The Global Film Village

You’ve Never Seen Oscar Like This

// February 8th, 2010 // No Comments » // Awards

by Marla Lewin

This year the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences under the stewardship of  President Tom Sherak has dedicated their energies to ensure that the ratings slide that the Oscar telecast has suffered over the last several years comes to an end. They have increased the list of Best Picture nominees from five to ten to make sure that more popular films make it into the show. They have chosen two exceptionally popular comedians Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin to be the face of the telecast. Now the poster has been released and the message is clear the 82nd Academy Awards show on March 7 will be fun. The design was created by a Los Angeles creative team known as Omelet and I think you will agree they have the right recipe. I am definitely looking forward to this year’s show. How about you?

It just brings a smile to my face seeing it. The only thing missing between these two is Meryl Streep and she wasn’t nominated for the film they starred in together but she was nominated.

This is the only 82nd Academy Awards commemorative item available for sale to the public. Of course the 27×40-inch poster is green. It is printed on premium quality, Forest Stewardship Certified paper. Posters are available for purchase on the Academy’s Web site at http://www.oscars.org/academy/posters-books/posters/ or by calling 1-877-335-8936. Each poster is $25, plus shipping and handling.

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Michael Jackson: The Untold Story of Neverland

// February 8th, 2010 // No Comments » // Film Festivals

by Marla Lewin

photo from "Michael Jackson: The Untold Story of Neverland"

Just days after Dr. Conrad Murray surrendered to the Superior court in Los Angeles, where he was arraigned on one count of felony involuntary manslaughter in the death of Michael Jackson there is  a new film being screened at  the 2010 Santa Barbara International Film Festival. The world premiere of the feature documentary “Michael Jackson: The Untold Story of Neverland”  by Larry Nimmer will presented  on Wednesday, Feb. 10 at 9:30 pm at the Victory Hall theatre in Santa Barbara. Continue Reading

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James Cameron Receives Modern Master Award at Santa Barbara Film Festival

// February 8th, 2010 // No Comments » // Videos

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When The Dragon Swallowed The Sun Tibet Doc Premieres at Santa Barbara Film Festival

// February 7th, 2010 // No Comments » // Film Festivals

Lhagyari Trichen Namgyal Wangchuk, the 18th descendent of Tibet's Great Dharma Kings.

Seven years in the making, Director Dirk Simon’s, documentary When The Dragon Swallowed The Sun will have its world premiere this weekend. Simon stated this morning, “I am thrilled to be able to present a film that showcases such musical talent as Philip Glass, Damien Rice and Thom Yorke, together with amazing cinematography and intriguing, groundbreaking story matter. This film has the power to alter how one thinks about Tibetans and the movement to free Tibet from China.”

Santa Barbara audiences have always been interested in films that explore the conflicts and contradictions facing the movement to free Tibet from Chinese occupation.

When The Dragon Swallowed The Sun introduces the only officially recognized descendant of the Great Religious Kings of Tibet,  18 year old Lhagyari Trichen Namgyal Wangchuk,  – crowned by His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama in June 2004 in Dharamsala, India. With exclusive footage from the coronation, intimate interviews and access to the family’s archive material. Continue Reading

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Tennessee Williams classic Orpheus Descending in Los Angeles

// February 7th, 2010 // No Comments » // Stage Play

Gale Harold and Denise Crosby photo by Ginger Perkins

Gale Harold (Queer as Folk), Denise Crosby (Star Trek TNG), and cover girl-turned-actress Claudia Mason (Vogue, Elle, W, Cosmopolitan) head the cast of Tennessee Williams’ rarely produced classic, Orpheus Descending. Independent filmmaker Lou Pepe (Lost in La Mancha) directs a six-week run at Theatre/Theater in Los Angeles.

Tennessee Williams’  version of the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice is brilliant.  It is set in the American South, full of repressed desires, secrets, and prejudice. Val Xavier (Harold) arrives in a small town looking for work and an opportunity to escape his New Orleans life of alcohol, women and song, here he meets Lady Torrance (Crosby), a woman with a tragic past who longs for love.  This is one of  Williams’ darker and more complex plays, Orpheus Descending explores the power of passion, art, and imagination to redeem life and return it to a sense of purpose. Continue Reading

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Sandra Bullock Honored at Santa Barbara Film Festival

// February 6th, 2010 // No Comments » // Videos

Friday night Sandra Bullock received the  25th Santa Barbara International Film Festival’s  American Riviera Award presented by Forest Whitaker on behalf of Chopin Vodka.  The award was established to recognize an actor who has had a strong influence on American Cinema.  Bullock has recently won the Golden Globe and SAG awards for Best Actress. The tribute was moderated by Pete Hammond, Film Critic for Box Office, Backstage and a columnist for the LA Times-Envelope.

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55 world premieres to unveil at SXSW 2010

// February 3rd, 2010 // No Comments » // Industry Event

by Marla Lewin

MacGruber: Ryan Phillippe, Will Forte and Kristen Wiig in MacGruber (Greg Peters/Rogue Pictures)

The SXSW Film Festival will open on March 12, 2010 with the world premiere of Kick-Ass, directed by Matthew Vaughn and starring Nicolas Cage.Today the festival released their list of 119 features that will be shown at this year’s event. The SXSW Film Conference kicks off with 10 days of movies and five days of world-class speakers discussing their work and the latest filmmaking trends amidst the party atmosphere that makes SXSW such a unique experience. Local Austin legend Harry Knowles will interview cult underground comics legend Gilbert Shelton, creator of The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers. This film festival was founded after the Music festival had already put its stamp on the city but has a free-wheeling life of its own. The complete list of panels and panelists, as well as the 2010 Shorts lineup will be announced next week.

The festival’s main competition for Narrative and Documentary Features will each have 8 world premieres films. Continue Reading

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Nominations for the 82nd Academy Awards Announced

// February 2nd, 2010 // No Comments » // Awards

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences President Tom Sherak and 2008 Oscar® nominee Anne Hathaway took the stage at a 5:38 a.m. PT this morning, live news conference to announce the nominees in 10 of the 24 categories.

Nominations for the 82nd Academy Awards Continue Reading

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Why Torture is Wrong, and the People who Love Them an interview with Christopher Durang

// January 31st, 2010 // No Comments » // Stage Play

photo by Rick Baumgartner (c) The Blank Theatre Company. All Rights Reserved.

by Marla Lewin

I just spoke with Christopher Durang, who is off today, and preparing for a theatrical event in New York, with Michael Finestein and Barry Hemp for Dame Edna, called All about Me. Tonight he will be sleeping on his latest work, as they refine the show getting it ready for previews in mid-February.

His latest play Why Torture is Wrong, and the People who Love Them will have its West Coast Premiere with the Blank Theatre Company at the Stella Adler Theatre in Hollywood on January 30,2010. It is directed by Daniel Henning, artistic director/producer of the Blank.

A young woman is suddenly in crisis.  Is her new husband, whom she married when drunk, a terrorist? Or just crazy?  Or both?  Is her father’s hobby of butterfly collecting really a cover for his involvement in a shadow government?  Why does her mother enjoy going to the theatre so much?  Does she seek mental escape, or is she insane? Continue Reading

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Kathryn Bigelow wins DGA Feature Film Award for The Hurt Locker

// January 31st, 2010 // No Comments » // Awards

by Marla Lewin

Kathryn Bigelow became the first woman to win the DGA’s highest honor in its 61 year history. James Cameron  will just have to be content with having the two highest grossing films in history and the knowledge that his good friend and former wife has finally gotten the recognition that she deserves. He basically said that on the Jay Leno show last week.

Bigelow and Cameron are still widely considered the frontrunners for the Academy Award for Best Director. Avatar and Cameron won the top awards at the Golden Globes, where it was named Best Film Drama and he won the Director award. Most other critics awards have gone to The Hurt Locker, which has also won more of the crucial Hollywood guild awards. The DGA’s Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film has traditionally served as a near-perfect barometer for the Academy Award for Best Director. Only six times since the DGA Award’s inception in 1948 has the winner not gone on to receive the Academy Award for Best Director.

The other award winners are: Continue Reading

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