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James Schamus |
Two of the top contenders for the 78 th annual Academy Awards have close ties to the Film Division of Columbia's School of the Arts (SoA). Brokeback Mountain, nominated for eight academy awards, the most of any other film, was produced by James Schamus, associate professor of film at SoA, with Mike Hausman, adjunct professor of film at SoA, sharing an associate producer credit. Walk the Line, with five nominations, was co-written and directed by film division alumnus James Mangold (SoA '99).
Brokeback Mountain has been the film to beat this awards season. Aside from its Oscar nominations for best director, best actor, best supporting actor (Jake Gyllenhaal, CC '02), best supporting actress, best picture, best adapted screenplay, cinematography and best original score, Brokeback Mountain won best picture honors from the Golden Globes (drama), the Broadcast Film Critics Association and the New York Film Critics Circle.
Likewise, Walk the Line, nominated for five Oscars, including best actor, best actress, film editing, sound mixing and costume design, has won Golden Globe awards for best picture (musical or comedy); best actor for Joaquin Phoenix; and best actress for Reese Witherspoon.
Those at the SoA are excited, but not surprised by the news. "Learning from award-winning producers, such as James Schamus, is one reason Columbia's Film Division has attracted such talented film students in recent years," said Bette Gordon, acting chair of the Film Division. "Our faculty, students and alumni, such as James Mangold, continually reach the highest levels of artistic achievement and professionalism in their films."
The Film Division of the School of the Arts teaches film as a storytelling medium, with concentrations in directing, writing and producing. The Film Division is a launching pad for emerging talent and its award-winning graduates set the standard for independent cinema. The faculty of the Film Division includes Dan Kleinman, Ira Deutchman, Bette Gordon, Annette Insdorf, Tom Kalin, Eric Mendelsohn and James Schamus, among others.
Wowing Sundance
In addition to collecting Oscar nominations, faculty, alumni or current students of Columbia's Film Division wrote, directed, or produced eleven films at the recently concluded Sundance Film Festival. Three films in particular, Friends with Money, The Night Listener and Little Miss Sunshine, made lasting impressions upon dealmakers and audiences. Friends with Money, written and directed by Nicole Holofcener (SoA '88), was chosen as the opening night film. Little Miss Sunshine, produced by Albert Berger (SoA '83), sold to Fox Searchlight for $10.5 million -- the highest price ever paid for a feature film at Sundance. The North American rights to The Night Listener, directed and co-written by Patrick Stettner (SoA '95) and produced by Jeff Sharp (SoA '01) were sold to Miramax for $3 million.
About James Schamus
James Schamus, an associate professor at Columbia, is also co-president of Focus Features, where he oversees the finance, production and distribution of numerous films, including the 2002 Oscar winner: The Pianist. Schamus has a long history of collaboration as writer and producer with Ang Lee. This partnership has resulted in eight major feature films, including Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; The Ice Storm; The Wedding Banquet, and The Hulk. His awards include four Grand Prize winners at the Sundance Film Festival. He is also a widely published film historian and theorist.
About James Mangold
James Mangold's first major film, Heavy, won the Grand Jury Prize for Best Director at the Sundance Film Festival in 1995. Other Mangold films include Cop Land (1997) featuring Sylvester Stallone and Robert DeNiro (screened at the Cannes Film Festival) and Girl, Interrupted (1999), for which Angelina Jolie won an Oscar for best supporting actress, as well as Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild awards.
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