Film + TV
In this section we feature members of the Bennington community whose work in film and TV has been highlighted by national publications. For other accolades, see the Performance Notes section.
Lifeboat
BRYN MOOSER ’01
Executive Producer
Our first sight of a migrant boat is astonishing. It’s a pontoon-style vessel, packed with young men with close-cropped hair, lined up in tightly packed rows, their legs dangling into the water. On that trip, the crew encounters three migrant boats—one wood, two inflatable, all packed. You wonder how they can stay afloat.
—THE NEW YORKER
Lifeboat, the critically acclaimed short documentary, was nominated for an Academy Award this year. It follows the harrowing journey Libyan refugees make in a small rubber boat.
The Kominsky Method
ALAN ARKIN ’55
Co-star
That balance between sentiment and scatology, grief and goofiness, is a tricky one to pull off. But the
show’s two Oscar-winning stars are in the excellent hands of sitcom giant Chuck Lorre.
—ROLLING STONE
Alan Arkin ’55 co-stars with Michael Douglas in The Kominsky Method, a Netflix original series about an aging actor making a living as an acting coach. For his performance in this role, Arkin was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series. Launched in 2018, the first eight episodes are available on Netflix with a new release expected soon.
Game of Thrones
PETER DINKLAGE ’91
Actor
But Bean was never the star of Game of Thrones. Peter Dinklage was, and he carried the series from beginning to end..but then Dinklage has done most of the show’s heavy lifting from the very beginning.
—THE LOS ANGELES TIMES
The Los Angeles Times was among one of hundreds of publications that raved in their review of the final performance given by lead actor Peter Dinklage ’91 who stars as Tyrion Lanister in HBO’s hit drama Game of Thrones. The last episode aired in May.
Full Mantis
JAKE MEGINSKY MFA ’09
Writer/director
MILFORD GRAVES, Faculty emeritus
Writer
The musician Milford Graves is a rare example of a truly holistic artist. This stunning documentary (written and directed by Jake Meginsky) does not offer anything like a conventional biography or career trajectory of the percussionist, who was and continues to be a unique force in jazz.
—THE NEW YORK TIMES (CRITIC’S PICK)
Dietland
Based on the novel by
SARAI WALKER MFA ’03
On Dietland, Plum, too, is driven to violent retribution, but the show effectively connects the dots between the pressures placed on women to be thin and pervasive issues of gender inequality and misogyny.
—ROLLING STONE
To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before
SOFIA ALVAREZ ’07
Screenwriter
If John Hughes were alive today, he might very well make a movie like To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, which doesn’t talk down to its audience about subjects such as sex and dating, but instead treats them as young adults, demonstrating how anyone’s initial attempts at romance are like learning to walk: We’re all a little bit wobbly at first.
—VARIETY
Variety recently named screenwriter Sofia Alvarez ’07 “one of 10 Screenwriters to Watch.” Alvarez, who wrote the screenplay To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, was invited to speak at the Whistler Film Festival about her work.