Hi, it's Anne, with a few parting shots as I head back for LA. I have to admit, Monday morning felt like school for me. I was hanging out at my hotel, it was snowing outside, and I was in the mood for a lazy day in front of the fire. But down on Main Street at the Queer Lounge, attorney and good pal Jonathan Handel was doing a panel on the Writers' Strike, its causes and effects, and prospects for a solution. I wanted to show up for him. So (cue the violins) I made the coffee, got up, got out, and got myself down there. The panel was so intriguing, I was glad I did.
Onstage (from left) were Jonathan Handel, attorney and digital-media law specialist ; Writers' Guild member Howard Rodman (screenwriter of festival entry Savage Grace); and Jason Stuart, chair of the Screen Actors' Guild's LGBT committee. Jonathan and Howard sparred on the question of why the negotiations between studios and writers had been derailed for so long. Jonathan put it down in part to intense dislike between the negotiators for the two sides. Howard countered that studios and writers make deals with people they dislike all the time. (Good point!) In Howard's view, the suits have been taken aback to find that this time around, the writers weren't going to settle for business as usual. Some of the issues in contention: writers' residuals for home video that were set way back when videos cost $99 to buy and plenty to make. Now the content costs pennies to produce, the studios are getting much higher profits; but the writers' share has stayed unchanged since -- as Howard put it -- "George Michael was in WHAM." Predictions? Jonathan: "The writers will settle by Oscar night. Howard (darkly): "We'll see."
GO HBO! THE NETWORK REALLY REPRESENTS AT A LIVELY PANEL ON "WHEN I KNEW"
In a couple of hours, it was my turn to moderate a panel, on HBO's upcoming documentary "When I Knew." It's based on the charming 2005 book by director and photographer Robert Trachtenberg, which tells around 80 personal stories not of coming out, but of something that happens long before: The moment when you KNOW you're different. We can all relate about that moment; often it happens in childhood, and it's not even consciously sexual. Instead, person after person, in the book and in the doc, talks about "getting butterflies" or "a funny feeling." One of my favorite moments from the film has a handsome guy remember how he was affected by TV's Grizzly Adams. "I guess I liked bears," he says.
Robert Trachtenberg was on the Sundance panel along with World of Wonder's head honchos Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato, who made the film. Rex Lee (who plays Lloyd, the long-suffering assistant in HBO's "Entourage") rounded out the group. Only at the last minute did I realize the panel would be attended by HBO vice president John Hoffman as well as Sheila Nevins, president of HBO documentary and family entertainment. Wonderful to see that HBO is so firmly supporting this project. Plus Sheila made incisive, not to mention hilarious, additions to the dialog in the room. Sorry I can't show you photos of the event itself. But take a look at this:
It's HBO's "When I Knew" video booth, one of the most popular features of the Queer Lounge. See the little camera lens on your far left?
Go behind the curtain, look at the lens, and this high-tech video booth lets you push a button and talk about When You Knew. Everybody's stories get uploaded to wheniknew.com. The booth was doing a roaring business the whole time I was at Sundance. Even better, it will tour the country this summer, so people like you and me will be sharing When We Knew for many months to come. As Randy Barbato told me, "For this film, the end is just the beginning." HBO's John Hoffman elaborated: because the "When I Knew" moment is so inoffensive, so innocent, and so universal, these anecdotes are a great opportunity to promote understanding. And the network will reach out to make sure they are seen in schools and so on. Of all the cool things HBO has done involving the gay community, this has got to rank near the top.
THE FINAL FRONTIER: THE NEW FRONTIER ON MAIN
So now it's Tuesday, and I've crammed all my sweaters into my suitcase. I have just a few minutes before my cab comes to take me to Salt Lake City and back to the day-to-day LA craziness. As always, I've Sundanced as fast as I can, but as always, I know there's something I missed. In this case, it's New Frontier on Main -- the new-media showplace located on the meandering basement floor among the various art galleries at 333 Main. Several people have raved to me about how affecting it is. Do I have time to catch it? Will I miss my cab/make my flight? I decide to chance it, anad I head for Main Street.
As I enter the seductive black labyrinth of New Frontier, digital trees wave their glowing leaves to welcome me. Everywhere there's a new interactive display or visually challenging film. There's not time to learn about them all. But with the clock ticking, I already know the one display I mustn't miss. In their own quiet room, off the main corridor are two interactive digital sculptures by Daniel Rozin: Snow Mirror (2006) and Peg Mirror (2007).
There's no describing the feeling of seeing these pieces, but here's what Rozin has to say:
"Peg Mirror comprises 650 circular wooden pieces that are cut on an angle. Casting shadows by twisting and rotating, wooden pegs forming concentric circles surround a small central camera. The mirrored image produced in this work is activated by software authored by Rozin that processes video signals and breaks up imagery geometrically, seemingly pixel by pixel."
In other words, when you approach Peg Mirror and make a gesture, it "sees" you and responds, like this:
Here's Peg Mirror as I first see it.
Now, I come closer and lift my arm. It "sees" my shoulder, and the wooden pegs swivel to mimic my shape. It's very…friendly, somehow. I'm always moved to see technology used in such human ways. But my favorite, I have to say, is Snow Mirror, housed a few feet away.
It looks at first like a pull-down home-movie screen, full of digital static, suspended in front of a black wall. That tiny black shape midscreen is the camera. As I walk closer, camera in hand, the "snowflakes" onscreen begin to rearrange, unhurriedly, as if they have their own tempo in mind. And then:
There I am, waving my arm and holding my camera high. You can see what I'm saying: "Wow!"
This ghostly image, so real but so abstract, sends a torrent of impressions through my mind. I think how quickly things disappear. I think of the ways in which Sundance has faded -- the plodding "Mysteries of Pittsburgh," presented this year as something fresh; the dazzling "Edward II," screened as something dated. But I also remember the excitement on the faces of the young filmmakers who stormed Park City this week. When they stand in front of Snow Mirror, they won't think how fleeting life is. They'll think, I can do better than this. And I know they'll find a way.
We ran up to Slamdance to pickup a couple of screeners and on our way down we stumbled across the Nintendo Wii Lounge. They were sampling their latest product, Wii Fit, a later incarnation of the Power Pad. It is a small white platform that is sensitive to the shifting of your weight. Kyle tried a game where you try to keep these balls from rolling off a platform that is moving and levitating in space. I tried to hoola hoop, but you can downhill ski, and even yoga. It may have been the most fun we have had all week.
[Here's Kyle balancing with all his might to keep those damn balls on the platform]
We also discovered the website The Find Green, an idea so good that I can't believe Google hasn't thought of it yet. You go to the site, type in the product or service you are looking for and it will give you a collection of Green vendors. I have been looking for Eco-friendly bath mats and found one in seconds. It organizes the products by the most available, but vendors are allowed to list their product for free. Go there now: The Find Green
There's something about the zombie genre that's catnip to filmmakers, and it's not hard to see what: when your movie monster is an uncommunicative blank, any theme can be projected on to him, whether it's conformity, disease, or apathy. Bruce LaBruce didn't select just one of these themes for his film Otto; Or, Up with Dead People -- he selected them all, and then some. From scene to scene, titular zombie Otto (Jey Crisfar) represents something different and provocative; LaBruce is less concerned with establishing a consistent thematic throughline than making a cheeky point to ponder and then moving on. Well, that, and showcasing really cute boys in varying states of undress. A man's got to have priorities, after all.
Case in point: is young Otto truly undead, or is he simply dead to the world, indifferent to what it has to offer? He shuffles around Berlin with the posture (and hoodie) of an indie-rock slacker, barely even speaking until he's discovered by experimental filmmaker Medea Yarn (Katharina Klewinghaus, a hoot). Medea is completing work on her longtime pet project Up with Dead People -- a call to arms for gay zombies to receive equal rights -- and while she's cast human actors in the lead roles, Otto represents a tantalizing real thing. Meanwhile, Otto himself is periodically shaken by flashbacks to a human relationship he once had, as well as the dawning realization that his undead status might be the result of something most unexpected.
While LaBruce is noted for blurring the lines between independent film and pornography -- and there are definitely a few explicit scenes in Otto -- it's also a much more tender film than his fans might expect. What Otto wants principally is not just flesh but feeling, and for any gay man (zombie or not), the latter is always the hardest to come by. LaBruce is typically witty and playful (Medea's girlfriend -- the wonderfully named Hella Bent -- is shot like a silent film heroine, complete with title cards) but the ideas are richer and more resonant than ever before. For a zombie who rejects brains for ropy viscera, Otto's got a lot on his mind.
Bring Sunshine Cleaning up at Sundance and you're likely to hear the same thing, over and over, "It's no Little Miss Sunshine." I agree -- and thank God for that. While I found the overrated Little Miss Sunshine to be crushingly schematic and one-note, Sunshine Cleaning is human, messy, and lovely. Better yet, it hails the arrival of two major female talents (director Christine Jeffs and screenwriter Megan Holley) and confirms two others: surging star Amy Adams (Enchanted) and scene stealer Emily Blunt (The Devil Wears Prada).
The two play sisters down on their luck in sun-baked Albuquerque, New Mexico; Rose (Adams) is a former cheerleading star who's fallen into a dead-end affair with local cop Mac (Steve Zahn), while Norah (Blunt) is a rebel who blows off her boyfriend for a tentative relationship with a local blood bank worker (Mary Lynn Rajskub -- their meet-cute is depicted above). Each sister is seriously poor -- their father (Alan Arkin), who's obsessed with get-rich-quick schemes, is of no help -- so plucky Rose decides to take Mac up on his advice and go into the lucrative business of cleaning up after crime scenes. It's not the kind of work that's going to impress Rose's snobby former friends, but she and Norah are good at it, and it allows both sisters to finally get out from under the thumb of their thwarted expectations.
Adams is a pure pleasure, deepening the perky persona she's perfected in both Enchanted and Junebug; Rose may be doggedly optimistic, but the cracks in her facade reveal something desperate and in dire need of love. Blunt has the supporting role, but that's a niche this actress has claimed as her own, as it allows her to give consistently intriguing performances that are unsympathetic but fascinating. Only Arkin struggles a bit, never totally divesting himself of the similar blowhard he played in Little Miss Sunshine. That character and the sunny title will make comparisons unavoidable when Sunshine Cleaning is eventually bought and released, but for a film about sidestepping expectations, there's no better challenge it's suited for.
Last night, after our panel, we went up to the third annual Stella Artois dinner at the Stein Erickson Hotel. The Stein Erickson is considered by most to be the nicest hotel in the area and is situated high atop a mountain overlooking the city. The Stella dinner is always my favorite meal of the festival. It is a four course meal with beer pairings instead of wine. It is also a welcome change to escape the bustle of Main St. and disappear up the mountain for a couple of hours.
We were greeted of course with beer, while we mingled with some filmmakers, festival executives, and press. The topic on everyone's lips was Heath Ledger of course, but there was some talk of films as well. Finally we were all seated for our first course.
Stella Steamed Little Neck Clams & Baby Potato Stew. Paired with Stella Artois
Next up: Hoegaarden Braised Monkfish Loin over Lobster & Yuzu Risotto. Paired with Hoegaarden
[The monkfish is notoriously hard to clean so you need to get one already cleaned if possible from your fishmonger. Also their favorite food is Lobster so the chef thought it very cute to serve it in a bead of Lobster. Hoegaarden is the original Belgian White Beer, so it is very light and refreshing, much like you would pair a white wine with fish]
The third course was: Korobuta Pork Tenderloin in Leffe with Roaring Forties Blue Cheese Potato Gratin Leffe Gelee, Root Vegetable Sauce. Paired of course with Leffe
[Leffe tastes almost like champagne it is so sweet, which is why it would also be paired with the desert. It is by far my favorite of the beers. Apparently it also has the highest alcohol content.]
[The caramelized honey cream in this dish was about the most amazing thing I have ever tasted. I would have bathed in it if it would not have seemed improper in this very upscale dinner.]
After dinner my good friends at Indiewire took us home where I finally got to have a fire.
In the last few lines of Michael Chabon's book The Mysteries of Pittsburgh, melancholy narrator Art Bechstein looks back at his just-concluded summer and notes (don't worry, it ain't a spoiler), "The people I loved were celebrities, surrounded by rumor and fanfare; the places I sat with them, movie lots and monuments. No doubt all of this is not true remembrance but the ruinous work of nostalgia, which obliterates the past, and no doubt, as usual, I have exaggerated everything."
It's a terrific bit of writing and a passage that comes to mind repeatedly while watching Rawson Marshall Thurber's new film adaptation. Now, Art's lovers really are celebrities (Sienna Miller and Peter Sarsgaard), their hangouts not just movie lots but movie sets. And nostalgia? Why, it's something that's unavoidably invoked by this adaptation, since Thurber's script has jettisoned so much of the beloved book's plot and so many of its main characters. The result retains some of the novel's themes but little else -- enough so that the film adaptation, had it changed the names of some characters, could have gotten away with calling itself a wholly original work.
At least, to a point. Thurber's changes have made The Mysteries of Pittsburgh flatter, more generic, and more like umpteen Sundance films that have come before it. In the book, young Art is at a crossroads, and three people in his life represent a possible future: Phlox, his girlfriend, beckons Art toward tightly-wound domesticity; his gay friend Arthur embodies a tantalizing romantic path that could change Art's life; and small-time hood Cleveland reminds Art that life and death have a way of screwing up his best-laid plans. Thurber's adaptation excises Arthur entirely, demotes Phlox to a one-note supporting role, and beefs up Cleveland (newly bisexual) to serve as a substitute love interest for Art (Jon Foster). Worse, Thurber has replaced lively Phlox with Jane (Miller), a far blander creation. Where Phlox was maddening, intelligent, and exotic, Jane is merely compliant. It's the adaptation in a nutshell.
While the characters in the book delighted in language -- especially the witty Arthur, who's especially missed -- their revamped movie counterparts have little to say and even fewer places to go. Why ditch Chabon's lyrical curlicues for narration ("And that's when it happened") that was pedestrian even on The Wonder Years? And why retain the novel's bisexual themes only to cast two actors -- Foster and Sarsgaard -- that lack any sort of erotic heat together? Thurber no doubt had his reasons, but unfortunately for fans of the book, what they were remains a mystery.
The Advocate hosted a panel today entitled "Gay Filmmakers and Sexual Provocation" at The Queer Lounge at 3:00PM. The panel was conceived and moderated by Advocate film critic Kyle Buchanan and featured Isaac Julien (Young Soul Rebels, Derek), Lesli Klainberg (Indie Sex, Fabulous! The True Story of Queer Cinema) and Bruce LaBruce (Otto; Or, Up with Dead People). The premise of the panel was this question: with so many of these directors from the New Queer Cinema movement reuniting this year at Sundance, is there a chance that they will return to their sexually provocative work from the '90s? And the larger question is, what happened to sexually explicit gay cinema and what does the term even mean now?
[The stage was set for a discussion that no doubt everyone could be interested in]
The panel was very interesting and, at times, very heated. Mainly, all the directors were big supporters of the right to make queer cinema in any way that takes shape. And then, at some point, the topic veered towards GLAAD. Some panelists implied that when they read scripts containing gay characters and give notes it may be considered a form of censorship. Klainberg particularly, who had done a lot of research into the subject with her work on Indie Sex, was very vocal about her disagreement with the practice. This was made all the stranger by the fact that we were in the GLAAD-sponsored Queer Lounge and their logos were emblazoned behind the panel. GLAAD Entertainment Director Damon Romine dispelled a lot of rumors and felt that GLAAD did a service to straight filmmakers who want to get it right and have nowhere else to turn. One very vocal member of the audience disagreed and used the forum to air his grievances with GLAAD while another rebuffed Here! and Logo for not making sexually provocative enough subject matter. Julien agreed that we as a gay audience, just like the rest of culture, had perhaps become too comfortable and wanted safer images delivered in expected structures. All in all, it was a very spirited room.
[Here is LaBruce, no doubt saying something sexually explicit]
But for the most part, it was an informative perspective on how these filmmakers view the role of sex in their work and how they feel either responsible or not responsible to show more of it. LaBruce spoke very candidly about his work in the hardcore porn industry and how it perhaps shapes his aesthetic. But even he noted that having more money -- as he did in Otto -- made him constantly think about how the pushing of each boundary might affect the final product's ability to be marketed. So we come to the age-old question, "chicken or the egg?" Particularly when it comes to the question of only casting attractive people in these roles. Does society dictate these aesthetics or do these filmmakers dictate society's aesthetic? No answer was to be had, but it was a fantastic panel and Buchanan was very charismatic and adept. Afterward someone from The Queer Lounge remarked that he was one of the best moderators they'd had.
[Here I am with Bruce LaBruce and the star of Otto; Up With Dead People, Jeremy Crisfar]
After the panel we had a drink with Klainberg at the Sundance Channel party at 350 Main. She has quickly become one of my favorite people -- Kyle's, too. Here are some highlights from the panel:
LaBruce discusses the punk scene:
Julien discusses Sebastiane, Derek Jarman's first film:
Klainberg discusses how film has changed since the '90s:
Okay so for whatever reason my computer and my cell phone did not change time zones. This means I constantly think that I have one more hour to work or get places than I actually do. This morning I woke up with two goals, blog yesterday, and get to the 12:30 Slamdance screening of Pageant. The film is about a drag pageant and there have been drag queens wandering around Sundance for days. So of course at what I think is 11:15 I tell Kyle that I need to get ready to make it to the screening. He reminds me it is actually 12:15 and there is now no way I will make it to the screening. Lame!
I met directors Ron Davis and Stewart Halpern-Fingerhut outside The Queer Brunch a couple of days prior. Here they are sporting their cute sashes. Sorry guys.
Tilda Swinton (who just today was nominated for her role in Michael Clayton) told me just two nights ago that Main Street in Sundance has become a "shopping mall." And she is right. Last year there was a backlash against the unofficial Sundance sponsors which meant a little less gifting. Also most people were sporting "Focus On Film" buttons to drive the point home. This year it is back, and big time. The buttons have gotten smaller, and I have seen maybe two the whole time, and I heard from another journalist that there were over 150 different gifting suites and lounges this year. I took part in a few.
My first stop was the L-R-G Gifting Villa, where attendees ate hors d'oeuvre while sipping Courvoisier and perusing the goods. The suite is names after a relatively new men's line, L-R-G, which had an interesting selection of Apres Ski meets skater chic. They also carry women's clothes, but their main focus is men. They were good enough to give me my new favorite coat at Sundance.
[This coat feels like I am wearing a down sleeping bag everywhere I go, and has actually made it possible for me to wear less layers]
Here's the thing. Yes, gifting is out of control, but when it started it was very functional. Timberland has given me coats and boots over the years and without them I would have frozen to death. Most events give you as a parting gift some form of winter wear (The In Bruges party gave out a small billed, woolly ski cap, which would have been attractive if it didn't have the bill)
Timberland was back this year and gifting from their "Eco line." These boots, which have kept film critic Kyle Buchanan's feet dry through two days of snow, are made largely from recycled materials. (The lining of the boots are made from recycled plastic bottles, which is hard to believe as they are so soft) Timberland is also going a step further and putting ingredients labels—just like food—on their packaging, which tells you just what portion of the product is made from re-purposed material, and how big or small your carbon footprint will be when you buy it.
Back at the L-R-G Suite, I picked up these killer, if a bit bling for my tastes, headphones from Skull Candy.
And I was introduced to a new water, or energy drink, WheyUp. The drink has 20 grams of protein in every bottle, which is more than I think I need from a beverage, but if you are training and trying to bulk up, this could be handy to have. It doesn't taste half bad either.
One beverage I can vouch for though is Function, particularly their Urban Detox drink. The drink is designed by doctors and I am told it features the ingredients used in hospitals when you come in for dehydration, plus something that supposedly scrubs your lungs and sinus. I can't prove it, but they can at Function Drinks . All I know is that if you drink one before bed it seems to prevent a hangover and so at this altitude and with this dry of a climate I have been drinking a few a day.
I also dropped by the St. Ives suite and spa, where I was told later Rex Lee stopped in for a facial. They were launching a whole new line of "all-natural" products, which I am always quick to support—though I haven't yet done the research as to what their all natural label means. These will be available at your local Wal-Mart and other mass chains.
Yesterday I stopped into the Main Event Red Carpet Lounge & Green Suite at Hotel Park City, where there were some cute finds. A small company called La-Tee-Da! was there with their candles that also had infusion rings, creating "patented Effusion Crown Candles." It's complicated but basically the smell good. Also I found a lesbian owned t-shirt business called We Pluribus. Laura Evans stared the company to create shirts that brought the country together. A very noble and ambitious goal for a t-shirt. They sport peace signs and slogans about how we are all one country and are made with organic cotton and apparently created with power from sustainable energy. Leave it to us to do it right. Check them out at We Pluribus .
Also I met a lovely woman who was making bags out of recycled yoga mats, the cutest of which is a yoga bag made out of a yoga mat. I lost her card sadly but we will be seeing more of her product in the magazine. She was talking to me about her gay brother when I was introduced to the next booth of product, a new skin cream called Regen de Peau II, whose founder Oli Scarlato began to tell me about her gay nephew who is like a son to her. Her own son passed away it seems and her nephew has become a huge part of her life since then. The rest of her life is devoted to the product which she devised to help burned children and continues to give a great deal of product and proceeds to. It just turned out the cream also helped with anti-aging and generally looking good, so the other part of the business is selling this high end product to women and men to look younger and healthier.
Now this may have been my favorite moment since, in my last minute packing, I had put my C.O Bigelow moisturizer in my carry on bag, and apparently it was just way too much liquid for the security at Burbank Airport to allow. As I was about to miss my plane I gave it to them and was without moisturizer since. So now I have something to keep my skin from peeling off in this dry climate. See gifting can be functional, or at least that is what we keep telling ourselves.
Lastly I was at the Lamborghini accessories booth, asking the woman about the price points of her watches for a story we were working on about watches in a coming issue, when, mid-sentence, she was grabbed by one of the suites publicists and turned to her left to be introduced to Radha Mitchell. I was quickly forgotten—a reminder of what Sundance is now really all about.
Hi, it's Anne, catching you up on the annual Outfest Queer Brunch, sponsored this year by Here! TV. Like everything else at Sundance, the Queer Brunch has grown fantastically. When I got to the Grubsteak Restaurant in Prospector Square, there was, get this, a press line, with a smallish phalanx of photographers flashing away at one of the stars of festival film The Hottie and the Nottie--a bit surreal at 11 in the morning, with snow on the ground and nothing but shuttered shops surrounding us.
Inside, it was hot and cold running queers chowing down on eggs, bacon, and bloody marys. Not to stereotype, but the first thing I overheard was a guy near the food line wailing to a friend, "But he said I looked FAT!"
Further inside, though, were some lovely gays, starting with:
(from left) Jason Stuart, David Millbern, and Paul Colichman. (Paul, chairman of Regent Entertainment and CEO and founder of Here! TV, is also David's partner.) The highlight of the gathering was Paul's pitch for the Outfest Legacy Project, which aims to help preserve LGBT film. You've probably never heard Paul speak about the fight for gay equality. If you had, you'd remember. He rocked the joint.
At a nearby table was Scott Seitz of SPI Marketing. When you feel that good gay vibe from brands like Absolut, Scott's professional expertise may well be involved.
Creative and life partners Andrea Sperling (left) and Jamie Babbit shared a quick hug. Their subversive romp Itty Bitty Titty Committee hit a home run with gen-next queer girls in 2007.
WHAT A LAME CONNECTION!
I've got more pix to show you, but, what can I say, tonight the wireless broadband connection from Park City is totally useless. Better to let it go and post more for you soon.
BUT WHAT GLAAD NEWS!
Before I log off, though… Corey, our A&E Editor, already told you in this blog that The Advocate was nominated for four GLAAD Media Awards yesterday, in an announcement held here in Park City. This is the first year gay media were considered eligible for inclusion in GLAAD's awards competition. Obviously, awards don't mean everything. But we put in many hours of
effort to bring you fresh and interesting stories in each issue of The Advocate, and
it feels great to be recognized.
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