Georges Melies: Impossible Voyager

I just got this tidy announcement from the Sprocket Society that neatly explains the Georges Melies special presentation next Thursday, and I thought I’d share:

Announcing a very special event co-presented by The Sprocket Society and the Northwest Film Forum…

GEORGES MELIES: IMPOSSIBLE VOYAGER
Special effects epics from 1901-1912

Next Thursday, May 15, 2008 at 8:00 PM — One show only!

At the Northwest Film Forum - 1515 12th Avenue (on Capital Hill at Pike)
http://www.nwfilmforum.org/ (206) 329-2629

$8.50 general / $5 NWFF members / $6 kids under 12 & seniors
Advance tickets available online at
http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/28828

A special celebration of the mad filmic genius of Georges Méliès, the father of special effects, featuring rare 16mm film prints of his greatest sci-fi, fantasy and adventure epics…all presented with unusual musical accompaniment!

INCLUDING!

A rare presentation of THE IMPOSSIBLE VOYAGE (1904) with a live performance of the original narration penned by Méliès himself plus music provided by CLIMAX GOLDEN TWINS playing 78 rpm records on actual Victrolas, right there in the theater!

PLUS!

Six more great films, all presented with non-traditional musical recordings including avant garde jazz, the Master Musicians of Jajouka, The Residents (in a special remix by Scott Colburn), and more! Featuring…

A TRIP TO THE MOON (1901) — rare extended version!
THE KINGDOM OF THE FAIRIES (1903) — rare “complete” version!
THE PALACE OF ARABIAN NIGHTS (1905) — stunning set design!
THE MERRY FROLICS OF SATAN (1906) — beautifully tinted!
PARIS TO MONTE CARLO (1905) — with hand-colored scenes!
CONQUEST OF THE POLE (1912) — a rare French version!

Learn more and see a bunch of photos, including rare behind-the-scenes shots and production drawings, at http://SprocketSociety.org/events/

Hope to see you there… A splendid time is guaranteed for all!

(Attached poster design by Brian Alter.)

The Sprocket Society (Seattle, WA)

web: http://sprocketsociety.org
email: sprocketsociety@gmail.com



Fragmented

Next month NWFF will open the Ellen Page vehicle Tracey Fragments, a film that takes a daring approach to its film making. There’s a pretty well argued analysis of the film’s innovative editing approach over at The Auteurs’ Notebook.

Director Bruce McDonald is a man after our own heart. Early this year he opened up all footage from the film to filmmakers from around the globe, asking them to reFragment Tracey by using the footage to create original works of art; a Tracey film challenge of sorts. A number of the reFragmentations are worth a glance.

Mastroianni takes the lead!

In Round 2 of the DUEL OF THE COOL (in which we pitted 8 1/2 against LE DOULOS) Marcello Mastroianni has taken the lead over Jean-Paul Belmondo. Winning a mere 11 more votes this round, he holds the lead by a total of 6, when the results from Round 1 are included.

Don’t miss the final round next Tuesday-Wednesday: LEO THE LAST vs. PIERROT LE FOU.

PRÊT-À-FILMER: A WEEK OF FASHION FILMS poster

Designed by Tim Brown.   Series starts May 30.

Summer calendar is live on our website!

Take a gander and start marking your calendars for all the exciting stuff coming up this summer.

Full Summer 2008 calendar is available here.

Full Summer 2008 workshop offerings are up here.

Printed calendars should hit the streets May 19, or thereabouts.

Listen to The Roadhouse tonight

Tonight around 6:30pm, put on KEXP’s THE ROADHOUSE (hosted by Greg Vandy).  The narrators and performers of NWFF’s ROOTS AND BRANCHES special presentation will be on!

The Kings of Mongrel Folk are Tom Sauber, Orville Johnson, and Mark Graham - three of the most knowledgable and talented American roots musicians in the Northwest. They will be presenting and describing vintage clips of old-time music performers this Thursday at 8pm, then performing a set of live music afterwards.  As anyone who experienced our YOU’RE LOOKIN’ AT COUNTRY event knows, the night is sure to be full of hilarity as well as information, set to some wonderful music.

Get a taste of what’s to come with their live in-studio performance, aired tonight!

Filmmakers and screenwriters - the clock is ticking…

If you are planning to submit your screenplay to the Washington State Screenplay Competition (more details here), the time is nigh! The regular deadline passed yesterday, and the late deadline is May 8.

Additionally, if you are a local filmmaker it’s not too late to participate in our current quarterly film challenge: ANTHEM.
This quarter we screened Thai filmmaker Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s short film ANTHEM (on April 15, 16, 22, 23), created as a nostalgic tribute to a tradition in Thailand in which a Royal Anthem honoring the King is played before all movies and is therefore an integral part of the experience of going to the cinema. This quarter’s film challenge charges Seattle filmmakers with creating their own unique anthem films, using the Star Spangled Banner or ANY anthem as a basis. For further incentive to filmmakers, the audience will determine the best film and the winning film will be screened before all future film challenges as a sort of Film Challenge Anthem.

Rules: Films must be no longer than 5 minutes. Formats accepted are Super-8, 16mm and DVD. Please include the title, filmmaker’s name and contact information with submission. The project is open to all levels of skills and experience. Submissions are due May 12th, 2008. Deliver them to Northwest Film Forum, c/o Adam Sekuler, 1515 12th Ave, Seattle, WA 98122. For more information contact adams@nwfilmforum.org. Films will be screened on May 20 at 7pm.

Stephanie Barber is here!

And she’s really nice and fun. Read about her work here, and come hang out and watch her films tonight at 8pm!

MAY 1, Thursday at 8pm
DIRECTOR IN ATTENDANCE
THIRD EYE CINEMA PRESENTS
THE FILMS OF STEPHANIE BARBER
(Stephanie Barber, USA, 1997-2007, 16mm)

Prolific Baltimore-based filmmaker and artist Stephanie Barber has been featured in solo shows at the New York Film Festival’s Views From the Avant-Garde and the Museum of Modern Art’s Cineprobe series. She has established herself over the past decade as an extraordinary filmmaker, winning awards and acclaim at festivals and venues all over the world. For this program, Barber brings together a diverse selection of her work including FLOWER, THE BOY, THE LIBRARIAN, DOGS, METRONOME, TOTAL POWER DEAD DEAD DEAD; SHIPFILM; LETTERS NOTES; and CATALOG. Barber will discuss her films throughout the presentation of this short work.

More on Stephanie Barber

DUEL OF THE COOL: Round 1 Winner is…

Jean-Paul Belmondo by just 5 votes!

The voting continues next week! Round 2 is next Tuesday and Wednesday, featuring Fellini’s 8 1/2 and Jean-Pierre Melville’s LE DOULOS.

Gala the Best Ever

Thanks to all who made the NWFF gala such a success.  The event succeeded our expectations, and grossed more than $70,000 for Northwest Film Forum programs.

And damn, the outfits get better every year.