Tampa Film Fan

november film fan fun

Tampa Bay area residents have a lot of local film events to choose from this month.  Here’s a sample:

• November 3-5 — Something Wicked This Way Con — This horror film festival (originally called the Carnivale of Horror) includes a costume contest, panel discussions, special guests and more.
• November 9-10 — Latino Film Festival at Eckerd College – The screening schedule isn’t up on their website yet, but knowing that the International Cinema Series selection for November 10 is the controversial film El Crimen del Padro Amaro (starring Gael Garcia Bernal) is enough to make you circle this weekend on the calendar.
• November 10 — The Tampa Film Review at the International Bazaar in Ybor City – This free monthly screening showcases movies by local filmmakers.
• November 11 — Veterans Day Film Festival at Studio(at)620 in St. Pete — This film fest will screen the films Soldiers Speak Out, Sir No Sir and Winter Soldier.
• November 12 — Tampa Toy and Comic Book Convention — This local event, which occurs several times a year, includes special guests, a film festival, a costume contest and dozens of tables of anime, artwork, toys, games, videos, action figures and trading cards.
• November 28 — Tampa Film Network meeting — This local networking organization helps bring filmmakers, actors, writers and others from the local film community together for brainstorming and collaboration.

(cross-posted at Sticks of Fire)

illumined pleasures:dali and early cinema

The Dali Museum has an exhibit called Illumined Pleasures:Dali and Early Cinema that will run through January 2007.  Here’s the description from the museum website:

Exhibition outlines connections between Dalí and the cinema of the early 20th century. It provides a glimpse into the cinematic world of Dalí’s youth, presenting fantastic, comedic and animated work by filmmakers who influenced Dalí in his formative years. They paved the way for the cinematic style of his Surrealist canvases and his successful cinematic collaborations with Luis Buñuel, Walt Disney and Alfred Hitchcock. Exhibit also suggests how Dali’s dreamlike universe influenced Hollywood. Both Dalí and Buñuel’s Un Chien Andalou and the artist’s revolutionary dream sequence for Hitchcock’s Spellbound are shown. Curated by Peter Tush.

Road trip to St. Pete this weekend?  Who’s with me?

november’s tampa film review lineup

Received via email: 

The next Tampa Film Review, presented by 1 Day Films, will be held on Friday, November 10, from 8 – 10 p.m. at International Bazaar, located at 1600 E. Eighth Ave. in the Centro Ybor Complex. The Tampa Film Review is a monthly showcase of local independent films and is held every second Friday of the month and is free.

November’s films include:

Unbanned, produced by Shelby Mcintyre: A short documentary highlighting examples of the Hillsborough County Commission office’s history of discrimination over the past few years.

Knock Knock by Griffowers Productions: The first silent movie made by Emerald Gowers and Tim Griffin (Griffowers Productions) on their digital still camera, Knock Knock tells a story of a relaxing evening at home, shattered by a knock at the door from a stranger.

The Supply Curve, presented by John Matheny: Produced for the 2006 Incubator Project in Miami. The competition theme was Power.  This film illustrates the power of money, the power of sex, and the power of violence.

The Survivor’s Club by Chris Battle: This film follows the story of a young mother who lost her teenaged son to a hit and run driver, lost her husband to suicide, and lost her job when her corrupt boss ran away with the company’s money and a secretary. It explores how she will turn her life around.

The Owl by Michael Pelaez: A generic Batman spoof.  Featuring the characters: the Owl (Batman), Quotation Mark Guy (the Riddler) and the Juggler (the Joker). 

Enter The Spooners: The Guzzo brothers dust off another public access film, this one a spoof on the famous Bruce Lee flick Enter The Dragon.

Visit www.thetampafilmreview.com for more info.

orange you glad you know the guzzos? i am!

Hey — looka here — TFF is included in a list of local film websites in Orange Magazine’s interview with local filmmakers Paul and Pete Guzzo.

Thanks for the shout out, guys! (Your bribe … check … is in the mail….)

film news:independents’ film fest, birds eye films, the ghosts of ybor

*The Independents’ Film Festival has posted photos from the 2006 festival on its website.

*Here’s a casting call from a local filmmaker:

I am looking for actors for a short film to be shot next month. Looking for 5 leads (3 guys and 2 girls) college age plus some extras as the story takes place during a house party. The shoot will probably take place Friday and Saturday night, from about 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. Include a headshot/resume if you have one, but it’s not mandatory. The shoot will take place in St. Pete; auditions will take place in Tampa by appointment. The film centers around a guy’s chance meeting with a
mysterious girl and then his dealings with a dysfunctional couple. No nudity or sex involved. Oh yeah, this is a no-budget shoot, so unfortunately I can’t offer any pay. Look forward to hearing from all interested - please email me at birdseyefilms(at)gmail.com.

*I wasn’t able to attend the screening of new local movie The Ghosts of Ybor last Friday (damn you, Real Life, for getting in the way of my watching movies!), but a little bird told me that the Guzzos have gotten some great media coverage (ok, so it was really Guzzo Brother #1 who told me). 

bums on dvd

I must admit that I had never heard of Canadian filmmaker brothers Brett and Jason Butler until Brett emailed me about sending me a DVD of their latest film Bums.  But I’d never pass on a free DVD or on a chance to hear Canadians say “aboot.”  And I’m glad I didn’t pass, because Bums is a funny, raunchy indie gem that’s worth watching.

The description on the back of the DVD cover reads:

A day in the life comedy, Bums follows the lives of six friends as their relationships blur together to produce love, laughs, lethargy and a loose cannon.  Bums is an insightful and provocative look at life neither here nor there on a day like any other day — when you don’t have a clue what you’re doing but all the time in the world to do it.

I couldn’t have said it better myself.  Bums centers around Dave (Jason Butler), who just broke up with his cheating girlfriend, and his friend Don (Brett Butler), both of whom are looking to score with the opposite sex.  As many times as possible, with as many women as possible, as soon as possible.  Their quest to hook up is always on their minds as they go throughout their day, sitting around, getting high, driving around town, eating and just generally bumming around. In Bums, it’s not just the guys on the prowl — the female lead characters are also looking to hook up…with anyone except the Butler brothers.

Jason and Brett Butler are mesmerizing on screen, especially during their Kevin Smith-ish casual riffs on pop culture.  It took me a little while to get into Bums — it usually does for me with slice-of-life movies — but once I was hooked, I hated to see the movie end. I wanted to hang out with the guys for the rest of their evening.

I wasn’t so enthralled with the female characters, however.  They didn’t ring true.  In the directors’ commentary, one of the Butler brothers said that they wrote better dialogue for the women in Bums than they did in their previous film Alive and Lubricated.  They still have some room for improvement on that one. Women don’t talk about sex the same way that men do.  To me, the dialogue between the two female leads sounded like the male fantasy version of how women talk about sex, complete with some attempted girl-on-girl action.

The Butlers made some interesting stylistic choices with Bums, beginning with the decision not to shoot in color.  Inventive split screens and creative POV shots help this movie pop instead of stagnate.  Plus, the soundtrack rocks.

The special edition DVD’s features include the filmmakers’ commentary (one of the more interesting ones I’ve heard recently), a production photo album, outtakes, a music video and the original trailer.

Visit www.subprod.com to order Bums, find out about upcoming films or to learn more about this dynamic filmmaking duo.

film news:anime films needed, tampa film review, something wicked this way con, dovetail

*From Guzzo brother number 1:

The Tampa Museum of Art is searching for both Anime and Asian-themed films for an Art After Dark event on Friday, November 17. If you have any films to contribute or know of any filmmakers who can help, please contact ASAP Kimberly Finn - 484-0662 or kfinn@tampabay.rr.com.

Also, Tampa Film Review’s October reviews are posted on www.crazedfanboy.com.

*The Something Wicked This Way Con (formerly the Carnivale of Horror) is November 3-5 at the Comfort Inn Conference Center (820 Busch Blvd.)  There will be multiple film screenings, a writing contest and more.  Guests include Debbie Rochon, Brinke Stevens, Amy Lynn Best, Andrea Dean Van Scoyoc, Joel Wynkoop, Gus Perez and Kenny Miller.

*Dovetail TV has launched the Off the Shelf and Onto the Screen film competition channels. These channels will be open for screening during the next week. Here’s the email I received: 

The 60+ filmmakers included in the channels have chosen to bring their work back to the screen so that you can enjoy their creations. In addition, you will decide the winners. Each channel winner will receive $500, and the top winner decided by audience vote wins $1,000 and 10,000 shares in Dovetail.

Check out the competition channels by launching Dovetail (www.dovetail.tv/app.html). To cast your vote for a film, be sure to click the “Download film” button and watch in DVD/HD full-screen quality. The filmmakers want to hear from you too, so be sure to add comments and also help get votes for your favorites by sharing with your friends.

five questions with author/film critic christopher null

Author, film critic and Editor-in-Chief and Publisher of www.filmcritic.com Christopher Null agreed to answer my Five Questions: 

1.  What’s the last movie you’ve seen?

The Fountain.

2.  Which movies have meant the most to you and why? 

Well ”meaning” is a loaded term. I enjoy the sociopolitical message of films like Brazil and Dr. Strangelove, but love the art in them too. But when you get down to it, they don’t really ”mean” anything to me, say, the way my kids do. They’ve enriched my life and my appreciation of the craft of moviemaking and film criticism — and I LOVE watching movies, seriously – but I still have the restraint to recognize that they are just that: Only movies. That said, Strangelove is probably my favorite film of all time, I think its statement on war is the most powerful ever put to film, and it’s also the funniest and best-crafted movie ever.

3.  Which movies could you watch more than once and still enjoy? 

Wow, a lot of them. My DVD collection currently runs to about 2200 films (you have no idea how many boxes that fills…). I return again and again to Hitchcock’s best work. Brazil, Blade Runner, Strangelove, Annie Hall, lots of Woody Allen. Great comedy is easily rewatchable. I’ve probably seen Real Genius 100 times. I probably watch Animal House every time it’s on cable and my TiVo snags it for me. 

4.  If you could meet any film character, who would you choose?

Assuming you mean fictional character, I’d have to say Charles Foster Kane.

5.  If you could meet any filmmaker (living or dead), who would you choose?  

Alfred Hitchcock or Orson Welles. Maybe both together, if it could be arranged.

in the spotlight:tampa film network co-creator joe davison

(photo: Joe Davison and Keljean Connelly at the September Tampa Film Network meeting)

“We want to make filmmaking in Tampa easier.”  That’s the goal that local filmmakers Joe Davison (Pop Gun Pictures) and Chris Woods (Icon Film Studios) had in mind when creating the Tampa Film Network (TFN) almost a year ago. The TFN is a group of local filmmakers — lighting techs, directors, makeup artists, writers, stunt people, actors, propmasters, graphic designers and more — who meet every other month to talk about their recent and upcoming projects. Besides touting their latest accomplishments, filmmakers are able to let others know what they need for their next film.  The newly-established TFN website posts these “help wanted” lists, as well as publishing an event calendar and posting pages of local links separated by category (i.e. actors, critics, film studios).

TFN co-creator Joe Davison got the idea for the TFN from his involvement in the Cambridge Film Network during the years he lived in England.  Davison said that the CFN started with about 10 people and had grown to around 200 by the time he moved back to the U.S.  Since its debut in February 2006, the Tampa Film Network has grown to around 100 members and co-creators Davison and Woods have added two people — filmmakers Melissa Webb and Keljean Connelly — to their volunteer management staff. Seeing the TFN grow has relieved Davison’s worry that “people would think this was all about getting me work for my film studio.”

A native Floridian, Davison made his first public speaking appearance at his high school graduation, using a speech written on a restaurant napkin only moments earlier.  From there, Davison moved on to improvisational comedy, acting, writing and filmmaking. Unearthed, a feature-length sci-fi film co-produced and starring Davison (directed by Craig Kovach), has screened in six film festivals, including Shocker Fest, Fantastic Fest and the Toronto After Dark Film Fest. His other recent films include Into the Darkness and Bloodbath.

The Tampa Film Network recently completed its first project, the film The Quiet Place, a suspense thriller written by Chris Woods, directed by Damien Kincannon and starring Joe Davison and Harmony Oswald.  Various TFN members participated in making The Quiet Place, including Shelby McIntyre, Marcus Koch, Paul Guzzo and Chris Passinault.  Davison is very proud of their accomplishment and knows it will be the first of many TFN projects to come.

A new meeting format — having announcements submitted prior to the meeting to be included on a written agenda distributed at the meeting — was unveiled at the September TFN meeting.  Davison lists upcoming goals for the TFN as “more collaboration between local filmmakers and the TFN, solidifying our relationship with (local film commissioner) Krista Soroka and developing the lists of jobs and local talent on the website.” 

When asked what one thing Davison wanted people to know about the Tampa Film Network, he smiled and said “That we’re here to help.  Like Ghostbusters.”

(I hope to interview Tampa Film Network co-creator Chris Woods soon.)

five questions with online film critic sean o’connell

North Carolina online film critic Sean O’Connell (Filmcritic.com, Charlotte Weekly, Online Film Critics Society) recently agreed to play Five Questions with me:

1.  What’s the last movie you’ve seen?

Shortbus by John Cameron Mitchell. It’s graphic, surprisingly moving, and not for everyone.

2. Which movies have meant the most to you and why?

This answer changes from week to week. When I first saw Finding Nemo, it impressed me as the latest Pixar gem. When I revisited it on DVD months later, my wife had given birth to our first baby - a boy - and the film meant the world to me. Still does.

3.  Which movies could you watch more than once and still enjoy?

Anything by Alfred Hitchcock. Anything with Paul Newman or Cary Grant. Anything that came out from 1974-1988.

4. If you could meet any film character, who would you choose?

That’s easy. Jesus, from any of his many cinematic incarnations. And if he couldn’t make it, I’d choose Butch and/or Sundance. They seem like great drinking buds.

5. If you could meet any filmmaker (living or dead), who would you choose?

John Lasseter. Though I met him once, and he turned out to be every bit as amazing as I’d expected. So I should pick someone else. OK, Billy Wilder. Imagine the stories he could tell?