Anyway, make sure you spread the word and kick in some funding and get recognized for it!

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1. I’m Starting an Art, Film, and Music Fest
2. DIT Fest Poster
3. My Opinion on Film

What is this Fest all about?

The name is Weapons of Mass Creation Fest (inspired by the WMC Art Campaign event that we hosted at Go Media). It’s a two day weekend festival in Cleveland, Ohio that celebrates the art, film, music, and the DIY entrepreneurial spirit. On May 22 and 23 artists, designers, nerds, film geeks, musicians, punks, and hippies will all gather at Go Media’s creative warehouse. There will be film screenings and discussions in the afternoon and punk rock and indie/folk bands performing in the evenings. And an art show featuring some talented artists who work primarily in music and film.

Where did I get this idea?

The past 3 or 4 years I’ve been going to Fests. Mostly punk/folk music fests like Berea Fest, DIT Fest, and of course The Fest. I went to SXSW in 2006 and the Cleveland Film Festival in 2009. All of them were inspiring to me, but not just from a listener/watcher perspective, but from an entrepreneur’s perspective. I love seeing it all go down – how people are gathering together and building a community around something they love. I love the idea of SXSW, how they weren’t just another music fest, but also a film festival and web/tech tradeshow and conference. That’s a pretty awesome event, but it was so expensive and so far away.

A few months ago I was lying in bed awake at night and had an “aha moment.” Why don’t I just create a mini SXSW in Cleveland but do it the way I want on a much smaller scale? Instead of wishing there was a fest that celebrated all the cool things I was inspired by, I would go out and create it. Brilliant! A fest about art, design, film, and music – all based around an authentic and heartfelt DIY spirit. I wanted a fest that would attract people who were into the same stuff.

The Vision

Weapons of Mass Creation. This fest is for creative people who defy the hand they were dealt.

The idea was to celebrate what I value in all forms of creativity: honesty, passion, integrity, authenticity, and emotion. You’ll notice a trend in the movies I see and write about. I’m a realism junkie and documentary lover. Most films I find myself loving are documentaries or fiction told with a documentary aesthetic. I appreciate art, film, and music that expresses the spirit of the creator. The more transparent the work, the more I gravitate towards it. I admire blue collar, hard working people. I admire artists who are bold and bare their souls in whatever medium they choose to express themselves in. I’m attracted to lo-fi, obscure, and the otherwise rejected by the mainstream. I value community, sharing, and positivity and those values carry over into this fest.

What to Expect

The first year of WMC Fest will be small and low-key. Probably 15 of our favorite bands that we’ve established relationships with over the years. I’m going to try to get some of my favorite filmmakers into Cleveland to screen their films. We’ll just be doing it DIY style with a DVD player a projector. It’s going to be like you’re watching a movie with your friends, except the filmmakers will be there to talk about it with you. And artists we’ve met over the years who are involved in this scene will showing their work. The costs of entry will be cheap and fans will be able to interact and mingle with their favorite artists and peers.

What’s Next?

We’re thinking this could be the start of Cleveland’s version of SXSW but that’s a lofty goal and even I’m not even sure I want it to become that big. Let’s just see where this first year gets us. Who’s with me?

Related posts:

1. Fest 8 Shirt
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3. DIT Fest Poster

But most American’s haven’t seen it I’m sure, and the storyline seems perfectly fitting for a US mainstream audience.

The storyline was the same. A marine has to leave his wife and kids to go fight in Afghanistan. His helicopter crashes and he’s reported dead back home and they even have a funeral. At that point, the marine’s brother, who just got out of jail, steps in to take care of the kids and keep his wife company. Naturally of course, he gets a little too close and feelings start to develop between the two. Spoiler alert (not really, this is part of any synopsis) the marine is not dead, but a held captive by the Taliban. He does some crazy shit to get out of there and eventually makes his way back to the states to reunite with his wife and family. But of course, drama ensues as he suspects infidelity and doesn’t trust his ex con brother.

The differences are subtle, but in Brødre, Susanne Bier made me feel shaken and nervous and tense the whole time. It grabbed me and didn’t let go. Jim Sheridan’s Brothers on the other hand felt cliche, overly dramatic, forced, and unrealistic. Even though it was the same story. Also, the three main characters are all so young and it still feels like a mix of Spider Man, Donnie Darko, and Sam from Garden State. They were playing very grown up roles and it seemed like they were “playing house” as this review put it.

Maybe it’s just me, but watching Tobey Maguire is a joke. He’s so flat with his lines and then when he has his “scenes” where he’s full of rage is hard to believe. Maybe if I hadn’t seen the original, I wouldn’t have even noticed. But Ulrich Thomsen, who played the same character in Brødre (and was amazing in Dogme 95 classic Festen as well) was so much more convincing. The anguish, despair, and guilt felt much more authentic than Tobey Maguire’s “acting class” anger scene.

Natalie Portman, who I like generally, was alright as the wife. But for some reason the American film made her feel like a cliche housewife. She’s actually pretty convincing when she cries (she made me cry in Garden State) and she’s a likable character. Same with Jake Gyllenhaal, I thought he was good as the other brother. If anything, he may have added a little extra with his own goofy personality and made the character TOO likable.

It’s been a while since I’ve seen the original, so I’ll have to go back and rewatch it. If I recall, it didn’t feature pop songs, a resounding score of heartfelt cinematic music, or name dropping of Nsync or Snoop Dogg! To sum it up, the Danish orginal was raw, intense, and gritty. This one was polished, poppy, and a little soft. If you’re gonna see one, definitely see the original.

Related posts:

1. JF on The Class
2. JF on Goodbye Solo
3. JF on Joe Swanberg’s Nights and Weekends

I gave his previous two films Funny Ha Ha and Mutual Appreciate 5/5 stars and I loved them because they were so refreshing and honest. I hadn’t seen anything like that and it really moved me and turned me on the rest of the “mumblecore” folks like Joe Swanberg, Mark Duplass, Greta Gerwig, etc. 3 years later, I am sitting watching Beeswax in a theatre trying to love Beeswax, but something just wasn’t there. Sure, this film has more “story” than others and the quality is better even though it’s still got his trademark grainy “diy” look to it. Critics are saying its his best feature, and I think they’re right but I didn’t walk away with any sort of warm and fuzzy feelings.

In my opinion, Beeswax has TOO much story in it. It kind of spreads itself thin as it meanders around the various characters who come and go. There are some cute scenes but the story is thinly draped around the girls vintage clothing store business and how her business partner is threatening to leave the company and maybe sue her. In the mountains of great dialogue in this film, nobody really seems to ask or care “why” she might be suing her. They never get into any of those details. It’s more like “awe shucks, I’m kinda screwed.” The characters have conversations, but in typical mumblecore style, they dance around the details and can’t quite grasp their own thoughts let alone speak them. They often seem oddly confused or distracted. I am willing to say that’s the way Bujalski wanted his characters. From what I’ve read it’s about how our generation sort of fails at adulthood. That sums up this film if you ask me. I’m cool with that.

Andrew’s films have a soft spot and have heart. Which I love. Beeswax certainly did – as I’m still a fan of the unhip characters and their awkward relationships. The characters are real and honest – it doesn’t appear to be like Hollywood latching onto a Michael Cera type to be the nerdy underdog hero. For that, I will always appreciate Andrew Bujalski. My wife, who watched it with me couldn’t help being annoyed at the girls’ messed up hair. She said the same thing in Funny Ha Ha. Those are things I dig.

Anyway, I give Beeswax a happy 4/5. I liked it. But I just can’t say I loved it. Although in principle I love it. I love how there’s no soundtrack, no special effects, no tricks. It’s the opposite of NYC Hipster Art films. But I wish that his characters/films had a little more bite and emotion. Just a smidge more. Let it out Andrew! There’s a lot of depth to the characters, I just want to get more of it.

Related posts:

1. JF on Joe Swanberg’s Nights and Weekends
2. Frownland
3. Film Recap Series #1

Dig!: I really haven’t listened to BJM (or the Dandy Warhols) but I thought the movie DIG was pretty good. I liked the film because it showed some insight into just how fucked up their bands are. I didn’t really like the people in the film. They seemed SO much different than me and I couldn’t relate. Although I did enjoy them as characters.

Nosferatu – Werner Herzog: I actually liked it lot. It was actually my 2nd Herzog film after Even Dwarfs… Nosferatu was good for me because I was on some sort of nostalgic kick with it. I remember seeing the poster for it and being freaked out as a child, but never having seen the film myself. So it was enjoyable to watch it as an adult.

Cinemania: The characters in the documentary are obsessed with watching films and there are a few characters who seem to be very knowledgeable about the subject. Particularly Jack Angstreich who was watching Godard films as a young teenager in the 80′s. And watches anywhere from 2-5 films a day. He also refuses to watch video and watches films only on the big screen. And only if the projection is good and the print is good. Most of the characters were definitely social outcasts and had some serious OCD problems. But I think Jack was the most “normal” out of them and was actually interested in the art form. Bill (the one who was trying to get a girl through the dating service) seemed into the art form as well.

Masculin Feminin – my fav Godard so far (others were Week End and Alphaville)

Running Scared (new one) – A friend of mine said it’s the best movie they’ve seen in years. Jesus Christ he needs to get out more! I won’t even go into it other than the this: Unbelievable TWISTS AND TURNS OMG does not make a good movie. And neither does dropping hundreds of F-Bombs, Name Calling, andshouting account for good realistic dialog.

Little Miss Sunshine – Really liked it, but it seemed like it added a spice of Hollywood gratuity here and there to keep the average viewer interested.

Thank You For Smoking – pretty smart film that “doesn’t apologize for itself”

8 1/2 (Fellini): BTW, just watched 8 1/2 for the first time and I was enjoying the film at first, but then caught myself dozing off a few times towards the middle. I was kind of mad at myself for that. But I was really into it the last 40 minutes or so. I liked it more than I thought I would. Does anyone else have audio/language problems when they watch it? I saw the Criterion version and it was in Italian with English subs, but it still seemed like the lips were saying things different than what I heard. Sometimes it would look accurate, other times the persons mouth would be closed and you’d still hear them finish a sentence. I saw other times they mouth english words, but it was dubbed over in italian and had the english subtitles at the bottom. That irks me.

Related posts:

1. Film Recap Series #1
2. JF on Joe Swanberg’s Nights and Weekends
3. My Opinion on Film

1. Go Media’s going through a bit of a transition period. We had to let go of a few staff members and we’re feeling the pinch of this terrible economy. My partners and fellow designers have been really buckling down and we’re turning things around. If we continue to do high quality work and take care of our clients, and we know things will get better.

2. I’ve been slammed at work lately and at home. I’m just extremely busy in all aspects of life that I have no time for stuff I used to do in my off-time. Like write on this blog. You know when you’re busy, you think you should post a blog but it’s just not important enough and you have other things to do. That’s kind of where I’m at right now. I’m busting my ass at Go Media trying to get more work done for clients as well as racking my brain about breathing some life back into the Arsenal. We temporarily had to release George, our editor for the GoMediaZine, so that’s also on my plate.

3. Parachute Journalists (my band) is actually in a good spot right now. We were going to make the trek to NYC to record with Phil Douglas of Latterman (one of my favorite bands and fav producers) but we’ve realized we’re all broke and Adam, our singer/guitarist is getting really good at recording/producing so we’re just going to do it ourselves. It’s more fun that way I think because we can take our time and focus on the songs – better than being rushed for 3 days in NYC. We’ve got the music tracked and we are doing vocals and overdubs now. I can’t wait to show you guys how it comes out!

4. Kim and I barely have time to do home maintenance and yard work. This time of year, it’s dark when we get home from work so it’s kind of depressing if you know what I mean. We’re also in a pinch financially and a putting off a lot of home repairs that need done. And the Holidays are sneaking up. It’s going to be tight this year!

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My solution: A series of film recaps covering a week to a month’s worth of film watching all at once. I have done this on the Harmony Korine boards and I’ll actually start by reviving some of my old posts. I’ll repost them here and we’ll see where it takes us.

Originally posted in 2006:

Phenomena – Dario Argento. The only Dario film I’ve seen is Phenomena and I thought it was awesome. The soundtrack was particularly interesting. At times it seemed so out of place and humorous. Like playing Iron Maiden’s “Flash of the Blade” in the middle of a slow mo dramatic dream sequence thing. It was incredible haha. And the rest of the soundtrack by Goblin is great too. I bought it after I watched it. Memorable stuff. I have Suspiria in my netflix queue. Coming up soon. I really like Dario’s style. It wasn’t particularly “scary” per say. But he did come up with some really memorable moments. Like the knife weilding chimp. And also Jennifer Connelly’s character was great too. I can’t wait to see more. Good to see some fans of his work.

Deep Red – Dario Argento: At first I couldn’t get it straight what language they wanted to speak in. It seemed none of the languages I selected matched up with the video. I finally settled on Italian with English subtitles and it was much better. Even though some people spoke English, it dubbed them over in italian. But the English was just too “cartoony” to listen to. I was so distracted by it lol. Anyway, I wasn’t particularly impressed with Deep Red. Phenomena was better – more my style. Deep Red was interesting and creepy at times. But all in all, it played out like a typical slasher-who-done-it flick. Maybe that’s the charm of it. But I would give it 3/5 stars.

Fast Food Nation: – Richard Linklater. Just saw this today, and I liked it for the most part. I generally like Linklater’s filmmaking style and his characters. And I was curious to see how he would pull off a dramatization of the non-fiction book, and he did a good job in my opinion. It was definitely bloody and disgusting in the slaughterhouse kind of way. There were a LOT of different characters in the film and at some points there was Linklater’s trademark dialogue where characters would debate and throw ideas back and forth. It was certainly powerful, at the end. I won’t spoil it, but they certainly made everyone in the audience walk out like a depressed piece of shit.

Wassup Rockers – Larry Clark. The only thing edgy about this film is the soundtrack being mostly really lo-fi, basement-style hardcore punk. I liked the main group of characters. I could relate to them more than his characters in other films. But for the documentary style aesthetic he had going, it certainly featured a lot of unbelievable scenes. Like when one of their homies gets arrested, he’s forgotten for the rest of the film. Or when the other gets shot, they are sad for a minute, but then it’s forgotten.

The Beverly Hills characters aren’t well developed or written at all. The hispanic kids just skate around and mind their own business for the most part, but you’ve got the played-up Beverly Hills characters that just want to fuck with them for no apparent reason. Like they have nothing better to do.When I look back on the film, I really liked the main characters. They felt like good friends. But I think the fact that they were “punks” was played up way too much.I mean, they were treated like total outcasts, when all they were doing was skating. They were wearing Spitfire and Emerica shirts – and how different from the mainstream is that? In my neighborhood, people wouldn’t even notice or care. Haven’t beverly hills folks seen a skater before?

So Clark’s attempt at making an accessible film worked for the most part. Anyone can watch this and they shouldn’t be shocked by any controversial content. But without the controversial content, Clark’s films are bland in my opinion. The romance scenes are cute and they are the best parts in the film. I’ll give him that. It’s like there was an honest and sincere connection between Kiko and that Beverly Hill’s chick. But then the bullies ran in and started beating the shit out of them. Then they escaped trouble yet again on skateboards to the tune of hardcore punk.

That reminds me. You know when you see a student film and they try to put in all their favorite songs regardless of how it fit with the film? Wassup Rockers kinda felt like that.

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1. Film Recap #2
2. Andrew Bujalski’s “Beeswax”
3. Cedar Lee Theatre – Cult Film Series Poster

If you would happen to see it, you’d be convinced this film was shot in the late 70′s, early 80′s. The imagery, colors, and camerawork is astonishing and perfectly suited to my tastes. However, Frownland was released in 2007 and I just now was able to see it. It took forever to get to DVD.

The cinematography was done by Sean Williams. This article from Hammer to Nail puts it best:

You can’t tell this story and film it prettily. Sean Williams’s abrasive 16mm cinematography—crusty, grainy, shaky, jarring—recalls a lost era in independent film, where imperfect, underlit imagery established an atmosphere of unshakeable authenticity. These days, when low-budget filmmakers adopt this approach—on digital video, no less—it’s out of laziness or sloppiness. Here, it’s out of a deep-seated desire to retain a visceral connection to an earlier, more uncompromising moment in film history. Bronstein’s decision to embrace this aesthetic—a seemingly anachronistic decision for the digitally driven early 21st Century—results in a truly freakish tone. Combined with Paul Grimstad’s synthesized score and an absence of up-to-the-minute pop culture references, Frownland feels like a 1983 filmmaker’s vision of a rundown, futuristic New York City.

All of my feelings about this film are summed up in that above paragraph. It’s truly a visceral connection with this film and its characters and I’ve been looking for films like this for quite some time. The film sometimes gets lumped in with the mumblecore scene and the film’s lo-fi aesthetic feels like the ugly sister of Andrew Bujalksi’s Funny Ha Ha.

Having said all that, the film is haunting and enthralling. Story wise, it’s about this social outcast named Keith who has a speech problem where he’s either stuttering so badly he cannot speak at all or spewing a torrent of words that he’s incomprehensible. This is one of the best films I’ve ever seen about a crazy person. Director Ronald Bronstein does it so tastefully and horrifically. All the characters in this film are beautifully miserable.

There were many times in the film I said to myself, “yes! they did that perfectly” I loved the the enormous typography as the title screen appears and then its gone with almost no time to read it. Yes! For some reason that feels great to me. I think because it’s a direct violation of traditional titles.

I can’t really accurately describe why I like this film so much. Other writers do it so much better. I’m definitely buying this on DVD and checking out more from this director.

Frownland Trailer from factory twenty five on Vimeo.

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Anyway, on opening night, they showed Michael Moore’s new film Capitalism: A Love Story. They also showed the new documentary on Lebron James called More Than a Game and Toy Story 3D. Being a fan of Mister Moore, I decided to see his new flick.

Overall, it’s enjoyable and funny. Depressing at times. It’s got all the typical Michael Mooreisms you’ve come to expect – bullying around rent-a-cops and trying to get into corporate headquarters and heavily guarded buildings. The film basically shows a myriad of examples of how the system of Capitalism is failing us and how we’re all headed for doom and gloom if nothing is done. Sure, I could agree with his statements. And you’ll probably be convinced if you watch this film. But keep in mind, he never once tries to give the other side of the argument (personal responsibility anyone?) and continues to blame everything on “evil” businesses and corporations.

Moore’s main point is that there is no more middle class. Only the haves and the have nots. The film has many moving and hilarious ways to show this. From voice-overs carefully edited into kitschy public domain footage and juxtaposing the fall of capitalism with the fall of Rome. They even play the Hastily Made Cleveland Tourism Video, which our audience loved!

I could go on and on about the politics of the film, but I won’t. As a film, it was his most ambitious project; tackling such an epic subject. But in doing so, he creates a disjointed and jumpy film that tries to cover too much ground. One minute you’re learning about kids who got sent to Juvenile hall for random small offenses and then it jumps to how pilots aren’t paid as much as they deserve. Moore goes so far as to talk about how commercial airline pilots are on food stamps and then it correlates that with plane crashes. Michael Moore is nuts, he does these tricks all the time to manipulate his audience. While I admire him as a bold and brave filmmaker who certainly makes entertaining films that question our political beliefs, he is very sneaky.

In an NPR interview I heard the other day, he admitted to accepting money from major corporations to fund his film and he felt it indeed was hypocritical. He says that in a capitalist world, these businesses think that even bad press is good press and they will eventually see a profit even if Michael publicly bashes them in the film.

But all that aside, I am glad he’s making these films. I do hope to see some sort of change to our system. People are scared to make change and think that it will all be different overnight. No you cannot get rid of capitalism, and I don’t think you should. According to Moore’s facts, the top 1% richest people in America have more money than the other 97% combined. That’s just ridiculous. The American people are convinced that THEY TOO can be rich like them one day. Hopefully films like these open up people’s eyes (which they have) to change that.

If you’ve seen it, what did you think?

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1. JF on Goodbye Solo
2. Film Recap #2
3. Andrew Bujalski’s “Beeswax”

I fell in love with the movement because it was stripped down, honest, raw, and real. It’s about as far as you could get from Hollywood and as close as you could get to the filmmakers themselves. I am big on authenticity, naturalism, and realism and get my inspiration from directors like John Cassavetes, Werner Herzog, the Dardenne Bros, Harmony Korine, etc. Werner Herzog talks about his quest for the ecstatic truth in his work. I really admire that.

Joe and his characters felt like friends of mine. I was inclined to see everything they put out, but unfortunately not everything they do is released on DVD or available online. Living in Cleveland makes it tough sometimes. So that’s why it was great to meet Joe when came to Cleveland a few months ago for the Cleveland Film Festival. He screened Alexander the Last, which was the first time he’s screened a movie in Cleveland. I have a good feeling he’ll be back again next year.

Alexander the Last was great for me because I was started to doubt Joe as a director. If you’ve seen any of his stuff, you know he’s not shy about his blunt sexuality. At first I admired him for his bravery and mundane portrayal of sex. It was different and progressive. But as I watched more of his films like LOL, and his web series “Young American Bodies” it seemed his characters weren’t very interesting and everything led up to the next time they had sex. Alexander the Last actually had real emotion going on. The exact details are foggy in my memory but I remember getting caught in the film and actually caring for the characters. It was awesome.

6 or 7 months later, I sit down to watch Nights and Weekends. The film opens with Joe and Greta (James and Mattie in the film) busting through their apartment door with their lips locked. They start to awkwardly undress each other until their both fully nude. Ok Joe, really? You aren’t fooling around with this one! You’re getting right to it I see. So I immediately started to doubt him again. The first 20 or so minutes I was getting annoyed with the characters as it seemed their dialogue was trite and forced. It felt like they were trying too hard to act “mumblecore” and it was getting stale.

But then it got interesting. First off, before I lose you, the film is about long distance relationships. James and Mattie are having one, and it sucks. We’ve all been there. The great thing about the film as it moves on is that it never really explains things. Perhaps that’s a trick to make me stay interested? Anyway, a year passes and things are weird between the two. I can never figure out if they broke up or are still together. Greta’s character has completely lost it and she’s very nervous and moody. Joe’s character on the other hand becomes confident and mature. The rest of the film got me rooting for the characters – which is something I always had a hard time doing in Joe’s films. I felt like I wanted to cry at times and I really felt tense and awkward at certain times. The film wrapped up perfectly (in my opinion) and left me feeling like I lost something at the end. Much different than the “meh, that was… interesting….” reaction from his earlier work.

Joe is really maturing as a director and I really can’t wait to see what he does next. Joe if you read this, you should totally come to my art, film, music fest on May 22, 2010. You are welcome to screen your work!

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2. Film Recap Series #1
3. JF on Goodbye Solo