be found. Grain is handled respectively,
which benefits the film-like quality of the transfer.
Black levels and picture detail are both strong,
and I cannot detect any sort of DNR, black crush,
edge enhancement or compression artifacts at all.....
