#2017 Sundance Film Festival

[courseyoulovemeyoudontknowme]

Call Me By Your Name (2017, Luca Guadagnino)

24/12/2023

Call Me By Your Name is a 2017 sentimental film directed by Luca Guadagnino.

The screenplay is written by James Ivory and is a film adaptation of the novel Call Me By Your Name by André Aciman. It is the third and final film of Guadagnino's "desire trilogy", after I Am Love (2009) and A Bigger Splash (2015). Set in northern Italy in 1983, the film tells the love story between Elio (Timothée Chalamet), a seventeen-year-old living in Italy, and the American student Oliver (Armie Hammer). Also part of the cast are Michael Stuhlbarg, Amira Casar, Esther Garrel and Victoire Du Bois. The film's editor Walter Fasano also has a cameo in the film: he is the DJ of the famous party scene, as stated by Fasano himself in an interview.

Principal photography took place in Crema, Italy, between May and June 2016.

The film had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 22, 2017, and was subsequently released theatrically in the United Kingdom on October 27, 2017 and in the United States on November 24, 2017. The film received unanimous acclaim, with particular appreciation for the direction, screenplay, soundtrack and performers, and was chosen by the National Board of Review and the American Film Institute as one of the 10 best films of the year. It received three nominations for the 2018 Golden Globe, for best film, best actor (Chalamet) and best supporting actor (Hammer) and four nominations for the 2018 Oscar awards for best film, best actor (Chalamet), best non-original screenplay, best song (Mystery of Love). The Oscar was won by Ivory for best adapted screenplay.

Summer 1983. Elio Perlman, a seventeen-year-old French-American Jew, spends his summer holidays in a villa immersed in the Cremasco countryside, in Moscazzano, where his father, an archeology professor, usually hosts a foreign student every year who is busy writing his thesis doctoral degree.

[choupistickfaitdesbetises]

He knows…

What???

[cinemapix]

DIANNA AGRON photographed at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival

[jeremyleerennerdotcom]

on this day in history

 - wind river first screening at sundance film festival 21st january 2017

[chalamet-chalamet]

Timothée Chalamet attends the Sundance Film Festival on January 22, 2017 in Park City, Utah. ✨

[iwanthermidnightz]

This was a very good article! I loved hearing Kristen’s (and Jodie Fosters) perspective as a queer trailblazer. Inserting some snippets below 🤍

To get to this point, Stewart’s weathered more than a decade of unrelenting media scrutiny, first about her straight relationships, then about her gay ones, as she figured out her own identity. She leveraged her global stardom from the “Twilight” franchise not to become a superhero or a lifestyle guru, but to fuel an astonishing run of acclaimed independent films, including “Clouds of Sils Maria,” “Still Alice,” “Certain Women,” “Personal Shopper” and the Princess Diana drama “Spencer,” for which she earned an Oscar nomination.

“Whenever I hear that she’s doing something new, I’m so curious to see what it is, because it’s going to be a movie that hasn’t been made before,” says Clea DuVall, who directed Stewart in one of her only Hollywood films during this period, Hulu’s 2020 release “Happiest Season,” the first lesbian Christmas rom-com backed by a major studio. “She really is so herself. And I think that’s why so many people respond to her the way they do — because she is so authentic.”

By the time Stewart stepped on the stage of “Saturday Night Live” in February 2017, she’d spent the previous two years trying to convince the press that it was OK to write about her relationships with women, rather than resort to the vexing practice of referring to her girlfriend as her “gal pal.”

“It wasn’t even like I was hiding,” she says. “I was so openly out with my girlfriend for years at that point. I’m like, ‘I’m a pretty knowable person.’”

But even with that posture, the media’s “gal pal” dog whistle triggered a deeper, more painful history of intrusive curiosity about Stewart’s sexual identity. “For so long, I was like, ‘Why are you trying to skewer me? Why are you trying to ruin my life? I’m a kid, and I don’t really know myself well enough yet,’” she says. “The idea of people going, ‘I knew that you were a little queer kid forever.’ I’m like, ‘Oh, yeah? Well, you should honestly have seen me fuck my first boyfriend.’”

It’s worth dwelling on this point: For almost the entire history of Hollywood, queer actors dreaded the public discovering who they really were, and that fear kept the closet door firmly closed. “Because I was gay, I really retreated,” says DuVall, who came out publicly in 2016. “Even doing a teeny tiny movie like [the ’90s lesbian cult favorite] ‘But I’m a Cheerleader,’ people immediately were like, ‘She’s gay, how can we out her?’ I wanted to stay small.”

Stewart, though, went big, with a monologue on “SNL” about how President Donald Trump, in 2012, obsessively tweeted about her relationship with Pattinson. “Donald, if you didn’t like me then, you’re really probably not going to like me now, because I’m hosting ‘SNL’ — and I’m, like, so gay, dude,” she said to wild cheers from the audience.

“It was cool to frame it in a funny context because it could say everything without having to sit down and do an interview,” Stewart says before running through the kind of questions queer actors have had to consider before coming out publicly: “‘So what platform is that going to be on? And who’s going to make money on that? And who’s going to be the person that broke it?’ I broke it, alone.”

A few days later, I mention Stewart’s “SNL” monologue to Foster over the phone, and she lets out a big laugh. “I never knew that,” she says. “What a wonderful, funny, wry, modern way to be honest to the world. That’s just awesome.”

As Stewart talks about her “SNL” experience, I think about how no stars of her age and stature ever came out when I was growing up as a gay kid in the 1980s and ’90s. So to have her professional trajectory not skip a beat feels like real progress.

When I tell her as much, she takes the conversation in an unexpected direction. “Because I’m an actor, I want people to like me, and I want certain parts,” she says. “I have lots of different experiences that shape who I am that are very, very far from binary. But I did get good at the heteronormative quality. I play that role well. It comes from a somewhat real place — it’s not fake. But it’s fucked up that if I was gayer, it wouldn’t be the case.”

I try to clarify what she means: “So your career maybe would have suffered after coming out had you not affected a performative femininity …”

“… that I know works to my advantage,” she admits, nodding. “That’s why I’m fucking stoked about ‘Love Lies Bleeding.’”

Stewart didn’t let that scandal, as intense as it was in the moment, stifle her. Instead, she grew to fully embrace her queerness in her public life — like bringing her girlfriend, screenwriter Dylan Meyer, to the Oscars in 2022. “It’s not that I wasn’t scared,” Stewart says. “It was just that there was no other way to live.”

She’s even started to recognize that the most ostensibly heterosexual thing she’s done, “Twilight,” has its own queer sparkle. “I can only see it now,” she says. “I don’t think it necessarily started off that way, but I also think that the fact that I was there at all, it was percolating. It’s such a gay movie. I mean, Jesus Christ, Taylor [Lautner] and Rob and me, and it’s so hidden and not OK. I mean, a Mormon woman wrote this book. It’s all about oppression, about wanting what’s going to destroy you. That’s a very Gothic, gay inclination that I love.”

I ask Stewart if she understands how much her decision to come out has also made her a role model for LGBTQ people. She cackles. “Oh, you have no idea,” she says. “Every single woman that I’ve ever met in my whole life who ever kissed a girl in college is like, ‘Yeah, I mean, me too.’ I’m constantly joking with my girlfriend. I’ll be sitting there and be like” — she whispers — “‘She’s gay too. Everyone’s gay.’”

It can be easy to forget just how rare this still is, a giant movie star living such an openly queer life. “It feels like a generational thing, where I’m watching somebody make the leaps that I didn’t think I could ever do,” Foster says.

After fiercely guarding her privacy for decades, Foster came out publicly at the 2013 Golden Globes, and has just now played her first explicitly gay character in the 2023 biopic “Nyad.” Talking about Stewart has put Foster in a reflective mood. As our call is coming to an end, she offers this unprompted insight: “I get a lot of questions about who I was and what I represented in the industry, and was I — I don’t know …” She exhales. “Was I helpful in terms of representation? I’m sure there’s a 12- or 13- or 14-year-old when I was making movies as a young person who said that I had something to offer to them in their life as a queer person. I had to do it my way. I had pioneers to help the way, who I’m grateful for. And now people can be grateful for Kristen for being the pioneer. I’m just — I’m grateful to her.”

This sense of communion with the wider LGBTQ tribe is why Stewart has dedicated herself to embracing the fullness of who she is as a bro-y, butch-y queer woman in her work as an actor and, come hell or high water, a director.

“I was like, ‘I would like to be on that team because we need each other,’” Stewart says. “I didn’t want to be left out anymore. It was this whole world that I didn’t realize I could explore.”

[hypelens]

Aubrey Plaza’s Husband, Jeff Baena, Dies by Suicide: A Closer Look at the Tragedy and Its Impact

The entertainment industry is reeling after the tragic death of filmmaker Jeff Baena, who was married to actress Aubrey Plaza. Baena, known for his work on films like The Little Hours and Horse Girl, passed away by suicide on January 4, 2025. His sudden death has sparked widespread grief and conversations about mental health in Hollywood and beyond.

Who Was Jeff Baena?

Jeff Baena was an accomplished screenwriter and director, celebrated for his unique approach to storytelling. Born on June 29, 1977, in Miami, Florida, Baena studied film at New York University before embarking on a career in Hollywood. He began his journey as an assistant editor under acclaimed filmmaker Robert Zemeckis and later transitioned into screenwriting and directing.

Notable Works

Baena’s career highlights include a mix of quirky, offbeat comedies and emotionally resonant dramas:

Life After Beth (2014): A zombie comedy starring Aubrey Plaza and Dane DeHaan.

Joshy (2016): A dark comedy that premiered at the Sundance Film Festival.

The Little Hours (2017): A medieval comedy featuring an ensemble cast, including Aubrey Plaza, Alison Brie, and Dave Franco.

Horse Girl (2020): A psychological drama co-written with Alison Brie, praised for its nuanced portrayal of mental health.

Aubrey Plaza and Jeff Baena: A Creative Partnership

Aubrey Plaza and Jeff Baena were more than just husband and wife—they were creative collaborators who frequently worked together. The couple met in the early 2010s and began dating before marrying privately in 2021.

Collaborative Projects

Plaza often starred in Baena’s films, bringing his distinct narratives to life with her versatile acting. Their partnership was a testament to their mutual respect and shared passion for storytelling.

A Private Love Story

Despite their public personas, the couple maintained a relatively private life, choosing to focus on their work and relationship away from the limelight.

Details Surrounding Jeff Baena’s Death

News of Baena’s death broke on January 4, 2025, with reports confirming that he died by suicide. TMZ, CNN, and KTLA have reported on the tragedy, citing sources close to the family.

Statement from Aubrey Plaza

Aubrey Plaza released a heartfelt statement through her publicist, expressing her grief: "Jeff was my rock, my partner, and my greatest inspiration. This loss is unfathomable, and I ask for privacy as I navigate this painful time."

Mental Health Awareness

The news has prompted an outpouring of support for Plaza and renewed discussions about the importance of mental health awareness, particularly in high-pressure industries like entertainment.

The Industry Reacts

Hollywood has rallied around Aubrey Plaza and Jeff Baena’s family, with tributes pouring in from colleagues and friends:

Alison Brie: “Jeff was a genius and a kind soul. His loss is immeasurable.”

Dave Franco: “Working with Jeff was an honor. He was one of the most genuine people I’ve ever met.”

Judd Apatow: “Jeff’s creativity and spirit were infectious. He will be deeply missed.”

Raising Awareness: Mental Health in Hollywood

Baena’s death has highlighted the mental health challenges faced by individuals in creative fields. Studies show that those in entertainment often grapple with high levels of stress, isolation, and public scrutiny.

Resources for Support

Organizations like the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (1-800-273-TALK) and The Trevor Project offer support for individuals in crisis. Advocates are urging the industry to prioritize mental health resources and create safe spaces for open dialogue.

Jeff Baena’s Legacy

Though his life was tragically cut short, Jeff Baena’s artistic contributions will continue to resonate. His films, known for their originality and emotional depth, leave a lasting impact on audiences and the industry.

Aubrey Plaza’s Future

As fans mourn alongside Aubrey Plaza, many express hope that she will find solace in her late husband’s legacy and her creative pursuits.

Final Thoughts

Jeff Baena’s death is a profound loss for both his loved ones and the entertainment world. His work as a filmmaker and his partnership with Aubrey Plaza serve as a reminder of the power of creativity and love. As conversations about mental health continue, his passing underscores the need for compassion, understanding, and support for those struggling in silence.

[rorys-twilight]

Rory posing at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival!

🗓️📍: 22 January 2017, Utah

📸: (1, 4, 5) credits to Maarten De Boer

(2, 3) Jay L. Clendenin

(6) credits to Fred Hayes!

[niallhoranhasthat1thing]

Logan Lerman

2017 Sundance Film Festival | January 25 2017

[garethamm]

Jon at 2017 Sundance Film Festival Red Carpet Interview for Marjorie Prime

[brookstonalmanac]

Holidays 1.23

Holidays

Archery Day

Asian Corpsetwt Day [Every 23rd]

Birthday of the Grand Duchess (Luxembourg)

Bounty Day (Pitcairn Island)

BPDCN (Blastic Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cell Neoplasm) Awareness Day

Cold, Cold, Cold Day

Django Day

Ed Roberts Day (California)

Fundación del Estado Plurinacional Holiday (Bolivia)

Grandmother's Day (Bulgaria)

International Integrative Health Day

Maternal Health Awareness Day (New Jersey)

Measure Your Feet Day

National Freedom Day

National Handwriting Day

National King Day

National Musician Day (Día Nal. del Músico; Argentina)

National Reading Day

National Report Pharmaceutical Fraud Day

National School Nurse Day

National Security Technician Day

Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose's Jayanti (Parts of India)

One-Tooth Rhee Landing Day

Paul Pitcher Day (Cornwall)

Ranked Choice Voting Day

Snowdrop Day (French Republic)

Snowplow Mailbox Hockey Day

Tiananmen Square Day

20th Amendment Day (US)

25th Amendment Day (US)

Wakakusa Yamayaki (Grass Burning; Japan)

Women in Medicine Day

World Endangered Writing Day

World Freedom Day (South Korea, Taiwan)

Food & Drink Celebrations

International Sticky Toffee Pudding Day

National Pie Day

National Rhubarb Day

Rhubarb Pie Day

Nature Celebrations

Bullsrub Day (Obedience; Korean Birth Flowers)

Independence, Flag & Related Days

Foundation Day (Lichtenstein)

Kingdom of Abrus (Declared; 2017) [unrecognized]

Poland (2nd Partition by Russia & Prussia; 1793)

New Year’s Days

Gann-Hgal (Zeliangrong People’s New Year’s Festival; Parts of India)

4th Thursday in January

Clashing Clothes Day [4th Thursday]

National Cheat Day [4th Thursday]

Thinking Thursday [4th Thursday of Each Month]

Thirsty Thursday [Every Thursday]

Three for Thursday [Every Thursday]

Thrift Store Thursday [Every Thursday]

Throwback Thursday [Every Thursday]

Thuringer Thursday [4th Thursday of Each Month]

Weekly Holidays beginning January 23 (3rd Full Week of January)

Mozart Week (Salzburg, Austria) [thru 2.2]

Festivals Beginning January 23, 2025

Cairo International Book Fair (Cairo, Egypt) [thru 2.5]

Grand Lighthouse Bad Gastein (Bad Gastein, Austria) [thru 1.26]

GrassWorks Grazing Conference (Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin) [thru 1.25]

The Great Northern (Minneapolis & St. Paul, Minnesota) [thru 2.2]

Montevideo Carnival (Montevideo, Uruguay) [thru 3.8]

OAK Conference (Frankfort, Kentucky) [thru 1.25]

Organic Vegetable Production Conference (Madison, Wisconsin) [thru 2.1]

Rolex 24 at Daytona (Daytona, Florida) [thru 1.26]

Saint Paul Winter Carnival (St. Paul, Minnesota) [thru 2.2]

Sundance Film Festival (Park CIty, Utah) [thru 2.2]

Sun Wine & Food Fest (Uncasville, Connecticut) [thru 1.26]

Feast Days

Abakuh (Egyptian Christian; Martyr)

Agathangelus (Christian; Martyr)

Asclas (Christian; Martyr)

Banba (a.k.a. Banbha; Matron Goddess of Ireland; Celtic Book of Days)

Bernard of Vienne (Christian; Saint)

Betrothal of Mary and Joseph (Christian)

Bruma VII (Pagan)

Chantecler, by Edmond Rostand (Play; 1911)

Clement of Ancyra (Christian; Martyr)

Cunning Linguine Day (a.k.a. Get Your Tongue Round Some Linguine Day; Pastafarian)

Day of Hathor (Ancient Egypt; Everyday Wicca)

Day of Hathor (Egyptian Goddess of Drunkenness)

Emerentiana (Christian; Virgin)

Espousals of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Christian)

Eusebius (Christian; Saint)

The Great God Brown, by Eugene O’Neill (Play; 1926)

Ildefonsus of Toledo (Christian; Saint)

John the Almsgiver (Christian; Saint)

Knot Magic Day (Cornwall; Starza Pagan Book of Days)

Leon Golub (Artology)

Lufthildis (Christian; Virgin)

Maimbod (Christian; Martyr)

Marianne of Molokai (Christian; Blessed)

The Peasants (Muppetism)

Phillips Brooks (Episcopal Church (USA))

Ragwort Dance (Pixies Only; Shamanism)

Raymund of Pennafort (a.k.a. Rayman;  Christian; Confessor) [Original Date]

Samuel (Positivist; Saint)

Sergei Eisenstein (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Lunar Calendar Holidays

Chinese: Month 12 (Ding-Chou), Day 24 (Ren-Chen)

Day Pillar: Water Dragon

12-Day Officers/12 Gods: Balance Day (平 Ping) [Inauspicious]

Holidays:

None Today

Secular Saints Days

Jean-Michel Atlan (Art)

Belkis Ayón (Art)

Georg Baselitz (Art)

Gary Burton (Music)

Abraham Diepraam (Art)

Sergei Eisenstein (Entertainment)

Leon Golub (Art)

John Hancock (Politics)

Ernie Kovacs (Entertainment)

Jerry Kramer (Sports)

Édouard Manet (Art)

Walter M. Miller Jr. (Literature)

Charlie Papazian (Beer)

Dhango Reinhardt (Music)

Standahl (Literature)

Fred Wah (Literature)

Derek Walcott (Literature)

Fred Williams (Art)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Prime Number Day: 23 [9 of 72]

Taian (大安 Japan) [Lucky all day.]

Premieres

The A-Team (TV Series; 2003)

Barney Miller (TV Series; 1975)

Batman: Gotham by Gaslight (WB Animated Film; 2018)

The Blair Witch Project (Film; 1999)

Boys For Pele, by Tori Amos (Album; 1996)

Bushfire Fairytales, by Jack Johnson (Album; 2001)

The Butterfly Effect (Film; 2004)

Casablanca (Film; 1943)

Dave the Barbarian (Animated TV Series; 2004)

The Donny & Marie Show (TV Series; 1976)

Dragonwyck, by Anya Seton (Novel; 1944)

Fear on the Pier or What’s Up, Duck? (Rocky & Bullwinkle Cartoon, S3, Ep. 145; 1962)

Fire-Fire (Flip the Frog MGM Cartoon; 1932)

Goodbye Cream, by Cream (Album; 1969)

Happy Circus Days (Terrytoons Cartoon; 1942)

The Herring Murder Mystery (Color Rhapsody Cartoon; 1944)

I Left My Heart in San Francisco, recorded by Tony Bennett (Song; 1962)

I’m Just a Jitterbug (Baby-Face Mouse Cartoon; 1939)

Inkheart (Film; 2008)

Jamaica Inn, by Daphne du Maurier (Novel; 1936)

Katherine, by Anya Seton (Historical Novel; 1954)

Lady in the Lake (Film; 1947)

Material Girl, by Madonna (Song; 1985)

Mythbusters (TV Series; 2003)

Neck ’n’ Neck (Oswald the Lucky Rabbit Cartoon; 1928)

The New Spirit (Disney Cartoon; 1942)

Our Friend the Atom (Animated DIsnet TV Cartoon; 1957)

Puppy Tale (Tom & Jerry Cartoon; 1954)

Roots (TV Mini-Series; 1977)

Skeleton Frolics (Color Rhapsody Cartoon; 1937)

Spice World (Film; 1998)

Star Trek: Picard (TV Series; 2020)

Station to Station, by David Bowie (Album; 1976)

Strange Magic (Animated Film; 2015)

Suspicious Minds, recorded by Elvis Presley (Song; 1969)

They’re Off (Disney Cartoon; 1948)

TNT For Two or Fright Cargo (Rocky & Bullwinkle Cartoon, S3, Ep. 146; 1962)

Trust, by Elvis Costello (Album; 1981)

The Way You Do the Things You Do, by The Temptations (Song; 1964)

West of the Pesos (WB LT Cartoon; 1960)

The Witch of Pickyoon, Parts 1 & 2 (Underdog Cartoon, S1, Eps. 33 & 34 1965)

Today’s Name Days

Hartmut, Heinrich, Nikolaus (Austria)

Ema, Emercijana, Vjera (Croatia)

Zdeněk (Czech Republic)

Emerentius (Denmark)

Räni, Reeno, Rene (Estonia)

Eine, Eini, Enna, Enni (Finland)

Banard (France)

Esmerentia, Guido, Hartmut (Germany)

Agathangelos, Dionisis (Greece)

Rajmund, Zelma (Hungary)

Armando, Emerenziana, Ramona (Italy)

Grieta, Ortrude, Rieta (Latvia)

Algimantas, Gailigedas, Gunda, Raimundas (Lithuania)

Emil, Emilie, Emma (Norway)

Emerencja, Ildefons, Jan, Klemens, Maria, Rajmund, Rajmunda, Wrócisława (Poland)

Clement, Paulin (Romania)

Miloš (Slovakia)

Ildefonso (Spain)

Frej, Freja (Sweden)

Clem, Clement, Clementine, Ksenia, Oksana (Ukraine)

Emerald, Esmeralda, Rachael, Rachel, Rachelle, Rae, Ramon, Ramona, Raquel, Ray, Raymond, Raymundo (USA)

National Name Days:

National Aiden Day

National Fay Day

National Pedro Day

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 23 of 2025; 342 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 4 of Week 4 of 2025

Celtic Tree Calendar:

Druid Tree Calendar: Elm (Jan 12-24) [Day 12 of 13]

Graves Calendar: Luis (Rowan) [Day 3 of 28]

Chinese: Month 12 (Ding-Chou), Day 24 (Ren-Chen)

Chinese Year of the: Dragon 4722 (until January 29, 2025) [Wu-Chen]

Coptic: 15 Tubah 1741

Hebrew: 23 Teveth 5785

Islamic: 23 Rajab 1446

J Cal: 23 White; Twosday [23 of 30]

Julian: 10 January 2025

Moon: 33%: Waning Crescent

Positivist: 23 Moses (1st Month) [Samuel]

Runic Half Month: Elhaz (Elk) [Day 2 of 15]

Season: Winter (Day 34 of 90)

Week: 3rd Full Week of January

Zodiac:

Tropical (Typical) Zodiac: Aquarius (Day 4 of 30)

Sidereal Zodiac: Capricorn (Day 9 of 29)

Schmidt Zodiac: Sagittarius (Day 23 of 25)

IAU Boundaries (Current) Zodiac: Capricorn (Day 4 of 28)

IAU Boundaries (1977) Zodiac: Capricornus (Day 5 of 28)

[schlock-luster-video]

On January 23, 2017, Get Out! was screened at the Sundance Film Festival.

[jeremyleerennerdotcom]

jeremy and lizzie

sundance film festival for wind river 2017

san diego comic con for age of ultron 2014

[lboogie1906]

Nate Parker (November 18, 1979) is an actor and filmmaker. He has appeared in Beyond the Lights, Red Tails, The Secret Life of Bees, The Great Debaters, Arbitrage, Non-Stop, Felon, and Pride. His directorial debut feature film, The Birth of a Nation, in which he starred, made history at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival when Fox Searchlight Pictures acquired the distribution rights for $17.5 million, breaking the record for the most paid for a Sundance Film Festival production.

He was born in Norfolk to Carolyn Whitfield. Although his parents did not marry, he had a relationship with his father until his father died from cancer when he was 11. He attended Churchland High School and continued on their wrestling team, before moving to Great Bridge High School and attending Penn State University on a wrestling scholarship.

The Nate Parker Foundation was founded in 2015 and is based in Brooklyn. In 2016, the foundation established the Nate Parker Summer Film Institute at Wiley College which was held yearly to use film as a medium of social transformation with 31 students who are either from Africa or of African descent. The foundation received the first grant to make the HBCU Storytellers Project from the Kellogg Foundation’s Racial Healing and Reconciliation Fund in 2017. The grant covered four short documentaries which address racial issues and stereotypes. The first film series funded by the grant, Just Mercy, has received four NAACP Image Awards, Outstanding Ensemble Cast, Outstanding Supporting Actor, Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture, and Outstanding Motion Picture. In 2018, the foundation received funding from the Ford Foundation and private stakeholders.

He married Sarah DiSanto (2007), and they had three daughters in addition to two more daughters he had.

He considers himself a Christian, and he grew up in the church. #africanhistory365 #africanexcellence

[hollywoodcatfish]

Catfish: Kristen Stewart/Towlee Stewart

Name(s): Kristen Stewart, Kris Stewart, Towlee Stewart, KS, KJS

YouTube

NOTE: This subject is a stolen identity.

Kristen Jaymes Stewart is a prominent film actor, known for starring in the Twilight film series. She reportedly began appearing on Facebook in February 2017, interacting publicly with Lisbeth Olofsson/Elofsson & Shonna Paige/Scheglova, as their peer from a social circle shared with her closest friend, CJ Romero, and her spouse at the time, Stella Maxwell. Many profiles, commonly going by "Towlee Stewart", were opened and forcibly closed until May 2020, due to celebrity impersonation reports. Photos, videos, and posts positively referenced this purported friends circle, while besmirching Washington State actors & filmmakers, as well as a circle of private residents unaffiliated with the industry.

The authenticity of the Stewart persona was further bolstered by a social media presence on platforms like LinkedIn & YouTube, as well as phone calls, voice mail, and text messages. People connected with this persona received autographed memorabilia.

The initial image, taken at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival, utilized to represent the Stewart catfish profile.

The perpetrator who created the Lisbeth Olofsson/Elofsson, Shonna Paige/Scheglova, and Renee Vivas personas utilized Stewart's likeness and influence to devastating effect. Amassing a following of filmmakers & fans, the Stewart persona shared details regarding a false relationship with the perpetrator - that he was her former assistant, alongside Romero, and that Olofsson/Elofsson & Paige/Scheglova were her friends from Twilight's production. This individual supplemented his purported relationship with Stewart with custom-made media, such as a video of him dancing in a hoodie with her face printed on it, as well as a selfie of him covered in makeup - allegedly by Stewart's hand, while he was passed out at her Los Angeles residence. He further claimed to have been employed by the Gersh Agency, which represented Stewart at the time.

The Stewart persona also targeted the perpetrator's professional & personal peers from his upbringing. The persona accused filmmakers & actors the perpetrator was connected with of exploiting their relationship with him, as well as stalking her, stealing her private pictures via hacking, sabotaging film deals & her relationship with Gersh, and attempting to coerce letters of intent (LOIs). The perpetrator's personal friends were accused by this persona of being: closeted homosexuals, child molesters, rapists, and murderers. The persona attempted to convince victims that their lives & careers were ruined, and that suicide would be the ideal outcome.

Having previously identified the Stewart persona's entire social circle as being inauthentic or unaware of their names being used, we concluded that this is a case of a stolen identity. We took the liberty to ask Romero about the perpetrator.

CJ Romero denies knowing the (redacted) perpetrator.

We surmise that the perpetrator was assisted by an unidentified woman who impersonated Stewart through phone calls.

[unblogparaloschicos]

Cine: Beach Rats (2017)

En público, Frankie (Harris Dickinson) suele reunirse con sus compañeros de tropelías (Frank Hakaj, David Ivanov y Anton Selyaninov) para efectuar algunos robos de poca monta, fumar cigarrillos de marihuana o participar en concursos de humo de cigarrillos eléctricos. Todo, mientras padece los últimos días de vida de su padre (Neal Huff), convaleciente de un cáncer fulminante, y pasa el tiempo utilizando su medicación para pulverizarla y continuar drogándose, oculto de la mirada de su madre Donna (Kate Hodge), que de tanto en cuando le reclama que se busque una novia, y de su hermana menor Carla (Nicole Flyus). 

En privado y de noche, su situación se vuelve aún más compleja: ingresa a “Brooklyn Boys”, un chat de citas de hombres gays, y se contacta con machazos mayores, con los que tiene relaciones sexuales a cambio de un poco de hierba, en ocasiones, en medio de la noche y a metros de la playa. Eso es lo que quiere creer, que lo hace por la droga. Se enamora de Simone (Madeline Weinstein) en un evento con fuegos artificiales, pero sabe que hay algo que no puede (o se niega a) comprender en sí mismo. Algo falla en esa relación y son sus encuentros con Michael (Erik Potempa), uno de esos “clientes”, los que despiertan todas las alarmas. Para peor, cuando su estabilidad económica comienza a agobiarlo, Framkie invita a sus amigos a unirse a su peculiar cruzada para adquirir la mercancía. Porque, a esta altura de los hechos, es lo que dice hacer: juntarse con extraños gays sólo por eso, no por el sexo.

Eliza Hittman, autora y directora del filme, ha recibido once premios (entre ellos, el de Mejor Directora en el festival de Sundance) y dieciséis nominaciones por este doloroso retrato de un adolescente perdido (y en más de un sentido).