photo by Colon

I was recently asked what I took from my experience as a press agent at Sundance.
What did I take? Well aside from twenty-five packets of Ola Loa sport drink, a few Luna Bars, and the unequivocal truth that I should be my own boss, not much. Just Kidding! Honestly, I would like to go back next year but with a larger crew, live feed capabilities and HD video camera. I would also like to not be visited by Aunt Flow who is a real pain in the lower back if you know what I mean.
All kidding aside I have learned a few things from the experience.

-U.S. reviewers tend to spend little more than ten minutes in a screening before they dip out to do whatever they do. I gather they’re off writing the typical two paragraph opinion piece that passes for a film review these days. A few adjectives and adverbs and you have yourself a review, mostly subjective with zero subtext much like the plot of Hounddog which was resoundly panned and deservedly so.

-A press pass does not guarantee you entry into much of anything. That includes public screenings, but if you’re smart you’ll schedule yourself accordingly and hit as many press screenings as possible during the week that way you don’t have to bother trying to get tickets to “hot” movies.

-It is possible to over-prepare for an interview and woefully under-prepare (based upon the supposed laid-backedness of interviewees) for another.

Note to self: practice the fifteen minute interview because not everyone digs your longviewed interview style not to mention will allow you three hours worth of discussion as is your preference.

-Press agents are possibly the most uppity bunch of wannabe indie-fucks ever, and that includes myself-to a limited extent. We all think our opinions matter based upon subjective degrees, dusty diplomas from art schools/film studies programs and publication in obscure literary journals. In the end they are merely opinions. The only opinions that matter are those that are backed up with insightful (or inciteful) and concise references grounded in common sense/knowledge with a smattering of poetic philosophy to make it seem like we are “thinkers” and therefore worthy of listening to if not believing.

-I hate the U.S. press but only slightly less than the verbose and chatty French press who can’t seem to shut the fuck up during a screening. Really, opinions AFTER the credits roll, AFTER not during the film or during the credits. Then you can “voile vou” all you want Francoise.
-It is impossible to sit through five to six screenings per day, eat, write, and party with your friends until dawn and then expect to get up and do it all over again the next day. Unless you happen to be an Indian (of the American variety) whom all seem to be able to do most of that (maybe more) on a daily basis. But if you aren’t an Indian, don’t bother trying.

-Press passes equal free really good coffee and all the bottled water you can drink. Take advantage! I know I did and it saved me quite a nice chunk of cash cause if there is one thing I can do that’s drink some coffee.

-Park City is expensive and filled with snotty locals who bitch incessantly about the “tourists” forgetting the fact that their charming mountain lives are made the more charming by the visiting “star obsessed” cash shelling tourists they loathe publicly. I say, “Shut the fuck up townies. Your mommy couldn’t afford that Northface parka you’re wearing if we weren’t hear shelling out $2.50 for a cup of joe and $15.00 for a movie ticket. Shit man, going to the movies in Manhattan isn’t even that expensive and a small coffee does not cost no two dollars and fifty cent either! So put a sock in it!”

-Salt Lake City should change it’s name to Smog Lake City. A layer 100 feet thick covered the entire valley the day I flew in. It was quite alarming considering the city is in the middle of nowhere. Again not even one of the largest greatest most populated cities in the world has smog that bad. I am referring to my beloved/hated Manhattan. Actually now that I think of it Mexico City (my other loves/hates city) doesn’t seem as bad by comparison. Remind me never to spend time in Salt Lake.

-The festival seem to be comprised of other festival coordinators from all over the world. As if they only came to Sundance to snatch films that didn’t snag distro-deals for their festival. Umm yeah that’s exactly why they were there. And we were too. More on that much later.
All in all, I had a great time. It was enlightening to sit with the other press agents and hear their opinions on the changing indie film scene, Park City in the eighties, the insidiousness of swag bags, and the futility of art house filmmaking. I fully intend to attend next year, maybe.

In an age where people fret over the implications of buying a DVD player at Walmart for twenty bucks, it is refreshing to find a film that addresses the effects of globalization on a more dignified level than just the consumer’s faux-shame of purchasing mass-produced electronics at reasonable prices.

Khadak, which had its U.S. premier at Sundance, is the first fiction work by seasoned documentarians, Peter Brosens and Jessica Woodworth. The storyline of the film goes quietly along the lines of similar globalization-warning-genre films: Boy/Girl lives in peaceful, rural community untouched by the modern world. Modern world soon arrives, wearing a ten-gallon hat, brandishing guns, raping and pillaging. We all nod our heads in sorrowful contemplation, and for a moment, regret buying that DVD player which was probably made by said Boy/Girl for twelve cents an hour.

All in all, the story is somewhat predictable … if the viewer chooses to stop there. What is so surprising about Khadak is how the filmmakers took such a simple plot line (not a bad “simple”, just concise) and expanded it in such a striking, gorgeous, breathtaking way. Simply put, the film is a visual masterpiece. It is full of perfectly crafted, impeccably framed shots. If I had to describe Khadak in one word it would be “symmetrical.” It is like watching a hot-air balloon expand.

When I started this review, I intended to delve into the story a bit more. I was going to describe the characters in detail. I was going to compare Khadak to other art-house films that it reminded me of. Etcetera, etcetera, etcetera. But I’ve decided not too. Those things do not strike me as the most important qualities about Khadak.

The unique thing about Khadak is that it does rely not on typical mechanisms to tell its story. It is an abstract explosion of images, all of which are so well crafted and thought out that the usual things of which one would rely on to review a film are moot. The story is the visual, not the verbal, and maybe that is why the film makes such a strong impact.

The thing is, the issue of globalization is an inherently important one. It is a valid concern and as human beings we should make a concerted effort to learn more about how our social, political and economic bearings affect other communities.

In short, we should care more.

But in this age of constant media output (lots of it from twenty dollar DVD players) the general public has pretty much seen every didactic, proselytizing film about how global societies are being raped and pillaged by the hegemonic, ten-gallon-hat-wearing majority. We’ve seen these stories, important as they are, told in the same formulaic, snoozy ways. Frankly, we’d rather go watch Borat, thank you.

But Khadak is different. It doesn’t preach or proselytize, and most importantly, it doesn’t judge. It simply tells a story and lets the viewer decide what is right and what is wrong. Khadak’s 22-page script does not inherently dictate how we feel about the film’s story, its images do. And when it comes right down to it, that is what good filmmaking is all about.

[image courtesy of www.khadak.com]

There’s been quite a mixed bag of opinions regarding director Taika Waititi’s feature film debut, Eagle vs. Shark. Everything from it’s a “wanna-be Napolean Dynamite” to a “good enough first effort” that bares some resemblance to Napolean Dynamite. It does, in fact, bare some resemblance to those super-indie Sundance films of years past, including Napolean Dynamite, but with a twist in that the film has a discernable objective and falls not so neatly into the romantic comedy genre. I say not so neatly and I mean that in a good way for Eagle vs. Shark elevates the genre whereas Gigli, The Wedding Planner, How to Lose a Guy in Ten Seconds (more like “How to Lose Your Audience in Ten Seconds”) do nothing but relegate the genre to the term “chick flick” and nobody likes a chick flick except chicks in Nebraska or Alabama and nobody cares about what they think of movies at all except studio hacks looking to make yet another buck.

As usual, I digress. The film is in fact a better than “good first effort” and that has a lot to do with excellent comedic writing and actress Loren Horsley. Sure the film is filled with sweet indie tunes by the Phoenix Foundation, and better than average supporting characters, but it is Miss Horsley’s portrayal of Lily that is the backbone of the film which yeah, yeah, we know, bares resemblance to Napolean Dynamite, but solely in tone. Now that we have establsihed that unilaterally held opinion let’s move on shall we?

About that Loren Horsley.

Well, unlike her masterful portrayal of that sex appeal challenged nerd, she is hawt! I don’t develop girl-crushes very often but when I do it’s usually on those who possess something I don’t and in the case of Miss Horsley it’s a really awesome head of curly hair. I also have curly hair but it’s nowhere near as good a head of curls as hers. And they’re dirty blonde curls to boot! Sexy. You wouldn’t believe she was as ravashing as she is seeing her outfitted as Lily, the aforementioned sex appeal challenged nerd, but she is, with a lovely smile (without mole), a melifluous laugh, and impossibly big eyes she’s a cupie doll come to life. I can see why Taika Waititi fell in love with her.

Aside from dashing blonde curls and cupie doll smiles she is a tremendously talented actress possessed of great skill. A lot is made of sexy amazonian actresses who ugllify themselves for the sake of an Oscar nomination (yes, you Charlize Theron, who should have also been given an award for turning yourself into an Ompah Loompah for the awards ceremony that year. yeesh) however Horsley created Lily well before the script was written pointing to her innate ability to conjure an entirely different human being outside herself whereas aforementioned amazons merely mimmick the personalities of those who’ve pass ed through this world. That is no easy task in itself but try creating a character from scratch. One that is not like you at all, trust me, Loren is no dork and I doubt she is wanting for romantic love, then have that character be completely believeable. If you succeed, and she certainly has, you have is what is commonly referred to as brilliance. There are so few truly brilliant performances in film. Those that qualify have nothing to do with re-creating other peoples already lived lives. Sorry Charlize, my apologies Robert De Niro. A truly brilliant performance comes from the creation of a character that is completely believeable, when it is hard to tell the character from the actor, which is probably why they call it character acting. So believeable is Horsley’s Lily, as a character if not a true human being, that she could disappear into her being never to return. Imagine that? It’s like Sybil but less creepy and without the child abuse issues, and that truly is brilliant. Or maybe a little creepy? In either case, it’s easy to see why director Taika Waititi fell in love with her-Loren Horsley or maybe Lily. Nah, probably not Lily. Well, maybe Lily too.
Coming Summer 2007.
Stay tuned to official website for awesomeness.
www.eaglevsshark.net

written by: Maria Colon, editor/amazon

www.thenaica.org

NAICA’s favorite filmmaker Blackhorse Lowe treats you to a short and sweet review of one of his Sundance Film Festival favorites, Khadak by directors Brosens and Woodworth (www.khadak.com).

KHADAK is one of those few great films that transcends standard cinema. It is a mutant all its own, a beautiful beast let loose in the world. I sat in the theater with my jaw dropped taking this wonderful ride I never wanted to end. In its simplicity it communicated ideas regarding relations between people, animal, earth, sky and the spiritual world. It did so by not succumbing to the formulaic tropes of film, it took a leap to be unique asking the audience to join the ride. Nothing was going to be explained but if you were willing to stay for the ride you were going to go places never experienced in mainstream film; ambiguity is its strength.
I’m sure others will say I’m wrong, but I saw a new path, a new way of mutating cinema. In order for it to be fresh we have to be willing to enter these new realms of understanding narrative through the creation of new cinematic tropes. Forget your three act structure, star driven pieces of shit, forget anything traditional and prepare for a new form. Like Journals Of Knud Rasmussen, Khadak is riveting and daring. A work of art that cannot be replicated but inspires one to be original in all one creates.

It is very sad to make an ass out of yourself. Especially in front of people you want to impress. One of NAICA’s saddest days at Sundance was when we assed up our interview with the cast of Eagle vs. Shark. It was a very, very sad day indeed. We tried to be too clever. And everyone knows what happens when you try to be too clever: you ass things up.

We had just screened Eagle vs. Shark prior to our scheduled interview with Taika, Loren and Jemaine, the director and cast of the film, respectively. All we had heard about them from friends and colleagues was how funny they were. Funny, funny, funny. We like to think that we at NAICA are funny too. Funny, funny, funny. So we decided to stage a funny interview. Since, you know, we’re all so funny and stuff. It was going to be just about the funniest interview ever.

What happened was like the anti-christ of funny interviews.

Maria was not feeling well, I was too stubborn to take over, and to top it off, we couldn’t get any wine at the Airborne Lounge, only vitamin powder, of which we already had surplus amounts of. Needless to say, we weren’t feeling very funny. Turns out the cast of Eagle vs. Shark wasn’t feeling very funny either, or at least they weren’t feeling our “not-feeling-very-funny” funny.

It was a disastrous, pained and awkward interview that culminated with us shouting, “We have t-shirts for you!!” This was shouted in order to cover the fact that we had just given the anti-christ of funny interviews. We also gave them buttons and cards. We may have shouted about those things too.

Later on in the week when we saw the cast again, they were all very sweet to us and at the Native Forum Party I even had a chance to apologize to Taika for our assiness. It felt good. In a funny sort of way.

[Look and Listen]

You can see a reenactment of this interview in the video player at the top of the blog. Coming soon: a salvageable video clip from our chat as well as NAICA’s take on Eagle vs. Shark.

NAICA did not attend the awards ceremony because we are a small press without big ass sponsors, so we weren’t given tickets.  I hate second-hand news, but Little Miss Sunshine forked over a ton o’ cash to send IndieWIRE to attend Sundance in exchange for massive amounts of streaming ads begging for Oscar consideration and since we are a small truly independent press without million dollar sponsors thus millions of readers we don’t count. But their news is breaking news so here goes:

Complete list of Sundance 2007 Award Winners:

Grand Jury Prize: Documentary
“Manda Bala” (”Send a Bullet”); directed by Jason Kohn

Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic
“Padre Nuestro“; directed by Christopher Zalla

World Cinema Jury Prize: Documentary
“Enemies of Happiness” (”Vores Lykkes Fjender”); directed by Eva Mulvad and Anja Al Erhayem

World Cinema Jury Prize: Dramatic
“Sweet Mud” (”Adama Meshugaat”); directed by Dror Shaul

Audience Award: Documentary
“Hear and Now“; directed by Irene Taylor Brodsky

Audience Award: Dramatic
“Grace is Gone“; directed by James C. Strouse

World Cinema Audience Award: Documentary
“In the Shadow of the Moon“; directed by David Sington

World Cinema Audience Award: Dramatic
“Once“; directed by John Carney

Directing Award: Documentary
Sean Fine and Andrea Nix Fine for “War/Dance”

Directing Award: Dramatic
Jeffrey Blitz for “Rocket Science”

Excellence in Cinematography Award: Documentary
Heloisa Passos for “Manda Bala” (”Send a Bullet”)

Excellence in Cinematography Award: Dramatic
Benoit Debie for “Joshua”

Documentary Editing Award
Hibah Sherif Frisina, Charlton McMillian, Michael Schweitzer for “Nanking”

Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award
James C. Strouse for “Grace is Gone”

Documentary Jury: Special Jury Prize
“No End in Sight“; directed by Charles Furguson

Special Jury Prizes for Acting
Jess Weixler in “Teeth”
Tamara Podemski in “Four Sheets to the Wind”

Special Jury Prize for Singularity of Vision
Chris Smith for “The Pool”

World Cinema Competition Jury: Special Jury Prize
“Hot House“; directed by Shimon Dotan

World Cinema Dramatic Competition Jury: Special Jury Prize
“The Legacy” (”L’Heritahe”); directed by Gela Babluani and Temur Babluani

Jury Prize in Short Filmmaking
“Everything Will Be OK“; directed by Don Hertzfeldt

Jury Prize in International Short Filmmaking
“The Tube With a Hat“; directed by Radu Jude

Shorts Jury Honorable Mentions in Short Filmmaking
“Death to the Tinman“; directed by Ray Tintori
“The Fighting Cholitas“; directed by Mariam Jobrani
“Men Understand Each Other Better” (”Mardha Hamdigar Ra Behtar Mifahmand”); directed by Marjan Alizadeh
“Motodrom“; directed by Joerg Wagner
“Spitfire 944“; directed by William Lorton
“t.o.m.“; directed by Tom Brown and Daniel Gray

Shorts Jury: Special Jury Prize
“Freeheld“; directed by Cynthia Wade

Alfred P. Sloan Prize
“Dark Matter“; directed by Chen Shi-Zhen

Sundance/NHK International Filmmakers Award
Lucia Cedron for “Agnus Dei”
Caran Hartsfield for “Bury Me Standing”
Tomoko Kana for “Two By The River”
Dagur Kari for “The Good Heart”

Tamara won a special jury prize for acting here at Sundance.
Congratulations Tamara.

You go gurl! (I mean that in the new millenium sense of gurls who go not the Martin Lawrence 90’s sense. God forbid.)

Of the many films NAICA has had the pleasure of seeing this past week at Sundance, the documentary Cocalero has been one of our favorites. The film is a portrait of enigmatic Bolivian presidential candidate, Evo Morales and his journey to become the country’s first indigenous president.

But of course, the film is much more than that. Evo’s role in the documentary is a segue for the viewer’s introduction to the people behind his campaign: from the Coca farmers of Bolivia to indigenous grassroots campaigners to Anglo-Latin pop stars.

The documentary is an informal, organic mixture of verité shots, natural lighting and casual interviews. Juxtaposed next to this is the fact that the film is a nearly flawless edit. It is this mixture of chaos and order that makes Cocalero so beautiful and intriguing.

[Look and Listen]

Upon seeing the film, we knew we had to talk to the director. Twenty-six year-old Alejandro Landes is a graduate of Brown University and is Columbian by way of Brazil and Ecuador. He took the time to sit down with NAICA and humor our pseudo-political questions as well as regale us with tales of Evo and the people of Bolivia.

Check out our interview with him in the video player at the top of our blog and visit the film’s website at www.cocalerofilm.com.

[image courtesy of www.cocalerofilm.com]

Moose Factory, Ontario…The Weeneebeg Aboriginal Film and Video Festival is an annual five-day festival presented in the Moose Factory Island community located in Ontario’s beautiful far north along the James Bay coast. The festival is uniquely positioned as a community driven, northern experience presenting works by established and emerging international Aboriginal artists with featured youth workshops and community events. Each year the program showcases stories that resonate with local issues, concerns and perspectives relative to the James Bay people. Weeneebeg Aboriginal Film and Video Festival 2007 celebrates their 5th milestone year with a program focus on Aboriginal women in film and video among other exciting highlights.

Weeneebeg is the traditional Cree word referring to the waters of James Bay. The island community is situated on the Moose River that feeds into James Bay. The area is the traditional territory populated mainly by the members of Moose Cree First Nation. Moose Factory is located across from the mainland town of Moosenee and is accessible via an ice road during the festival month of March.

The Weeneebeg Aboriginal Film and Video Festival partners with local organizations, co-presenting screenings, traditional Cree feasts and festival activities at various venues throughout the community such as the Elder’s Centre, the Cree Village EcoLodge and the local schools. Other industry and co-presenting partners include the Isuma Productions an independent Inuit Film company, the Liaison of Independent Filmmakers of Toronto and the internationally recognized imagineNative Film + Media Arts Festival. This year’s partnership with imagineNative Film + Media Arts Festival will include a youth program with a selection of short films from their 2006 festival. The Weeneebeg Aboriginal Film and Video Festival showcases shorts, animation, documentaries and feature films as well as hands-on youth workshops with guest artists. Audience members are mainly from the Moose Factory and Moosonee area and many others who travel down the ice road along the coast from Attawapiskat, Kashechewan and Fort Albany. Guest filmmakers present works, artists’ talks and facilitate workshops while experiencing a unique northern life with the Cree Nation.

One highlight of this year’s festival is the honouring of works created by and about Aboriginal women. A sneak preview of this year’s program presents the dramatic short film Conversion by Navajo filmmaker Nanobah Becker (USA), Nadia MacLaren’s (CAN) first feature film Muffins for Granny and internationally acclaimed filmmaker, Shirley Cheechoo’s (CAN) new work-in-progress entitled Extreme Beats. Conversion dramatizes the impact of Christianity amongst the Navajo Nation during the 1950s. Muffins for Granny is a remarkably complex story where McLaren shares the personal life of her own grandmother by combining home movie clips with stories of seven elders affected by their experiences in residential school. MacLaren originates from the northern Ontario town of Sioux Lookout. Cheechoo shares with her home community Extreme Beats. This film tells the story of Sgt Diane Nadjiwon’s visit to northern Australia’s Aboriginal country and follows Nadjiwon’s working relations with local Sgt Lindsay Greatorex.

Partnering with Isuma Distribution International (NT) and the imagineNative Film + Media Arts Festival and their northern Ontario tour, Weeneebeg Aboriginal Film and Video Festival will co-present with these prestigious partners a special opening night screening of The Journals of Knud Rasmussen. This is the second dramatic feature from Zacharius Kunuk whose debut film Atanarjuat The Fast Runner astonished audiences around the world. The Journals of Knud Rasmussen depicts a series of events that took place in 1922, when Shamanism was replaced by Christianity – and the balance of life was changed forever. Kunuk takes us back to the starkly beautiful Artic landscape to construct a moving portrait of family and cultural conflict. The Journals of Knud Rasmussen is a rare glimpse into the rich history of the Inuit people.

Weeneebeg Aboriginal Film and Video festival is a free festival and provides unlimited access to all screenings, events and workshops. The festival is an artist and community run festival led by Executive Director/Programmer, Paul M. Rickard and Co-Executive Director/Special Events Coordinator/Programmer, Fred Rickard Jr.

January 30th, 2007 will be the official launch date of the 2007 website and full program. Further details of screenings, visiting artists and festival activities will be posted.

For updates, we invite you to please visit www.weeneebeg.ca

After a packed screening of their film, Four Sheets to the Wind-a Sundance favorite-lead actors Cody (aka Chad or some other name that begins with a “C” and drifts into my mind causing me to become confused) Lightning and Tamara Podemski took a moment to speak with us about preparing for their roles as Okie brother and sister dealing with the death of their father and reconciliation with life and it’s many vagaries.

[Look and Listen]

Check out our interview with them in the media player at the top of the blog. There is also a video of a post-screening Q&A available for your viewing pleasure. Photos from the Q&A are available to view in our gallery.