Writer-director Alexander Payne has a likely Oscar-contender on his hands with The Descendants, his first movie since 2004′s Sideways.  We shouldn’t expect another seven-year absence from Payne since he’s gearing up for an April start date on his next movie, Nebraska. The film will shoot in black-and-white and is searching for a respected veteran actor to play the lead role of an aging alcoholic father.

Empire reports that Payne is already planning his follow-up to Nebraska by adapting Daniel Clowes‘ graphic novel, Wilson.  We reported last year that Fox Searchlight had acquired the book as a directing vehicle for Payne.  The movie follows “a middle-aged misanthrope who’s left floundering after the death of his father and tries to reconnect with his ex-wife and the teenager daughter he’s never known.”  Clowes (Ghost World) wrote the screenplay and the movie will be set in Oakland, California.  Hit the jump for a synopsis of Wilson.  I haven’t read the book yet, but I’m interested to see anything Payne does.  The Descendants opens in limited release on November 16th.

Fox Searchlight is developing an adaptation of Wilson, a comic book from Daniel Clowes (Ghost World). The titular character is “an opinionated middle-aged loner who loves his dog and quite possibly no one else.”

the project is conceived as a potential directing vehicle for Alexander Payne (Sideways). Payne’s next film, The Descendants stars George; it’s scheduled for release sometime in 2011.

More, including a synopsis of the comic, after the jump.

At the SXSW Film Festival promoting a personal documentary The Thorn in His Heart, director Michel Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) provided updates on a variety of projects he has in the works.  Gondry spoke about post-production on The Green Hornet, an indie drama about community filmmaking called The We & The I, the sci-fi film Return of the Ice Kids, a time travel movie starring Ellen Page, and his animated movie, Megalomania.

Hit the jump for updates on all of these projects from this highly talented director.