Check out the Fuse blog, on screen in Ithaca, which highlights 14 of the many films you can catch during FLEFF.

If these don't help get you ready for some great cinema, I don't know what will!

Ciao,

We are most excited about our participation in FLEFF this year. Last year
Peter Dodge and I really enjoyed our collaboration on "Man with the Movie
Camera," and Robby Aceto was involved with a different silent movie score
with Judy Hyman and Jeff Claus. This year Patty Zimmermann had the idea to
add Robby to our duo, and we are all thrilled to be working together on the
movie GRASS which we look forward to performing with on Sunday evening April
6. We will be doing a totally improvised sound track to this amazing 1924
silent film made in Persia (now Iran) about a biennial migration of 50,000
people of the Bakhtiari tribe and their herds of goats and cattle as they
forded wild rivers and crossed snow-covered mountain passes with men, women,
children and animals. Our instrumentation includes electric cello (with
looping and effects), electric and acoustic guitars with looping and
effects, trumpet, vocals and various percussion instruments...We hope you
will come and check it out!

Chris White, cellist

1.  How did you get your start?

I'll tell you how I got started in film...I've been a professional musician all my adult life. I spent lots of years touring and recording; going from project to project, playing guitar etc, working with lots of people. I have had a long and very positive association with film composer and mad guitar genius David Torn. For a time, I worked as his assistant when he would go out on film dates. I got to sit in on solo, group, and orchestral recording sessions on many films and I was really quite taken by the process. Watching someone like David, or Carter Burwell work was a transformative experience for me.

But then, my real start in working on films, actually being an artist, came in 1999 when I was invited to work on a score with composer Bobby Lurie. It was for this really interesting environmental film (The God Squad-the case of the Northern Spotted Owl). It was about how the Congress and their lobbyists make all these opaque policy decisions (in many cases in violation of the Environmental Protection Act) which impact the environment in a very negative way. The story the film maker (Emily Hart) followed was that of the big timber interests in the NorthEast. Under massive pressure form the timber industry, Congress granted exceptions which allowed vast tracts of timber to be cut, which will inevitably cause the extinction of the Northern Spotted Owl through loss of sustainable habitat. They need big trees- really big trees to survive. Cut down the trees, goodbye birds. A meaty subject. Bobby's concept for the score was quite unique: simple thematic materials were presented in the form of melody lines, in most cases written with no time or meter instructions. The recording ensemble consisted of only two elements: drum kit, and electric guitar. I was encouraged to explore, and freely interpret his themes in a very "live" recording setting. It was a wonderful experience and I'll always be grateful to Bobby for giving me that call. The film was completed and scheduled for broadcast, he approached me about doing a re-mix/re-conceptualizing of the film music for a stand-alone cd release. They shipped me a drive with about 3 hours worth of sessions on it and I began cutting stuff up. The result (Music from the Film The God Squad) was a watershed for me. It really is what started me on the path of pursuing the path of writing music for film.

2. Why did you choose to write a soundtrack to GRASS? What struck you about this particular film?

Patty invited me to work with Chris White and Peter Dodge on GRASS for FLEFF 08. This score is not "written" in any hard sense. We are developing an improvisational vocabulary as a group, and will find a way into the film more or less freely. It's a truly amazing piece of cinema history; rarely screened. I'm sure the people who made "March of the Penguins" owe a lot to Shoedsack and Cooper.

3. What are some of the biggest challenges that you encountered?

Scheduling rehearsal time!

4. How did you get involved with FLEFF?

"The God Squad" screened at FLEFF in (I think) 2000. Last year (07) I was invited to work with Judy Hyman and Jef Claus and their band in a live setting on opening night. It was a score of Judy's for an original film in montage form by Anne Michel and Phil Wilde. Thanks for the call, Judy! That was a lot of fun...Also last year, a documentary by Slavomir Grunberg called "Saved By deportation: The Unknown Odyssey of Polish Jews" which I scored had it's New York premier at FLEFF 07.

5. What's one of your favorite parts of performing live?

Channeling the nervous energy.

6.  Are you looking forward to seeing any other performances while at the festival?

I'm especially interested in attending Steve Gordon's seminar.

7. Any advice for anyone just starting out in the film business?

Find something you love doing, stay focused on your goals and try not to let things get in the way.

8. Anything else you'd like to add?

Many thanks to Patty and Tom for doing such a splendid job keeping FLEFF viable. I think it has a bright future as a festival and hope they achieve more recognition in the broader world for what they're doing here in Ithaca...And thanks also to Diana Reisman at the Ithaca Motion Picture project for co-sponsoring our performance.

Sharon Lin Tay curates an online visual arts exhibition with Dale Hudson.  She is very excited about FLEFF this year, she says, “Can't wait to wrap up this week in London and then fly up to New York for FLEFF…The selection of works is rather exciting, and is allowing us a variety of different ways to think about the environment.”

She describes why she is excited for the festival, “Many of the works we selected explore the different types of environments--built, natural, virtual, etc.  The rather useful notion of psychogeography allows us to look at landscapes psychically, emotionally, and historically.  Some other works play with ideas of interactivity, artificial intelligence, and new media aesthetics.  Thinking of the environment also lets us reflect on food, in particular, food production.  While not necessarily an appetizing prospect, the works selected for the ubuntu.kuqala exhibition at least tries to make connections between the disparate things that make up our environment.”

Check out her stuff at FLEFF!

Getting excited for FLEFF, I interviewed Shannon Kelly, Ithaca College alumni (he graduated in 1986) and the artistic director for the Morelia International Film Festival. The Morelia International Film Festival is held in Mexico and, as the website says, it “promotes local talent while creating a unique meeting point between filmmakers, audiences and the international film community.”

Shannon Kelly also works, seasonally, for the Sundance Film Festival, as a consultant for the documentary program.

Kelly said of FLEFF, “I’m really happy that the Ithaca community has the opportunity to have a film festival… the festival looks really progressive, high-quality, and like a place where one could meet really interesting people in an unforgettable setting!” He continued, “I think it's a thrilling addition to the cultural life of Ithaca and the region.   Much to my surprise, this relatively young festival is showing some of the most influential and controversial films in the world in an intelligently curated event. I love the combination of art and politics with lots of social opportunities that sound flat-out fun.  FLEFF is a pretty big deal!” 

When I asked for any advice or words of wisdom, Kelly said that students should realize the amazing opportunity FLEFF provides and take advantage of it, and really get out there. He said, “The number one thing about getting involved in any aspect of film culture is simply to show up.”

COME ON GUYS, LET’S GO!!!!!

Hey there kids, Jenna here... FLEFF blogger to the stars. FLEFF is really sneaking up on us now; we're actually just one week away! Can you believe it? I'm really getting excited now! 

Next Monday, March 31st, the Fingerlakes Environmental Film Festival kicks off at 8:00am on campus in Park 281. For a complete listing of all the events (and there are a TON) just check out the events link over on the left side of the screen. Trust me, there will not be a dull moment. 

So the real reason I'm posting this particular blog is to fill you guys in on one of the downtown screenings over the FLEFF weekend. I personally want you guys to check out the Brazilian film City of Men which is playing at Cinemapolis Friday through Sunday at 9:30pm each night. Thisfilm derives from and actually has the same characters as a Brazilian television show of the same name. Oh, and the tv show actually was a spin-off of the Academy Award-nominated film City of God. This film and the tv show share characters and a lot of the same crew (like the director and writers), and the films share the same producer, Fernando Meirilles. Confusing, huh? 

Anyways, to make it short and sweet, this film, directed by Paulo Morelli, is about two young boys Acerola (Ace) played by Douglas Silva and Laranjinha portrayed by Darlan Cunha. The boys are the best of friends, growing up on the streets of Rio de Janeiro. They tell each other everything, but their close friendship is put to the test when secrets from both of their fathers' past start emerging. To make matters even worse, the boys also get caught up in a dangerous drug war. 

Sounds good to me. TV Guide gave it 3 stars, stating that the film "manages to introduce a host of characters and give them all something meaningful to do before wrapping it all up in just under two hours."

Check out the trailer:

Yeah, I'm pretty excited about that one. But that's not all... There's going to be so much to do all week long, so try to check out everything you can. You won't regret it!

All of us bloggers will be keeping you posted on the latest information, news, pictures and all that fun stuff so keep checking back here for more.

Until next time, FLEFFians!

I'm so excited the FLEFF blog is up! FLEFF is right around the corner. There will be so many people to meet, films to see, and so on. I can't wait to get started and meet some of the filmmakers at the welcome party at the Lost Dog Lounge on Friday, April 4^th! 

On Sunday, April 6^th at 4pm at Cinemapolis, the documentary, War/Dance is playing. I saw this film at Cornell Cinema this month and was completely blown away.  It is about three children in a refugee camp in Uganda who, along with their elementary school, travel to compete in the country’s national song and dance competition.  The personal accounts of the children are incredibly touching, I cried on and off throughout the entire thing.  The song and dance performed throughout the piece is magnificent, and when the winners of the competition were announced, I was literally gripping my seat in anticipation.  I laughed and I cried as I watched this film.  After the show, I continued to think about what I had seen, the amazing hope that the kids have, even in a war zone, and I thought about global issues and what, if anything, I could do to help.  I recommend War/Dance highly, and know that I can’t wait to see it again on the sixth.