Unless the latest round of dueling press releases between the AMPTP and the WGA represents a last spasm of contentiousness before a final reconciliation, which I really doubt, it looks like the WGA could be striking by the end of the week or Monday. (The WGA agreement expires at midnight tonight, but it originally looked like writers would work while negotiations continued post-expiration.)

On her Deadline Hollywood Daily Nikkie Finke posts a statement issued by AMPTP President Nick Counter. (He's the guy repping the studios and producers). In it, Counter says not only that the WGA-desired revision of the DVD royalty formula, which was originally devised before home video was a thriving industry, is a non-starter but that, furthermore, for calculation purposes internet downloads must be considered the same as DVDs.

Counter wrote:

We want to make a deal. We think doing so is in your best interests, in your members’ best interests, in the best interests of our companies and in the best interests of the industry. But, as I said, no further movement is possible to close the gap between us so long as your DVD proposal remains on the table. In referring to DVDs, we include not only traditional DVDs, but also electronic sell-through -- i.e., permanent downloads. As you know, we believe that electronic sell-through is synonymous with DVD.

"There are pending claims with regard to electronic sell-through that will be resolved through the arbitration process. But to make any new agreement with you, residuals for the DVD market, including electronic sell-through, must be paid under the existing home video formula.

The WGA responded:

“Today, just hours before the expiration of our contract, the AMPTP brought negotiations to a halt. The Companies refused to continue to bargain unless we agree that the hated DVD formula be extended to Internet downloads.

"This morning we presented the AMPTP with a comprehensive package of proposals that included movement on DVDs, new media, and jurisdictional issues. We also took nine proposals off the table. The Companies returned six hours later and said they would not respond to our package until we capitulated to their Internet demand.

"After three and a half months of bargaining, the AMPTP still has not responded to a single one of our important proposals. Every issue that matters to writers, including Internet reuse, original writing for new media, DVDs, and jurisdiction, has been ignored. This is completely unacceptable.”

In Variety, Dave McNary explains the issue:

The DVD dispute centers on the 1985 formula, under which homevid residuals were paid on the basis of 20% of wholesale revenues -- equating to scribes receiving about 4¢ for each disc sold. The WGA's seeking a doubling of that rate, asserting it agreed to a discounted deal two decades ago to help the fledgling business survive.

Studios and nets have steadfastly nixed any boost to DVD residuals, contending the revenues are crucial to moving film and TV projects out of deficit amid sharply rising costs.

The WGA's also seeking to hike electronic sell-through revenue from1.2% of the licensing fee for each downloaded item to 2.5%.

Over at his blog, The Artful Writer, WGA scribe Craig Mazin pokes a hole (or, er, drives a Mack truck) through the AMPTP argument:

Electronic sell-through is synonymous with DVD?

No.

DVD stands for Digital Video Disc (I think it was originally Digital Versatile Disc, but whatever).

That’s Digital Video Disc.

Disc.

You buy a DISC.

When you download a movie, you do not buy a disc.

You do not buy the package for the disc.

You do not pay for the manufacture of the disc.

Nor do you own a disc.

You buy digital information. Ones and zeroes.

Internet sell-through is NOT DVD, it is NOT home video, and if that’s the game the AMPTP is playing on internet downloads, this is going to get a whole lot worse before it gets better.

# posted by Scott Macaulay @ 10/31/2007 11:38:00 PM Comments (0)

Now’s your chance. Canadian stalwart Bruce McDonald launched Tracey: Re-Fragmented, a re-editing initiative surrounding the release of his latest award-winning feature film The Tracey Fragments. In a bold move, he has made the entire film and score (by Indie Collective Broken Social Scene) available for download for users to make their own version. Send it back to him and his favorite version will appear on the official DVD and win an Apple Final Cut Pro prize pack. Alas, for Canadians only, although anyone can download and rock it.

from the official press release:

Featuring a stand-out performance from Ellen Page as a 15-year-old girl who has lost her little brother and sets out on a desperate journey to find him, The Tracey Fragments is a daring portrayal of teenage angst, told in a dazzling style. The film, which opens in limited release Friday [in Canada], employs multi-frame editing to breathtaking effect, pushing the boundaries of cinematic language to get inside the heart and mind of Tracey.

Director Bruce McDonald explains the inspiration behind the project: “The Tracey Fragments is a film that fully embraces experimentation and teamwork. I wanted to find out if that experience exists on the Internet and give others the chance to experiment and play with some beautifully shot footage of a world class actress in a free form environment. I hope people make their own feature films, short films, rock videos, trailers, experimental films and personal manifestos out of The Tracey Fragments.”

The Tracey Fragments is distributed in Canada through Alliance Films and will be released in theatres in Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal November 2, 2007. The film recently won Best Canadian Feature Film at the Atlantic Film Festival with Ellen Page picking up the Award for Best Actress at the fest. The film premiered at the 57th Berlinale and won the Manfred Salzgeber Prize for innovative filmmaking. It has also screened at festivals around the world including Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, the Toronto International Film Festival and will play at AFI Fest Los Angeles 2007 in November.

Endnote: McDonald has seen this landscape before - when he made the failed studio venture Claire’s Hat (2001, later released as Picture Claire). The film production was a nightmare, the film was hated in Toronto in the troubled 2001 festival, and basically shelved for later dvd release. McDonald stole the original footage and made his own pseudo-director's cut, which really works more as a director's commentary if he was sitting in the room with you talking, running the film back and forth with the remote, adding behind-the-scenes and cut out footage. Its amazing, he reveals everything from his independent nature wanting to succeed with a $10 million budget, to the spiraling shoot where difficulties arise, like producers who may be from hell, and when an actor mouths his words but doesn’t speak to ensure he will get paid. With this underground cut, he showed the love and the corruption of the whole process as good as any doc Herzog and Coppola have been a part of. We wanted to show it at CineVegas but the studio of course heard about it and said no way. It isn’t on the official DVD, either.

# posted by Mike Plante @ 10/31/2007 03:57:00 PM Comments (0)

Late Sunday night the 27th edition of the Louis Vuitton Hawaii International Film Festival finally wrapped, bringing to an end over 10 days of screenings, panels, and parties.

The festival announced the Audience Awards for Best Feature, Documentary, and Short Film at the closing night party aboard the Hawaii Superferry, a mammoth beast of a ship designed to ferry passengers around the Hawaiian isles but content in this case to hold passengers while they staggered from the vodka bar to the dessert table. Best Feature went to Gwak Gyung Taek's A Love, while Julianne and Don King's Beautiful Son won Best Documentary, and Kurt Kuenne's Validation won Best Short Film.

In an earlier awards ceremony scenically located along the shores of Waikiki (and propped up by several Go-Kino! speeches from Hawaii's governor, Honolulu's mayor, and assorted other politicians), Beautiful Son won the Halekulani Golden Orchid Award (the fest's jury prize) for Best Documentary, while Tony Ayres' The Home Song Stories won the Halekulani Golden Orchid for the narrative competition.

The Vietnam-set The Owl and the Sparrow, by Orange County-based Stephane Gaugner, won the prestigious NETPAC Award (designed to promote Asian cinema). The Pacific Panorama Award was given to Lahaina: Waves of Change, while the Honolulu Magazine Short Film Award was plucked by Pretend (Nagpapanggap). Monkeyboy Fever won the Video-on-Demand Viewer's Choice Award from Time Oceanic Cable, an award voted on by cable tv viewers able to screen several of festival shorts on television.

# posted by Jason Sanders @ 10/30/2007 03:29:00 PM Comments (0)

Love him or hate him, Eli Roth (Saddam to Nikki Finke's Dubya) knows a fair bit about horror movies. The Hostel director has curated a horror marathon over at The Onion's A.V. Club where he's made a suggested schedule for 24 hours of Halloween DVD viewing. Roth's discussion of the films he chose acts as a great primer on horror and shows that he's a connoisseur of great cinema as well as, you know, torture porn. He presents a really great selection of movies, putting classics (John Carpenter's The Thing, Dario Argento's Suspiria) alongside foreign obscurities (Pieces, Who Would Kill A Child?) and cult classics (Cannibal Holocaust, Evil Dead). But what I found most impressive was that Roth also included films that are not horror films in the strictest sense, fantastic movies like David Lynch's Eraserhead, Miike Takashi's Audition and, best of all, the original Dutch version of The Vanishing.

These three choices in particular bode well for Roth's future career, and seem to be in sync with comments he made recently about the kinds of films he plans to make from now on:

"As far as violence goes, I think at this point I've pushed the boundaries of horror as far as I can, and it's someone else's turn to take over spilling blood and guts. I have new challenges and much more ambitious ideas that are not horror related that I'm working on, as well as other artistic endeavors outside of film. I love directors like Sam Raimi and Peter Jackson, who pushed the boundaries of gore and horror in their early career, and then took that same energy and aesthetic and applied it to other genres. I'll always love horror and I'm sure I'll make more horror movies, but once you've spilled that much blood, you kind of have it out of your system and look for other ways to make audiences scream and cheer and vomit."

# posted by Nick Dawson @ 10/30/2007 01:17:00 PM Comments (5)

Stephen M. Duesner at the always reliable Pitchfork reviews the soundtrack to Todd Haynes's I'm Not There. (It gets an 8.0.)

Here's the lede:

I'm Not There is director Todd Haynes' third music biopic, after Superstar in 1987 and Velvet Goldmine in 1998. In each of those films, the main subject-- the celebrity at the center-- has been altered or is somehow absent: Superstar recounted Karen Carpenter's death from anorexia with only Barbie dolls, which continually prevents it from being officially released. Velvet Goldmine traces David Bowie's rise and fall throughout the 1970s, but the singer threatened to sue and refused to license his songs. So Haynes took even more liberties with the story, which involved aliens, assassins, and an ongoing affair with Iggy Pop. By all accounts, I'm Not There, his new film about Bob Dylan, continues this sort of meaningful absence, casting six actors to play the folk singer in various stages of his life and career (essentially the same thing), and literalizing the mercurial nature of his identity. Likewise, the soundtrack for I'm Not There casts 29 singers to re-create that singular voice in all its permutations and variations, with surprising results.

For Duesner, the standouts are Chan Marshall (Cat Power), Craig Finn (from the Hold Steady) and Stephen Malkmus.

# posted by Scott Macaulay @ 10/30/2007 09:57:00 AM Comments (0)

Steve Buscemi's Interview, which Filmmaker featured on its cover last issue, opened in London this week and there's been some U.K. press about the movie and its American shoot. And while I don't consider myself a reflexive stars-and-stripes-forever rah-rah'er, I found the comments in this Guardian piece entitled "The Final Cut" by the slain Dutch director Theo Van Gogh's "creative consultant" Doesjka van Hoogdalem about shooting in American both naive and annoying. Much of the piece is devoted to van Hoogdalem's wide-eyed wonder at the wacky wastefulness of U.S. filmmaking.

From the piece:

However, maintaining the authenticity of the Van Gogh style was only possible because producers Weiss and Van de Westelaken were able to bring Van Gogh's Dutch crew to the US. "We had a good lawyer who managed to persuade the US authorities that only the Dutch team could make this film," says Van Hoogdalem.

They had a stiff battle with the unions, who refused to accept the Dutch side's insistence that only a few people were needed - or desired - on set. Van Hoogdalem herself acted as both director's assistant and script adviser until the unions protested that she was doing someone out of a job, at which point the role of "creative consultant" was invented for her.

"We had to fight with them constantly about everything, from taking lunch breaks at a specific time, even when we were in the middle of a scene, to the number of people we had on set at any one time," she says. There were rows over everything from gaffer tape - with the Americans wanting to hire a gaffer-tape lorry when a single piece of tape was required - to the suggestion that a "loop group" from the Screen Actors Guild be hired at a cost of $5,000 a day to produce the background muttering sounds of a restaurant crowd. When Van de Westelaken suggested sticking a microphone in a real restaurant and recording the sound, the Americans on the crew "were amazed, and didn't believe it could be done," he says. "We said, 'We do it like this all the time.' In the end, they came to love our way of working."

Um, yeah, if you shoot a union film in the U.S., there are labor rules. You might want to check them out before you come here. The crew does eat every six hours. People have specific jobs. Yes, it is a way of working. And I wouldn't listen to whoever said you can't record wild sound in a restaurant. In fact, I'll give Van Hoogdalem a tip for the next trip to the U.S. -- email me and I'll hook you up with a sound FX guy who already has these sounds on a CD.

# posted by Scott Macaulay @ 10/29/2007 11:47:00 PM Comments (1)

The Mayor's Office of Film, Theatre and Broadcasting today issued proposed new rules for the permitting of film shoots in the city of New York. If you remember back several dozen internet news cycles (like around late July), an outcry arose when the Mayor's Office issued specific new shooting rules that seemed to many to disregard First Amendment rights, legitimate news gathering needs, the needs of tourists, and the working practices of artisanal street photographers and experimental filmmakers. Protests were had, everyone from no-budget filmmakers to Keith Olbermann chimed in, and a grass roots group, Picture NY, organized the opposition.

The whole thing had a happy ending when the Mayor's Office announced they were withdrawing the proposed changes and drafting new rules, which have been issued, again in draft form, today. (The document can be read here, and an executive summary has been prepared as well.)

From the press release:

Under the new draft of the proposed rule, a permit would be required if equipment or vehicles are being used by the production or if the filming activity creates an obstruction. “Equipment” is defined as film cameras, videocameras, lights, sets, and other production related materials, but does not include hand-held devices or tripods.

“Obstruction” is defined in the proposed rule as the assertion of exclusive control over a public space resulting in the obstruction of one or more lanes of a street or walkway, or when production activity results in either less than eight feet or one-half the width of the sidewalk or passageway (whichever is greater) being available for unobstructed sidewalk use by pedestrians.

A permit would not be required if the production uses hand-held devices or tripods, its activity does not present an obstruction, and it is not using equipment or vehicles. An optional permit would be available in these instances, and would not require liability insurance.

The new rules were drawn up in collaboration with the Independent Feature Project (IFP), Fractured Atlas, Creative Capital, The Moving Pictures Collective of NYC, and the International Center of Photography (ICP).

I've just read through the executive summary once and will review these changes more thoroughly in the next day or two. But, on first read, I very much agree with with new emphasis on public safety and egress as being the key factors in determining whether or not a permit is required. (As I mentioned in a previous blog posts, the previous changes were much more threatening to amateur filmmakers, tourists and photographers than they were to many independents, who customarily buy insurance to protect their cast, crew, equipement and productions.) These new rules do seem to have been carefully crafted to address the needs of various different constituencies while still adopting common sense public safety laws. And, thankfully, some of the previous proposal's more ridiculous provisions, like requiring a permit if five or more people were in one place for ten minutes or more, have been struck.

I'll comment more when I've thoroughly digested the document, but, in the meantime, Filmmaker would love to hear what you think. Please comment below.

# posted by Scott Macaulay @ 10/29/2007 10:34:00 PM Comments (1)

In time for Halloween is this spooky music video for the band Bat for Lashes and their song "What's a Girl to Do." It's a great addition to the "choreographed one-shot wonder" school of pop promos, and it was directed by Dougal Wilson.

# posted by Scott Macaulay @ 10/26/2007 11:41:00 AM Comments (2)

The appealingly designed, crisply minimal Motion Design site describes itself as "a research blog on the subject of Motion Design. It serves as a means to discuss, share and develop ideas that will be used for a feature length documentary film." I came across the site because it just posted an article about Pablo, director Richard Goldgewicht and producer Jeremy Goldscheider's animated documentary on title designer Pablo Ferro. (You may remember this film and these filmmakers -- they were featured in our 25 New Faces this year.)

From the piece:

Back in March of this year, a short teaser popped up on the Web promoting the production of a feature length animated documentary on Pablo Ferro. What really draws you in to begin with in this short introductory film, is the intelligent use of mixed media techniques as a means to emphasize the narrative as well as create a visually rich and informative image. Everything from split screens to Pablo’s signature typography is used with wit to accompany a mix of both live action and character driven full animation, incorporating also a vast array of archival footage. Beyond this intriguing presentation however, another question remained to be asked before resolving the enigma of Pablo. Who was behind this film?

For more on Pablo, check out the Motion Design pic at the link above and check out the movie's website.

# posted by Scott Macaulay @ 10/25/2007 05:46:00 PM Comments (3)

High heels and high-end perfume dominated the past Friday and Wednesday nights at the Hawaii International Film Festival, as throngs of passionate fans out-screamed and out-elbowed one another to see their Korean idols Lee Jun Ki and Ju Jin Mo in person at the American and international premieres of their respective films, May 18th and A Love . In the high-brow realm of the international film festival, where cinematic conversations are about as loud as an NPR radio booth, the passions on display at the Hawaii festival stand out. Screaming fans, a fainter or two, and other obsessives stand in line for hours to see the objects of their affections, and when they finally appear, watch out: all decorum flees for cover as panic hits the pavement, and what was once a simple movie theater becomes an insane throb of squeals and "I Love You's!!," all illuminated by the constant fires of digital camera flashes.

What's even odder about this fandom, at least here in Hawaii, is the age group. Think of screaming fans, and one usually images a flock of teenage girls or guys. Here, though, it's their mothers, or grandmothers: most of the women screaming "I Love You!" at the finely cheekboned, 20-something stars, are actually in their 50's. It's been triggered by the massive popularity of Korean soap operas in Japan and the US (primarily in Hawaii and the West Coast). For the Hawaii festival, Japanese tour groups regularly sponsor special tours for middle-aged Japanese women; they fly out just to see the Korean stars, chase their limos in and out of hotel driveways, and see their films.

One woman I spoke with in line on Friday night had a shrine in her second bedroom in Osaka, which she had built in honor of Lee Jun Ki (after her son moved out to college, of course). Other women in the Osaka suburbs would travel to the shrine, just to pray for Lee's "good health and success." She was, needless to say, pretty pumped up about finally "meeting" him in person.

On Wednesday, I stood behind a group of maternal grandmother-types with matching black shirts. When they turned around, I realized that all the shirts had the face of Lee Jun Ki. Their cute homemade tees, which could have put any teenager into a fit of jealousy, were all underneath grandmother scarves. They turned to say hello, adjusted their bifocals, and walked away, a couple of them leaning against their walking canes, tired from the fun of their own private film festival. I wish they would have adopted me, as the film festival they were experiencing sure looked like a great time.

# posted by Jason Sanders @ 10/25/2007 04:28:00 PM Comments (1)

The Silent Movie Theatre in Los Angeles is reopening – with new sound and style. The SMT is old but the inside is amazing, and now sound films are running with the silents. Grand re-opening is tomorrow, 10/25, with a solid Halloween lineup.

A lot of great old stuff will be showing there, but in December there is a series of new indies: "The New Naturalists", featuring The Puffy Chair, Mutual Appreciation, Old Joy, Apart from That and Frownland. Check out all their great lineups on their website. Official press release here:

Hadrian Belove of Cinefile Video, Sammy Harkham of Family Books and Dan Harkham of the Silent Movie Theatre have teamed up to launch The Cinefamily, a new venue for revival programming-- from foreign to independent, from classical to cutting edge, from silent film to live music, and from exploitation to experimental. Our home is the world famous Silent Movie Theatre on Fairfax. The theater will reopen on October 25th with a bigger screen, more comfortable seating (including plush, leather sofas), and state-of-the-art projection and sound. The Cinefamily is committed to the presentation of silent films with live musical accompaniment, while expanding our calendar to embrace all forms of cinematic experience. There will be an adventurous program of regularly-scheduled events devoted to specific genres and audiences including:

Silent Movies w/ live musical accompaniment- Every Wednesday Night
Musicals, Concert Films & Special Music Events- Every Thursday Night.
Mini-Festivals- Every Friday and Saturday
Holy F*cking Sh*t (Incredibly Strange Cinema)- Every Saturday Late Night
Noir Matinees- Every Sunday afternoon
Asian Cinema Night- Every Sunday evening
Experimental Cinema- Monthly
Movie/Movie-Notable people present their favorite movies- Monthly
Short Films before features
Oodles of Special Events- Ongoing

What is The Cinefamily?

The Cinefamily is an organization of movie lovers devoted to finding and presenting interesting and unusual programs of exceptional, distinctive, weird and wonderful films. The Cinefamily's goal is to foster a spirit of community and a sense of discovery, while reinvigorating the movie-going experience. Like campfires, sporting events and church services, we believe that movies work best as social experiences. They are more meaningful, funnier and scarier when shared with others. Our home is the Silent Movie Theatre, one of Hollywood’s most beloved and beautiful cultural landmarks. There, The Cinefamily will provide a destination spot for Los Angelenos and others to rediscover the pleasures of cinema.

# posted by Mike Plante @ 10/24/2007 07:38:00 PM Comments (1)

David Halbfinger has a noteworthy piece in The New York Times today revealing that Ed Burns will release his new film, Purple Violets, a $4 million indie production starring Burns, Debra Messing, and Selma Blair, exclusively on iTunes.

From the piece:

When Edward Burns’s latest romantic comedy, “Purple Violets,” had its premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival in April, it drew positive reviews, but only lukewarm offers from movie distributors.

Mr. Burns, the director of indie favorites like “The Brothers McMullen” and “She’s the One,” but whose latest movies have not done as well, knew from experience how that story would end, he said: “Not enough money to market the film, not a wide-enough release to even make a dent in the moviegoing public’s consciousness.”

The film, which will be the first feature to premiere on iTunes, will be offered there exclusively on iTunes November 20 and then the filmmakers will presumably seek other ancillary distribution later.

Halbfinger's piece goes on to discuss Burns's efforts within the context of new opportunities for filmmakers through web distribution, citing several makers of short films who have done well. He also discusses it within the context of competition within the digital download space, noting that Apple faces an increasing challenge from sites like Jaman.

The piece notes too that Apple gives filmmakers biannual (as opposed to quarterly) revenue statements, meaning that it may be a little while before Burns finds out how successful his experiment has been. I've been beginning to do some research for a piece on the actual revenue possibilities for films with name talent that don't receive major theatrical distribution. For a while it's been assumed that the talent secures you a decent DVD release or TV deal. Lately, however, I've been hearing from producers that those numbers are not nearly so assured. So, I'll be interested in how Burns's experiment pans out as well and hope to have gathered some other such info sooner than six months from now.

# posted by Scott Macaulay @ 10/24/2007 12:29:00 PM Comments (0)

Celebrating its 14th year March 7-16, 2008, the San Luis Obispo International Film Festival is currently seeking submissions for its competition section. Learn more on their competition rules page. Deadline is Nov. 1. Late deadline is Dec. 1.

Nestled between San Francisco and Los Angeles, the SLOIFF has enjoyed the reputation of being a regional fest that brings filmmakers' work directly to real audiences and provides an oasis for the stars. Those who've appeared in the past include Morgan Freeman, Stacey Peralta and Malcolm McDowell. Last year's award winners included Iraq in Fragments for Best Doc and Beyond the Call won both Competition and Audience awards.

Learn more about the festival at their website.

# posted by Jason Guerrasio @ 10/24/2007 12:00:00 PM Comments (0)

Ever since I got a full-time job, my interest short/experimental film websites has increased. Looking up shorts, photos, and other multi-media projects are a great way to escape for a few minuets during a hectic day.

Ken Jacobs' website has a plethora of footage from his 400 minuet opus Star Spangled to Death. Jacobs culled all kinds of footage from the last half century into an intense audio-visual examination of American culture. Says Jacobs:

Star Spangled to Death is an epic film shot for hundreds of dollars! Combining found films with my own more-or-less staged filming, it pictures a stolen and dangerously sold-out America, allowing examples of popular culture to self-indict. Racial and religious insanity, monopolization of wealth and the purposeful dumbing down of citizens and addiction to war oppose a Beat playfulness.

Following in his father's footsteps, his son, Azazel Jacobs, was one of Filmmaker Magazine's "25 New Faces of Independent Film" this year. Check out his blog.

Multi-media artist Marcello Mercado's site is chocked full of intriguing designs and photography. Like Jacobs, Mercado's forte lies in turning everyday images/media into cultural critique. I find his work beautiful, horrific and impossible to forget.

If you haven't had the opportunity to see Andrei Severny's short films at various festivals, head over to his website where you'll get a pretty good idea of what he's all about. His films juxtapose poetry with technology, architecture and landscape. The images strike cords of Tarkovsky with their placement of man against towering backdrops and ominous structures.

Other cool sites include:

Miranda July's Website - won't get bored here
Philip Baker's Website - another director whose shorts I love
Mark Romanek - recently updated and redesigned
David Lynch - always fun

And if you've enjoyed the NYFF shorts that have been profiled on this site for the last couple weeks, head over to Jamie Stuart's mutiny company page. He has quite a prolific body of work.

Have fun!

# posted by Benjamin Crossley-Marra @ 10/24/2007 11:39:00 AM Comments (1)

It seems as if Jamie Stuart has finished fumigating his new apartment and has gone back to making videos. In this case, it's something relatively straightforward: his interview with Sidney Lumet, a snippet of which you saw in his earlier NYFF piece, but this time streamed unedited. In the piece, Lumet talks about never wanting to shoot on film again...

# posted by Scott Macaulay @ 10/24/2007 12:39:00 AM Comments (0)

There's a trailer up for Kim Peirce's Stop-Loss, and I think it looks pretty great. The film doesn't come out until the Spring, so, until then, click here.

(Hat tip, Ain't It Cool News.)

# posted by Scott Macaulay @ 10/23/2007 10:21:00 AM Comments (0)

Lots going on today over on our main page. Filmmaker's Fall issue is currently on stands. You can check out select stories from the issue here. And Jamie Stuart's final short film from the New York Film Festival is now up over at Filmmaker Videos (for a full wrap on NYFF, see Erica Abeel's piece in the Festvial Coverage section).

One last thing, the Fall issue marks our 15th anniversary in publication. Thanks to everyone who's followed this magazine for the last decade and a half, we hope you continue to follow the ever changing trends of independent film through us.

# posted by Jason Guerrasio @ 10/22/2007 12:00:00 PM Comments (0)

IFP's 17th annual Gotham Awards nominees were announced this morning. Among the hopefuls are some of the most talked about films of the year, many of which are certain to find more recognition as awards season builds. Highlights include Craig Zobel (one of our "25 New Faces of Independent Film" this year) receiving three nominations for his debut Great World of Sound (Best Feature, Breakthrough Director and Breakthrough Actor for Kene Holliday); a strong list of noms for Best Doc that includes The Devil Came on Horseback and Sicko; and some worthy performances are vying for the Best Ensemble Cast, including the cast of Margot at the Wedding and The Savages.

The Gotham Awards will take place Nov. 27 at Steiner Studios in New York.

The full list of nominees are below.

Best Feature

Great World of Sound
Craig Zobel, director; Melissa Palmer, David Gordon Green, Richard Wright,
Craig Zobel, producers (Magnolia Pictures)

I'm Not There
Todd Haynes, director; Christine Vachon, James D. Stern, John Sloss, John
Goldwyn, producers (The Weinstein Company)

Into the Wild
Sean Penn, director; Sean Penn, Art Linson, Bill Pohlad, producers (Paramount
Vantage & River Road Entertainment)

Margot at the Wedding
Noah Baumbach, director; Scott Rudin, producer (Paramount Vantage)

The Namesake
Mira Nair, director; Lydia Dean Pilcher, Mira Nair, producers (Fox Searchlight
Pictures)


Best Documentary

The Devil Came on Horseback
Annie Sundberg & Ricki Stern, directors; Ricki Stern, Annie Sundberg,
Gretchen Wallace, Jane Wells, producers (International Film Circuit)

Jimmy Carter Man from Plains
Jonathan Demme, director; Jonathan Demme, Neda Armian, producers (Sony
Pictures Classics)

My Kid Could Paint That
Amir Bar-Lev, producer/director (Sony Pictures Classics)

Sicko
Michael Moore, director; Michael Moore, Meghan O'Hara, producers (The
Weinstein Company)

Taxi to the Dark Side
Alex Gibney, director; Alex Gibney, Eva Orner, Susannah Shipman, producers
(THINKFilm)


Best Ensemble Cast

Before the Devil Knows You're Dead
Albert Finney, Rosemary Harris, Ethan Hawke, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Brian
F. O'Byrne, Amy Ryan, Michael Shannon, Marisa Tomei (THINKFilm)

The Last Winter
Connie Britton, Kevin Corrigan, Zach Gilford, James LeGros, Ron Perlman (IFC
First Take)

Margot at the Wedding
Jack Black, Flora Cross, Ciarán Hinds, Nicole Kidman, Jennifer Jason Leigh,
Zane Pais, John Turturro (Paramount Vantage)

The Savages
Philip Bosco, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Laura Linney (Fox Searchlight Pictures)

Talk to Me
Cedric the Entertainer, Don Cheadle, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Mike Epps, Vondie
Curtis Hall, Taraji P. Henson, Martin Sheen (Focus Features)


Breakthrough Director

Lee Isaac Chung for Munyurangabo
Stephane Gauger for Owl and the Sparrow
Julia Loktev for Day Night Day Night (IFC First Take)
David Von Ancken for Seraphim Falls (Samuel Goldwyn Films)
Craig Zobel for Great World of Sound (Magnolia Pictures)


Breakthrough Actor

Emile Hirsch in Into the Wild (Paramount Vantage)
Kene Holliday in Great World of Sound (Magnolia Pictures)
Ellen Page in Juno (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
Jess Weixler in Teeth (Roadside Attractions)
Luisa Williams in Day Night Day Night (IFC First Take)


Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You (chosen by the editors of Filmmaker)

August the First
Lanre Olabisi, director; Shawn Alexander, Gabriel "Swede" Sedgwick, Nicky
Arzeu Akmal, Lanre Olabisi, producers

Frownland
Ronald Bronstein, director; Marc Raybin, producer

Loren Cass
Chris Fuller, director; Chris Fuller, Frank Craft, Kayla Tabish, producers

Mississippi Chicken
John Fiege, director; John Fiege, Anita Grabowski, Victor Moyers, producers

Off the Grid: Life on the Mesa
Jeremy Stulberg & Randy Stulberg, directors; Eric Juhola, Jeremy Stulberg,
Randy Stulberg, producers

# posted by Jason Guerrasio @ 10/22/2007 10:22:00 AM Comments (1)

# posted by Benjamin Crossley-Marra @ 10/22/2007 09:54:00 AM Comments (0)

It’s all palm trees, white sand beaches and other sun-kissed pleasures of nature in the traveler’s vision of Hawaii, but here on Bethel Street in downtown Honolulu there’s nothing but the chaos of the man-made world, as cars circle endlessly for parking, police sirens echo overhead, and about 1200 people jostle one another in disorganized lines as they wait for the beginning of this year’s Hawaii International Film Festival (HIFF).

Once inside the opulent Hawaii Theatre Center, a downtown landmark of art-deco flourishes and vigilant ushers, the crowd is given two greetings, one, the kind of thanks-for-coming, thanks-for-the-money-sponsors, it’s-the-best-year-evah -and-don’t-forget-to-vote-online hello you’d find at festivals world-wide, eloquently delivered by HIFF’s uber-suave Executive Director, CHUCK BOLLER, and another far more unusual greeting, a traditional Hawaiian blessing gorgeously chanted and vigorously stomped out onstage by a performer in native Hawaiian dress. Welcome to HIFF, indeed.

HIFF made a daring choice for its opening film, Taiwanese director HOU HSIAO-HSIEN’s Flight of the Red Balloon, filmed in Paris and an update of the classic 1959 French short work. Its cross-cultural background certainly matched the festival’s vision of itself as a place where “East Meets West,” to trot out a tired, but in this case quite fitting, phrase, and certainly the individuals involved, whether actress JULIETTE BINOCHE or director Hou, can be counted on to add a certain name recognition. But Hou’s moved far from the historical epics and Chinese chamber pieces of such beautifully photographed, fest-friendly realms of his earlier Flowers of Shanghai, The Puppetmaster or City of Sadness. Flight trades in sweeping historical backdrops, 1930’s costumes, and “exotic” locales and settings for a small tale of a young boy in Paris, his harried mother, and their new nanny (or “child-minder,” as the subtitles state) from China.

There’s a few shots of Paris by day, but most of the film takes place entirely in the cramped flat of the boy and his mother, a decision that certainly exacerbated the patience of most viewers expecting some exterior paens to postcard Parisian life. Other scenes find Hou’s camera fixated by reflections off of buses, or through windows, which promptly sent a few more viewers into a panic. Indeed, for most casual viewers, there are barely any traditionally “beautiful” images in the film. No exteriors of Paris’ glory, no pans through spacious, intricately lit rooms; it’s just the clutter of everyday life.

The question to ask, though, is why isn’t this accepted as “beautiful”? Hou’s proven that he can create a beautiful staged image; he’s one of the most visually talented directors of the past 20 years. But Hou here is following such artists as San Francisco-based Ernie Gehr, who also uses cinema the way a painter would, as a way to capture light and shadow as it exists in the modern world, i.e. off of buses, trains, and walls. Turning his camera on the everyday, on images as they reflect off a window, on light as it hits a wall, on the colors painted on a city bus, on the simple chaos of a living room floor, may wield even more beauty,and even some truth.

But try telling that to an opening night crowd. It’s a difficult work, especially for an opening-night crowd drawn more for the “festival” part, not the “film.” Quite a few were gone as as the film built to a conclusion, as Hou’s seemingly “going-nowhere” scenes and aesthetic experiments suddenly all added up to something. Near the end, a miraculous 15-minute take in the family’s apartment contained all the fury, emotion, and beauty that cinema aspire to.

HIFF, like most festivals, has always been caught between the auteurs and the populists. With their choice of Flight as the opening film, they went with the former. As the fest moves on through the week, though, there’s plenty of populist genre filmmaking to look forward to. We’ll see what happens next, and how the festival balances both sides of the equasion by the end. Thanks.

# posted by Jason Sanders @ 10/20/2007 04:51:00 PM Comments (0)

This weekend IFP/Chicago hosts its signature event, the Midwest Filmmaker's Summit which, like last month's IFP Market & Market Conference in New York City, hosts a series of panels with industry experts, technology workshops and networking opportunies for nascent filmmakers. The relatively low key event is held on the eighth floor of Columbia College's film and video building near Grant Park, which gives one a generous view of Lake Michigan and a serene, if flourscent tinged environment in which to engage with fellow cineastes.

Last night the Summit hosted a screening of Milwaukee native Chris Smith's terrific Sundance 07' favorite, The Pool. Smith, who speaks very little Hindi, shot the picture himself with a cast of largely non-professional actors, in India. The film, which is still without distribution, is a naturalistic look at Venkatesh, a rural teenager, working in a Panjim hotel to support his family, who becomes obsessed with a swimming pool in the opulent Goan hills, and the mysterious family who owns it. As he's pulled into their lives, marked by a repressed tragedy from the past, Smith investigates their malaise and Venkatesh's subtle awakening in long, unadorned takes with a sensitivity to issues of class and race within Indian life that is refreshing and provocative. Any narcissistic impulse on the part of this soul seeking westerner is put aside; The Darjeeling Limited this is not.

Tonight the Summit will feature a number of short films by Midwestern filmmakers in the IFP/Chicago Fly Over Zone Short Film Festival which, despite its unfortunate moniker, is a wonderful opportunity to see brand new work by a number of terrific filmmakers from the area.

Within the panels, one senses the desire among many of the filmmakers and panelists for a more developed indie film scene in this and other midwestern centers. As states like Oklahoma, Wisconsin and Illnois adopt larger tax incentives for film productions in hopes of luring films to their state, more coastal film producers are finding the middle of the country an attractive place to shoot films that could have been shot in any number of places, but what of "regional filmmakers" attempting to bring a a sensibility to the screen that is directly tied to their communities? Perhaps, beyond your local film commission, theater company or equipment rental house, the Midwest Filmmaker's Summit is a place to start.

# posted by Brandon Harris @ 10/20/2007 12:59:00 PM Comments (0)

I walked into the Filmmaker office yesterday and Ben Crossley-Marra and Jason Guerrasio were bent over a computer monitor, excited to come across the news that Fax Bahr, George Hickenlooper and Eleanor Coppola's documentary Hearts of Darkness is set for a DVD release from Paramount Home Entertainment. As our post didn't include the studio and director Hickenlooper is a friend of Jeff Wells and a regular poster at Hollywood Elsewhere, Wells posted a skeptical post about the release, wondering why he hadn't heard it about from George first.

Hickenlooper posts in the comments thread below Wells's piece the news that he hadn't heard of the DVD release until yesterday when he spotted the press release on the internet too.

Here are his comments, which I'm taking the liberty of quoting in full. Head over to the thread on Wells's site at the link above for the full and evolving story including Hickenlooper's plans for some possible theatrical screenings of the pic.

Uhm, guys, I only found out about this the same way Jeff did. Last night while surfing the net. I haven't talked to Fax, but I am really surprised by this development. The only thing I know is that it is coming out on Paramount. I am also frankly bummed that I wasn't asked to do a commentary. The promotion of this film was always frustrtating to me, even back in '91. Eleanor did very little to ever mention Fax or my name when she promoted the picture. When she went on the TV talk show circuit, understandably everyone wanted to talk to her, but she never once mentioned Fax or me. YES, of course, she narrates the film and she shot the raw footage in the Phillipines. But the fact that she narrates the story is only because of a huge fight I had with the producers and Showtime. My father bought me Eleanor's book "Notes" on my sixteenth birthday and I loved it. It's how I fell in love with "Apocalypse Now." When I was invited to write and direct "Hearts of Darkness," Showtime's plan was to make a one hour TV special called "Apocalypse Now Revisited." My editors Michael Greer, Jay Miracle and I saw that the film had much larger potential. I saw it because of her diary and we all saw it because of these audio tapes my assistant editor Shana Hagan found in a box up at Francis' vinyard. Anyway, to make a long story short I had to fight and fight to get Steve Hewitt and George Zaloom and even Fax to some extent to allow Eleanor's diary to be the narraative thru line. On top of that Fax and I clearly cut the picture together and made a story out of all this crazy footage that had lingered in storage for thirteen years before we got involved. Eleanor never had a clue what to do with it and to be fair to her she was wonderful in allowing us to tell the story as we saw fit. And to Francis' credit he signed off on the picture. I was amazed that a man so powerful would have the courage to let us portray him without any interference whatsoever. It is a testament to the greatness of his character and spirit. And I say that sincerely. What irks me is that when the film came out Eleanor became a bit of a credit hog. And now with the release of the DVD and not even being asked to do a commentary is kind of a slap in the face from my point of view. It also saddens me that I spent many hours of time and energy talking to the folks at Criterion who are dying to put it out. I even flew myself to Denver to have lunch with Francis to talk him into it. That was three years ago. He said he'd get back to me but I guess he's been to busy. So here we are. I found out about it last night and it's coming out on Paramount DVD. I only hope that it has it's 1.33 aspect ratio. A lot of theaters mistakenly projected it at 1.85 and cut off some of the titles and images. Maybe someday Criterion will be able to get it and I'll be able to do the commentary and tell all these hilarious stories about my encounter with Denis Jacob who stole the negative when Francis was in post. About how the all the footage we were cutting was almost lost in the Universal backlot fire and that our editing trailers were only saved because the "Back to the Future" clocktower absorbed the flames as a kind of firewall. There's also some funny stories about my meeting with Harvey Keitel and Sean Penn while they were working out and trying to convince Harvey to sign off on allowing us to use his likeness and to do an interview. It was certainly a moment to remember. Harvey is the best.

# posted by Scott Macaulay @ 10/19/2007 08:44:00 PM Comments (0)

I'm Not There director Todd Haynes couldn't be at the Northwest Film Center in Portland for a retrospective screening of his classic film Safe, so he sent the film's heroine, Carol White, instead. (Hat tip: Film Experience blog.)



And here is the trailer for the actual movie:

# posted by Scott Macaulay @ 10/19/2007 01:28:00 PM Comments (0)

Even if you haven't seen Todd Rohal's excellent debut The Guatemalan Handshake, you might be aware of his dry, oddball humor from the things he has written that crop up on the blogosphere, such as his take on Google's $1.6bn purchase of Mumblecore or the Andrew Bujalski sex tape. If you haven't read those, you should definitely check them out - they are pure genius.

The latest creative enterprise to bear the Rohal stamp is his video for Ola Podrida's song Lost and Found, which is the latest in a line of promos for David Wingo's band by mumblecore directors. (The two previous ones, also wonderful in their own distinctive ways, are Michael Tully's video for Photo Booth and Joe Swanberg's take on Run Off the Road.) Rohal's fantastical opus features the irrepressible Ivan Dimitrov, one of the stars of Handshake, opposite Wingo. To say any more would simply be spoiling the fun, so instead I'll just let you check out the video which is embedded below.

# posted by Nick Dawson @ 10/18/2007 07:18:00 PM Comments (0)

Hey - if you have a film that fits, this small Northwest fest is really great, started by filmmaker Matt McCormick years ago.

Portland Documentary and eXperimental Film Festival 2008: Call For Entries!

Its that time of year again!

Peripheral Produce's Seventh Annual Portland Documentary and eXperimental Film Festival (PDX Fest, for short) is now accepting submissions for its five-day exposition taking place April 30th-May 4th, 2008 in Portland, Oregon.

PDX Fest is dedicated to showcasing new and innovative work in film and video from around the world. Focusing on non-narrative work that goes against the grain of mainstream entertainment, the PDX Fest is looking for artistic, underground, quirky and challenging work that reflects contemporary culture, documents historic oddities, and is otherwise unclassifiable.

Experimental, documentary and/or underground work of all lengths will be considered. Exhibition formats include 35mm, 16mm, Beta SP, and DV. Live, multi-media and performance-based works with a film or video emphasis are also encouraged to submit. We are also accepting video installation proposals for the festival's satellite installation exhibit. Please see submission guidelines for complete details.

$15 entry fee
Deadline: December 14, 2007
Late Deadline: January 18, 2008 (late fee applies)
see www.peripheralproduce.com for more info.

# posted by Mike Plante @ 10/18/2007 02:40:00 PM Comments (0)

Sorely missing from Apocalypse Now: The Complete Dossier DVD last year was Eleanor Coppola's fantastic documentary on the making of the film. I saw Hearts of Darkness years ago on an old VHS tape and remember being enthralled. For those who don't know, Apocalypse Now was a notorious shoot plagued with escalating budgets, eccentric actors and an unclear ending. What Eleanor shot is among some of the best behind-the-scenes footage that exists and a perfect supplement to a film about losing oneself in the deep jungle. The DVD will feature commentary by both Francis Coppola and Eleanor. It will also feature her new film Coda: Thirty Years Later, her follow-up documentary. The DVD will hit shelves November 20th.

# posted by Benjamin Crossley-Marra @ 10/18/2007 02:29:00 PM Comments (2)

Ed M. Koziarski in the Chicago Reader posts a piece about mumblecore auteur Joe Swanberg in the months following his breakthrough film Hannah Takes the Stairs. He goes with the hook of Swanberg still struggling financially despite his mini-stardom (“It hasn’t changed my life at all,” Swanberg says. “I’m still sitting in Chicago wondering how I’m going to buy groceries. I’m not getting phone calls from agents or studios saying, ‘What are you up to?’”), but there are other observations in the piece worth noting.

Like this one:

Hannah Takes the Stairs grossed a respectable $6,000 on one screen its opening weekend in New York and $18,000 total through its runs in Boston, Los Angeles and Seattle. It played in Portland, Oregon, earlier this month and opens Friday for a weeklong run at the Gene Siskel Film Center. This feature has more muscle behind it than any Swanberg’s made to date, but getting it into theaters has still been a struggle. “The Music Box passed on it. The Film Center didn’t really want to do it. They were like, ‘I don’t think there’s an audience for it.’”

Film Center director Barbara Scharres admits she did have reservations. “Joe’s movie and this movement appeal to a demographic that is more used to accessing entertainment through the Internet and other means that don’t involve going to movie theaters,” she says. To some extent, Swanberg sees her point. “I don’t even know if I’m all that good at getting younger people to see the movie,” he says. “It’s not Napoleon Dynamite, that’s quirky in a safe way. I don’t think Hannah could be turned into a mainstream success no matter who tried to do it.”

Swanberg says in the piece that the film has yet to recoup its five-figure budget and that he hopes that he himself will start to realize some profits in about a year.

More:

"If I can make enough of these small movies that they’ll all be out on video and bringing in some money, eventually five or six of them would be bringing in enough that I can start to live on it,” Swanberg says. “It becomes more about having a body of work, rather than about having one individual film that’s really successful.”

There may, however, be that one film in the future that pays the rent. Koziarski reports that Swanberg is at work on a bigger budget film produced by Film Science and Garden State's Camelot Pictures.

# posted by Scott Macaulay @ 10/18/2007 01:04:00 PM Comments (0)

The REDCAT theater in Los Angeles just screened the three hour documentary Fuck Cinema by legendary doc filmmaker Wu Wenguang, made in 2006. With a single handheld camera, he follows a man who hangs out front of the Beijing Film Academy, showing the surprising world of film in China, which seems to have some of the same hang ups the West does.

See, the main subject of the doc (pictured here) has written a screenplay he is trying to get someone to make. Except its not a script but a pile of handwritten pages. By his count 60,000 words. "This is insane, its a manuscript," one student remarks. And our hero is literally homeless, sleeping on the roof of a nearby student dorm. The script reflects that, the story of a homeless man who becomes a movie extra and is discovered.

But he can't even get a movie extra gig. It costs 300 Yuan to join a psuedo-union that would get you extra roles that pay 20 Yuan a day. He meets someone who "knows an investor" that would fund the movie, but then returns with a number that the homeless man will have to call. "Remember me if you get funding," the guy leaves our hero with. Then he meets a young director who is brutally honest about his "script" before taking off in a sidecar.

And the beatdown goes on. The film industry is taking off in China and the cliches seem to be coming with it.

Wu' Wenguang's hero reminds you of the adorable nature of American Movie's Mark Borchardt, working not only against the Hollywood system but just trying to get a damn day job. But there is also some egomania at work, wanting to be discovered and talked about without doing a lot of the work it takes. Now, how does that change when the person doesn't even have a bed to sleep in and wonders how the next meal is coming? Wu does an incredible job of simply showing the film world as it happens. What seems simple, following a guy around as he begs for movie acceptance, becomes dynamic over the 170 minutes - not because he shows everything he filmed, but because he is selective on what moments to show you, and then letting that moment play out however long it takes.

The film gets even more fascinating with its two subplots. Throughout the film Wu Wenguang edits back to an endless series of young actresses auditioning for a role of a hooker, the only question asking their feelings of real "hostesses." The other continual subplot is more amusing, as he follows a bootleg DVD seller around town, selling big movies and dodging the cops.

In a way, all these lesser roles of the movie industry have become stars by being in this documentary. But in the end, the would-be screenwriter reads a letter he wrote about the whole process of making the documentary that reveals how he gets the true nature of cinema, whether real or fake.

The REDCAT screening was an event - the rare miniDV tape of the doc was sent to Los Angeles and then transferred to DVD. The screening had one master go out and the other source tape finished the show. And leave it to hardcore programmer Berenice Reynaud to put a short film in front of a three hour verite doc. Alas, lucky us, as we got to also see the 8-minute film Ten Years by the great Jia Zhangke, a beautiful piece about change in his country and a nice train ride.

# posted by Mike Plante @ 10/17/2007 09:05:00 PM Comments (1)

I arrived back into New York City late last night from the Woodstock Film Festival and found myself missing the winds of the Catskills and colorful leaves, despite having slept in layers of clothes and blankets at night. Woodstock was the first film festival that I've been to with my short Honored and found the overall experience enjoyable. The permanent staff and volunteers were incredibly helpful and friendly and really did their best to make the filmmakers comfortable and get the most from the festival experience. The environment that Co-Founders/Festival Directors Meira Blaustein and Laurent Rejto have created up there is fantastic and seems to continue to please both industry and filmmakers alike.

I was able to catch a lot of films while there. One that I really wanted to see was the Hungarian film Iska's Journey written and directed by Csaba Bollók but word was the print got lost by UPS. Ack! This however allowed for an additional screening of Julian Schnabel's The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (Le Scaphandre et le Papillon) which continues to amaze audiences. The word "sublime" continually came up in conversations with people about that film.

Here's a rundown of highlights of films I saw at Woodstock Film Festival (in addition to what was posted on the 12th):

DOCUMENTARIES

James Crump's Black White and Gray:A Portrait of Sam Wagstaff and Robert Mapplethorpe is a doc that I think people who love the arts, but have a basic knowledge of things should check out. Many people know well of Mapplethorpe, but little of Wagstaff who was deeply influential in bringing controversial art into play. And without Wagstaff, it is quite possible we wouldn't know Mapplethorpe's work and perhaps many contemporary art photographers. What I particularly liked about this film was how it was able to delve into the personal relationship between Wagstaff and Mapplethorpe thanks to the interview with Patti Smith. Through this we get a glimpse into their world through a dear friend and fellow artist's perspective. The film opens in New York this Friday at Cinema Village.

Doris Dörrie's How To Cook Your Life (Wie Man Sein Leben Kocht) follows the charismatic Zen Master Edward Espe Brown as he explains the guiding principles of Zen Buddhism as they apply to the preparation of food and life itself. The film is a wonderful examination on how far people, and Americans in particular, have come from our connection with food. It also was a wonderful look into Zen and human nature. No matter how Zen we try to be, we're still human. And there are some scenes where we see Brown frustrated with his students and with the food - particularly in the way things are packaged these days. The scene where he tries to open a packet of cheese is hilarious. We've all been there, trying with our hands to open a package and have to take evasive action with a knife of some kind. The film itself a meditation; the simple pacing, beautiful shots of food, and the anecdotes of Brown and Zen philosophy weave a constructive thread. The Woodstock screening was the North American premiere of How To Cook Your Life.

Robert Stone's Oswald's Ghost had it's World Premiere at Woodstock. The film pulls us into the world of conspiracy as Stone deconstructs the mythologies and controversy surrounding the assasination of JFK and how our beliefs in what may have happened have shaped history. The film presents the predominant theories of what happened that day in Dallas and at the introduction of the screening, Mr. Stone relayed that he made this film bearing in mind the post 9-11 world we live in today, a world also rampant with conspiracy theories. 70% of Americans today believe there was a conspiracy behind JFK's assasination. Watching Oswald's Ghost I went into it wondering if Oswald was set up. But by the end, I believed that maybe he did do it and did it alone. But I'm still unsure, as many of us continue to be. The portion that struck me the most was the footage and information on Oswald's opportunist mother; a woman who used the infamacy of her son's fate to her own advantage. This film will certainly lend itself to a lot of discussion, particularly among people who were alive at the time of the assasination. It was an event that changed so much in America and we certainly continue to feel the after effects.

FEATURES


Alex Holdridge was highlighted in "25 New Faces of Independent Film" and I had the opportunity to see In Search of a Midnight Kiss at Woodstock. The film centers on Wilson (Scoot McNairy) who's break up with his ex-girlfriend still lingers as New Year's Eve approaches and his best friend convinces him to place an ad on Craigslist for a date so he won't spend the night alone. Enter the strongwilled Vivian (Sara Simmonds)who has an agenda of her own, and we follow the pair from their meeting and into the New Year morning. This sort of tale has the chance of becoming self-indulgent, and there were a couple moments the story teetered in that direction, but overall the film is tightly held together, and rings true for those who've struggled through break-ups and new beginnings in life and love. The movie opens in theatres in February 2008.

Sol Tryon's The Living Wake is a dark comedy set in a storybook universe that follows the final day of of self-proclaimed artist and genius K. Roth Binew, played brilliantly by Mike O'Connell in a role that he created originally as part of a one-man show. Binew has one day left to live and enlists his best and only friend Mills (Jesse Eisenberg) to take him around town on his bicycle rickshaw as he tries to sort through life's unanswered mysteries and hands out invitations to friends, enemies and acquaintances for his living wake which is to take place that evening. The film was shot Mr. Tryon's home state of Maine during the autumn. The beautiful setting and absurdist trials of Binew blend together perfectly and as I watched the film I could see the actors delight in performing it. The Living Wake ultimately won the Audience Award at Woodstock (complete list of Awards can be viewed HERE) and is currently playing at the Austin Film Festival and next will be at AFI in Los Angeles.

SHORT FILMS

I spent most of Saturday watching short films. I was naturally curious to see the other shorts programmed and who I was up against competition-wise. The first set of shorts I saw were from graduate students at NYU and Columbia University and dealt with issues of pre-adolesencents and teenagers. Aquarium by Rob Meyer was the first film up and ended up taking the Diane Seligman Award for Best Student Short. The film was a quirky tale about an aquarium obsessed boy who also drowned his aging dog. The casting of the kids in this film was really great from the main boy, his geeky friends, the wacky teacher/aquarist, and the girl-next-door the boy has a crush on. In this program I also really enjoyed Myna Joseph's Man which touches on the competitiveness and confusion between sisters and sexuality. The performances were raw and real, and Ms. Joseph handled the subject matter with great honesty. Suzi Yoonessi's short Dear Lemon Lima also screened in this program, and was taken from her feature script of the same title written with Nicki Paluga that also participated in No Borders at the the IFP Market in 2006. Also screened was Carina Tautu's short Still Center; a whimsical glimpse into the life of a young Romanian woman who discovers she's pregnant with triplets. I had a hard time connecting with this short. It may have been the title cards throughout which were there to dictate the mood or change - for me, it's like the unwarranted voice-over. I just can't get into it and felt like the film would have worked better without.

The next program I saw was a mixture of films from the US and overseas that dealt with love and the passage of time, both free form and nonsensical and some pure sci-fi. A lot of these films have had runs through other festival circuits including favorites Phillip Van's ("25 New Faces of Independent Film") High Maintenance and Julien Lecat and Sylvain Pioutaz's Waiting For Yesterday (Demain La Veille). Both of which I really enjoyed, and I also got a kick out of Doug Lenox's Quincy and Althea where we encounter a married couple eager for divorce in the wake of post-Katrina New Orleans.

Next up was my screening. The complete program included a roster of actors the likes of Fisher Stevens (Matthew Ross's Red Angel based on Eric Bogosian's play); Ray Wise and Lin Shaye (Padraig Reynolds's Election); Johnny Galecki and Tom Irwin (Zachary Sluser's Who You Know)and local musician Raw Believer (Rick Rodgers's Hunt Me). Mine stars Elisabeth Moss. The themes were pretty volatile, with characters all being pushed to the edge. Doing the Q+A was hard for me. I don't like to stand up in front of a room of people, but I managed to get through it despite the fact my face felt like it was burning and I kept shifting from having my arms folded to having my hands in my back jean pockets. In the end, I got some really great feedback from people, so it made sweating it out worth it.

The last shorts program I saw had the theme of "crazies or eccentrics". The first film up Caroline by Committee by Mary Haas depicted a young woman and her insecurities personified: a team made up of the likes of the "Bulimic Buddy," "Disapproving Mother," and "Fashionista Fag" to name a few. This film was a lot of fun to watch. Gregg Brown's Shrinks showed a young man's (played by Gregg Brown) interviews with five shrinks, each one tackling a specific neurosis and the delivery more and more eccentric. I really loved how each doctor's office perfectly matching the shrink. I felt mixed about Andre Lyon's Nuts where a father's neurosis and son's allergy to nuts come to a tragic clash. Kurt Kuenne's Validation was sweet and entertaining, with a great performance from the lead who's character just wants people to smile.

The winning short was Andrew Zuckerman's High Falls starring Maggie Gyllenhaal and Peter Sarsgaard. Unfortunately I didn't get a chance to view this program (which also included "25 New Faces in Independent Film" Fellipe Gamarano Barbosa's Salt Kiss (Beijo de Sal)), but it was really hard to see everything I wanted to see as there were many films, plus the entire festival program was divided among locations in Woodstock, Rhinebeck, Rosendale and Hunter. Award-wise, I was disappointed that unlike the documentary and animation categories, there was not an Honorable Mention for the narratives. Of course I don't know that Honored would have made the cut, but who knows, the title of my short and "honorable" share letters, and a girl can dream!!

PARTIES

Oh yes, parties. All the official parties were held mainly at local restaurants and had plenty of food and loads of wine from the wine sponsor. I'd have to say the best one was held at the Byrdcliffe Barn which was a few minutes walk from where I was staying. It was the after-party for the screening of Oliver Noble's short Night of the Living Jews which had it's premiere at Woodstock, playing before Ti West's Trigger Man Friday night. The film was shot locally and features several zombie cameos including actress Melissa Leo, director Larry Fessenden, and Woodstock Festival Co-Founder/Director Laurent Rejto. I parked my car in front of the Villetta, where I was staying at the Byrdcliffe Artist's Colony, and thought, sure, we can walk down in the pitch darkness without a flashlight to a barn somewhere in the woods, but quickly realized the complete meaning of pitch black. Fortunately a car picked us up and we made our way to the party that had burgers and kegs of beer, a deejay, some dude dancing on stage in sunglasses, and it was in a barn! Oh, how I miss Woodstock...

# posted by stephanie fischette @ 10/17/2007 11:08:00 AM Comments (0)

As the Wall Street Journal pointed out recently, if you want to know what's going on with the possible Writers Guild of America strike, check out The Artful Writer, the blog published by screenwriters Craig Mazin (Scary Movie 3) and Ted Elliott (Shrek). It's a great blog with information for writers not just on the strike but also on copyright law, the WGA Minimum Basic Agreement, and lot of other news and info. And it's most likely seen its traffic spike as the October 30 strike deadline looms. Mazin has been posting a blow-by-blow of the negotiations that's relatively even-handed. Of course, he's on the WGA side, but he doesn't hesitate to criticize his union at times. In the current post entitled "The Bad Guy," however, he looks at the current AMFTP bargaining position and finds four "strike to the death" issues before hoping that a middle ground can be met over the toughest issue, internet residuals.

Check this blog regularly in the next few weeks in order to stay up-to-date on the possible writers work stoppage.

# posted by Scott Macaulay @ 10/15/2007 08:41:00 PM Comments (0)

Head over to Filmmaker Videos to check out the latest NYFF short by Jamie Stuart, starring Todd Haynes.

# posted by Jason Guerrasio @ 10/15/2007 12:35:00 PM Comments (0)

If nothing else, last night’s fest-closer in Vancouver--the ritzy French farce Priceless, with Amelie’s Audrey Tautou as a Cote d’Azur golddigger whose latest “catch” turns out to tend bar--served to prep the well-dressed crowd for an aptly swank afterparty at the Sheraton Wall Center. Maybe it even warned a few wealthy spouses with roving eyes not to mistake one of the Sheraton’s expert cocktail-mixers for the next Mr. Moneybags.

But for this decidedly non-bourgie reviewer, Priceless wasn’t worth a Canadian nickel past the first half-hour; indeed, the sight of Tautou and Gad Elmaleh’s hardly suave martini man squirming in bed sent the sleepy critic straight back to the hotel, where clean sheets and a DVD of the VIFF’s, um, Young People Fucking awaited.

Likewise more valuable than Priceless was the $25,000 cash-prize award--announced before the screening--to The Planet, one of nearly a dozen films in the fest’s “Climate for Change” series, sponsored by the pro-Earth activists at Kyoto Planet. Not a Nobel Prize, perhaps, but a little green won’t hurt The Planet--nor its three heretofore unknown Swedish directors (Michael Stenberg, Johan Soderberg, and Linus Torell).

# posted by Rob Nelson @ 10/13/2007 07:23:00 PM Comments (0)

I regret missing the kerfuffle at the Brian De Palma press conference, so juicily reported in this space. In contrast, the Wes Anderson chat with Kent Jones, one of the NYFF 45 Director's Dialogues, sponsored by HBO, was about as rowdy as tea time at Windsor Castle. Maybe the spanking new Times Center on West 41st Street inhibited the crowd.

Jones, whose interview style I like a lot, is the un-Charlie Rose, quasi-invisible, so you feel you're eavesdropping on two friends over lattes (or, in this case, bottled water without a logo). Anderson is smart and self-deprecating -- not a bit twee, like his film The Darjeeling Limited. I'm not sure what twee means, but it definitely applies to "Darjeeling." "I get accused of repeating myself," Anderson said. "Now I'm defending myself without having been accused of anything," he added to a volley of laughter. And yeah, his too-small suits give him the aura of a Lost Boy from Peter Pan, in keeping with his films. Unfortunately, the chat gave few insights into Anderson's creative process (though the woman in front of me nodded vigorously at his every remark, as if Zarathustra had just spake). "I like to work with my friends, it's a reunion and there's that energy on the set … " Zzzz. "The Kinks songs are better than the Beatles … " I check my watch. Oh, and "Bill Murray's usually reachable in his Winnebago." Just in case you needed to reach him.

Where, when we need it, is the crass and the inappropriate? As in the Toronto press conference for Michael Clayton with George Clooney. Some doofus asked Clooney about his new squeeze and how he met her. While the other journos winced, George gracefully ducked the question. But here's the thing: as someone who scours InStyle at the beauty parlor to check on Ashton and Demi, I for one would have loved to know how George met his g.f. (Or how anyone meets anyone. There's a billion dollar biz built around this challenge, which is compounded by those JDates who never even answer your "Flirt," much less meet). I'm also itching to know more about the Heath and Michelle split. Maybe those poopy nappies ... Bottom line, all that How I Prepared for the Role blather has me nodding off and makes lousy copy. I'm sorry that in Toronto I didn't have the guts to ask Sean Penn what it was like to hang with Hugo Chavez.

Back at NYFF 45, the session with director John Landis following his doc Mr. Warmth: the Don Rickles Project had the Walter Reade jumping. Though Landis's overview of Rickles is pretty hilarious, your laughter may not be heard in New Jersey, as advertised by the jury -- I'd say just Amsterdam Avenue. Thanks guys for including this one. Not only has the comic at 81 kept all his timing intact -- the film makes you nostalgic for a slice of Americana: old time Vegas when it was ruled by the mob and a tummler went by the name Shecky Green. In the Q & A – which consisted mainly of A, since Landis just surfed from one subject to the next – the filmmaker who gave us Animal House might have been channeling his inner Rickles. Same manic energy. The monologue ranged from such topics as features v. docs ("most docs you find in the cutting room"); to life in Vegas under the Jewish Montreal mob; to the corporations that charge 50 grand for 4 seconds of music. "Don is not a comic," Landis said – "He's a performance artist. He creates an ambiance. He owns the room. Doesn't tell jokes. And he's big at schmearing (that's tipping to you). Landis is the only filmmaker whom Rickles has allowed to film his act. "He's been doing the same act for 50 years," said Landis, "which he pulls out of his ass." Note: if Landis pulled the word "fuck" from his vocabulary, his syntax would capsize.

I wrapped my fest week with one of the many V.I.P. events clamoring for my presence: a lunch at Nick & Toni's for Marjane Satrapi and Vince Paronnaud, the team who gave us the zingy animated closer, "Persepolis." Here's one film brimming with information, ideas, pathos, and humor that's also a crowd-pleaser. Satrapi's face shares the same mischievous charm as Marjane in the film. I got to chatting with estimable indie mainstays Michael Barker and Tom Bernard of Sony Classics. My articles well was running dry, and I was contemplating a story on the trainer of the pooch in Go Go Tales. But the messieurs Bernard and Barker gave me enough ideas to last at least six months.

# posted by Erica Abeel @ 10/13/2007 07:00:00 PM Comments (0)

Josh Welsh over at Film Independent forwarded me this info about a cool new documentary project that's unfolding on YouTube. Two filmmakers, Eric Byler and Annabel Park, are making a film about the politics of immigration in Northern Virginia. They are posting short clips of their film on a channel they have set up on the site and are soliciting viewer feedback about the future direction of the project. "We will respond to viewer feedback, including requests for more coverage on certain storylines, contextual clarifications, and even perhaps on-site production excursions," the filmmakers write on their YouTube page.

Here's a statement Park sent along giving some more info:

In July, Prince William Co. Board of Supervisors unanimously passed the harshest local legislation in the nation aiming to remove "illegal immigrants" from their county. Supporters say that the Board is brave and it is necessary in order to preserve the law and quality of life. Critics say that it's racist and a cynical case of self-serving political grandstanding.

On November 6th, all local and state-level seats are up for election in Virginia including PW Co. Board Chairman Corey Stewart and Supervisor John Stirrup who introduced the controversial resolution.

Because of the timeliness of the subject, we felt compelled to create a real-time, interactive documentary Youtube channel -- breaking with the usual documentary post-production method that delays public feedback for months and months.

Each video is shot and edited quickly by a small team of independent filmmakers we've assembled including Jeff Man, Tomiko Anders, Tom Moore, and Zhibo Lai.

And here is the first video posting:

# posted by Scott Macaulay @ 10/13/2007 11:25:00 AM Comments (0)

It’s the last day of the Vancouver International Film Festival, and still the screening that movie people are talking about is that of Operation Filmmaker earlier in the week. If you haven’t heard by now, documentarian Nina Davenport’s politicization of the Project Greenlight formula--here the vaguely talented young hopeful hails from war-torn Baghdad--is a total knockout. But the blows delivered after one of three VIFF screenings are what accounts for the persistent buzz up here.

Among those who defended Davenport against audience accusations that she had exploited and otherwise unduly dissed twentysomething Iraqi playa Muthana Mohmed--a PA on lefty Liev Schreiber’s Everything is Illuminated set--is the Boston Phoenix’s Gerald Peary. After several viewer indictments of Davenport, who’s seen in the film giving money and other support to the reluctantly self-sufficient Mohmed, Peary stood up and said, “Don’t you people understand that this film is a comedy? In Toronto, people were rolling in the aisles! You’re all so serious!”

Neither was knee-jerk political correctness on the agenda of another Davenport fan, Jim Finn, whose own VIFF film La Trinchera Luminosa del Presidente Gonzalo (The Shining Trench of Chairman Gonzalo)--something of a Hi-8 La Chinoise--is a thoroughly fascinating, scrupulously provocative mock-doc about young female members of the Shining Path, the Peruvian Maoist revolutionary terrorist group, circa 1989.

“I’m an independent filmmaker,” Finn announced when the Q&A for Operation was threatening to get bloody. “And I can tell you,” he joked, “that we’re all assholes, pretty much.”

# posted by Rob Nelson @ 10/12/2007 06:30:00 PM Comments (0)

I arrived at The Woodstock Film Festival yesterday afternoon and went to registration to collect my badges - one "filmmaker" and one "press". I'm here with my short film Honored which is screening here Saturday and Sunday. It was rainy and chilly all day yesterday. Perfect for sitting indoors and watching movies. I watched two films that played yesterday. Was hoping to catch a third, but ended up getting lost in search of where I'm staying in the mountains. Save that story for a bit later..

The first film I saw was the World Premiere of 3 Américas written and directed by Cristina Kotz Cornejo which centers on 16 yr old América (played by newcomer Kristen Gonzalez) who lives in Boston and is frustrated with her life with her aunt Carolina and her alcholic husband Joey. She spends her days hanging out with friends, shoplifting, and getting into trouble. Her world is suddenly changed by a tragic event which forces her to move to Buenos Aires and live with her grandmother, Lucia, (played by veteran Argentinian actress Ana Maria Colombo). América barely speaks Spanish and feels unsettled by her grandmother's anti-American sentiments and isolated life. She befriends the neighbor handyman Sergio (delicately portrayed by Nicolas Meradi) who is twice her age and forms a relationship that her grandmother quickly disapproves of. Through the course of the film we see América try to adjust to her new life in Argentina and relate to her grandmother, and eventually take on some responsibility. During the Q+A, Ms. Cornejo revealed that the film was based on some of her personal experiences and thoroughout the film you can see the sensitivity in which she tells the story. The scenes between América and her grandmother, and América with Sergio are poignant and you really get a sense of this teenager evolving from start to finish. It was a great way for me to start my festival experience. 3 Américas is Ms. Cornejo's first feature, but she has completed several shorts that have played festivals worldwide and have since been distributed. Ms. Cornejo is also a teacher at Emerson College and one of her former students who worked in the film crew that shot on location in Boston and Argentina was on hand during the Q+A as well. How fun to be able to work on your professor's shoot and go to the premiere!

The second film I saw was the World Premiere of Neal Cassady written and directed by Noah Buschel and starring Tate Donovan. Cassady was immortalized as Dean Moriarity, the central character Jack Kerouac's On The Road and this film begins at the start of fateful journey Cassady and Kerouac (Glenn Fitzgerald), then leaps forward to the 1960s when Cassady met up with Ken Kesey (Chris Bauer) and joined the Merry Pranksters and became "Superman" and the driver of the psychedelic school bus "FURTHER". A bus that actually made it's way here to Woodstock during an anti-Vietnam rally, but without Cassady or Kesey. Thoroughout the film we see Cassady's struggle between being a character and being a man. He's constantly in search of and haunted by his derelict drunk father, and abandons his own young family. He just can't seem to sit still or write anything down - never becoming the writer he had dreams of being. We see this struggle articulated bitterly in a scene where Cassady slips into his family's home and sits on the floor near his son's bed with a notepad and is barely able to scribble his son's name out, and leaves no message. We see Cassady's struggle between his desire to break from the image of Moriarty and "Superman" but these characters that are so much a part of his persona are difficult to let go of. The film was an interesting look into Cassady but I also felt like the film was only skimming the surface of a story that has so much more to tell. Neal Cassady is Mr. Buschel's second feature, Bringing Rain starring Adrian Grenier was his debut that premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2003. Unfortunately, Mr. Buschel was not on hand for a Q+A at the end of the film.

The third film I had wanted to see was the premiere of Jonathan Blitstein's Let Them Chirp Awhile. I didn't make it though because after struggling with the wi-fi on my computer at the Colony Café I decided to venture off to the Byrdcliffe Artist's Colony where I'm staying thinking I'd have time to drop my stuff and make the screening. On my way out of the café I ran into Woodstock Film Festival co-founder Meira Blaustein who insisted that although I had directions that I should ask someone from the office to show me how to get there. It was rainy a