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Directed by by Frank Sputh, Bin Martha, Kolumbianerin (I'm Martha, Colombian) is a slowcumentary, the nearly three-hour portrait of a young Afro-Colombian woman, a slow, closely observing documentary.

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Now available to rent for 48 hours.

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Expressway Cinema Rentals is Philadelphia's leading photo & video rental resource for the creative community.

Visual Jedi LLC | Specializing in Video Production from concept to creation. Storyboard, audio mixing, editing, graphics design and more!

Pour something different! Premium specialty loose leaf teas sourced in Africa. Sibahle - We Are Beautiful!

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Fine Art Reproductions - Limited Edition Giclees on Canvas and Limited Edition Prints by World-Renowned Visual Artist and Designer, Synthia SAINT JAMES

 

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Come SUPPORT the makers and SHOP for the holidays at MADE@BOK Small Biz Saturday Market where you can get a head start on The Madlab Post’s Shop Small Treasure Hunt with movie tickets, videogames and more! This is a market featuring crafts from artists, designers, makers and small businesses that create within the walls of the historic Bok building. Free entry!

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION:
Perspectives directed by Neer Shelter has qualfied for the 2024 Academy Awards

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FYC: Academy qualified short film 'Perspectives' directed by Neer Shelter | Oscars Shortlist

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Rent Abyss: The Greated Proposal Ever, a short film made with a diverse cast & crew working together to tell a story about Love, Friendship and PTSD! This urban military homecoming drama is a candid glimpse into the troubles surrounding a U.S. Army Sergeant who gets stranded by SEPTA in the inner city when a wild marriage proposal shakes up his plans to reunite with the only family he knows. 

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Entries in interviews (38)

Thursday
Apr042013

Do what you do, whatever it takes, but do it now! #atozchallenge

Miami Police Captain Howard instructs two of his narcotics detectives to “do what you do, whatever it takes, but do it now,” in the action movie, “Bad Boys II” starring Will Smith and Martin Lawrence. He is not playing games as cops are hospitalized, in critical condition and kids are overdosing on ecstasy, imported to Miami by a Cuban drug lord named Johnny Tapia. Captain Howard is a man who interested in getting results by any means necessary – a leader whose top detectives are also willing to put in the work necessary to produce these results.

Although the investigative practices used in building their case against Tapia are questionable, there is something to be said about people who put in solid effort toward creating the changes that they want to see in their lives – or in the world around them.

They don’t talk about fighting crime, they do it. They don’t fantasize about saving lives, they do it. They don’t sit in a circle and collectively “woosah” their troubles away, they do it. By actively operating under the mindset of doing something like Captain Howard and his detectives, we put ourselves in a better position to turn our hopes and dreams into reality.

DO is the type of action verb that, when put in practice, brings us much more results than thinking about them, planning them and wishing for something to happen.

A few years ago, one guy in a writing group that I participated in was encountering some hard times and would frequently post updates on how he was low on money for basic needs as well as resources for gaining employment. After being declined for various forms of assistance programs and losing hours on a part-time job, he seemed to be hitting a low point and was not entirely optimistic about his circumstances.

During this time, another member of our group – who uses a wheelchair due to various health related difficulties – asked him “Where are you writing?” – In other words, what are you doing to try to improve your situation or maybe get out of it or at the very least, get some results? How many queries have you sent out? When was the last time you submitted an article to a company for pay? Even when being turned away by traditional means of income and assistance programs, it appeared that this man – who wanted to be a writer, was overlooking the one thing that he did have – the ability to write!

There comes a time in our lives when we must stop waiting around for something to happen, and just do something, already! – Anything. The best way to create change is by fighting what we don’t want like Captain Howard’s Detectives Mike Lowrey and Marcus Barnett fought the distribution of ecstasy in their city.

They went undercover as pest control workers, to get information about Tapia’s drug operation.

They personally examined human corpses and organs, to find enough evidence for an arrest.

They kidnapped a Klansman, to get leads on their case.

The tactics these detectives used are extreme but one thing is for sure – they didn’t sit around and wait for tips, evidence or leads to come to them. They actively went out and obtained these things by doing something.

The next time you want some type of result, figure out what needs to be done for you to get your intended result, and just do it. It won’t always be fun and it won’t always be pretty, but are you willing to put in the work?

Do you want to learn how to cook a better meatloaf? What are you doing to make that happen?

Do you want to get rid of toxic or fair-weather friends in your life? What are you doing to change the people you are around?

Do you want to go on an exotic vacation with your family? What are you doing to make that a reality?

Do you want to become America’s Next Top Model? What are you doing to put yourself out there?

See the pattern here?

If there is something you want, then do what you have to do, whatever it takes…but do it now!

Friday
Nov092012

Countdown to Couch Fest #5 - Tess Martin Goes Swimming with Whales #indiefilm #2012CFF #animation

Quick, tell all of your friends...the 2012 Couch Fest Film Festival is tomorrow! I’m excited to meet and hear about the movie-loving strangers who will gather and chat about shorts all day long -- shorts they love, shorts they hate and shorts they don’t quite understand.

'The Whale Story' - Animator Stefan Gruber, Animator Webster Crowell, Director/Animator Tess Martin and actor DK PanAnimator Tess Martin’s experimental tale ‘The Whale Story’ will be representing the U.S. alongside Kumar Satkunarasa’s ‘Life and Stuff’from Europe.

In just three minutes, ‘The Whale Story’ evaluates whether a fisherman’s connection with a female humpback whale is an example of inter-species communication or a mysterious fluke.

Earlier this month, Martin told me about her hopes of opening up a wider discussion about how fascinating the ability to communicate with animals could be and how shooting birds might not be the best solution for saving a group of endangered species.

Madlab Post: What are some of the challenges that you faced while making ‘The Whale Story’ and how did you overcome them?

Tess Martin: Well, ‘The Whale Story’ was animated frame by frame on a 16x32 foot wall in a public park in Seattle. I had use of the wall and a cadre of volunteers for two days. So immediate challenges were time and sunlight. We had to move quickly, but luckily I had four experienced animators helping me, and a very patient actor, and we managed to shoot all the wide shots in those two days. 

At the end, though, it did start raining, and the paint that were re-applying to animate the whale and water movement started streaking, and we had to stop the shoot. You can still see a bit of the streaking in the film if you pay attention. I went back to the wall with the actor and filmed all the close ups the next week. You can see a time-lapse of the making of the film: WATCH HERE.

In August, authorities in Argentina launched a 100-day plan to shoot seagulls that have been attacking the whales at sea; Eenvironmentalists disagree with the plan. Do you agree with the The Authorities or The Environmentalists -- or would you try an alternative approach?

Gosh, I don't know. I'm not really an expert on this type of thing, and am not familiar with this particular situation. It sounds like there's an unusual amount of seagulls, and that this method of feeding is new to them, in which case, it makes sense to contain them to save the whales. But shooting them out of the sky sounds a little weird, and like it would cause other unintended consequences, like lots of bird carcasses.

'The Whale Story' - Animator Britta Johnson, Animator Amanda Moore, Animator Webster Crowell, Director/Animator Tess Martin and Animator Stefan Gruber.Do you have any goals for ‘The Whale Story’ with regards to reach or audience impact?

I'm hoping that as many people as possible see the film, whether in festivals, or online, and are inspired by the story. I think of it as a starting point for conversation about animal consciousness, and human-animal communication. How can we know for sure whether the whale was saying thank you? Is it possible to ever really know for sure what an animal is thinking? What about our pets, the animals we feel we know very well? How different would the world be if we could communicate effortlessly with other species?

If you could only protect one group of endangered species, which animal would it be?

I look at the animal kingdom from the perspective of a fascinated layman, and thankfully, I do not have the power to make such a decision. I have my favorite animals, of course - I've always liked cats and felines, but I also find whales and other water creatures so fascinating precisely because their environment is so different from ours. But asking which species you would save is like asking which of your children you would save - obviously, you would just try to save all of them.

The Whale Story is playing tomorrow, Saturday, November 10th at the 2012 Couch Fest Film Festival. Check the “Attend” tab on the festival’s website for showtimes.

Can YOU communicate well with your pets?



This post is a continuation of my Countdown to Couch Fest campaign -- a selection of brief, yet, randomly outrageous and sometimes insightful interviews that I conducted with many of the directors behind the films playing at this year's Couch Fest lineup and will be publishing semi-daily between the regularly scheduled Monday Movie Meme and King Dong programs until Saturday, November 10, 2012!

Wednesday
Nov072012

Countdown to Couch Fest #4 - Quebec’s own Martin Thibaudeau Conquers Prudes, Extreme Sports in 48-hour Film #2012CFF #indiefilm 

Seattle, WA is shaping up to be among the busiest of Couch Fest 2012 locations -- prepped and ready to showcase everything this film festival has to offer. One of the things that I like about Seattle’s lineups are the fact that there are multiple showtimes at each location. 

l-r 'Parachute' director Martin Thibaudeau, cinematographer François Gamache, actor Louis Tremblay and actress Christine Beaulieu.

So, those of you who are in the area can really pack in most, if not all, of the short films by traveling from one house to another. Of all the shorts playing in Seattle, I highly recommend watching ‘Parachute,’ a movie Couch Fest describes as being about a couple that discovers a particular parachuting club where you probably won't die.  

I recently spoke with Canadian filmmaker Martin Thibaudeau who wrote, directed and produced this six-minute comedy -- in France.

Thanks to Thibaudeau, I found another example of how good movies CAN be made in less than 48 hours and why it serves the human race well to get out of our comfort zone, for that is where adventure rests.

Madlab Post: Is this movie more about facing fears in general, or is it about the vulnerability that couples face when trying to salvage something that they could possibly lose?

Martin Thibaudeau: I hope people will interpret the film in their own way, but in my mind, it's about prudence versus temerity, comfort versus adventure. Two ways of life, two qualities that oppose themselves in our minds all the time. How do they affect our relationships? What effects do they have on our happiness, on our survival?! Which is better?

It's also about bad customer service ;-) 

Have you ever been in a parachute?

I've never done parachuting. I'd like to try it but it's not on top of my priority list. There is something trendy about these extreme sports, isn't there?

'Parachute' director Martin ThibaudeauCan you tell me something that I don't know about the making of this film?

It was shot in the Trouville, France Short film festival by a French and Quebec (Canada) volunteer cast and crew -- in one day and screened in front of the festival audience 48 hours later. The young French actress [Kenza Laala] playing the parachute company reception girl was doing her debut in this film. It was her first shoot. Not bad eh!  

What is more valuable to human beings -- security & peace of mind or adventure?

I personally identify more with adventure but I also indulge in some security and peace of mind. We all need both. It's a question of dosage.
 

PARACHUTE is playing on Saturday, November 10th at the 2012 Couch Fest Film Festival. Check the Couch Fest website’s “Attend” section to find showtimes in your area.


What is the most adventurous activity that YOU have ever participated in?

 

This post is a continuation of my Countdown to Couchfest campaign -- a selection of brief, yet, randomly outrageous and sometimes insightful interviews that I conducted with many of the directors behind the films playing at this year's Couch Fest lineup and will be publishing semi-daily between the regularly scheduled Monday Movie Meme and King Dong programs until Saturday, November 10, 2012!

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