Press
The Independent Critic
“With The Falconer, Sjoberg and Winslow have crafted a film that inspires and challenges, communicates immensely yet often stops to listen. There's not a false note played here. There are no trumped up histrionics or faux conflicts manufactured for the sake of drama. Instead, Sjoberg and Winslow take a true to life, fantastical and inspired story and they allow it to unfold with the patience of poets who understand the magic in these words.
Indeed, The Falconer is a rather magical cinematic experience.”
Filmmaker Magazine
“Winslow noted that she’d worked on The Lego Movie for six years resulting in Warner Brothers giving her an EP credit. (She is still the only person of any gender to have gotten one without working her way up from AP.) Producers are the ones risking their reputation for the writer and director, she emphasized. Winslow then reflected on shooting The Falconer in Oman – the first narrative feature to be filmed in the small nation, and her first as a co-director. She said that she wanted to tell the story “from” the country, not “about” the country, and added that reductionist thinking is an ongoing problem with westerners working overseas. To counteract bias it’s important to “consume content about people who don’t look like you or have your background,” and to “honor people who are doing badass work that are not like you.”
The Hollywood Reporter
“Sjoberg and Winslow approach the narrative with the same delicate caution that Cai shows his beloved falcon, shading it with muted colors and a contemplative score (by Samuel Stewart). Their script places as much importance on what characters aren’t saying as on what they are, leaning into wordless giggles, companionable silences or worried gazes into the distance. Even as the boys’ moves become bigger and bolder — at one point, they steal a car to meet a dangerous smuggler — the film is scrupulous about not sensationalizing them. The Falconer wants to keep the focus on the subtly shifting dynamic between the boys, not on the excitement (or peril) of their adventure.”
The Hollywood Reporter
“Ahead of its launch at AFM, The Falconer has already been building up momentum on the U.S. festival circuit. The film won best narrative feature at BendFilm, best narrative premiere at the Heartland International Film Festival, and it was named a staff pick at the Austin Film Festival prior to the event’s start. It recently picked up the best narrative feature award and best director at the SCAD Savannah Film Festival, and just yesterday won the jury award for best narrative feature, best screenwriters, and best cinematography at the Newport Beach Film Festival.”