Movie Notes – Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles

Screening at the Detroit Film Theatre, 26^th November 2011, 2pm

Hats off again to the Detroit Film Theatre for their bold scheduling, which has seen a great selection of movies this fall. Next up is the Chantal Akerman masterpiece, Jean Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles, (2005) a compelling work which chronicles the life of a widow, mother and prostitute in middle age, whose hours are dominated by routine. The routines by which Jean Dielman is enslaved become a framework for the cinematography, and through this technique the viewer comes to know something of the monotony the protagonist experience, providing a powerful metaphor for the feminist undertones of the piece. DFT summarises the piece as “a singular blend of feminism, modernism, and the avant-garde whose hypnotic editing and rigorous attention to detail make for a riveting, unforgettable experience.” There are no blockbuster emotional freebies with this film; it is uncompromising in its demands on the viewer, but the rewards are there for those who like something a little different from their night out at the cinema.

The Director – Chantal Akerman

Akerman is quoted as saying that she decided to become a film director at the age of fifteen, the night she saw Pierrot Le Fou, by Jean Luc Godard. Clearly a remarkable child, she enrolled in the impressively named Institut National Supérieur des Arts du Spectacle et des Techniques de Diffusion a film school in her native Belgium. Rebelling within her first term, however, she left and made a 13 minute long black and white film called Saute ma ville in 35mm format, which she funded herself, partly by doing administrative work. The film was premiered at the Oberhausen short-film festival in 1971 and Akerman’s film career took off from that point. She moved to New York where she became strongly influenced by the work of artists such as, Jonas Mekas, Stan Brakhage, Andy Warhol and, in particular Michael Snow. These structural film influences began to become apparent in her subsequent works, which became characterized by static framing and long takes.

The Movie

The plot for this movie is a simple one, following as it does the life of Jean Deilman (Delphine Seyrig), a middle-aged woman trying to get by. The routines that her life is dominated by provide the metaphor for her inability to break free from her condition, which consists of domestic duties, visiting her teenage son Sylvain (Jan Decorte) and being visited as a prostitute by her clients (Henri Storck, Jacques Doniol-Valcroze, and Yves Bical). The clients’ visits are shown to be as routine and monotonous as all her other tasks, and yet, as the film progresses over a period of three days, Jean Dielman’s life slowly begins to unravel. Each change in the rigid routine is what one viewer described as ‘powerful and meaningful barometers of the titanic emotions going on behind her blank mask.’ Akerman forces the viewer, through her use of long duration shots and a refusal to use reverse shots, to enter the world of Jean Dielman in a very powerfully emotional way. Without engaging in her routines as viewers we cannot know the significance of their disruption and we cannot feel the weight of the ‘titanic emotions’ she is hiding. Discomforting as it may be at times, this certainly makes for intense engagement, which proves shocking at its climax.

Critical Acclaim

Jean Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles was highly critically acclaimed on it release in 2005. The New York Times called it “the first masterpiece of the feminine in the history of cinema.” It was named the 19th-greatest film of the 20th Century by The Village Voice.

Should You Go And See It?

If you are interested in seeing ground-breaking films, then yes, this is indeed an important piece of work. As such it is challenging and demands your full attention for its duration, which is lengthy at 201 minutes. But without entering fully into Jean Dielman’s world, and experiencing the routines that govern it holding her together, you would be denied the experience of her unraveling. Akerman dares you to lose concentration, and every piece of dialogue and incident is rich with meaning and significance for the events to come. Delphine Seyrig is as beautiful as ever in the lead role, which she plays to perfection. For me, it’s a worthy finale to the fall season at the Detroit Film Cinema, and one you won’t forget in a hurry.

Mathilda Washington and candle

Emerging as only the fourth feature in the extra-prolific filmography of Kevin Everson, the images that unfold in Erie can be clearly linked to his ongoing focus upon the struggles of the African-American working class. Erie, unlike many of Everson’s other films, does not recirculate archival footage in order to draw a line connecting the contemporary and historical conditions of African- Americans. Nonetheless, the images he has recorded and compiled here operate within the realm of the ready-made, with nearly the entire film composed of a series of unedited single- takes with sync sound, presented back to back.

Forsaking montage for the most part, Everson refuses to insert an editorial presence through the tropes of narration or text, and instead favours a linkage which pivots upon the only direct dialogue in the film, spoken by three workers from an undisclosed General Motors factory. While their conversation centres upon the fate of the company, a united demand for leadership doesn’t stop at the corporate offices in Detroit, but instead radiates far beyond to all levels of government and the public who are now implicated in the crisis.

Produced during a residency at Hallwalls Contemporary Art Center, the film was photographed in the areas surrounding Lake Erie, primarily Northern Ohio and Buffalo, New York. Following the initial Rust Belt decline in these areas during the 1970s, unemployment again rose in 2008 and 2009 to levels exceeding 20 percent of the population in some areas. The form of Erie developed by Everson depends upon foregrounding the viewer’s awareness of real-time passing; both they and the film’s subjects must wait for the present moment to transform.

Kevin Jerome Everson (b. 1965) is a filmmaker, originally from Mansfield, Ohio, now living and working in Charlottesville, Virgina, USA. Everson’s four feature films and over 50 short films and videos have been exhibited at the Centre Pompidou in Paris, Redcat in Los Angeles, the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Cleveland Museum of Art, the Studio Museum in Harlem, the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles, the Whitechapel Gallery in London, and many other venues worldwide. He is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship, two NEH Fellowships, two Ohio Arts Council Fellowships, and an American Academy in Rome Prize.

Burton Theatre
3420 Cass Avenue
Detroit, MI 48201
Info: (313) 473-9238 or www.burtontheatre.com
Media City Film Festival: www.houseoftoast.ca
Tickets: $5–$7 (suggested donation)

Do you think Traverse City is great? Of course you do! Do you want to make a short film that shows why? You know it! It could make you and a whole bunch of local folks feel great … and it could land you some cold, hard cash.

FIM Group, in conjunction with the Traverse City Film Festival, is sponsoring a 2010 Bumper Contest. (Bumpers are short films that play before feature films.) Here’s an opportunity for filmmakers of all ages do strut their movie-making mojo by creating a short that illustrates “Why Traverse City.”

Top prizes are $1,000, $500 and $250 (with several $100 runner-up awards). Plus, all winning bumpers will be shown before feature films during the 2010 Traverse City Film Festival.

So for all you aspiring filmmakers who love Traverse City, here’s your chance to shine. Dust off the steady cam, oil up the boom stands and get that casting couch ready … because the deadline for submissions is June 20, 2010.

Visit www.traversecityfilmfest.org/about/?page=contest for complete contest rules, restrictions and submission guidelines.

Spring art classes can breathe new creativity into life, or help one retool for a career transition. Underscoring that the BBAC provides “art for all,” the spring roster includes 153 classes for adults as well as children as young as preschool in a variety of art media including painting, drawing, book arts, calligraphy, design, ceramics, metals, fibers, glass, jewelry, photography and sculpture.

There is a series of Welcome Classes for beginners. These are adult classes aimed at those who might say they “can’t draw a straight line.” Students with no experience get to see the world through an artist’s eye and learn fundamental tools that can unlock dormant creativity.

The BBAC faculty brings extraordinary experience and perspective. New classes of note are The Beautiful, The Personal and The Inappropriate and New Directions on Watermedia with noted artist Marilyn Derwenskus; and Designing with Acrylic Plastic with Stephen Caliguiri, who was termed “Prince of Plexi” by Barney’s in New York.

Amy Dietrich brings her Seventh Avenue experience to Flat Sketching for the Fashion Industry where she teaches drawing and design specifically for presentation boards and merchandising. The Floral Still Life is taught the former head of Wayne State University’s painting department, Robert Wilbert. John Murphy will teach Wheel Throwing for all levels, among other pottery classes. Murphy will be assuming the role of director of the Ceramic Arts Department at the BBAC.

There are also classes some might be surprised to find at a visual art center: Getting Personal, Memoirs & Personal Essays; Screenwriting; and Songwriting: Methods & Prompts. For the DIY crowd, there is a perennially popular class in Decorative Painted Furniture with step- by-step instructions. The entire spring program book is online at www.BBArtCenter.org.

Registration is ongoing through the week of April 12. Registration and class details are available online at www.BBArtCenter.org. One can also register in person, or by phone at (248) 644-0866. The BBAC is located at 1516 S. Cranbrook Rd. (Evergreen Rd.), Birmingham, MI 48009 between 14 and 15 Mile Roads.

The seminar is for all who wish to write movies and songs that complement scenes for movies. Learn what’s happening in Detroit’s world of opportunities in film, how to write movies and develop theme music. Be enlightened by Ms. Erica Hill, Film Detroit; Zelmer Bothic III, Screenwriter-worked with Spike Lee; Guitar Center Representative and Herbert Metoyer-, Musician/Poet and Author, topic Music Scoring Equipment & Software

Early Registration: $50.00
Registration at the Door: $70.00

Register on-line www.detroitwritersguild.com or Make money order payable to: DWG, 18508 Greenlawn, Detroit, MI 48221 Attn: Sharon Floyd
(313)213-7329

Wayne State University; 573 Student Center at 5221 Gullen Mall and Reuther Mall

College for Creative Studies will host a Toyota Lecture on Design by film and television production artist and CCS Alumnus Tim Flattery on Tuesday, April 6 at 6 p.m. In a landmark and unique career that has spanned over two decades, Tim Flattery is a modern day renaissance man in film and television production art. All the information on the lecture is below and two images of his recent work from “G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra” are on the right

From concept artist, costume & creature designer, to futurist & visual effects art director, to overseeing the design and in some cases the full-size construction of custom vehicles for films, including the memorable futuristic craft for “Back to the Future II,” “A.I. Artificial Intelligence” and the dynamic Batmobile for “Batman Forever.”

Since 1988, Flattery has raised the creative bar with his acclaimed design work on such classics, cult and blockbuster films as “Batman
Returns,” “Unbreakable,” “Total Recall,” “Child’s Play III,” “Men in Black,” “X-Men,” “Spiderman II,” “The Chronicles of Riddick,” “Transformers,” and “The Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Man’s Chest,” among others. Although Flattery has firmly established himself in the pantheon of production artists who specialize in Science Fiction/Fantasy and Superhero themed projects, his visionary talents have also played a role in such motion pictures as “Saving Private Ryan,” “The Client,” “Mission Impossible II” and “Flightplan.”

Flattery continues to enhance his already stellar career with the upcoming and highly anticipated genre films “The Green Lantern,” “Creature from the Black Lagoon” and “Real Steel.”

The lecture is free, open to the public, and held at CCS’s Wendell W. Anderson Jr. Auditorium located in the Walter B. Ford II Building on the Walter and Josephine Ford Campus (201 East Kirby, Detroit, MI 48202).

To RSVP online visit www.collegeforcreativestudies.edu/events/toyota (link) or call 313.664.7465.

CCS’s TOYOTA LECTURE SERIES ON DESIGN is sponsored by the Toyota Motor Company. Toyota Lectures occur throughout the year and cover all major areas of design.

Detroit Film Center and Y-ARTS are partnering to offer basic instruction in Final Cut Pro, the leading desktop digital video editing software.

Classes meet for 6 sessions starting Wednesday March 31, 7-9:30pm
Classes take place at the Boll Family YMCA Y-ARTS media lab.

Limited space available. Course fee $300. Deadline for registration is Saturday March 31.

Click here for further details

http://www.facebook.com/l/68e51;detroitfilm.org/pages/education.html

Boll Family YMCA
1401 Broadway
DEtroit, MI 48226

The short film “Every Thing To Live For” is screening this Thursday, March 25 at 7PM in the Out NIght Program at the Ann Arbor Film Festival.

ETLF is a melodrama made from a reel of found 8mm film, a loosely remembered romance novel and a lifetime of heartache.

Full festival calendar: http://48.aafilmfest.org/

Governor Jennifer M. Granholm and Detroit Mayor Dave Bing announced that city residents are now eligible to apply for training to work in Michigan’s growing film industry thanks to a $438,000 U.S. Department of Labor Community-Based Job Training Grant that will be administered by the Detroit Workforce Development Department (DWDD), a Michigan Works agency.

“Michigan’s growing stature in the world of film production means an increasing demand for talented, educated people to work in this sector as this federal award illustrates,” said Governor Granholm. “We have worked aggressively to create this strong new base industry as one part of our economic diversification and today we see again that our plan is working.”

Detroit residents can apply online at:

http://www.facebook.com/l/5a7ac;www.detroitmi.gov/Departments/DetroitWorkforceDevelopmentDepartment/tabid/81/Default.aspx

The DWDD Film Technician Training program will provide employment opportunities in the film industry through a partnership with the International Alliance of Theatrical and Stage Employees (IATSE), the Michigan Film Office, the City of Detroit, Michigan Department of Energy, Labor and Economic Growth, Wayne County Community College, Wayne County Film Initiative, Detroit Public Schools, Goodwill Industries, Detroit Public Television, Madonna University, Rodney Nolan and Associates-Certified Financial Advisers.

Wayne Community College in collaboration with IATSE, and the Michigan Film Office will develop a college curriculum for the Wayne County Community College District. During the management apprenticeship program, program participants will complete a U.S. Department of Labor certified apprenticeship certification, and have an option of continuing their education and earning a two- or four-year college degree in film production.

The DWDD Film Technician program will offer instruction to develop the specific skill sets needed to be a film production technician and provide the student with the necessary communication, financial, and mathematical skill training to assure success in the film industry.

The curriculum includes hands-on training with IATSE professionals, paid internships on productions and in the film industry, working in a classroom setting designed around the production environment, working in several studio settings on actual productions, receiving instruction in applied math-communications-English, mentoring by certified financial planners, individual counseling services, tutoring services and lectures by noted industry professionals.

The Film Technician Training program is expected to graduate 45 to 60 students over the next two years. The year-long course includes 36 class credit hours, 160 internship hours, 180 laboratory hours, and over 820 personal industry contact hours. It enables students to pursue associate’s or degree and then pursue a baccalaureate degree through agreement with partner universities.

Admission to the program is open to Detroit residents. Screening will be conducted by Goodwill Industries and the grant committee. Goodwill will also provide follow-up and counseling services.

“The 8th Samurai”, a behind-the-scenes retelling of Akira Kurosawa’s Samurai
masterpiece “The Seventh Samurai”.

Celebrating Michigan’s finest, the 1st Annual Detroit Independent Film Festival (DIFF) presents its line-up for 2010.

The first year festival includes over 80 films including the U.S. Premiere of George A. Romero’s newest Survival of the Dead, a special guest appearance by Lloyd Kaufman, and The Michigan Premiere of the festival hits of Mango Tango and Is It Just Me ? With a vast selection of films representing 11 countries, the DIFF is also hosting the 1st Annual Michigan Film Awards. An award ceremony that is going to honor the very best Michigan shorts, features, and performances that came out of 2009.

THE DIFF is proud of the stellar line-up that includes shorts, features, documentaries, and more. The Festival, whose motto this year is ‘Filmmakers First’ begins Tuesday, March 2nd and continues through Sunday, March 7th, 2010.

“Our first year festival is a triumph,” comments DIFF Festival Programming Director Nathan Faustyn. “We excluded entry fees for the filmmakers and we were very surprised in the amount of high quality films that were selected in our festival and the media coverage, both local and national, that we have already received”.

DIFF 2010 will kick off at the new Burton Theatre featuring Michigan’s very own Mike Manasseri’s “Babysitter Wanted”. On Wednesday, which we have coined “Troma Night”, we will have a full evening dedicated to screening audacious, uncompromising, and truly independent films, including a screening of “Paultrygeist: Night of The Chicken Dead” with a special guest appearance by Troma CEO/filmmaker himself Lloyd Kaufman (The Toxic Avenger & Class of Nuke Em High). Kaufman will host a Q&A immediately following the screening.

Opening “Troma Night” is the Detroit Premiere of the Michigan Film Award Best Feature Nominee, “The Stevie Wonder Show”, a satirical look at the power of reality TV and the fine line it creates between fame and infamy. The closing film of “Troma Night” includes the World Premiere of Thomas Video’s locally produced feature “You Can’t Rent Here Anymore”, which is described as a rude “Clerks”-like black comedy that turns into a horror film.

Thursday Night opens with a 2 for 1 Feature Block, including the U.S. Premiere of the acclaimed Canadian documentary “Eddies”. “Eddies” is a documentary that goes behind-the-scenes of this amateur Canadian beer commercial competition, which is now in its 16th year and going strong. This comedic character study follows six groups of producers on their quest to create a television commercial that will appeal not only to Big Rock but to their select panel of judges.

“Eddies” will be screened with the Best Feature nominated “Street Boss”, which is based on the true story of how the FBI brought down one of Detroit’s most notorious mobsters, Tony Jack.

Also on Thursday’s line-up includes the Michigan Premiere of “The Woman from Sarajevo”, directed by Israeli filmmaker Ella Alterman who will be in attendance to discuss her film. The 65 minute film (in Serbian, English and Hebrew, with English Subtitles) is a story about Zineba Haraga’s Serbian family, who hid a Jewish family during WWII and saved its members from certain death.

Later, Alterman became the first Muslim woman to be honored by Israel as “Righteous Among Nations”, which is a special recognition given to non-Jews who risked their lives during the Holocaust to save Jews from extermination by the Nazis. The closing night line-up includes a program of domestic and international short films screening at 10:00 p.m.

Friday Night’s line-up includes two grand premieres. Including the U.S. Premiere of George A. Romero’s “Survival of the Dead”, the Sixth film from “The Dead Zombie” series, which is about local residents simultaneously fighting a zombie epidemic off the cost of North America. Another Friday headliner is the Michigan Premiere of “Is It Just Me?” , a gay romantic comedy about a single gay man looking for love, without much success.

The Detroit Independent Film Festival will be hosting the 1st Annual Michigan Film Awards on Saturday March 6th, 2010. There will be an all day screening of the nominated shorts at the Deroy Auditorium on the campus of Wayne State University. “We received well over 125 films in competition; these are the very best short films that were produced out of the state” says DIFF programmer Nathan Faustyn. The screenings will begin at 10:30 am, and will end with an Award ceremony at 7:30 p.m. There are 15 categories including Best Michigan Feature, Director, Best Short, as well as technical and acting categories.

The Michigan Film Awards recognizes and celebrates important independent films that were produced in the state of Michigan in 2009. It represents the forefront of rising independent voices in the great state of Michigan. The Michigan Film Awards honors new and cutting-edge Michigan voices of film. Partnering with notable film industry companies, film educators, industry professionals, and Michigan film critics.

Also on the line-up for Saturday is the Michigan Premiere of Mango Tango, described by DIFF as “Sexy in the City” for the art-house crowd. Written, directed, and starring New York artist Marianne Hettinger, the film is about Marlene, a New York City dance teacher who’s driven to therapy by the increasingly neurotic men she meets. Marianne Hettinger will also be featured as a special guest and will host a Q&A immediately following.

The last day of the festival will be held Sunday March, 7th. The day will include the Detroit Premiere of the festival hit documentary “Official Rejection”. This is a documentary following the exploits of a group of filmmakers as they take their independent feature, “Ten ’til Noon”, along the film festival circuit, and the politics, pitfalls, triumphs and comic tragedies they encounter along the way. The documentary includes key interviews with filmmaker Kevin Smith, Lloyd Kaufman, Bryan Singer, Andy Dick, and Chris Gore. Following the screening we will present a panel hosted by Mitten Movie Project curator Connie Mangilin. This will be an open invitation to all filmmakers and anyone who has interest in independent filmmaking and filmmaking in general.

Also scheduled for Sunday is the Detroit Premiere of “The Twenty”, directed by Michigan native Chopper Bernet, who is now an actor residing in California. The film is about a married man who discovers a twenty dollar bill that has a hidden message that holds answers to his past. Closing the 1st Annual Detroit Independent Film Festival are short animated and documentary shorts.

1ST ANNUAL DETROIT INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL SCHEDULE

Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010

7:30PM “Babysitter Wanted”-Special screening with guest appearance by Michigan’s own Mike Manasseri (Director, Producer) who will introduce the film and host a Q&A immediately following.

10:00PM “Litterbug”-An earth-friendly, Generation X, coming-of-(middle)age, romantic comedy you can dance to.

Wednesday , March 3rd, 2010 – “Troma Night”

5:30PM “The Stevie Wonder Show”-Detroit Premiere

8:00PM A special screening of “Poultrygeist: Night of the Living Chicken Dead” with guest appearance by Lloyd Kaufman followedby a Q&A

10:15PM The World premiere of “You Can’t Rent Here Anymore”

Thursday, March 4th, 2010

3:30PM 2 for 1 Feature including The US Premiere of “Eddies: The Documentary” and “Street Boss”.

7:00PM The Michigan Premiere of “The Woman from Sarajevo”

10:00PM A Program of Short films

Friday, March 5th, 2010

4:30PM “Alphonso Bow” – Feature
6:00PM “Fairview Street” **Nominated Best Michigan Feature, Director Michael McCallum**
8:00PM “Is It Just Me?”-Michigan Premiere
10:00PM US Premiere of George A. Romero’s “Survival of the Dead”-the 6th film of from “The Dead Zombies” series
Midnight “Northville Cemetery Massacre”-Special Screening

Saturday March 6th, 2010 – 2010 Michigan Film Awards

10:30AM-7:30PM All day screening of nominated Michigan Shorts at the Burton Theatre and Deroy Auditorium.

7:30PM 2010 Michigan Film Awards begin with a screening of the five “Best Short” Nominations at Deroy Auditorium.

3:00PM Detroit Film Think Tank Forum—A Panel of Michigan Film Office representatives along with other experienced filmmakers lead a discussion on how we can move the Michigan Independent Film industry forward.

Sunday March 7th, 2010

12:15PM Detroit Premiere of “Offical Rejection”, a documentary about two filmmakers journey in the film festival circuit and how they struggled getting their small independent film recognition. Includes interviews by Kevin Smith, Bryan Singer, Andy Dick, and Chris Gore. A panel and discussion will be held immediately after the screening. Special invitation to all filmmakers and anyone interested in filmmaking.

6:00PM “The Twenty” – Detroit Premiere

10:00PM Closing Night – Viewing of 3 shorts, including the Detroit Premiere of “The 8th Samurai”, a
behind-the-scenes retelling of Akira Kurosawa’s Samurai masterpiece “The Seventh Samurai”.

Festival Pass $100.00
Survival of the Dead $10.00
Paultrygesit: Survival of the Chicken w/Lloyd Kaufman $10.00
Is It Just Me $7.00

All Other Screenings only $5.00

ABOUT THE DETROIT INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL (DIFF)
Our mission is to promote Independent filmmaking by providing a venue that connects an audience with emerging independent filmmakers across the great state of Michigan and around the country. The 1st Annual Detroit Independent Film Festival is not your typical festival driven by sponsors, corporations, and celebrities. Filmmakers were able to submit their entries at no cost. It’s truly for the independent filmmaker to showcase their work to an audience.

For more information, please visit www.burtontheatre.com or call (313) 473-9238. Tickets are available for all events and can be purchased at www.burtontheater.com and www.detroitindiefest.com. Festival passes for all days and events are also available for purchase. The 2010 Michigan Film Awards in association with Warner and Lacross Judge LLP, Greektown Casino, Rob Skates, and Lefty’s Lounge is a presentation of the Detroit Independent Film Festival, The Burton Theatre, and the Wayne State College of Fine and Communicating Arts.