8.02.2022

DO NOT FORGET ME: THREE JEWISH MOTHERS WRITE LETTERS TO THEIR CHILDREN FROM THE GHETTOS OF SALONICA

"DO NOT FORGET ME" is a docudrama feature based on Dr. Leon Saltiel's book that chronicles the Jewish pogrom from 1941-1945 in Salonica, Greece. 

The project traces the roots and evolution of anti-Jewish pogroms in Thessaloniki, Greece circa WWII through a selection of 25 letters (out of 72 original letters recovered in a 3 year research in personal archives) written by 3 Jewish mothers (portrayed by 3 different actresses) to their children while they anxiously waiting to embark on the train to the mass extermination camp of Auschwitz-Birkenau.

THE AGONY OF GREEK JEWS feature length documentary


 


The Agony of the Greek Jews" produced and directed by Dimitri Vorris is about the unknown Holocaust in Greece based on the works and the research of historian and author Steven B. Bowman. It is about the 57.000 martyrs of the Greek Holocaust and the Jews who joined the resistance and fought against the Nazis. 

The Agony of Greek Jews tells the story of modern Greek Jewry as it came under the control of the Kingdom of Greece during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. In particular, it deals with the vicissitudes of those Jews who held Greek citizenship during the interwar and wartime periods. 

 Individual chapters address the participation of Greek and Palestinian Jews in the 1941 fighting with Italy and Germany, the roles of Jews in the Greek Resistance, aid, and rescue attempts, and the problems faced by Jews who returned from the camps and the mountains in the aftermath of the German retreat. Bowman focuses on the fate of one minority group of Greek citizens during the war and explores various aspects of its relations with the conquerors, the conquered, and concerned bystanders.






6.06.2021

FINANCIAL CORRUPTION IN THE TUNE OF MILLIONS OF EUROS IN GREEK FILM CENTER ACCORDING TO SILVER-BEAR WINNER COSTAS FERRIS


 FINANCIAL CORRUPTION IN THE TUNE OF MILLIONS OF EUROS IN THE #GFC #GREEKFILMCENTER THE STATE BODY THAT HANDLES TAXPAYERS' MONEY? Silver Bear winner for "Rebetiko" director #CostasFerris, a former member of the board of directors of state body Greek Film Center, thinks so.
Here's an exceprt of his interview to journalists Yiorgos Petropoulos and Dimitri Kanellopoulos of the indie newspaper
www.efsyn.gr

 
"QUESTION: It was written in electronic media that the relevant findings are kept is in the drawer of the Minister of Culture (Mrs. Lina Mendoni) and must be given to the public prosecutor because criminal responsibilities for previous administrations of the Greek Film Center arise. What exactly is the truth?

Costas Ferris: In these findings, persons from the current Greek Film Center administration are involved, and is absolutely certain that the (current) Holevas administration had an obligation by law to deliver them directly to the Public Prosecutor.
This omission is a conscious criminal offense with a possibility of the intentiom of fraud and implies an ex officio intervention by the Public Prosecutor. The forner President of Greek Film Center Panos Loukakos and Vice-President Christina Manolopoulou (after our resignation) sent to the Minister of Culture a memorandum mentioning these (financial) crimes and the (3 different auditors reports), together with many other violations of the law, to the new administration under Mr. Markos Holevas. This memorandum is included in my recent public letter that some journalists omitted (from publication). I do not know whether Mr. Holevas informed the Minister. I know, however, that the Director General of Greek Film Center Pantelis Mitropoulos failed to sign the findings (according to the law that is his legal obligation) and the legal adviser to the GFC Mr. Pericles Polychronidis was fired by Mr Cholevas and the current administration.
What is more than certain is that Mr. Holevas did not forward the findings to the competent prosecutor, as the report of the State's General Accounting Authority and, as the Minister has ordered. Instead, he handed the two legal reports to another lawyer of his own choice, Mr. Alexandros Christidis, to cover up. And, of course, he did not inform the Minister that in lawyer's Asprogeraka-Grivas' report, as in the findings of State Auditors, Certified Accountants and Financial Inspectors Batsouli, Androutsos and Triantafyllou, there's possibly (!) mentioning of his personal involvement and the right thing to do would be to resign immediately immediately in order to assist the pending investigation within the Greek Film Center! 

But he had preceded the concealment from the current administration of the Ministry of Culture of the fact that he had an open court dispute with the GFC and therefore should not have accepted his appointment (as President) from the very beginning, as laid down in Article 20 of law 3905/2010. Two acts of unlawfulness (and violations of the Penal code) within one week! These are outrageous things. "

6.05.2021

CORRUPTION AND DECADENCE IN GREEK FILM CENTER ACCORDING TO SILVER BEAR WINNER DIRECTOR COSTAS FERRIS (ANTΡΟ ΠΑΡΑΝΟΜΙΑΣ ΤΟ ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΟ ΚΕΝΤΡΟ ΚΙΝΗΜΑΤΟΓΡΑΦΟΥ)

1  

- ΕΡΩΤΗΣΗ: Γράφτηκε σε ηλεκτρονικά MME ότι το σχετικό πόρισμα βρίσκεται στο συρτάρι της υπουργού Πολιτισμού και πρέπει να δοθεί στον εισαγγελέα γιατί προκύπτουν ποινικές ευθύνες για προηγούμενες διοικήσεις. Τι ακριβώς ισχύει; 

- Κ. Φ.: Σ' αυτά τα πορίσματα εμπλέκονται πρόσωπα από τη σημερινή διοίκηση του ΕΚΚ Αυτό που είναι απολύτως βέβαιο είναι πως η διοίκηση Χολέβα είχε εκ του νόμου υποχρέωση να τα παραδώσει άμεσα στον εισαγγελέα. Η παράλειψη αυτή είναι συνειδητό ποινικό αδίκημα με ενδεχόμενο δόλο και συνεπάγεται αυτεπάγγελτη παρέμβαση του εισαγγελέα. Ο πρόεδρος Πάνος Λουκάκος και η αντιπρόεδρος Χριστίνα Μανωλοπούλου (μετά την παραίτησή μας) απέστειλαν την επιστολή υπόμνημα κάνοντας μνεία αυτών των εγκλήσεων και της έκθεσης νομικού ελέγχου, μαζί με πολλές άλλες εκκρεμότητες, στη νέα διοίκηση υπό τον κ. Μάρκο Χολέβα. Η επιστολή αυτή περιλαμβάνεται στην πρόσφατη δημόσια επιστολή μου και κάποιοι δημοσιογράφοι παρέλειψαν (εκ του πονηρού ) την αναδημοσίευσή της. Δεν γνωρίζω αν ο κ. Χολέβας ενημέρωσε την κ. υπουργό. Γνωρίζω πάντως πως ο γενικός διευθυντής Παντελής Μητρόπουλος παρέλειψε να υπογράψει τα πορίσματα ως ώφειλε, ο δε νομικός σύμβουλος του Κέντρου Περικλής Πολυχρονίδης, που επίσης ορίζεται από τις Εκθέσεις ως εκπρόσωπος του Κέντρου στη δικαστική συνέχεια... απελύθη από τον κ. Χολέβα και το διοικητικό συμβούλιο του. Εκείνο που είναι βέβαιο είναι πως ο κ. Χολέβας δεν διαβίβασε τα πορίσματα στον αρμόδιο εισαγγελέα, όπως επιτάσσει η έκθεση του Γενικού Λογιστηρίου του Κράτους και όπως διέταξε η κ. υπουργός. Αντ' αυτού παρέδωσε τις δύο αξιολογικές εκθέσεις σε άλλον δικηγόρο της δικής του επιλογής, τον κ. Αλέξανδρο Χρηστίδη, προς... επαναξιολόγηση. Και φυσικά δεν ενημέρωσε την κ. υπουργό πως στην έγκληση Ασπρογέρακα, όπως άλλωστε στα πορίσματα Μπατσούλη Ανδρούτσου Τριανταφύλλου, ενδεχομένως (!) να περιλαμβάνεται το όνόμά του για πράξεις κακουργηματικού χαρακτήρα και για αυτό όφειλε να παραιτηθεί αμέσως για να διευκολύνει την κάθαρση εντός του ΕΚΚ! Όμως είχε προηγηθεί η απόκρυψη από τον νυν πρόεδρο του γεγονότος πως είχε μια ανοιχτή δικαστική διαμάχη με το ΕΚΚ και ως εκ τούτου δεν έπρεπε να αποδεχτεί τον διορισμό του από την πρώτη στιγμή, όπως ορίζει το άρθρο 20 του 3905 2010. Δύο σκαστές παρανομίες μέσα σε μία βδομάδα! Αυτά είναι εξωφρενικά πράγματα.

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- ΕΡΩΤΗΣΗ: Τι συνέβη με τις δύο πρόσφατες εγκρίσεις χρηματοδοτήσεων εντός του ΕΚΚ, όπου κατηγορείται η νυν διοίκηση Χολέβα για τοποθέτηση κρινόμενων με σενάρια ή αιτήσεις χρηματοδότησης ταινιών να είναι επίσης κριτές αυτών των προτάσεων; Κατήργησε η νυν διοίκηση Χολέβα τις διατάξεις της διοίκησης Βαφέα περί ασυμβίβαστου στις επιτροπές αξιολόγησης; Στο σημείο που βρίσκεται η κατάσταση τώρα θεωρείτε ότι πρέπει να ακυρωθούν οι δύο πρόσφατες εγκρίσεις του ΕΚΚ (τέλη Μαρτίου και τέλη Απριλίου) για τις χρηματοδοτήσεις του ΕΚΚ; 

- Κ. Φ.: Δεν υπάρχει περίπτωση να μην ακυρωθούν αυτές οι εγκρίσεις. Εγώ αν είχα εγκεκριμένη πρότασή μου, θα ντρεπόμουν να κάνω μια ταινία κάτω από την υποψία πως μου χαρίστηκαν και ως εκ τούτου είμαι ηθικός αυτουργός του παραπτώματος. Η παρανομία των Χολέβα και Μητρόπουλου δεν εντοπίζεται μόνο στην ακύρωση των διατάξεων της διοίκησης Βαφέα περί ασυμβίβαστου, την οποία η δική μας διοίκηση με πρόεδρο τον Πάνο Λουκάκο είχε σεβαστεί. Είναι ακόμα παράβαση των διατάξεων του νόμου του κράτους περί ασυμβίβαστου στους επί συμβάσει δημοσίους υπαλλήλους (αξιολογητές) που μας κοινοποίησε η κυβέρνηση Μητσοτάκη τον Δεκέμβριο του 2019. Όπως επίσης στο γεγονός πως ακόμα και αυτές οι αξιολογήσεις των... readers, όπως θέλουν να τους ονομάζουν, πέρασαν από το κόσκινο τριών ανθρώπων (στο χωριό μου το λένε μαγείρεμα), δηλαδή του προέδρου, του νεαρού διευθυντή Ανάπτυξης και Παραγωγής Γιώργου Αγγελόπουλου και (πιθανότατα) του γενικού διευθυντή (υπεύθυνου σύμφωνα με τον νόμο). Οι αξιολογήσεις των readers δεν έχουν κανένα νόημα, αν δεν μας πουν ποια ήσαν τα κριτήρια των επιλογών αυτών των τριών ανθρώπων και κατά πόσο σεβάστηκαν το σκεπτικό ακόμα και αυτών των αξιολογητών που οι ίδιοι επέλεξαν.

12.11.2020

PRODUCERS IN EUROPE VS. NETFLIX, DISNEY+ FOR QUOTAS OF CONTENT

 


https://variety.com/2020/streaming/global/netflix-amazon-disney-plus-europe-1234848797/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=exacttarget&utm_campaign=newsalert&utm_content=243710_12-11-2020_headline&utm_term=171882

(...) France is asking that between 20%-25% of a streamer’s local revenues from subscriptions be invested in European product and 85% spent on French-language content, the bulk of which must be commissioned to independent French producers, who’d be able to get some upside.

“The dialogue is open and constructive. Of course, we don’t agree on everything, but there is a positive dialogue,” says a Netflix spokesperson, who commented only on French negotiations. “We want to continue to invest significantly in France, and we want to be a long-term partner for the entire French creative community and to make a positive impact.”

An Amazon spokesperson said the company has “engaged with producer bodies … to discuss Prime Video’s future investments in France.”

Across Europe, there is also the matter of whether Netflix and other U.S. streamers should be allowed to benefit from the vast reservoir of European soft money that spans from regional funds to national tax rebates.

In Italy, the key negotiator is Giancarlo Leone, who heads Italian TV producers’ association APA and is proposing to set the investment quota for streamers at 20% of revenue, with a lower rate permitted “if the rules of engagement are regulated.”   


 


JOE BIDEN:' “We are not enemies. We are Americans.”

 Democrat Joe Biden defeated President Donald Trump to become the 46th president of the United States on Saturday and offered himself to the nation as a leader who “seeks not to divide, but to unify” a country gripped by a historic pandemic and a confluence of economic and social turmoil.

“I sought this office to restore the soul of America,” Biden said in a prime-time victory speech not far from his Delaware home, “and to make America respected around the world again and to unite us here at home.”

Biden crossed the winning threshold of 270 Electoral College votes with a win in Pennsylvania. His victory came after more than three days of uncertainty as election officials sorted through a surge of mail-in votes that delayed processing.

Trump refused to concede, threatening further legal action on ballot counting. But Biden used his acceptance speech as an olive branch to those who did not vote for him, telling Trump voters that he understood their disappointment but adding, “Let’s give each other a chance.”

“It’s time to put away the harsh rhetoric, to lower the temperature, to see each other again, to listen to each other again, to make progress, we must stop treating our opponents as our enemy,” he said. “We are not enemies. We are Americans.”

6.01.2020

DECEMBER RIOTS: featuring four music tracks by Moby...


 
 
 
 
Please visit www.decemberriots.com for more info. For Greek subs press CC. 
Highlights: 
 00:52 Murder footage of Alexis G. (Two cops murder in cold blood an unarmed 15 year-old student) 
 32:03 Autopsy.  
45:43 "A gap separates each and every one of us..." Marina and Michael. 
 48:06 "It's rock'n'roll down there man and the surf guitar is fuckin' broken". "Jimmyboy" and "Driver". 
 1:11:44 "It's gonna a bloody Christmas...." . Sean and Marina.
 1:14:06 Murder 101 in the movie theater's bathroom. "I just wanted to be friends..." Anna and Geraldine.  
1:18:07 In the mountains of bloody madness ("There's no future for us, Michael!" Anna)... 1:25:00 Birth of a baby. (Lorena-Sean-Marina). 
 
For English Closed Captions please press CC. To watch the movie in the highest resolution possible for YouTube please choose HD 1080p. The production of this film was financed independently without any EU, or state subsidies. 
 
..The plot of "December Riots" written, produced and directed by Dimitri Vorris, focuses on a group of seven characters, Europeans and Americans, trapped in a subterranean art-house movie theater during the 2008 riots, watching the all time classic masterpiece of Italian master's Luchino Visconti's "Senso"- that deals with love, decadence passion and betrayal, during tumultuous times and real historical events . While the outside cosmos has rioted because of the police killing of 15 year-old student Alexandros Gregoropoulos that sparked riots in over 70 cities worldwide... the filmgoers remain into relative safety, or so they think, to save their skins. The arthouse "theater", its "owner" and "projectionist" become a metaphor for a lost generation (-s)that feared to riot against the current. The film alternates between reality (the harsh, outside world) and fiction (the characters inside). Emotionally moved by the murder of an innocent child in cold-blood, and after seeing a rough cut of the film, multi award-winning internationally renowned composer Moby contributed four, never before published, tracks to the original sountrack of the film: 18, HOMEWARD ANGEL (LONG), BLACKROOM, THE LONELY NIGHT (PHOTEK REMIX). ...Police violence. Interpersonal relationships’ violence. A looted country in despair. Seven characters trapped in an arthouse movie theater. A countdown to extinction... ....Three years before the movement of the “indignados” and OCCUPY WALL STREET there were “December Riots”. «DECEMBER RIOTS», is a feature length film written, produced and directed by Dimitri Vorris, was in post-production, while a new wave of riots swept Greece on June 29th, 2011. The film's epicenter is the cold-blooded execution of 15 year-old student Alexander Gregoropoulos by two policemen in a downtown Athens café on December 6, 2008. ...Based on a real incident -the director himself was trapped on December 8, 2008 in a downtown arthouse movie theater during the 2008 riots-the independently financed, claustrophobic thriller, that was filmed entirely on location in Athens, Greece, focuses on a group of seven characters, Europeans and Americans, trapped in an art-house movie theater during the 2008 riots. 23 year-old newcomer British actress Lucy Lemos (Marina-DJ Lightdust), Duncan Skinner ("Jimmyboy") , Fanis Katechos ("Projectionist"), prolific actor Avraam Papadopoulos ("Theater Owner'), popular comedian/director Nikos Giannikas (Sean) anchor a youthful and talented supporting cast that includes Vivian Ioannou (Anna), Aris Athan ("Driver"), Nasos Pappas (Jeff), Michael Angels (Michael), Louise Rheas (Lorena), Aris Pappas (Informant), Maria Floratou (Geraldine), Kostas Antalopoulos ("Cleaner"), Christina Mani (Riots Chronicle Narrator).
 
“... Independent production, handmade, and made possible with countless fights on the side of its creator, December Riots, comes to remind us the life we never lived, the fight we never fought and the reasons we got here, with bowed heads and humiliated lives ... " Chrisostomakis Laktaridis, DOCTV.GR 
 
 "December Riots is important, timely, and hits it's mark. Acclaimed Greek-born filmmaker Dimitri Vorris has beautifully interwoven fact and fiction, to create a dramatic tale, that is both horrifying and thought-provoking". Christopher Martini, Director-Producer "The Stone Child", "Trooper" #DecemberRiots #indie #feature #comingsoon #December6 #Greeceburns4allofus 
 
 #DecemberRiots #indie #feature #comingsoon #December6 #Greeceburns4allofus "Dimitri Vorris's DECEMBER RIOTS arrives like a storm that signals the times are a-changing again and that as a world we're on the cusp between despair and hope." Amos Poe, Filmmaker, Leading figure of the No Wave Cinema Movement, "UNMADE BEDS", "THE FOREIGNER", "SUBWAY RIDERS", "EMPIRE II", "THE GUITARS", "ROCKET GIBRALTAR".

12.07.2019

Remembering Nick Mirkopoulos, founder of cinespace Studios in Toronto, Chicago

SIX YEARS HAVE PASSED SINCE THE DEATH FROM CANCER OF MY DEAR FRIEND NICK MIRKOPOULOS, FOUNDER OF CINESPACE STUDIOS IN CHICAGO AND TORONTO...
In 2007, Alex Pissios, a real estate developer and his uncle Nick Mirkopoulos started Cinespace Film Studios in Chicago, which today is the biggest independent movie studio outside of Hollywood.
Nick launched Cinespace Film Studios in Toronto 20 years earlier. The family’s film business was never planned and unexpected for Nick who was an electrician and decided, along with his brothers, after they arrived in Toronto from Greece in the late 1960s to buy and repurpose old commercial and industrial buildings. It was in the mid 1980s when Nick took the opportunity to convert some of those buildings into film studios.

Nick Mirkopoulos
*Founder Nick Mirkopoulos
The Cinespace Film Studios in Toronto are known for hosting many hit TV series and films, including “Chicago,” which won an Oscar for best picture, and “Handmaid’s Tale,” a Hulu series that won a 2018 Golden Globe nomination for best actress. With such a huge success, Nick wanted to expand.
At the same time, his nephew Alex Pissios and his wife Patricia, along with their four children, were in a tough situation with the real estate collapse and were facing bankruptcy and eviction from their family home.
It was at a cousin’s wedding that Alex and Nick, an uncle he barely knew, struck up a conversation that led to a huge change in both their lives. Nick paid off Alex’s 11 million dollar debt and the two struck up a family partnership, launching Cinespace Film Studios in Chicago.
Today, Cinespace Chicago brings Hollywood to Chicago, specialising in the development, management and operation of studio space and support facilities for the film, television, and digital media production industry.
Pissios claims Cinespace has helped create 7,500 film-related jobs since it opened and has contributed billions of dollars in revenue to the local economy.

Cinespace
Cinespace is now home to producer Dick Wolf’s successful “Chicago” franchise — Chicago Med, Chicago Fire and Chicago PD, as well as TV shows Empire and Shameless, and productions from Netflix, Amazon and Hulu. Several feature films have also been produced here, including “Divergent” and “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.”
In 2015, Cinespace Chicago launched an incubator for filmmakers called Stage 18 to provide workspace, programming and event space to help develop the local filmmaking community. Its goal is to keep local talent from leaving for opportunities in Los Angeles and New York City, and also organises events such as script feedback for budding filmmakers, plus the opportunity to pitch projects to investors.

Cinespace
Cinespace studio Chicago
To give back to the community, Cinespace Chicago also expanded and offers nearby DePaul University space for classes that teach filmmaking to the next generation of artists, as well as establishing the CineCares Foundation, providing Chicago residents with education and job training in TV and film. The family is very charitable and are always willing to support the community.
Pissios looking ahead into the future, says his dream is to create a back lot on Cinespace’s property where building façades can be made to look like New York City brownstones or cities like London and Paris. It would be the only back lot outside of Los Angeles, and he says it would save filmmakers time and money by eliminating the need to shoot on location.
For the moment though, Pissios never loses sight of one of the biggest lessons he learned from his late uncle, who passed away in 2013. “He always told me to do things from my heart,” he says. “Nick was a very stern and smart businessman. He didn’t give handouts; he gave people opportunities. If he believed in you, he gave you a chance, always.” In his office, Pissios keeps a framed copy of his eviction notice, a gift from Uncle Nick. “He wanted me to remember where I came from, and I do,” he points out. “Every day, I come to work with a smile on my face, and I try to find ways to pay this forward.



  https://greekcitytimes.com/2018/01/04/greek-family-built-multi-billion-booming-film-studio-chicago/

12.06.2019

“... Independent, handmade, and made possible with countless fights on the side of its creator, December Riots, comes to remind us the life we never lived, the fight we never fought and the reasons we got here, with bowed heads and humiliated lives ..."
Chrisostomakis Laktaridis - doctv.gr


The film, featuring tracks by electronic music superstar Moby, focuses on the murder in cold blood of 15 year-old student Alexandros Gregoropoulos by two policemen on December 6, 2008. The incident sparked riots in over 70 cities worldwide. In the clip MURDER 101 actresses Vivian Ioannou and Maria Floratou and are resolving some differences from the not the so distant past. In the clip Marina/DJ Lightdust (Lucy Lemos) and Michael (Michael Angels) are pondering their next move together. The film follows, in parallel action while the gruesome reality of December riots unfolding, seven different characters trapped in a subterranean arthouse cinema during the riots, a bunch of characters that despise and hate each other to death. And are afraid to go out and stay put. More on decemberriots.com Description Filming of “December Riots" wrapped in Athens, while a second wave of riots swept Greece on December 6th 2010, marking the two-year anniversary of the cold-blooded execution of 15 year-old student Alexander Gregoropoulos by two policemen in a downtown Athens café. "December Riots," a film about the Gregoropoulos killing and the 2008 riots that followed, is produced, and directed by Dimitri Vorris. 
The filmmaker acquired exclusive access to many never-before-seen court documents and evidence from the trial that followed Gregoropoulos’s killing. Plot Outline The claustrophobic thriller focuses on a group of Europeans and Americans trapped in an art-house movie theater in downtown Athens during the 2008 riots. 23 year-old British actress Lucy Lemos, prolific actor Abraham Papadopoulos, popular comedian-director Nikos Yannikas anchor a youthful and talented supporting cast that includes Vivian Ioannou, Aris Athan, Nasos Pappas, Michael Angels, Louise Rheas, Aris Papargyropoulos, Maria Floratou, Kostas Antalopoulos.

10.07.2019

Anniversary of the "Sonderkommando" revolt




THE SONDERKOMMANDO REVOLT AT DEATH CAMP AUSCHWITZ-BIRKENAU WAS ORGANIZED BY SALONICA JEWS: ...One action will stand out alongside the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising and that is the Revolt of the Sonderkommando in Auschwitz-Birkenau on October 7, 1944. This was an uprising in which Sephardi and Greeks Jews both helped plan and execute and left a memorable list of heroes and martyrs to posterity. Their victory was dual: it was a psychological victory over the Nazis who now feared the Jews in the camps and hastened their declining confidence in winning or even surviving the war and secondly, they died as free men in the tradition of Greek noble death, an outcome that has become part of western tradition, namely to fight against all odds until the very end and deny the enemy the opportunity to loot and gloat. The world forgets not only that Sephardic Jewry suffered during the Holocaust too, but that Jews were brave enough to revolt and fight under the most hopeless circumstance They are hungry, tortured, abused, sick, ailing, armed only with an ingenious plot and self-made guns and explosives. Against the Empire of the Third Reich. They are performing the ultimate sacrifice for their fellow man and woman.

10.02.2019

Quentin Tarantino: How to Write and Direct Movies




When Quentin Tarantino debuted in 1992 with Reservoir Dogs, and even more so when he followed it up with the cinematic phenomenon that was Pulp Fiction, the viewers most dubious about the young auteur's cultural staying power dismissed his movies as elevations of style over substance. Whether or not Tarantino has converted all his early critics over the past 27 years, he's certainly demonstrated that style can constitute a substance of its own.
Even many who didn't care for his latest picture, this year's Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, nevertheless expressed gratitude at the release of a lavish, large-scale film packed full of ideas, references, set pieces, and jokes — an increasingly rare achievement, or even aspiration, among non-Tarantino filmmakers. How does he do it? The Director's Chair profile video above, and the accompanying Studio Binder essay by Matt Vasiliauskas, identifies the essential elements that constitute the Tarantinian style and Tarantinian substance.
http://www.openculture.com/2019/10/quentin-tarantino-explains-how-to-write-direct-movies.html

Scorcese filming "The Irishman" in New York with Robert De Niro (VIDEO)



Martin Scorsese filming The Irishman with Robert De Niro in Ridgewood, New York The Irishman is an American biographical crime film directed by Martin Scorsese and written by Steven Zaillian, based on the book I Heard You Paint Houses by Charles Brandt. The film stars Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Joe Pesci, Anna Paquin, Bobby Cannavale, Harvey Keitel, and Ray Romano. The film is tentatively set to be released by Netflix in 2019. 

Robert Anthony De Niro Jr. is an American actor, producer, and director who holds both American and Italian citizenship. De Niro was cast as the young Vito Corleone in the 1974 film The Godfather Part II, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. His longtime collaboration with director Martin Scorsese earned him the Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Jake LaMotta in the 1980 film Raging Bull. He received the AFI Life Achievement Award in 2003, the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award in 2010, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama in 2016. 

 Martin Charles Scorsese is an American director, producer, screenwriter, and film historian, whose career spans more than 50 years. Part of the New Hollywood wave of filmmaking, he is widely regarded as one of the most significant and influential filmmakers in cinematic history. He is a recipient of the AFI Life Achievement Award for his contributions to the cinema, and has won an Academy Award, a Palme d'Or, Cannes Film Festival Best Director Award, Silver Lion, Grammy Award, Emmys, Golden Globes, BAFTAs, and DGA Awards.

Martin Scorcese and Quentin Tarantino: Two storytellers in the same interview.

Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino are born storytellers, not just in their movies—which bear each director's unmistakable stamp—but in their deep-seated appreciation for the medium. While they hail from different generations—Scorsese was among the first wave of film school grads in the mid '60s, and Tarantino's rise coincided with the indie film revolution of the early '90s—their passion and knowledge of cinema place them on equal footing. No genre escapes their grasp, whether it's prestige studio releases or B-movie potboilers, splashy musicals or noirish thrillers, art-house fare or spaghetti Westerns. They've been dining on this grand buffet all their lives, and it shows in their own work, in the characters they've created, and the lens through which they view the world. This is a particularly conspicuous year for both filmmakers: Tarantino's Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood has galvanized critics and audiences alike since its debut at Cannes, while anticipation runs high for Scorsese's The Irishman, for which the director has spent considerable time in post dealing with digitally de-aging his leads. The two sat down for the DGA Quarterly to talk directors, influences and violence as catharsis, among other topics. This is an edited version of their conversation. –Steve Chagollan



READ MORE:
https://www.dga.org/Craft/DGAQ/All-Articles/1904-Fall-2019/Conversation-Scorsese-Tarantino.aspx

6.15.2019

WGA: The Start Button Application And How To Use It To Make Money



...Writers Guild of America has rolled out several new tools to help members better represent themselves without agents, including the Staffing Submission System, the WGA Weekly Feature Memo, and the Find A Writer directory.

For screenwriters working on assignment – and TV writers working on pilots – an existing WGAW tool can be especially helpful in confronting the twin problems of free work and late pay.

The Start Button is a simple way to record when you begin working on a draft and when you hand it in. It helps the Guild protect writers from abusive requests for unpaid rewrites and delayed checks.
I made a little video to walk writers through how the Start Button works, and why members should make it standard practice when beginning an assignment.

 READ MORE HERE
https://johnaugust.com/2019/getting-started-with-the-start-button

6.12.2019

Great Greta: Classic Hollywood Portraits


.. The great Hollywood portrait photographs are like close-ups that never end. Cinema is an art of faces, and the chance to gaze at them, to get lost in them, may be the deepest thrill movies offer. In the darkness of the theater these faces are vast, glowing, isolated, but fugitive; still photographs extend these moments, make them permanent. Hollywood grasped this value early on, in the days when after their runs in theaters films would often vanish forever...
READ MORE:

https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/6365-shooting-stars






6.01.2019

WGA: Agencies confilcts of interest explained in video



It can be hard to understand exactly how agency packaging fees and producing impacts writers’ salaries. This short explainer video does a great job visualizing the issues, and looking at why the WGA is in negotiations to address agency conflicts of interest.

Hollywood talent agencies have a business model rife with conflicts of interest. This means they do what’s best for them, even if it’s not best for their clients. These conflicts hurt writers. The situation is bad, and it’s getting worse. To find out what the WGA is doing about it, go to WGA.org.

5.29.2019

Brian De Palma in 6 minutes (mashup trailer)



Edited by Romain Lehnhoff.
Le Movie Geek

Tupac Shakur on Life and Death | Blank on Blank


 
"If I was white I would have been like John Wayne... I feel like a tragic hero in a Shakespeare play" - Tupac Shakur Interview by Benjamin Svetkey March 1994. Microcassette recorder. Related profile appeared in Entertainment Weekly.

5.23.2019

MAYA ANGELOU: CON MEN STORY




"The only way you can be a mark is if you want something for nothing. If you're greedy, you're set up." - Maya Angelou, as told to Studs Terkel in 1970

FRANCIS FORD COPOLLA ON SOLITUDE AND THE GAME ON THE ZOETROPE ELEVATOR



"Death is on the back of everyone’s minds whether they want to admit it or not" - Francis Ford Coppola on July 28, 1996 

5.17.2019

STEPHEN KING ON CHILDHOOD ANIMATED VIDEO (BLANK ON BLANK)



"The things that really scare us are the things that are going on just outside the spotlight that you can’t quite see" - Stephen King on October 22, 1989 The author takes us on a journey back to his childhood and the roots for his decades crafting memorable horror fiction. Learn more about Stephen King's theory on evil and horror, the films made from his books, and his brilliant Twitter feed: http://blankonblank.org/stephen-king 
Interview originally aired on the Public Radio Book Show and it comes to us courtesy of WAMC Northeast Public Radio and the New York State Writers Institute. Subscribe for new episodes every other Tuesday... it's free: http://bit.ly/1TO2vCL

Recent Episodes Leonard Cohen on Moonlight https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9-A4...
 Ronald Reagan on Making America Great Again https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAEI4... Jimmy Carter on God and Power https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dsok...
 Aldous Huxley on Techondictators: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oIgju...
Bob Dylan at 20 on Freak Shows https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nrgs5...
 Patti Smith in 1976 on Getting Bleeped https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKbCc...
Frank Zappa in 1971 on Fads https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5WEU...
 Tom Waits on Everything and Nothing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SyrDf...
Martin Scorsese on Framing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGyYO...
Carl Sagan on Extraterrestrials https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9WHs...
David Bowie on Stardust https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFIDX...
Lou Reed on Guns & Ammo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jcd9B...
Kurt Vonnegut on Man-Eating Lampreys https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DzWMH...

BRIAN DE PALMA'S "DOMINO" WITH GOT'S NIKOLAJ COSTER-WALDAU HITS GERMAN MARKET

Thanks to Andreas for sending in word that Koch Films has announced a DVD/Blu-Ray Region B release of Brian De Palma's Domino, coming August 22, 2019. With Domino being released in theaters in Hungary May 30th, and in theaters in Italy on June 20th, and, of course, in California and New York on May 31st, we are keeping an out for any other theatrical releases out there. 



(Above, with De Palma directing actress Sachli Gholamalizad). 
With info from:
http://www.angelfire.com/de/palma/blog/

WRITERS GUILD OF AMERICA AGENCY CAMPAIGN: ISSUES AFFECTING SCREENEWRITERS

This is a transcript of a 7+ minute video the WGA put out yesterday.

WATCH THE VIDEO ON VIMEO




John August: Hi, I’m John August.
Michele Mulroney: And I’m Michele Mulroney.
John August: We’re members of the WGA West Board and the Agency Negotiating Committee.
Michele Mulroney: And we’re both primarily screenwriters. That’s why we wanted to take a few minutes to talk about some of the issues affecting screenwriters in this time when most of us are working without agents.
John August: Some of these issues are new, but some have gone back decades. Over the past two years, we’ve met with hundreds of screenwriters at lunches and meet-ups. And the message has been clear: the Guild needs to be doing more to combat free work and late pay, because our agencies aren’t.
Michele Mulroney: Time after time we’ve heard horror stories of 60-page treatments written for free. Checks that are six months late. And we’d ask, “Where are your agents? Why are they letting this happen?”
John August: It happens because it’s largely invisible. Most screenwriters, we work alone. And we’re afraid to complain, because we might be labeled “difficult.” Difficult is a code word for standing up for yourself.
Michele Mulroney: The thing is, screenwriters are not alone. The Guild can and should be the bad guy on behalf of screenwriters. It can step in to file claims and collect interest on late pay. It can help to fight back against free work. But the Guild can’t enforce contracts it doesn’t see.
John August: That’s why the agency Code of Conduct requires agencies to provide the Guild with our contracts and invoices. Once the Guild has this information, we can protect not only individual screenwriters but all of us. We can identify patterns, see where there are shortfalls in writer income, and shape proposals for future MBA negotiations.
Michele Mulroney: Next, we want to talk about agency-affiliated production companies. This is where your agency owns or co-owns its studio.
John August: To me, this is the next step beyond packaging. These agencies don’t want 10% of a writer’s salary; they don’t want the 10% of the backend they’d get with packaging. They want 50 to 60% of the profits. They want to own the property. And to do that, they turn you from a client into an employee.
Michele Mulroney: Right now, we have Wiip, Endeavor Content, and Civic Center Media. Members ask us, “Why did the Guild ever let these companies become signatories?” The answer is, we want more buyers, particularly in film. We want these companies to thrive. We just don’t want them to be owned or controlled by agencies.
John August: Let’s talk about why agency production companies are bad for screenwriters. Let’s say you have a spec script. Your agency is going to take it out on the town. But if they have their own studio, realistically, they’re going to take it there first.
Maybe that company wants to buy it. Great! As a client, how do you know your agent is getting the best deal for you? When your agent is also the buyer, that’s the clearest conflict of interest imaginable.
Michele Mulroney: Or, maybe the company doesn’t want to buy your spec script. That’s awkward. Your own agency’s affiliated studio is passing on your project. So how exactly is that helping you as a client?
John August: Spoiler: It’s not. But for screenwriters, it gets even worse when it’s not your original project. These little mini-studios, they’re buying IP. They’re competing with you for the rights on books. If you’re a screenwriter who wants to get hired on that book adaptation, you better be represented by that agency.
Michele Mulroney: This isn’t a hypothetical, by the way. We checked the receipts. 75% of writers creating projects at affiliated studios, they’re CLIENTS of that agency. They’re keeping the work in house. It’s like the old studio system.
John August: But kind of worse in a way. I don’t want a future where we’re negotiating the terms of our MBA with our own agencies sitting across the table.
Michele Mulroney: Next, let’s talk about indie film. We heard screenwriters loud and clear when you said you wanted us to keep as much of the indie film ecosystem intact as possible.
John August: Our Code of Conduct allows agencies to continue to provide financing and sales services to their clients. It also insists on full transparency and consent, so screenwriters can see any fees the agency would take on their project.
Michele Mulroney: And to clarify a point of confusion in the Code of Conduct: agencies can take these fees — subject to the writer’s approval — on projects with an intended budget under $20 million. For budgets over $20 million they will need a waiver from the Guild after they have consulted with the screenwriter.
John August: This is not meant to be a roadblock, but a reality check. We don’t want studio features masquerading as indies, and we don’t want packaging fees in features to become the kind of problem we are fighting in TV.
Michele Mulroney: So how do we screenwriters navigate this period of displacement? Especially those of us who don’t have managers or robust networks to rely on.
John August: Unlike in TV, screenwriters don’t hire each other. We have to make sure that screenwriters still get read and hired by producers and studio executives. We need make sure pitches and specs still sell. To do that, the Guild has put in place several new tools that can all be accessed via the Guild website.
Michele Mulroney: First, we recently launched the Weekly Feature Memo. It goes out every Friday to a list of around 750 producers and development executives. Writers simply upload the logline for their spec or pitch and then producers can contact you to request your spec, set a pitch meeting or a general.
John August: Next, without an agent, how do producers and executives find you? The Find a Writer directory is the easiest way. Four things you should do today:
Check that your credits are accurate. The system will only list your final Guild credits, so if you’d like to include development credits or animation, for now, list them in your bio section.
Upload a writing sample if there’s something you’d like buyers to be able to read. Opt-in to letting producers and executives contact you via email.
Finally, mark yourself as “available” if you’re open to work.
Michele Mulroney: Agencies traditionally keep lists of Open Writing Assignments. In the next couple of weeks, the Guild will be launching its own Open Writing Assignment Memo. Here, producers will submit details of any OWA’s, including pieces of IP in search of a writer. The Guild will distribute this to screenwriters in a weekly memo. Then, sort of like the staffing submission system, you will be able to submit yourself for these opportunities. We’ll of course make sure the process is user-friendly and easily sortable on the producers’ end.
John August: Once you’re hired on a project, we’d strongly encourage you to use the Start Button. The Start Button lets the Guild know what screenwriters are working on, and follows up to make sure you’re getting paid on time, and not being asked to do free work. Particularly in this period without agents, the Start Button can be an important tool for tracking your work.
Michele Mulroney: Finally, the Guild will be hosting an Indie Film Panel at the end of the month, featuring fellow Guild members with extensive experience in indie film, along with producers, financiers, and sales and distribution panelists to discuss making features without agencies. So if you’re in the indie world, please join us.
John August: Now, even with all these tools and all of the hustle we’re seeing from screenwriters, anxiety is natural. It’s inevitable. Especially for early-career screenwriters and those without deep networks and connections. So how can we best support our most vulnerable screenwriters during this time?
Michele Mulroney: First, share what you read. Pass along a script to producers and executives you know. Read early-career screenwriters and give them a boost.
John August: If a screenwriting assignment comes across your radar and you can’t take the job, consider sharing the info with other writers or…recommend a less-established screenwriter who might not be on their radar.
Michele Mulroney: Be as generous as you can in offering advice, guidance, contacts and resources. Those of us who have been around for a while have a lot of open doors…Maybe your open doors can open a door for another screenwriter.
John August: And finally, please don’t hesitate to reach out to any member of the Board, Council, or Negotiating Committee. We’re here to listen. We need to hear your ideas, criticisms and concerns. All the tools we’ve talked about today came directly from screenwriters reaching out to us.
Michele Mulroney: One place you can do this is at the May Wednesday evening mixers at the Guild. It’s a chance to mingle, network, and have one-on-one conversations with your elected leadership.
John August: This campaign’s success depends on us all hanging together, staying strong, and helping one another as best we can.
Michele Mulroney: The union is us and we are the union. Thanks for listening.
John August: Thanks.
It is inspiring to see the resolve of the Guild membership not only stick together in this dispute, but also generate work-arounds to help writers promote their work and hopefully land gigs without the aid of the agencies. If that effort succeeds, one would think it would compel the ATA to rethink their obstinate ‘bargaining’ position. Indeed, the Guild’s tactics seem to be working if this news is any indication.
To watch the video, go here.

3.07.2019

JULY 23 WILDFIRES: AND JUSTICE FOR NOBODY







Greek prosecutors have filed charges against 20 people over deadly wildfires in 2018.
The accused, including the greater Athens regional authority chief, two local mayors, the former civil protection head and fire service officials, were hit with charges that reportedly include involuntary manslaughter, causing bodily harm due to neglect, and arson through negligence.

The July 23 fire in Mati killed 100 people, injured 250, and burnt to the ground over 2.500 houses leaving  the seaside resort town devastated. The disaster led to a series of resignations or sackings of fire and police chiefs.
Most of the victims died in traffic jams as they fled, while others drowned escaping into the sea.

3.05.2019

DE PALMA DOUBLE FEATURE AT THE DAVID HOCKNEY POOL



Felix L.A., an art fair that opened its inaugural edition Thursday (February 14) and continues through Sunday (February 17), includes a Brian De Palma double feature tonight at 8pm, when Blow Out and Dressed To Kill will be screened at the David Hockney Pool. The pool is located in the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, where the first Oscars ceremony was held in 1929. A Bloomberg article by Katya Kazakina provides some context for the location, the fair, and how it connects with other fairs happening this weekend in Los Angeles:
Three months after David Hockney’s swimming pool canvas sold for $90 million, the art world is gathering around an actual pool the British artist painted at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. Hockney decorated the pool’s bottom with blue swirls in 1987, almost six decades after the historic Los Angeles building hosted the first Academy Awards ceremony in 1929. This week, the surrounding cabanas will exhibit works by local and international artists as part of a new art fair called Felix.
The event, co-founded by former Walt Disney Co. executive Dean Valentine, is among at least six art fairs taking place as the city vies to become an art-market epicenter, something that has eluded Los Angeles despite being home to major artists, patrons, art schools and institutions. Frieze, which hosts art fairs in London and New York, will debut this week at Paramount Pictures.
“Los Angeles has always had the artists,” said Valentine, 63, rattling off legends such as Ed Ruscha, John Baldessari and Chris Burden. “Now there’s more art market infrastructure here. It’s firing on all cylinders.”
International players including Hauser & Wirth and Sprueth Magers joined L.A.’s vibrant, but decentralized, gallery scene in recent years, though some upstarts have since closed. Billionaire Eli Broad and the brothers behind Guess jeans, Maurice and Paul Marciano, opened private museums.
Southern California collectors used to head to New York and Basel to buy art, but now “collectors from all over the world are coming here because the art scene is so exciting,” said Jeffrey Deitch, a dealer and former director of the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles. In September, Deitch opened a local gallery because he “saw an international market.”
Frieze will emphasize Los Angeles by giving prominent space to local galleries and offering VIPs a program that includes visits to studios as well as conversations with artists and collectors living in the area.
“We know that L.A. likes to tell stories about itself,” said Bettina Korek, executive director of Frieze Los Angeles, which will host 70 galleries.
At Blum & Poe’s booth, Dave Muller will create a site-specific mural, titled “Oh Hollywood.” David Kordansky will have a solo presentation of Kathryn Andrews, whose works feature film props and sleek surfaces, a hybrid of Pop art and minimalism. Landscapes and cityscapes of California by 98-year-old Wayne Thiebaud, as well as his iconic pastry images, will be the focus of New York’s Acquavella Galleries, with prices ranging from $350,000 to $5 million. Deitch will present abstract works by Judy Chicago, painted during her L.A. sojourn. Hauser & Wirth will stage the U.S. debut of “Unisex Love Nest,” a 1999 installation by Mike Kelley, a South Pasadena-based artist who died in 2012. The asking price is $1.8 million.
At Felix, 41 galleries will present paintings, sculptures and video art in hotel rooms and around the Hockney pool. The setting draws inspiration from an earlier era of art fairs: in 1994, the Armory Show took place at the Gramercy Park Hotel in New York and the Chateau Marmont in L.A.
“It was amazing,” Valentine said, recalling works by Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin and Thomas Schutte. “You walked from room to room, bumped into other collectors in the hallways and then had a drink at the bar.”
Some say that sense of discovery, fun and intimacy is largely absent from the relentless art fair circuit these days.
“It’s become this mega shopping experience,” Valentine said. “I find it hard to get into.” Felix is an attempt “to replicate the things that are missing from the art world,” he said. “More intimate, conversational and fun. Less hyper-capitalistic.”

More details about Felix are provided by The Hollywood Reporter's Laura van Straaten:
Felix joins two established L.A. fairs, Art Los Angeles Contemporary (now in its 10th year) and stARTup (hosting its fourth L.A. fair), as well as heavy-hitting newcomer Frieze, the influential London-based fair that is seen as the linchpin of what is sure to be the city's most robust arts week ever (all four fairs wrap on Feb. 17). Valentine, a board member of the Hammer Museum, says the choice of the hotel format is meant to evoke the storied but short-lived Gramercy International Los Angeles at the Chateau Marmont in the mid-1990s, considered by some gallerists and collectors to be a key inflection point in L.A.'s emergence as an art city. The Roosevelt also has its own associations: It was the site of the first Academy Awards in 1929. And many rooms, including those being put to use by Felix, overlook the Hollywood Walk of Fame and the Chinese Theater. Valentine hopes the varied spaces and presentations at the hotel will give visitors “the surprise of turning a corner” and finding an unexpected object, moment or connection with another art lover. The name "Felix" came in part from one of Valentine's favorite cartoon characters, Felix the Cat; it's also a nod to a favorite painting, Paul Signac's seminal portrait of the 19th-century art critic and anarchist Felix Feneon. The allusion to anarchy may be apt because Felix is being produced somewhat on the fly, especially compared to Frieze, which has spent years laying a foundation for its expansion to Southern California and has a well-oiled, well-heeled and market-savvy operation (as well as majority owner Endeavor) behind its presentation of 60 galleries.

Source: Geoff/ De Palma a la Mod