September 28th, 2010 by Glendyn

Through a strange sequence of events I was able to see some of the ‘uncut’ rushes from the actual ‘heavy metal picnic‘. I can’t wait to see the final film!

September 22nd, 2010 by Glendyn

I had a great time at the Vladivostok International Film Festival. The film was received really well. I always thought it had a bit of a russian thing going on in it. It’s always nice to get feedback directly from an audience and I had a really lovely man come up to me after one of the screenings and say via an interpreter that he very much enjoyed the simplicity of the story, the more he watched, the more he realised there was more to the story than he first thought, and then in broken english he told me “In the final scene, my brain said ‘yes’, but my heart was saying ‘no’…” I think that was what I was always looking for.

I also had an interesting question in the press conference about the violence towards 10 year old ‘Chook’ (played by Tom Russell). The journalist asked “In Russia there is a saying where children tell their parents ‘You did not beat me enough’, meaning they have grown up to ‘soft’ and it is their parents fault. Do you think children should be beaten?” Needless to say there was an ‘awkward’ pause, before I went on to say that I could never condone any kind of violence towards a children. Not my own, and not to anyone elses. But then again, perhaps I’m one of the soft ones. It was an interesting cultural take on the film though.

I haven’t travelled to as many festivals as I have been invited to this year for various reasons, but I was really glad to head back to Vladivostok. I hadn’t watched Last Ride for nearly a year and although it was one of those screenings where I sat through and cringed at all the mistakes, the could have beens and I should haves and what ifs, it was really nice to be sitting in the dark and watching the film we made so far away from where we made it.

The photos I mentioned I was going to take have worked out well. I won’t post any here just yet. But I wanted to say a special thanks to Dimitry who assisted me in finding a few a people and locations, as well translating and driving. It was really good getting to see another side of Vladivostok with him. Here he is posing with his cool russian made Zenit 35mm complete with a sinister looking 300mm lens and sniper like add ons. Thanks Dimity!

September 11th, 2010 by Glendyn

Tomorrow morning I’m jumping on a plane to Vladivostok, Russia. I’m heading to the ‘Pacific Meridian Film Festival‘. I travelled there six years ago with Cracker Bag and the festival have now invited Last Ride into their feature film competition.

The last time I was there. I got a really bad dose of food poisoning. I remember counting down the minutes till I could get on a plane out of there. I vowed never to return to Russia, anywhere in Russia, with the just the thought of it making my stomach churn for months afterwards.

But time heals all wounds it seems and I was quite pleased to be invited back. It’s quite a fascinating place. When I was there last I took a bunch of photos and I have always wanted to go back and try and document the place a little better. This time I have organised a driver / interpreter / fixer to assist me. I have no real plans, just a list of places and things that might lead to one thing or another. I’m quite excited about what I might find.

Below a few selects from my last trip.

September 7th, 2010 by Glendyn

I find this really fascinating…

It just blows my mind that most films don’t pass this very simple test.

1. Does the film has more than two women in it, that have names?

2. Do they talk to each other?

3. Do they talk to each other about something other than a man.

Its so simple but when you start going through the movies you love, adore and respect, very few will pass the test. There will be alot of films you think will or should pass, but they won’t.

Are our story telling conventions really that rigid and simplified that women can only participate structurally in the most basic of ways? I can think of very few films that pass this test. Thelma and Louise (maybe?), Kiarostami’s Ten, Im sure there are more, there has to be. It’s alot tougher than you think. Particularly the minute you even step near ‘mainstream’ cinema.

So, do you know any movies that pass The Bechdel Test?

UPDATE : Head over to www.bechdeltest.com for a comprehensive list of films which pass the test. Interestingly there is a lot of disagreement on what does and not pass with some movies on the list. It looks like alot of films at first, but when you take a closer look only films that have a ‘: )’ after them fully pass. There are some surprising results. Who would have thought Machete would have passed!?

September 1st, 2010 by Glendyn

David Lynch is a hero of mine, I love nearly all his films, but sadly I’ve never been able to get into Inland Empire. As much as I wanted to and I’ve attemped to watch it a few times there is something about that film which has never clicked. Anyway, the saving grace of Inland Empire is a very special extra feature on the DVD which is a 20 minute film of David Lynch cooking himself a dinner of the ancient grain Quinoa and some broccoli.

Doesn’t sound that exciting, but believe me it’s one of the most strangely satisfying cooking shows you’ll be lucky enough to see. It’s not so much the Quinoa, but a story he tells while he sits on his dark balcony and has a cigarette while he waits for the the dinner to cook. Maybe it’s just me but when I first saw this I was totally mesmerised. It’s like Lynch draws you in and hypnotises you as he recounts a train trip he took through Europe many years ago.

I think this is one of the coolest extra features on a DVD I’ve seen. Bon Appetit!

Part Two is here (there is a point at 5mins 34 that is SO beautifully surreal and so incredibly David Lynch!)

And I recommend the Quinoa too, it’s delicious!!