A Boy Called Sailboat

A Boy Called Sailboat
Film poster
Directed byCameron Nugent
Written byCameron Nugent
Produced byAndrew Curry
Richard Gray
Nelson Khoury
Cameron Nugent
StarringLew Temple
Elizabeth De Razzo
Noel Gugliemi
Jake Busey
J. K. Simmons
CinematographyJohn Garrett
Edited byCameron Nugent
Music byLeonard Grigoryan
Slava Grigoryan
Production
companies
Yellow Brick Films
Sailboat Productions
iCandy Productions
Distributed byITN Distribution
Release date
Running time
92 minutes
CountriesUnited States
Australia
LanguagesEnglish
Spanish

A Boy Called Sailboat is a 2018 American-Australian comedy-drama film written and directed by Cameron Nugent and starring Julian Atocani Sanchez, Noel Gugliemi, Elizabeth De Razzo, Jake Busey, and J. K. Simmons.

Plot

The film revolves around a poor Hispanic family with a son named Sailboat. Sailboat's friend, Peeti, is obsessed with soccer, but has a disability that prevents him from playing the game. Sailboat finds a "little guitar" (actually a ukelele) in a pile of junk. He learns how to play it, and eventually creates and plays a song for his sick grandmother, who is in hospital.

Cast

Production

The film is written, directed, edited, and co-produced by Cameron Nugent.[1] It is his debut feature film as director.[2] The script was drafted over many years, and originally set in Melbourne, Australia, but later transposed to a desert town in New Mexico. It was produced in Silver City, New Mexico. One of the co-producers was Cameron's business partner Andrew Curry, whose family in Melbourne are much involved with the Australian film industry. Andrew's brother, Bernard Curry, plays many bit parts.[1]

Cinematography is by John Garrett.[1][a]

Other producers are Richard Gray and Nelson Khoury.[3]

Release

The Premiere Entertainment Group, based in Los Angeles, has worldwide rights to the film.[2]

The film was classified PG (Parental Guidance recommended) in Australia.[3]

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes the film has rating of 77%, based on 13 reviews.[4]

It received generally positive reviews from critics.[5] The Sydney Morning Herald called it a "delightfully original family film".[6]

One reviewer[specify] likened the film's technique to that of Wes Anderson, in its "hyper-stylized, whimsical settings and symmetrical staging".[7] Another[specify] thought the cinematography reminiscent of Wim Wenders' 1984 film Paris Texas.[1]

Accolades

A Boy Named Sailboat was nominated for the AACTA Award for Best Indie Film in the 10th AACTA Awards in 2020.[8]

At the ARIA Music Awards of 2020, its soundtrack was nominated for Best Original Soundtrack, Cast or Show Album.[9]

Footnotes

  1. ^ Gray says "Richard", but John is correct, and he cites some of his films.

References

  1. ^ a b c d Gray, Jenna (1 May 2023). "A Boy Called Sailboat: award winning indie film review". The Owl. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
  2. ^ a b Kay, Jeremy (17 February 2018). "Premiere selling JK Simmons family comedy 'A Boy Called Sailboat' (exclusive)". Screen Daily. Retrieved 26 July 2020.
  3. ^ a b "A Boy Called Sailboat". Australian Classification. 19 October 2019. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
  4. ^ "A Boy Called Sailboat". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved 10 October 2021.
  5. ^ LePire, Bobby (15 January 2019). "A Boy Called Sailboat". Film Threat. Retrieved 26 July 2020.
  6. ^ Yates, Rod (13 November 2018). "A Boy Called Sailboat attracts big name with bold approach to JK Simmons". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
  7. ^ Krieger, Deborah (31 January 2019). "A Boy Called Sailboat". Moviejawn. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
  8. ^ "Winners & Nominees". AACTA. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  9. ^ ARIA Award previous winners. "History Best Original Soundtrack, Cast or Show Album". Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Retrieved 16 July 2022.