#Christian Blauvelt

[stephenist]

“If TCM is neglected, or God forbid, shuttered, it would be a massive loss to cinema culture. It would devalue Warner Bros.’ own legacy — if they don’t care about this unique way of putting their history on display and in context, why should filmmakers believe that Warner Bros. values cinema beyond the bottom line?”

[zonetrente-trois]

The film, thought for decades to be lost, was found recently in the auction of items from a defunct Omaha-based distributor.

[mrs-stans]

Sebastian Stan’s Variety ‘Actors on Actors’ Halted Because No Other Talent Wants to Talk About Trump

No talent that could be paired with him for the video series wants to address Trump or Stan's film "The Apprentice" at all, Stan said. Variety has now confirmed this to IndieWire.

BY CHRISTIAN BLAUVELT

Sebastian Stan said in a post-screening Q&A of his film “The Apprentice” Tuesday night that his participation in Variety‘s “Actors on Actors” video and TV series is halted because no other actor wants to talk about Trump. Stan plays the president-elect in the Ali Abbasi film that covers Trump’s early years and rise to initial prominence as a Manhattan real-estate mogul.

Variety co-editor-in-chief Ramin Setoodeh confirms that this is indeed the case to IndieWire. “What Sebastian said is accurate,” Setoodeh said in a statement. “We invited him to participate in ‘Actors on Actors,’ the biggest franchise of awards season, but other actors didn’t want to pair with him because they didn’t want to talk about Donald Trump.”

In his remarks, captured on video and posted on Twitter, Stan said that he thinks this refusal to engage at all with Trump as a subject is unfortunate, and even bad for the country.

“The amount of love that I’ve received from some of the biggest — both of us I think [referring to Abbasi] — in terms of actors, directors, producers, writers who’ve seen the movie and rave about it… But then, for instance, I had an offer to do Variety’s ‘Actor on Actor’ [sic] this Friday, and I couldn’t find another actor to do it with me because they were too afraid to go and talk about this movie, so I couldn’t do it. And it doesn’t matter, that’s OK, that’s not to point a finger at anybody. That’s not pointing at anyone specific, we couldn’t get past the publicists or the people representing them because they were too afraid to talk about this movie.

“That’s when I think we lose the situation because if it really becomes that fear or discomfort to talk about this then we’re really going to have a problem. There was an op-ed in the New York Times recently that I thought was really interesting, which said that ‘we have to stop pretending that Trump is not one of us.’ And that’s a really difficult thing to deal with at the moment, and I understand the emotions are very high, but I think that’s the only way you’re going to grasp this film. All it’s saying is you cannot keep casting this person aside, especially after they get the popular vote. Should we not give this a closer look and try to understand what it is about this person that’s even driving that. I don’t know if the love is gonna translate into action, but it’s certainly there from what we’re hearing.”

Needless to say, “The Apprentice” does not present a flattering portrayal of Trump. It shows him involved in various grotesque moments — and goes so far as to show him raping his first wife Ivana. Stan has been publicly critical of Trump himself but has stressed the need to engage with why we got here. The refusal to engage with the subject at all since Trump won the presidency aligns with other recent trends, such as the massive ratings collapse that MSNBC has suffered post-election.

[chinchillasorchildren]

2023 Golden Chinchillas

Best Cinematography

Asteroid City (Robert Yeoman)

La Chimera (Hélène Louvart)

Killers of the Flower Moon (Rodrigo Prieto)

Poor Things (Robbie Ryan)

Pacifiction (Artur Tort)

The Zone of Interest (Łukasz Żal)

Honorable Mentions: El Conde (Ed Lachman), Blue Jean (Victor Seguin), May December (Christian Blauvelt), The Killer (Erik Messerschmidt), About Dry Grasses (Kursat Uresin/Cevahir Sahin)

[rocklandhistoryblog]

The new episode of Crossroads of Rockland History is streaming now!

Listen to the Podcast here:

_____

An excerpt of this interview aired on August 19, 2024 at 9:30am on WRCR Radio 1700AM.

Miriam Hoffman, Trustee of the Historical Society of the Nyacks (HSN) joined host Clare Sheridan to discuss the new exhibition at the HSN entitled “Nyack Jazz – The Golden Years of ‘The Office’ and its Forerunners.”

This exhibition focuses on the rich history of jazz in Nyack, beginning in the early 1900s, through the golden years of the bar called The Office in the 1970s, up to the vibrant revival of jazz today. This exhibition is fun for all jazz enthusiasts, jazz newcomers, and all those who find it fascinating that preschoolers discover their passion and are “hooked.”

Topics included musicians, their accomplishments, and Nyack’s music environment, which continues to nurture young talent. Some of the musicians discussed in this interview include: William Williams, Jack DePietro, Bill Evans, Arnie Lawrence, Eric Lawrence, Hildred Humphries, Bert Hughes, Sonny Oliver, Big Chief Russell Moore, Buddy Christian, Eddie Sauter, and others.

“NYACK JAZZ” is open every Saturday from 1 to 4 pm through September 28, 2024. Enter the HSN at 50 Piermont Avenue, Nyack, from the Nyack Library parking lot.

To learn more about the exhibition, visit: https://nyackhistory.org/nyackjazz

The Nyack Jazz Tribute Benefit Concert will take place on September 6, 2024 at the Nyack Center. Learn more and buy tickets here: https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/6376046

Steve Bernstein, Erik Lawrence, Mark Patterson, David Budway, Don Falzone, Ben Perowsky and Jack DePietro will give a concert that includes jazz standards and jazz greats highlighted at our current Jazz exhibit.

Jack DePietro’s memoire is entitled: “My Life Behind Bars.” https://www.amazon.com/Life-Behind-Bars-memoir-DePietro/dp/B08XN7HXPK?dplnkId=963e9f59-8b59-46f3-a400-a5c5c4aa601e&nodl=1

Michael Houghton’s essay about Jazz in Nyack is entitled: “The Office: A Nyack Nightclub, 1975-1987.” It is available for purchase at the Historical Society of the Nyacks.

_____

Crossroads of Rockland History, a program of the Historical Society of Rockland County, airs on the third Monday of each month at 9:30 am, right after the morning show on WRCR radio 1700 AM and www.WRCR.com. Join host Clare Sheridan as we explore, celebrate, and learn about our local history, with different topics and guest speakers every month. Our recorded broadcasts are also available for streaming on all major podcasts platforms.

The Historical Society of Rockland County is a nonprofit educational institution and principal repository for original documents and artifacts relating to Rockland County. Its headquarters are a four-acre site featuring a history museum and the 1832 Jacob Blauvelt House in New City, New York.

www.RocklandHistory.org

[xbrodykingx]

nathan blauvelt aka brody king. the always grumpy “𝙶𝙴𝚃 𝙾𝙵𝙵 𝙼𝚈 𝙻𝙰𝚆𝙽” tatted up straight edge dad. less creepy than christian cage, but scarier. he’s very protective of those he loves. deep down he’s just a big softie, despite his 6‘5, 285 lb frame. he’s a typical cali dweller who loves spending a lot of time at the ocean.

while brody will acknowledge fatherhood and a past marriage, his irl kids won’t be mentioned much in this portrayal. he’s divorced and co-parents as much as he can with his all elite / touring schedule.

not real. this is a roleplay journal. please do not interact unless mutuals. any random followers or messages outside of the mayhemhq rp sent to this journal will be blocked.

[crowdvscritic]

crowd vs. critic single take // GOING MY WAY (1944)

Photo credits: IMDb.com

The Church of St. Dominic is dying. Enter: Father O’Malley (Bing Crosby), who has been sent by Catholic Church leadership to revive an unenthusiastic congregation meeting in a building they can’t pay for. Father Fitzgibbon (Barry Fitzgerald) has been leading St. Dominic's for 45 years, and change doesn’t come easily. As they fight to relieve the church’s mortgage and support the struggling members of their parish, though, Father Fitzgibbon begins to see maybe he does need help after all, and maybe he needs it from someone less orthodox like Father O’Malley. 

CROWD // Going My Way straivags its way through an episodic story. Fitzgibbon fights a cold and negotiates with creditors. O’Malley supports a runaway teen who dreams of being a singer, bumps into an old flame, and plays baseball with the boys in the neighborhood (with a shout-out to my shuttered hometown team the St. Louis Browns!) The duo plays checkers and golf, and we watch a full song performed from the opera Carmen. The adagio pace is a feature, not a bug, though perhaps it’s why, in a rare move, I needed to watch this Best Picture winner a second time because I couldn’t remember what happened not long after my first watch. 

That said, the tone is also why this is a rare feel-good Best Picture winner. If Bing Crosby is in your movie, almost by default one of your themes becomes the power of music. Music gives hope to all of the parishioners of St. Dominic’s, and it literally solves life’s big problems for several of them. While the plot may not move with the efficiency and humor of White Christmas, it’s hard to complain about any story that gives Crosby the chance to sing.

POPCORN POTENTIAL: 7.5/10

CRITIC // The Best Picture winner this film reminded me of most? 2022’s CODA, another feel-good narrative about the power of music. The biggest reason I kept comparing them in my mind, though, is the eras they were released. CODA was a heartwarming story released as we were exiting a pandemic, and Going My Way won Hollywood’s highest honor just two months before V-E Day. Sometimes when the world around you feels almost too much to bear, you need an escape. The same could be said for last year’s winner Everything Everywhere All at Once or this year’s Best Picture nominee The Holdovers. (We’ll see how world events play out in 2024 and if this trend continues, but it’s unlikely we’ll see another feel-good nom about Catholic priests given the baggage we have now, as outlined in 2015’s winner Spotlight.)

It may have less of a legacy today than competitors Double Indemnity and Gaslight, but at the time, Going My Way was a big winner. In addition to the top prize, it brought home trophies for Best Actor (Crosby, which Christian Blauvelt’s book Hollywood Victory noted was new range for this superstar), Supporting Actor (Fitzgerald, the only person to be nominated in both lead and supporting categories before rules prevented it from happening again—talk about category fraud!), Director, Original Story, Screenplay, and Original Song. Today’s audiences may not find it innovative, but it hits all its marks, and its arcs are universal, such as an older generation dealing with its obsolescence or the rich holding those meant to help a community hostage with their finances. (The Bishop’s Wife and It’s a Wonderful Life would go on to explore this idea with more depth.) Though there is a surprising lack of spiritual experience with God given the setting, it is also refreshing in our moment to watch the clergy devote their lives to bettering their neighborhood. 

ARTISTIC TASTE: 8.5/10

[ecsundance]

My 2024 Sundance Film Festival Experience

I can’t believe we are at the end of our time here at the Sundance Film Festival. It has been such a great ride! Here are some things I experienced along the way.

First, it is important to note that there is so much to do at Sundance and as hard as you may try, you just can’t get everything in that you might want to experience. You just have to come to terms with that pretty quickly, making some difficult choices and fast.

We started off with the film, How To Have Sex, which was an interesting take on consent and dealing with assault and the emotions that come along with it. The film included great cinematography and music selections. Afterwards, in the Q&A, the director said it was loosely based on situations that happened to her and her friends when they were younger. Later during the festival, I saw the short film Thirsty Girl which was also based on the experience of its director. Personal experience is evidently a big contributor to many of these films.

Talks are another great experience and there are many opportunities to attend them. The first one I went to was “The Importance of Casting Directors” which was held at the Impact Lounge. There were three casting directors on the panel. This talk was very interesting, and I learned that casting directors are the only female dominated job in film. The panelists stated that to do this job well, you need to be really good at reading people. They then explained the process of looking at actors and how it has pivoted more online. This has made it possible to see more actors from many places they normally would not have access to if they had been only doing in person casting in say LA or NYC. Afterwards, I met an editor whose wife is a casting director for Hit Man which premiered at Sundance and was bought by Netflix for twenty million dollars. She is also one of the casting directors on this three-person panel. He gave me his email so that I could connect with him at a later date which was very exciting because after listening to this panel, I found that I might be interested in becoming a casting director.

Not only did I see Sundance films, but I also saw many Slamdance films, both short and feature films. One such film was Citizen Weiner. This is a feature film and is about the true story of someone running for City Council in New York and the trials and tribulations that come with running a campaign. They filmed the entire process to encourage other young people to get involved in politics. I think they did a great job. This movie had the whole audience laughing from start to finish, sometimes unable to believe that this really happened.

Slamdance is a great way to meet directors, editors, filmmakers, and others in the film industry. Being a smaller venue, Slamdance provides greater access and is more informal. They are very excited to receive feedback, answer questions, and to provide information, contacts, and resources for those interested in getting into the business. They were very open and communicative which made me feel like this must have been what Sundance was like forty years ago before it became more “Hollywood” with larger budgets, star power, etc. in their movies.

Talks were not the only places to network and make connections. Just standing in line or commuting on the buses allowed you to meet other people. Connections can happen anywhere. I met a gentleman named Rudy outside of the Vulture Spot who has done some acting in Out of Exile (2022) as well as Bloodthirst (2023) and is hoping to do some more. We discussed many of the Sundance Films and he was very interested in my takes on the ones that I had seen. It was a great conversation.

While I was speaking with Rudy, I learned that Will Ferrell would be interviewed at IndieWire for his film Will & Harper which also premiered at Sundance. What a coincidence. My college class was invited by Christian Blauvelt, IndieWire Managing Editor, to come at three o’clock for a tour. Now I know why we couldn’t come before then. Needless to say, Rudy and I went over to Indiewire and below is the picture of Will Ferrell coming out of his interview.                                                              

How cool! This was my first sighting of a celebrity outside of seeing Lionel Ritchie at the Q&A after the premiere of Greatest Night in Pop (see below).

All in all, this was a fabulous trip! I learned a lot, met a lot of new people, made some connections, and it opened my eyes to the many different opportunities that exist in the film industry.

Hopefully I will get back here again!

Ryan McCormick

[corellianblues]

Be More Vader by Christian Blauvelt has some gems in it.

[rebelmeg]

Rules: tag 9 people you want to know better

I was tagged by the delightful @pepperony27, who now has me wanting chocolate mousse! *waves wildly at you and blows kisses*

Okay, here we go... and I've added pics and gifs because it's fun and more interesting.

Favorite Color: Purple, but I do also love blue a lot.

Currently reading: I've got a stack of 3 romance novels on my nightstand that I'm working my way through (Avon anthologies with Julia Quinn because she's my fave), and I'm also trying to read a few pages from "Rejected Princesses" by Jason Porath every day (excellent book, loving it so far), and I've got "How Not to Get Eaten by Ewoks" by Christian Blauvelt on my nightstand too.

Last song: Beautiful Trauma by P!nk

Last series: I finished all the Star Wars miniseries last week, I binge-watched Obi-Wan Kenobi, Mandalorian (LOVE IT), and Boba Fett in like 5 days. And I'm currently watching "Secrets of the Zoo" which is always fun to watch, and I have plans to blast through all the the MCU miniseries next.

Last movie: Uhhhhh... oh, it was "Interlude in Prague" last night, and it was meh. The last one I really enjoyed was "Marry Me" which I finally saw this week and LOVED. Watched it twice so far, and will probably watch it a third time before my Amazon Prime trial runs out. I've had the songs stuck in my head for days and I'm not upset about it.

Sweet, Savory or Spicy: Sweet and savory in equal measures! I am a wimp with spicy, I can only do white girl spicy and I'm fine with that.

Craving: I'm not really hungry right now, so I don't have anything in particular in mind. OH WAIT, I'M CRAVING AUTUMN, BECAUSE SUMMER REALLY SUCKS AND I WANT CHILLY LEAF SEASON!

Currently working on: I've been on a cross-stitch bookmark run lately, finished a couple and I have one more I'm working on that's shades of blue, and another couple planned. I've got several writing WIPs that I need to wrap up or get beta readers for, since TSB and BBB are in full swing and there are a couple other bingos or smaller events that I'm trying to get stuff done for as well. Here's one of the bookmarks I finished!

Tagging: It's been ages, so I honestly have no idea who to tag. Who out there likes this stuff? I LOVE this kind of nonsense, it's always fun, but I don't wanna tag peeps that are not interested. So if you see this and wanna play (EVEN IF WE'VE NEVER INTERACTED BEFORE), please do!

[foreverlostinliterature]

5/4 Book Deals

Good morning, everyone! It’s the start of a fresh new week and I’m back to share some books on sale. :) I’ve been super interested in The Greenhollow Duology for ages, has anyone read it? The Silence of the Girls is a great historical fiction set during the Trojan war that mainly follows Briseis (if I recall correctly!). Anyway,  I hope you’re all hanging in there! Have a wonderful day! :)

Today’s Deals:

Silver in the Wood by Emily Tesh (The Greenhollow Duology #1) https://amzn.to/3c45u6P

Drowned Country (The Greenhollow Duology #2) by Emily Tesh - https://amzn.to/35uLeIO

The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker - https://amzn.to/3dbDuhJ

Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe - https://amzn.to/2YylNVA

The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals by Michael Pollan - https://amzn.to/3c74yOY 

Seven Brief Lessons on Physics by Carlo Rovelli - https://amzn.to/2KUBHS9

Hell's Princess: The Mystery of Belle Gunness, Butcher of Men by Harold Schechter [Kindle in Motion] - https://amzn.to/2YvufVl

The Universe Versus Alex Woods by Gavin Extence - https://amzn.to/35vIPOn

Star Wars Made Easy by Christian Blauvelt - https://amzn.to/2zck9hq

Spliced by Jon McGoran - https://amzn.to/3b5SeNA

The Traitor by V.S. Alexander - https://amzn.to/2W2KlnG

LIFEL1K3 by Jay Kristoff - https://amzn.to/35sXCck

The Beautiful by Renee Ahdieh - https://amzn.to/3c3U1nI

Bloodleaf by Crystal Smith - https://amzn.to/2xw68uD

NOTE:  I am categorizing these book deals posts under the tag #bookdeals, so if you don’t want to see them then just block that tag and you should be good. I am an Amazon affiliate in addition to a Book Depository affiliate and will receive a small (but very much needed!)  commission on any purchase made through these links.

[gffa]

STAR WARS NYCC BOOK ANNOUCEMENTS: Use the Force by Christian Blauvelt Star Wars: The Rise of Kylo Ren by Charles Soule Star Wars #1 by Charles Soule Alphabet Squadron: Shadow Fall by Alexander Freed Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker novelization by Rae Carson Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker junior novel by Michael Kogge Star Wars: The Clone Wars Anthology by various Dark Legends by George Mann (author) and Grant Griffin (illustrator)

[teencenterspl]

Jessica’s March Staff Picks:

Skip Beat Volumes 1-38 by Yoshiki Nakamura (YA GN SKI)

Kelsey’s March Staff Picks:

Zen Teen : 40 Ways to Stay Calm When Life Gets Stressful by Tanya Carroll Richardson (YA 155.519 RIC)

The Mindful College Applicant: Cultivating Emotional Intelligence for the Admissions Process by Belinda H. Y. Chiu (YA 378.161 CHI)

Be More Yoda: Mindful Thinking From a Galaxy Far, Far Away by Christian Blauvelt (YA 158.1 BLA)      

[spikes-jonze]

I was tagged by the absolutely lovely @queenmercurys (thank you so much!!)

top three ships: At the current moment, my favorite fictional ships include Thomas/Richard from Downton Abbey: The Movie, Diana and Matthew from A Discovery of Witches, and Harper and Charlie from Set It Up

lipstick or chapstick: I don’t really use either on a regular basis but I usually pick lipstick when I do

last song: The Only Exception - Paramore

last movie: Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949)

last book: Cinematic Cities - New York: Christian Blauvelt (one of my best friends got it for me for Christmas 😊)

I tag: @marielle-heller, @leatherjacketmazzello, @lucy-sky, @jdixonchick, @patmvrray, @meddowsmoon, and @isitstraightvodka

[lkprofessionals-blog]

Ten Films To Watch In June

Ten Films To Watch In June

From The Incredibles and Jurassic World sequels to an Oscar Wilde biopic, these titles are worth making a trip to the cinema this month, writes Christian Blauvelt. Sicario: Day of the Soldado

Sicario: Day of the Soldado

Sicario, the 2015 thriller that once and for all proved Denis Villeneuve’s mastery of every genre, was taut, flinty storytelling abounding with low-key chills. Sadly,…

[weremarkable]

Armie Responds to the Oscars Snubbing ‘Sorry to Bother You’

“How much trouble do I get myself in here?”

Armie Hammer isn’t surprised that “Sorry to Bother You” was snubbed by the Academy, but that doesn’t mean he wasn’t disappointed. The actor, who co-starred in Boots Riley’s out-there drama and is back at Sundance with “Wounds,” got candid during his visit to the IndieWire Studio presented by Dropbox when asked about the snub by Christian Blauvelt.

“How much trouble do I get myself in here?” he said. “If you really look at the kind of films and people that the Oscars really celebrate, I’m embarrassed to say that I wasn’t terribly surprised. I think that Boots, as a first-time director, came out of the gates swinging so hard — swinging for the fences and knocking it over the fence. I think that that is the kind of thing that should be celebrated, what Boots was able to do.”

That being said, we didn’t make that movie thinking we were gonna win Academy Awards. We made it because we believed in Boots and we believed in the mission and we believed in what the movie said. So we did our jobs, and this is just another example of the Academy keeping it in the Academy.”

Go to indiewire to watch video ▶