Fall Festival Preview: 40 Films That Could Debut In Venice, Toronto, Telluride or New York

As Cannes came to a close earlier this summer, speculation and predictions

immediately loomed for what was in store for the the major

festivals of the

very early fall (or, in some cases technically the very late summer). The 71th

edition of the Venice Film Festival will run August 27 to

September 6th, while Toronto will celebrate its 39th edition September 4-14. Telluride goes down in between on Labor Day

weekend. Add to that the 52nd New York Film Festival, which comes two weeks after Toronto and has as of late always nabbed a few major world premieres (“Life of Pi,” “Lincoln,” “Captain Phillips,” “The Social Network”), and we’re likely going to see a massive chunk of 2014’s best cinematic offerings all premiering within a six week time span.

The interesting thing this year is that there’s been some open conflict between some of these fests, as Toronto made a bold move in deciding that if filmmakers want one of its prestigious opening weekend slots, it must be a world or North American premiere. Which basically means they have to pick between Telluride or Toronto (whereas in the past many films have double-dipped).

Wherever the films end up premiering, though, it’s promises to be quite the collective lineup. David Fincher, Paul Thomas Anderson, Tim Burton, Todd Haynes, Angelina Jolie, David Gordon Green, Werner Herzog, Noah Baumbach and Stephen Daldry all have films in the potential mix. And that’s just the tip

of the iceberg.

So let the serious speculation begin: Which films

will be the mammoths of the fall festival circuit? Here’s a list of 40

possibilities, all new movies that haven’t played anywhere

yet, and seem at least reasonable bets to make their festival debuts at one of the noted four fests (in alphabetical order):

Before I Go To Sleep

Who Made It: Rowan Joffe (“Brighton Rock”)

Who’s In It: Nicole Kidman and Colin Firth, who seem like they are in everything together these days.

Where It Might Premiere: Toronto. It’s out in theaters September 12th and I doubt this is Venice’s cup of tea, so basically this would be press junket for before they go to theaters.

The Gist: “Before I Go Sleep” reunites Nicole Kidman and Colin Firth after “The Railway Man,” debuted in Toronto last year. This oughta given them back-to-back trips to Canadian red carpets, this time in an adaptation of S.J. Watson’s 2011 bestselling novel. It follows a woman who wakes up every day, remembering nothing as a result of a traumatic accident in her past. Until one day, a truth emerges and she’s forced to question everyone around her. Though it sounds pretty genre for festival play, but the star power alone should get it into TIFF.

Watch the trailer below:

Big Eyes

Who Made It: Tim Burton. And despite that, it actually looks like it could be good!

Who’s In It: Amy Adams, Christoph Waltz, Danny Huston, Krysten Ritter

Where It Might Premiere: Venice and/or Toronto make sense… Although given its Christmas release date, maybe distributor The Weinstein Company will hold out altogether (though we doubt it).

The Gist: Burton has gotten a

lot of flack as of late thanks to big budget,

critically panned films like “Alice in Wonderland” and “Dark Shadows.”

But he’s making a return to fantasy-free, low-budget fare here

— really for the first time since 1994’s “Ed Wood” (which is perhaps

his most critically acclaimed film). With a script from “Wood”

screenwriters Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski, “Big Eyes” takes on

the true story of husband and wife artists Walter and Margaret Keane

(Christoph Waltz and Amy Adams), the former of whom rose to fame in

1950s for his paintings of big-eyed kids. It sure sounds great on paper,

and here’s hoping it makes us completely

forget about “Dark Shadows” and anticipate a whole new era of work from

Burton.

Birdman

Who Made It: Alejandro González Iñárritu, in a major change of tone.

Who’s In It: Michael Keaton, Emma Stone, Edward Norton, Naomi Watts, Zach Galifianakis, Amy Ryan

Where It Might Premiere: We’d guess Venice, with Toronto and New York to follow (its in theaters care of Fox Searchlight October 17th).

The Gist: Inarritu’s past films have mostly headed to the Cannes Film Festival — and they’ve also mostly

been grim, foreign-language dramas that tackle issues of global and

social importance. His “Birdman,” on the other hand, is a comedy. Starring Michael

Keaton as an actor trying to regain his former glory on Broadway when

his days playing a famous superhero have long been gone, the film is already getting major buzz thanks to its trailer, and would surely be a hot ticket at whatever festival it makes its way to.

Carol

Who Made It: Todd Haynes, in his first feature film since 2007’s “I’m Not There”

Who’s In It: Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara, Kyle Chandler and Sarah Paulson (swoons all around)

Where It Might Premiere: Venice, for starters. If it’s ready at least (it finished shooting at the end of April)

The Gist: Based on Patricia Highsmith’s novel “The Price of Salt,” the film marks a double return for Todd Haynes: To the 1950s of “Far From Heaven,” and to the queer content of most of his earlier films. The film follows the relationship between two very different women in 1950s New York. A young woman in her 20s, Therese (Mara) is working in a department store and dreaming of a more fulfilling life when she meets Carol (Blanchett), an alluring woman trapped in a loveless, moneyed marriage. Everything unravels, and with this director and cast, we could not be more excited to see how.

The Cut

Who Made It: Fatih Akin, the German director behind “Head On” and “The Edge of Heaven”

Who’s In It: Tahar Rahim, Akin Gazi, Simon Abkarian

Where It Might Premiere: Venice seems like a lock at this point.

The Gist: Not much is known about Akin’s first film since 2009’s “Soul Kitchen” (try Googling it and you’ll find a “the plot is undisclosed at this time” over and over), but maybe that’s a good thing. The director rarely disappoints, and his co-screenwriter Mardik Martin comes with a fun fact that should be enough to hold us over until Venice likely offers us a synopsis: This his first feature film script in over 34 years. His last? “Raging Bull.”

The Drop

Who Made It: Michael R. Roskam (“Bullhead”)

Who’s In It: Tom Hardy, Noomi Rapace, James Gandolfini, Matthias Schoenaerts

Where It Might Premiere: We’d wage our bets on Toronto.

The Gist: The final work we’ll see from the late James Gandolfini, the film formerly known as “Animal Rescue” is the English language debut of “Bullhead” director Roskham, and follows an ex-con who finds himself at the center of a robbery gone awry. It’s set for release via Fox Searchlight on September 12th, suggesting heavily it will make its one and only festival stop at Toronto just before (though Fox Searchlight does love showing their films at Telluride).

Eden

Who Made It: Mia Hansen-Love (“Goodbye First Love”)

Who’s In It: Felix De Givry, Brady Corbet, Greta Gerwig, Golshifteh Farahani

Where It Might Premiere: Venice would be our guess.

The Gist: Following the life of a French DJ who’s credited with inventing “French house” — a type of French electronic music that became popular in the 1990s — everyone seemed pretty sure this would be at Cannes, but it wasn’t ready in time. That sets the stage for a fall festival debut, which is good news for fans of the up and coming French filmmaker (this time teaming up with American actors Greta Gerwig and Brady Corbet).

Every Thing Will Be Fine

Who Made It: Wim Wenders

Who’s In It: James Franco, Rachel McAdams, Charlotte Gainsbourg

Where It Might Premiere: Venice, maybe? Though it’s a Canadian co-production, which could help things swing Toronto’s way.

The Gist: Following up his remarkably successful, Oscar

nominated 3D documentary “Pina,” Wenders returns to narrative

filmmaking, but we’ll still be wearing the 3D glasses. From a script by

Bjorn Olaf Johannessen, the film tells the story of a writer (James Franco),

who loses control of his life after a car accident which kills a young

boy. It follows him over a period of 12 years as he tries to find

self-forgiveness, with Rachel McAdams (in a role originally set for Sarah

Polley) playing his girlfriend Kate. While clearly the plot does not

sound like your typical 3D fare, leave it to Wenders to offer us an

entirely new utilization of the format (as he did with “Pina”).

Far From The Madding Crowd

Who Made It: Thomas Vinterberg

Who’s In It: Carey Mulligan, Michael Sheen, Tom Sturridge, Matthias Schoenarts, Juno Temp

Where It Might Premiere: Fox Searchlight has delayed the release of the film until next May, though rumor has it that the film will make a fall festival debut anyway. Maybe just quietly at Telluride?

The Gist: Vinterberg is coming off his Academy Award-nominated “The Hunt” in

this promising adaptation of Thomas Hardy’s 19th century classic

— headlined by the ever reliable Carey Mulligan. She stars as a woman who inherits a

large farm and becomes romantically entangled with three men (Michael

Sheen, Tom Sturridge and Matthias Schoenaerts), and given Vinterberg has proven

adept at drawing out career best performances from his cast (Mads

Mikkelsen took home top acting honors at Cannes for his showstopping

turn in “The Hunt”), this could be quite the showcase for Mulligan (and everyone else involved, for that matter).

Gone Girl

Who Made It: David Fincher

Who’s In It: Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike, Neil Patrick Harris, Tyler Perry, Kim Dickens, Patrick Fugit

Where It Might Premiere: This smells like the kind of film New York could steal away from its earlier competition, as it did with Fincher’s “The Social Network.”

The Gist: One of the most anticipated films of the year, “Gone Girl” is adapted from Gillian Flynn’s massive bestseller (by Flynn herself) about a man suspected of killing his missing wife, and could probably do just fine without any festival play. But hey, you could have said the same about “Gravity” last year. And given its October 3rd release date, the timing is perfect to drum up some quick buzz and momentum, especially if it’s as strong as the people involved would suggest on paper.

Check out the recent trailer:

The Imitation Game

Who Made It: Morten Tyldum

Who’s In It: Benedict Cumberbatch, Keira Knightley, Matthew Goode, Mark Strong, Rory Kinnear, Charles Dance

Where It Might Premiere: Toronto sounds about right.

The Gist: After directing Norwegian films “Buddy”

and “Headhunters,” the latter being the highest-grossing Norwegian film

of all time, Tyldum has a lot to prove with “The Imitation Game.” With a

bigger budget, the backing of Harvey Weinstein, and a cast boasting the

unstoppable Benedict Cumberbatch, the film is about the British

mathematician Alan Turing (Cumberbatch) who was a successful

cryptographer during World II and was later prosecuted for his

homosexuality. The film also stars Keira Knightley and Matthew Goode,

and seems like the kind of thing made for awards season. Which would make Toronto a pretty perfect launching pad.

Inherent Vice

Who Made It: Paul Thomas Anderson

Who’s In It: Joaquin Phoenix, Benicio Del Toro, Reese Witherspoon, Josh Brolin, Maya Rudolph, Martin Short, Owen Wilson and Jena Malone.

Where It Might Premiere: Venice, a la “The Master”?

The Gist: Paul Thomas Anderson’s hugely anticipated follow-up to “The Master” would clearly be at the top

of almost anyone’s to-see list at whatever festival it hits. The director

has been in post-production on the film since the fall, though he tends

to take his time and the film’s release date isn’t until December. So

maybe

he’ll avoid the festival circuit altogether (which he basically did with

“There Will Be Blood” — save a quick stop at Fantastic Fest). But either way, we’ll be first in line when his

adaptation of Thomas Pynchon’s novel makes its debut.

The Judge

Who Made It: David Dobkin (“Wedding Crashers,” “Fred Claus”)

Who’s In It: Robert Downey Jr, Robert Duvall, Billy Bob Thornton, Vera Farmiga

Where It Might Premiere: Toronto.

The Gist: This looks like Oscar bait, straight up (save maybe the director’s past credits). And the first time Robert Downey Jr has even attempted that kind of film in some time (he got a nod for “Tropic Thunder,” but that didn’t seem so intentional). Toronto is always a great place to start a campaign, and that’s where we suspect we’ll first see Downey Jr. as a big city lawyer who returns to his childhood home where his father (Duvall), the town’s judge, is suspected of murder.

Kill The Messenger

Who Made It: Michael Cuesta

Who’s In It: Jeremy Renner, Michael Sheen, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Oliver Platt

Where It Might Premiere: Toronto.

The

Gist: Based on the true story of journalist Gary Webb (played by Renner in the film), “Kill The Messenger” follows a reporter who becomes the target of a smear campaign that drives him to the point of suicide after he exposes the CIA’s role in arming Contra rebels in Nicaragua and importing cocaine into California. Out in October (via Focus Features), this seems like a pretty safe bet for Toronto.

Life

Who Made It: Anton Corbijn

Who’s In It: Robert Pattinson, Dane DeHaan, Joel Edgerton, Ben Kingsley

Where It Might Premiere: Perhaps Venice, where Corbijn’s “The American” debuted in 2010

The Gist: Robert Pattinson continues his quest to make us forget about “Twilight” by hooking up with yet another accomplished director, this time Anton Corbijn. In “Life,” he’s portraying a photographer for Life Magazine is assigned to shoot pictures of James Dean (played by Dane DeHaan). In Corbijn’s hands, this has a whole lot of promise, and given it’s been in post production since March, it would make sense. Though it would make for the director’s second festival debut of the year — his “A Most Wanted Man” debuted at Sundance in January, and is hitting theaters this month.

The Look of Silence

Who Made It: Joshua Oppenheimer

Where It Might Premiere: Toronto would be our bet.

The Gist: Oppenheimer, who was nominated for an Oscar earlier this year for “The Act of Killing,” has been working on a follow-up to the film for some time, and it has been rumored to be heading for the fall festival circuit. Oppenheimer has said the “The Act of Killing” was always meant to be the first film of a pair, and “The Look of Silence” is that other half. The movie is said to have a more straightforward approach to the reenactments of “The Act of Killing,” offering a different perspective on the same issue.

Macbeth

Who Made It: Justin Kurzel (“The Snowtown Murders”)

Who’s In It: Michael Fassbender, Marion Cotillard, Jack Reynor, David Thewlis

Where It Might Premiere: Set for release at Christmas, maybe this is the kind of film that could quietly make a Telluride debut and skip the others?

The Gist: Shakespeare’s Scottish play about General Macbeth gets another cinematic adaptation, this time with none other than Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard in the leads. Director Justin Kurzel has yet to prove himself on this scale. Considering his project attracted those actors (and the Weinsteins) it seems safe to suggest he’s about to. Definitely something the Weinsteins are hoping will gain awards traction, it could hold out for a theatrical release. But it’s been in post since April, so it should likely be ready if they decide to go the festival route.

Manglehorn

Who Made It: David Gordon Green

Who’s In It: Al Pacino, Holly Hunter, Chris Messina

Where It Might Premiere: Venice, where Gordon Green’s “Joe” debuted last year?

The Gist: David Gordon Green has been remarkably prolific as of late, with two films out in the past year. Which makes it all the more likely that “Manglehorn” — a Texas-set story of an ex-con trying to go straight — his the festival circuit this Fall. It’s been wrapped since the end of last year, after all. And it could offer the kind of comeback performance from Al Pacino that any festival would be surely be happy to debut.

Men, Women & Children

Who Made It: Jason Reitman

Who’s In It: Adam Sandler, Jennifer Garner, Rosemarie DeWitt, Emma Thompson, Judy Greer, Kaitlyn Dever, Ansel Elgort

Where It Might Premiere: Reitman has almost always done a Telluride/Toronto debut, but these new rules might be problematic, even for a member of the family that the street surrounding Toronto’s festival center is named after.

The Gist: Adapted from Chad Kultgen’s book, Jason Reitman’s follow-up to last year’s somewhat tepidly received “Labor Day” is a comedic drama that looks at a suburban family in the internet era. It’s got a very notable cast, including a looking-for-redemption Adam Sandler (who could also receive some from a potential festival candidate not on this list, Thomas McCarthy’s “The Cobbler”).

Miss Julie

Who Made It: Liv Ullmann

Who’s In It: Jessica Chastain, Colin Farrell, Samantha Morton

Where It Might Premiere: Venice?

The Gist: Adapted from the 1888 play, the film follows the titular character (Chastain), the daughter of the Count who attempts to seduce her father’s valet, Jean (Farrell). Chastain has basically been on a roll since we first heard of her, so we find it hard to doubt her choices, and the fact that the legendary Ullmann is behind the camera certainly doesn’t hurt. So really it would be pretty shocking if the film — which is done — doesn’t premiere at one festival or another.

A Most Violent Year

Who Made It: JC Chandor

Who’s In It: Oscar Issac, Jessica Chastain (again!), Alessandro Nivola, David Oyelowo, Albert Brooks, Catalina Sandino Moreno.

Where It Might Premiere: Could go any which way, but Chandor has risen so quickly in the ranks that they’ll be fighting over this way.

The Gist: After garnering a screenplay Oscar nomination for the vastly underrated 2011

Wall Street drama “Margin Call”, Chandor returned last year with a

subtler, but nonetheless acclaimed film, “All is Lost,” starring a silent Robert Redford. It got snubbed by Oscar, so perhaps the third time is the charm with the highly anticipated crime drama “A Most Violent Year,” later this year. With Isaac and Chastain, no less, in front of the camera, it focuses on 1981—one of the most violent years in New York City’s history (hence the title).

My Old Lady

Who Made It: Israel Horovitz

Who’s In It: Maggie Smith, Kevin Kline, Kristin Scott Thomas, Dominique Pinon

Where It Might Premiere: Has Toronto written all over it.

The Gist: The ever-popular Maggie Smith stars in the directorial debut of Israel Horovitz, a film about an American (Kline) who inherits an apartment in Paris that comes with an unexpected resident (Smith). The film is in the can and ready to find some of the same box office that has met Smith with “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” and “Quartet,” the latter of which premiered in Toronto. Fun fact: Smith and Kristin Scott Thomas play mother and daughter in the film, the second time they’ve done so after “Keeping Mum.”

Nightcrawler

Who Made It: Dan Gilroy

Who’s In It: Jake Gyllenhaal, Bill Paxton, Rene Russo

Where It Might Premiere: Toronto

The Gist: After a bidding war broke out from footage shown at Cannes (Open Road won it, in the end), buzz has been big for “Nightcrawler,” which follows a young man (Gyllenhaal) who stumbles upon the underground world of L.A. freelance crime journalism. Directed by the younger brother of “Michael Clayton” director Tony Gilroy, it makes complete sense that it will pop up on the festival circuit, with Toronto definitely the safe predictive bet.

99 Homes

Who Made It: Ramin Bahrani

Who’s In It: Andrew Garfield, Michael Shannon, Laura Dern, Tim Guinee

Where It Might Premiere: Like his last film “At Any Price” in Venice?

The Gist: Andrew Garfield is out of his Spiderman suit and in “99 Homes,” Ramin Bahrani’s attempt to make up for the tepid response of his last film “At Any Price.” The film follows a father who struggles to get back the home that his family was evicted from by working for the greedy real estate broker who’s the source of his frustration. And beyond Garfield, it stars Michael Shannon and Laura Dern, which is alone enough reason to be curious about a film.

Phoenix

Who Made It: Christian Petzold

Who’s In It: Nina Hoss, Ronald Zehrfeld, Uwe Preuss, Nina Kunzendorf

Where It Might Premiere: Venice.

The Gist: German director Petzold follows up his universally acclaimed 2012 film “Barbara” with “Phoenix,” the story of a Holocaust survivor who comes home to try and find out if her husband betrayed her. With Petzold’s “Barbara” Nina Hoss in the lead, this sounds like it could be quite the showcase, the kind of highly anticipated world cinema any of these festivals would be happy to have.

A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting On Existence

Who Made It: Roy Andersson

Who’s In It: Holger Andersson, Nisse Vestblom

Where It Might Premiere: Venice.

The Gist: Everyone seemed certain this was heading to Cannes this year, but it didn’t turn up, making it all the more anticipated for the fall festival circuit (where it surely will debut in Venice?). After all, Swedish director Roy Andersson has only

made four feature films over the span of his 45 year career, so

it’s safe to say a new one will be the kind of event any festival will want to

host. From his 1970 romance film “A Swedish Love Story” to his 2000

feature “Songs from the Second Floor,” Andersson is world cinema royalty, and he will finally be

making his way back to the screen with “A Pigeon Sat on a Branch

Reflecting on Existence.” Focused on two men, a salesman and a guy who’s

not-exactly-with-it, the film’s premise is relatively vague. Still,

based on Andersson’s track record it’s undeniably something to look

forward to.

Queen of the Desert

Who Made It: Werner Herzog

Who’s In It: James Franco, Robert Pattinson, Nicole Kidman

Where It Might Premiere: Another likely bet for Venice. It’s been in post since March, so it all seems likely.

The Gist: Um, so James Franco and Robert Pattinson are starring in a Werner Herzog film. About Gertrude Bell. Who is played by Nicole Kidman. That’s all you need.

La Rançon de la Gloire

Who Made It: Xavier Beauvois

Who’s In It: Peter Coyote, Nadine Labaki, Olivier Rabourdin, Chiara Mastroianni

Where It Might Premiere: Venice would make sense.

The Gist: While many

of the films on this list have A-list American stars to give them an

extra push in the right direction, some of them rely entirely on their

offbeat storytelling. One such film in particular is Xavier Beauvois’ “La Rançon de la Gloire”

a film about a cash-struck man in 1970s Europe who has been recently

released from prison and gets the brilliant idea to kidnap the corpse of

revered comedic actor Charlie Chaplin in order to sell it back to his

family for a hefty ransom. It would mark Beavois’s first film after his award winning “Of Gods and Men” in 2010, and

we’d be happy to see what he has in store.

Rosewater

Who Made It: Jon Stewart (yes, that Jon Stewart)

Who’s In It: Gael García Bernal, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Dimitri Leonidas

Where It Might Premiere: Toronto seems to make the most sense (he showed footage for buyers there last year, and it has a Canadian connection).

The Gist: “The Daily Show” might arrive on the festival circuit should

host Jon Stewart make his way there with his directorial

debut, “Rosewater.” The comic took a leave of absence from his day job

back in

July of last year. Written by Stewart, Maziar Bahari and Aimee Molly, and based on

Maziar Bahari’s 2011 memoir “Then They Came For Me: A Family’s Story of

Love, Captivity, and Survival,” the film centers on an Iranian-Canadian

journalist (Bernal) detained in Tehran for over 100 days during the 2009

presidential election in Iran.

Squirrels To The Nuts

Who Made It: Peter

Bogdonavich

Who’s In It: Jennifer Aniston, Owen Wilson, Will Forte and Cybill

Shepherd

Where It Might Premiere: Toronto?

The Gist: It’s been well over a decade since

seminal American filmmaker (and sometime Indiewire blogger) Bogdonavich directed a narrative feature, and even as he’s remained busy

with journalistic pursuits and documentary work, it’s hard not to

wonder what sort of stories the man behind “The Last Picture Show” could

tell today. Wonder no longer: Aided by producers Wes Anderson and Noah

Baumbach, “Squirrels to the Nuts” finds Bogdonavich returning to the

screwball comedy genre that he explored so well with the likes of “Paper

Moon” and “What’s Up, Doc?” in the early seventies. With a high-profile

cast, in addition to a screenplay co-written by Bogdonavich and

ex-wife Louise Stratten, the project — in which Wilson plays a Broadway

director who falls in love with a prostitute — holds the potential to

realize some of Bodgdonavich’s old school charm with a fresh set of

faces. It wrapped shooting almost a year ago, so it’s definitely good to go.

St. Vincent

Who Made It: Theodore Melfi

Who’s In It: Bill Murray, Melissa McCarthy, Naomi Watts, Chris O’Dowd

Where It Might Premiere: Toronto or Telluride.

The Gist: From his own Blacklisted script,

filmmaker Theodore Melfi makes his directorial debut with “St. Vincent

De Van Nuys,” which finds none other than Bill Murray playing the the

title character, a misanthropic, bawdy, hedonistic war veteran who

becomes an unlikely mentor to the boy who lives next door (it could very well net Murray his second Oscar nomination). Melissa

McCarthy plays the boy’s mother, while Naomi Watts turns up as a Russian

prostitute who develops a close relationship with St. Vincent. The

script was compared to the likes of “As Good As It Gets” and “Silver

Linings Playbook,” so it could very well be an Oscar trick up The Weinstein Company’s sleeve this year.

Watch the trailer below and see for yourself:

Suite Française

Who Made It: Saul Dibb

Who’s In It: Michelle Williams, Matthias Schoenaerts, Kristin Scott Thomas, Sam Riley, Margot Robbie, Ruth Wilson

Where It Might Premiere: Toronto or Telluride

The Gist: Based on the novel of the same name

set in 1940s France, the source material has a pretty dramatic

backstory: the Jewish-Russian born author Irene Nemirovsky planned a

five-novel cycle beginning in 1940, just as forces overran northern

France. In the summer of 1942, Nemirovsky, who had converted to

Catholicism, was shipped to Auschwitz and the two completed parts of

Nemirovsky’s planned cycle were discovered only six decades later.

Though a film based on Nemirovsky’s story sounds compelling, so does the

book which Nemirovsky finished, on which the film is based. “Suite

Francaise” tells the story of a woman who falls for a

German officer posted in the town as she awaits her prison-of-war

husband’s return. The cast, with Williams playing the woman

opposite Schoenaerts as her lover, should bring this strong

material to life. Given it’s a

Weinstein Company release, the Oscar push has more or less already started, and Telluride or Toronto would both be nice places to make it official.

The Theory of Everything

Who Made It: James Marsh

Who’s In It: Felicity Jones, Eddie Redmayne, Charlie Cox, Emily Watson

Where It Might Premiere: We’d bet Toronto.

The Gist: A look at the relationship between the famous physicist Stephen Hawking (Redmayne) and his wife (Jones), this is definitely a film with awards season hopes, and given how competitive this season is, it’ll likely need a festival boost. But here’s hoping if that happens, it delivers, and gives Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones the awards attention that has escape their worthy performances in the past.

True Story

Who Made It: Rupert Goold

Who’s In It: Jonah Hill, James Franco, Maria Dizzia, Felicity Jones (again!)

Where It Might Premiere: Sounds like Toronto to us.

The Gist: James Franco makes his third and final appearance on this list in this drama centered around the relationship between journalist Michael Finkel (Jonah Hill) and Christian Longo (Franco), an FBI Most Wanted List murderer who for years lived outside the U.S. under Finkel’s name. It’s a pretty intriguing project, and the first dramatic pairing of Hill and Franco, reunited after “This is the End.” The big question mark is director Goold, who is making his debut here after directing a couple of British Shakespeare adaptations for television. Which is kind of intriguing in itself.

Three Hearts

Who Made It: Benoit Jacquot

Who’s In It: Chiara Mastroianni, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Catherine Deneuve (!)

Where It Might Premiere: Venice.

The Gist: Not much is known about the film other than it pairs mother and daughter Mastroianni and Deneuve with Charlotte Gainsbourg, but that is more than enough to get us excited for Jacquot’s follow-up for “Farewell My Queen,” which seems all but certain to debut in Venice.

Trash

Who Made It: Stephen Daldry

Who’s In It: Rooney Mara, Martin Sheen, Wagner Moura, Selton Mello

Where It Might Premiere: Toronto seems like a good fit.

The Gist: Stephen Daldry’s latest is based on Andy Mulligan’s novel, and follows three Brazilian kids who make a discovery in a garbage dump and then soon find themselves running from the cops and trying to right a wrong. Kids plus Daldry has equaled Oscar noms in the past with “Billy Elliot” and “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close,” and in fact, Daldry has yet to have a film not be nominated for either best picture or best director. So why not kick off his attempt to continue that streak in the awards season launching ground of Toronto?

Unbroken

Who Made It: Angelina Jolie

Who’s In It: Jack O’Connell, Domhnall Glesson, Garret Hedlund, Jai Courtney

Where It Might Premiere: Tough call. It could hold out for its Christmas release, or just play Telluride, or be one of New York’s big gets. Either way: this will be a big deal.

The Gist: From a script by the Coen Brothers, Angelina Jolie steps behind the camera for this chronicle of the life of Louis Zamperini, an Olympic runner who was taken prisoner by Japanese forces during World War II. The film has a whole lot of things going for it, and if it’s as good as it could be, having festival reviews drum up buzz would definitely be worth it. Jolie is a big sell in front of the camera, but this is the kind of film that’s going to need critical support and awards season love to turn into a hit.

While We’re Young or Untitled Public School Project

Who Made Them: Noah Baumbach

Who’s In Them: Ben Stiller, Naomi Watts, Adam Driver and Amanda Seyfriend are in “Young,” while “Untitled” stars Greta Gerwig, Lola Kirke and Rob Yang

Where They Might Premiere: Maybe one, maybe both, maybe neither could premiere at pretty much any of the four festivals under discussion.

The Gist: Two years after “Frances Ha” debuted on the fall festival circuit, Noah Baumbach

re-teams with “Greenberg” star Ben Stiller for a $10 million Scott Rudin

production (“While We’re Young”) about an uptight documentary filmmaker (wait, Ben Stiller

playing someone uptight?) and his wife (Naomi Watts) who try to loosen

up a bit by befriending a free spirited younger couple (Adam Driver and

Amanda Seyfried). It’s a great cast, and Baumbach is clearly on a roll

as of late. The film doesn’t have a release date yet (but is in post-production) — and Baumbach

also is in post-production on “Untitled Public School Project” with

Greta Gerwig — but one way or another, we’ll get us some more Baumbach

(or double the Baumbach) by year’s end — and maybe on the festival circuit as well?

Wild

Who Made It: Jean-Marc Vallée

Who’s In It: Reese Witherspoon, Gaby Hoffmann, Laura Dern

Where It Might Premiere: Telluride or Toronto

The Gist: Jean-Marc Vallée follows up his Oscar-winning Toronto Film Fest debut “Dallas Buyers Club” with another attempt at awards season ranks: “Wild,” an adaptation of Cheryl Strayed’s memoir about one woman’s 1,100-mile solo hike undertaken as a way to recover from a recent catastrophe. Reese Witherspoon — desperately seeking a hit as of late — stars, and Fox Searchlight has already picked it up for a December release. A stop on the festival circuit beforehand seems like a safe bet.

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