Celine Held

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Celine Held
Born1990 (1990)[1]
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.
EducationNew York University (BFA)
Occupation(s)Director, writer, actress
WebsiteOfficial website

Celine Held is an American and British film director, writer, and actress. Her debut feature film Topside, co-directed with her partner Logan George, premiered at the 77th Venice International Film Festival.[2] Her short film Caroline that she co-wrote, co-directed and starred in, was nominated for the Short Film Palme d'Or at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.[3] Her additional short film work has premiered at Sundance Film Festival and at South by Southwest.[4]

Early life and education[edit]

Held was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and is a US and UK citizen.[5]

Career[edit]

Short films[edit]

Held and George's first short film, Mouse, premiered at South by Southwest in 2017.[6] Held was then named among the "25 New Faces of Independent Film" in Filmmaker Magazine's annual list with her partner Logan George in 2017.[7] Their second short film Lockdown premiered at Sundance Film Festival.[8]

Held and George's short film Caroline was nominated for the Short Film Palme d'Or at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival and South by Southwest.[9] Caroline was also short-listed for the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film at the 91st Academy Awards.[10] Held also played the mother of the titular character in Caroline, a role that she reprised for Held and George's feature film debut Topside.

Topside[edit]

Held and George's first feature film Topside premiered at 77th Venice International Film Festival.[11] Topside won the Mario Serandrei Award for Best Technical Achievement at Venice,[12] and the jury award for Best Director at South by Southwest.[13] Topside has been praised by critics, landing on The Hollywood Reporter's list of the 20 Best Films From the Toronto and Venice Festivals.[14] Sheri Linden of The Hollywood Reporter said the film is "a striking debut, cinematic and affecting."[15] Eric Kohn of Indiewire called the debut film "riveting," saying, "Logan George and Celine Held's debut is a taut mother-daughter survivor story with a breakthrough performance [at] its center."[16]

Held has also been praised for her pivotal role in Topside, with critics calling her performance "harrowing," "unnerving," and "gutwrenching."[17]

Held & George's research for their feature film debut Topside has been extensive. The pair created a documentary on homelessness 50 Moments, which premiered at South by Southwest.[18] Held & George spent time in the tunnels before filming on Topside, and credit the inspiration for the film to books The Mole People: Life in the Tunnels Beneath New York City by Jennifer Toth and The Tunnel: the Underground Homeless of New York City by Margaret Morton.[19]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "SXSW 2020 Film Awards". New York University. April 15, 2020. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  2. ^ Nick Vivarelli (July 21, 2020). "Venice Critics' Week Lineup to Include 'The Rossellinis,' U.S. drama 'Topside". Variety. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  3. ^ Ben Dalton (April 11, 2018). "Cannes announces short films selection for 2018 Competition and Cinéfondation". Screen Daily. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  4. ^ Cody Corrall (September 3, 2020). "Venice 2020 Women Directors: Meet Celine Held – "Topside"". Women and Hollywood. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  5. ^ Maria Sciullo (August 28, 2020). "Butler native and Vincentian alum to premiere movie at Venice Film Festival". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  6. ^ Claudette Godfrey (October 25, 2017). "2017 SXSW Film Festival Selections: Midnight Shorts [Video]". South by Southwest. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  7. ^ Scott Macaulay (October 25, 2018). "Celine Held and Logan George". Filmmaker Magazine. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  8. ^ "2019 SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL: INDIE EPISODIC, SHORTS AND SPECIAL EVENTS ANNOUNCED". Sundance Film Festival. December 3, 2018. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
  9. ^ Claudette Godfrey (November 26, 2018). "2018 SXSW Film Festival Selections: Narrative Shorts [Video]". South by Southwest. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  10. ^ Sarah Salovaara (December 20, 2018). "Short Film: Caroline, Directed by Celine Held and Logan George". Filmmaker Magazine. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  11. ^ Eric Freehling (July 22, 2020). "'Topside' to launch at Venice". Butler Eagle. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
  12. ^ Steve Pond (September 12, 2020). "'Nomadland' Wins Golden Lion Award at Venice Film Festival". The Wrap. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  13. ^ Dave McNary (March 24, 2020). "SXSW Film Festival Unveils 2020 Winners After Cancellation". Variety. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  14. ^ David Rooney, Jordan Mintzer, Deborah Young, Stephen Dalton, Sheri Linden, Boyd van Hoeij (September 19, 2020). "'Hollywood Reporter Critics' Picks: 20 Best Films From the Toronto and Venice Festivals'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved October 29, 2020.{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  15. ^ Sheri Linden (September 8, 2020). "Topside Film Review, Venice 2020". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  16. ^ Eric Kohn (September 8, 2020). "'Topside' Review: A Child Raised Beneath the NYC Subways Sees the Light in Riveting Debut". Indiewire. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  17. ^ Rodrigo Perez (September 9, 2020). "'Topside': A Mother & Daughter Struggle To Survive New York's Underground Tunnels In A Wrenching Drama [Venice Review]". The Playlist. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  18. ^ Hailey Hess (February 5, 2020). "Announcing SXSW 2020 Art Program Installations". SXSW. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  19. ^ Neha Aziz (March 2, 2020). "Logan George and Celine Held Discuss Their Drama Topside – SXSW Filmmaker In Focus". South by Southwest. Retrieved October 30, 2020.


External links[edit]

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