The Great Artist
Official film poster
Directed byIndrani Pal-Chaudhuri
Screenplay by
Produced by
    • Sunny Vachher
  • Matthew Postlethwaite
Starring
CinematographyRay Wongchinda
Edited bySean Olson
Music by
  • Richi Carter (Original Score By)
  • Jon Altham (Original Song By)
Production
company
Purpose Co.
Release date
  • December 31, 2020 (2020-12-31) (TopShorts Film Festival)
Running time
23 min
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

The Great Artist is a 2020 American short drama film directed by Indrani Pal-Chaudhuri and written and produced by Sunny Vachher and Matthew Postlethwaite. Starring Matthew Postlethwaite, the rest of the cast includes Marimar Vega, Rain Valdez and Benjamin Patterson.[1]

The film was produced during the COVID-19 pandemic and enjoyed a successful festival run, which began virtually on December 31, 2020 in that month's edition of the 2020 TopShorts Film Festival. This resulted in it winning and being nominated for numerous awards, including for Postlethwaite's performance, Indrani Pal-Chaudhuri's directing, Richi Carter's score and the original song "Brave" (which was written by Matthew Postlethwaite, Jon Altham and Pia Toscano; performed by Pia Toscano), which made history as the first song from a live-action short film to win the Hollywood Music in Media Award for Outstanding Song Written for Visual Media (Short Film). It screened at the Emerging Filmmaker Showcase at Cannes Film Festival.[2] The film qualified for consideration for the Live Action Short Film Shortlist for the 93rd Academy Awards[3] and was selected by The Hollywood Reporter as one of the Oscars' Top 5 Live Action Shorts.

Premise

A gifted artist finds himself in a broken balance between creating world class art and the all too silent struggle of self care as his life begins to unravel because of his Dissociative Identity Disorder.[4]

Cast

Production

Development and pre-production

Postlethwaite created the story and wrote the film with Vachher at the beginning of January 2020 as a way to bring awareness to mental health, inspired by Postlethwaite’s experience when he was admitted to the hospital in his 20s for feeling suicidal. Postlethwaite further added in an interview for Albuquerque Journal, "As I talk about it, it becomes easier. A lot of people are more open to talk about their struggles with mental health. We need to know that we’re not alone. That’s what we’re trying to do with the film. We’re trying to open the conversation.”[5] Later that year, Postlethwaite and Producer Sunny Vachher's production company, Purpose Co., received the green-light from SAG-AFTRA to move forward with production, and received endorsements from various major mental health organizations.[6]

The film has the support of major organizations such as GLAAD, American Foundation of Suicide Prevention, National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, Movember, Kindred, Tethr, The Tramuto Foundation, and Stand with Impact, with the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) further sponsoring the film at the Julien Dubuque International Film Festival.

Filming

Filming took place in Los Angeles, California with COVID-19 safety protocols in place, with production ending with zero positive cases for the virus.

Reception

"It is the climax that is truly brilliant -- one that earned the film a consideration for the Live Action Short Film shortlist for the 93rd Academy Awards...Are we all striving to achieve 'greatness' by holding our authentic self hostage? This is the haunting question that Pal-Chaudhuri leaves her viewers with," according to Prerna Mittra of The Indian Express.

Markos Papadatos of Digital Journal was positive about the film and praised Postlethwaite's performance, writing that "...he is not afraid to be raw and vulnerable, where one can really hear his heart in this short movie. He layers his emotions well and he delves beyond the surface to bring this complex character to life." He then went on to add that "It truly underscores the fact that for great art to be produced, there needs to be major suffering. Viewers are bound to find it warm, heartfelt, and relatable, especially in the era of COVID-19."[7]

Christopher Henry of The Blunt Post praised the directing, cinematography, writing and performances, concluding his review that "It manages not only to humanize not only the illness of DID but to humanize the idea of an artist as well. That behind the carefully constructed work of beauty, lies the turmoil and sorrow that one had to endure to produce it."[4]

Accolades

Awards
Year Award Category Recipients Result
2020 Aphrodite Film Awards[8] December Edition Award - Best Piece of Music (Only Music) Jon Altham, Pia Toscano and Matthew Postlethwaite (for "Brave") Semi-Finalist
Athens International Monthly Art Film Festival[9] Honorable Mention - Best Original Song Won
Beyond the Curve International Film Festival[10] December Award - Best Original Song Nominated
Calcutta International Cult Film Festival[11] Golden Fox Award - Best Film Score - Soundtrack Richi Carter Nominated
Best Film Score - Soundtrack Won
Festigious International Film Festival[12] December Award - Best Picture The Great Artist Won
December Award - Best Actor Matthew Postlethwaite Won
Festival Award - Best Original Score Richi Carter Won
Global Film Festival Awards[13] December Award - Best Composer Won
Global Music Awards Outstanding Musical Achievement For Female Voice Pia Toscano (for "Brave") Won
International Music Video Underground Best Lyrics Written for Song Jon Altham, Pia Toscano and Matthew Postlethwaite (for "Brave") Nominated
Best Original Song Nominated
Los Angeles Film Awards[14] LAFA December Award - Best Narrative Feature The Great Artist Nominated
LAFA December Award - Best Drama Won
LAFA December Award - Best LGBTQ Film Nominated
LAFA December Award - Best Actor Matthew Postlethwaite Nominated
LAFA December Award - Honorable Mention - Best Actor Won
Festival Award - Best Score Richi Carter Won
New York International Film Awards November Monthly Award - Best Song Jon Altham, Pia Toscano and Matthew Postlethwaite (for "Brave") Won
Queen Palm International Film Festival Fourth Quarter Performance - Best Original Song Nominated
Fourth Quarter Performance - Best Music Richi Carter Nominated
TopShorts Film Festival[15] Film of the Month - December 2020 The Great Artist Won
December Award - Best Narrative Film Nominated
December Award - Best Drama Film Won
December Award - Best LGBTQ Film Won
December Award - Best Actor Matthew Postlethwaite Won
December Award - Best Score Richi Carter Won
Toronto Independent Film Festival of Cift[16] December Award - Best Female Director Indrani Pal-Chaudhuri Won
World International Film Festival Best Song Jon Altham, Pia Toscano and Matthew Postlethwaite (for "Brave") Nominated
2021 11th Hollywood Music in Media Awards[17] Best Original Song — Short Film Won
Atlanta Award-Qualifying Film Festival[18] Best Original Song Nominated

References

  1. ↑ "OSCAR Contender Live Action Short Film Created During the Pandemic". Monterey County Weekly. Archived from the original on January 30, 2021. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  2. ↑ https://www.ampav.com/student-programs/cannes-emerging-filmmaker-showcase/2021-finalists-emerging-filmmaker-showcase/
  3. ↑ "Hollywood Music in Media Awards Announces 2021 Nominees; Kenny Loggins Set for Lifetime Honor (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. January 15, 2021. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  4. 1 2 "Film Review: The Great Artist". The Blunt Post. January 13, 2021. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  5. ↑ "Pushing boundaries: Rising actor's film 'The Great Artist' shines a spotlight on mental health". Albuquerque Journal. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  6. ↑ "Purpose Co. obtained its green light from SAG-AFTRA to shoot in Los Angeles". Chhattisgarh.News. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  7. ↑ Papadatos, Markos (February 18, 2021). "Review: 'The Great Artist' is a captivating and Oscar-worthy short film". Digital Journal. Retrieved April 19, 2021.
  8. ↑ "Semi & Finalists 2020". Aphrodite Film Awards. Retrieved February 6, 2021.
  9. ↑ "Athens International Monthly Art Film Festival (2020)". IMDb.
  10. ↑ "NOVEMBER - DECEMBER RESULTS, 2020". BCIFF. Archived from the original on January 27, 2021. Retrieved February 6, 2021.
  11. ↑ "Monthly Archives: December 2020". Calcutta International Cult Film Festival. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  12. ↑ "Winners: December 2020". Festigious. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  13. ↑ "GFF Awards Winners - December 2020". Global Film Festival Awards. Retrieved February 11, 2021.
  14. ↑ "LAFA Winners - December 2020". Los Angeles Film Awards. January 2, 2021. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  15. ↑ "DECEMBER 2020 (2021 Qualifying)". TopShorts. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  16. ↑ "Winners – December 2020". Toronto Independent Festival of Cift. January 17, 2021. Retrieved February 1, 2021.
  17. ↑ "Hollywood Music in Media Award Winners Include Scores for 'Soul,' 'News of the World,' 'Minari,' 'Queen's Gambit'". Variety. January 28, 2021. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
  18. ↑ "Atlanta Award-Qualifying Film Festival (2021)". IMDb.
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