Trips to the Broadway Center

Last night I was able to go to the Broadway Center Cinemas, one of my favorite places on Earth. My life living in Utah has seen me wasting hours upon hours of my life at this wonderful cinema. The Broadway Center Cinemas is run by the Salt Lake Film Society (get information on screenings, and more importantly on becoming a patron here) an organization that is wonderful and deserves our support. Because of the SLFS I have had several of my most intimate and moving experiences with film, and what I have experienced because of them plays in heavily with why I want to be a filmmaker and an artist. 

It has been too long since I've been to the Broadway Center. I was able to go last night with a close friend, and together, we shared two wonderful films together.

Let the Right One In is a slow, subtle Swedish film about two 12 year-olds coming to know each other and deal with their growing affection for one another. As far as plot goes, I don't want to speak about it much more, because I feel as if I would have enjoyed this heartwarming and beautiful tale if I new less about it going in. The film is slowly but perfectly paced, allowing the character relationships to blossom and develop naturally. The story also progresses in a natural and beautiful arc, accompanied by affecting performances by the two young leads. What really impressed my in the film was the sound. Using silence when many films would use far too much music, and using deep human noises for certain scenes create an effective and often horrifying environment. 

I won't say much more about Let the Right One In, because I don't want to spoil it too much, and I also don't want to overhype it. But honestly, the film is perfect. In retrospect, I cannot find one flaw in the film. No hyperbole, I'm serious. Not one flaw. I loved this movie.

The second film was the epic and wondrous Synecdoche, New York. It is Charlie Kaufman's latest film and his directorial debut. The exciting thing about this film is that it is Kaufman directing Kaufman, so we are left with solely his vision, no filtering. While his collaborations in the past have been massive successes , this is 100% Kaufman pur jus. The last time I was this excited about seeing someone bring just their vision, and solely their vision, to the screen was Shane Black's Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. For me, both films are triumphs for their respective filmmakers. 

I don't know where to begin with Synecdoche, New York. As with all of Kaufman's films, the plot is unorthodox, to say the least. Theatre director Caden Cotard (Phillip Seymour Hoffman) is given a Macarthur grant and decides to do something big and truthful, creating an ever-growing replica of life in New York City. That's probably about as simple as I can make it, but it is increasingly complex. The film that I would relate this to would most likely be Fellini's 8 1/2, due to Synecdoche's tale of the struggle to create as well as the tale being told largely by analyzing Caden's relationships with the women in his life. The film also has no problem analyzing itself and its themes on several different meta-levels. 

Synecdoche is a grand, sweeping tale playing with time and consciousness as if it were a near-annoyance. It's protagonist's struggle to connect and create is a beautiful tale that touched me, as well as my friend, deeply. It also sports a new score by the incredible Jon Brion. 

I plan on spending more time over my Christmas break at the Broadway Center, and I hope to have as many marvelous film experiences as I did this weekend.

"Indie"

In response to my friend Josh's note "Indie" found here:

http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=59350253824

The line between what is technically "independent" and mainstream is becoming more and more blurred as time progresses onwards. At its outset, independent art was the art created without the aid of the mainstream funding machine, also known as "the man." But nowadays each major label, each major production studio has their "indie" label, where they can fund artists that either started on the outside and have deservedly worked their way into the public consciousness, or that have the feel or energy of the true independents. Or, perhaps, that the companies feel can sell to the demographic know as "indies." 

So labeling things as indie can no longer simply come down to where the support or where the funding comes from. There are still the certain kings of independent art who produce and distribute their own art, such as Aimee Mann, but thanks to revolutionaries like Jack White we have indie in the mainstream. I would agree that indie is, indeed, defined by spirit and feeling now. Technically, Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ is an independent film, seeing as he financed it himself outside the aid of the studios. Would I classify that as an "indie film?" In no way. 

The Sundance Film Festival and the Sundance Institute are great examples of the opposite of this spectrum. For all intents and purposes, they still represent the American Independent Film movement and embody the "indie spirit." But does it truly foster independent art? Not really, but it fosters the spirit of it. Most of the films at Sundance, while being non-produced by studios, are not fully "independent." The Sundance Film Festival is no longer the early 1990s behemoth where unknown, unique filmmakers maxed-out three credit cards in order to make a modest film a la Robert Rodriges. These are movies starring Steve Carrell and Courtney Cox-Arquette, with people like Danny Devito throwing cash behind the films. These are professional films by professional filmmakers, but the visions they produce are unique and embody the ideas of independent art. 

So by comparing The Passion of the Christ and the Sundance Film Festival what we see are two different examples of the forms in which "indie" exists today. There is art independently produced that is in no way independent, and there is art produced by the mainstream that is truly indie. What we as artists and as supporters of the indie zeitgeist must realize is that the good exists on both sides, as well as the bad. We cannot believe that all that is indie is quality, and that all that is mainstream is pointless shill. There is much indie art that is not worth a single moment of our time, as well as much mainstream art that is beautiful, uplifting and inspiring. Just because a book was on Oprah's book list does not mean it's not worth your time, Jonathan Franzen. 

In our time, independent art will be judge far less by how or where it was produced and far more by the tone, spirit and ideals that it produces and upholds.

Personal Accomplishments

I am feeling good tonight. Not cockily so, but just good. I came from a productive and fun day, and feel very pleased with my accomplishments as of late.

One: I have successfully not drunk any carbonation for three-and-a-half weeks, except for about a quarter of a cup to try some Pomegranate 7-Up. 

Two: I set another minute of my choreography piece this evening.

Three: I am about to finish the run of Into the Woods, having played one of the most physically demanding roles of my life.

Four: I have lost 16 pounds since I moved to Wyoming. 

Five: I had a good interview today for a job position this summer. 

Six: My hair is starting to look awesome.

Seven: I found a duffel coat that looks great on me and it only cost $65.

Eight: I successfully hit on a stranger at Borders this morning.

Nine: I am staying on top of my schoolwork.

Ten: I accomplished one of my major goals for my studies here at Western - I am in Deirdre MacDonald's dance piece.

Eleven: I am happy.

So that is pretty much it right now. But I'm feeling good. Again, not cockily so, but just very content. 

Can't Sleep

It's 2:00 am and I can't sleep. I don't know why. My roommate is not here, and I'm up thinking. I watched United 93 tonight and my mind is wrapping around it. It was one of the most difficult movies I've ever watched, but I'm surprised how cathartic it is, and not simply about September 11. I was also very touched by how well the film was made. Paul Greengrass is a very talented director (and I suppose writer with this film, even though most of the dialogue was created in rehearsals with he actors) and he coaxes a painful realism from the proceedings throughout the entire film. It is really a movie that I would say everyone needs to see at least once, if not for anything but a moving story of true-life heroics. 

It is interesting to watch my evolution as a person. The last few months have been very hectic for me. I tell myself frequently that "I'm going to write, I'm going to write," but I never do. Not even something as simple as a blog. But I wish I could have documented more of my thought-process in the last few months. Returning from France I was so sure I knew exactly what I wanted and how to get it. But it never goes as planned. I was also sure that I knew exactly what I didn't want. Again, things never go as planned. And now I'm here. 8 months in America and I'm a different person than I was. I'm far more reserved than I used to be, and far calmer. I do not experience the same level of stress that I used to inflict upon myself. I am calmer and I am more relaxed about life. Maybe that is why it is so glaringly different when I descend into moments of panic or anxiety . . . But they quickly subside and I find myself again tranquil. I am more comfortable with my creative identity and am more confident in expressing it in the midst of many who do not think the same way as I do. I am far less dependent upon others' opinions of me. I have difficulty with extroversion in social gatherings and am often crippled with fear in certain social situations. I am completely blank in my mind in regards to my future, but fully confident that it is alright, that with time my path will be laid out before me, and that I will have no problem recognizing it. I have a complete and utter abhorrence to the thought of mediocrity in myself. I am far stronger and far more capable than I have ever previously given myself credit for.

Stream of consciousness . . . oi gevalt, where does it lead? Here, apparently. It's now 2:17. I still have no ability in my body to sleep. I can feel it, I know myself, and I'm not ready for sleep. My mind is still too awake.  I was able to see my family last weekend. I hope I'm able to fully express to all of them how much they mean to me. Living 3 hours away is not that bad, but I wish I could see them more often. I wonder how it will be if I go someplace even further away to finish my bachelor's. Or for Grad school. I never thought I would say something similar to what I'm about to: But I love school. I want to learn as much as I can for the rest of my life. Ok, so maybe I don't love school, but I love learning. Sometimes I have difficulty learning here, I have a hard time in classes having to focus my "learning" into one prescribed method. I can't wrap my mind around it. But as I take my own time and read as much as I can about everything that interests me, I adore it. I just finished a book called Blink which was so interesting. It spoke on our thought processes and our ability to make decisions. It was so intriguing to dive into a specific theory of how our mind cognitively analyses its information. Before that I read a wonderful study of America by Mark Hertsgaard called The Eagle's Shadow. The election was a period of mass study for me, especially trying to shove a year-and-a-half's worth of missed campaigning into the past 8 months to understand this election. 

Does it frustrate anyone else that to read decent and fair news about America you have to go to gaurdian.uk or bbc.com? I've been growing weary of it. Especially with the fact that a while ago, maybe a little more than 3 or 4 weeks, America raided Syria - the first time we've crossed the Iraqi border into that country - killing 8 people and the American media has made nearly NO mention of it. NPR is the only news source I've heard covering it at all, and from what I found, it was scant. But the major news sources in America have ignored this story. I don't understand it. I've gone to other country's websites to get our news. I read stories in the British magazine The Economist. But here? I can hardly find anything. I don't get it.

All in all, life is good. It's a supposed halt for me as I take my studies seriously. At times this does not feel like a real life to me. I feel like time has paused and I'm allowed to just learn as much as I can, which would be wonderful if it were true. The true pause seems to have happened during my time in France. It honestly feels as if it should still be 2006 for me. I was over in France as the world went forward in time and I didn't even realize it at all. 

Alright, I'm not going to bed, but I'm stopping this blog this evening. I think I've rambled enough for one entry. I will probably be surprised and maybe even slightly horrified come morning when I realize what I've written.