It’s been a busy semester and the blog has been a little neglected but now that the winter break is approaching there will be more time for updates (I hope). Anyway here’s the shortlist of documentaries under consideration for Best Documentary. I’m unfamiliar with a majority of them. “Blindsight”“Can Mr. Smith Get to Washington Anymore?”“Deliver […]
Continue reading“Dream Deceivers” available on-line…
To those interested in seeing an excellent documentary direct your web browsers to:http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5636910946432086857 Dream Deceivers: The Story Behind James Vance vs. Judas Priest On December 23, 1985, two young men in Reno, Nevada put shotguns to their own heads after drinking and smoking marijuana as they listened to a record by the English rock group […]
Continue readingCool Website: Media That Matters Film Festival
THE SIXTH ANNUAL MEDIA THAT MATTERS FILM FESTIVAL includes 16 streaming videos by independent filmmakers committed to changing the world, in 8 minutes or less. This year’s festival is titled, Good Food, and consists of videos advocating for a “healthy, sustainable, and delicious future.” link
Continue readingObit: Jack Palance, 87, one of the heaviest of screen heavies
It’s impossible to capture in words the menacing effect Palance was able to exude on-screen. His deepset eyes and tight angular face, even as a younger man, probably got him typecast as a villain early on but his acting made his characters indelible. He’s probably best known to today’s moviegoers for the role of Curly […]
Continue readingOnline event of the day: Vampire Blog-a-Thon
The blood begins to fly at 1:00pm today. Discussions of all things Desmodontinae (vampire bat) on film. AU literature professor Jeffrey Middents contributes a piece on Spanish-language Dracula. For more information see-the Vampire Blog-a-Thon linkJeffrey Middents’ “Drácula sounds much better with an accent” link Media Services own vampire collection-Bram Stoker’s Dracula [1992] (DVD 2048)Buffy the […]
Continue readingNew library addition: Our Brand is Crisis
For many years American political strategists have consulted on the campaigns of presidential hopefuls in other countries, discreetly molding the opnions of the voting puplic, spreading US-style politicking around the world. This riveting documentary follows James Carville and a team of consultants as they help Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada become president of Bolivia. The same […]
Continue readingCool classic short now online: Sour Death Balls
Academy award winning documentary director Jessica Yu first made a splash with this elegantly simple 1992 film of an array of people suffering through an intensely sour candy experience. Picture an Andy Warhol screen test series that’s suitable for kids. link
Continue readingNotable new addition to AU Faculty: Filmmaker Louis Massiah
Massiah has joined the faculty of the School of Communication. Much of Massiah’s work covers subjects related to social activism. He produced and wrote Power!: 1967-1968 (VHS 7409) and A Nation of Law?: 1968-1971 (VHS 7412), both part of the Eyes on the Prize II series, which is soon to be released on DVD. Another […]
Continue readingOnline video discovery: AIR: America’s Investigative Reports
I’ve been captivated by the above-mentioned series on PBS in case you hadn’t yet discovered it. What I like about it is the focus is on the craft of journalism using ground-breaking current stories, such as the system-wide mismanagement of FEMA, as the context. It’s largely about following leads, digging up sources, and the collaboration […]
Continue readingNotable new addition to AU Faculty: Activist journalist and filmmaker Saul Landau
Landau is teaching international relations and politics in the School of International Service (SIS). To date, he has made forty films and authored ten books on a wide range of domestic and international political issues covering areas such as Cuba, Chile, Chiapas, and Iraq. He was also a longtime host of “Hot Talk”, an interview […]
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