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Written by Lindsey Walker | Posted by: Anonymous
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May ’99 Screenings
The Boston Jewish Film Festival’s (BJFF) office burned down, but their event will still take place. Three screenings are being held this month to benefit the festival. A sneak preview of "The Empty Mirror," which screened at 1997’s BJFF and will soon be released to theaters, will take place on May 6 at 7:30 p.m. Director Barry Hershey will be present for a question-and-answer session. Franco Zeffirelli directs Cher, Judi Dench, Joan Plowright, Maggie Smith, and Lily Tomlin in "Tea With Mussolini"; a sneak preview will screen May 13 at 7:30 p.m. Both "Mirror" and "Tea" play at the Embassy Cinema in Waltham. Tickets are $12, or $10 for seniors, students, and BJFF members. Finally, on May 30 at 7:30 p.m., the Harvard Film Archive will show "The Golem," a silent film with English subtitles that features original score and piano accompaniment by Jakov Gubanov. "The Critic," a five-minute short with Mel Brooks’ voice, precedes the film. All tickets are $10. Tickets are available now through Emerson MajesTix at 617-824-8000.
Three Harvard alumni will show their films as part of Harvard’s annual Art First Weekend on May 7 at the Harvard Film Archive. Martha Swetzoff’s "Theme: Murder," Nish Saran’s "Summer in My Viens," and Cindy Kleine’s "Till Death Do Us Part" begin screening at 7:00 p.m.
The Midnight Movie Series returns to the Coolidge Corner Theatre in Brookline, MA. Bizarre and classic cult films have been gathered for viewing on weekend nights at 12:00 a.m. beginning April 23 and continuing through June 26. "Mighty Peking Man," "Fantastic Planet," "Evil Dead II," and "Carrie" start off the series. Visit http://www.coolidge.org for show dates and times.
The First New England Transgender International Film & Video Festival, TranSpectives, will take place May 18-20 at the Coolidge Corner Theatre. The lineup includes, among other films, "Gender Outlaw," "Chocolate Babies," and "You Don’t Know Dick." The Festival will be held in memory of Rita Hester, who was murdered in Allston, MA, earlier this year. Contact http://www.coolidge.org for more information.
Events
Cast and crew from NBC’s "HOMICIDE: Life on the Street" will discuss women in television following a special screening of an episode at the Coolidge Corner Theatre. Anya Epstein, a Brookline native, wrote and co-produced the episode, "The Why Chromosome," which features female detective partners investigating girl gangs in Baltimore. Panel members include Epstein herself, executive producer Tom Fontana, post-production supervisor Irene Burns, and cast members Michael Michele (Detective Rene Sheppard), Toni Lewis (Detective Terri Stivers), and Callie Thorne (Detective Laura Ballard), who is also a Boston-area native. A reception at The Studio, the event’s sponsor, will follow the discussion. All proceeds will benefit the Coolidge Corner Theatre and the Home for Little Wanderers. Tickets are $25 for the screening and reception, and $12 for screening only.
Local film historian and sociologist Michael Bowen will introduce two B-movies on May 24 at the Harvard Film Archive. Doris Wishman’s "Bad Girls Go to Hell" plays at 7:00 p.m., and Rod Ormond’s "The Grim Reaper" plays at 9:00 p.m. Bowen, who is Wishman’s official biographer, is currently writing a book about the 50 worst movies of all time and why they are bad.
Producer J.P. Ouellette from Yankee Classics Productions will speak about pitching scripts and his connections in Germany at a New England Filmmakers Society meeting on May 18.
In Production
Also this month, the Farrelly brothers ("There’s Something About Mary") begin shooting their new film, "Me, Myself and Irene," in locations around Vermont and Rhode Island, including Newport. Jim Carrey stars in the story of a man whose multiple personalities fall for the same woman.
Call for Entries
The Providence Film Foundation Screenwriting Competition is calling for feature-length screenplays for its second annual competition. All winners receive free tuition to the New England Screenwriter Conference (August 6-8, 1999) and submission of their screenplay to a Hollywood executive, agent, and/or producer. The first-place winner receives $2,500, round-trip travel, and lodging to the conference, and a staged reading of their screenplay by nationally acclaimed actors. Also, a portion of the screenplay will be produced and screened at the Providence Rhode Island International Film Festival (August 6-19), and will provide a case study for the master film production class. The second-place winner receives $500, and third-place winner receives $250. A panel of industry professionals will judge the screenplays. The entry fee is $35, and the deadline is May 3. Go to http://www.providenceri.com/film/frame.html for more details.
