Who is John Bunny and Why is These Amazing Shadows So Short?!

Comedic actor John Bunny (1863-1915).

The Library of Congress released the 2011 National Film Registry selections late in the day on Tuesday. There were a lot of great and some questionable selections, but several really caught our eye. One was A Cure for Pokeritis starring John Bunny. For a few years around 1910 he was the biggest movie star in the world. He was known for a " jolly, boisterous, and broad" onscreen presence. Today he is largely forgotten, but his career lives on thanks to youtube (see A Cure for Pokeritis below), on the National Film Registry and remembered with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (inducted February 8, 1960 - his star is located at 1719 Vine Street, Hollywood).

Other selections we really like are:
Growing Up Female
Fruit Cake Factory
The Big Heat
Stand Up and Deliver

The entire list of the 2011 National Film Registry selections can be seen at the end of this blog post.

Over the next week These Amazing Shadows will be broadcast on the PBS series, Independent Lens. We are very excited, but realize that the broadcast creates a little bit of confusion about how long is These Amazing Shadows (TAS)? Our original length is 88-minutes, which you will find on our DVD and Blu-ray. However, on Independent Lens it has been cut down to 53 minutes and 27 seconds. Most documentaries on IL have been been cutdown to conform to this length. We weren't excited about this situation, but understood the needs of the series. So if the broadcast length seems too short for you (as many reviews have said), then take comfort in knowing that you can still reach the full 88-minute promise land by watching the DVD or Blu-ray. Another thing we'd like you to know is that the formal These Amazing Shadows broadcast date of Thursday, December 29th at 10pm is not always followed by all the PBS affiliates. They are free to do what ever they want. For example, here in our home town of San Francisco the local PBS affiliate KQED will broadcast TAS at 11:00 pm on Tuesday, January 3rd and at 10:00 pm on Wednesday, January 4th (KQED Life). So, check your local listings for specific day and time.

Incidentally, before-during-after the Thursday and Sunday broadcasts we will be twittering using the hashtag #ILDocClub if you'd like to join us. Find us on twitter at @amazingshadows

The 2011 National Film Registry Selections:
Allures (1961) Director Jordan Belson was dubbed the master of “cosmic cinema” who created abstract imagery with color, light and moving patterns and objects. “Allures” is a five-minute film that Belson said “was probably the space-iest film that had been done until then. It creates a feeling of moving into the void.”
Bambi (1942) Disney’s personal favorite follows the adventures of a fawn named Bambi and his friends Flower the skunk and Thumper the bunny.
The Big Heat (1953) Fritz Lang directed this film noir starring Glenn Ford, Lee Marvin and Gloria Grahame.
A Computer Animated Hand (1972) Ed Catmull, co-founder of Pixar Animation Studios, created a program nearly 40 years ago to digitally animate a human hand. This one-minute film displays the animated hand.
Crisis: Behind a Presidential Commitment (1963) Filmmaker Robert Drew and several other documentary directors including D.A. Pennebaker and Richard Leacock chronicled Alabama Gov. George Wallace’s attempts to stop two African American students from enrolling at the University of Alabama and President John F. Kennedy’s response.
The Cry of Children (1912)  This silent drama about child labor helped instigate labor reform.
A Cure for Pokeritis (1912) Rotund comic John Bunny, who died in 1915, was one of the biggest comedy stars between 1910 and 1915. In this farce, he plays a henpecked husband.
El Mariachi (1992) Robert Rodriguez’s first feature, which he made for $7,000 while a film student at the University of Texas.
Faces (1968) John Cassavetes' masterwork offers a razor-sharp critique of middle-class America. Gena Rowlands, John Marley, Lynn Carlin and Seymour Cassel star.
Fruit Cake Factory (1985) Chick Strand’s documentary on young Mexican women who make ornamental papier-mache fruits and vegetables.
Forrest Gump (1994) Robert Zemeckis directed this box-office hit, which went on to win several Academy Awards including best picture, director and lead actor for Tom Hanks as a sweet everyman who encounters all the major events of the 1960s and '70s.
Growing Up Female (1971) Ohio college students Julia Reichart and Jim Klein follow six girls and women from the ages of 4 to 34 at home, work and school.
Hester Street (1975) Director Joan Micklin Silver’s feature, which was financed by her husband, looks at Eastern European Jewish life in American in the early 1900s. Carol Kane earned an Oscar nomination as an immigrant who arrives in New York to marry.
I, an Actress (1977) The late underground filmmaker George Kuchar’s comedy about his directing techniques.
The Iron Horse (1924) John Ford’s seminal western focuses on how the country was united after the Civil War with the building of the transcontinental railroad.
The Kid (1921) Charlie Chaplin’s first feature length comedy-drama, about the Little Tramp taking in a foundling (Jackie Coogan).
The Lost Weekend (1945) Billy Wilder’s Oscar-winning social problem drama that examined the effects of alcoholism with a realism that hadn’t been shown on screen. Ray Milland, who was known more for his lighter roles, won an Oscar for his performance as the young writer who loses everything when he turns to alcohol. The film also won Academy Awards for best picture, director and screenplay.
The Negro Soldier (1944) Frank Capra’s World War II U.S. Army filming unit produced this film that looked at the contributions of African Americans in society as well as their heroic contributions in the war. The film was produced as a response to discrimination against African Americans who were stationed in the South during the war
Nicholas Brothers Family Home Movies (1930s-1940s) Legendary tap dancing brothers Fayard and Harold Nicholas, who graced such films as 1948’s “The Pirate,” also shot home movies that feature one-of-a-kind footage of Broadway, Harlem and Hollywood.
Norma Rae (1979) Sally Field won her first Oscar as a single mother working at a textile mill in the South who attempts to organize the workers. Martin Ritt directed.
Porgy and Bess (1959) Otto Preminger directed this lavish version of George Gershwin and DuBose Heyward’s folk opera, starring Sidney Poitier, Dorothy Dandridge, Sammy Davis Jr., Pearl Bailey and Diahann Carroll. There are very few prints of the film in existence, so it has rarely been seen in recent decades.
The Silence of the Lambs (1991) The horror thriller based on the book by Thomas Harris swept the Academy Awards, winning best picture, director (Jonathan Demme), adapted screenplay (Ted Tally), best actress for Jodie Foster as rookie FBI agent Clarice Starling and best actor for Anthony Hopkins as the cannibalistic serial killer Hannibal Lecter.
Stand and Deliver (1988) Edward James Olmos earned an Oscar nomination in the inspiring true story of an East Los Angeles high school teacher, Jaime Escalante.
Twentieth Century (1934) Howard Hawks directed this breathlessly funny screwball comedy adapted by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur from their Broadway play about a egomaniacal director (John Barrymore) and his temperamental leading lady (Carole Lombard).
War of the Worlds (1953) George Pal produced this lavish, Oscar-winning, special effects laden sci-fi thriller based on H.G. Wells’ novel about Martian aircraft landing on Earth. Gene Barry and Ann Robinson star in this box-office hit. 

Does "Pulp Fiction" belong on the National Film Registry? Or, I admit it - Quentin Tarantino is really smart.

One of the reoccurring discussions at the annual meeting of the National Film Preservation Board to decide which films to recommend to the Librarian of Congress for inclusion on the National Film Registry is - does Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction belong?

There are times that it seems that Quentin Tarantino is a quite wacky guy who is all about superficial pop culture and that his films add nothing to our cultural heritage. But, then you see him in the above video of an interview by Charlie Rose. In it he makes some really important points about being a writer-director and he sounds quite intelligent and thoughtful. If you put aside his love of the spotlight (which is the source of his sometimes wacky persona) and focus on his filmmaking - it seems undeniable that he has an unique voice that has expanded our idea of storytelling. I don't appreciate/approve of his use of the N-word, excessive violence and his forays into misogyny - but he is a creative force to be considered seriously. Perhaps next week when the Library of Congress announces Dr. Billington's 2011 selections to the National Film Registry we might see Pulp Fiction among the films chosen.

The 2011 National Film Registry announcement will be made on or about December 28th.

Film Reconnects Us to the World

In These Amazing Shadows, Robin Blaetz says "film reconnects us to the world and to our experience of our lives in this space, in this time." It is such a beautiful thought. The idea that we can go into a dark theater and be reconnected to the world is on its surface a strange notion. But, film has that ability to allow us to observe in an intimate and clear way the details of the world that we often don't have the time or inclination to see. A good example of that is the above video, Timescapes, by Tom Lowe. He describes it as a "portrait of the American Southwest." What really jumps out at me is the spectacular starry sky. Most of us in the US are urban dwellers. We forget how the incredibly beautifully universe is available to us in the night sky. Lowe's film has reconnected me to the world because now I am dedicated to getting out in nature to see the stars.

Tom Lowe was named Astronomy Photographer of the year in 2010 and has been working on Timescapes for over two years.

Tom Lowe on Vimeo
Tom Lowe on Facebook

Growing Up Female

Screen grab from Growing Up Female.

A letter from Mary J. Schirmer.
Hi, folks. I don't usually make requests like this, because I know everybody's busy. But this is the opportunity to make a difference for an important documentary made by a female filmmaker. Please consider emailing dross@loc.gov (Donna Ross) to request that the film GROWING UP FEMALE is included in the National Film Registry.

The nomination committee chooses 25 films per year, and GROWING UP FEMALE has come close to making the cut for the last five consecutive years. As you know, women are seriously underrepresented in the film industry on the whole, and we can make a difference by including this film in the Library of Congress.

I've met filmmaker/college film instructor Julia Reichert who, with James Klein, produced, wrote, directed, and edited this feature film in1971 -- right in the midst of the modern feminist movement.

GROWING UP FEMALE looks at the lives of six females, ages 4 to 35, and the "forces that shape them -- teachers, counselors, advertising, music, and the institution of marriage," Reichert said.

The film has been shown in colleges and high schools over the past decades and earned glowing recommendations from Susan Sontag and Gloria Steinem.

GROWING UP FEMALE has screened at the Museum of Modern Art in NYC and the American Film Institute in Washington DC. This month it will be shown at Lincoln Center.

The film recently received a grant to restore it on a new film print.

Find more information about the National Film Registry at www.loc.gov/film/filmnfr.html.

So, if you feel moved to help in this effort to include a film about women and produced by a woman, please take a moment RIGHT NOW to email Donna Ross, National Film Preservation Board, at dross@loc.gov.

Thank you.
Sincerely,
Mary J. Schirmer (screenwriter/instructor)
www.screenplayers.net

http://www.filmlinc.com/films/on-sale/the-womens-film-preservation-fund

Donna Ross Really Exists: Or, how to nominate a film to the National Film Registry

Donna Ross of the Library of Congress with These Amazing Shadows co-director Paul Mariano

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The National Film Registry clock is ticking. If you want to nominate a film to be considered for the 2011 selections to the National Film Registry now is the time to make your move. It is a very simple process to nominate/vote for a film.

There are a few simple rules:

1) The film must be at least ten years old. (That means Gladiator is now eligible!)

2) The film must be "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant." (That may sound lofty, but don't forget - Animal House, Blazing Saddles and The Producers have met that standard.)

3) The film must be American, or at least have some sort of relatively significant American involvement. (Example of a film on the NFR that stretches the "American" involvement: Lawrence of Arabia.)

Once you have decided on a film you want to nominate you should check to make sure it is not already on the National Film Registry. The Library of Congress maintains a complete list of the 550 film on Wikipeida at the following link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Film_Registry

Okay, you've discovered that your nominee is not on the NFR, so what do you do next? You should write a short statement on why the film is important to you or to American culture. You don't need to sound like a film scholar - just write from the heart and try to be somewhat coherent.

Then, (drum roll please) you email it to Donna Ross at the Library of Congress

dross@loc.gov

You can send it by the US Postal Service to the following address:

Donna Ross, Boards Assistant

National Film Preservation Board

Library of Congress

Packard Campus for Audio-Visual Conservation

19053 Mt. Pony Road

Culpeper, VA 22701-7551

In this world of faceless bureaucrats it is refreshing to know that when you send in your nomination it will go to a very specific person - namely, Donna Ross. Donna works at the Library of Congress' Packard Campus for Audio-Visual Conservation in Culpeper, VA. We first met Donna in November 2009 and have found her to be a very nice, hard-working person with a good sense of humor.

National Film Registry Nomination Information Website: http://www.loc.gov/film/vote.html

The 2011 National Film Registry selections will be announced on or about December 28, 2011. By a planned coincidence, These Amazing Shadows, will have its premiere national broadcast on December 29, 2011 as part of the PBS series, Independent Lens, which will be hosted this year by Mary-Louise Parker. Check your local listings.

http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/these-amazing-shadows/

Alex's Triumphant Return, Stain Boy and HDNet/NFR

Co-director, Paul Mariano, and co-editor, Alex Calleros, present These Amazing Shadows at UCSC.

Have you ever dreamed of returning in triumph to high school and/or college after achieving success? I can't say that was one of Alex Calleros (co-editor of These Amazing Shadows) goals in life. But, he lived it this week on the campus of his alma mater the University of California, Santa Cruz. Alex ('08), along with Paul and I had the wonderful experience of presenting a screening of These Amazing Shadows to one of Professor Shelly Stamps' film classes. Shelly is one of the interview subjects (women directors segment) in TAS and is Alex's former professor.

UCSC Professor Shelly Stamp proudly watches her former student Alex Calleros introduce These Amazing Shadows.

The students really liked and felt inspired by TAS. They asked fun questions and even offered distribution advise. They were clearly impressed with how quickly Alex had achieved success in the film business and were eager to find out his secret(s) to success, which will be the subject of a future blog entry. Shelly told Paul and me that Alex was a great student, "who was really active and seemed to be president of every student film organization."

Professor Stamps' film class in Studio C - Communications Building on the campus of UCSC

Shelly will be presenting a paper on film director, Lois Weber, at the Doing Women's Film History Conference in Sunderland, England - April 13-15. Our big thanks to Prof. Stamp and her class!

Stain Boy

One of the regrets I have about These Amazing Shadows was not pursuing an interview with director Tim Burton. He is such a different kind of person and a great interview (see Charlie Rose's interview of Tim). Tim just came out with a new website that you should check out. The site is centered on a new book of Tim's illustrations called appropriately enough, The Art of Tim Burton. On the website you can get a preview of his art by guiding Stain Boy (via your mouse or touchpad) through a gallery. The website is worth a visit alone just for the background music.
www.timburton.com

Elizabeth Taylor and James Dean from the motion picture, Giant.

HDNet Movies regularly schedules films from the National Film Registry. Please go to the following link to see their current schedule. Their March schedule includes Giant, The Bridge Over the River Kwai and The Terminator. HDNet is available through Comcast, AT&T, Charter Communications, DIRECTV, Dish Network and Verizon. As they say..."check your local listing for exact channel."
National Film Registry on HDNet

Evolution of "These Amazing Shadows" theatrical poster.

It's always fun to go back and review how we arrived at various decisions. We're really proud of our theatrical poster designed by Brian Oakes. The design process began centered on the idea of using movie posters from classic films that are on the National Film Registry. We use posters throughout our documentary and to great effect in our end credits (which can be viewed on youtube at the following link: TAS End Credits). Brian wanted to design a poster that would draw a person in to take a close look and to reward them with fascinating details.

In proposal #1 Brian came up with a concept that quickly suggests the general topic of our documentary. The large old style ticket says "movies." Then you get the pleasure of looking at each classic movie poster within our poster. Its active, bright and commercial.

Proposal #2 is a very artistic and nontraditional approach (a personal note - I love it). The movie title is a little hard to read, which draws you in to figure out what is going on. Once you're close you see that there are numerous strips of 35mm motion picture film on a single plane. What movies are they from? It's fun to try to figure them out. It's not commercial, a bit challenging and beautiful.

Brian's final design was a combination of ideas from #1 & #2, plus incorporating the graphic style he had designed for the documentary and the opening title text form. It's dark like a movie theater...filled with amazing shadows...full of detail...and elegant.

"We Got That B Roll!!" and other various beautiful web-abouts.

A screen grab from the very funny video, We Got That B Roll!!.  Directed by Dylan Osborn and written by Sergio Cilli.

To continue our two day run of funny videos - we must share one of our favorites, We Got That B Roll!!. This is a bit of a documentary insider joke. But we know our sophisticated audience will get it. Just in case you need an assist here is the definition of B Roll: secondary footage that adds meaning to a sequence or disguises the elimination of unwanted content. Unfortunately, this funny video cannot be embedded into our blog due the creators wishes. Please click on the following title to take you to this very funny video. We Got That B Roll!!.

Our graphic designer...I mean Director of Motion Graphics, Brian Oakes, has his new website up and it is fantastic. Brian is involved in all kinds of projects including the upcoming HBO doc, Runnin' Rebels of UNLV, which airs on March 12 - just before the beginning of the NCAA Basketball Tournament.
http://www.brianoakes.com/

J. Todd Anderson and George Willeman of the radio show, Filmically Perfect.

Since you are already strolling around the Interwebs why not check out George Willeman's website, Filmically Perfect. Okay, it's not George's website but the Internet home of the radio show, Filmically Perfect, on WYSO-FM hosted by Niki Dakota (very cool name!) and features George (one of our interview subjects and our friend at the Library of Congress) and J. Todd Anderson. The three talk about movies that are "perfect." What makes a movie perfect? Go to their website to find out the rules for the perfect movie. You can listen to their show via the web or podcast.

And, finally, our erstwhile These Amazing Shadows website is undergoing a facelift. Stay tuned for the historic release of our new site! It is coming just in time to give you the straight skinny on the plethora of TAS scheduled screenings across the USA beginning in April 2011.

Oscar Talk with Leonard Maltin and his guest Mike Tyson

Oscar Talk with Mike Tyson & Leonard Maltin from Mike Tyson

Noted film critic, Leonard Maltin, one of These Amazing Shadows interview subjects discusses the 2011 Oscar race with former heavyweight champ, Mike Tyson. Very illuminating.

On a more serious note - Leonard was nice enough to post a blurb about These Amazing Shadows on his blog. Thanks Leonard!
Read Leonard's Blog Movie Crazy

The Onion jumps on the National Film Registry bandwagon...kinda.

Shocking news report about the Library of Congress!
Library of Congress Adds 3 Titles to List of Films That Should be Destroyed Forever!

NOTE: The Onion is a news satire organization. It is an entertainment newspaper and a website featuring satirical articles reporting on international, national and local news. It's not real news. 

These Amazing Shadows Trailer!

Our brand new trailer was just posted to The New York Times website. It can be accessed at the following link:
http://video.nytimes.com/video/2011/01/19/movies/1248069574720/trailer-these-amazing-shadows.html

The trailer was cut by Stephen Garrett of Kinetic Trailers in New York City. We think he did a great job. Particularly in his selection of movie clips and the way he used Peter Golub's music.

The trailer will be available Friday on this blog.

Our Filmmaker Interviews.

A screen grab of Christopher Nolan from our documentary, These Amazing Shadows

One of the most challenging aspects of our documentary was getting interviews with prominent filmmakers. The reality is that prominent people have worked long and hard to build their success. Why should they risk their reputation and precious time with a documentary produced by two guys with no discernible reputation. We had to develop strategies to overcome this reasonable attitude held by the multi-layer of people between us and the person we wanted to interview. Our main ally was persistence. And, the benefit of some small to large connections to people we know who have real connections in the film business.

The most interesting "celebrity get" was the director, Christopher Nolan. He is unquestionably one of the top directors in the world. We interviewed him about two weeks before the release of Inception. We had no idea his film would become the blockbuster of 2010. How did we "get" Mr. Nolan? Here is the surprisingly simple story. Our editor, Doug Blush, has a very cute daughter. She takes piano lessons from the same teacher as Christopher Nolan's daughter. A funny coincidence. During a recital Doug met Christopher and struck up a conversation about movies. Through this real, but a bit tenuous connection we relayed an interview request to him. To our delight he accepted.

Here is the interview scenario...Christopher is working night and day trying to finish his very, very complex film, Inception. He has a family. He has the mainstream media constantly knocking on his door. Literally thousands of interview requests. What does he do in the face of all of this? He makes time for our doc. Really amazing. He appeared for his interview on time (big thanks to his fantastic assistant, Stacey Kelly!!), coffee in hand, wearing his trademark vest/suit and looking a little tired, but ready. He was so nice and gracious. He focused on our questions, gave thoughtful answers and even flashed us his boyish smile several times. As you can imagine, to us, Mr. Nolan is quite the prince.

Here's rooting for Christopher to win the DGA award!

DGA Nominees for Outstanding Directorial Achievement: http://www.dga.org/thedga/aw_announcements-11.php3

Del Reisman dies at 86 years old.

Del Reisman at the Geffen Playhouse in 2009.

Del Reisman, a wonderful person, former President of the Writer's Guild of America/West and one of our interview subjects died last Saturday. Del was a very gentle man who lived the kind of life of which movies are made. He grew up in Hollywood, was a bombardier in World War II (saw a lot of action over Europe), and a writer and story editor in the formative stages of television including working with Rod Serling on The Twilight Zone. His writing credits include episodes for Magnum, p.i., Six Million Dollar Man, Little House on the Prairie, Charles Angels, Kung Fu and many others. He was a thoughtful person who helped a great many people through his work with the Writer's Guild and the American Film Institute. He was a long time member of the Library of Congress National Film Preservation Board.

Del was gracious enough to consent to an interview for our documentary. He arrived early, very prepared and was generous with his time. Though we were of different eras we found a connection through discovering we were both graduates of the University of California at Berkeley. Paul and I liked him very and will miss him.

Article on Del in The Hollywood Reporter: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/wga-west-president-del-reisman-70130