February 2004

The focus on screenwriting as a popular form of creative expression is a relatively new one in our culture. While screenplays have always been an essential part of moviemaking, it wasn’t until the late 20th century that screenwriting came to be recognized as a form of artistic self-expression in its own right. And while most filmgoers for decades had been happy to just sit back and watch the story unfold on the screen, that all started to change in the 1970’s and 1980’s, according to screenwriting expert Michael Hauge.

We can only hope for more role models like Lisa Seidenberg in the film industry. With a few notable short documentaries already under her belt ("Being Human," "Mongolia on the Edge of Time," "Children of the Dust") Seidenberg not only gives a fresher, innovative, and often times humorous depiction of our society, but also a political and cultural message to match. Her latest documentary "Being Human" (2002) was accepted with much acclaim in several film festivals read more...

In the world of contemporary film, there are rough but rugged independent films that you can’t forget, and then there are patched-together, filmed-in-my-back-yard indie flicks -- as in, "Hey wasn’t that my ex-landlord in that last scene?" Garth Donovan’s "Everyone’s Got One" somehow manages to capture the essence of both. Written by Donovan and Paul Thompson, the movie opens at a screenwriting seminar and follows the (hopefully) fictionalized life of the (hopefully) fictional Garth Donovan, as he read more...

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Several local films will screen at this year's Director's View Film Festival on February 12-16 in southeastern Connecticut, including Earnest P. Garthwaite's "Mantra" and Jeffery Seckendorf's "The Crux." Visit www.dvff.org for more information. 

Last Saturday, the sun set on the Sundance Film Festival until next year, but for three of the films with local connections, the finale was just the beginning. Allowing himself hardly enough time to catch his breath after his 10 days in Park City, Utah, Jake Mahaffy accompanied his film, "War," to the Rotterdam Film Festival. Meanwhile, "The Machinist," the latest film from veteran Sundance filmmaker Brad Anderson garnered great buzz and glowing reviews from "The Hollywood read more...

Let’s start with the truth. Boston is not the mecca of cinematic dreams. It’s a truck stop during the pilgrimage to film fame beckoning from beyond New England’s borders. The Hub boasts a thriving creative community seduced by the silver screen, but short on green, filmmaking remains more hobbyhorse than profession. Here, guerrilla filmmaking is the norm. However, Kevin Anderton, founder of Midnight Chimes Productions, is not. And that’s the way he likes it: "We don’t even call it guerrilla. We call it orangutan. We take it up a notch."