BuzzSugar

The Oscar Shorts: Coming to a Theater Near You?

BuzzSugar — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 08:30:00 PST

In case my recent posts on the Oscar-nominated short films have piqued your interest in seeing the little gems for yourself, there's good news: The films start making their way around the country today thanks to Magnolia Pictures. One program shows all five of the live-action short films, while the other combines the five animated shorts. I went to both shows last year and highly recommend them: It's great to see films like this that so rarely make it into theaters.

If your city doesn't have the shorts yet, don't worry - they'll be touring around the country even after the Oscars are handed out. To see where they're playing so far and what other cities already have planned stops, just

IN THEATERS NOW

Alaska
Anchorage: Out North

Arizona
Tempe: Valley Art 1 Theatre
Tucson: The Loft Cinema

California
Berkeley: Shattuck Cinemas
Los Angeles: The Landmark
Pasadena: Laemmle's One Colorado Cinemas
Sacramento: Crest Theatre
San Diego: Hillcrest Cinemas
San Francisco: Embarcadero Center Cinema
San Rafael: Smith Rafael Film Center
Santa Cruz: Nickelodeon Theatres

Colorado
Boulder: International Film Series
Denver: Chez Artiste

Connecticut
Hartford: Real Art Ways Cinema
Norwalk: Garden Cinemas Norwalk 4
Stamford: Avon Twin Theatre

Delaware
Wilmington: Theater N at Demours

Florida
Bradenton: Lakewood Ranch 6
Fort Lauderdale: Cinema Paradiso
Lake Worth: Lake Worth Playhouse
Tallahassee: Tallahassee Film Society, Inc

Georgia
Atlanta: Midtown Art Cinemas 8

Hawaii
Honolulu: Doris Duke Theatre

Illinois
Chicago: Landmark's Century Centre Cinema

Indiana
Indianapolis: Key Cinemas

Iowa
Iowa City: University of Iowa, Bijou Theater

Kansas
Salina: Salina Art Center

Maine
Brunswick: Frontier Cafe
Ellsworth: Grand Theatre
Rockland: Strand Theatre

Maryland
Baltimore: Landmark Harbor East 7

Massachusetts
Brookline: Coolidge Corner Theatre
Pittsfield: Colonial Theatre

Michigan
Detroit: Detroit Institute of Art
Ann Arbor: Michigan Theater

Minnesota
Minneapolis: Lagoon Cinema

Missouri
Kansas City: Tivoli @ Manor Square
Springfield: Moxie Cinema
University City: Tivoli Theatre

Nebraska
Omaha: Film Streams at the Ruth Sokolof Theater

New Hampshire
Concord, NH: Red River 3

New Jersey
Cape May: Cape May Beach 4

New Mexico
Santa Fe: The Screen

New York
Albany: Spectrum
Glens Falls: Charles R. Wood Theater aka Wood Theatre
Hudson: Time and Space Limited
Hunter: The Mountain
Ithaca: Cornell Cinema
New York: IFC Center
Rochester: Little Theatre

North Carolina
Charlotte: Ballantyne Village 5
Wilmington: Cucalorus Film Foundation

Ohio
Columbus: Gateway 8
Cleveland Heights: Cedar Lee Theatres

Oklahoma
Oklahoma City: Oklahoma City Museum of Art
Tulsa: Circle Theatre

Oregon
Portland: Hollywood Theatre

Pennsylvania
East Stroudsburg: Pocono
Harrisburg: Midtown Cinema
Philadelphia: Ritz 5 Movies
Pittsburgh: Regent Square Theater

Tennessee
Nashville: Belcourt Theatre

Texas
Austin: Alamo South Lamar
Dallas: Magnolia Theatre - Dallas
San Antonio: Santikos Bijou @ Crossroads 6

Utah
Salt Lake City: Tower Theatre

Washington
Seattle: Varsity Theatre

Washington, DC
E Street Cinema

Wisconsin
Madison: Sundance Cinemas 608

COMING SOON

Feb. 22
Boulder, CO: International Film Series
Norwalk, CT: Garden Cinemas Norwalk 4
Iowa City, IA: University of Iowa, Bijou Theater
Rochester, NY: Little Theatre
Salt Lake City, UT: Tower Theatre

Feb. 23
Tallahassee, FL: Tallahassee Film Society, Inc
Wichita, KS: Wichita Public Library

Feb. 25
Durham, NC: Carolina Theatre - Durham

Feb. 28
Boston, MA: Barbara Lee Family Foundation Theater

Feb. 29
Santa Rosa, CA: Rialto Cinemas Lakeside
Pelham, NY: Pelham Picture House
Fort Worth, TX: Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth
Milwaukee, WI: Times Cinema

March 4
Utica, NY: Munson Cinema

March 6
Hollywood, CA: Egyptian Theatre

March 7
Provincetown, MA: New Art Cinema

March 8
Napa, CA: Jarvis Conservatory

March 13
Reno, NV: Reno Film Festival

March 14
Amherst, MA: Amherst Cinema Arts Center 3

March 18
Reno, NV: Nevada Musuem of Art

March 19
Bryn Mawr, PA: Bryn Mawr Film Institute

March 28
Albuquerque, NM: Guild

April 18
Fresno, CA: Fresno Filmworks c/o Tower Theatre

April 27
Grande Prairie, AB: Grande Prairie Live Theatre

Oscar Nominees: The Live-Action Short Films

BuzzSugar — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 08:30:00 PST

The short film categories used to be some of the most obscure at Oscar time, but recently, I've come to appreciate these little gems. Online video has made it easier to track down the shorts before I have to fill out my Oscar balot, and now they eventually hit theaters and even iTunes.

I recently showcased this year's five animated shorts nominees, and today, I'm highlighting the five contenders in the Live Action Short Film category. They're an interesting bunch, from a satire about a substitute teacher to a somber look at life in a cancer ward. To check out clips of the five films, just

Le Mozart des Pickpockets (The Mozart of Pickpockets)
This French film has one of the most interesting premises in the category this year: Two thieves have their lives changed when they somehow wind up adopting a deaf, homeless boy. It looks like I'll have to wait till the films are in theaters to see this one with its subtitles, but if you speak French, you're in luck. Be sure to tell the rest of us what's happening in this clip:

Om Natten (At Night)
At Night is the longest film in this category, and it seems like the heaviest. The Danish film focuses on three young women spending the holidays in a cancer ward. While the clip below feels bleak and moody, the film also makes a point of showing the patients' sense of humor and love of life.

Tanghi Argentini
This Belgian film is described as a modern fairy tale set in an office, where a clerk enlists the help of his coworkers as he attempts to learn the tango for a blind date. The film, which is set at Christmastime, eventually becomes a fable about giving. At first glance, it reminds me a bit of the delightful Japanese version of Shall We Dance?

The Tonto Woman
This short is based on a short story of the same name by Elmore Leonard, who also wrote 3:10 to Yuma. The film revolves around a cattle rustler who meets and befriends a woman who is struggling to readjust to society after being held captive by the Mojave Indians for more than a decade. You can watch several clips of the film on YouTube. Here's one:

Il Supplente (The Substitute)
This Italian film was one of the shorts shown at the Sundance Film Festival in 2007. In it, a new substitute teacher turns up in a high school classroom, trading insults and sarcastic barbs with a room full of rowdy kids. The kids actually wind up getting excited about school - until a secret about the substitute is revealed. Unfortunately, I couldn't find any clips of this one, but you can buy the film for $1.99 on iTunes - or watch a clip there for free.

Source, Source, Source, Source, and Source

Get the Oscar Shorts on iTunes!

BuzzSugar — Wed, 21 Feb 2007 08:30:24 PST

Remember when I said I wished the Oscar-nominated shorts would make their way to the iTunes store? Well, it's happened. Now, you can buy nine of the 10 nominated movies for just $1.99 each. All five of the live-action shorts are there, along with four of the animated shorts - the only one missing is Pixar's Lifted, which comes out this summer.

You can also see if the shorts will be coming to a theater near you. And to get a taste of the nominated films (and see a few for free), check out my take on the live-action movies or the animated shorts.

Photo courtesy of Magnolia Pictures

The Oscar-Nominated Shorts: Now Playing at a Theater Near You?

BuzzSugar — Mon, 19 Feb 2007 13:52:18 PST

I never have any shortage of opinions when it comes to my Oscar predictions in the major categories. But since I don't normally get to see the animated shorts or live-action short films, I'm left totally clueless or faking my way through uninformed opinions. Thankfully, not only are many of the films online this year, but Magnolia Pictures has also put together a program featuring all 10 short-film nominees, including No Time For Nuts (above) and West Bank Story, plus a few other indie shorts.

Lest you think this art-house assortment is only coming to New York and Los Angeles, have no fear. The program is now playing in more than 35 cities and will expand to 25 more theaters nationwide in the coming weeks. To see the full list of locations,

The 10-film program of Oscar-nominated shorts is now playing at these locations:

Iowa City, IA: University of Iowa, Bijou Theater
Atlanta, GA: Midtown Art Cinemas 8
Brookline, MA: Coolidge Corner Theatre
Ithaca, NY: Cornell Cinema
Chicago, IL: Music Box
Cincinnati, OH: Cincinnati Art Museum
Columbus, OH: Gateway 8
Santa Fe, NM: CCA Cinematheque
Austin, TX: Dobie Theatre
Houston, TX: Greenway 3 Theatre
Dallas, TX: Magnolia Theatre - Dallas
San Antonio, TX: Santikos Embassy 14
Boulder, CO: International Film Series
Denver, CO: Starz Filmcenter
Detroit, MI: Detroit Institute of Art
Indianapolis, IN: Key Cinemas
Springfield, MO: Moxie Cinema
Salina, KS: Salina Art Center
Kansas City, MO: Screenland Theatre
Honolulu, HI: Doris Duke Theatre
Tucson, AZ: Loft Cinema Twin
West Los Angeles, CA: Nuart Theatre
Milwaukee, WI: Times Cinema
Minneapolis, MN: Lagoon Cinema
Hartford, CT: Real Art Ways Cinema
Pleasantville, NY: Jacob Burns Film Center
New York, NY: IFC Center
Tulsa, OK: Circle Theatre
Oklahoma City, OK: Oklahoma City Museum of Art
Dover, DE: Schwartz Center for Arts
Pittsburgh, PA: Harris Theatre
Portland, OR: Cinema 21 Theatre
Seattle, WA: Varsity Theatre
San Francisco, CA: Lumiere Theatre
Berkeley, CA: Shattuck Cinemas
San Rafael, CA: Smith Rafael Film Center
Salt Lake City, UT: Tower Theatre
University City, MO: Tivoli Theatre

The Oscar shorts are coming soon to these locations:

2/23/2007
Hollywood, CA: Egyptian Theatre
San Diego, CA: Ken Cinema
Santa Rosa, CA: Rialto Cinemas Lakeside
South Lake Tahoe, CA: Lake Tahoe Community College
Washington, DC: E Street Cinema
Maplewood, MN: Plaza Maplewood Theatre
University Park, PA: PSU GSA CAFE Film Committee
Fort Worth, TX: Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth

2/24/2007
Wichita, KS: Wichita Public Library
Ann Arbor, MI: Michigan Theater

3/7/2007
Buffalo, NY: Market Arcade Film & Arts Center

3/8/2007
Fort Lauderdale, FL: Cinema Paradiso
Lake Worth, FL: Lake Worth Playhouse
Reno, NV: Reno Film Festival

3/9/2007
Gulf Breeze, FL: Gulf Breeze 4
Scranton, PA: Scranton Cultural Center

3/10/2007
Wilmington, DE: Theater N at Demours

3/13/2007
Norfolk, VA: Naro Expanded Cinema

3/16/2007
Miami Beach, FL: Miami Beach Cinematheque

3/22/2007
Paducah, KY: Maiden Alley

3/23/2007
Grande Prairie, AB: Grande Prairie Live Theatre

4/10/2007
Los Angeles, CA: UCLA Melnitz Movies

4/13/2007
Fresno, CA: Fresno Filmworks c/o Tower Theatre
Albuquerque, NM: Guild

5/11/2007
Chicago, IL: Gene Siskel Film Center

Source

The Oscar Nominees: Live Action Short Films

BuzzSugar — Mon, 19 Feb 2007 13:32:14 PST

Like animated shorts, the live action short film category is another one that usually leaves me clueless come Oscar night. It's tough to see shorts unless you catch them at a festival or a great theater. (Tune in later to find one near you.) Luckily, at least parts of all five of this year's films have also turned up online - and you can watch two of them in full. Here's a rundown:

West Bank Story
This musical parody of West Side Story is set in the cutthroat world of competing falafel stands in the West Bank. An Israeli soldier falls in love with a Palestinian cashier, but their families' dueling restaurants threaten to keep them apart. I love the movie's tag line: "A little singing, a little dancing, a lot of hummus." There's a clip online at this site, and here's the trailer:

To see two full films and clips from two others,

Binta y La Gran Idea
Set in Senegal, Binta is narrated by a 7-year-old girl whose older cousin longs to go to school and whose father has a dream that he believes could change the world. The film is in French and an African dialect with subtitles in Spanish, but even if you speak none of those languages, it's still gorgeous to watch. There's also one short clip with English subtitles.

The Saviour
In this film, a young Mormon evangelist has an affair with a married woman and then struggles to keep the illicit relationship a secret from his fellow missionaries, his pastor, and the woman's husband. In addition to the clip below, there's another one here.

Eramos Pocos
When a man's wife leaves him, he and his son discover that they're hopeless at keeping house. Desperate for help, he pulls his mother-in-law out of her nursing home so she can cook and clean for them. The film is in Spanish without subtitles, but you can get the gist if you watch the video below; there's also one clip with English subtitles.

Helmer and Son
In this Danish film, a busy son gets called to the rest home where his father has locked himself inside a closet and won't come out. The video below is a clip with English subtitles.

Source, Source, Source, Source, and Source

Salma Hayek and Several Hollywood Leading Ladies Join the Men of Madagascar 3 in Cannes

Lindsay Miller — Fri, 18 May 2012 13:19:02 PDT

Salma Hayek, Jessica Chastain, Naomi Watts, and Jada Pinkett Smith each made their own style statement on the red carpet at today's Cannes Film Festival premiere of Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted. The ladies joined several of the animated movie's male stars for the debut following a photocall for the film yesterday. Salma arrived at the premiere in Gucci. Meanwhile, Ben Stiller, David Schwimmer, Chris Rock, and Martin Short - who all lent their voices to the project - were decked out in tuxes. Sacha Baron Cohen, who has been busy promoting his film The Dictator, wasn't able to join the group for the festivities, despite voicing the lemur King Julien XIII in the franchise. We're live on the scene at the annual celebration of cinema this week, so if you've missed any of the action, catch up with our gallery of all the Cannes Film Festival pictures so far!

Frankenweenie Trailer: A Very Tim Burton Black and White Flick

Lizzie Fuhr — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 03:05:00 PST

If you're a Tim Burton fan, I have got great news for you. The Frankenweenie trailer has officially come to life! After the young budding scientist Victor's beloved dog passes away, he brings good old Sparky back to life, and mayhem ensues. Re-imagined from his 1984 live-action short, this stop-motion flick oozes all things creepy, artistic, and utterly Tim Burton.

I love that just like the original short, all of Frankenweenie is in black and white - only perpetuating the freaky retro vibe. And along with other big names like Catherine O'Hara, Martin Short, and Martin Landau, I was so happy to see that Winona Ryder lends her voice for the film, as she's a staple of a couple of my fave Tim Burton films from the past. Check out Frankenweenie's creepy goodness, after the jump.

Announcing the 2012 Oscar Winners!

BuzzSugar — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 07:05:57 PST

The Oscars have wrapped, and this year's big winner is indisputably The Artist with several wins, including best picture, best director, and best actor for Jean Dujardin. Besides The Artist, there were a few other award season front-runners that continued their streak, but there was also a surprise or two during the show (yay Meryl!).

To relive the evening and see the full list of winners, just keep reading.

Announcing the 2012 Oscar Nominations!

Shannon Vestal — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 11:21:53 PST

The 2012 Oscar nominations have been announced! Lots of award season regulars, like The Artist and The Descendants, got some love, but there were also a handful of surprises, like nominations for Nick Nolte, Gary Oldman, and Terrence Malick. Bridesmaids also scored big, with noms for best original screenplay and best supporting actress for Melissa McCarthy.

The Academy chose nine films for best picture, with lots of familiar titles in there, plus a couple that had early awards buzz but haven't necessarily had consistent attention, like Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close and The Tree of Life. The films that racked up the most nominations were Hugo with 11 and The Artist with 10.

To see the full list of nominations, just keep reading.

5 Entertaining and Romantic Movie Dates

Anna Monette Roberts — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 09:50:00 PST

In honor of this year's Sundance Film Festival that just began yesterday, it's time to explore different movie date night options for you and your honey to warm up to this Winter. Beyond your average movie complex, there is a whole world of independent theaters and festivals to explore and attend to have a romantic and memorable date experience. Here are a few ideas to reinvigorate the ol' movie night standard.

Technicolor features: Films in technicolor have intensely vivid and dreamy hues. Usually independent and historical theaters will screen special technicolor features, and it's a unique and rare opportunity to see such amazing colors and classic films like Gone With the Wind on the big screen. Even if the film you see isn't a classic, it's still nice to curl up close and enjoy the romantic, sleepy quality of technicolor.
Historical theaters: Check to see if your town has at least one historical theater with a classic, blinking marquee and intricate interior architecture. Research the history behind the building before you go so you and your date can appreciate the theater's story and architectural details upon your visit.
Cult midnight movies: There is an entire culture that follows midnight screenings of B-rated films like The Rocky Horror Picture Show. The especially diehard will dress up, act out scenes, and sing along. Attending a midnight movie like Rocky can be a ridiculous yet fun way to bond and break any inhibitions.
Film festivals: Independent, horror, documentary, shorts, underground, and international are just a few of the dozens of film festivals that take place in North America. It's cold and dark during the Winter, so you might as well use the time to expand your film repertoire and have a dozen new stories and concepts to discuss with your date afterward.
Drive-ins: If you live in an area with a milder climate, you could drive out of town to go to a drive-in theater. The tickets are cheaper, you're in the comfort of your car, and you can bring your own food. Most importantly, depending on your parking spot, you might have enough privacy to engage in some high-school-esque backseat action.