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The Press Room is an archive of the Ojai Film Festival 2000 press releases. Check back frequently for the latest releases. Locals Win Awards at Ojai's Film Festival (11/23/00) For more information contact: Many Thanks to: Go to Ojai Valley News Website» |
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Dated: November 23, 2000 LOCALS WIN AWARDS AT OJAI'S FILM FESTIVAL
Due to its success, the first Ojai Film Festival will become an annual event, according to Pauletta Walsh, the film festival's director. "There's even a rumor that the same weekend
has already been set aside by Ojai Valley Inn & Spa to accommodate the
second annual Ojai Film Festival," she said. |
 ROBERT HUDSON (left) and Bobby Houston (right), winners of a Libbey for their "Little Secret," and Leland Hammerschmidt (center), winner of a Libbey for his "Running on the Sun" |
"Things went very, very well," said Walsh, adding the back scene hubbub needed to produce such an event seemed near flawless as residents and visitors alike attended parties and screenings at three venues around town. At the Ojai Valley Inn & Spa, seating for an additional 45 people had to be arranged, slightly delaying the 7 p.m. Friday showing of "The Solid Ones," by local filmmaker Brent Florence. What caused the delay was the unforeseen number of local residents who turned out to view a film they, or their loved ones, were directly involved with, as it was shot in Ojai last year. Graham Nash, a noted collector of photographs in his own right and narrator of "Compassionate Eye," a documentary about Ojai's Horace Bristol, was able to attend and introduce that film, which allowed Walsh to be chauffeured across town to introduce Louis L'Amour's "Crossfire Trail," starring Tom Selleck. "It was awesome," Walsh said of the logistics of pulling off a smooth-running event. "I didn't know Graham was coming, and because he did, I got to Ojai Playhouse just in time to start the Selleck film." Last Wednesday night, as flowers were being readied for Walsh by an appreciative staff of volunteers who lauded her for her directorship, Walsh said she wouldn't be able to comment on the success of the festival until all the data had been collected and all the t's had been crossed and i's dotted. Monday, Walsh said the review process indicated, "We are definitely doing another film festival - the excitement is there. "Our concern was what this would do to the Ojai Valley, for us as a community, and we found the local people enjoyed it - they had such fun. Everything went so well. "The filmmakers were so great and people could feel they had a stake in things. Steve (Grumette) did a wonderful job. There were no technical problems. Sometimes the gods just smile on you." Merrill Williams, public relations director for the Ojai Valley Inn, confirmed that the inn would be honored to be a venue for future festivals, though organizers there will await a date from Ojai Film Festival officials. "This has the potential to be a huge event for the community. All they need to do is decide on dates and we'll be here to help them out next year," said Williams. Khaled Al-Awar, owner of Ojai Playhouse, remodeled the theater prior to the event to provide a comfortable venue, and both the Ojai Valley Inn and the Ojai Playhouse were packed for many of the screenings. Matilija Junior High School was selected as the third venue and provided screening for many films, though a combination of hard seats and cool temperatures kept audience numbers low. Nevertheless, filmmakers said they were thrilled with the projection equipment. Director Bobby Houston, winner of Best Documentary Short for his "Little Secret," which was produced by Robert Hudson, narrated by Sir Anthony Hopkins and shown at Matilija, said all three venues were tops. "Everyone's films looked good. One thing I was skeptical about was the venues, but they were all great. The festival was a smash. "I have been to two dozen events like this, even in New Zealand and Europe, that were fully established, and we were on a par with the upper percent," said Houston. Houston said he has won six awards at film festivals around the world, but this is the first time he's been on-hand at the conclusion, to actually receive the award. He said it was awesome. "I'm frankly amazed at the kind of success this thing had. I've never seen anything go from 0 to 60 like this did. The whole town wanted to see it," said Houston. Houston said he has opened a lending library at his Local Hero Bookstore where people may take out the films that were seen this weekend. Local producer Leland Hammerschmidt, whose "Running on the Sun," won Best Theme of the Festival, said he was very happy with the outcome of the weekend, both for his winning film and for the winning event for the community. "We weren't in this to win an award. We did this to make a good film," he said. "There is such a limited amount of categories, it's hard to determine how they decide what category to put a film in." He said he tried to attend every venue and see many of the offerings over the weekend, beginning with Wednesday night's "Lost Horizon," where he was bundled against the cold with approximately 300 others. The final count on numbers - both people and money - is still unavailable, and best guesses from festival organizers is that more than 1,000 people turned out from as far away as Los Angeles. © 2000 The Ojai Valley News |
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Dated: November 15, 2000 OJAI'S FIRST FESTIVAL OPENS TONIGHT Ojai Valley News ... Excitement is building at the Jim Florence household as his son Brent Florence readies to debut his film, "The Solid Ones," at the Ojai Film Festival 2000 on Friday. "It's finally completed, but you never really finish them," Florence, a 1994 Nordhoff High School graduate, said Friday night as he took a break between the final editing of his film and taking it to the Chicago Hi Definition Film Festival midweek. Florence will return to Ojai Thursday to be on hand for questions after the film's local screening Friday. "You work on a film and work on a film, editing to make it absolutely the best it can be. There are so many things to look at - the picture, sound, color tones, titles, performances - you can only make it as good as you can in the time you have to do it," he said. It's been a long process for Florence, making this film ready for its debut. Following shooting at the Haley Ranch and around Ojai last fall, Florence first shaved his product into a workable film, and then heavily edited six of its scenes that he took to the Sundance Film Festival to show off not only his craftsmanship, but also the Sony high density process that allowed him to make it. "The first cut was done in March and the film was complete. Then I watched it and watched it - I lived with it - then I put it away. I showed it to two audiences - the cast and crew, and some technical people on the closing night of a festival - then I put it away again," he said. Variety, the magazine of the film industry, promoted only "Lost Horizon" and "The Solid Ones" in its December pitch for the Ojai Film Festival 2000, a coup for the 24-year-old producer/director/actor. Florence's film will be shown at Ojai Valley Inn & Spa Friday at 7 p.m. and though he's not sure the projection equipment will be the best, he's sure the film will look great. Florence spent the last two weeks in studios in Ventura and Los Angeles fine-tuning. "It will show Friday at 7 p.m., not a good time with the rush hour traffic in Los Angeles. "I know friends and family will be there, and I can tell you it will be the cleanest picture for whatever project you'll ever see in digital. That definition will make it look real good," he said. "The product is tighter and shorter than after the first cut," adding that the length dropped from 97 minutes to 89 minutes, and that those cuts were made in one-minute segments. "The Solid Ones," about the theft of bingo funds that turn a young couple into fugitives, was filmed with the assistance of a number of Ojai residents, Florence said, adding that he hopes they all turn out to see the finished product, including the women from Ojai Valley Woman's Club and HELP of Ojai who provided the bingo-hall scene. "I think the greatest day of shooting was the bingo scene. These women love their bingo." Florence met Lloyd Silverman of New York, the film's co-producer, when Florence was a student at the University of Southern California. Florence had produced "Solid Ones," an 18-minute short in black and white for a course. Silverman encouraged him to make a full-length feature of his project, a story that was written by Florence in 1997 after experiencing "a crisis of love." He said the film was based on that experience, and also on his experiences growing up in Ojai. "Please don't get so into the technology of this film that you overlook the story line," Florence said. "Though my own breakup set things in motion, this story comes as a direct result of me having such a great group of friends and family, and being raised in a town as beautiful as this. I feel lucky to have all these things." He said he hopes the film will be a catalyst for change. "This is a film about not realizing how lucky you are - about taking things for granted, then returning to a place where you can say, 'Wow, this is where I belong.' "The film is about people wanting to leave a town and what I hope they will find is the perfection in their back yards," Florence said. "God, I'm the luckiest kid. I got to make a movie and now I get to see it with my family and friends." In addition to the "The Solid Ones" debuting at the festival, albeit not for competition, Florence and some of his cast members are also in other films that will be shown in competition. What's next for Florence? First, he said he will market "The Solid Ones" to a few major film companies, such as Miramax, that are willing to put the money into a film that it takes to ensure success. He is also working on three other scripts, one a drama about a kid growing up in New York City, which he researched through a friend; the second a "mockumentary" about a documentary film crew that is trying to expose adult filmmakers; and the third, which is more a documentary, dealing with antisocial behavior in a foreign land. He's less interested in talking about that one now as in researching it, but Florence said he's not resting for a moment on the laurels from one film. He plans to be a major player in the future. "Think about the medium I chose. Not many people have high definition, but George Lucas is said to be filming 'Star Wars II' in high definition. That is the first people will really hear about it. "I'm a 24-year-old kid and George Lucas is 'The Man,' and we used the same camera to make something." In thinking of his future projects, Florence said Lucas' words stick with him. "George Lucas said technology-wise, we are going up and up and up in films, but emotionally we've plateaued. Regardless of the technology, the story line is so important. It is the emotional core of any film. © 2000 The Ojai Valley News |
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Dated: November 13, 2000 OJAI'S INAUGURAL FILM FESTIVAL COMES TO LIGHT
Los Angeles Times ... Capitalizing on its ties to the film industry - it's long been a refuge for actors and filmmakers and was the location for the 1937 film "Lost Horizon" - Ojai will host its inaugural film festival this week. It's the third such festival in as many months for Ventura County - the Channel Islands Indie Film Festival began in September, and the Port Hueneme International Film Festival was launched in October. But Ojai's version may have a better shot than most fledgling efforts, thanks to those ties. Appearance are expected by honorees Jonathan Winters and Tom Selleck, along with "Friends" star Matthew Perry and "White Men Can't Jump" director Ron Shelton. There will also be 90 films, seminars, awards and other film-related activities, held at various venues around the Ojai Valley. The festival didn't happen overnight. Virginia Swift, former president of the Ojai Film Society, was one of the original promoters, along with society member Steve Grumette, now the festival's artistic director. Active for 11 years, the film society has sponsored Sunday afternoon screening and hosted visiting film people. Initial response from the society board for a festival, though, was less than enthusiastic. "We presented it to a meeting and they flipped out," Swift said. "They didn't want to have any part of it. We argued and fought and stuck to our guns. Finally there was a big meeting, and the vote turned out to be 18 for and 3 against. Steve and I looked at each other. That was the beginning." This festival was an outgrowth, in a sense, of an animation festival put on by Swift and Grumette at Matilija School, under the auspices of the French animation organization Assn. Internationale du Film d'Animation. Pauletta Walsh was hired as director last February. Walsh, an actress who had been on the Connecticut Film Commission, was familiar with festivals from her job back East. "They came to a leadership crisis, which is where I came in," Walsh said. Ojai has the built-in population of movie people. "Actors and actresses have lived here for years, even going back as far as Loretta Young," Swift said. "She had a fine home here." Walsh adds that Ojai is "a mecca and a refuge for artists, and it has been forever. We have a lot of people hiding out in the hills here who have come forward and said, 'It's a great idea, how can I help?' Some of them have done that publicly, and a lot of others, privately... That's fine with us." Names do count for something in the festival world, and the festival's Honorary Advisory Board includes such names as June Allyson, Peter Strauss, Diane Ladd, Malcolm McDowell, Larry Hagman, Ellen DeGeneres, Perry and Shelton. Some of them will appear on panels, including Perry in an acting seminar at noon Saturday and Shelton in Saturday morning's "Hollywood confidential" session. One reason for the growth of festivals is the increasing ease of technology in filmmaking, with digital equipment enabling young filmmakers to readily enter the field. The Ojai Film Festival, after putting out calls in trade magazines, film schools and on such well-known Internet sites as Film Threat and Indie Wire, culled over 300 submissions. The films on view range from features to documentaries to animation and short subjects. The Cuban film "A Paradise Under the Stars" is part of a focus on Cuban cinema and culture in the festival. Among the American features are "Norma Jean, Jack and Me," about a drug dealer's discovery of two famous Americans presumed dead, and "Chutney Popcorn," a comedy in which transplanted Indian culture and New York City style collide. The feature documentary selection is especially strong and includes "Uncle Saddam," director Joel Soler's behind-the-scenes look at Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. Famed cinematographer and director Haskell Wexler's "Five Days in March" follows Bonnie Raitt and others in benefit concert in Cuba. Closer to home, director David Rabinovitch's film "The Compassionate Eye" deals with the late photojournalist Horace Bristol, who live his last years in Ojai. Of the thousands of festivals currently in operation, Walsh said, "a lot of them call themselves festivals, but what they really are is something happening in one venue sponsored by one group that [screens] films. That's a little different than what Santa Barbara is, or Sundance or Telluride, where it really is a whole event." Where other festivals, including new ones in Sarasota and Santa Fe, have relied on grants for funding, the Ojai festival was seeded mainly by small monetary gifts and in-kind donations, with an almost entirely volunteer-based work force. "It's basically a grassroots effort," Walsh said. "Everybody is a volunteer, and hundreds of people-hours have gone into it." Given the festival boom, finding an identity to separate a new festival from others may be a key to success. Walsh says that this festival's theme, "Horizons Lost and Found: Enriching the Human Sprit Through Film," provides such a distinction. We're looking for underrepresented groups," Walsh said. "We're looking for the odd, rather than necessarily looking for what Hollywood wants. It's not that these aren't fabulous films - they are. But to some extent, perhaps they might be what might be mistakenly perceived as uncommercial, which I don't believe they are. I believe that if people had an opportunity to see these films, they would love them. And that's part of the mission, to make sure that they come to an audience." The festival's schedule, though dense, mostly takes place over three days of screenings and seminars, kicking off with a free screening of "Lost Horizon" at Libbey Bowl on Wednesday and an awards ceremony and a tribute to Winters on Sunday. Future goals don't necessarily include expanding the length of the festival. "We really have to evaluate this year," Walsh said. "I don't know if length is the real testimony to your success. I would love to see growth in submissions and reputation." On the brink of the festival's official opening, Walsh said, "I feel like I'm riding a tiger, and I just have to ride it well at this point." |
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Dated: November 10, 2000 FILM FESTIVAL KICKS OFF WITH 'LOST HORIZON' WEDNESDAY
The first Ojai Film Festival kicks off Wednesday night with a screening of Frank Capra's "Lost Horizon," the film that inspired the theme for the festival and the film through which Ojai came to be known as Shangri-La. The 1937 classic features footage of the Ojai Valley in its opening scenes. The film has been newly restored and contains archival footage not included in the original, and an completely remastered score. Where the film was damaged or lost, still photographs have been inserted. The event will start at 4 p.m. with a dinner an music by the Nordhoff High School Band. The screening begins at 5:30 p.m. and will include a preview of a film in progress called, "The Search for the Real Shangri-La." Film festival organizers remind people to wear warm clothing. For more information on the Ojai Film Festival, and a schedule showings, see an insert in today's edition. |
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Dated: November 10, 2000 YOUTH FILMMAKERS GET FREE SCREENING PASSES Four Ojai youths received top honors as student filmmakers and their films will be shown at the first Ojai Youth Film Festival Nov. 18 at Nordhoff High School. The students were chosen by Youth Festival Director Suzanne Fries, and the festival committee, who sought a cross section of Ojai youth attending both public and private schools, and based their selection on the films that would be the most valuable to the students - all high school juniors and seniors - as a college submission. Ojai's Rotary Club and Rotary-West each sponsored two of the students, giving each student two All-Screening Passes to the Ojai Film Festival to be held Nov. 16 to 19. The Rotary clubs sponsored Joi James Muller of Oak Grove School; Luke Sommer, home-schooled; Alicia Cattoni, Nordhoff High School; and Tyson Messori, Villanova Preparatory School. "Anyone can pick up a video camera," said Ojai Film Festival Director Pauletta Walsh, "but it takes a certain type of student to pick up the camera and continually work to improve their video production skills, to continually stretch their imaginations and creativity and to continually improve and enhance the quality of their projects. "We found four students who have that talent. Their commitment to the process of video production and their eagerness to learn and improve on their craft makes them perfect candidates for the Rotary Club and Rotary Club-West scholarships to the screenings at the festival." Sommer's short but creative career was born of a rather mundane childhood experience - boredom. Looking for "something fun to do," his dad gave the 9-year-old Sommer the family video camera and a lump of clay, with which he began shooting, one frame at a time, and creating his first clay animations. Filmmaking quickly became an obsession and productions of every sort were soon taking place around the family home, including music videos, short films, even animated Legos. Every friend who came over was enlisted - or commandeered - as an actor, makeup person or camera operator. Many special effects were tested in the family back yard, much to the dismay of Sommer's parent, said Walsh. At 11, Sommer wanted to expand into editing and sold his 4-H pig at the Ventura County fair to buy his first digital editing card. This allowed him to capture video in the family computer and manipulate the images. At 14, Sommer and his cousin Andy Thurston won the Santa Barbara Film Festival's Teen Digital Award for Computer Animation with a 60-second digital animation short entitled "One Fine Glaze." It had taken them 75 hours to complete. Their prize was $5,000 worth of digital software and a $10,000 scholarship to Alias/Wavefront in Santa Barbara, where they are learning the state-of-the art Maya 3-D animation software. Presently Sommer is in an after-school program at Alias/Wavefront where they are modeling plankton species and creating a 3-D Web site. People will be able to access the site to learn more about the microscopic ocean creatures. He just got back from a three-day excursion to the University of California at Santa Barbara's (UCSB) Santa Cruz island research facility where the group did plankton drags and captured the actual creatures' images under a video microscope. Presently, Sommer is a home-schooler in the 10th grade and takes classes at Ventura Community College. He plans on getting a degree in film and working in the film industry. Muller is a straight A senior at Oak Grove School, is interested in pursuing film as a career and is applying to the University of Southern California and University of California at Los Angeles for film studies. She is also a talented actress and singer, and has studied acting at Oak Grove, the Ojai Valley Youth Foundation and John Robert Powers company. She has been a community volunteer for two years with the Youth Foundation, where she helped make a variety of videos, including "The Big Show," a new youth variety show that was entered into the Youth Film Festival and featured on Channel 8 last summer. Recently, she has been a volunteer candy-striper at the Ojai hospital, a fashion designer, and has had two shows of her own at her school. Messori is a multimedia wiz, Walsh said, and while working at the Ojai Valley Youth Foundation this summer, was key in making the public service announcement that was entered in the Youth Film Festival. A senior at Villanova, Messori wants to go into the multimedia/engineering field and has applied to UCSB and Cal Poly. Although he has been a member of Interact Club for two years, and volunteered at the Ojai Demonstration Garden, he spends most of his free time designing and building model planes, cars, motorcycles and films. Messori is a creative innovator in animation and cinematography, said Walsh, who has independently made many short films, from advertisements to 30-minute documentaries. His work can be seen on the Villanova Web site and in an ad for the Rivendell Company. Cattoni is a junior at Nordhoff who loves films and videos, and any free time she has is spent absorbing and studying the field. Cattoni is actively involved in the Regional Occupational Program's video production course at Nordhoff, and has contributed to a number of short videos as well as submitted, as her festival entry, a documentary of a recent environmental conference for youth and educators that she attended. Cattoni is sports editor of the Nordhoff Ranger Chronicle and plays on three soccer teams - the Nordhoff team, a Ventura team and on a woman's league team. Her aspirations are to be an exceptional film maker and to attend film school. © 2000 The Ojai Valley News |
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Dated: November 9, 2000 DIVERSITY AND TOLERANCE ON DISPLAY IN FIRST-EVER True, the first earful of the Ojai Film Festival's theme conjures up notions of a sticky, goo-like substance: Horizons Lost and Found... Enriching the Human Spirit Through Film. So very thick. Yet underneath the sappy phraseology lies a noble and enticing motif. A deeper examination of the inaugural festival's theme reveals a conduit of tolerance, diversity and an uncovering of often buried communities, lifestyles and subject matter. "What we decided was that we were going to specifically target films that showed underrepresented views," said Pauletta Walsh, Ojai Film Festival director, "use of minorities that aren't seen, use of age groups that aren't seen. We even decided that we would illuminate the vision of the young, because I think to some extent the young are over-solicited by the media and yet condescended to." The film festival opens Wednesday, Nov. 15, and runs through Sunday, Nov. 19 - five days jammed with screenings of 84 films in competition plus special screenings, parties, film-industry seminars and awards presentations. It may shimmer a little bit - there are some household names on the Honorary Board, such as Jill Clayburgh, Ellen DeGeneres, Diane Ladd, Shelley Long, Malcolm McDowell, Matthew Perry, James Whitmore and David Zucker - but don't expect too much glitter in the rustic Ojai Valley. "Is this going to be the next Cannes? I don't see that as where the town of Ojai would like to go, you know, to have the red carpet and the lights and the paparazzi and let's have wild and crazy parties," Walsh said. No, in fact, if Walsh sees a model for Ojai out there on the vast film festival landscape, it's in Telluride, Colorado. The Telluride's sense of place and "sensibility of the people who live there" in the selection of the films that are screened, the subject matter of which tend toward the outdoors and extreme sports and the like. "I'm not saying that we'll definitely stick with this theme for next year," Walsh said. "But I think it might be a good idea. Not that you exclude other things. If it's a great film, it will still be seen." The festival director said the response from Ojai donors, business sponsors and volunteers is an indicator of how well the theme of tolerance and diversity resonates in Ojai. Much of the budget, which Walsh say is a secret, comes from $500 individual sponsorships. More than 100 residents have volunteered in the creation of the festival and numerous local businesses have chipped in with in-kind contributions of various sorts. "If you look at the percentage between corporate and community, it's largely individuals in the community," Walsh said. "And certainly the labor force is all people in the community, who have worked so hard and really come together to make it happen, so it's quite remarkable." WHY NOT OJAI The Ojai Film Festival is the brainchild of Steve Grumette, the program director of the 11-year old Ojai Film Society. Grumette is serving as the festival's artistic director. In April of 1998, Grumette was in Moab, Utah acting as a juror for the Canyonland Film Festival. "Moab, Utah is a little town similar to Ojai in the sense that it's very quaint and it's in a beautiful geographic setting," Grumette said. "It's not exactly a cultural center, but it is a center for artists. The closest town of any size is more than 100 miles away, and they had a very successful little film festival." Grumette said that when he returned from that event to Ojai, "I started thinking about the fact that if it was possible for a little town like Moab, Utah to have a credible film festival, " why not in Ojai, with its ability to draw from population centers of literally millions of people and its chic status as home to many artists, writers, actors and filmmakers. He proposed the idea to the Film Society's Board of Directors, and after several months of debate, they decided to form a committee and press forth. All told, more than 330 films were submitted for consideration. They were screened by a 15-member team; each film was screened by at least three screeners. Their numerical ratings in seven criteria were fed into a computer program. A bit of subjectivity came next. Artistic Director Steve Grumette analyzed the numerical data and gave some human consideration to the films that were on the bubble. In the end, 84 films were found to be worthy of inclusion in the festival. "We were afraid at first that we might not attract enough entries with that theme, and so we let filmmakers know that even though we were specializing on films in that theme, we would accept films on any subject," Grumette said. "But it turned out that a significant percentage of the films that we got actually were related to that theme." Grumette said he was pleasantly surprised at the high percentage of excellent films in the bunch. "Considering that anybody anywhere in the world was encouraged to enter, I would say the quality is remarkably high," he said. "I think that's partly due to the fact that there's been a revolution in filmmaking over the last 10 years which allows anybody who can afford a relatively inexpensive digital camera... and anybody with a good idea to go out and make a movie or video for very little money, and that's opened up the world of filmmaking to a large number of people who formerly did not have it available to them." The Ojai Film Festival, like others of its kind, is coveted by new filmmakers hoping to get distribution deals as a means of getting narrative features into art-film houses or documentary features onto PBS programs such as Point of View. "I think their goal is to attract the attention of people in the filmmaking world to their work so that they can build a career for themselves," Grumette said. "What it will do for the people of Ojai is to give them exposure to films that in most cases they could never have seen before." AND WHAT WILL THEY SEE? Scheduled for screening are 10 narrative feature films, 28 narrative shorts, 23 full-length documentaries, 17 documentary shorts, and 6 animated films. They range in length from The Haven, a nearly two-hour feature film about four young men who spend a summer together after college graduation, to the three-minute animated short, Shapes and Tubes, and the three-minute narrative, The Craft. The subject matter couldn't be more diverse. Chutney Popcorn is a feature film about Indian women living in New York City. My American Vacation is an award-winning film about an aging Chinese woman who takes her Americanized daughters on a roadtrip. In the documentary category, Running on the Sun details the Badwater 135, a two-day, two-night, 135-mile marathon in Death Valley, while Poetic License delves into the poetry movement among American teens. In keeping with the festival's theme, documentaries deal with a wide range of cultures: black families in inner-city Chicago, gypsies in the Pacific Northwest, the Kurds in Turkey and Iraq, gay and lesbian communities, Orthodox and Chassidic Jews and a native community in Brazil. Documentaries also recount the lives of historical and current figures, from photojournalist Horace Bristol, who haunting photographs of migrant workers in the 1930s would inspire Steinbeck's Grapes of Wrath, to Iraqi President Saddam Husein and Tibet's second-most important leader; the Pachen Lama. Also of note are Reckless Indifference, the story of how the son of an LAPD officer was killed in the backyard of his best friend, a drug dealer, and Journey to a Hate-Free Millennium, which explores three of the most high-profile acts of violence, the Columbine killings, the race-related death of James Byrd, and the murder a gay teen Matthew Shepard. SPECIAL SCREENINGS AND SEMINARS The film competition is just part of the package. The festival begins on Wednesday, Nov. 15, at Libbey Park, with the DVD screening of a re-mixed Lost Horizon, Frank Capra's 1937 classic film which used the Ojai Valley as a backdrop. Cuba is the subject of a recurring theme throughout the festival. A panel discussion, "Buena Vista Film Club: New Visions of Filmmaking in Cuba," will include a handful of experts discussing the state of filmmaking in that island nation. The festival will also feature a screening of Paradise Under the Stars, a new Cuban film about dancers in Havana's Tropicana nightclub. Variety described the film as a "sex farce" in the tradition of Strictly Ballroom and Hollywood romantic comedies. "We though that it would be interesting to try to get some films out of Cuba that are rarely seen and bring them here," said Walsh. "I believe Paradise Under the Stars has only been seen a few times in America. So, it's an opportunity to see a beautifully made film. They have wonderful artists there who don't get a lot of exposure." Walsh said the original goal was to have more than one Cuban film, but the task proved too expensive and complicated. "There was one we wanted to get, [but it] had no subtitles. It would have cost us thousands of dollars to the subtitles," she said. Other industry seminars scheduled are "Shooting from the Chip: The Secrets of Digital Filmmaking," a discussion of digital technology and how it's changing the world of film television and video; "The Endless Page: The Art of Screenwriting and Rewriting and Rewriting and...," which covers how to write and sell screenplays in Hollywood; "Hollywood Confidential: Filmmakers Tell as Much as They Dare," during which filmmakers will discuss how they got their films made; and "I Can Play That: Actors of Acting," which includes actors Matthew Perry, James Whitmore, and Lolita Davidovich talking about what it takes to break in an keep a career going. Special screening include the world-premiere of A Place at the Table, a film by locals Bobby Houston, Robert Hudson and Bill Couterie about eight teenagers who come together in Ojai to share their families' oral histories. According to festival literature, "What emerges is a tapestry of astonishing diversity, from slavery to genocide to patriotism and pride." Also shown will be the West Coast premiere of Solid Ones. Directed by and starring Ojai native Brent Florence, it's the first film to be shot in High Definition Video. And don't let it be said that the youth have been forgotten. The Ojai Youth Film & Video Festival will allow more than a dozen kids from kindergarten through 12th grade to show their stuff and participate in workshops. Capping the festival will be the awards banquet luncheon, which is followed first by the screening of the "Best of Festival" award-winning film and then the screening of Jonathan Winters - On the Loose, a documentary that takes viewers through the life of comedian Winters, who will be given a lifetime achievement award. GUILDS AND GLITCHES Nothing this big happens without a few minor problems. Aside from not importing as many Cuban films as they would have liked to, festival organizers are also the victims of bad timing. Labor strife involving the Screen Actors Guild has caused Hollywood production companies to step up filming schedules in a typically light-load time. That means some of the talent Walsh had hoped to attract the festival are hard at work. Nonetheless, "I would say that we're pretty well on track," said Grumette. "I think it would be a miracle if it goes off without any sort of glitches whatsoever, but I'm convinced that it's going to be a very enjoyable experience for both the people who are putting it on and for the people who attend." |
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Dated: September 22, 2000 FILM FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES SCREENING SCHEDULE
Ojai Valley News….. The stage is set and the top talent selected for the upcoming Ojai Film Festival 2000, which will be held Nov. 15 to 19. Auditions are ongoing, however, for the 70 to 80 films that will be screened for judges and the public, that process to be completed by Sept. 30 and posted on the festival's Web site at www.filmfestival.ojai.net. The selection process, according to festival organizers, has been awesome. The Grumettes, and approximately 10 other volunteers, have been screening the tapes from such diverse locations as Cuba, China, Australia, Iran, Brazil, Russia, Israel and Tibet, as well as several from Ojai. A table in Steve and Liz Grumette's home is still stacked high with videotapes that arrived this week, right at deadline. More than 300 films were submitted - some one- or two-minute shorts, others a 10- to 20-minute treatment and more full-length features - and each was viewed by at least three volunteer screeners who then rated the film and wrote an essay on why they did or did not think it was worthy of screening. Steve Grumette noted that any film that received mixed reviews was viewed by a fourth person, after which a determination was made. The subject matter of the entries is as diverse as the locations from which they were sent, and range from documentaries about international political conflicts and hate crimes, to musical extravaganzas, romantic comedies, horror films and animation. The cream of the crop will be shown at the Ojai Playhouse, the Ojai Valley Inn & Spa and at Matilija Junior High School auditorium, and Grumette explained each venue has its own benefits and limitations. For example, due to its projector, the Ojai Playhouse will screen 35 millimeter films, while video will be screened at the Ojai Valley Inn and Matilija auditorium will be the venue for screening both 16 millimeter and video. The opening night's screening of Frank Capra's 1937 film, "Lost Horizon," will be at Libbey Bowl at 6:30. Ojai appeared as the mystical Shangri-La in the film, and because of that, this first film festival's theme is "Horizons Lost and Found: Enriching the Human Spirit Through Film." The opening night show will be free and open to the public, and food and music will be available in the Libbey Bowl area beginning at 4 p.m. Films in the competition will be judged by a panel of film industry professionals, with prizes - called "Libbeys" in honor of Edward Drummond Libbey - awarded in 12 categories. One film will also receive an Audience Choice Award. Honorary Advisory Board members, many of whom are expected to participate in the event, include Matthew Perry, Peter Strauss, Diane Ladd, Malcolm McDowell, Larry Hagman and Ellen DeGeneres. Also expected to participate is Tom Selleck, whose latest movie,"Crossfire Trail," based on a Louis Lamour book, will be screened Nov. 18 as part of the Cuban Festival day. Produced by TNT, the film was shown at the Sarasota Film Festival and will air on television in January. Jonathan Winters will be honored Nov. 19 with the showing of his film, "Jonathan Winters: On the Loose." Both Selleck and Winters will be on hand at receptions in their honor. Local filmmakers will have their night Nov. 16, when Bobby Houston, Bobby Hudson and Bill Couturie show "A Place at the Table," a film that is said to be a lesson in tolerance. On Nov. 17, Brett Florence will screen his high-definition movie, "Solid Ones," at Ojai Valley Inn & Spa. Again, the filmmakers will be available following the screenings to answer questions about their films, and receptions will follow each event, either at the screening venue or at a private home, in the case of the Cuban Festival. Holders of special passes, available today on-line or by calling 640-1947, can enjoy all the films, seminars and/or parties for a fixed rate. An "All Screening Pass" is $100, the "Gold Pass," which entitles the bearer to all screenings and seminars, is $125 and the "Platinum Pass," which includes all screenings, seminars and receptions, is $175. The Jonathan Winters gala is $50 per person and includes a luncheon at the Ojai Valley Inn & Spa. Tickets for the film makers' reception at the Ojai Valley Inn & Spa, and for the Cuban Fiesta at an East End estate, are $25 each. Seminars will be held at the Ojai Art Center theater and tickets may be purchased at the door. Volunteers to assist with ticket sales and venue management are still needed, and anyone interested should call Bev Rose at 646-5874. Individuals and corporations wishing to help sponsor the event should contact Ramona Benitez at http://www.filmfestival.ojai.net. prior to Oct. 5 to be included in program materials. © 2000 The Ojai Valley News Dated: August 30, 2000 FILMS FOR FIRST FESTIVAL WILL BE ANNOUNCED
The Ojai Film Festival Committee has received more than 270 film submissions from around the world. The screening committee has been working overtime to select the 40 films that will be screened this inaugural year. Those selections will be announced at a press conference to be held Sept. 20. Along with high quality films, the Film Festival will offer film industry seminars at the Ojai Art Center Theater which include: High Technology, Cinema Cuba, Actors on Acting, Women in Film, plus two seminars moderated by film critic Charles Champlin - Filmmakers' Forum and Writing for Film. A preview of featured events:
Press coverage will include L.A. Magazine, People magazine, E Channel, Los Angeles Times, Ventura County Star, Ventura County Reporter, the Ojai Valley News and other media. For information or questions, call Beverly Rose, marketing director, at 646-5874. |
