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

From the outside, the event looks pretty simple, as a lot of complex occurrences may appear: 1. man in DC makes a movie, 2. man submits movie to a NYC movie theater to get a screening, 3. the movie theater offers a screening, 4. man accepts the screening offer & begins promoting the event. Step 1 took about 2 years to complete. Steps 2 - 4 took about 2 weeks. The completion of step 4, promoting the screening until it happens, will take about a month. But there is more inside this seemingly simple process, read on. I noticed the Pioneer Theater through my web searches on indie film at least three years ago, around 2003. And about two plus years ago I decided to make an ultra-low budget, 100% indie, self-distributed feature on digital video. Prior to that I had created a feature on 16MM, spent a lot of money, and the result was less than expected, so the film never made it past (i didn't let it get past) my hometown, Washington, DC. But the plan this time around was different: d

It looks beautiful. Letters in various bright colors on a black background, quotes from Michael "Cocaine Angel" Tully, Jerry "Hollywood Is Talking" Brewington, Jon "Scumrock" Moritsugu & Chuck "The Chutry Experiment" Tryon, and a description of the flick. Go here and scroll down until you see DATE NUMBER ONE at the August 31 slot. The BUY TICKETS link should be active in a few days. Thanks Pioneer! - Sujewa

Ananda (Subodh Samudre) & Missy (Jewel Greenberg) from Date Number One. photo copyright 2006 sujewa ekanayake/wild diner films I just discovered a new site, thanks to filmmaker Agnes Varnum (she's hip to new useful teknological stuff - also introduced me to Flikr), called Upcoming.org. Looks like its a tool to help plan & promote outings. The link above takes you to the Date Number One NYC premiere notice/upcoming.org page for it, which is happening on 8/31 @ 9 PM at the mighty Pioneer "Independent Film Without Excuses" Theater . Thanks Agnes! - Sujewa

DATE NUMBER ONE http://www.wilddiner.com/ a comedy about several first dates a movie by sujewa ekanayake Thursday, August 31, 9 PM The Two Boots Pioneer Theater http://www.twoboots.com/pioneer/ 155 East 3rd Street (between Avenues A and B, closer to A) New York, New York 212-591-0434 ticket prices: $9 adults, $6.50 members :: link for advance ticket purchase will be available soon :: Director will attend the screening. "The film is about as charming as they come...presents a world in which cultures don't clash, they mesh. It's refreshing to see characters who all appear to have a natural optimism, as opposed to the typical indie-film predilection for bitterness and cruelty. " - Michael Tully, Rotterdam & SXSW film festivals selected filmmaker http://blogs.indiewire.com/tully/archives/010529.html "I found the characters and the premise sexy, sexy, sexy ." Jerry Brewington, Hollywood Is Talking blog, on Story 2 of Date Number One http://hollywoodistalki

Date Number One distribution project is just getting started (9 screenings so far, DVD v1 coming around 9/1 - will be available through wilddiner.com 's STORE, $12, & lots more screenings coming starting in September) but I am already thinking about the script for the next flick. Unlike in the past I won't give too much away until the flick is made, but this much I can tell right now: the next feature will be shot in early '07, John Stabb Schroeder (ninja from Story 1 of DNO) & Jennifer Blakemore (Sunshine in Story 2 of DNO) will reprise their roles (in the case of John he will play the ninja's twin brother, a bartender, seen in one scene in DNO, Jennifer will play the same character - Sunshine). Making decisions on the plot & story right now, collecting notes for characters & scenes. This next feature will also be an ultra low budget, DIY, self-distributed flick. But for the rest of this year & until the next flick is ready to play at some point ho

In about a month or so, 8/22 & 23 it looks like. Get the info. here . - Sujewa

Just saw Clerks II . Me & the rest of the audience at the packed theater in Silver Spring, MD (!sharktown! there is a huge shark on top of the Discovery Channel building right now, Shark Week promo) enjoyed the movie a lot. There are 3 kinds of Kevin Smith movies: the comedies, the drama (Chasing Amy), and the one I was not interested in seeing (Jersey Girl). Of the comedies, Clerks II is the best, and the original Clerks comes in at a close second. Cinematography in Clerks II was the best, if I recall correctly, out of all the Smith flicks. Tonally, this movie feels right. There is more sadness in this one than in the original Clerks. There is also one of the wildest climax (end of Act II?) scenes ever in this movie, involving confession of important secrets, the police, the fire fighters, a donkey and a half naked man in leather. Whereas his peers (of sorts) Jarmusch, Hartley, & Linklater staked their claims to a certain kind of storytelling & kept getting it right more t