THIS WEEKEND @ DMAC

A big pile of great o' movies comes your way via DMAC this week. First, a frightening and utterly absorbing documentary called DARWIN'S NIGHTMARE, about a new kind of evolution. It's about fish in Africa, planes from Russia and connections between the two. Second, PARK AVE CDs proudly sponsors a screening of JACK JOHNSON & FRIENDS, A WEEKEND AT THE GREEK during our Sunday Music Showcase. And finally, two more showings of THE ARISTOCRATS, just in case you hadn't gotten your fill. Enjoy!

BTW - next week, we've got the Global Peace Film Festival, which includes a month-long art show in our gallery and a Global Peace Film Slam. Let's talk about the Film Slam first. It's a lot like our regular short film slam, but it's going to focus on films with some kind of peace, family, community theme. Other details:

• $10 submission fee (Make check payable to DMAC)
• 25 Min in Length max
• Drop off the films ASAP with John Theisen at DMAC
• The slam will be on Dec 11th at 9:30pm

Project: A Day in the Life Needs Production Help NOW

This ultra low-budget independent (way more than feature-length) documentary, which would set a new Guinness World Record for longest documentary, follows a day in the life of a young man going home for Thanksgiving. Looking for crew to be willing to pull it off and be part of the team for this truly unique production of Andy Warhol proportions.

It is shooting 24P on Panasonic DVX100A, in real time with 60 minute takes and the use of Godard-style jumpcuts to piece together the entire 25 hour project.

The project is to be shot this Thursday, November 24 from 6:00am continuing through Friday, November 25 at 7:00am, and is currently crewing locally and looking for camera operators and audio mixers.

Camera Operators/D.P.
Previous experience working in documentary/reality format, proficient shooting experience with either Video SK, Glidecam or Steadicam Flyer. Camera Operators will work on shifts and not shoot entire day. Extremely long hours (obviously); Multiple locations from Orlando to South Florida (spanning 265+ miles); must be prepared to be constantly on the move.

Rate Negotiable. Respond Immediately.

Audio Field Mixer/Recorder/Boom Operator
Previous experience working in documentary/reality format or a field recording mixer, with portable DAT recorder, proficient with wireless, boom/shotgun mic operation. Helpful if you have your own equipment, but will hire just operators. Audio crew will work in shifts and not be required to shoot entire day. Extremely long hours (obviously); Multiple locations from Orlando to South Florida (spanning 265+ miles); must be prepared to be constantly on the move.

Rate Negotiable. Respond Immediately.

Contact: Maia Monasterios, Producer
Cell: 407-415-7694

Fest Update: Randolph & Ivan Keep Screening

Yet more stories from the festival world...

I got a call last week from the Flint Film Festival, which had rejected Five Stories submissions for their Spring 2005 festival. I can't get into specifics about the call, but in short, they decided they'd made a mistake in rejecting An Evening With Ivan Gorsky (Joe Mauceri '04), so they invited the film to their 2006 Festival. Somehwat fitting that a film about the undead just won't die, huh?

Then...Drew Blatman, director of Randolph Gently & The Mysterious Animals, got a call from The Tank, an arts group in NYC. A Tank member saw Randolph at the Dead Center Film festival and asked Drew if it could screen it at their Tank Film Shorts event, to be held at the legendary Two Boots Pioneer Theater. If you're in NYC, it's playing this Sunday, November 20 @ 7pm.

PIXIES, ARISTOCRATS & CRIME @ DMAC THIS WEEKEND

It's another jaw-dropping weekend of fun at DMAC as we wheel out three big films for exclusive Orlando-area screenings. First, we open El Crimen Perfecto, the hit black comedy from Spain about lust, murder and retail. Next up, it's another late night screening of that potty-mouth fave, The Aristocrats. Can you take a dirty joke told about 50 times 50 different ways? Find out here!

Finally, we're proud to be screening the new Pixies DVD, PIXIES SELLOUT. This screening is part of our ongoing Park Ave CDs Showcase series. Free passes for the Pixies screening are available both Park Ave CDs locations.

BTW - next weekend, over Thanksgiving, we'll be splitting the DMAC screen between encore screenings of El CRIMEN PERFECTO and BALZAC AND THE LITTLE CHINESE SEAMSTRESS.

Get the details on all these films, along with showtimes, at www.dmacorlando.com.

See you at DMAC!

What Are You Doing Friday?

Have you ever wondered why I have a guitar in my office? Me too. One reason is that I like to remind myself of previous lives I've lived. In one such life, I was a musician. I toured the country, made CDs (or "records" as we used to say in those days) and gleefully enjoyed an unhealthy lifestyle for which I continue to pay to this day.

This Friday, November 11, I dip into the past and strap on the musician feedbag to play another gig in the northern burg of Deland. Yes, yours truly, Rich Grula, is going to climb a stage and attempt to remember songs of my youth. It's solo acoustic thing, so prepare to be folked.

Feel like joining me? It might be fun. The place is called Cafe DiVinci and it's located at 112 W. Georgia Ave., DeLand. I've heard the venue is an architectural antique store, so look for lots of fireplaces and wood beams. I will be sharing the stage with Magda Hiller and Diane Ward, two very talented and lovely ladies, insuring that even if I suck, there will be something to enjoy. Then again, perhaps my obvious discomfort will be all you need for a memorable evening!

See you there!

Three Great Flicks @ DMAC This Weekend

Something for everyone? Let that be the theme for this weekend at DMAC.

For the Art House crowd, DMAC is proud to open BALZAC AND THE LITTLE CHINESE SEAMTRESS. Yes, it's based on the famous French novel of the same name. For politically-conscious doc fans out there, we have two special screenings of WAL-MART: THE HIGH COST OF LOW PRICE. Our guess? This is one flick you probably won't be able to pick up on DVD at the big box outlet. And for those who need a bit of verbal shock (and really, who among us doesn't?), we're offering one late night screening of that smutty Sundance fave - THE ARISTOCRATS, in which you'll hear the joke that makes even the most hardened comics blush.

Get all the details Here.

Capstone Beta Deck Fixed

Some of you making beta tapes recently complained about the recording sound quality of the beta deck in the Capstone suite. This past Friday I had the time to check it out and I think I fixed the problem. It seems the Dolby Noise Reduction was turned off on that deck, which is why it would flash NR OFF! when you first turned it on.

This meant that a tape recorded on that deck was recorded without Dolby Noise Reduction. It would play back fine on that deck, but when played on another beta deck (almost all of which have Dolby Noise Reduction ON as a preset), the audio would sound muddy and weirdly compressed. Vocals tracks would shift in volume and the backing tracks might phase back and forth in stereo. Basically, your tape would sound like crap.

This was not some front of unit switch issue - the Dolby On/Off is buried deep within the deck, requiring Art and I to take the thing apart and flick a DIP switch on a card. It's likely it had been set this way for years.

What have we learned? First, when making any copy of your projects (analog or digital) take the time to review the content. If it's a screening copy for a festival, you should watch the entire thing very carefully. You don't want surprises the day of show, which unfortunately happened with projects recorded on this deck. Give yourself plently of time to make dubs - don't do it at the last moment when you can't respond to problems.

Second, analog copies require extra care and concern. Unlike digital copies, analog copies require that you set the input volume carefully. And since settings can vary from machine to mahine, check you tapes on other machines. If something sounds/looks weird and you don't know how to fix it, consider getting your analog dubs done at a professional house like Digitec or Horizon Duplication. Again, give yourself enough time to make this decision.

Third, if I'd had better information about this problem earlier, I could have fixed it earlier. As usual, not one Incident Report was sent to me, probably because people didn't even understand there was a problem. You should be able to hear if your own project sounds right and if not, what sounds wrong with it.

Renting A Truck Anytime Soon?

Hey Folks,

I need a truck to bring a bunch of computers and monitors from downtown to UCF. If someone's renting a truck in the next few weeks and can help, drop me an email. You don't have to carry anything if you don't want to. Just bringing the truck downtown and driving it back to campus is all I need. It shouldn't take more than 1.5 hours, door to door (midday). And yes, I'll pay you, particularly if you help carry stuff. Almost any day of the week can work. Let me know.

RG