Two Screenings This Week

Oscar Winners! 
Inocente - Best Documentary Short Thursday February 28th in TV Studio @ 12:30pm

Argo - Best Picture Friday March 1st in Gallery @ 7:30 pm

Oscars Party on Sunday

Just a reminder  -

The 85th Annual Academy Award
OSCARS VIEWING PARTY
February 24, 2013 Doors @ 6pm

Join us Sunday, February 24th for the 85th Annual Academy Awards, presented live on Big Screen Plaza’s 30 ft. HD screen. Drink specials include $3 select beers and $6 themed cocktails. Make your Oscar picks and predictions in our Oscar Pool, and the winner will receive a bottle of champagne for their table. The celebration kicks off at 6pm with live Red Carpet coverage.

Big Screen Plaza | The Event Hotel 839 Avenue of the Americas New York, NY 10001 646.600.7141 | rsvp@bigscreenplaza.com

Send reservations to rsvp@bigscreenplaza.com to receive your official Oscar Ballot, which must be submitted via email or in person before the show begins to qualify. Spread your Oscar buzz with @BigScreenNY using #EventiOscars. See you in your Red Carpet finest!

The Simpsons Short - The Longest Daycare

Check out The Simpsons' Oscar-nominated Animated Short, Maggie Simpson in "The Longest Daycare":

http://www.metatube.com/es/videos/171544/Maggie-Simpson-The-Longest-Daycare/embed/

Oscar Nomination Events

Events:
Argo Screening in the Gallery March 1st! Details will follow.
2013 Live Action Shorts Screening @ IFC Center - 20 students to attend this Thursday Feb. 7th @ 7:40pm.
Click Here for Tickets - http://2013liveactionoscarscreening.eventbrite.com/

Oscar Nominations 2013

Oscars: Does the Academy represent the best?

So, this year I neglected to cover the Oscars in my typical fashion for several reasons. Most of which being that I am unusually overwhelmed (as you can tell with my door being closed, often:) And because most of the films and performances that I have been following for 2011 were not recognized with nominations. Being a spoiled sport does not fit within my personality, but I will admit that I felt curious as to why some of the best work out there was being ignored by the Academy.

The critical community keeps tabs on accolades by tracking awards given at film festivals; most importantly Cannes, Venice, and Sundance. Awards given at these festivals did not reflect in the nominations nor the winners on Sunday night's event. Even industry sub committee (VES for Visual Effects; SAG for Actors) awards did not accurately reflect the films that won. This got me thinking, "Who makes these decisions? Why were these people given the authority to decide the absolute best in filmmaking?"

The LA Times answered this for me. They have a great series of articles and videos exploring Academy voting statistics. Please click on the links below to learn more about the Academy and the voting process -
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/movies/academy/
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/movies/academy/la-et-unmasking-oscar-academy-project-html,0,7473284.htmlstory

In my opinion, I think the process to be an academy voter is antiquated at best. The pillars of our industry are not even voting members, as revealed in this report. So why do we give the Academy Awards such notoriety when their membership does not accurately reflect excellence in the industry or the critical community? I'm asking this as a person who regards the Oscars ceremony as the "Super Bowl of Film Nerds." My video attendance for the yearly spectacle has been consistent since 1990. I love the race, speculation, anticipation, and yes, the outfits. But, this year, I felt that the nominations did not reflect perfection in filmmaking, overall.

I'll end this post with a video from JoBlo that highlights the films that should have been nominated this year. Let me know what you think. Cheers, Eve.

2012 Oscar Nominated Shorts

http://www.ifccenter.com/series/2012-academy-award-nominated-short-films/

2012 Academy Nominated Shorts - Documentry, Live Action, Animation - are available at IFC Center until Feb 16th ONLY! Take this weekend and check out the shorts! I'll let you guys know if we can set up a date to see them, as a department, this week. I'll post that date HERE!!!! - Eve.

Oscar Nominations Announced Today!

http://www.oscars.org/awards/academyawards/83/nominees.html
Click on the link and see who's nominated. I would recommend that you guys check out the short film screenings in a few weeks at the IFC theater. Showtimes will be posted! Check this link to read last year's review: http://ainycvpstudents.blogspot.com/2010/02/oscar-shorts-review.html

Oscar Shorts: A review

Reminder: This review is written by an animator and filmmaker. I am not biased for one craft or the other :)
The live action shorts program this year was on par with their feature brothers and sisters (sometimes, better!). The New Tenants is a riot! If you are a fan of black comedy and farce, this short will not leave you disappointed. The ending was completely out of left field, but that's what I loved about it. The film keeps you on the edge of your seat while laughing out loud! Door and Kavi touched on serious global subjects that made you think and relate to the people involved on a personal level. Both films set out to do what they intended to do. Personally, I appreciate their mission, but that is not why I watch films. Miracle Fish had a great story and an equally great child actor as the main character. A predictable twist ending, however it was done with tact and stayed true to it's main character. Good storytelling! Instead of Abracadabra was hilarious and very cute! The love story is real. I feel that many people will relate to this film saying, "I know that guy!" Because the main character reflects someone that everyone knows! My vote this year would be for the New Tenants. It was well done and had a strong sense of storytelling.
I wish I could say the same thing for the Animated Shorts program. Overall, the feature animated selection has more character depth and complex stories. Story was the main component that was lacking in this year's animated shorts selection. Lady and the Reaper, A matter of loaf and death, French Roast, Sleeping Beauty, Runaway, and Partly Cloudy all relied on the typical animated film story pattern. Introduce crazy characters, the majority of the film is an elaborate chase scene, then it ends on a note of irony. All of the choices were technical achievements, but that didn't make them any more interesting than the live action shorts. The Kinematograph was another repetitive story about a man, obsessed with his work realizes too late that one person who cares about him is deathly ill. The only short that was remotely original was Logorama. At first, I thought it was ridiculous and stupid. The two dimensional characters (no pun intended) were mouthing off to each other in a over dramatized, elaborate farce with the Michelin Man chasing blood thirsty, arms smuggling Ronald McDonald in downtown LA, characterized by an overcrowded, heavily advertised backdrop. In the end, nothing is concluded, everything explodes, then the film ends with a zoom out into space. After my three years in LA, I have to admit that this film perfectly illustrates how I feel about the left coast. I am still deciding if i love or like this one. Logorama is my pic for best animated short.
Regardless of my opinions, I suggest that you go to watch both of these programs. Not enough people appreciate or attend short programs of either animation or live action films.
- Super Director Eve