Eclectic Views

    
I caught "The Accidental Activist" over the weekend at Bloomington, IN
with five friends (unfortunately we were the only ones at the
late-afternoon Saturday showing.) All agreed that it was really good
(and funny); we were all glad we went. I'm telling everybody I know to
go see it, but unfortunately there are only four more showings here and
I don't know that many people.
  

    
You, <klopfens> have just surged to the very top of my holiday list! 
That's rockin' that you went to see the show.  I'm glad you enjoyed it!
  

    
So I finally got my DVD burner fixed.  I think.  It went to the shop
for the second time in the past three weeks.  Now it's back, and the
first new ACTIVIST DVD is almost ready for testing.

By way of explanation, "my DVD burner" is my laptop computer, which I
bought in August, my first new computer since 2000.

Ah, the joys of low-budget filmmaking.  Maybe, hopefully, keep your
fingers crossed, I can start sending out DVDs to people who need them. 
Or at least who I think need 'em -- friends, family, reviewers, media
critics, talk show hosts, etc., etc.
  

    
And I'm supposed to talk to the editor of my hometown newspaper
tomorrow.  Or maybe next week.  My hometown is Novato, California -- a
classic suburban town when I grew up, maybe 27,000 people, mostly
introduced to the town during WWII when Hamilton Air Force Base was the
major gateway to the Pacific theatre.  Now it's a post-modern suburban
city with something like 50,000.

If this pans out as a bit of publicity, I have my Mom to thank.  She
volunteers at the Novato History Museum; she and her friends Lois and
Ann were at the museum today; when the editor of the local paper (the
Novato Advance) dropped by, they talked me up.

My Mom and her friends --  my publicists!
  

    

Lois, Ann and Mom seem like a pretty good team.

Wow, a laptop as a DVD foundary. There's a concept.

FWIW, I've bought a couple of refurbbished Sony Vaios largely because
of their A/V software suites. Of course I don't use them, so... I don't
really know much about the software Sony loads on their computers. You
might want to check it out, they seem pretty feature rich.

The refurbished Sonys seemed like pretty good bargains to me a couple
of years ago when I bought them. Sony's warranty sucks, though.
  

    
For better or worse -- and is that FBOW? -- I'm a Macintosh guy.  I
use DVD Studio Pro, which I think is available only on the Mac
platform.  Maybe there's a way to port the files to a PC-based DVD
burning system, but I don't dunno.  Given my luck with technology
lately...

Yesterday, after I got my PowerBook back from the shop (again), I was
putting it in my car trunk when I dropped it very firmly on the
concrete floor of a parking garage.  It went THUD! very
authoritatively.  It bent the case itself.  Bent it!

Yet it still works.  I am burning DVDs.

Rugged little guy, that PowerBook!
  

    
FWIW - For What It's Worth
  

    
Yeah -- one of the few I remember!

On the technology thing for another moment -- digital editing has been
a Mac-dominated zone, just like other arts-oriented technologies (page
layout, digital image manipulation, etc.).  But there may be a moment
when that changes, as PC-based editors wrap themselves around High
Definition editing more quickly (or mo' better) than Mac-based editors.
 So keep those Vaios handy!
  

    
The distributor of ACTIVIST just got bought by Amazon.  Which means
maybe ACTIVIST will show up amazon.com soon...
  

    
Cool.
  

    
Great news:  THE ACCIDENTAL ACTIVIST will premiere at its first film
festival, the Vermont International Film Festival in Burlington, VT. 
The festival runs 13-16 October and it looks like the film will screen
on the 16th.

Funny context:  I have submitted the film to 20-plus film festivals
and haven't gotten any love.  Not even a sympathetic half-smile. 
Kathryn Blume herself submitted the film to Vermont -- and got a big,
fat, wet kiss!  I suppose it helps that she is a Vermont resident.  I
guess.  I dunno.  I'd like to think they simply embraced it for the
wonderful work of art that it is...
  

    
Did you send it to Idaho? It might not be too late; they haven't
announced the schedule yet.
  

    
I didn't send it to Idaho.  After I received the 20+ rejections -- I
don't know exactly how many because I purposefully stopped counting --
I stopped submitting to festivals.

It's not the rejection, per se, but the drain on resources.  Most
festivals require an entry fee, anywhere from $25 for a small-ish
festival to $125, which was what it cost to submit to Berlin.  On top
of the monetary fee is the time required to ensure that all the
materials are in good order -- the DVD is spot-checked, the label is
clean, the required printed materials are in hand (anything from the
specific festival app to photos, bios, press releases, etc.), and all
of that is weighed and stamped and posted by the required deadline
date.

More info than you asked for, Sharon, but there you are.  Given the
Idaho festival is only three weeks away, there is little chance they
are still looking for films.  However, if you know Lyle Banks, Toni
Gillette, or Bruce Fletcher, and are interested in personally
introducing the film to them, well then...

; >
  

    
I met Bruce's mom last year but I wouldn't know how to contact her. 

Actually, I just sent Bruce email. What the hell.
  

    
Ah, here it is.

kevin, go check your Well email.
  

    
Read.  Reply sent. Sharon, you are the coolest!
  

    
Boise is a very small town. :-) 

I'm impressed he's reading and responding to email from strangers when
he's got a film festival coming up in three weeks.
  

    
I don't think he sleeps much.  In addition to programming festivals in
multiple states, apparently he has a two-year-old and a four-year old
in the household.

These busy and productive people.  They set the bar so damnably high.

; >
  

    
Press release out today:

For Immediate Release:

The Accidental Activist Bows at Burlington
Film Premieres at 16th Vermont International Film Festival

September 30, 2005

Oakland, California, and Burlington, Vermont

The film festival premiere of The Accidental Activist, an adaptation
of the critically-acclaimed New York anti-war play, will be Sunday,
October 16, in Burlington, Vermont. Written and performed by Kathryn
Blume, The Accidental Activist is a comedy based on her experience
founding The Lysistrata Project. Directed by Telly-award-winner Kevin
Morrison, the film is the closing presentation of VIFF's 'War & Peace'
program.

"Kathryn is an amazingly gifted actress with a great sense of comic
timing," Morrison said. "She takes us on a journey through serious
territory  - war, free speech, political dissent - and makes the trip
hilarious."

According to award-winning filmmaker Tamsin Orion, founder of Tamzina
Films and executive producer of The Accidental Activist, "The film is
about activism - getting involved with things that matter to you. But
it's also about having a good time while you're at it." 

The Accidental Activist begins with Ms. Blume's personal experience in
2002. Her despair about America's direction launched an inspirational
(and accidental) journey onto a global stage, where she led an anti-war
event called The Lysistrata Project. It became the single largest
protest in theatrical history, covering all 50 states and more than 60
countries worldwide, including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Cambodia,
Canada, Costa Rica, Cuba, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark,
Dominican Republic, Egypt, England, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany,
Greece, Honduras, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Ireland,
Northern Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lebanon, Malaysia,
Malta, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Pakistan, Panama,
Philippines, Mindanao, Poland, Puerto Rico, Russia, Scotland, Serbia &
Montenegro, Singapore, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden,
Switzerland, Syria, Taiwan, Thailand, Trinidad & Tobago, Turkey,
Uruguay, Virgin Islands, and Wales.

Rave reviews of Ms. Blume's stage performance included Political
Affairs Magazine calling it "enlightening, great entertainment, and,
above all, a good reason to start listening to Kathryn Blume."

The film features camerawork by Sigma Delta Chi award-winner Robin
Mortarotti, who also served as consulting producer, and lighting by
Carson Duper, the veteran stage director at Scottish Rite Auditorium in
San Francisco.  It was shot on location at The Julia Morgan Theatre in
Berkeley, California, and edited at Tamzina Films in Oakland.

The Vermont International Film festival is the oldest Human Rights and
Environmental film festival in the world. VIFF provides a forum for
films dealing with issues of war and peace, justice and human rights,
and the environment. In a cultural context in which industrial
commercial filmmaking dominates, VIFF plays a vital role, bringing
non-commercial forms of cinematic expression to the public attention. 
The 16th edition of the festival will be held October 13-16 and will
present more than 60 films from all over the world. The screenings are
accompanied by panels, moderated discussions, photo exhibitions,
retrospectives, and other events.

The Accidental Activist is unrated, contains adult language, and runs
63 minutes.

For additional information about the film, contact Kevin Morrison at
310-801-8697  or via email at kevinm@well.com. 

For information about Kathryn Blume and the touring version of the
stage show, contact Ms. Blume at 802-233-5856, via email at
kablume@gmavt.net, or visit www.theaccidentalactivist.com. 

For information about Tamsin Orion, contact her at 415-200-9458 or via
email at tamsin@tamzina.com.

Material in the movie The Accidental Activist is copyright (c)2005,
Tamzina Films and Mighty Ruckus. Material in the stage play "The
Accidental Activist" is copyright (c)2003, Kathryn Blume.
  

    

All right!
  

    
Somehow, I missed the fact that the film got its first 'real' review
in October:  an absolute pan from FilmCritic.com, written by
Christopher Null.  (Not kidding about that name.)  He's the
editor-in-chief and publisher of the site.

http://filmcritic.com/misc/emporium.nsf/84dbbfa4d710144986256c290016f76e/2f2cdfdb2955a8f1882570a700802f02?OpenDocument

And picked up by Absolutely.net at

http://www.absolutely.net/movie/2004_The_Accidental_Activist.html

Anyway, I'll save you the click-through and post the review below.  In
some odd way, I'm proud of the fact that this is an absolutely,
unreservedly nasty review.  Regarding content, it misses the point in
so many ways.  [For instance, it asserts that Kathryn Blume (the
writer/performer) 'has plenty of crocodile tears to shed over the
horrors of war.']   Regarding style, it says nothing.
  

    <hidden>
  

    
Hmm.  Not the most elegantly crafted pan, that's for sure!

This is weird: "...navel gazing is worst when it's your own navel you're 
staring at."

Uh... So there's some *other* kind of navel gazing?  

http://www.answers.com/topic/navel-gazing?
  

    
ha!
  

    
Taking a moment to update my particular wacky world, nothing really
new to report about THE ACCIDENTAL ACTIVIST.  On this anniversary of
the Iraq invasion, I wish there were more to say.

Meanwhile, I am about an hour into 'assembly' of a new film.  Assembly
means I'm laying out scenes, sorting chaff from bran, and generally
finding my footing.  I have put together a rough opening -- placeholder
music, unfinished picture, unfinished sound -- to help myself
establish a style for the film.  It's posted here..

http://www.well.com/~kevinm/

... via link at the bottom of the page.

The clip, which is 3:11 and presented in Windows Media Player,
establishes the main throughline of the film, which was my desire to
give away my car.  Or rather, to find someone special, someone for whom
the car would mean a great deal, and then give him/her the car.  It
also touches on a couple of other themes -- our American cultural
obsession with cars and the relationship of cars to climate change.

As before, this is a no-budget, self-funded effort, shot
opportunistically for about a year now.  Feel free to let me know what
you think!