An insightful exploration of race and politics in America today
Filmmaking
Anthem Film Review: Catherine Keener and Jeanne Tripplehorn Rock the ‘Little Pink House’
Little Pink House opened the Anthem Film Festival, part of FreedomFest, on July 19, at the Paris resort in Las Vegas. The film stars Catherine Keener (Capote, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Being John Malkovich) and Emmy nominee Jeanne Tripplehorn (Big Love, The Firm, Grey Gardens), and tells the story of Susette Kelo, who led a fight against eminent domain which went all the […]
Gary Sinise Shares a Life Changing Moment with Veterans in Film and Television
Actor/director Gary Sinise spoke to the Veterans in Film and Television (VFT) Los Angeles chapter at the Hollywood American Legion Post, and drew an overflow crowd.
DWF: See My Shorts
(Originally published on Blogcritics.org) Dances With Films (DWF) wants you to see their shorts. Dances With Films is a Hollywood-based film festival running Jun 1-11, now in its twentieth year, dedicated to featuring the works of independent filmmakers. Many of these filmmakers got their start producing short films. Most short films never make any money, but they […]
Actor Mykelti Williamson Shares Thoughts on Acting and Life with LA Vets
“God don’t make no junk; none of you are accidents”– Mykelti Williamson at the May meeting of the LA chapter of Veterans in Film and Television (VFT).
Interview: ‘Creedmoria’ Director Alicia Slimmer Admits Coming-of-Age Flick is All About Her
‘Creedmoria’, a film by first-time writer/director Alicia Slimmer, made its SoCal premier at the Dances With Films Festival. It chronicles the efforts of sweet-sixteen Candy Cahill, played by Stef Dawson, to come of age in one of the most dysfunctional families in movie history. As I watched the film, I hoped, for Slimmer’s sake, that this movie wasn’t too autobiographical. It turns out that it was.
Adobe Does ‘Deadpool’ : And Remember Kids, Try This at Home
Deadpool is not your father’s superhero movie, or, because of its R-rating, your kid’s either. Director Tim Miller was true to the comic book character, who has been rude-man-out in the Marvel Universe for 25 years. Miller was obviously going for shock and edginess and he succeeded. But one thing not obvious is how this tale was put together. Traditionally, major movies have been assembled on big, dedicated editing hardware and software costing as much as a Prius. Although Deadpool couldn’t have been put together on your father’s PC, it probably could on your kid’s.
Anthem FilmFest: Top 10 Libertarian Films Rock with Jennifer Lawrence, Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman
“When I grow up, I want to be Dr. Manhattan,” was one of the responses Anthem Film Festival organizer Jo Ann Skousen received during the “Top 10 Films Every Libertarian Should Know” panel. Sometimes you get more than you ask for. After the audience joined the panel in suggesting films, well, there were a lot more than 10.
DWF: Three Shorts – Fantasy, Love and Our Fragile Grasp on Reality
Why do filmmakers create short films? Sometimes they are truly motivated to tell a story which only fits in a short format. Other times, it is to show off their skills in order to establish their credentials. Once in a while, they may make a short version of a film that they ultimately want to turn into a feature length production. At this year’s Dances With Films (DWF) festival, held in Hollywood in June, the selection of short films was impressive and contained examples which both fit into and transcended the above reasons. Three films I found impressive all dealt with our perception of what is real: ‘Funny Love,’ ‘Waste Paper,’ and ‘Waiting for You.’
Dances with Films Festival: The Powerhouse Panel – Hollywood Success Secrets
Want to be successful in Hollywood? The Dances with Films Festival featured a terrific “powerhouse” panel. Here’s what the panelists had to say.
SXSW: ‘The Diabolical’ and ‘Roar’ – Learning from Mistakes with Tipi Hedren and Ali Larter
As film fans and writers we can learn something from other people’s mistakes, for example, the SXSW screenings of ‘The Diabolical’ and ‘Roar.
Making ‘The Vineyard’ for the Los Angeles 48 Hour Film Project: Lessons Learned
(Originally published on Blogcritics.org) I was always told that the promulgator of Murphy’s Law worked in an Information Services department, but, now I know better – he was a filmmaker. In August of last year, I decided to enter the 48-hour Film Project – Los Angeles. The contest organizers give you a genre and a […]
‘Cocktails and Camouflage’ Comedy Show Raises Money to Employ Veterans in Film and Television
(Originally published on Blogcritics.org) Cocktails & Camouflage was an evening of laughter, memories, and hope at Flappers Comedy Club in Burbank, California, on November 6, 2014. The laughter came because on the surface it was a night of stand-up and a darn funny one at that. Emceed by KLOS radio personality Frazer Smith and headlining […]
Family Film Festival: ‘Centurion AD’ and ‘Leaving Limbo’
(Originally published on Blogcritics.org) Two films at the International Family Film Festival, Centurion AD and Leaving Limbo took two radically different paths to get you in touch with things spiritual, although they both involved a character out of their normal place in time. Centurion AD is billed as a sci-fi action adventure, set in current […]
Anthem Film Fest: Mind Reboot
Two of the documentaries at the Anthem Film Festival caused my brain to do a reboot.
Anthem Film Fest: ‘Cough’ – A Must-Watch for Filmmakers
This is an amazing 11 minutes of film. In the space within which most films are still on the titles, Australian Writer/Director Jason Kempnich gives us a “save the cat” moment, a character flaw (despair), an inciting incident, a character arc, conflict and a resolution. And the special effects are good, too. I saw Cough at the Anthem […]
Film Distribution Workshop with Gravitas
Melanie Miller is responsible for distributing 500 films per year, reaching 100 million homes in North America.
Academy Award Winner Dan Lindsay Shares His Story
Undefeated takes viewers on a journey with the 2009 Manassas High School Tigers football team from North Memphis, Tennessee, as they struggle to win the first playoff game in the school’s 110 year existence.
Alameda Writers Group: Kickstarting Your Film
(Originally published on Blogcritics.org) “What the suits want isn’t always the same as what the fans want,” explained screenwriter and author Marc Zicree at the October meeting of the Los Angeles based Alameda Writers Group (AWG). Zicree and his wife Elaine spoke to over 100 writers at AWG’s monthly meeting about non-traditional ways of getting […]
Let Me Out
There are two ways that films illuminate difficult truths about growing up: painfully, as in The Spectacular Now, and charmingly, as is done in Let Me Out.