Last updated on June 18, 2004. Please check back later for additions.

Contents

Cinema Lounge
An Interview with the Directors of The Story of the Weeping Camel JUST ADDED! TIMELY INFO!!
Recap: The Coming Attractions Trailer Show
Filmfest D.C. a Great Success!
Book Review: W.C. Fields
The Hubert Bals Fund Spring Selections
We Need to Hear From You
Calendar of Events

The Cinema Lounge takes a field trip this month to visit the new AFI Silver Theater in Silver Spring. Join Cinema Lounge to see Alfred Hitchcock's classic film Vertigo (1958) at 4:00pm and discuss it afterwards in the cafe. What makes Vertigo a timeless classic? What elements date the movie?

The AFI Silver Theater is located at 8633 Colesville Road in Silver Spring, Maryland (a two-block walk from the Silver Spring Metro stop on the Red Line).

By Leslie H. Weisman, D.C. Film Society Member

The Story of the Weeping Camel, whose unfamiliar setting and seemingly "unsexy" premise may make it seem an unlikely box-office blockbuster, is a gently observant, humorous, thought-provoking piece that has captured the hearts of filmgoers around the world. If you missed it last April at Filmfest DC where it won third place in the Audience Award, don't miss the D.C. opening on June 18, 2004.

Directors Byambasuren Davaa [BD] and Luigi Falorni [LF] were here in Washington recently where I had the chance to interview them, for which my deep appreciation goes to the D.C. Film Society. (An interview with the directors summarizing the film's story and background by James McCaskill can be found in the March 2004 Storyboard.

The interview was not recorded, so the exchange below is quoted in part and summarized but should not assumed to be word-for-word.

Leslie Weisman: The story is set in an area of the world that, to Western audiences, is an exotic locale, the stuff of legends and fairy tales. Yet viewers seem to relate readily to the heart-wrenching, and ultimately heart-warming, tale of mother camel Ingen Temee and her baby, Botok. To what extent does people's ability to identify with the unexpectedly familiar, indeed human, emotions of what is, for most viewers, an unusual animal, contribute to the film's immense popularity?

Byambasuren Davaa: The mother-child relationship is the most essential; it's basis for all other love. There is no difference between animals and humans in this. We relate to it. Love between animals and the herders/nomads is a link in a chain of love and nature, too. It makes the film universally reachable because everyone can identify with it.

LW: Do you hope that the way in which your film engages audiences' affection, not just for baby Botok and his mother but for the nomadic family who are so devoted to their welfare, will enhance viewers' ability to empathize, and help bridge the gap between people and cultures in a way that will remain with them?

Luigi Falorni: Hopefully. That would be the highest reward for a filmmaker. It all depends, of course, on how much they will allow it to affect and remain with them.

LW: The film uses some highly effective and moving juxtapositions to illustrate, or at least suggest, similarities between the camels and their human keepers. For example, at one point, the white camel's crying for its mother is followed by a frame showing the brown camel's mother, affectionately nuzzling it, then by one showing Ogdoo's gentleness and warmth with her toddler. I'm guessing that this was intentional. If so, could you elaborate a bit on what you were hoping to elicit from audiences?

BD: Nomads don't see much difference between children and animals and themselves. There is a great bond there. Yes, of course, there is a connection.

LW: You grew up in Mongolia, your parents were nomads. As a child, you saw and were very moved by a film about camels and the rejection and ritual it depicted, and wanted to make a film about it. Was the film you saw as a child fictional, documentary, or docudrama? What elements of that film--technical, cinematic, emotional, spiritual--informed or inspired the film we are watching today? How is this film, or is it, different from the film you envisioned you would make?

BD: The film I saw was shown at the Children's Palace. About 200-300 kids were there. While I was enchanted with the film, I had no idea I'd be a documentary filmmaker. And it wasn't until I went to Munich and studied at the Munich Film School that I learned to appreciate the value of documentaries, and of my country. A portion of my childhood is ingrained in me, and stayed with me. Also, when you leave home, you see things through different eyes, and can look at them more objectively. It also helps you appreciate them more.

LW: You [Luigi Falorni] have called the film a "narrative documentary," combining elements of feature film and documentary; Byambasuren Davaa has called the film she saw as a child "magical," evoking the enchanted world of fairy tales. Indeed, there is a yin and yang that threads strikingly through your film. Can you tell us something about the motivation behind this? Did you intend for audiences to feel ambivalent about the impact of the slow but sure encroachment of the modern world on a domain that still retains the innocence of what is, for us, a lost world?

BD: We did not intentionally try to make that impression, but it is of course a fact that the modern world and technology are coming, and Mongolia is in the midst of this change.

LF: This reflects my general approach to life, which is a two-stage approach: First, let me go somewhere I don't know and be exhilarated by the new; then let me find something there that belongs to me already. The second stage takes me back to my childhood, a sense of innocence, a sense of discovery.

LW: The film is filled with storytelling, and in fact begins with the grandfather telling the legend of why the camel always looks like it's gazing off into the distance searching for something (the deer borrowed his antlers to decorate himself for a party and never returned them, and the camel continues to peer, hoping the deer will appear over the horizon). This sets the stage wonderfully for the film, which tells a story that in itself has the quality of legend. Is belief in the camel's inherently trusting nature, its naivete, part of nomadic culture, and does it contribute to the people's affection for the camel?

BD: Camels play a major role in, and are in fact a symbol of, nomadic culture, both practically and spiritually. Historically, they have carried the load; though modern nomads have trucks, camels today are still used for transport. Nomads also consider the camel to be highly spiritual and heavenly. Together, these concepts make the camel the locus in which mythology and reality come together.

LW: You [Luigi Falorni] have said that in the story of Ingen Temee and Botok, you saw an allegory of alienation and salvation, the universal need for acceptance, and for love. We arguably live in a world of increasing alienation: there's a technological divide that separates generations, a materialistic divide that separates "haves" and the "have nots." Yet here, on both the human and animal sides of the equation, we see that despite seemingly irreconcilable differences, reconciliation, understanding, acceptance and respect are not only possible, but ultimately, perhaps even inevitable. Do you believe that your film can help foster them?

LF: YES! At least, we hope so.

By Karrye Y. Braxton

With a bow to the silly summer movie, Dodgeball won out over Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban with tremendous applause from the crowd at the Washington, D.C. Film Society’s Summer 2004 edition of the Coming Attractions Trailer Program. It surely must have been due to the copious amounts of $1 popcorn that the crowd feasted on, thanks to the generosity of Loews Cineplex Wisconsin Avenue 6 Theatres.

Although attendees worried initially that Animal Acts might constitute non-FCC approved flicks, we were comforted by the fact that this was just one of the wacky categories that Bill Henry makes up each time at this twice-annual event. Although decidedly not for children, Garfield is sure to be a crowd pleaser with voiceovers by Bill Murray, while Two Brothers will tug at the heartstrings of anyone separated from the family pet, even if yours is not a set of baby tigers. The tigers are showcased with hottie Guy Pearce and bad guy Ben Kingsley. Thunderbirds, formerly a '60s British hit TV series brought to the big screen, features Bill Paxton, Anthony Edwards, and, again, bad-guy Ben Kingsley.

Co-hosts Joe Barber and Bill Henry speculated on the pros and cons of the sequels, in a segment Bill called Once More Into the Breach. Audience participants challenged the finer points of sequels that the co-hosts made, by countering them with "the check cleared" as to why Halle Berry would make an updated Catwoman. One audience participant, who had actually read The Bourne Supremacy, complained of the book’s appalling lack of heart-stopping car chases. Only a few people in the audience had seen Pitch Black, the movie on which the sequel, The Chronicles of Riddick is based.

In the category of remakes, A Rose By Any Other Name Would Still Smell, audience participants laughed uproariously at the latest version of The Stepford Wives, but not at Around the World in 80 Days. In an informal poll, the audience could accept Denzel Washington in Frank Sinatra’s role in The Manchurian Candidate, but bemoaned the fact that the original movie had been remade. The foreign movies in the remakes category include The Blind Swordsman: Zatôichi from Japan and Van Helsing from Australia.

In another segment, The Fault Lies Not With the Stars, But With the Scripts They Choose, De-Lovely highlights the talents of well-known stars Kevin Kline, Jonathan Pryce and Ashley Judd in a film biography of Cole Porter. The Clearing combines classic stars Robert Redford, Helen Mirren and Willem Dafoe in a family kidnapping thriller. Summer movies must have at least one disaster flick. In the category Not Every Disaster Movie Is Produced By Jerry Bruckheimer, we saw clips of The Day After Tomorrow, which caused one clip-viewer to chortle, "New York never looked better."

Raising Helen is the chick flick version of The Family Man, where Kate Hudson must decide between accepting the guardianship of her deceased sister’s children (instant mommy, just add water and stir) or return to her wild, hard-driving career in the fashion industry. Director M. Night Shyamalan did no wrong in the much-anticipated The Village, whose trailer begins with a voiceover by William Hurt. That Soul Plane insults the average theatre-goer, let alone frequent flyers of any color is not disputed; nevertheless, the crowd still gave it appreciable applause while Joe Barber apologized for it seeing the light of day.

Except for the fact that the trailer featured no dialogue, Garden State, an American art house film, might have been featured in the segment What’s On Your Nightstand ... Words, Words, Words. In Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry finds out who killed his parents and his friends find lust. I Robot mesmerized the audience for several moments of fear of the unknown future. King Arthur won the applause of those who were glad to see that Guinevere finally gets to fight. Whoops and hollers filled the cool air when Troy, featuring Brad Pitt and Orlando Bloom, came on the screen. The true swooning romantic’s favorite, however, was The Notebook, another take on the genre "girl falls for boy from the other side of the tracks."

Joe and Bill saved the best for last, in the category Remembrances of High Schools Past. As mentioned earlier, Dodgeball won the Golden Trailer Award, while we heard sighs from the crowd for Dear Frankie, an English film about a young boy who’s about to meet the sailor father he’s only known from letters written by his mother. Napoleon Dynamite was everyone’s favorite award-winning nerd movie. Saved is a take-off on Christian morality plays and features everyone’s favorite high school movie stars, as well as the funniest line of the trailers, "I crashed my van into Jesus!" Those trailer-dwellers who stayed until the end to cheer on Dodgeball, won theatre passes from Woolly Mammoth and Ford’s Theatre and coffee mugs from Coffee and Cigarettes. And all attendees received plenty of free film giveaways, including CDs, books, t-shirts, and movie posters.

Thanks to DCFS Coordinating Committee Director Michael Kyrioglou, Associate Directors Brian Niemiec and Jim Shippey and staff for their time, energy, and enthusiasm in pulling together this event, especially Karrye Braxton, Cheryl Dixon, Larry Hart, Ky Nguyen, Tuan Tran, and Billy Coulter. Special thanks to Joe Barber, Bill Henry, Allied Advertising, Henry Passman and John Woods at Loews Cineplex Wisconsin Avenue 6, and all participating film studios.

We are always looking for film-related material for the Storyboard. Members have written about their trips to the Cannes Film Festival, Venice Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, Toronto Film Festival, Edinburgh Film Festival and others. We also heard about what it's like being an extra in the movies. Have you gone to an interesting film festival? Have a favorite place to see movies that we aren't covering in the Calendar of Events? Seen a movie that blew you away? Read a film-related book? Gone to a film seminar? Interviewed a director? Read an article about something that didn't make our local news media? Send your contributions to Storyboard and share your stories with the membership.

FILMS

American Film Institute Silver Theater
The AFI concludes its showings of Godzilla (Ishiro Honda, 1954) on June 3. Casablanca (Michael Curtiz, 1942) concludes runs through June 13 and The Longest Day (1962) has a one-time show on June 6 at 12:35pm, the anniversary of D-Day. Kirikou and the Sorceress (Michel Ocelot, 1998) runs from June 4-13. A program of three award-winning animated short films written, produced, voiced, and scored by Paul McCartney: Tropic Island Hum, Tuesday, and Rupert and the Frog Song (2004) shows on June 5 at 1:00pm.

The second annual Silver Docs, a festival of documentary films, runs from June 15-20. Films include the world premiere of Seeds (Marjan Safinia and Joseph Boyle, 2004) on opening night, June 15 at 7:00pm, Control Room (Jehane Noujaim, 2004) about Al Jazeera and lots more.

Freer Gallery of Art
A series of four Indian films begins June 4 at 7:00pm with Maqbool (Vishal Bharadwaj, 2003), an adaptation of Macbeth. On June 6 at 2:00pm is I Have Found It (Rajiv Menon, 2000), an adaptation of Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility; on June 11 at 7:00pm is Anything Can Happen (Shashanka Ghosh, 2003) and on June 13 at 2:00pm is The Lady of the House (Rituparno Ghosh, 1999), an award winning film by one of India's leading art-house filmmakers.

A series of four "Buddhist comedies" begins on June 18 at 7:00pm with Enlightenment Guaranteed (Doris Dorrie, 2000). The Cup (Khyentse Norbu, 1994) is on June 24 at 7:00pm with special guest Gaetano Kazuo Maida, executive director of the International Buddhist Film Festival. He will also be present for Shower (Zhang Yang, 1999) on June 25 at 7:00pm and Hi! Dharma (Park Cheol-kwan, 2001) on June 27 at 2:00pm.

National Gallery of Art
The Mexican film series concludes in June with The Building Workers (Jorge Fons, 1976) on June 5 at 1:00pm; Canoa (Filipe Cazals, 1975) on June 5 at 3:30pm; Place Without Limits (Arturo Ripstein, 1977) on June 6 at 3:30pm, preceded by a lecture at 2:00pm, "Mexican Film and the Literary Tradition," by Ignacio Duran Loeta; Frida (Paul Leduc, 1984) on June 9 at 1:00pm and June 10 and 11 at 12:30pm; Danzon (Maria Novaro, 1991) on June 12 at 2:00pm and 4:00pm; Nazarin (Luis Bunuel, 1958) on June 13 at 2:00pm; Herod's Law (Luis Estrada, 1999) on June 13 at 4:00pm; The Beginning and the End (Arturo Ripstein, 1993) on June 19 at 2:30pm; Like Water for Chocolate (Alfonso Arau, 1992) on June 20 at 2:00pm; Midaq Alley (Jorge Fons, 1994) on June 20 at 4:30pm; Cronos (Guillermo del Toro, 1993) on June 26 at 4:00pm; The Wave (Paul Strand and Fred Zinnemann, 1936) on June 27 at 2:00pm; and Amores Perros (Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, 2001) on June 27 at 4:00pm.

On June 2, 3, 4, 6, 23, 24, 25, and 26 at 12:30pm is Silver Cities of the Yucatan: The Mason-Spinden Expedition (Bob Connelly, 2002), a short film assembled from footage shot in 1926 by a Chicago businessman accompanying an archaeological expedition.

On June 26 at 2:00pm is Carmen Jones (Otto Preminger, 1954), a recently restored film starring Dorothy Dandridge and Harry Belafonte.

National Museum of African Art
On June 3 at 7:00pm are two short documentaries, Art and Death in Africa: Yaaba Soore (1986) shown with Masked Spirits of Nyor Diaple (1986), both about mask ceremonies. On June 10 at 7:00pm is a documentary about traditional and contemporary arts of Nigeria, Nigerian Art: Kindred Spirits (1990) and on June 20 at 2:00pm is a feature Hyenas (Djibil Diop Mambety, 1992).

Museum of American History
To accompany the exhibition Separate Is Not Equal: Brown v. Board of Education is a documentary, February One, the story of the sit-ins that began February 1, 1960 at the Woolworth's lunch counter in Greensboro, N.C. Shown on June 19 at 1:00pm, the filmmaker will be present for discussion.

National Museum of Women in the Arts
To complement the exhibit "Nordic Cool" are three films this month, all directed by Nordic women filmmakers. On June 16 at 7:00pm is the Finnish film Geography of Fear (Auli Mantila, 2000), winner of the Best Screenplay award at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival. On June 23 at 7:00pm is Minor Mishaps (Annette K. Olesen, 2002), a Danish film about a dysfunctional family and winner of the Blue Angel prize for Best European Film at the 2002 Berlin Film Festival. On June 30 at 7:00pm is an Icelandic film Honour of the House (Gudny Halldorsdottir, 1999) based on a 1933 story written by the director's Nobel Laureate father and a 1999 Academy Award nominee for Best Foreign Language Film.

Films on the Hill
W.C. Fields films are featured in June, beginning with Fields' first starring feature, Sally of the Sawdust (D.W. Griffith, 1925), shown on June 23 at 7:00pm. Critics had always remarked that Fields would make a perfect Micawber, and he got his chance in David Copperfield (George Cukor, 1935), showing on June 25 at 7:00pm. Cukor wanted Fields so much for the part that he paid $50,000 to Paramount to delay Fields' film Mississippi (Edward Sutherland, 1935) showing on June 30 at 7:00pm. See the book review above.

DC Jewish Community Center
On June 9 at 7:00pm is the DC premiere of My Uncle Berns (Lindsay Crystal, 2003), a story of the filmmaker's remarkable great uncle, a World War II veteran and artist. On June 14 at 8:00pm is Bonjour Monsieur Shlomi (Shemi Zarhin, 2003), a comedy and hit in Israel, with 12 nominations for the Israeli Oscar. On June 29 at 7:00pm is Yentl (Barbra Streisand, 1983).

Goethe Institute
"Hybrid Forms: Trends in the Documentary Film" is the theme for films in June and July. On June 7 at 6:30pm is The Housewife's Flower (Dominick Wessely, 1997), about vacuum cleaner salesmen; on June 14 at 6:30pm is Buenos Aires, My History/Images of the Absence (German Kral, 1999), about the filmmaker's search for his absent father and a winner of two prizes at documentary film festivals (note: no English subtitles); on June 21 at 6:30pm is Hans Warns, My 20th Century (Gordian Maugg, 1999); and on June 28 at 6:30pm is The Last Documentary Film (Daniel Sponsel and Jan Sebening, 1998) shown with Vacancy (Matthias Muller, 1998). The series continues in July.

National Geographic Society
On June 2 at 7:00pm is The Story of the Weeping Camel (Luigi Falorni and Byambasuren Davaa, 2003) with both filmmakers present for discussion. See the March Storyboard for a director interview.

Griot Cinema at Erico Cafe
Queen Mother (Idrissou Mora Kapi), a documentary about the changing lives of the Borgu people of northern Benin can be seen on June 1 and 2. From June 3-9 is When the Stars Meet the Sea (Raymond Rajaonarivelo), a feature from Madagascar; June 10-16 is Awara Soup (Cesar Paes), about multicultural communities in French Guyana; and June 17-23 is The Language You Cry In (Alvaro Toepke and Angel Serrano), about the Gullah people of present day Georgia and their connections to 18th century Sierra Leone. All films begin at 7:00pm plus there is a Sunday matinee at 4:30pm. For more information call 202-518-9742.

The National Theatre
Films to commemorate the new World War II memorial include Casablanca (Michael Curtiz, 1942) on June 14 at 6:30pm; Mrs. Miniver (William Wyler, 1942) on June 21 at 6:30pm; and Waterloo Bridge (Mervyn LeRoy, 1940) on June 28 at 6:30pm. A short introduction to each film will be presented by Jack A. Green, Public Affairs Officer, Naval Historical Center. The series continues in July and August.

Old Town Theater
On June 1 and 2 is the Alfred Hitchcock classic North by Northwest (1959) at 7:30pm. Young Frankenstein (Mel Brooks, 1974) and To Be Or Not To Be (Alan Johnson, 1983) run from June 3-9 at various times, and two Woody Allen films Sleeper (1973) and Everything About Sex (1972) run from June 10-16. Check the website for exact times.

National Museum of Natural History
On June 25 at noon is Desounen--Dialogue With Death (Raoul Peck, 1994), introducing ordinary Haitians trying to live their lives amid the environmental devastation and crushing poverty of the Caribbean's poorest country.

Transafrica Forum
The Fourth Annual D.C. Caribbean Filmfest begins on June 2 at 6:30pm with Bonjour la Rézoné (Elsie Haas and Nixon Amilcar, 2004) and continues on June 16 at 6:30pm with the comedy The Lunatic (Lol Crème, 1992). On June 23 at 7:00pm is a documentary, Calypso Dreams (Geoffrey Dunn and Michael Horne, 2004), and on June 30 at 6:30pm is a feature film, Scent of an Oak (Rigoberto López Pego, 2003). Locations vary, please check the website or call 202-223-1960 x132.

Previous Storyboards

May, 2004
April, 2004
March, 2004
February, 2004
January, 2004
December, 2003
November, 2003
October, 2003
September, 2003
August, 2003
July, 2003
June, 2003
May, 2003
April, 2003