44 February 7 • 2019
jn
T
he journey from youthful per-
forming with the Jewish Ensemble
Theatre in West Bloomfield to
being nominated for a 2019 Academy
Award has been dramatic and fulfilling
for Jaime Ray Newman, who has enjoyed
diverse and notable stopovers along the
way.
Although appearing on stage, in films
and on television, Newman is being rec-
ognized for production skills in making
a live action short film with her Israeli
husband, Guy Nattiv, as director.
The nominated film, Skin, tells a pow-
erful story of brutal white supremacists
reacting to an innocent gesture and
encountering the resulting reaction. The
production is in competition with four
others: Detainment, Fauve, Marguerite
and Mother.
Weeks before and shortly after the
Oscar winners are announced during a
glam broadcast starting at 8 p.m. Sunday,
Feb. 24, on ABC, all the nominated short
films can be seen Feb. 8-28 at the Detroit
Film Theatre at the Detroit Institute of
Arts. The program, The 2019 Academy
Award Nominated Short Films —
Animated and Live Action, will include
every film in its entirety during each
screening session.
“Ours is not an easy film, but I don’
t
think Guy has an interest in making
escapism,
” says Newman, honored to
be nominated and appreciative of the
subjective approaches to the artistry that
went into all the films in the category.
“Guy pulled ideas from different
events so it’
s not a documentary. The
cinema we love explores the darkest cor-
ners of the mind. We want to make art
that evokes thought and debate. We want
it to stir something.
”
The nominated film came during
work on a longer feature film Nattiv
wrote as a docudrama. Bearing the same
title and planned for release later this
year, it probes the life of a notorious
white supremacist who turns away from
hatred.
While funding was being raised for
the longer film, the short was produced
and became a transition into the feature.
“Sting and his wife, Trudie Styler, are
big indie producers,
” explains Newman,
who grew up in Farmington Hills and
attended Hillel Day School, Cranbrook
and Interlochen before graduating from
Northwestern University. “They saw the
short and, within days, we were in New
York for pre-production of the feature.
”
Newman, who brings an on-camera
perspective to the work she does with
her husband in leading New Native
Pictures, has not restricted herself to
working with her husband. She next will
be seen in the feature film Valley of the
Gods starring opposite Josh Hartnett
and John Malkovich as directed by Lech
Majewski, and Midnight Climax with
Anson Mount and Jason Patric as direct-
ed by Joseph Sorrentino.
Earlier work has placed her in TV
series, including The Punisher for
Marvel/Netflix, Bates Motel for A&E,
Eastwick for ABC and, most recently,
Midnight, Texas for NBC. Stage work
near her Los Angeles home has included
roles in The Gift with James Van Der
Beek and Kathy Baker and Turnaround
opposite David Schwimmer.
The recent film production initiative
occurred as the couple anticipated the
arrival of their daughter, Alma Ness,
by surrogate after Newman endured
a stillbirth and miscarriages. The two,
entering their 40s, chose the name Alma
because it means “little miss” in Hebrew
and “soul” in Spanish, and Ness because
it means “miracle” in Hebrew.
Nattiv associates ideas of parenting
with the plot of the nominated Skin.
SUZANNE CHESSLER CONTRIBUTING WRITER
fi
lm
arts&life
Nominated fi
lm, Skin, earns kudos for
native Detroiter and her Israeli husband.
details
The 2019 Academy Award Nominated Short Films – Animated and Live Action will be
shown Feb. 8-28 at the Detroit Film Theatre in the Detroit Institute of Arts. $7.50-$9.50.
(313) 833-7900. dia.org/events.
TOP: Scene
from the Oscar-
nominated Skin.
RIGHT: Producer
Jaime Ray
Newman and
director Guy Nattiv,
her husband, on
the set of Skin.
Oscar Hopes
continued on page 46