Last week a group of New York Film Academy (NYFA) students and alumni were part of a selected audience invited to see the new movie “Miss Sloane,” starring two-time Oscar-nominated actress, Jessica Chastain, before it hit the theaters this past Friday. The verdict from our film specialists is a thumbs up!
“The plot is so thrilling that it kept me on my toes from beginning to end. I had a blast,” says BFA Acting student Stefan Leach. His peer Champayne Marte, also enrolled in the same program, agrees: “I’ve never enjoyed a political movie before. It was mind-blowing to learn how the game is played behind closed doors,” she pointed out.
In “Miss Sloane,” Jessica Chastain plays a ruthless lobbyist in Washington D.C. who is notorious for winning at all costs. She’s faced with her greatest career challenge when she turns down a virtually unrefusable offer from the gun lobby and joins a boutique firm to help pass a law requiring more rigorous background checks. From there, a brisk cat-and-mouse game unfolds, directed masterfully by Oscar-nominated John Madden (“The Debt,” “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel”).
For BFA Acting students Faith Jibowu and Paola Lendof, the highlight of “Miss Sloane” was seeing a powerhouse woman on the silver screen: “Jessica Chastain is fantastic, her performance surpassed all my expectations, it was really inspiring,” said Faith. “There were definitely stellar moments of acting shared with the audience, it was just amazing,” added Paola.
MFA Producing student Amari Agee underlined the intelligent plot: “I didn’t see the whole twist coming, which made her character really remarkable and surprisingly likable,” says Amari, who was snapping directly from the screening room as NYFA ambassador on social media.
Alumnus Andhika Satria (MA Film & Media ‘16) was one of the most excited before the screening, since he is a huge fan of Jessica Chastain. Little did he know, his country of origin, Indonesia, has a prominent role in the plot of “Miss Sloane,” being mentioned several times throughout the film. “She gave an Oscar-worthy performance and seeing my home country on the screen made it even more exciting,” said Andhika, who graduated in September and was program coordinator of the Los Angeles Indonesian Film Festival earlier this month.
“Miss Sloane’s” preview held at Arclight Hollywood is a continuation of a strategic partnership between Lionsgate Promotional Group and NYFA – whose most recent event was Mel Gibson’s “Hacksaw Ridge” screening. Sealed by the hands of school’s Director of Industry Lecture Series, Tova Laiter, the goal is to give the NYFA community privileged access to the best Hollywood releases. Future screening invitations will be posted on our exclusive Student Hub and social media. Stay tuned!