CinemaSlam got a mention in the New York Times! Too bad it wasn’t for something more pleasant:

Michigan Arts Groups Protest State Freeze

Groups representing Michigan’s public museums, theaters, music halls and other cultural institutions plan to rally at the state capital in Lansing today in hopes of lifting a freeze on state spending for the arts. The moratorium was ordered last month by the state’s governor, Jennifer M. Granholm, as part of efforts to head off a $686 million budget deficit. State law requires that any deficit must be wiped out by the end of the state’s fiscal year on Sept. 30. The governor’s action affects about $7.5 million of $10 million in state aid that was to be paid to cultural institutions this year. Many institutions say they have already planned their budgets in the expectation of state funding, and the spending freeze is forcing some to cut programs and consider job reductions. In an e-mail message to contributors, the Michigan Theater in Ann Arbor, which has lost $42,000 in state funding, said it was eliminating its Cinema Slam, a monthly showcase for short films. But some Michigan legislators already are proposing cuts in state arts spending for the next fiscal year, when the state’s budget crisis is likely to deepen. MICHELINE MAYNARD

CinemaSlam’s last hurrah will be on May 8, so please put it on your calendar and come see some great short films. We’ll do our best to go out with a bang. And write to your congresscritter, too - these cuts are going to hurt a lot of groups, and maybe cause some to close their doors.