Dear two cents students,

You probably don't read this blog anymore since our class is over, although I think you all secretly loved it. But, after looking at all of your cool final projects and having people check them out at the Writing Festival I just wanted to say good work! There was a really diverse range of interests and styles present in your writing. I'll leave you with cover of the movie I'm most looking forward to this summer...yeah, that's right it's going to be awesome.

p.s. kudos to the anal probes...you guys killed it in movie trivia, and proved what mental giants you truly are.
p.p.s. Also, if by chance any of you do end up becoming critics don't forget who helped you get there.

It's up. It's rad. You love it.

Here's the class magazine highlighting all your wonderful work this semester. You all should be very proud--there's some very quality stuff here. Browse online by clicking on the thumbnails for a larger image, and we'll have hard copies available at the Celebration of Writing in Goodell on Thursday.

It's the one that says Bad M@therf$%&er.

I know where I'll be August 18. Do you?

In case you missed it...

...and many of you did. Today's attendance in class, was, shall we say, lackluster. So let me take this opportunity to give a shout out to those who kept Rekha and I company between the hours of 4 and 6. Mary, Shana, Matt, Stuart, Simon, and Tyler--props to you, yo. Sarah and Dan, partial credit will be awarded.

For those of you who missed class--some of you notified us of your absence, some of you didn't. But all of you missed dancing polar bears. Dancing polar bears. You can't even find that kind of thing in a David Blaine special. It's really a bummer for you. You'll have to live with disappointment.

In all seriousness, missing class is a problem. That's why showing up and getting your butts in the seats is one of the primary determinants in whether or not you pass this class. But you knew that...

Next week's class, while lacking polar bears, will be MANDATORY if you'd like to pass the class. Since final projects are due (along with any and all late assignments), you must show up to turn in your project. Bloggers, this applies to you too, even though you won't be physically turning in any work.

Keep blogging and posting, and we'll see you next time.

Going digital...

I know we haven't really talked about this in class yet, but I'm really interested in the move to go to digital by filmmakers, particularly those who are recent converts. I'm thinking of this in the context of Lynch whose new film Inland Empire is apparently shot completely in DV, and is causing quite a raging debate on the web. I also read about a panel at the Tribeca Film Festival headed by Steven Soderbergh this past week that dealt with this topic. I definitely understand the economic/distribution advantages of going digital, and I'm not even one of those people who claim the quality of digital is always shabbier. But, insofar as film is a visual medium and one that depends on a visual aesthetic what does a shift motivated more by economics then by visual appeal? I know that Soderbergh at least has talked about DV entirely in the context of releasing films through different mediums, which to me is a different question then what it does for the aesthetic of film. So, is it a good thing? A sad thing? Will it change how we literally view film?