March 25, 2007
I've avoided the
Film Festival this year. I've gone faithfully for the last several years running, and frankly, I just don't think I can take it this year. I've lost my enthusiasm for
the genre - yes, genre - experimental is not an adjective and has nothing to do with the concept of using new techniques when you're using the word in conjunction with the word film; it's a genre descriptor like Modern Art (which has a specific meaning: art created in the period from 1890-1970 or so). So I've restricted myself to snarking from the sidelines this year. I figure, if they can put up the films that look exactly the same every ...
March 21, 2007
In some real cities, local art galleries coordinate their show openings so that you can go downtown and hit a few openings in one evening, perhaps stopping along the way or before or after to have a bite or a drink. It's quite civilized, and a nice evening out.
Why don't the galleries in Ann Arbor do this?
The Gallery Project has an opening March 30. The Krappy Kamera kids have an
opening March 23 at Gallery 4.
The Art Center has an opening March 30.
Washington Street is in the middle of an exhibition. I can't find an upcoming schedule for WORK. But it would be so cool if they could get together ...
March 16, 2007
The Michigan Theater had a special advance screening of
The Last Mimzy, a new movie by
Bob Shaye, and we all trotted down to see it. You may not know Bob Shaye's name, but you do know his work: he founded
New Line Cinema and produced the Lord of the Rings triology, among many other things. He's also a UM alum, and chose to do one of the very first screenings (the film doesn't open til next week) right here in Ann Arbor.
It was terrific. It's rated PG, and I think that's accurate, but only because of the complexity of the story. I think it would mostly bore/confuse the 4 - 7 ...
February 19, 2007
Do you feel in the dark when they announce the Oscar winners for short films? Do you wish that Hollywood would show some lovin' to the Flyover Zone once in a while? Well, here it is: the
Michigan is showing all the Oscar-nominated shorts on Saturday, February 24 starting at 1:30. The first program will be the live shorts, the second will be the animated shorts. If you come for the live shorts, you can stay to see the animated shorts for free.
And if you're really, really into the Oscars, there's still time to get tickets for
Oscar Night America on Sunday. It's a charity benefit and they are pulling out all ...
February 1, 2007
One of my regular internet habits is
zefrank. I adore his
videoblog - extremely smart and ironic and funny and insightful. He does it every day, and that just makes the quality all the more amazing.
Yesterday, ze talked about art and the creative process. It's totally worth a watch.
[gv data="http://media.revver.com/qt;sharer=14854/157817.mov"][/gv]
Transcript here.
Bianka writes "What do you do when you suddenly become disillusioned with everything that was important to you yesterday?"
You start working on something that will disillusion you tomorrow.
January 12, 2007
Hey cool - I got tapped for '
Picture of the Day' over at the Michigan is Amazing blog. Go me!
December 31, 2006
Be A Design Group asks a series of Pulp Fiction-esque questions:
Sans or Serif?
Coated or Uncoated?
Gray or Grey?
Nano or Shuffle?
InDesign or Quark?
Photograph or Illustration?
Justified or Ragged?
Symmetry?
Emboss or Deboss?
RGB or CMYK?
My answers:
Sans
Uncoated
Gray
Shuffle
InDesign
Photograph
Justified
No (Asymmetry)
Emboss
RGB
Oh, and it's a tough choice, but I think it's Elvis.
December 11, 2006
The long-awaited documentary
The US vs. John Lennon opens at the
Michigan Theater this week. The theater will be donating a portion of ticket sales to
Michigan Peaceworks, so please print out this
slip (or write Michigan Peaceworks on a piece of paper) and turn it in when you buy your ticket.
I don't have a lot of details yet, but there will be a special appearance by Lennon contemporary
John Sinclair after the 7:00 show on December 20.
Peace out.
November 25, 2006
We're sitting here watching tv. It's a special about the making of Star Wars, with lots of back stage footage and insights into the production of the film. Keith is enjoying it, as a student enjoys learning from a master.
So, with that in mind, I am thinking back to Friday afternoon and our tour through the
Charles Sheeler exhibit at the
Art Institute of Chicago. Sheeler was a painter and photographer who was active from the teens through the fifties, and a pillar in the American artistic movement called
Precisionism. Precisionist artists dealt with the changing landscape of urban and industrial America, looking at the lines and details making up their new ...
November 20, 2006
The news that the new Bond would be blond placed me firmly in the skeptical camp about the future of the franchise. So it was with low expectations that Keith and I went out and saw Casino Royale. On opening day, even!
I'll keep the spoilers below, with warning, but I can safely say that overall, I really enjoyed it. Daniel Craig makes quite a good Bond, much to my surprise. The story is good, the action scenes are totally satisfying and there was just the right amount and kind of humor. I give it a thumbs up!
On the downside, there were some production and technical problems with it. The ...
