If you’re going to remove the sound from a film, you’d better do it right. Not being able to hear what people are saying is very odd and kind of disconcerting, especially for a modern audience. Luckily for The Artist, there is a way to make it work, and work fantastically at that. The Artist opens during the late 1920’s, at the height of our star, silent film actor George Valentin’s (Jean Dujardin) career. He’s a loveable guy, instantly showing his charisma at a premier (evoking some shenanigans from Singin’ in the Rain) for one of his movies. After the premier he bumps into Peppy Miller (Bérénice Bejo) a beautiful young dancer who soon falls in love with him. Unfortunately for George, hi

As many Hollywood stars and tabloid rags can attest, keeping up with fame and one's celebrity standing in tinsel town is a vicious game. Red-headed, foul-mouthed comedian, Kathy Griffin, has made a career exploiting her self-proclaimed D-list status and her observations and encounters with the peculiar world of celebrity.   Griffin's charm and clever wit derive from her hilarious ability to interact with the A-listers while still maintaining a self-deprecating attitude towards her station in the celebrity world. The comic documents many of her forays in Hollywood in her hit reality show, "Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List."   Griffin's standup act often includes escapades filmed on

The motion picture industry may be centered in Hollywood, but if screenwriter Gary Weinberg has anything to say about it, Sacramento’s burgeoning collective of aspiring screenwriters will soon draw plenty of attention northward. On February 22nd, from 7 to 9pm, the fourth installment of Weinberg’s popular course, Write Your Screenplay, An Eight Week Intensive, will begin at the Tangent Art Gallery, adjacent to the Coffee Garden at 2900 Franklin Blvd in Curtis Park. Since May of last year Weinberg has been facilitating the development of nearly fifty fledgling screenwriters, all with aspirations of seeing their ideas manifest on film. His three-class program has been developed to cater to

              I'd been in Harlow's for almost 10 full minutes Tuesday night when a fellow that I'd exchanged brief pleasantries with on the way in approached me at the bar. "Hey man, we're gonna go burn if you're interested."               After a lengthy internal deliberation, I declined his kind offer. It was up to me, you see, to relay the evenings events to you, kind reader, and that's a responsibility I take very seriously. I wouldn't have my perceptions dulled by anything stronger than PBR. At least not until the set break.               Truth & Salvage Co. was opening for San Francisco's Tea Leaf Green, and though I'd never seen either group live before, as the crowd rolled in, I fe

       As the first generation of novice Sacramento screenwriters are about to “graduate” from the rigorous twelve-week training intensive, a second session is about to begin. From August 24th through November 9th, Los Angeles writer-actor-producer Gary Weinberg will once again guide Sacramento students through the ins and outs of the art of screenwriting in his class called Screenwriting: An Eight Week Intensive. Students who take the class will learn the craft and the business of screenwriting, with an emphasis on how these manifest in the current Los Angeles film and television industry.        Screenwriting: An Eight Week Intensive will begin with the basic elements of narrative, and t

Sacramento turned into the new Hollywood this week. At several locations scattered throughout the downtown area, Deon Taylor Enterprises has been busy filming their next big-budget comedy/thriller movie. The crew spent two nights filming on K Street around the 2300 block and scattered along J Street. The last day of filming, December 17, wrapped in the industrial warehouse district off Richards Boulevard. “As a filmmaker, when I write the scripts, I know where I can get a certain look at,” said director, writer and producer Deon Taylor, a Sacramento resident. “If I want water, I know the Delta is close by. For a colder, darker feel, I come to Richards Boulevard.” This is the fourth movi

We often hear about internet competitions to name things, host things, win things, etc.  Well, a couple of weeks ago, Hugh Jackman announced that he would travel to whichever town raised the highest number of votes, to host the wolrd premiere of the new "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" movie, complete with all the trappings and stars of a Holywood premiere. Amazingly, as the clock ticks down to today's deadline, Davis is in the running to host the event! Here's the original youtube video press release with Jackman making the announcement: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-drLdnk-g24 To vote and help influence the outcome and maybe have a little Hollywood glamour and blitz in our own backyard, l

Many people are surprised when they hear that California doesn’t have a film commission that offers incentives to film production companies to film in the state. 44 states do, as do many countries, but California, well...we have HOLLYWOOD! But film production companies are leaving the state to shoot in much lower-cost locales, many of which are cheaper because the local governments offer tax breaks and other incentives to lure production to their jurisdictions. California, argues state Assemblyman Paul Kerkorian (D - Burbank), needs to institute such incentives. The members of the Capital Film Arts Alliance agree, which is why the 750-strong Sacramento area filmmakers organization has in