ARTHOUSE FILM NEWS - Cosmic Disco Detective Rene at Facets, Chicago 11/29/23

(well, to be entirely accurate, what Wagner James Au said was " Screenwriters, DIY! ", i just couldn't resist using a version of go west... :) In the article " Screenwriters, DIY! " (thanks to Thompson On Hollywood for the link), we find the following: "In the mid 90s, during a strike against The San Francisco Examiner, a bunch of staff writers and editors abandoned the newspaper to start up their own “web magazine.” Though it seemed like a weird idea at the time, the web mag eventually became Salon.com , now a site with more readers than most newspapers — including The Examiner itself. As the WGA strike moves into its second week, it’s hard not to see a similar opportunity: What’s to stop WGA writers (especially those associated with well-known TV shows and movies) from doing a similar thing with YouTube? Create new, low-budget shorts à la Lonely Girl , then leverage them as spinoffs for new TV series/movies when the strike ends? Or perhaps even better,

According to a little known & rarely active indie film blogger named Matt Dentler , Greg Araki's stoner comedy SMILEY FACE was selected by Sundance (that's THE SUNDANCE f*ing FILM FESTIVAL - "#1" in America), Cannes (that's THE CANNES INT'L f*ing FILM FESTIVAL - "#1" in the world), Toronto & SXSW film festivals (all together that's four of the most important film festivals in the western world & Austin!!!) YET the film is only being released in 1 theater!!!!!! The mind boggles. It is actually still boggling. OK, boggling over, let me list other ticket sales friendly qualities of this movie (granted, i have not seen it, but, given these ingredients, i am sure TONS of kids will want to see this movie): - directed by Greg Araki; yes, not a household name across America, but, a well respected indie director with a solid following. Didn't his last "properly released" film (MYSTERIOUS SKIN) earn several million dollars? - star

Greg Araki's stoner comedy Smiley Face might have been a lot of fun to check out at the theater. However, the pic's distributor First Look is only going to show it on one screen in LA (as far as I know at the moment. First Look's website didn't have any information on Smiley). I guess I'll have to wait for the DVD :( indieWIRE's got an interview with Greg Araki re: Smiley Face. - Sujewa

A segment of the response from WGA West's website : "WGA Statement in Response to AMPTP Newspaper Ad LOS ANGELES, NEW YORK -- The Writers Guild of America (Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America, West) issued this statement today in response to the AMPTP's misleading newspaper ads: Nice try, AMPTP. In the words of the late Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but not their own facts. The AMPTP's paid and patronizing advertisement in today's New York Times and Los Angeles Times is guilty of what most charitably could be called sins of omission. The AMPTP maintains, “It is important to make clear that writers currently do receive residuals for digital downloading (regardless of whether the download is temporary or permanent)... The Guild is seeking at least a 700 percent increase over what writers currently receive, and more than a 200 percent increase over what they receive for Internet 'pay per view.&

Have not seen Francois Truffaut's movie Day For Night yet. This YouTube clip/video makes it look interesting: And, from another French movie about making movies; some Irma Vep clips: Now a clip from everyone's favorite indie movie about indie moviemaking; a tiny bit of Living In Oblivion: I think the rain is fat because there are aliens in it. A Bowfinger clip (with subtitles from an unknown land): Any other good movies about making movies? - Sujewa

From Late Show Writers On Strike : "CLASSIC MOVIE SCENES IF THERE WERE NO WRITERS It's time for...CLASSIC MOVIE SCENES IF THERE WERE NO WRITERS by Lee Ellenberg "Casablanca" INT./EXT. AIRPORT HANGAR - NIGHT RICK ILSA RICK ILSA Ilsa's eyes fill with tears. Rick puts his hand to her chin and raises her face to meet his own. RICK Ilsa boards the plane. OUT." Visit Late Show Writers On Strike for more. - Sujewa

Check out the article here , very interesting. Here is a lil' bit of it: "This is not a difficult thing to envision. And in fact, it's already happening. Will Ferrell's Funny Or Die , in which I am a minority investor, is one early existence proof of this model. And there are a ton of other such new companies either already underway, or currently being incubated, or currently being negotiated." Read the rest here . Hollywood labor & owners/studios issues aside, the article has some ideas that can apply to the independent film world RIGHT NOW, specially those of us who are slanted towards the DIY/real indie side of things; those of us interested in owning our creations, having final say on how our movies are made at each stage of production & controling the distribution of same. - Sujewa

To put it relatively briefly, is it accurate to say: Screenwriters get residual payments because the total value of a script cannot be determined at the time the script is sold to the production company. (by total value i mean what a movie based on a given script makes upon release, year after year. and that value cannot be known at the time of sale of the script because no one knows how a given movie will perform in the market place until they actually release it; they may have rough ideas at the moment the script is purchased, but those estimates can be way off) So, people who know a lot about this issue, what do you think? :: [Some background: I posted the above in a couple of discussion threads at a couple of WGA strike related blogs ( Artful Writer , John August - check those sites out for even more background on this issue). They are having long (or at least very involved) discussions re: residuals - as in; do screenwriters deserve them?, how to best explain to the general public

check it out here . - sujewa

Article at Entertainment Weekly . - Sujewa

check 'em out here . bracelets & t-shirts. site says profits go to "WGA's union solidarity fund". - sujewa

i am sure all Office fans have seen this by now, if not, here it is: hope the Office writers & the rest of WGA get what they want. RELATED: check out the United Hollywood blog . - sujewa

Check it out here ; a whole bunch of screenwriters expressing their commitment to the WGA strike. Got the link from John August 's blog. - Sujewa

here - sujewa

As some commentators believe at the moment, the Mumblecore film movement is over. So what's next, American indie film movements wise ('cause it's fun - at times - to read about low budget indie film movements)? Here are some possibilities - possible ways to organize new indie films, makers, & market them as film movements: 1. The Elderly In Indie Film film movement; lots of new indies are made by people in their 20's - 30's, featuring actors/friends in the same age group, so how about a group of low budget indie films that deal with the comedy & drama of being older - like about being in your 50's, 60's, 70's or so? 2. Hip Multi-Ethnic Suburban Non-Creative People film movement; I live in the suburbs and there is a lot of ethnic diversity out here (at least in the DC suburbs), and a lot of these people are not creative professionals or aspiring creatives but rather hold more traditional jobs (attorneys, bankers, teachers, etc.), and are pretty mu