80th ACADEMY AWARDS® DATES ANNOUNCED

21 March 2007, President Sid Ganis, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences® (AMPAS®), announced some key dates for the 80th Academy Awards that will be presented Sunday, February 24, 2008. The telecast will again originate from the Kodak Theatre at the Hollywood and Highland Center® in Hollywood and broadcast live on ABC. Other dates will be posted when available.

The announced dates are:

Monday, December 3, 2007: Official Screen Credits forms due.
Wednesday, December 26, 2007: Nominations ballots mailed.
Saturday, January 12, 2008: Nominations polls close 5 p.m. PST.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008: Nominations announced 5:30 a.m. PST, Samuel Goldwyn Theater.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008: Final ballots mailed.
Monday, February 4, 2008: Nominees Luncheon.
Saturday, February 9, 2008: Scientific and Technical Achievement Awards presentation.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008: Final polls close 5 p.m. PST.
Sunday, February 24, 2008: 80th Annual Academy Awards presentation.

Events for which dates are yet to be announced:

Deadline for documentary filmmakers to submit their short subject and feature-length documentaries to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for consideration for the 79th Academy Awards®.

Entry forms for acceptance in the process for nomination in the Best Foreign Language Film and Short Films categories must be received at the Academy.

Deadline for Academy to receive film prints for the Best Foreign Language category.

Official Screen Credits Forms Due for all categories.

80th Awards Schedule will be available through the link on the right sidebar until the awards in 2008.

GUADALAJARA FESTIVAL OF CINEMA

The 22nd Guadalajara International Festival of Cinema will run 22 - 30 March 2007, in Guadalajara, Mexico.

Mexican director Guillermo del Toro (PAN'S LABYRINTH) will receive the first Guadalajara Award. This new award is for outstanding personalities of the Ibero-American cinematographic community who have distinguished themselves at the international level.

American Actress Elizabeth Peña will present the movie, ADRIFT IN MANHATTAN, directed by Alfredo de Villa. It will screen in a new event at the Festival: From the Other Side (Desde el Otro Lado).

Spanish actor/director Antonio Banderas will present his movie SUMMER RAIN (El Camino de los Ingleses). RAIN will screen Saturday, 24 March. Several films from Mexico will also screen. The 5th Guadalajara Film Market will run concurrently with the festival.

For more about this festival and many others, see Mimi's Film Festival Page. Link also on right sidebar.

Two More Movie Series for Los Angeles

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will again present continuations of two of its popular film series, "Rediscovered Silent Films" and "Great to be Nominated, Part Four." The first begins 29 March and the second 23 April.

Series # 1 - Rediscovered Silent Films, Linwood Dunn Theater

THE CURSE OF QUON GWON, the first known feature made by Chinese-Americans, and HER WILD OAT, starring the quintessential 1920s flapper Colleen Moore, will unspool as part of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ “Lost and Found” film series on Thursday, March 29, at 7:30 p.m., Linwood Dunn Theater at the Academy’s Pickford Center for Motion Picture Study in Hollywood. Both films will be accompanied by live music performed by Michael Mortilla.

THE CURSE OF QUON GWON, directed by Marion Wong, is one of the few American silent feature films directed by a woman. It was thought to be lost until filmmaker Arthur Dong discovered two surviving reels in the possession of the lead actress’s daughters. Dong brought the nitrate 35mm negative reels, as well as ten minutes of additional 16mm footage, to the Academy Film Archive for preservation. In December 2006 the Library of Congress selected the movie for the National Film Registry.

In HER WILD OAT, Moore, with her signature flapper haircut, stars as a woman who owns a small lunch wagon and falls for a duke’s son who is pretending to be his own chauffeur. Many of Moore’s films have been lost to nitrate decomposition. This print newly restored by the Archive provides the public a rare opportunity to rediscover Moore’s work. Her filmography includes both silent and sound films. Her final movie role was as Hester Prynne in the 1934 version of THE SCARLET LETTER.

“Lost and Found” is a periodic screening series designed to showcase archival prints that have been recently rediscovered, or films that have been restored from new materials that improve the presentational quality of previous available versions. In some instances, the films may be incomplete or damaged, making access unlikely through more traditional venues. The series provides renewed access to “lost” films and brings to light some of film preservation’s more notable success stories.

Tickets to “Lost and Found” are $5 for the general public, and $3 for Academy members and students with a valid ID. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Get your tickets beforehand, and get their early to be safe. I think you can pay for the tickets a pick them up at the boxoffice that evening. For more information, call (310) 247-3600.

The Linwood Dunn Theater is located at 1313 North Vine Street in Hollywood. Free parking is available behind the building through the entrance on Homewood Avenue.

Series # 2 - “Great To Be Nominated” blasts off with STAR WARS, Samuel Goldwyn Theater

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will launch part four of its popular “Great To Be Nominated” series on Monday, April 23 with George Lucas' STAR WARS. The 16-week series will once again showcase the Academy Award® nominees for Best Picture that garnered the most Oscar® nominations in a particular year but did not win the Oscar for Best Picture. This installment will cover films from 1977 to 1992. A different film will screen each Monday evening, plus one Tuesday night, at 7:30 p.m. in the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater on Wilshire Boulevard.

The “Great To Be Nominated” screening of STAR WARS coincides with the 30th anniversary of the breakthrough science fiction film that launched an empire. George Lucas and many of his fellow filmmakers will be present for a post-film panel discussion.

The film was nominated for ten Academy Awards® and took home Oscars® for Art Direction (John Barry, Norman Reynolds, Leslie Dilley; Set Decoration: Roger Christian), Costume Design (John Mollo), Film Editing (Paul Hirsch, Marcia Lucas, Richard Chew), Music - Original score (John Williams), Sound (Don MacDougall, Ray West, Bob Minkler, Derek Ball), and Visual Effects (John Stears, John Dykstra, Richard Edlund, Grant McCune, Robert Blalack). Benjamin Burtt, Jr. received a Special Achievement Award for the creation of the alien, creature and robot voices in the film.

The film was also honored with nominations for Actor in a Supporting Role (Alec Guinness), Directing (George Lucas), Best Picture (Gary Kurtz, producer) and Writing – Screenplay written directly for the screen (Lucas).

STAR WARS was the first, and only, best picture nomination for a Lucas-directed movie. It lost to ANNIE HALL (Woody Allen). Also, George Lucas received his only best director nomination for this movie and lost to Woody Allen.

The series will continue through August 20. “Great To Be Nominated” will then go on hiatus until Spring 2008, when part five will begin with REMAINS OF THE DAY (1993). The complete screening schedule for part four of “Great To Be Nominated” is:

April 23 - Star Wars (1977); April 24 - (Tuesday) - Julia (1977); April 30 - Heaven can Wait (1978); May 7 - All That Jazz (1979); May 14 - Raging Bull (1980); May 21 - Reds (1981); June 4 - Tootsie (1982); June 11 - The Right Stuff (1983); June 18 - A Passage to India (1984); June 25 - The Color Purple (1985); July 9 - A Room with a View (1986); July 16 - Broadcast News (1987); July 23 - Dangerous Liaisons (1988); July 30 - Born on the Fourth of July (1989); August 6 - The Godfather, Part III (1990); August 13 - Bugsy (1991); August 20 - Howards End (1992).

Passes for part four of “Great To Be Nominated” will be available starting April 2 at a cost of $30 for film buffs wishing to see the series in its entirety. A $5 discount is available for those who wish to renew their passes from parts one, two or three of the series. Tickets for the first four individual screenings will be available starting April 9 at a cost of $5 for the general public and $3 for Academy members and students with a valid ID. They may be purchased by mail, in person at the Academy during regular business hours or, depending on availability, on the night of the screening when the doors open at 6:30 p.m., but you better purchase beforehand.

Other elements from each year, such as short subjects, behind-the-scenes footage, trailers and music, will be incorporated into each evening’s program. Curtain time for all features is 7:30 p.m., and pre-show elements will begin at 7 p.m. The Academy is located at 8949 Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills. For more information, call 310-247-3600.

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See links for A.M.P.A.S.® and Oscars Web sites on right sidebar.

MOVIE & ART EVENTS IN LOS ANGELES

1. Exhibit of movie Posters. Posters honoring the 50-year anniversary of the inauguration of the Oscar® category for Best Foreign Language Film is currently in the Grand Lobby Gallery at the home of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences® (AMPAS®) on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles. The exhibit, "From Amarcord to Z," featuring posters of Oscar winning foreign movies since 1956 will run through 15 April, and is presented by the Academy Foundation of the AMPAS.

The history of the award actually goes back to 1947, when the Academy recognized SCIUSCIÁ (Shoe Shine, Italy, directed by Vittorio De Sica) from war-scarred Italy, for offering “proof to the world that the creative spirit can triumph over adversity.” The Academy presented seven more “special” or “honorary” foreign language film Oscars® before officially establishing the category in 1956, to be awarded for the first time in 1957. The first competitive Academy Award went to Italy for LA STRADA (The Road, 1956, directed by Frederico Fellini).

The exhibition, which has been assembled from the extensive poster collection of the Academy’s Margaret Herrick Library, many of which are originals, includes the posters for both those Italian films. The Academy’s Grand Lobby Gallery is open Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and weekends from noon to 6 p.m. Admission is free.

2. Contemporary Documentaries Screening Series (Part II), 14 March – 6 June 2007

Presented by the Academy Foundation of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the UCLA Film & Television Archive. The 25th annual Contemporary Documentaries series is a showcase for feature-length and short documentaries drawn from the 2005 Academy Award® nominations, including the winners, as well as other important and innovative films considered by the Academy that year. This is Part II of the series. Part I was screened in December - November 2006. All films in the series screen on Wednesdays at the Linwood Dunn Theater at the Academy’s Pickford Center for Motion Picture Study at 7 p.m., unless otherwise noted. The filmmakers will be present at screenings whenever possible.

Docs Screenings in March:

Wednesday, March 14: MARCH OF THE PENGUINS, directed by Luc Jacquet, and GRIZZLY MAN, directed by Werner Herzog.

Wednesday, March 28: THE DEATH OF KEVIN CARTER: Casualty of the Bang Bang Club, directed by Dan Krauss, and KORDA VISION, directed by Héctor Cruz Sandoval.

For list of additional screenings, visit "2006-2007 Contemporary Documentaries".

The Linwood Dunn Theater is located at the Academy’s Pickford Center for Motion Picture Study, 1313 North Vine Street, Hollywood. Free parking is available behind the building through the entrance on Homewood Avenue (one block north of Fountain). Admission is free. Doors open at 6 p.m. All seating is unreserved. For additional program information call (310) 247-3600.

General Information

Tickets for these, and other, Academy programs may be purchased by mail, at the Academy during normal business hours, or at the box office which opens one hour before the start of the event.

The Academy's main location is at 8949 Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills, California. Office hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, except most major holidays. For further information on all Academy events and exhibitions in Los Angeles, call (310) 247-3600, unless otherwise noted.

The Academy's New York office is located at 111 East 59th Street, New York, New York, closed most major holidays. For further information on all Academy events and exhibitions in New York, call (888) 778-7575, unless otherwise noted.

To purchase tickets by mail, please send your check or money order made to "Academy Foundation" to: Academy Foundation Programs Dept., 8949 Wilshire Boulevard, Beverly Hills, CA 90211.

MOVIE & ART EVENTS IN NYC

1. Exhibit of Famous Spanish Artists. The exhibit "Barcelona and the Modernity: Gaudí to Dalí" opened Wednesday, 7 March, at the Metropolitan Museum, NYC, Special Exhibition Galleries, The Tisch Galleries, 2nd floor.

Andalusian Pablo Picasso, the Catalans Joan Miró, Salvador Dalí and Antoni Gaudí are represented in the exhibition that will close 3 June. The president of the Metropolitan, Emily Rafferty, referred to the exhibition as one of the biggest international exhibitions of modern art."

The Metropolitan Museum is located at 1000 Fifth Avenue. New York, New York 10028 -0198. It appears that admission prices are recommended: Adults, $20; Seniors (65 and older) $15; Students, $10 (with some restrictions); and Children under 12 with an adult are free. For more specific information call 212-535-7710. Visit online.


2. "Monday Nights With Oscar®" Screenings. The movie NETWORK (1976) will screen at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences® (AMPAS®) Theater at Lighthouse International in New York City, Monday, 19 March. NETWORK opens the "Monday Nights With Oscar" screening series in New York City (NYC). The movie contains the famous line, “I’m as mad as hell, and I’m not going to take this anymore!”

Hosted by Robert Osborne, host of Turner Classic Movies, the special guest will be the movie's director Sidney Lumet, and showtime is 7:30 p.m. The Theater at Lighthouse International is located at 111 East 59th Street, New York.

Tickets are $5 for the general public and $3 for Academy members and students with a valid ID and may be reserved over the phone by calling 1-888-778-7575. Depending on availability, tickets may be purchased in person the night of the screening. Doors open at 7 p.m. For more information.

General Information

Tickets for these, and other, Academy programs may be purchased by mail, at the Academy during normal business hours, or at the box office which opens one hour before the start of the event.

The Academy's main national office is at 8949 Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills, California. Office hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, except most major holidays. For further information on all Academy events and exhibitions in Los Angeles, call (310) 247-3600, unless otherwise noted.

The Academy's New York office is at 111 East 59th Street, New York, New York, closed most major holidays. For further information on all Academy events and exhibitions in New York, call (888) 778-7575, unless otherwise noted.

Best Foreign Language Movie Goes English

Actors Ulrich Muehe and Ulrich Tukur in a scene from the Oscar®-winning foreign movie THE LIVES OF OTHERS. Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics.
When it came time for me to choose a Best Foreign Language Film, I was stumped. The winner in the too-close-to-call race was THE LIVES OF OTHERS from Germany.

As I posted 23 February, it was easy to conclude that the two front runners were THE LIVES OF OTHERS (Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, director, Germany), and PAN'S LABYRINTH (Guillermo del Toro, director, Mexico), order of rank undeterminable. I, like many writing about the Oscars®, found myself unable to make a decision in this category. I bemoaned I had seen neither movie. Had I seen both of them, I would have gone out on a limb and picked THE LIVES OF OTHERS. I did warn PAN'S fans that I was doubtful it would win.

Possible reasonsing for LIVES win? The Academy mandates that all Academy members casting final votes in this category must prove that they have seen all five nominees. Up until this time it was only important for members of the two evaluating committees who made the preliminary cuts to see the movies.

Let's face it, the younger members of the Academy are busy. In the main, they do not have time to view all the films in the Foreign Language category. Many are simply not interested.

That skews the votes towards the older members of the Academy. Now, knowing that, I should have gone out the limb and predicted THE LIVES OF OTHERS as the winner. I was about 90% certain that this was the way the votes would come down but, in the Oscar race, 90% is not good enough. Well, next year is another year, and since Martin Scorsese did win the Best Director Oscar, I will, God willing, be watching and evaluating this category again next year.

MEANWHILE, Daily Variety reported yesterday (Thursday), that THE LIVES OF OTHERS will be remade as an English-language movie, if the current round of plans and deal-making is successful. The team is composed of former Miramax Films chiefs Bob and Harvey Weinstein, and Oscar-winning filmmakers Sydney Pollack (OUT OF AFRICA, 1985) and Anthony Minghella (THE ENGLISH PATIENT, 1996), partners in Mirage Productions. The Weinstein brothers will develop the project through their Weinstein Co., partnering with Mirage.

According to Pollack, the partners teamed to secure the rights to do the project from the writer/director von Donnersmarck. The development team feels that this movie about wiretaps, spying, and loss of personal privacy is relevant in the lives of Americans today, and the movie deserves wider distribution than it will receive in the original German language. The remake in English will facilitate this.

LIVES is von Donnersmarck's debut movie. Oh, my. Might we possibly see this movie nominated again in the best feature motion picture category for 2008? It is possible. Keep watching the movies!