Well, it turned out I needed to shut off my computer and reboot to get my iMovie and Quicktime back in synch. But I wasn't sure, so I only used a couple of clips from the workshop here. I try not to think about the fact that filmmakers might be looking at these videos. But that though slipped into my consciousness, so let me just say I'm doing these with a Canon Powershot digital camera that has a video option, built in mic, etc. And doing quick edits - when my computer isn't fussing - to get these up in a few hours. And I believe in available light rather than flash. I also see myself as shooting as a member of the audience rather than as a reporter moving up in front of the crowd. So that's why there are some pretty dark images in some of the videos. And while this one is a little dark, at least Andrew stood in the spotlight.
Andrew's film Sikumi, which won a Jury Award at Sundance, will play again on Saturday, 12/13 at 12:45 at the Bear Tooth as part of Snowdance Shorts. He showed two other short films he made as a film student. The first is about a father teaching his son how to hunt seal in Barrow. The second takes a traditional Inupiaq story and puts the main character, a mad shaman, in New York City, where Andrew was a film student. You can see the other upcoming workshops here.
Monday, December 08, 2008
Sunday, December 07, 2008
AIFF - Busy Sunday - Andrew Okeaha MacLean
Started today at Fireweed to see shorts, then to Out North to see Andrew MacLean's film maker workshop. Then more shorts at the museum- the last part of that group. And now I'm at Bear Tooth for The Last Days of Shismaref.
Well, my video is having the same problem I had the other night - the video is freezing.
The shorts at the Fireweed were hindered by bad projection - the films were way to dark and the sound was low. It was hard to watch. There was a great short Canadian animation - Profile - of faces being identified electronically. It very simply portrayed the ominous dehumanization in the name of 'security.'
Susan Cohen's Open Your Eyes was next. I'd met Susan a couple of times at earlier showings. Her film takes a nugget of life as a way of conveying the psychological impacts of having breast cancer. A wedding shower - lots of women in low cut tops only emphasizing to main character - wearing a very high cut dress - how she is now cut off from normality. But the darkness of the projection seriously detracted. The next one - Cocoon - was totally messed up by the darkness. You couldn't see faces for much of the short film.
I took off then to see Andrew at Out North. He showed two short films he'd made - one a documentary the other narrative.
We just saw Last Days of Shishmaref which was stunning and compelling No time now. The director Jan Louter was here to talk about the making of the film.
Here for the Queer Duck the movie and Sex Drugs and Rock and Roll now. As you can tell, I'm getting tired and the video problems are frustrating me.
Well, my video is having the same problem I had the other night - the video is freezing.
The shorts at the Fireweed were hindered by bad projection - the films were way to dark and the sound was low. It was hard to watch. There was a great short Canadian animation - Profile - of faces being identified electronically. It very simply portrayed the ominous dehumanization in the name of 'security.'
Susan Cohen's Open Your Eyes was next. I'd met Susan a couple of times at earlier showings. Her film takes a nugget of life as a way of conveying the psychological impacts of having breast cancer. A wedding shower - lots of women in low cut tops only emphasizing to main character - wearing a very high cut dress - how she is now cut off from normality. But the darkness of the projection seriously detracted. The next one - Cocoon - was totally messed up by the darkness. You couldn't see faces for much of the short film.
I took off then to see Andrew at Out North. He showed two short films he'd made - one a documentary the other narrative.
We just saw Last Days of Shishmaref which was stunning and compelling No time now. The director Jan Louter was here to talk about the making of the film.
Here for the Queer Duck the movie and Sex Drugs and Rock and Roll now. As you can tell, I'm getting tired and the video problems are frustrating me.
Democrats elect Republican First Vietnamese-American Congressman and Say No to Corruption
Despite predictions to the contrary, Louisiana Democrats ousted indicted, black Congressman William Jefferson, and elected the first Vietnamese-American Congressman yesterday in an election that was postponed by Hurricane Gustav. Actually, the Hurricane pushed the primary election to Nov. 4 and the final election to yesterday.
Contrast this to Alaskans who almost reelected Ted Stevens despite his being convicted. Alaskan Republicans voted for Stevens. But in an overwhelmingly black and Democratic district in New Orleans, voters elected Republican Anh "Joseph" Cao. Now Alaskan Republicans can say, "But Jefferson had $99,000 in cash in his freezer." My response would be that Stevens had $150,000 in improvements in his house. What's the difference?
Contrast this to Alaskans who almost reelected Ted Stevens despite his being convicted. Alaskan Republicans voted for Stevens. But in an overwhelmingly black and Democratic district in New Orleans, voters elected Republican Anh "Joseph" Cao. Now Alaskan Republicans can say, "But Jefferson had $99,000 in cash in his freezer." My response would be that Stevens had $150,000 in improvements in his house. What's the difference?
[Picture from wwltv.com]
Associated Press
Joseph Cao
NEW ORLEANS - In a stunning victory, a little-known Vietnamese-American Republican candidate defeated nine-time Democratic Congressman William Jefferson in a majority African-American district with a very small number of Republican registered voters.
Anh ‘Joseph” Cao received 33,122 votes, or 49 percent to Jefferson’s 31,296, or 47 percent in the race for the Second Congressional District seat from Louisiana. He becomes the nation's first Vietnamese-American Congressman.
AIIFF - Chronic Town - Post 1
Chronic Town is the first movie I've seen in the film festival so far, where I felt completely satisfied. Maybe if I mull on it a while I'll come up with some quibbles. But it's 12:36am as I'm typing now, so I'll just say a little while I wait for the video of the before and after film discussion. Do watch the video. A crew member says very nice things about the people of Fairbanks (not the ones portrayed in the movie.)
After watching Chronic Town, it is easier for me to talk about the other films I saw today - AL's Beef, One-Two Punch, and Bart's Got a Room - and yesterday. It's sort of like when I would grade papers. Often, it was easier to show students a really good paper than try to explain why theirs wasn't an A. When they saw the good one, they could see how much better it was. Watching Chronic Town helped clarify for me what was missing in the others. (last year I wrote up the criteria I seem to use when evaluating a film - they're at the end of this post on winners and my criteria.)
At this point, what I can clearly articulate about the film is that all the characters were real, there was no separation of an actor from his role - I never thought about the acting or that these were actors. The story drifted along like real life, yet the filmmaker made it interesting and gave us genuine peeks into other people's souls.
More tomorrow after I get some sleep. Not everyone liked the film as you'll see near the end of the video.
Saturday, December 06, 2008
AIFF - Tim Anderson - One Two Punch
Talked to Tim before the movie One Two Punch just showed. Will talk about it later. Bart Got a Room is starting.
Update: He said after it was shown again that they fixed the problems he was talking about.
Update: He said after it was shown again that they fixed the problems he was talking about.
AIFF - AL's Beef
I had a little trouble getting up this morning, plus I had a 2 o'clock meeting with the Healing Racism in Anchorage steering committee, so I was going to miss the afternoon showing of Streetsweeper. But I managed to get to Bear Tooth for the last of film of the Subjective Subtleties. Well, there was NOTHING subtle about AL's Beef.
And now I'm back at Bear Tooth - after my meeting - waiting for Bart's Got a Room, so I actually have a moment to blog and there's free internet connection here.
AL's is my idea of a student film or a prototype film where the film maker is demonstrating the ability to do certain kinds of cinematic events - in this case with a Western back drop - but the film maker wants to do it 'different' so it isn't just one cliche after another. The answer: spoof. So we see the spurs before we see the cowboy - but the feet are barefoot, and the cowboy turns out to be a cowgirl. There's a sheriff/preacher (I wasn't totally clear about all the preachers) who practices throwing knives into a tree, but none of them stick. And then there's all the shooting, and all the bullet holes (in people) and gurgling blood. Not exactly my thing.
But all in all, it was funny and reasonably well done.
UPDATE: I found a couple of the visiting filmmakers who'd been discussing AL's Beef. One question was whether it was serious or not. I left the theater certain it was a spoof. but they said it had one Best Drama at another festival. I'm saying that doesn't matter. How could you have someone barefoot wearing spurs in a serious film? And a little kid walking around beating a drum while people are shooting each other and washing the blood off? Then the question came up, why was she all bloody at the beginning? So I checked - it was the Cape Fear Independent Film Festival, formerly the Sometime in October Film Festival, where it got best drama.
And now I'm back at Bear Tooth - after my meeting - waiting for Bart's Got a Room, so I actually have a moment to blog and there's free internet connection here.
AL's is my idea of a student film or a prototype film where the film maker is demonstrating the ability to do certain kinds of cinematic events - in this case with a Western back drop - but the film maker wants to do it 'different' so it isn't just one cliche after another. The answer: spoof. So we see the spurs before we see the cowboy - but the feet are barefoot, and the cowboy turns out to be a cowgirl. There's a sheriff/preacher (I wasn't totally clear about all the preachers) who practices throwing knives into a tree, but none of them stick. And then there's all the shooting, and all the bullet holes (in people) and gurgling blood. Not exactly my thing.
But all in all, it was funny and reasonably well done.
UPDATE: I found a couple of the visiting filmmakers who'd been discussing AL's Beef. One question was whether it was serious or not. I left the theater certain it was a spoof. but they said it had one Best Drama at another festival. I'm saying that doesn't matter. How could you have someone barefoot wearing spurs in a serious film? And a little kid walking around beating a drum while people are shooting each other and washing the blood off? Then the question came up, why was she all bloody at the beginning? So I checked - it was the Cape Fear Independent Film Festival, formerly the Sometime in October Film Festival, where it got best drama.
AIFF - Opening Night Gala at Aviation Museum - Film makers speak
We eventually made it to the Aviation Museum - several old hangers with an old Alaska Airlines 707 in front. Inside people were spread throughout the museum, eating, drinking, talking, and looking at airplane parts.
Shortly after we got there people gathered in the first room and some of the film makers talked a little about their films. A few even had trailers shown on a wall with a propeller on it. My tiny Canon Powershot valiantly attempted to adjust to the dark room. I can just say, it's better than nothing. You get a little sense of what it was like.
Outside it was slightly above freezing, but the snow wasn't too messy.
[OK, I've got a new problem - second time it's happened - but this time there might be some filmmakers looking who can tell me how to fix it. The movie works fine in iMovie, but after almost a minute (in this case) the video freezes in Quicktime version I saved it to, but the audio is good. How do I fix it. First time it ever happened was last week. I cut out the clip that it froze on. It went further and froze on another clip. I cut that out, and it seems to be ok. Any ideas?]
AIFF - First Films Begin at Bear Tooth - Symphony and Camille
I wasn't expecting much from Camille, so I was pleasantly surprised. A good movie isn't about the plot - though a good plot helps - but about how it all fits together. If you know it's got a guy on parole, a girl with red, red hair, and a blue horse and Niagra Falls, that's all you need to know. For the most part the acting was solid and it kept my attention. If there were any deep messages, I missed them completely. Definitely needed some polishing here and there - when the lady pointed out that Dad had forgotten the wallet, for example, we all had a pretty good idea of what was coming.
The animated short that opening things - Symphony (pic above, head not part of movie) - was a beautiful black and white of some sea creature who just misses being someone else's dinner several times to all in synch with the symphony. With my own short animation due Wednesday, I couldn't help but wonder how they did this. [Update: you can see a trailer of it here. Well worth it.]
Friday, December 05, 2008
AIFF - Animated Films in Competition Schedule
Here's the schedule for the animated films in competition.
Boyd was living the good life until Mock came along. Boyd’s new cage-mate is out to shake his tail feathers like they’ve never been shaken before.
USA • 2 min.• In Competition
By Mike Stern
An office worker’s job is made extremely difficult because of his boss’s taste in music.
USA • 5 min. • In Competition
By Erick Oh
The topic of this abstractedly crafted animation applies to anything that struggles to be free. It can be a phenomenon occurring deep within the mind, or an individual confronting the standardized masses.
Canada • 4 min. In Competition
By Chris Dainty & Rita Street
Boyd was living the good life until Mock came along. Boyd’s new cage-mate is out to shake his tail feathers like they’ve never been shaken before.
USA • 4 min. In Competition
By Joaquin Baldwin
A voodoo doll must find the courage to save his friends from being pinned to death.
The film maker is scheduled to attend the screening. Canada • 6 min. In Competition
By Jeff Chiba Stearns
Twenty three hundred drawings on 4x6 inch yellow sticky notes with a black ink pen, Yellow Sticky Notes is a small internal reflection on one’s role as an artist manifests into a discussion about major political and environmental crises.
Canada • 2 min. • In Competition
By Brian Sinasac
Ready for his base jump, Dan, perched high above the desert floor, leaps into the open sky. Malfunctioning equipment means doom for our daredevil, who can only be saved by the use of his head.
USA • 11 min. In Competition
By Jeff Riley
After a series of mysterious goldfish abductions, a secret agent is dispatched with a time displacement gun to bring the criminals behind the “fishnappings” to justice, and possibly save the world!
AIFF - Short Documentaries in Competition Schedule
The short docs in competition only get one showing each. It's possible one or two might be added to another feature, but don't bet on it. Click the chart to enlarge it.
Here again, just to get this up at all, I'm stealing the list from the AIFF site. Remember, on that site, the snowman in the upper left corner is a link back to the main page. Just click on it.
Here again, just to get this up at all, I'm stealing the list from the AIFF site. Remember, on that site, the snowman in the upper left corner is a link back to the main page. Just click on it.
UK, 14 min. – Documentary short - In Competition
Directed by Eva Weber
Date completed August 2007
An unparalleled and unique view of London - through the eyes and words of crane drivers.
Singapore - 24 min. - Documentary short - In Competition
Date completed 2008
Details an endearing story of friendship between two terminally ill women involving their families and the staff of the hospital.
Canada, 49 min. – Documentary short feature - In Competition
Directed by Antonia Thomson
Date completed August 2008
An HIV-infected child was abandoned in an orphanage in Northern Thailand Her medical chart read: Leave Her to Die, but one remarkable woman’s story proves that love itself can and is... saving lives.
Reefer Madness
Canada – 23 min. – Documentary short - In Competition
Directed by Steve Hanson
Date Completed: May 2008
Reefer Madness follows Canadian graffiti artist, Fatso, on a journey across the continent to track down the rarest refrigerator boxcars shedding some light on the most recent and unlikely movement in freight train graffiti.
USA – 22 min. – Documentary short - In Competition
Directed by Lance Bauscher
Date completed 2008
Documents Boise’s avant-garde noise rock band Monster Dudes.
Germany/USA – 28 min. – Documentary short - In Competition
Directed by F. Stone Roberts
Date Completed September 2008
Splitting Hairs is a documentary about the American invasion of the World Beard and Mustache Championships.
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