Showcasing up and coming talents, RAW Natural Born Artists is on a mission to keep your community connected to local, independent artists in all creative disciplines.  So what exactly is RAW Natural Born Artists? I’m glad you asked. It is a collective movement started by Southern California’s own Heidi Luerra. The RAW team assembles and promotes artists through their online community as well as through their monthly events.  Their site features artists’ profiles, making it easier for you to get to know them and what they do.  Hosting four cites which currently include Los Angeles, Fullerton, Santa Monica, and Long Beach, RAW is able to freely promote Southern Californian artists to a waiting audience.

As a platform for up and coming visual artists, fashion designers, musicians, comedians, filmmakers, etc. RAW’s event nights make discovering new art and fresh talent more accessible to the public. RAW recently hosted a showcase at the Cherch Lounge in Fullerton. A veritable smorgasbord of creativity, the event highlighted standup comedian/magician Justin Rivera, music by Octavius Womack, fashions by Metevo Clothing, hair by Melissa McFadden, makeup by Yvette Mendoza, and the musical styling’s of DJ Martin Vidal. A pop-up gallery was on display with art from Kaleeka Bond, Patricia Cory, Shannon LeClair, and Raymond DeLuna. A short film by Luke Randall was screened for the audience to kick off the night’s events.  The festive occasion was an exciting experience and a fun way to discover something a little out of the ordinary.

When attending their showcase nights, you are exposed to great performances and art while also getting a chance to mingle and network with fellow art connoisseurs. Helping link artists to the public and professionals, RAW ultimately supplies the foundation for future harmonious collaborations. The team’s positive vibe is key to their message of “connecting independent artists with the tools, resources, and exposure to inspire and incubate creativity, productivity, and success.” The tools that RAW provides to their group of artists are given through workshops that coach them on the business side of their given industry.

Not only does RAW work to broaden your cultural horizon, but they are also good for you. And when I say “good for you,” I mean that they help out that planet you live on called Earth. By being completely green, RAW goes as far as making donations to the Carbon Fund to cancel the emissions of the cars that travel to their events. They also do the majority of their promotion via the web and texting. Only when paper is an essential marketing tool do they use only 100% recycled paper.  RAW also facilitates artists with giving back to the community by connecting them with charitable organizations. These simple contributions make a world of difference in the long run and make it a win-win situation for all parties involved in their movement.

Now that you know about RAW Natural Born Artists be sure to check their site and make your way out to one their showcase nights. Artists can also submit applications to become a part of the RAW team. To learn more visit www.rawartists.org.  Eco-friendly sensibilities and accessible art are what sets this organization apart from the rest. Looks like it’s time for you to go RAW.

Photos taken by Hiro Landazuri

OCAC wants to give you opening day tickets to the movie SÉRAPHINE. Interested?  Good, because SÉRAPHINE won seven Cesar Awards (French Oscar) for Best Film, Best Actress, Best Original Screenplay, Best Music, Best Cinematography, Best Set Design and Best Costumes.  Need more to entice you? SÉRAPHINE Also played at the Newport Beach Film Festival a couple of weeks ago and created quite a buzz amongst audience goers.  So what’s the catch?  No catch.  All we need you to do is enter your name and email address in the form below.

Then OCAC will pick someone on May 29th to win TWO FREE run of the engagement passes for the opening day of SÉRAPHINE.  The tickets will be good at Regency’s South Coast Village Theater in Costa Mesa and you will be able to use them on June 5, at any of the screenings on that day.

Need more info on SÉRAPHINE?

SÉRAPHINE centers on Séraphine de Senlis (renowned French Actress Yolande Moreau), a simple housekeeper whose brilliantly colorful canvases adorn some of the most famous galleries in the world. Wilhelm Uhde, a German art critic and collector (The Lives of Others’ Ulrich Tukur) discovers her paintings while she is working for him as a maid in Senlis near Paris in the early part of the 20th century. A poignant and unexpected relationship develops between the avant-garde art dealer and the visionary cleaning lady. Martin Provost’s fictionalized and tragic portrait of this forgotten painter is a testament to creativity and the resilience of one woman’s spirit.

www.musicboxfilms.com/seraphine

We would like to thank Marina Bailey Film Publicity and Music Box Films for providing the tickets.

Here is the rest of the Newport Beach Film Festival Wrap-up and closing film.  The 2009 award winners are located at the bottom of the article.

Tuesday

6:00PM Late Start

LL: So I got a late start to the film festival but that’s okay because I made up for it with a selection of short films and some after parties. First things first, I had some coffee over at the Variety Lounge, which has seriously been a wonderful thing. Thank you for the free coffee.

7:45PM The Brothers Bloom

LL: After refueling on coffee went to go wait in line for The Brothers Bloom, which was one of the main films we were really excited to see. So we waited and waited, and waited some more. Only to be told that all the seats were filled and that no one else could go in. Sadness is the best word to describe my feeling. But as luck would have it there are multiple films playing at the same time, so we took a chance and decided to go see whatever film was letting people in next. This turned out to be a series of short films called How Low Can You Go.

EV: Like Lamia said, we did not make it into The Brothers Bloom on Tuesday night.  I was actually quite disappointed that we just missed out on the screening by a couple of seats.  Because we put all our eggs in that one basket we had only a few choices to pick from.  So we chose How Low Can You Go.  The world’s most depressing set of movies.

8:15 How Low Can You Go

LL: Naturally we didn’t realize till the second short film that the title of the series meant that the films were going to be really depressing. They were all done very well, I just wasn’t prepared for suicide, crack addicts, or Munchhausen syndrome. The most interesting of the films I thought were Bye Bye Sally, which is the story of a girl (named Sally) who is going to commit suicide until she is given the offer to not only kill herself but others as well. The story line is so clever and crazy that it felt like something Chuck Palahniuk would have written. In the end I was both rooting for Sally to succeed as well as cringing every time she made a move.

The other movie I really enjoyed was Adelaide, which is a quirky romantic comedy about a girl with Munchhausen syndrome who falls in love with a pharmacist and tries to get him to experience his dream of being an MD. Its the most uplifting film out of all the ones shown, and I’m impressed that they were able to take such a serious subject and make it lighthearted. The set design for this film are also impressive; with its usage of pastel colors and simple layouts, it looked like something Wes Anderson would have done.

10:15 After Party

LL: After seeing such intense short films I figured it would be best if we did something to lighten our moods, and what better way than to attend an after party! There were three main ones going on at Fashion Island, and Evan and I managed to attend all three, though I admit we spent most of our time filling our plates up with the most AMAZING cheese ever. I realize this may seem silly, but I can not emphasize enough how wonderful this cheese was. It was some sort of truffle-infused white cheddar, mainly whatever was inside of it it managed to have quite an impression on me. So thank you Old Vine Cafe for your cheese, I will be visiting you very soon.

After the cheese feast it was time to chit chat with people. While at these events held in different furniture stores in Fashion Island, were volunteers, staff, fellow magazine writers, as well as people who used to design for Valentino. You name it, they were there. And so were we till about 1:30 AM.

EV: Not because we saw a bunch of depressing short films that night, but I was still down in the dumps over not making into one of the movies that I was most looking forward to.  So we decided to check out the after party that was going on.  Nothing cheers up my address more than free food.  Not only free food, but good food.  Cheese is probably one of my favorite foods and while downstairs at Fashion Island I noticed people walking around with plates of cheese.  Using my rat sniffing cheese skills I wound up discovering one of the groups catering the event.  Old Wine Cafe.  I had a small sampling of cheese from around the world that was hand picked by the owner.  It was quite spectacular.

After savoring the worldly exotic cheese I noticed the Black Market Bakery was also showing off their wares of some of the most elaborate desserts I have ever laid my eyes on.  Cookies, brownies and tarts were all assembled to the highest degree of excellence and wonderfully laid out on tables.  Some of the desserts were so extravagant I was afraid to eat them.  But I couldn’t resist. I also had a chance to meet Rachel, who owns the Black Market Bakery, and we got a chance to talk about the trendiness of cupcakes and how much I loved donuts.  It was quite the after party.

Thursday

12:00PM Getting Lucky with Bloom

EV: So I showed up early Thursday morning to check out my first feature film of the day.  I was actually interested in the film for two reasons.  First, it would have been my first full length Documentary of the NBFF and second, because the movie sounded so interesting.  It was called Garbage Dreams. So as eagerly  I walked up to the Edwards theater about five minutes to noon, I noticed that the place was empty.  I was actually not surprised.  Standing around waiting, I ran into one of the volunteers who kept helping me get into movies and would chat with me in between screenings.  He was a really nice man and I owe him the biggest THANK YOU of my life.  As I was waiting around for Garbage Dreams to start he had asked me if I was here to see The Brothers Bloom.  I stared back at him blankly.  I had no idea what he was talking about. I grabbed the schedule that was folded over many times in my pocket and read it.  No Brothers Bloom.  I told him I had no idea it was playing and asked for more information.  He then proceeded to tell me that they had added it on and he would check to see if they had seats available.  I crossed my fingers and waited in anticipation for him to tell me that it was sold out.  His radio blurted back, “We have some seats”.  I asked if there was anyway I could get into that movie.  Next thing you know, I’m sitting in the screening of The Brothers Bloom, dead center, about 10 rows back.  Perfect seats.

I don’t want to get too much into the movie, but with my high expectations of Rian Johnson’s second feature length film, I was slightly disappointed.  It’s quite hard to top one of my favorite movies of all time, BRICK. Let’s just say that BRICK is a far superior movie on pretty much every level.  With that being said, I still enjoyed the hell of out it and I do recommend people going to see it.  After leaving the theater, I was on cloud nine.

3:00PM Coffee & Eating Buccaneers

LL: So today was the last day of the film festival and I have to admit I was both sad and slightly happy. Its been a blast seeing the films and talking with everyone involved, but I have seen so many films that I think my eyes are looking forward to taking a break from starring at a screen. But before any of that happens there were more films to see, and before that could happen I needed my daily fix of free coffee from the Variety Lounge.

After that it was the movie Eating Buccaneers, a comedy about five coworkers whose plane crashes in the middle of a forest with nothing but a box of “Buccaneer Bars” to survive off of. It was extremely entertaining in its cliché representation of office people; there was the art director, who was your modern day hippie. The executive, whose only concern was his paycheck and fancy car. The over eager assistant who always knew the answer to any question. The list goes on. But despite the clichés the movie was very enjoyable, and ended up being sort of like The Office meets Lord of the Flies.

4:45 Final Dinner

LL: So since we started the festival off together by eating at Red Robin it seemed only fitting we would end it there.

EV: To be honest, I did enjoy my dinner,  but I spent most of the time worrying about getting into the closing movie and trying to cover all of the crazy red carpet antics.

6:00PM (500) Days of Summer

LL: The closing movie was being played at the Lido Theater, and it was freezing. Standing outside camera in hand waiting for people to show up there were times when I though I might freeze. I understand now why photographers huddle around one another, its to stay warm. I did manage within the huddle to get some photos of the director, writers, and costume designer. Who were mainly the only people from the movie 500 Days of Summer that showed up.

I was also to see photographers and volunteers that I had met at the opening, so it was exciting to see them and chit chat with them for a while. Thank you Barbara for all of your advice throughout this festival!

After the photos and notes were taken it was time to see how many seats were left in the theater. We had been informed that the movie was sold out and that getting in was pretty much impossible. But somehow we managed to get in and see the movie, we didn’t get to sit together. I was in the front row right in front of the speaker while Evan was in the balcony. But we saw the film and LOVED it, which is what really counts.

EV: We arrived at the Lido Theater really early to avoid any parking mishaps and realized we had an hour of time to just stand around before anything started.  It was freezing.  After wasting some time, the crowd began to gather around the Lido and the anticipation for the film was building.  The red carpet was insane.  People running around everywhere, trying to take pictures and do interviews to get that story in on time.  The red carpet was a complete a strobe light with fifty flash bulbs going off every few seconds. I had never seen anything like it.  Once everyone was in, I waited patiently at the front door to see if they had seats left.  I’m not quite sure how, but I got into the movie and sat in the very last row in the upper balcony.  Lamia got in right after I did and they managed to fit her into the very first row to the right hand side.  We made it, just barely.

10:00 Closing Gala

LL: The event was located in the courtyard right behind the Lido, and I have to admit that I was (and still am) very impressed with the way they set it up. Normally walking through there you would never think in a million years that hundreds of people would be able to fit back there along with all of the food, bars, photo stations, and DJs they had. But they did, and it worked out wonderfully, making the closing gala a complete success, we talked with tons of people, Evan managed to talk to the Director of 500 Days of Summer, as well as mention to a few people about our magazine. While still being able to try every single food item available. All in all the Newport Beach Film Festival was  complete success and I am so honored and thrilled that I was able to attend. And I want to thank Cheri Wilson for helping OC Arts & Culture become a part of this event, and also thank you to everyone at The Newport Beach Film festival you all did a wonderful job!

EV: It was quite an event.  I had an amazing time chatting and snacking during the after party.  It is with a very humble heart that I want to thank Cheri Wilson for helping OCAC join the outstanding list of press that was allowed to attend the event and be able to see so many films that screened for the very first time.  I would also like to thank all the volunteers who did an amazing job and should be commended for donating their time.  The entire festival ran smoothly and everything was well organized.  It has been a pleasure and honor to work with all of you and I look forward to coming back next year.

2009 NEWPORT BEACH FILM FESTIVAL AWARDS

JURY AWARDS

Features:
Best Film – Seraphine
Best Actor – Ulrich Tukur – Seraphine
Best Actress – Yolande Moreau – Seraphine
Best Director – Martin Provost – Seraphine
Best Screenplay – Martin Provost – Seraphine
Best Cinematography – Modern Boy
Documentary:
Best Documentary – Blue Gold:  World Water Wars
Shorts:
Best Narrative Short – Through the Ear
Best Short Documentary – 12 Stones
Best Animated Short – The Incident at Tower 37
Special Prize Cinematography Short – Mkrtich Malkhasyan – Nora

AUDIENCE AWARDS

Feature – Street Dreams, Easy Virtue (tie)
Foreign Feature – Rudo y Cursi
Documentary – The Cove
Action Sports – That’s It, That’s All
Family Film – The Music Lesson
Short Film – Kwame
Short Documentary – Center Street Rising
Short Animation – Because You’re Gorgeous

FESTIVAL HONORS AWARDS

Humanitarian Vision Award – Earth Days
Outstanding Achievement in Acting – Jeremy Sisto – Into Temptation
Outstanding Achievement in Action Sports Filmmaking – The Glacier Project
Outstanding Achievement in Action Sports Filmmaking – Waveriders
Outstanding Achievement in Directing – The Brothers Bloom
Outstanding Achievement in Documentary Filmmaking – See What I’m Saying: The Deaf Entertainers
Outstanding Achievement in Documentary Filmmaking – Visual Acoustics:  The Modernism of Julius Shulman
Outstanding Achievement in Documentary Filmmaking – Art & Copy
Outstanding Achievement in Documentary Filmmaking – No Subtitles Necessary: Laszlo & Vilmos
Outstanding Achievement in Documentary Filmmaking – Dream Weavers: Beijing 2008
Outstanding Achievement in Filmmaking – (500) Days of Summer
Outstanding Achievement in Filmmaking – Made In China
Outstanding Achievement in Filmmaking – My Suicide
Outstanding Achievement in Filmmaking – Spooner
Outstanding Achievement in Filmmaking – The Perfect Age of Rock ‘n’ Roll
Orange County Filmmaker Award – Echo Beach

SHORT FILMS

Outstanding Achievement in Short Filmmaking – Animation – Granny Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty
Outstanding Achievement in Horror Filmmaking – Mom
Outstanding Achievement in Short Filmmaking – Directing – On The Road To Tel Aviv
Outstanding Achievement in Short Filmmaking – Screenwriting – Gone Fishing
Outstanding Achievement in Short Filmmaking – Acting – For a Few Marbles

This is Evan Vincent and Lamia Larkin’s first hand account into the first few days of the Newport Beach Film Festival.  We will be posting a second part to cover the remaining days and a closing article on the final movie of the festival.  Enjoy…

Friday

2:00 The 27 Club

EV: I showed up on Friday to the Island Edwards theater waiting for my first movie to start.  It was going to be the 27 Club directed and written by Erica Dunton.  I was excited for my first movie, but also dissapointed that Erica Dunton’s flight from New York was delayed and she could not make the Q&A.  As far as the movie goes the cinematography was well done and Joe Anderson’s acting was a pretty convincing.  I think that our screening actually had some sound issues, because for a movie about music, our screening had no soundtrack.  Either it was an odd choice stylistically or something was clearly wrong with the film. Either way, I was very excited to see my first movie of the day and now that It was over, I was gearing up to meet Lamia for some short films.

4:30 Expect the Unexpected

LL: This variety of short films was I think a great way to start off the festival! It was a combination of both American and International films, and both had their own distinct differences. The American films were mainly comedies while the European films were much more serious and dramatic. Both styles proved to work out quite well together, and I think they created the perfect balance. Hooking Up was especially enjoyable; the story of two old people trying to get to a specific destination, has a rather funny surprised twist at the end. This movie is definitely the charmer of the bunch. For the European films; its hard to pick just one. France, Germany, and Italy all managed to create and show really deep and meaningful movies that were executed beautifully.

EV: Just as the title stated I had no idea what to expect in this next session.  It was an amalgamation of some American short films and some European short films.  They were all running various times and lengths with different subject matter.  Some of the shorts were funny and whimsicle and some tackled a variety of issues dealing with disturbing neighbors, confessing sins and death by orange juice.  All of the films that were shown were very good and the crowed really enjoyed all of them. Judging by the loud ovation in between each short the Expect the Unexpected screening went over well.

6:45 Dinner at Red Robin

EV: As much as I love watching movies, I now had a chance to do my second favorite thing.  Eat.  We didn’t have much time in between and we were a tad worried that our next movie might be extremely crowded so we quickly grabbed a bite next to the theater at Red Robin.  We had just enough time to chat about what we had just watched, quickly jot down some notes and swallow our food.  Then we were off to our next screening, which I must admit, it was one of the movies I was most looking forward to.

LL: After seeing so many films (even though they were mainly shorts) it was nice to take a break to go over and collect our notes. Also, taking break to eat was welcomed as well. Got to refuel sometime.

7:30 waiting in line for Surveillance

LL: So everyone working at the festival has told us something different when it comes to waiting in line for the movies. And since this movie was done by David Lynch’s daughter and we weren’t sure as to how many people were going to show up. We decided to wait in line with everyone else….only to get to the entrance and be told we never have to wait in line. Oh well, live and learn. Waiting in line did allow for some fun conversations with everyone else in line.

EV: So we were standing outside, watching the line grow and get longer.  As the line continued to grow my nerves started to gather as I figured I wouldn’t be able to make it in to the screening.  My thoughts were swirling around about back up movies, but I knew I really wanted to catch this flick.  Then just as quickly as the line formed, it begain to dissapear as I noticed they started to let everyone pile into the theater.

8:00 Surveillance

LL: Jennifer Lynch has proven that she is not her father, which was a welcoming surprise. I’ll be honest; I saw this movie because of who she was. I knew very little about the movie itself, but seeing it and hearing her speak afterward made me respect her as a filmmaker so much more. The movie (called Surveillance) was very well done, though very disturbing and quite graphic, it was amazing nevertheless.

EV: Befuddled and slightly amazed that I actually made it in, I quickly grabbed a seat towards the front.  The anticipation started to grow as the lights went down and the crowd began to cheer when the name Jennifer Lynch ran across the screen.  I knew I was in for something special as the movie opened to a brutal killing which then begins to unfold into a mystery between three different stories all twisted together in hopes that the truth might be discovered.  This movie is about as dark and twisted as it can get for someone with the last name of Lynch.  Most people might write this movie off because they think that Jennifer might have big shoes to fill and that she might just be living in her fathers shadow, but I felt like this movie completely stood on its own merits and was as good as any movie that I had seen in recent memory. I really enjoyed this movie and I cannot wait to see it again when it comes out for limited release this summer.

10:30/11

LL: At this point I think we both (at least I know I was) are exhausted and wanted nothing more than to go home and get some sleep. The day was a complete success!

Saturday

11:00 Saddleback Shorts

LL: These were the first student films we saw, and for the most part they were pretty impressive. All of the films had very creative scripts that managed to get their points across very effectively. Two films in particular stood out the most; such as Complex: John. Which was about a man named John and his Ego and ID, and how they are fighting over whether or not John should commit suicide. Its a clever story that turned out to be very amusing. The second film was the movie Chalk. Which was about a little boy who discovers some cursed chalk and by drawing with it is able to cause harm on others. Creepy and creative; this short made me feel like I was 12 years old and watching Are You Afraid of the Dark.

EV: Back in the saddle for the saddleback shorts I met Lamia early and Got ready for day two.  We were both pretty tired and running on lack of sleep so we got some coffee in the morning. After that we we’re off to cover more short films, but this time it by local student film makers from Saddleback College.  First off, I would like to congratulate all the films that screened because they were all very good.  But two in particular that I want to mention are Chalk and Complex: John, both of which I felt were very creative and really well done.  I enjoyed myself very much and all the film makers should be proud.  After a quick Q&A, we quickly jumped over to the wonderful Orange County Museum of Art, where we would spend the next few hours checking out more local film making talent.

1:00 USC Shorts

LL: These were the first films we saw at the Orange County Museum of Art and to be honest I don’t have nothing negative to say about them. They were without a doubt AMAZING! Seriously, all of you students at USC who were chosen to show your films absolutely deserved it. I enjoyed every minuet of these short films and can (and would love) see these being made in to feature length films. As cliché as it may sounds, congratulations on your amazing talent.

EV: This is kind of embarrassing to admit, but, I have never been to the Orange County Museum of Art (OCMA).  So I had Lamia show me around and I met some of the folks who work there.  After the quick tour I was escorted into the screening room for the USC grad student shorts. All of the films that were shown were completely amazing.  In all honesty, I had no idea what I was going to see.  It’s actually quite difficult to pick just a few films to talk about because they were all so good.  One major difference that I noticed was that these short films were so multitextural and so well written that any of them could have been adapted into a full length feature, which is slightly different than anything I had seen yet.  Most of the other shorts I had seen up to this point were all very well executed, but didn’t have the legs to stand as a full length feature.  These all had depth, not only in the execution and in the writing, but the concepts just felt a lot more fleshed out and the worlds in which the characters existed seemed a lot more plausible. During the Q&A  I learned that two of the girls Christina Won and Amber Beard wrote their screenplays along with directing them, which is no easy task.  Congratulations to all of you, it is well deserved.

3:30 Chatting with everyone at OCMA

LL: I come to this museum all the time so it was nice to be able to see and chat with people that I knew. Seriously if you have some free time you should check out the Orange County Museum of Art, its really great.

4:00 Chapman University Shorts

LL: So good films must have been in the air that day because again the student shorts were wonderful! Chapman delivered just like USC. And I’m not just saying that because I graduated from there, they really were great films. I especially liked The Last Page. Its a quirky comedy about a writer trying to figure out the perfect words to end his story. Its full of random events (that looked like they took place in Orange) and even had some recognizable actors in it.

EV: After the USC students had finished we quickly ran outside for some fresh air as we awaited the next set of shorts from Chapman.  I was excited to see what Chapman was going to show and they certainly did not dissapoint at all.  Each one of their shorts also had the same quality as the films USC had just shown a few hours earlier.  All the worlds were well realized and layered.  All the productions were of the highest quality and just like the USC shorts, they could be adapted into full features, even though they totally stand on their own as short films.  It took me by suprise how much each director could accomplish with such a small budget.  I just really want to mention  that anyone of these directors could be the future of Hollywood and its very exciting to see this level of quality coming out of our local colleges. Congratulations to Chapman for such a good screening.

5:15 Quick run to Taco Bell and Photos

LL: So I don’t really eat fast food partly cause it just never looks the way they portray it on the commercials or in the photos. And this attempt was no different, seriously its a taco. But regardless of the food options I was able to get something in my system before the big feature film of the night Spooner. Which we were able to get some photos of the director and lead actor. As well as chat with a few of the people waiting in line for the movie that was going to be showing afterwards; Street Dreams, which was about skateboarding. It was definitely drawing a big crowd fast.

EV: We quickly rushed from the Chapman shorts to the Southern California premier of Spooner Directed by Drake Doremus and staring Matthew Lillard. As we arrived at the red carpet in downtown Newport the theater was already packed.People were crawling everywhere, photo flashes were going off right and left and the line was begining to lengthen down the block. As we were standing on the red carpet, we grabbed a few pictures of the cast and crew while they were being hunted down by different camera crews all trying to cover the opening.  As the time got closer to the screening it became even more hectic and so we decided to go grab our seats.

6:00 Spooner

LL: I had heard about this movie thanks to Evan’s interview with the director and was really looking forward to seeing it. Happily the movie was just and cute as I hoped it would be. It was a romantic comedy without being overly romantic; quirky I guess is a better way to describe it. Regardless of the title It was a hit that fact is certain. The actors were great, the script was great, the cinematography, music, it all worked very nicely together. And the Q &A afterwards went really well also. Most of the crew seemed to be there, which was nice to see. You could tell just by looking at them that they were all very proud of this film, and rightfully so.

EV: As the theater jammed together like sardines we squished our way into the last row just in time before the movie was introduced and the lights went down.  It was a great evening to see such a great movie and the crowed really got into it. It was also nice to see a local film maker, Drake Doremus, and a local actor, Matthew Lillard create such a charming movie with a really likable main character.  It was one of those movies that really just brings you back to that first time you had a crush on someone.  It was a really magical night and I was glad to be apart of it.  After that I was so tired I went home to pass out.

8:15 Time to Go Home

LL: So after the movie the Lido Theater in downtown Newport was packed, literally packed with tons of eager tweens waiting for Tony Hawk and Ryan Sheckler to arrive. So after a few chats and some photos Evan and I took off to go over our notes and call it a night.

Sunday

11:00-3:00 CSUF & CSULB

LL: So the next day was started again at OCMA with some more short films from Cal State Fullerton and Long Beach, and both schools managed to deliver a wide variety of film genres. It was the documentaries that proved to be the most interesting of the bunch; with Fullerton’s documentary short on a grandfathers rocking chair and Long Beach’s documentary of the Los Angeles River. Both documentaries were executed in an informative and touching way that really connected with the audience.

EV: On sunday we had some more local film makers and short films to check out.  I could not make it to Cal State Fullerton, but I did make it to Cal State Long Beach’s shorts.  I thought they had done a pretty good job and I thought it was strange that I had been to so many films in the past few days and I had yet to see a documentary.  But the first film that was screened at the Long Beach shorts was a very interesting documentary called The Journey of the Cola Kayak, which was about the exploration of the Los Angeles river on a kayak made of recycled materials.  I thought it was very provocative and well done.  Congratulations to all those who screen their films.  We didn’t have much time in between so we quickly rushed over to our next screening which was of the Youth Films that was sponsored by Volcom.

4:15 Pinkberry

LL: I hadn’t eaten so I needed to recharge myself before the Youth Films. So I deiced to be trendy and snag some frozen yogurt. Original tart flavor yogurt with strawberries, blackberries, and sliced almonds….so good.

5:00 Youth Film

LL: This without a doubt was the best surprise. These kids are defiantly the future of filmmaking, the stories these kids came up with were so creative. It was just absolutely amazing. There were about 12 films and every genre was covered; horror, stop motion, comedy, musical, drama, animation, documentaries. These kids did it all! There were a few shorts that stood out, such as Superkitten And The Power Pets. This short was done in claymation and told the story of these pets who ate this food that gave them super powers. Its sounds ridiculous, but the execution was wonderful. I hadn’t laughed that hard in a long time. The film was done by Peter Gundling and I really wish he had been at the Q &A afterwards because seriously this film was by far one of the best films I have seen at this festival. In fact, The Youth Films in general as a whole, were some of the best films shown at the Newport Beach Film Festival so far, and I know I’m not the only one who feels that way. This year The Youth films were sponsored by Volcom, and when the CEO of Volcom was handing out the awards at the end of the film you could tell he was greatly impressed by all of the kids. As was everyone else there.

EV: So we head over and get ready to step inside the theater.  The Youth Film showcase is extremelly unique because all the films that will be showing are by film makers who are eighteen years of age or younger.  So these really are the film makers of the future.  I was extremely excited to see what a fresh perspective could bring to the world of short film.  This was also the first film screening I had been in where every seat was taken and people were even standing in the back just to check these out.  To each directors credit, these were some mighty fine films.  I want to mention a few of my favorites who I felt really spoke to me.  First off, SuperKitten and the Power Pets was probably the funniest movie I have seen in years.  I’m not even joking, I don’t remember the last time I had laughed so hard that my eyes were watering and my stomach was in knots.  A few of my other favorites were Half Alive: The Zombie Musical, Wednesday and Johnny Goner.  I really had a great time watching these and it blew me away how much talent these kids had.  Congratulations to all of you!

7:15 Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Undead

LL: So after the Youth Films Jenn met up with us and took went with Evan to see the Next film Rosencrantz and Guldenstern. Which I heard was like a combination of Monty Python and Interview With The Vampire. I on the other hand went home and organized my new collection of business cards I’ve been receiving throughout this festival.

EV: After such a long day I was down to the final movie before going home, but It was one I was really looking forward to.  I had a chance to see the West Coast Premier of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are undead.  I had a great time watching this movie and the crowed exploded into laughter because of how crazy this movie was.  It was like watching Always Sunny In Philadelphia meets Vampires.  Without a doubt, this movie is going to be a cult classic.  It has so many funny scenes, so many great quotable moments and such an interesting premise that I highly recommend it to everyone who likes dark comedies.  It was a wonderful movie with a great Q&A afterward with a few of the cast, the director and the producer, who I met before the screening.  All in all, it was a great film and I can’t wait for it to go to theatrical release so I can chat about it with more people.  It was awesome.

Monday

LL: Our first day off, and we spent it going over our notes and planning out our next set of films.

We will be posting a seperate article for the rest of the week and the closing moving as we continue to cover the rest of the Newport Beach Film Festival.

Thursday night was the opening of the Newport Beach Film Festival and the excitement was visible everywhere. Actors, directors, producers, screenwriters, boom guys, even the volunteers were beaming. It was a celebration of the art of film, and Orange County managed to host an opening that was the perfect balance of upscale names with laid back California style. Which, according to many guests is one of the top reasons that keeps people coming back every year.

This year is the 10th anniversary and to start it off the movie Lymelife was shown. Its a touching coming of age film that takes place on Long Island. Though depressing at times, the quality of acting and clever script lead this film to be a major crowd pleaser. Alec Baldwin and Emma Roberts star in this film, but it was the Culkin brothers who stole the show.

Though none of the cast was able to show up to the opening, one of the producers; Jonathan Cornickand, did. When asked about how he felt about the movie he had nothing but pride for the film. Other guests included McG, who is the honorary chair of the film festival this year. As well as Leigh Steinberg, who has been one of the major (and one of the original) sponsors for the festival.

After the opening movie was the after party which was held at Fashion Island near Bloomingdales. Many local restaurants and cafes hosted tents where they were serving food, everything from spring rolls to frozen yogurt was available. There were also multiple bars and a Perrier water bar as well. The combination of good food, good music, good drinks, and endless conversations made for an exciting night.

But the night wasn’t done yet. Bloomingdales managed to put on a fashion show, showcasing the latest spring trends, where multiple high end designers works were shown. After the fashion show was a performance from Cirque du Soleil’s Zumanity. This performance managed to blow the audience out of the water, it was definitely one of the main highlights for the night.
None of this work though would have been possible without the help of the hundreds of dedicated volunteers that the Newport Beach Film Festival has working for them. The opening went so smoothly, that there were no complaints to be heard. And it makes the expectations for the coming days that much higher. Based on the first night the 10th Anniversary of the Newport Beach Film festival is off to a wonderful start.

Stay updated on what is going on by following both Evan (@evanvincent) and I (@periwinkleme) on Twitter.

The Newport Beach Film Festival goes on till Thursday, tickets are availed online and at the theaters listed below. For more information please visit there website at www.newportbeachfilmfest.com

Lido Theater
3459 Via Lido
(Via Lido and Newport Blvd)
Newport Beach, CA. 92663
949-673-8350

Big Newport
300 Newport Center Dr.
Newport Beach, CA
directly across from Fashion Island
(949) 640-4600.

Edwards Regal Theater
(inside Fashion Island near Urban Outfitters)

Orange County Museum of Art
850 San Clemente Drive
Newport Beach, California 92660
Phone
949-759-1122

Recently I had a chance to talk to Drake Doremus who is showing a film at the 2009 Newport Beach Film Festival.  He is an OC filmmaker and his latest film Spooner, staring Matthew Lillard, has been making waves in the festival circuit.

Spooner is a movie about a used car salesman, Herman Spooner (Matthew Lillard), who still lives at home with his parents. Spooner is fairly set in his unfulfilling routine, but turning thirty marks a hard deadline set by his mom and dad to get a place of his own. To top it off, Spooner’s boss pressures him to bring in some sales or face the chopping block. Headed for one of the worst days of his life, Spooner meets the girl of his dreams, Rose (Nora Zehetner). Forsaking all other priorities, Spooner works on winning her heart, but on their perfect date, she breaks the news that she is about to leave for the Philippines. How far will Spooner go to keep Rose in town and show her he really knows how to spoon?

Evan Vincent: Lets talk about your new film and latest project, Spooner.  It’s received some amazing buzz.  Kenneth Turan  from the L.A. Times said your film was the ’sleeper hit’ of Park City.  How does it feel to have so much momentum behind your film and having this film be an official selection of the 2009 Newport Beach Film Festival?

Drake Doremus: First off, we love Kenny Turan.  No question that it changed the trajectory of the film, three days before we went to Park City.  Suddenly we mattered and suddenly everyone was calling and trying to see the film. I am forever grateful for my first feature to have a blessing from him.  It’s an honor. As far as Newport goes, it’s a childhood dream actually. Growing up in Orange County I’ve been to the Lido hundreds of times and it’s always special.  To be screening there on Saturday is a dream come true!

EV: How long did it take for this project to come together and what was it like writing and directing your new film?  How did you come up with the idea for this film?

DD: It only took us a few months to put the project together. It was a magical experience for a film under a million dollars.  Nobody was getting a big salary so everyone was there for the right reasons. Lindsay, the writer, and I wanted to make a movie about a guy who falls in love for the first time at the age of thirty and after meeting Matthew for another project, his name came to mind. He is an amazing human being and an amazing actor and I feel like his work in the film speaks for itself.

EV: With so many indie ‘coming-of-age’  love stories out, your movie feels very grounded and honest.  What would you say separates this movie from a lot of other movies in this genre?

DD: Perfect lead. That’s actually the thing I’m most proud of in the film. I feel like it’s very emotionally sincere and comes from an honest place. Yeah it’s funny, yeah it’s quirky.  But I feel like Matthew has created an original character that is very special and very likable.

EV: What was it like working with Matthew Lillard and how did he get involved in the project?  Any fun stories from the set?

DD: Matt loves telling this story so I will tell it. After the first day of shooting and watching dailies, I didn’t feel like the character was fully working yet and told Matt that on day two. He was dying with laughter and freaking out. He told me that no director he’s ever worked with has ever said that and that he always hears “dailies were great.” I think we were not exactly on the same page right off the bat, to be honest. But by the end of day two it was rock and roll… an amazing collaboration. I’m very very proud of what we came up with together.

EV: What inspires you as a filmmaker and is there anyone in the future you would like to work with?

DD: I love seeing great work; that inspires me as does great music! Music inspires me the most! I would love to work with Charlie Kaufman… but only if Lindsay Stidham isn’t available. :)

EV: Now that you have shown your film at some festivals and the buzz is building, what are the next steps for you?  Are you working on other projects or are you taking a break in between films?  What can we expect from you in the future?

DD: No breaks! ha! Life’s too short! I’m cutting my second feature as we speak. It doesn’t have a title yet but it’s a story about two estranged brothers who are forced to confront some issues at a wedding and end up on the road trying to find the younger brother’s 5th grade girlfriend to bring her to the wedding. Lindsay and I are adapting a wonderful book by Andrew Aueson called Funny Little Monkey, and an original script called Captain that we are very excited about.  As for Spooner, we are in the middle of hopefully working out a distribution deal as we speak!

EV: For those local Orange County film creators or people who want to be, what advice would you give someone who is just starting out?

DD: Always trust and fight for your voice and instincts… no matter what anybody tells you!

EV: Any last words?

DD: Please come see the film this Saturday, April 25th @ 6PM at the Lido…I’ll buy you a small popcorn and I’ll keep buttering it during the film, I promise!

Thank you Drake Doremus for chatting with us and we wish you the best with your new film.  I will be at the screening on April 25th and so will Drake, the producer, writers, designer and other members of the cast, including Matthew Lillard.  They will be holding a Q & A after the screening.  Don’t miss this!

www.spoonermovie.com

What do rats and short films have in common? Normally, I would say not much, but coming April 30th these two worlds collide as Rat Powered Films would like to invite you to see a collection of awesome short films at a really nice theater called the Yost. “Rats is a Four-Letter Word” is a collection of short documentaries, comedies, dramas and evenan animation piece that will have you talking about them many days afterward. You are in for a treat as you will feast your eyes on thirteen different films that run anywhere from three to fifteen minutes. Can it get any better?  Well it actually can, admission is free.  So join Rat Powered Films as they present to you “Rats is a Four-Letter Word”.

I had a chance to pre-screen all of the films that will be showing and let me tell you, you will not be disappointed.  I can’t think of a better way to spend a Thursday night.  I’ll be there and you should, too.

For those of you who have never heard of Rat Powered Films this is what Rat Powered is all about, straight from the source, “The goal of Rat Powered Films is to establish our screenings and festivals, and to create a local environment that will nurture the growth of unique artistic visions in video and film making and generate an audience for that work. We provide a forum for experimental works (narrative, documentary, and comedy to super 8 found in the garage and flash animations) from around the world.”

The list of films that will be screening:

My trip to liberty city (07:33)
Jim Munroe

Joe Musil (04:22)
Akorn Entertainment

You can Awesome (05:16)
Michael Mohan

Derek (07:45)
From the Interrogation Series
Michael Mohan

Three-Fifty (08:50)
Maurice Chauvet

Tim Rush (06:32)
Akorn Entertainment

Hadacol Christmas (11:08)
Brent Green

Liam (06:05)
From the Interrogation Series
Michael Mohan

Grand Central Art Center (05:08)
Akorn Entertainment

Brandy (04:05)
From the Interrogation Series
Michael Mohan

Dirty Words: The Letter ‘C’  (03:42)
T. Arthur Cottam

Darling, Darling (13:30)
Matthew Lessner

The Crosby (05:13)
Akorn Entertainment

Admission is free; donations are welcome.  Films start at 7:00pm

Yost Theater
307 Spurgeon Street, Santa Ana, CA 92701

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Contact information:
www.ratpoweredfilms.com
Press Release
ratpoweredfilms@mac.com

Evan Vincent: Please tell us more about yourself, your background, education and what you do.

Amir Motlagh: I am a filmmaker, more specifically, a film director. Initially, I started as an actor, spent a few years getting professional training (Stella Adler, Meisner, Strasburg etc.), then one day, came up with an idea for a film, got a few people together to help, hustled my way into some equipment, and made my first film, Dino Adino in 2001. That was the start of a long love affair with media creation. At that point, I also had a BA in Psychology from UCLA. In some strange misguided way, I thought that this would help me be a better actor. After another five films, some success, some failure, I went back to school to get an MFA, specifically in directing, at Chapman University, mostly to better understand the process of film directed, not just my way, but also in a way that’s been established through a hundred years. Education, any way you can get it, can only help motivated people grow as artists; that’s the bottom line. But of the same token, if I were to listen to everything that they feed you at film school, I would never make another film again. Thankfully, that didn’t happen to me. And, at this point, I have made ten films, which have played all over the world.

EV: Who are your biggest influences?

AM: This is an ever changing answer to that question, but historically and immediately, John Cassavettes, Abbas Kiorastami, Won-Kar-Wai.  John Cassavettes because of what he ultimately captured from his performers. They were living life on camera, not in what we think of as naturalism, which is often times boring (not always of course) but in realism, in fiction, with heightened states of circumstances. The behavior exhibited was higher art, and captured the nuance’s of theater acting, but brought down to life with a camera lens. Oftentimes exhausting, but nevertheless, greatly satisfying.  Kiorastami, well, what he does with narrative is a direct evolution of cinema. His cinema is different, without formula (but his own), but it penetrates farther then most films. What we worship in the US is script and story. We assume we figured all this stuff out.  Obviously, Kiorastami is one of many testimonials to the fact that we are wrong. I’m not implying that story is not essential to his work, but the way story and script is utilized, gives a different effect. Other things are emphasized. For him, everything alive is story. Won-Kar-Wai both because of his narrative inventiveness, and for the mood he creates. His cinema is so sophisticated, but never esoteric. Its also incredibly entertaining, infused with beautiful images, mastery of technique and just plain cool.

EV: What are you three favorite films?

AM: In all honesty, I cannot answer this question. Filmmaking is such a broad concept, and there has been a tremendous amount of work that has amazed me. To single them out is unfair.

EV: What inspires you as a filmmaker?

AM: First and foremost, the world around me. My family, friends, neighborhood, my background. After that, nature.

EV: Name one person in the filmmaking world you would like to work with?

AM: Can I name three? Gus Van Sant, Harmony Korine, and Michael Winterbottom. Gus Van Sant is a modern autuer. I would love to learn his process, for both his mainstream and on-mainstream projects. Harmony Korine, because he isn’t looking for safety when he works. Its exciting to see an American Filmmaker pushing boundaries still. As far as Michael Winterbottom, well, I would just love to be in one of his films, really.

EV: What do you feel is the most difficult part about being a filmmaker?

AM: Marketing.

EV: Who is your target audience?

AM: For the work I have done thus far, that question doesn’t have a direct answer. But I will say that, mostly for people who want to be inspired, to think, or reflect possibly about their own lives.

EV: What is the biggest piece of advice you would give to a filmmaker that’s just starting out?

AM: The biggest advice I have is just to make inspired work. This doesn’t mean that everyone will love it or be inspired, but just that you really believe in what you are doing. Also, go out and hustle, find a way to make movies. Learn, rather by going to school or doing it on your own. But I worry that going to film school first, will be a dead end, because if you really are into filmmaking, you should already be making movies.

EV: Finally, where can we see your work?

AM: My feature film Whale should be premiering in the festival circuit soon. This took four years to make. Plain Us is currently screening at film festivals, knock. knock. is being distributed by Ouat! Media and Movieola-The Short Film Channel, Still Lover is available at CrushedPlanet and other distributors. These titles along with my earlier work is being made available on a new DVD, including Pumkin Little, My Break Ups Into a Million Pieces, and Love @ 11:47. You can catch many of these titles now at my Vimeo page before the DVD is released at http://vimeo.com/user792020/videos. For more information on Whale, please go to www.whalethefilm.com. For additional information about what I’m all about, please go to www.amirmotlagh.com.

The masses have spoken.  It is our greatest pleasure to announce that you, the readers have chosen The Dark Knight as your pick for 2008 Best Picture.  Heath Ledger was also posthumously awarded Best Supporting Actor.

We hope you all enjoyed the Oscars tonight!

It’s that time again – The 81st Annual Academy Awards show is coming February 22, 2009.  Hugh Jackman has been announced to host this years show taking place at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, California.  We here at OCAC are extremely excited by this years nominations and cannot wait to see who wins.  So what better way to express our excitement than to tell you what we each feel should win 2008 Best Picture.

Here are the OCAC Staff Picks 2008 Best Picture Nominees!

Angela Bishop: Bedtime Stories – “Sandler’s still got it.”

Andrew Banderas: Frost/Nixon – “Langella’s Nixon is superb!”

Brandon Thresher: Kung Fu Panda – “It gets funnier with every viewing!”

Christopher Robinson: Wall-E – “How could anyone make robots so cute!”

Evan Vincent: The Wrestler – “Aronofsky and Rourke are a force to be reckoned with.”

Jennifer Vincent: The Fall – “I’ve never seen so much vibrant, beautiful scenery.”

Holly Lewis: Burn After Reading – “Hilarious in every way”

Natalie Anslow: The Dark Knight – “Hauntingly brilliant.”

Timothy Long: Street Kings - “Whoa.”

William Dean: Milk - “Death cannot destroy bravery.”

But here at OCAC it’s not just about what we think. We want to know what you think!  So join us in voting to help select the OCAC Readers Choice, Best Picture of 2008.   Please cast your vote below.  Results will be announced on Oscar night!

The polls have been closed.  You can view the results here.