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Notes
from Austin, Volume 2 #21
Including:
Things to do this week (6/23-6/29)
Michael Caine
Casino el Camino
Making "Rector" with John Christensen, Richard Eckersley
and David Bilow
My guest appearance on Lube TV
Lou Reed's "Metal Machine Music"
Indie films being made in Austin right now!
Cinemaker Co-op
"cicadas"
Punchy and much more...
Things to do this week:
thru 6/24 - HOUSE PARTY - Alamo Drafthouse -MIDNIGHT
thru 6/24 - Sexual Perversity in Chicago - Hyde Park Theater
thru 7/30 - Soul Picnic (The music of Laura Nyro) - Scottish
Rite Opera House
thru 8/13 - Tapestry: Music of Carole King - Zach Scott
Theater
6/23 - Films Released Nationwide
CHICKEN RUN (DREAMWORKS ANIMATION)
ME
MYSELF AND IRENE (JIM CARREY, DIR - FARRELY BROS.)
6/23 - "Living" benefit with 4 live bands - Caucus Club
8pm
6/23 - Jayhawks - Lazona Rosa 6/23 - Punchy - Maggie Mae's
6/24 - SATURDAY MORNING FILM CLUB BEDKNOBS AND BROOMSTICKS
Alamo Drafthouse - 12:00 NOON - (Admission to the Saturday
Morning Film Club is free for children and adults accompanying
children. Unaccompanied adults must wait until noon to enter
and will be charged).
6/24 - Punchy Flying Saucer (Addison)
6/24 - Leon Russell - One World Theater
6/25 - Singing in the Rain - Paramount
6/25 - KOOP Stonewall Media Festival - Rainbow Cattle Company
6/25 - Cinemaker Co-op Monthly Meeting - Artplex
6/26 - Legendary Pink Dots - Stubbs
6/27 - Douglas Sirk Film Series - Paramount - Imitation
of Life
6/27 - Videos Released Nationwide
BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE
HANGING UP THE
TALENTED
MR. RIPLEY (also DVD)
INDEPENDENCE
DAY (also DVD)
6/27 - Dwight Yoakum, Hank Williams III - The Backyard
6/28 - Films Released Nationally
THE PATRIOT (MEL GIBSON)
6/28-6/29 - THE GOLEM: MUSIC BY MARK RUBIN Alamo Drafthouse
7:00 & 9:30 - Silent film based on Jewish legend with live
musical accompaniment by Mark Rubin and Friends.
6/28 - Guy Forsythe - Zilker Park
6/28 - Frank Black - Stubbs
6/29-7/1 - HIGHLANDER - Alamo Drafthouse, MIDNIGHT
6/29 - Robert Earl Keene - Stubbs
Where was Michael Caine on Father's Day? Taking a break from
filming "Miss Congeniality" with Sandra Bullock here in Austin,
the actor took in Tom Cruise's "Mission Impossible 2" at an
Austin Cineplex.
Monday nite, I went to Casinos fairly late in the evening and
hung out for a while. It was pretty packed for a Monday evening.
The female DJ was there again and she played a lot of cool retro
punk and new wave. Quite a bit of it was stuff I didn't know
but I did recognize some Dead Boys, Bowie, and the like. A lot
of the other stuff seemed like it might be Wire or Buzzcocks
or something. I didn't really have any of their records when
I was a kid.
The TV's were playing "Westworld" and I was standing in
the upstairs balcony when I noticed a cute guy in white with
a white ballcap looking up. He was watching the TV and not
me. He was dressed really "college-y" and did not look like
the other alternative underground types who usually inhabit
the place. He was a doll. I watched him for quite a while
and then he got a burger. It was awesome, he ate as if no
one was watching him. He really devoured the thing. It was
quite sexy.
I got pretty drunk and pretty much closed the place down.
The other day I went over to see Rich and Kelly and then, after
that, went to ABCD. I have been looking for some Lou Reed solo
stuff since I just finished reading Victor Brokis' biography
of the man, "Transformer." I was really kind of looking for
"Coney Island Baby" or "Sally Can't Dance." I hoped to find
"Take No Prisoners," a live album from 1979 or 80 or so but
it's probably long out of print. Lou's versions of "Sweet Jane"
and "Coney Island Baby" are awesome on this live record. What
I never imagined finding was "Metal Machine Music." This was
originally a two record set released in 1975 that was basically
a joke on the record company (RCA) and the record buying public.
It was simply over an hour of sonic distortion and feedback
noise purporting to be an "experiment in sound." It's horrid.
It's unlistenable. It's awful. It's impossible to find on CD.
I had it on 8-track when I was a kid and never listened to it
(after the first time, frantically clicking through the 4 programs,
hoping desperately for something that resembled a song, only
to be denied). I probably reported of it's awesome weirdness
to friends but that's about it. Like Warhol's films which were
as much "events" as films, Reed's "Metal Machine Music" is an
album you TALK ABOUT but don't really listen to. It's an important
event in music history but not a listenable piece of music.
"Metal Machine Music" was, perhaps, the first true punk album.
It spit in the eye of everybody except for it's creator, Reed.
ABCD had a copy of the CD for only $19.99. I quickly snapped
it up. It will be displayed in a prominent location in my
living room. It's to show, not to listen to. I want it on
display so when a new person comes over to visit and they
see it, if they know what it is, they will exclaim excitedly,
"Ohmigod! Metal Machine Music!" And that's when I'll know
they're a kindred spirit and worthy of my friendship.
Tuesday afternoon, I gathered together some friends and we shot
a Super8 B&W film in the cemetery by UT. A rather new acquaintance
of mine, a film student named David Bilow, supplied the film
stock. I supplied the beer. My friends Richard Eckersley and
John Christensen helped out as well.
We really didn't have a story in mind, deciding to "wing
it" once we got to the cemetery. I had brought some black
make-up and nail polish cause I thought John would look cool
made up as a zombie of some sort. Eventually, the film turned
into a sort of avant-garde, horror flick about a zombie who
kills people by putting make-up on them. John and I were the
troopers in this film. Richard and David opted to play it
"straight" and not allow themselves to be covered in the stuff.
So we turned the film into a sort of "us vs. them" thing about
glam rockers in opposition to straight college boys, a pretty
accurate representation of reality to a certain degree.
David doesn't know me too well, so I think he was a bit
bemused and put off by the whole thing. I don't think he's
ever hung out with anyone as odd as myself, John and Rich.
He seemed a bit squeamish for a while. It was kinda amusing.
We decided to call the film "Rector" because that was the
name on the tombstone around which the first scenes were shot.
It's such a great word! "Rector."
Afterwards, John and I went over to my place and I showed
him "Mountain of Terror," a short film by Jay Edwards that
I first saw at ZXZW
(a zombie film fest, an alternative to SXSW) this year. John
really liked the film and wants to show it on "Lube TV," so
I'll have to contact Jay and see if it's cool.
Later in the day, I went to the Alamo to pick up some tickets
for the Luke Savisky Film Action performance the next day,
more about that later. Tim and Karrie weren't at the Alamo.
Seems like I'm always missing them lately. I also stopped
by Frank and Angie's and got some dinner.
I went over to John Christensen's house and hung out for
the Lube TV taping. The guys were working on Episode 27, a
few weeks in advance. John asked me to appear on the show,
which we had been wanting to do for a long time, and I obliged.
I soon found myself in every sequence. It's gonna be awesome
when it airs. We watched what we had taped and I found myself
laughing my ass off at a lot of the stuff I said. I'm a funny
guy. Can't wait to see it. The episode will include a video
by the Cramps, a short film we affectionately refer to as
"Pull My Finger" and a video work by John himself called "Monologue."
Episode 27 probably won't air until late July, either the
19th or the 26th, so I have plenty of time to hype it! Mark
your calendars! You should be watching LubeTV every week anyway.
We also watched the tape of the show from last week which
had Briton Kolber's short film "Bone Snap" on it. John had
a role in this film. It isn't really a short as much as a
promotional piece to pique interest in the project so that
Kolber can get funding. Apparently, however, it was accepted
at a few festivals. It was produced by Jam Pictures and Mark
David did the music for it. The "short" might be worthless
if it weren't for the awesome performance of Tim Curry (the
local actor). He's great - as usual. The piece was some sort
of ridiculous sci-fi rip-off of "Blade Runner" that had to
do with genetic engineering of... ho-hum. It looked myopic
and boring and the sound was very rough. There was also a
short film called "Solly's Diner" that was okay and Bryan
Ferry's "Mamuona" video, which was a ridiculous and misogynistic
piece of elitist video crap. (African women are so exotic!)
The highlight of the show was definitely the appearance of
the cute Satyn and the adorable and funny Pigboy. They made
the show fun! However, if I hear one more person say "Bryan
Ferry is so fucking suave," I might have to begin mutilating
Roxy music CD's.
Anyway, John is supposed to be doing some work with the band
Punchy here soon, so it will be interesting to see what happens
there. He also told me that the filmmakers who put together
"Natural
Selection" are working on a new film.
I watched an episode of Armistad Maupin's "Tales of the City"
on Bravo the other night. It was interesting, like a soap opera
or something. I just can't watch a series on TV. I don't have
the patience. Bravo has been having a whole "gay" themed week
this week, but I just don't have enough time to tune in everyday.
On Wednesday, TCM had a retrospective of Judy Holiday films
in celebration of her birthday. What a true American gem! I
watched the end of "Born Yesterday" and found myself crying
and laughing within the same few seconds. What a beautiful work
that film is. It might be my choice for the #1 comedy of all
time. This is one of those films, and there aren't many, that
every school child should be forced to watch at about the age
of 14 or so. It's beautiful.
Some Austin films in production include (not including "Miss
Congeniality" and "Spy Kids"):
"The Duo," written by Ryan Wickersham and directed by Tony
Hewitt. These are the folks who made "What
I Like About You" with Hewitt moving from the producer's
chair into the director's spot.
"Pageant," written and directed by Travis Kerschen. Currently
filming in Austin utilizing DV.
"Local 456," a documentary filming in Austin and Houston
on mini-DV.
"The Stars of Cimmaron County," begins filming in August.
Written and Directed by Gabriel Folse.
"Living," written and directed by Levi Cory and produced
by Brandon Johnson and Rhea Hines. Begins filing on July 7th
in Austin.
"Give Life a Chance," begins filming here in August. Directed
by Jessica Moreau. Written by the director and Valerie Vass.
Find out more at http://www.governor.state.tx.us/film/hotline/index.htm
AUSTIN CINEMAKER CO-OP PRESENTS A SCREENING OF "FRANK MATTER:
THE BEAUTY OF MY ISLAND"
This Sunday, June 25 at 7pm in the ACA Gallery of the ArtPlex,
the Cinemaker Co-op will screen FRANK MATTER: THE BEAUTY OF
MY ISLAND by filmmaker Klaus Lutz. The screening takes place
as part of Cinemaker's monthly meeting, which has featured
previous screenings by Bruce Conner and Stan Brakhage. The
event is free and open to the public.
The ArtPlex is located at 1705 Guadalupe, right across from
the Dog & Duck Pub. Filmmakers are encouraged to bring new
films and works-in-progress on Super 8, 16mm, and video to
screen and discuss. FRANK MATTER will be screened on video.
AND ALL THOSE WHO SHOT WITH THEIR NEWLY MADE PINHOLE SUPER
8 CAMERAS ARE ENCOURAGED TO SHOW THE RESULTS!!!
Klaus Lutz is a unique filmmaker, who in his works creates
a visual universe completely his own. Reminiscent of Chaplin
and Melies, his film tells the adventures of a little man
in a strange and lonely world. The protagonist flies over
big, imaginary cities, walks through dark spaces and interacts
with props, signs and anthropomorphic drawings. Simultaneously
dirctor, camera operator, actor, set and costume designer,
Lutz creates his film in his tiny apartment. The piece follows
months and months of minute preparations for of shooting the
original footage, an elaborate animation, for the performance
which is to mark the culmination of the film. The piece ends
with the actual performance: the Beauty of my Island.
The film language and the complex technological means he
uses to tell his stories are the result of lifelong, meticulous
investigation. Lutz is working with double and triple exposures,
a wide variety of distorting spheric lenses, balloons , pneumatic
devices, rear projection and turntables. There is no editing.
The film is totally created in camera.
UPDATES ON CICADAS (submitted by Kat Candler):
The "cicadas" website has just launched an effort to raise
post-production funds. This is how you can help! You can now
purchase any book you could possibly ever want through the
"cicadas" site and 5% of all sales goes towards finishing
funds for the movie. Just go to http://cicadas.home.texas.net
and go to the "recommended reading" section. You'll find a
box where you can search by title, author or isbn. Help us
fund our movie! You will be our guardian angels!
Production is nearly complete for the feature-length drama
cicadas, Mutiny Productions' first film. The narrative follows
a Texas teenager's struggles as her world becomes increasingly
frustrating, confusing, even tragic, but never hopeless. Shot
and edited on digital video, "cicadas" will be seeking investors
for film transfer and distribution this fall.
Audiences, however, will be able to see one of "cicadas'"
stars on the big screen this summer. Austinite Bryan Chafin
(who plays Simon Roberts) will play Mel Gibson's son in the
Revolutionary War epic, "The Patriot." Just two months after
shooting wrapped on "cicadas," Bryan headed up to the Carolinas
to learn how to ride and shoot alongside one of Hollywood's
biggest stars. "A BIG difference," Bryan admits between an
independent film and a studio movie. But both were "fun, and
I really learned a lot." To learn more about Mutiny Productions'
current projects, visit their website at http://cicadas.home.texas.net/
You probably noticed that Punchy's live gig schedule is a little
lighter than usual. They've been trying to give themselves a
little extra time to get ready to record a new CD this summer.
They're planning on a fall release and a tour is already in
the works. Watch here or on the Punchy website www.bitterkitten.com/punchy
for the latest details!
16TH ANNUAL BOSTON FILM FESTIVAL SEPTEMBER 8-17, 2000
This year marks the 16th edition of the Boston Film Festival.
The festival is non competitive and all entries are made available
for reviews by the local press before their festival showings.
The festival will showcase approximately 50 feature length
films/documentaries and 30 short subjects. All films selected
will be shown in either 35MM or 16MM. Last year's selection
featured the U.S. Premiere of "American
Beauty" with Academy Award Winner Kevin Spacey receiving
the coveted Boston Film Excellence Award.
Submission Deadline: July 10, 2000
Boston Film Festival
P.O. Box 516 Hull, MA 02045
T: 781 925 1373
F: 781 925 3132
susanfraine@bostonfilmfestival.org
http://www.bostonfilmfestival.org
That's a wrap for this week kids! See ya soon! lodger2000
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