New Bond Alert
June 27 — Happy Friday! If I got you excited for a new James Bond announcement with that headline, I’m SO sorry – we do not yet know who will be donning a tuxedo to play 007 himself. But we do know who will be directing it.
Denis Villeneuve will direct the next Bond movie for Amazon MGM Studios. As much as I like Denis, I don’t love this pick. He’s clearly proven himself quite adept at franchise filmmaking – “Dune,” “Blade Runner 2049,” – and it’s not that I don’t think he would make an interesting Bond film. But at this point, I’d rather have an “original Denis” – I’m looking for the next “Arrival,” not another franchise offering.
Now that the director is sorted away, who do you think will be sippin’ martinis on our screens? Dev Patel? Aaron Taylor-Johnson? Harris Dickinson? Let me know your thoughts.
Without further ado … Action!
🗓️ The Atlanta Jewish Film Festival has announced its 2026 dates. Mark your calendars for Feb. 18-March 3 for theatrical screenings, and March 6-15 for virtual.
🏆 Chris Escobar, owner of the Plaza and Tara Theatres, recently received the inaugural Lois Reitzes Leader of the Arts Award for his work in independent film. See Lois present him with the award here.
🤝 The Georgia Film Academy and Assembly Studios have partnered to build a new training facility for students, set to open on Aug. 18. See what GFA Executive Director Scott Votaw had to say about the new facility here.
🎭 The Alliance Theatre has named Brandon Kahn as its new managing director. In other Alliance news, I recently interviewed composer Christian Magby about his work on the Alliance’s new musical “Milo Imagines the World.” Check that conversation out here.
📽️ Cinema Souterrain, an underground Atlanta film screening series, is back tonight! The films in question are a 20th anniversary screening of “Independent, Doing Major Things,” and a showing of local filmmaker Artemus Jenkins’ “How to Be a Dope Artist.” The event is free to attend, plus popcorn is on the house. Register here and BYOB!
💸 California is expanding its film and television tax incentive to $750 million a year, more than doubling its current cap of $330 million. The expansion was announced hours after the state handed out $96 million in tax incentives for 48 productions.
🇨🇦 Yet another Steven Soderbergh movie, a dark comedy called “The Christophers,” will play this year, premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival. Nia DaCosta’s new film “Hedda” will also premiere at the festival.
✝️ A TV series called “It’s Not Like That” is currently filming in Georgia. The distributor/network listed on the Georgia Film Office’s website is Chick-fil-a Play, which is the fast-food restaurant’s recently launched entertainment app. Amazon also has a project called “It’s Not Like That“ in development. It’s unclear if these two shows are related. Another new project listed on the film office’s website is called “The Funny Thing About Love.” No further information could be found.
This week’s newsletter includes an interview with director Shoshannah Stern about her Marlee Matlin documentary, as well as a look inside the locally made documentary “Made in Doraville.” We’ve also got a review of “F1,” a look at what’s at the movies this weekend, a new episode of Crash Zoom, and some reading and listening recommendations for your lunch break.
Thanks for reading!
Sammie
☀️ Sometimes the best summer moments are the quiet ones – rocking on a porch swing, listening to the water lap against the dock, or feeling the warmth of the sun on your face with nowhere to be. At Lake Oconee, relaxation isn’t just encouraged – it’s part of the lifestyle. Find your reason to linger longer this summer at Lake Oconee. SPONSOR MESSAGE
Shoshannah Stern on her documentary, ‘Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore’
🎬 In 1987, 21-year-old Marlee Matlin won the Best Actress Oscar for her role in “Children of a Lesser God.” She is still the youngest person to ever receive the Best Actress award, and, until 2022, was the only deaf person to ever receive an Oscar, period.
At that very young age, Matlin was thrust into the spotlight and asked to represent the needs of an entire community. In the new documentary, “Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore,” filmmaker Shoshannah Stern explores the ups and downs in Matlin’s life, including her advocacy, like her campaign for closed captions; her relationship with William Hurt, whom she accused of physical and sexual abuse back in 2009; and her journey to feeling less alone.
I recently interviewed Stern, who is also deaf, about the movie. We talked about her relationship with Matlin, as well as how she worked to make a documentary, which is so often about sound, speak in its silent moments.
🍿 Check out our conversation here.
$10M to Help Atlanta Entrepreneurs Expand
SPONSORED BY THRIVING CITIES FUND
🏙️ Two Atlanta-based companies, Flock Safety and Homegrown, have partnered to launch the $10M Thriving Cities Fund, supporting multi-location brick-and-mortar entrepreneurs across the city.
Entrepreneurs in Atlanta and beyond can now access growth capital without selling their ownership or putting their personal assets up as collateral. Neighborhood businesses like El Tesoro, Sugarcoat, and Switchyards were among the first to benefit.
➞ Is there a multi-location brick-and-mortar business you love? Send them to Thriving Cities Fund or Homegrown to learn more.
A year later, ‘Made in Doraville’ documentary debuts
🍑 In June of 2024, I spoke with a group of local Doraville women looking to make a documentary about their hometown. Almost exactly a year later, “Made in Doraville” played at the Tara Theatre on June 21 to a bustling crowd.
The film, which runs at about 40 minutes long, covers a number of Doraville’s historical events, from a refinery fire in the 1970s to the closure of the town’s General Motors plant in 2008.
But what the filmmakers – Karen Ketchum, Lisa Edmondson, and Caroline Camick – really aim to explore and honor are simply the people of Doraville and their resilience. A year after our first conversation, I spoke with the three women again about their journey to the screening.
💌 Check out that conversation here.
‘F1’ is about teamwork, and also Brad Pitt
WEEKLY FILM REVIEW
🏎️ “It’s not about the money.” In Joseph Kosinski’s “F1,” retired and semi-disgraced racecar driver Sonny Hayes (Brad Pitt) repeats this line often – usually in reference to questions about why he feels the need to cram himself into a metal box and drive in circles at speeds of over 200 mph.
So, what is it about then? For Sonny, it’s about that feeling you get when you drive, the one that makes you feel like you’re flying. The movie itself – a bang-up, invigorating summer blockbuster – tries to give us that same feeling. For the most part, it excels, particularly when it comes to Kosinski’s ability to tell a story within an action sequence.
But the film would also like you to believe that it’s about teamwork, and finding middle ground, and coming together to achieve a common goal – and that’s where “F1” butts up against its star and his persona in rather interesting ways.
At the Movies!
If you’re looking for a movie to see in theaters this week, here’s what you’ve got to look forward to! Since there will be no Scene next week, I’ve also included some Fourth of July week entries as well. Enjoy!
Movies releasing this weekend:
🏎️ “F1”
💄 “M3GAN 2.0”
🎥 “Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore” (Tara)
🇮🇷 “Tatami” (Tara)
🥛 “Hot Milk”
🦕 “Jurassic World Rebirth” (July 2)
🌾 “40 Acres” (July 2)
Special Events:
🤝 “Mutual Appreciation” in 35mm @ The Plaza (Friday-Saturday)
⬇️ “Going Down” in 4K @ The Plaza (Saturday-Thursday)
💔 “The Room” in 35mm w/ Greg Sestero @ The Plaza (Saturday-Sunday)
🏳️🌈 Cinequeer Film Night @ The Plaza (Sunday)
🛍️ “Clueless” 30th anniversary screening @ multiple cinemas (Sunday-Monday)
🎸 “This is Spinal Tap” 41st anniversary screening @ multiple cinemas (July 5-7)
🇨🇳 “Shanghai Blues” @ The Tara (Friday-Thursday)
🐦 “The Birdcage” @ The Tara (Sunday)
🐑 “Brokeback Mountain” 20th Anniversary @ The Tara (Sunday & Wednesday)
☀️ Sometimes the best summer moments are the quiet ones — rocking on a porch swing, listening to the water lap against the dock, or feeling the warmth of the sun on your face with nowhere to be. At Lake Oconee, relaxation isn’t just encouraged — it’s part of the lifestyle. Find your reason to linger longer this summer at Lake Oconee. SPONSOR MESSAGE
Crash Zoom: New York Times Top 10s and Zaslav’s pay cut
🔟 Welcome to Crash Zoom, a podcast where we take a deep dive into film and entertainment industry news!
Each week, join my cohost Aaron Strand and I as we explore how things happening at the highest level trickle down and affect the independent artist. This week, we discuss Emmy submissions, streaming’s win over linear television, and more.
🎙️ Check out the episode here!
Lights, Camera, Action!
💦 If you need a good laugh, try out this piece from Fran Hoepfner, who has declared 2025 the Year of Spit. If you haven’t seen “Sinners” yet (which, why not go ahead and change that tonight?), then you know exactly what she’s talking about. Check out her piece here, you won’t be disappointed – “Spit isn’t just safe now — it’s marketing material,” is one of the best lines of the year.
✍️ Is it too early to start thinking about the Oscars? Probably, but that never stopped me before! This week on Vanity Fair’s Little Gold Men podcast, the hosts answer questions about this upcoming Oscar season, covering everything from Springsteen to “28 Years Later.” Check out the episode here.
💯 The New York Times is counting down its top 100 movies of the century thus far, and also asking directors, actors, and film lovers alike to submit their own ballots. If you’ve ever wondered what movies Pedro Almodóvar, Stephen King, or Molly Ringwald think are the best, here’s your chance to find out.
🖊️ Today’s Scene was edited by Julie E. Bloemeke.
