New gameplay footage from �Beyond: Two Souls� / David Cage and Ellen Page to attend the Tribeca Film Festival

Mon, 25 Mar 2013 23:31:23 +0100

David Cage and his team over at Quantic Dream have released new gameplay footage comprising three different scenes from the upcoming PS3 game �Beyond: Two Souls�. While each segment is only a few minutes long, they demonstrate the overall abilities the active player is able to obtain throughout the psychological action thriller.

The first scene takes place when Jodie Holmes is eight years old, and is being tested in a research facility to discover the breadth of her psychic abilities. She is held alone and tasked with guessing what card someone is holding up in an adjacent room. To successfully accomplish this task, the player can take control of Jodie�s spiritual companion Aiden and is then able to see through walls and over the female tester's shoulder revealing the correct card. After picking up the right card, Jodie loses control of Aiden. He then begins to frighten and torture the woman in the adjoining room by throwing large objects and locking the door. The video ends with the supernatural entity possessing one of the lab technicians observing the test.
Next, an action gameplay tutorial introduces the now grown and recognizable main protagonist in a training sequence with a striking countenance of Ellen Page. It shows how Jodie is trained to be a CIA agent, with her deflecting blows and eventually taking over her sparring partner before he is able to point a prop gun at her. Giving the player more time to react, combat is slowed immediately before each hit as she grapples with and punches her pretend attacker.
Concluding these segments in an impressive sequence titled the "Condenser scene", Holmes tries to escape a burning hospital. She uses Aiden to get to the lowest floor as he then proceeds to guide her through a safe path, offering help by means of removing an object that prevents the elevator from operating, breaking glass and tossing her a fire extinguisher.

Earlier last week, 100 journalists from around the world visited Quantic Dream's studio in Paris for an exclusive event. In the backdrop of the very motion capture room where Ellen�s and Willem Dafoe�s performances were recorded, founder and CEO David Cage showcased several new sequences from the game, featuring both the Jodie Holmes and entity gameplay. Here�s a rundown of the features and moments that stood out the most:

While there are still a few stilted performances among the supporting cast, the average caliber of voice talent is noticeably higher across the board compared to Quantic Dream's previous project �Heavy Rain�.
If you belong to the group of people who think of �Heavy Rain� as a ten-hour Quick Time Event, you will be thrilled to know that �Beyond: Two Souls� does away with long, uninterrupted combinations of arbitrary onscreen button prompts. There are button and six-axis prompts making isolated appearances here and there though. Basic interactions and combat now rely on pushing the right stick in the direction that seems most natural for the current action you need to perform. Want to press a button in game? Just press up on the stick to reach the corresponding hand out. If someone�s swinging a baseball bat at you, you just move the stick in the appropriate direction to block it. These are some interesting ideas, provided the final game can ensure that every required gesture is simple and immediately intuitive. If not, fights could quickly be reduced to difficult guessing games, which could be more annoying than the Quick Time Events were.
Even on the most basic level, �Beyond� represents a huge step in terms of gameplay diversity. Being able to swap between Jodie Holmes and Aiden delivers a unconventional game mechanic that will pave the way for much deeper puzzles and complex situations. However, the game will take things a step further with bigger, more action-oriented moments. The scenes presented at the event featured snippets of Jodie galloping through the desert on horseback, sniffing around for clues at a supernatural crime scene, and riding a motorcycle down a rainy highway on the run from the cops. All this hints at a surprising amount of action.

One of the biggest frustrations in casual adventure games is when you can�t figure out the action that is required to continue. Quantic Dream has always done a neat job avoiding that in its games by creating multiple solutions that are rooted in the logic of everyday life. Let's say you need to get through a glass pane. You can have Jodie chuck a chair through it or you can switch to Aiden and have him smash it with his telekinetic powers. But these are probably just two of the simplest actions the player can perform.
On the tech side, �Beyond� uses a new engine which allows cloning living actors, handling significant volumes of motion capture assets, and delivering high quality at the lowest cost. The 180-employee-strong team has nurtured ambitions towards bridging the gap between videogames and film, toiling away at the visual fidelity of its virtual performers while avoiding the AAA nexus of jingoistic shooters, space marines, zombies, and whatever other ready-made pitches other developers are chasing to reach those multi-million unit sales counts. According to director David Cage, many of the videogame�s graphic tricks only came about after the team started working for Sony�s next gen system, PS4, and then realized they might be able to apply some of the same techniques to the PS3.
�Beyond� is centered on questions about what happens after death. It lets the player take Jodie Holmes through 15 (8-23) years of her life on a journey to discover the true meaning of the entity, Aiden, who is alongside her throughout the story. She will get around 40 unique looks representing her at different points in time, which in turn means we are going to experience dozens of moments such as homelessness, pregnancy, an interactive birth sequence, parental worry, desperation, hunger, fear, pain, violence, suicide, camaraderie, hope, elation, horror, coldness, warmth and sadness. Rather than presenting these events as a straightforward narrative story, the game will jump around in time and leave it up to the player to fit together all of the given pieces.
Perhaps the most shocking revelation is that Willem Dafoe, an actor who made his name taking on menacing villains, will be playing one of the good guys. The relationship between his character, Nathan Dawkins, and Jodie Holmes seems complex, nuanced, and tender.

Additional articles on the latest developments can also be found on the websites of MTV Multiplayer, VG247 and The Verge.

In related news, �Beyond: Two Souls� has been chosen as an Official Selection by Tribeca Film Festival. Sony Entertainment will host a screening on April 27 with a new one-hour scene, a major trailer, a behind the scenes look and a "Tribeca Talks" panel featuring Ellen and David Cage. The session will be livestreamed on the PlayStation Blog.

Screening of �The East� at the South by Southwest Film Festival / Magnolia picks up �Touchy Feely� for distribution

Tue, 19 Mar 2013 23:32:12 +0100

As mentioned previously, the South by Southwest Film Conference and Festival chose �The East� as this year's closing night film. For this occasion Ellen headed to Austin, Texas last weekend, where she reunited with her friends and co-stars Zal Batmanglij, Brit Marling and Alexander Skarsg�rd to promote the movie a second time. The audience at the Paramount Theatre greatly enjoyed the event which is mirrored through numerous comments that were posted on various social networking sites such as Twitter, IMDb and other websites. Not only the eco-thriller itself was met with a positive response, but also the Q&A session following the screening was reportedly one of the best sessions out of the whole festival. After the official part of the event, the group moved on to Stubb's BBQ and stayed out until 4 o'clock in the morning, dancing and partying to the live music of HAIM as well as Zal's brother Rostam's band Vampire Weekend. Entertainment Weekly was invited to join director Zal Batmanglij and his three companions for the long night of celebration. An in depth article can be found on EW�s website.

From all the reviews I have read in the past couple of days, I liked the one written by Alicia Malone for IGN the most. She rated �The East� 8.5 out of 10 and thinks that "the filmmakers behind the great Sound of My Voice deliver another well-acted, thought-provoking thriller". While praising the ingenuity behind the script and the timely story as well as the fast pace of the movie, Malone explicitly mentioned Ellen Page's strong performance. The only negative point in her review is that Brit Marling's character Sarah is apparently a little too easily swayed into switching sides than is believable. But this doesn't change much of the overall positive impression.

In preparation for the SXSW screening, Fox Searchlight released a new poster and launched an interactive viral website at WeAreTheEast.com, which tests whether visitors meet the requirements to join the group. After you connect to the site through your Facebook account, a number of your own photos are put on display, and you must answer a series of questions honestly. Do you have what it takes to become a part of The East?

On a side note, Magnolia Pictures has acquired world distribution rights to �Touchy Feely�. "We are so happy to be working with the exquisitely talented Lynn Shelton again," said Magnolia President Eamonn Bowles. "Her mastery of character and generous understanding of real human emotions is as great as anyone�s working in film today." No release date has been given yet, but considering the company's moderate distribution policy, I would be actually surprised if the movie will hit the theatres in the course of this year. The complete press release is after the jump.

NEW YORK, NY (March 7, 2013) � The Wagner/Cuban Company�s Magnolia Pictures announced today that they�ve acquired world distribution rights to TOUCHY FEELY, the latest film from acclaimed writer/director Lynn Shelton. The acquisition marks a reunion between Shelton and Magnolia, the distributor of Shelton�s hit 2009 comedy HUMPDAY in 2009. TOUCHY FEELY, which made its world premiere in competition at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival, is Shelton�s follow-up film to the award-winning YOUR SISTER�S SISTER.

TOUCHY FEELY also marks the second collaboration between Lynn Shelton and Rosemarie DeWitt, who received an Independent Spirit Awards Best Supporting Actress nomination for her role in YOUR SISTER�S SISTER. The talented ensemble cast of TOUCHY FEELY also includes Josh Pais, Ellen Page, Scoot McNairy, Allison Janney, Ron Livingston and newcomer Tomo Nakayama (of the indie rock band Grand Hallway).

A closely observed examination of a family whose delicate psychic balance suddenly unravels. TOUCHY FEELY centers on Abby (Rosemarie DeWitt), a sought after massage therapist and a free spirit, while her brother Paul (Josh Pais) thrives on routine and convention, running a flagging dental practice and co-dependently enlisting the assistance of his emotionally stunted daughter Jenny (Ellen Page). Suddenly, transformation touches everyone. Abby develops an uncontrollable aversion to bodily contact, which not only makes her occupation impossible but severely hinders the passionate love life between her and her boyfriend (Scoot McNairy.) Meanwhile, rumors of Paul�s �healing touch� begin to miraculously invigorate his practice as well as his life outside the office.

TOUCHY FEELY was filmed on location in Shelton�s hometown and urban muse of Seattle. The film was produced by Steven Schardt.

�We are so happy to be working with the exquisitely talented Lynn Shelton again,� said Magnolia President Eamonn Bowles. �Her mastery of character and generous understanding of real human emotions is as great as anyone�s working in film today.�

"Who said you can't go home again? My experience with Magnolia on the release of HUMPDAY was magical, so I couldn't be more thrilled that we have found the perfect distribution partners for TOUCHY FEELY," said Shelton. "We look forward to collaborating with Eamonn and their entire team to share the film with audiences everywhere."

The deal for the film was negotiated by Dori Begley, Senior Vice President of Acquisitions at Magnolia, with Submarine and UTA on behalf of the filmmakers. Magnolia�s Christina Rogers will handle sales for the world.

Exclusive Sundance 2013 Special by Marcela / �Beyond: Two Souls� gets release date and Willem Dafoe

Sun, 03 Mar 2013 17:20:23 +0100

Good things come to those who wait. Here finally is EPO's long announced �Sundance Special� featuring exclusive reviews of both �Touchy Feely� and �The East� written by Marcela. She served as volunteer for the festival and agreed to share her experiences and provide some exclusive photos and videos from the event that you can check out below as well as in the gallery. We hope you like what we have put together for you!

Touchy Feely - Review

I was lucky enough to be the first ticket holder in line to attend the premier for Touchy Feely. I have been anxious to see it for a long time same with �The East�. Touchy Feely is premiered at the Eccles Theatre in Park City, UT at 12:00 PM on January 19, 2013. The director of Sundance introduces the film and Lynn Shelton onto the stage as she gives a little intro about the film.

Character info:

Rosemarie Dewitt -- Abby [Paul�s sister and Jenny�s aunt]
Ellen Page -- Jenny [Paul�s daughter]
Josh Pais -- Paul [ Dentist/Jenny�s father ]
Allison Janney -- Bronwyn [Abby�s masseuse/therapist/friend]
Tomo Nakayama -- Henry [First patient/singer]
Scoot Mcnairy -- (no character name given) [Abby�s boyfriend]

Ellen Page�s character (Jenny) starts off in the beginning of the scene looking very gloomy, lonely and continues to look that way throughout the entire film. Paul (Josh Pais) who plays Jenny�s father is blinded by his daughter�s livelihood which seems to be dismal by being his assistant at his dental clinic. Jenny is happy when it comes to cooking that in fact she insists in making the best homemade calzone for the man she crushes on who happens to be her aunt�s boyfriend (Scoot McNairy).

Jenny and Paul have the sweetest father/daughter relationship, yet they both have something in common, they are both lost. Paul and Jenny are not used to more than two patients a day until Jenny invites her good friend Henry (Tomo Nakayama) for a free cleansing. He complains about experiencing some pain and just by a touch from Paul he is magically cured. Thinking maybe that was out of the blue, Henry refers many of his friends and family to go to Paul�s dentistry to see him cure more people. Henry praises Jenny and Paul constantly for curing his pain after suffering for two years, which kept him from singing. Soon Paul and Jenny see there is a huge waiting line for patients to see the dentist to get �cured�.

Jenny is striving to be a chef in the future and in fact, she fills out plenty of Culinary College Applications, but does not send them out, due to money shortage and the fear of having to leave her father behind. Abby�s (Rosemarie Dewitt) character on the other hand brings more confusion to the film but at the same time she is rather intriguing. Abby plays a masseuse who all of a sudden gets scared of commitment when asked to move in with her boyfriend. She begins to feel strange about skin and isn�t able to touch him or anyone else. Abby goes to her personal masseuse, Bronwyn (Allison Janney) this hippy, bubbly friend who advises Abby to take Ecstasy to relieve some stress. Abby is a mother figure to Jenny and encourages her to explore the world, but Jenny refuses. Henry meets with Jenny to give her debut tickets to see him perform live after 2 years, along with a gift that puts the only smile on her face during the film. Henry performs an amazing song, playing guitar where you see the emotion in each of the character�s faces. Tomo Nakayama (Henry) brought great attention during the Q&A session at Sundance where audience members were dying to find out where his song can be downloaded. Henry is from Washington, where Lynn Shelton had first heard him play in a caf� and casted him immediately.

The movie was sweet, and caring, but at the same time the ending was a little �lost�. It ended with a lot of unanswered questions, but during the Q&A Lynn Shelton pointed out that she purposely left it �mysterious� so that the audience could speculate what would happen next ... I guess they can imagine their own ending for this film? I was lucky enough to ask Ellen a question that was recommended by Domink Keppner the author/designer of the EPO website since I was too nervous to think of one myself.

Q: This is for Ellen Page, I know you play a dentist�s assistant ... I�m wondering how scared you are from the dentist in real life?
A: I can�t say I�m particularly afraid of the dentist. I�d say I�m neutral about the dentist. I wouldn�t say there was some sort of incredible excitement (Laughter) about going to the dentist. But I guess I�m not afraid. But I�d say it�s like a fair neutral. It's like you know how I am about needles it's also like a neutral ... like a neutral zone. (Laughter)

The East - Review

The ticketholder line for The East was so long! Sundancers were ready to see this Eco thriller that Zal has been teasing us about and finally the day had come! The East premiered at the Eccles Theatre in Park City, UT at 3:30 PM on January 20, 2013. Zal gave a small intro before showing his film as we all waited anxiously on the edge of our seats.

Character info:

Brit Marling -� Sarah [Detective Spy]
Ellen Page -� Izzy [The East member/Benji�s lover]
Alexander Skarsgard -- Benji [The East leader/ Izzy�s lover]
Wilbur Fitzgerald -- Robert McCabe [Leader of community/The East�s target]

The film starts off with a bang as Izzy (Ellen Page) narrates what sounds like the ritual that her anarchist gang follows ... which goes something like this:

"We don�t care how rich you are...We want all those who are guilty to experience the terror of their crime ... it�s easy when it�s not your life ... easy when it�s not your home but when it�s your fault, it shouldn�t be so easy to sleep at night especially when we�ll know where you live. Lie to us, we�ll lie to you. Spy on us, we�ll spy on you. Poison us, we�ll poison you. We are The East". While Izzy chants this ritual, the opening scene is a bit daunting with synchronized images of a house being broken into and ultimately destroyed by oil being dumped in its living room along with the shattering of windows etc. by The East. The film continues with scenes of damage being done to the community as well; such as pharmaceuticals generating poisoned pills that are sold to the country which are ultimately killing people. Robert McCabe (Wilbur Fitzgerald) is stated as a leader in the community who�s at fault for throwing bad water, and oil spills into the lakes/rivers killing their animals and poisoning the community. Sarah (Brit Marling) who is one of the writers of the film and lead actress plays a young detective who yearns to go undercover and finds out who this gang of terrorists really are. As an audience member you feel for "The East" and want to side with them but at the same time they are secretly committing heinous crimes by going after anyone involved in the area of production.

Brit Marling gets the chance to spy on them and reports to her boss. She lies to her boyfriend about going to Dubai when really she is going a few blocks away into the wilderness to be with The East. Benji (Alex Skarsgard) plays the main leader who oversees all of the group�s decisions. The East has their own way of life, by living in a dark cabin away from society, yet they still manage to have human recreation with one another. Ellen (Izzy) who happens to be Benji�s lover comes off very cold towards Sarah and wants nothing to do with her. One of the most talked about scenes after the film was when Izzy meets Sarah in a closed room and asks her to wear a white straight jacket otherwise she couldn�t have dinner. Sarah looking rather puzzled does as Izzy desires, and proceeds to the dining room where everyone is staring at her. Benji asks her to begin eating. As an audience member, this kept me at the edge of my seat wondering what the heck she is going to do next! And I found myself asking myself: how can someone eat with their arms strapped with a huge wooden spoon and a bowl on the table?! It�s not possible; unless you attempt to eat like a dog. And that�s exactly what Sarah did. She began to stuff her head in the bowl because she was unable to maneuver her arms. She stops and then Benji gives the cue for the rest of the gang to dine. You begin to see everything unfold so beautifully with every other person picking up the wooden spoon with their mouth scooping the food and then feeding it to the next person, in an impressively systematized fashion. It brought to my attention that Ellen�s character was a mix of Hard Candy with a touch of Super except she never smiled or laughed. She was very fierce, a fighter, and extremely demanding all because she is heartbroken by what McCabe has done to their land.

The East has "Jams" which means attack. They plan out who has done what and appear innocent only as a means to poison/hurt the people involved. One of the jaw dropping jams was when Ellen is looking drop dead gorgeous in a dark blue dress to have "dinner" with her father who she hasn�t seen in years. Meanwhile the rest of her crew is keeping an eye on her and the father for what they have planned next. Overall this movie was so amazing! It had a great flow, each scene had its own unique intensity, and nothing was tedious. Ellen as always did a great performance as well as the other cast mates.

Meanwhile, �The East� has been selected to screen as the closing night film at the South By Southwest Film Conference and Festival (SXSW), which runs from March 8-16 in Austin, Texas. Word is that Zal Batmanglij, Brit Marling, Alexander Skarsg�rd and Ellen are scheduled to attend this event. The movie will also be in US theatres starting May 31, 2013 in a limited release.

At this point I would like to thank everyone who contributed to this special news article. In particular, Marcela for all her efforts, her commitment, the nice conversations and for grabbing some collectibles in Park City. Also my proofreaders Wayne and Trisha for their tireless work as well as Ryan Burton for contributing a photo from the Chicago screening of �Touchy Feely�. Concluding thanks to myself for spending almost 2 days (the entire weekend) with formatting and coding this article, editing and converting the video clips and uploading all the stuff you can access here.

It has become apparent that the rumors are true regarding Willem Dafoe's involvement in the upcoming PS3 video game �Beyond: Two Souls�. Last Friday Quantic Dream released a new trailer and new gameplay footage showing the actor as Nathan Dawkins, a government scientist who works with Jodie Holmes to analyse her powers. He apparently becomes a mentor and father figure to the main protagonist and will play an emotional and likely tragical part within the story.

In this context, Sony has confirmed that the game will be released on October 8, 2013 in North America (with details on additional territories still to come) and announced preorder bonuses. Those who reserve a copy at GameStop (or EB Games in Canada) will receive an exclusive 30-minute playable additional scene DLC. And while supplies last, all pre-ordering customers will get a free upgrade to the special edition of the game, which includes a steelbook packaging, a behind-the-scenes video feature, the game's soundtrack, a PS3 dynamic theme, and a PlayStation Network avatar bundle.

� Beyond: Two Souls - Willem Dafoe Gameplay Trailer (03/01/2013) �

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(Format: AVI | Codec: XviD | Duration: 1:29 min | Resolution: 640x360 | Size: 12,6 MB)
� Sony Computer Entertainment Europe / Quantic Dream. All rights reserved.

� Beyond: Two Souls - Behind The Scenes Footage (03/01/2013) �

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(Format: AVI | Codec: XviD | Duration: 2:23 min | Resolution: 640x360 | Size: 20,2 MB)
� Sony Computer Entertainment Europe / Quantic Dream. All rights reserved.

Ellen attends the 2013 Spirit Awards, meets �Harry Potter� and presents award to Austrian director Michael Haneke

Sun, 24 Feb 2013 20:07:55 +0100

Ellen attended the 2013 Film Independent Spirit Awards at Santa Monica Beach on Saturday afternoon, where she and Daniel Radcliffe presented the award for "Best International Film" to Austrian director Michael Haneke for his touching drama �Amour�. Her �The East� co-star Brit Marling was up for "Best Supporting Female" and "Best First Feature" for �Sound of My Voice�, but came away empty handed. The big winner of the event was David O. Russell�s romantic dramedy �Silver Linings Playbook�, taking home four prizes out of five nominations, including "Best Feature", "Best Director", "Best Screenplay", and "Best Female Lead" for Jennifer Lawrence.

Ellen Page to make directorial debut with �Miss Stevens� starring comic talent Anna Faris

Fri, 08 Feb 2013 21:13:00 +0100

While being attached to the mutant sequel �X-Men: Days of Future Past�, the feature film adaptations of �Freeheld� and �Into the Forest�, Michel Gondry's ambitious musical project �The Return of the Ice Kids� as well as the yet-to-be-confirmed comedy �Look Who�s Coming to Dinner�, Ellen Page will also step behind the camera to make her directorial debut on a movie called �Miss Stevens� in the foreseeable future. Written by Julia Hart (�The Keeping Room�) and produced by Gilbert Films (�The Kids Are All Right�) and Anonymous Content (�Winter�s Bone�), the romantic-comedy centers on a depressed teacher played by comic actress Anna Faris, who chaperones a group of high-school students on a trip to a state drama competition. Thanks to the positive influence of the youngsters entrusted to her care, the experience ultimately gives her a fresh perspective on life.

It looks like �Miss Stevens� could be aiming for a potential shoot in the fall as both Page and Faris will be busy with other projects for the next few months. I will, of course, keep you informed about any new developments as they come up!

Ellen Page Online

New gameplay footage from �Beyond: Two Souls� / David Cage and Ellen Page to attend the Tribeca Film Festival

Screening of �The East� at the South by Southwest Film Festival / Magnolia picks up �Touchy Feely� for distribution

Exclusive Sundance 2013 Special by Marcela / �Beyond: Two Souls� gets release date and Willem Dafoe

Ellen attends the 2013 Spirit Awards, meets �Harry Potter� and presents award to Austrian director Michael Haneke

Ellen Page to make directorial debut with �Miss Stevens� starring comic talent Anna Faris