C U R R E N T S:
DATE: 2/2/10
SUBJECT: Why Hollywood Doesn't Like Complex Characters
Here are a couple of interesting and provocative articles about the absence of complex, multi-dimensional characters (particularly female characters) in "mainstream" Hollywood film fare. Both are written by former screenwriter, Jennifer Kesler.
In the first article, Kesler explains why she believes her well-intentioned film professors at UCLA taught her to write scripts that could not past the "Bechdel Test".
To pass the Bechdel Test, a film must satisfy the following three requirements:
there are at least two named female characters, who talk to each other about something other than a man.
In the second article, she writes about why she ultimately decided to quit filmmaking.
It's a disheartening but also very illuminating perspective. The substantial thread of comments that follow the articles really tap into some deep and timely issues within the filmmaking community as well.
DATE: 1/19/10
SUBJECT: Why Certain Indie Gems Never Have an Oscar Hope
Seattle filmmaker Lynn Shelton has become a indie film sensation with her recent film HUMPDAY. In this season of Oscar nominations, Vanity Fair takes a look at why some deserving films will never get even so much as a nod from the Academy. Probably to Lynn's chagrin, they've dubbed this phenomenon the "humpday effect".
DATE: 1/15/10
SUBJECT: Haku Inoa at the Smithsonian
HAKU INOA (the short version) will be showing at the Smithsonian NMAI Pacifica Showcase in New York City and Washington DC in late May! Details to follow.
DATE: 1/13/10
SUBJECT: More films at Big Sky
A HEALING ART and DARK MATERIAL will also play at Big Sky this year...
DATE: 1/12/10
SUBJECT: Louie Gong on the Festival Circuit
Longhouse Media's latest project, UNRESERVED: The Work of Louie Gong, has just started its journey through the festival circuit. So far, the film is heading to Rome International, Durango, and Big Sky. It's also on tour as part of the Smithsonian's Ramp it Up exhibit. Check out this beautiful poster created by the ever-talented Victor Pascual.
DATE: 12/25/09
SUBJECT: Iraq in Fragments - Top 25 of the Decade
Wow. Filmmaker Magazine included IRAQ IN FRAGMENTS in their
"25 Best American Independent Films of the Decade" list! One of only a handful of documentaries too, curiously.
The film was also ranked in the Sundance Channel's "Top Ten Documentaries of the Decade".
DATE: 12/21/09
SUBJECT: Alternative Film Distribution
Another interesting article, this one by Indiewire, looking at trends in alternative film distribution. Eugene Hernandez spotlights the film BASS ACKWARDS by Linas Phillips (an expat Seattle filmmaker whose work I admire) as "the sort of film -- essentially a quirky and lyrical road movie without name actors -- that can find a nearly impossible time in the marketplace today". The article is a bit of tease, exploring the big question about whether the experimental distribution model being tested on BASS ACKWARDS will usher a "defining moment for a new decade of film distribution and give emerging and established filmmakers new models to explore outside the system". High hopes and I suppose only time will tell.
Filmmaker Jon Reiss has also been blogging very actively about these issues lately... Lots of good tidbits to dig through there.
DATE: 12/16/09
SUBJECT: Beyond Hampshire - Alex Rivera
Alex Rivera was a student at Hampshire College a few years before I arrived there. I found his senior thesis video in the library stacks one day when I was doing some research for my own thesis project. The VHS tape that ended up in my hands was Papapapa, an experimental documentary about immigration. This chance discovery ended up having a huge impact on my ideas about how to combine my interests in politics with my interests in filmmaking. Alex is still doing incredible work as a filmmaker and I always love to hear him talk about what's on his mind.
DATE: 12/10/09
SUBJECT: Now Available with Closed Captions
Been learning how to do closed captions, in particular for web-based video. Closed captioning usually refers to text that appears on-screen to describe the audio portion of a movie for folks who are deaf. But it can also mean providing spoken descriptions of visuals for people who are blind. Let me tell you, this can be really tedious stuff. But I have to admit, it's also been fascinating to spend some time thinking about issues of accessibility, especially in a world that increasingly relies on
the powers of the
world wide web for navigating daily life! Did you know
that even
YouTube provides an easy way to caption your videos?
DATE: 12/8/09
SUBJECT: We Got That Broll
Ok, this is just for giggles. As one of my friends put it: "It's an editor thing."
DATE: 11/18/09
SUBJECT: Through a Native Lens at Western Washington University
WHEN: November 18th at 6pm
WHERE: WWU, Academic Instructional Center Room 210
Members of the Longhouse Media crew will be on site showing two documentaries: CANOE PULLING and MARCH POINT.
Following the screening, will be a panel discussion with:
DATE: 11/14/09
SUBJECT: City Artist Award!
Just got some great news! I've been awarded a City Artist grant through the Mayor's Office for Arts and Cultural Affairs. Thank you for supporting artists Seattle!
Individual artists are the heart of a creative community. The CityArtist Projects program provides funding for artists to develop and present their work. ... We encourage a broad range of artistic and cultural expression that reflects Seattle's diversity.
DATE: 11/11/09
SUBJECT: March Point on iTunes
MARCH POINT is now available for download on iTunes! Only ten bucks, a pretty sweet deal! Sign in and rate the film to help raise its profile... Here's how it works:
1. Google iTunesYou could also try this link.
2. Click on the iTunes official store
3. In the iTunes store search box, type in "March Point" (top right)
4. Click on the title of the film (hint: it's March Point)
5. Scroll down to "Customer Reviews". On the right it says "Write a Review". Click on that.
6. It will ask you to sign into your iTunes account. If you don't have one, it's easy to create. Just follow their directions.
7. Once you have signed in, you can write your review. At the top, click on the circle for how many stars you want to give it (I suggest 5!). Below that you can write a comment and submit.
DATE: 11/6/09
SUBJECT: Native Lens at American Indian Film Festival
Several videos from Longhouse Media's youth program Native Lens will be featured at the American Indian Film Festival in Bellevue from November 5-7th, 2009 (which is being held in conjunction with the First Expressions: Rehumanizing the People art exhibit). I've worked on several of these videos in one way or another over the years. The Executive Director of
Longhouse Media, Tracy Rector, has also been
invited to be the keynote speaker for the festival.
Look for Longhouse Media screenings:
Friday, November 6th at 6:45 pm
Saturday November 7th at 12:30 pm
Saturday, November 7th at 3:45 pm
Tracy was also recently a guest on the KBCS show Voices of Diversity. Scroll down to the Oct. 21, 2009 show to listen to the archived conversation with Native filmmakers, actors, and storytellers.
DATE: 10/30/09
SUBJECT: City Symphony at Ambient Films
Theater Off Jackson is proud to host the first Seattle Ambient Film Festival October 30th beginning at 10:00pm. My short video, CITY SYMPHONY, will be part of the lineup. Other films from local and non-local artists will include works by:
Otto Bulut
Gretchen Burger
Wes Hurley
Jordana Kaplow
Gary Mula
Adam Sekuler
Dan Thornton
DATE: 9/29/09
SUBJECT: March Point Honored at PTFF
MARCH POINT won Best Documentary this weekend at the Port Townsend Film Festival!
With a strong sense of place & community, small scope on big issues, and direct, poignant honesty tempered with humor, March Point is one tough little film!
DATE: 9/27/09
SUBJECT: James Longley is a MacArthur Genius!
James Longley got the famous phone call shortly before embarking on a trip to India. This prestigious award provides a five-year grant of a half million dollars - no strings attached - to individuals who show "exceptional creativity in their work and the prospect for still more in the future".
James Longley is, of course, the director I worked with on SARI'S MOTHER and IRAQ IN FRAGMENTS. Congratulations James!
Click here to view the Seattle Times coverage of the news.
DATE: 8/13/09
SUBJECT: DIY Distribution for Filmmakers?
An interesting article in the New York Times about the changing economic landscape of filmmaking and film distribution.
DATE: 7/21/09
SUBJECT: Doc Challenge Finalists at NWFF
The HotDocs International Documentary Challenge finalists will screen at Northwest Film Forum on July 21, 2009. A HEALING ART and DARK MATERIAL are the two projects I worked on.
DATE: 7/15/09
SUBJECT: HAKU INOA Fundraiser
Filmmaker Christen Marquez's Hawaiian name is: Hepua koa mana'a o ke kapu ka malie - o - no nali'i e me ka hanohano 'ia. But don't ask her what it means, because she doesn't know yet. She is trying to figure it out by making an hour-long documentary for PBS called HAKU INOA: TO WEAVE A NAME.
"My mother is a kumu hula, or master hula teacher. So, she was able to give my brothers and I these incredibly beautiful and meaningful Hawaiian names. Unfortunately, she has a mental illness called schizophrenia. She was unable to care for us, so we had to leave the islands with my father for Seattle when I was eight years old, and I never had the chance to learn about my name from her."
Christen has been working hard on HAKU INOA for the past several years. Most of her footage is shot and she is hosting this fundraiser to raise the money she needs to finish the film. She's a very talented emerging filmmaker and this project presents a really unique point of view that reflects the complex world we live in. I'm very excited that Christen has asked me to edit this project. And I hope you'll consider making a donation!
Join us for an evening of films,
hula, Hawaiian music and culture presented in partnership with The Wing Luke
Museum, The MAVIN Foundation, and Reel Grrls. Your support during this
fundraising event will go to the completion of HAKU INOA. Tickets are $10.
It would also be great if you can encourage people who are
unable to attend the event to donate to the project through the yellow
donate button on this page.
WHAT: HAKU INOA: TO WEAVE A NAME - Fundraiser Screening
WHEN: Wednesday, July 15, 2009, 6:00 - 9:00 PM
WHERE: Central Cinema, 1411 21st Avenue E., Seattle WA 98122
DATE: 7/8/09
SUBJECT: Free!
Can independent filmmakers monetize their work by giving it away for free?
Journalist Chris Anderson might say so. His new book Free: The Future of a Radical Price explains how "free" can become a marketing technique, helping businesses gain credibility in an economy that increasingly values reputation.
Listen to his story on a recent edition of NPR's Fresh Air.
DATE: 7/13/09
SUBJECT: Where are the women?
Of all the films you saw last year, it's statistically likely that fewer than 10 percent were directed by women.
A short but interesting story featured on NPR's All Things Considered.
DATE: 6/27/09
DATE: 6/21/09
DATE: 6/6/09
DATE: 6/5/09
Friday June 5th 1:30pm @ Jewel Box Theater
DATE: 5/31/09
DATE: 5/12/09
DATE: 5/9/09
DATE: 4/26/09
DATE: 4/15/09
DATE: 4/10/09
DATE: 4/7/09
DATE: 4/4/09
DATE: 3/14/09
DATE: 3/9/09
DATE: 3/3/09
DATE: 3/2/09
DATE: 3/2/09
DATE: 2/22/09
DATE: 1/10/09
DATE: 1/10/09
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SUBJECT: March Point in DOCUMENTARY & at NAMLE
Out this month, DOCUMENTARY
magazine features a still from March Point on the cover and talks about the film in the main article for the Summer 2009 issue. This is THE documentary magazine in the country and a huge honor.
Sweet!
Also, Longhouse Media has been honored with a National Association for Media Literacy award. This national award recognizes outstanding contributions made in media literacy and education. Again an enormous honor! The last recipient was Jon Stewart. Before that, Bill Moyers!
SUBJECT: Doc Challenge Audience Award
The latest announcement from Doc Challenge headquarters:
The audience has spoken! The 2009 International Documentary Challenge Audience Award (determined by online voting) goes to A HEALING ART by Team Fly On The Wall from Seattle, Washington, USA. Directed by Ellen Frick, A HEALING ART delves into the world of artificial eye makers as they rekindle hope for victims of tragedy. Congratulations to Team Fly On The Wall!
* * *
Also, the Best of the Doc Challenge DVD is now on Netlfix! It features 17 award-winning films from the first three years of the Doc Challenge. It also includes special features, with interviews and tips from the winning filmmakers. Queue it up!
AND, Dokufest in Kosovo is presenting a showcase of the winners of the International Documentary Challenge.
SUBJECT: Superfly at the Egyptian
SUPERFLY once again descends upon Seattle. This is an annual 36-hour fly filmmaking challenge presented by Longhouse Media in partnership with the Seattle International Film Festival and various tribes in the Pacific Northwest. Fifty youth from all over the country come to Seattle and work together to create five short films over the course of one very long day and one very long night. I'm excited to be helping out once again this year!
The completed films premiere at the Egyptian Theatre in Seattle on Saturday, June 6th at 4pm as part of the FutureWave program. Tickets to this show usually sell out, so buy yours in advance!
SUBJECT: Unlisted in Seattle Theatres
Delaney Ruston's long-awaited feature documentary UNLISTED (a story about schizophrenia) will screen in Seattle theatres this month. I've worked on this project a little bit over the years both as a shooter and editor, and I'm looking forward to seeing it on the big screen! Also, UNLISTED was recently honored with an award for Most Compelling Documentary by the Seattle True Independent Film Festival. Congrats Delaney!
Tickets are available here.
2322 2nd Ave, Seattle 98121
Monday June 8th 7pm @ Northwest Film Forum
1515 12th Ave, Seattle 98122
Wed June 10th 7pm @ Central Cinema
1411 21st Ave, Seattle 98122
"Why do we see so many severely mentally ill people on the street, often off treatment and nearly always alone? Physician and filmmaker, Delaney Ruston, has seen her paranoid schizophrenic father in this state. Unlisted depicts Ruston's journey, now as a doctor, to stop hiding from her father and to understand his illness and its impact on their relationship. Prompted by memories of struggling to get help for her father, Ruston sets out to understand why it is so hard to get mental health care in America. When her father suddenly stops his medicine, what starts as an emotional tale of reconciliation turns into a frantic journey for survival."
SUBJECT: Dark Material at SIFF
DARK MATERIAL, one of the HotDocs International Documentary Challenge finalists, will screen at the Seattle International Film Festival on May 31, 2009 at 11am as part of the Sensory Overload program. I did a little sound mixing and color correction on this project.
SUBJECT: Exquisite Corpse at Northwest Film Forum
Just finished creating a very fun, spontaneous, color super 8 short with Karn Junkinsmith and Michael Seiwerath. It will screen along with 23 other short films as part of the EXQUISITE CORPSE filmmaking challenge at the Northwest Film Forum on May 12th, 2009 at 8pm.
The film is created in the same surrealist spirit as the exquisite corpse exercise that writers and illustrators often do... Participants in the filmmaking challenge can create a film about anything they want, but must begin and end their film with images chosen randomly out of a hat. For example, one person might pick from a hat a slip of paper that instructs them: "Begin with man in a red shirt. / End with barking dog." The filmmaker must begin and end their film accordingly. Another person will draw a slip that says: "Begin with barking dog. / End with girl riding a bike." Another: "Begin with a girl riding a bike. / End with a boat." And so on.
It should be a fantastic show!
SUBJECT: Seattle Wins Big in Toronto
Seattle wins again at the HotDocs International Documentary Challenge in Toronto. DARK MATERIAL, by Team Reel Grrls (I provided some post-production support on this project), won the Best Editing award and the award for Best Use of the Hope & Fear Theme. A HEALING ART, a story about artificial eyeballs, (I worked on this one too, providing post-production and story consulting support), goes home with one the top prizes, which includes a cash award and a coveted broadcast deal with POV!
SUBJECT: Lynn Shelton at Cannes
Seattle filmmaker Lynn Shelton is kicking ass in the film world lately and making us all very proud out here in the Northwest. Her feature film HUMPDAY will play at the Cannes Film Festival as part of the Director's Fortnight series next month. She premiered HUMPDAY at Sundance Film Festival earlier this year (where less than 1% of submitted films are accepted into competition) and won one of the most buzzed about bidding wars of the festival, selling her film to Magnolia Pictures. Just a few weeks later, she was crowned as Someone to Watch at the 2009 Independent Spirit Awards for her previous feature film, MY EFFORTLESS BRILLIANCE. Of course, we here in Seattle have known all along that Lynn Shelton is someone to watch...
Damn, Lynn. You go girl.
SUBJECT: Haku Inoa - Work In Progress
Have been working with Christen Marquez, editing an updated work sample for her project HAKU INOA. Christen's film is a first-person documentary in which she explores her Native Hawaiian heritage through a quest to reconnect with her estranged mother and learn the meaning of her enigmatic, extremely complex Hawaiian name.
Christen has been shooting for several years now and just finished gathering some very pretty new footage with support from PBS Hawaii. She's doing a little more fundraising before she dives all the way into post-production on the 60-minute show, so if you'd like to donate, please visit her website!
SUBJECT: Worlds Apart in Post
WORLDS APART is a feature-length documentary by Eli Kimaro that examines the difficulties of holding onto culture and tradition in the modern world. After 40 years of being away, the filmmaker's father moves back to his homeland on Mt. Kilimanjaro in Africa and struggles to find a sense of identity and belonging in the community he left behind. In the process of filming, however, Eli discover that this is no longer just her father's story.
I've been working with editor Eric Frith to help get this doc ready for submission to festivals in coming months!
SUBJECT: Doc Challenge Competition at HotDocs in Toronto
Earlier this year, 142 filmmakers from all over the world made short non-fiction films with the assigned theme of "Hope and/or Fear". It was a race against time, as teams were randomly assigned genres (character study, art, biography, history, experimental, etc.) and then only had a handful of days to complete their videos before a postmark deadline. From the 142 International Documentary Challenge submissions, 13 finalists have been selected to premiere their videos at the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival on May 9, 2009. Winners will be announced that night. Against all odds, three Seattle-based teams have been selected as finalists this year. Something in the water? Look for DARK MATERIAL and A HEALING ART, two of the films that I worked on a tiny bit.
SUBJECT: March Point & National Geographic
MARCH POINT screens in Washington DC at the National Geographic headquarters at 1pm on April 4th, 2009. On April 5th MARCH POINT screens again at 8pm at Bus Boys and Poets, an event co-sponsored by National Geographic and the Environmental Protection Agency. The directors will be in attendance for Q&A.
SUBJECT: MARCH POINT Premieres in Europe!
MARCH POINT had its European premiere on March 14th in Paris, France at the European Documentary Film Festival. The outpouring of Parisian audiences was enormous, which resulted in MARCH POINT receiving a Special Jury Award in competition. Of course, this also means that MARCH POINT is now available with French subtitles!
SUBJECT: Independent Film Distribution
A fascinating article for independent filmmakers who are trying to figure out the ever-changing landscape of distribution! Click here.
SUBJECT: March Point Re-Broadcast
Due to the amazing response to the original broadcast last November, Independent Lens has decided to re-broadcast March Point on Tuesday, March 3, 2009. The film recently won Best Documentary at the ImagineNative Film Festival in Toronto and was selected by UNESCO as an example of indigenous grassroots mobilization in response to climate change! Now watch it on TV... Check your local PBS listings for more info, or follow this link: www.pbs.org/independentlens/marchpoint
SUBJECT: CANOE PULLING Doc Featured at Smithsonian
A couple years ago, I spent several months working with youth from the Lummi Tribal Community (near Bellingham, WA), teaching them start-to-finish filmmaking skills so that they could create their own short videos. One of those videos, CANOE PULLING: A LUMMI WAY OF LIFE, recently screened at the Smithsonian's prestigious National Museum of the American Indian in New York City. The youth directors received a special invitation to present their work in person at the museum -- their first trip to the Big City! Congrats Sara and Talia!
SUBJECT: Unlisted in Seattle PI
After years of hard work, Delaney Ruston has finally locked picture on her documentary Unlisted. (I worked on this project a little bit as a shooter and editor.) Check out this great front-page feature article about Delaney and Unlisted in the Seattle Post Intelligencer. Congrats Delaney!
SUBJECT: The Reel Grrls Oscar
Reel Grrls honored me with their own very special version of an Oscar this year! Ever notice how few women filmmakers appear on the Academy Awards ticket?
SUBJECT: Now Accepting Applications for Superfly
Longhouse Media is now accepting applications for Superfly, an annual fly filmmaking event for youth from all over that takes places in Seattle from June 4-6 (with very little sleep across the span of those days). This event is co-sponsored by the Seattle International Film Festival, and the films created during Superfly screen in June at the beautiful Egyptian theatre as part of the festival. I'm the tech coordinator for this event and look forward to collaborating with everyone on this year's batch of films! More info is available at: www.longhousemedia.org
SUBJECT: March Point Screens at Seattle Art Museum
In conjunction with the last weekend of the Gifts exhibit at Seattle Art Museum, March Point will screen at 1pm on January 10th, 2009.
