Visions du Réel International Film Festival, Nyon, Switzerland A Reality Check (5/7/2002)

When questioned about the authenticity of his portraits, video artist Donigan Cumming answers, "It's all just versions [of reality] to me in a way, and you work to the right version amongst the field of versions." Visions du Réel might well be the only documentary festival in harmony with this viewpoint. Launched 33 years ago by ex-Berlinale director de Hadeln, the festival has undergone several changes. The 8th edition of its new format, Visions du Réel, took place April 22-28 in the little town of Nyon, Switzerland, on the shores of lake Geneva, a picture-perfect locale somewhat at odds with reel after reel of harsh realities.

Published in indieVision, Summer 2002, Premiere issue, p.107.

Happy Times, aka Xingfu Shiguang (5/4/2002)
China, 2000. Directed by Zhang Yimou, written by Gui Zi. Starring Zhao Benshan, Dong Jie, Li Xuejian. Produced by Edward R. Pressman, Terrence Malick, Wang Wei. In Mandarin with English subtitles, 106 minutes, rated PG. Sony Pictures Classics.

If Happy Times were Japanese, it would be a haiku: a poem springing from a few words about ordinary things. But Zhang Yimou's latest film, with its joyous blend of good old common sense, nonsense and circumlocutory versions of the truth, is unquestionably Chinese.

Published in indieVision, Summer 2002, Premiere issue, p.43.

The Melbourne International Film Festival 2001 A Hidden Gem Down Under

Mention Melbourne to an Australian and he'll usually reply that it always rains there. Curiously, not many people bring up Melbourne's International Film Festival (or MIFF as it is known Down Under), even though it is the oldest established film festival in the Southern Hemisphere.

Published in Guerilla Filmmaker, Fall/Winter 2001, Volume 3 - Issue 1, pp.12-13.

Los Amigos Invisibles Super Sancocho Variety

With the cryptically entitled "Super Sancocho Variety," self-labeled "party band" and South American transplants Los Amigos Invisibles have launched weekly Venezuelan parties onto the NYC scene. Clad in '70s-style garb, guitarist José Luis Pardo and lead singer Julio Briceño took turns in the DJ booth at Void last Thursday, playing songs that ranged from funk to salsa, with forays into drum'n'bass, acid jazz, and lounge music.

Published in The Village Voice, Regulars Column, May 23-29 2001. Also available on the Voice's website http://www.villagevoice.com/issues/0121/regulars.php

The Montreal World Film Festival 2001

The 25th Montreal World Film Festival wrapped up on September 3 with Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s Amélie, one of 50+ French films screened here. French features were second only to Canadian productions at MFF. Yet despite all this I couldn’t help but feel that the quality of the selections wasn’t always up to par. The screenings went from good to boring and back, not quite the ride I expected Montreal’s film festival to be.

Published on Guerilla Filmmaker's website, 7dazemedia