10.09.2007
Entertainment News
Some movie and television news that should be of interest to my readers.
The first item is a bit of good news. Kathryn Price NicDhana, at her blog Paganachd Bhandia, reports that the film "Spirits for Sale" has won Best International Film at the 2007 South Dakota Film Festival. "Spirits for Sale" is a documentary that tackles the appropriation and exploitation of Native religion and ceremony by outside groups.
"Europe has also seen a growing interest in so called Native American spirituality. Ceremonies and rituals together with sacred objects are being sold on websites and in papers. Cults and organisations offer people to become 'an Indian shaman' or a medicine man during a weekend course. Seldom or never do Native voices get heard and because of the lack of information, con-men make a considerable amount of money while they violate the spirituality of mostly Plains Indians. This film will address the issue of spiritual exploiters and the harm they do towards Native cultures but also to followers who, in many cases, 'don't have a clue'."
This film currently in the process of applying to other film festivals, no word yet on distribution or sale of the film is available at this time.
We turn from the appropriation of Native culture, to the snubbing of a native language. In this case it involves a striking new film that explores the folktales and mythic landscape of Scotland. The film, "Seachd: The Inaccessible Pinnacle", has been getting rave reviews from critics and many expected that it would submitted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts for consideration as a foreign-film Oscar contender.
But instead, "Seachd", a picture filmed entirely in Scots Gaelic, and a Welsh-language film "Calon Gaeth (Small Country)" were both rejected by the London-based BAFTA film committee causing an uproar of controversy in the UK.
"AMPAS rules state that only an "outstanding" film should be submitted. BAFTA has given no official reason why its jury, comprising six members of the film committee, rejected both candidates this year. But insiders say none of the jurors considered either film strong enough. Problem is that this verdict, based on DVD screeners, is at odds with the response "Seachd," at least, is getting out in the real world, on the big screen. Pic was warmly reviewed at the Edinburgh fest, and is in competition at Rome this month."
The row has turned political, and even the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has questioned BAFTA's rejection of "Seachd". The cast and crew of the film have been asking those who want to support the film to help put pressure on BAFTA so the picture can be considered for a foreign-film Oscar. A Oscar nomination, even if they don't win, would be a huge boost for Celtic-language film-making in the UK, and would help ensure a wide distribution in America.
Turning from movies to television, Lifetime television is airing a two-part miniseries during the Halloween season entitled "The Gathering", about a man searching for his wife who has seemingly been kidnapped by an evil coven of Witches.
A crow! It must be Witches!
"Michael Foster seems to have it all: a great job, a beautiful wife and a teenage daughter who's only a bit of a handful. But on a particularly romantic evening, Michael's beloved wife disappears from their locked home, and his world collapses. Michael soon discovers that his wife's vanishing act may be linked to other mysterious disappearances and that the explanation for them may be a mystical one. Something scary is happening, and there's no one for Michael to trust when it looks as though everyone is a part of the conspiracy. Before he knows it, Michael is mixed up in a case involving witches, black magic and murder. Can he save himself and his daughter before it's too late?"
The series premiers this Saturday. I don't have cable so someone will have to watch it for me and tell me how bad it is (or isn't). Will there be blood sacrifice? Ambiguously ominous rituals? Inquiring minds want to know!
In a final quick note, for fans of the theologian Jack T. Chick (you know who you are), a new film re-enacting Chick's loopy and demented cartoon ravings entitled "HOT CHICKS" is hitting the film-festival circuit. You can purchase a DVD of the nine Chick-inspired film shorts via their web site.
Labels: BAFTA, film, Hot Chicks, Jack T. Chick, Lifetime, Seachd: The Inaccessible Pinnacle, Spirits for Sale, Television, The Gathering, UK
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