deadCENTER Film

deadCENTER fundraiser Thanksgiving Night!

Need to entertain the family on Thanksgiving night? Take them to the Carpenter Square Theatre preview performance of EVERY CHRISTMAS STORY EVER TOLD (AND THEN SOME!) on Thursday, November 25th and help raise money for deadCENTER! Tickets are $15 and half of the ticket sales from that evenings performance goes directly to deadCENTER film. It’s a total win!

Every Christmas Story Ever Told (And Then Some!)
a comedy by Michael Carleton, James FitzGerald and John K Alvarez

Unable to muster up excitement for their umpteenth performance of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, three actors decide at the last minute to perform every Christmas story ever told – plus Christmas traditions from around the world, every carol ever sung and seasonal icons from ancient times to topical pop culture. It turns into an impromptu madcap romp through the holiday season! If you have enjoyed such shows as The Compleat Works of Wm Shakespeare (Abridged), then you will love this one!

EVERY CHRISTMAS STORY EVER TOLD (AND THEN SOME!) will be staged at the Bricktown Hotel and Convention Center, which is located at 2001 E. Reno at the intersection of Reno and Martin Luther King. The venue has easy highway access. Theatergoers may exit I-40 at Eastern/M.L. King and proceed north on M.L. King. The Bricktown Hotel and Convention Center is the first business on the east side of the street. Full bar services will be available for patrons to enjoy prior to the performance and at intermission.

For tickets, please call: (405) 232-6500 or visit carpentersquare.com.

deadCENTER Zombie Attack at Studio 222

deadCENTER Film spent the past week making a Zombie movie with students from Taft Middle School at Studio 222. deadCENTER’s Kim Haywood and Lance McDaniel taught a story telling class last month using student made short films. Then, based on student ideas, they created a script, taught acting and production classes and produced a movie using all 22 students from the Studio 222 program. Oklahoma City University students volunteered to teach the students how to set up and work with the camera, sound and lighting equipment. And, the OCU students helmed the camera and boom during the shoot, with special guest boom operator Brenda McDaniel on hand for the final day of filming. This project was one of several education initiatives created this fall by deadCENTER Film to help groom the next generation of Oklahoma filmmakers.

deadCENTER at BFI London Film Festival

From left to right, Smash His Camera Producer Adam Schlesinger, Director Leon Gast,
subject Ron Galella and Producer Linda Saffire.

The BFI London Film Festival wraps up this week after two weeks of films from all over the world. The BFI Festival is not necessarily a critical stop on the festival circuit like Cannes, Toronto or Sundance. But, the consistent brilliance of the British film industry and London’s role as a world capital ensure that the BFI festival is filled with important films from around the world. Many of the more popular films were bigger budget, English language selections featuring famous actors and directors. The American, Conviction, Black Swan, The King’s Speech, and Blue Valentine all featured Oscar nominees looking for another go this year. The opening night film, Never Let Me Go, starring Kiera Knightly, was directed by Mark Romanoff, who participated in a very candid Screen Talk my first night in town. He explained how he moved from a highly regarded music video career into the feature film world. Other stand outs included the controversial punk Muslim feature, The Taqwacores, based on the novel credited with creating a sub-culture throughout the Middle East; Heartbeats, by 21 year old French Canadian auteur Xavier Dolan; The Tillman Story, a shocking indictment of US war propaganda led by the family of the man being touted as a national hero; and, Revolucion, a collection of short films by famous Mexican directors and actors to commemorate the 100 anniversary of the Mexican Revolution. The range of stories was stunning and actors Diego Luna and Gael Garcia Bernal from Y Tu Mama Tambien proved as effective behind the camera as in front. My wildest experience was at the screening of Smash His Camera which was attended by Oscar and Sundance winning director Leon Cast. As luck would have it, I was sat next to the subject of the film, renowned paparazzi photographer Ron Galella, who provided a running commentary throughout the film. As someone who was punched by Marlon Brando and sued by Jackie Onassis, he had plenty to say. It was like a live version of a DVD commentary track. Otherwise, I spent most of my time at industry screenings watching awesome documentaries and foreign films and meeting foreign distributors and sales people. As deadCENTER Film moves into our second decade, we are committed to seeking out the very best movies from around the globe and luring them back to Oklahoma: the deadCENTER of the universe.

deadCENTER teaches at Westminster

Local filmmakers joined the staff of deadCENTER Film to teach film making to the amazingly adept 5th Graders at Westminster Elementary school in Oklahoma City. deadCENTER COO Kim Haywood and film producer Sarah McCombs taught film production classes, taking students from script to screen, discussing and assigning positions and analyzing and breaking down scripts. Oklahoma City Community College film professor and writer/producer Sean Lynch worked alongside Patricia McDaniel and Production Sound professional Sam Harris to demonstrate the Red Camera, lighting packages and various audio equipment used in film production. deadCENTER Executive Director Lance McDaniel led acting classes with help from OCU student actor Hassan Nazari-Robati. Now, the teachers at Westminster will lead the kids in producing their own scripts. Future filmmakers, arise and fulfill your destiny!

Pick of the Week: WINNEBAGO MAN at the OKCMOA

You may have noticed it on our main page, but there’s a little shindig we’re pretty excited about this Thursday night at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art. The festival smash hit WINNEBAGO MAN is screening as a co-presentation with deadCENTER Film, followed by a meet-and-greet with festival staff and complementary Stella Artois. (what’s that? free beer?)

Why this film, why now? Well, there are some fresh faces around the deadCENTER Film offices these days, namely new Executive Director Lance McDaniel and Programming Director Kevin Ely. We thought it would be a good idea to give us all a chance to bond the deadCENTER way… with fine movies and great beer. But we’re also celebrating all that has come before, by honoring our two outgoing angels, Cacky Poarch and Melissa Scaramucci, who helped build this crazy ship and steered it to where we are today. And while we’re at it, what better way to celebrate deadCENTER’s impact than showing a successful film that was partially funded through our fiscal sponsorship program?

So head down to the OKC Museum of Art at 7:30pm for the screening, and stick around and say hi afterwards. We’d love to see you.

For information on ticket pricing, directions and other fun happenings at the OKCMOA, please visit, www.okcmoa.com.

deadCENTER Movie Club – Episode #1

The premiere episode of the deadCENTER Movie Club is now online and ready for your download and enjoyment! Read More »

deadCENTER Film @ Guthrie Junior High & Langston University

The deadCENTER Film education team recently visited the campuses of Guthrie Junior High and Langston University to talk about independent film. In Guthrie, fabulous 8th Grade English Comp teacher Cate Hart opened her class to a seminar about storytelling and creative writing by watching different types of short films – animated, narrative and documentary – and discussing ways of picking topics, creating interesting characters and composing complete stories. The Langston University session was introduced by their wonderful Communication and Television Professor, Carolyn Ross. The group of 25 college students watched best of class college produced short films and then studied clips from the movie Pearl, produced by the Chickasaw Nation, filmed in Guthrie and debuted in Oklahoma at the deadCENTER Film Festival. Through Pearl, we were able to explore the different education opportunities in Oklahoma and the 50+ positions and careers available in film production.

deadCENTER Film @ AIDS Walk 2010

The staff, board and volunteers of deadCENTER Film raised over $1300 dollars for local AIDS/HIV support organizations this past Sunday for the OKC AIDS Walk. 13 official team members and a horde of other supporters marched through downtown OKC to draw attention to those people living with HIV/AIDS in Oklahoma. This year was the largest AIDS Walk in Oklahoma history and was a fantastic celebration.

Terrence Malick begins filming in Oklahoma?

You may have heard reports that legendary reclusive auteur director Terrence Malick (Days of Heaven, The Thin Red Line, The New World) would be shooting his newest film in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, where the filmmaker spent some time as a youth.

We’ve heard some rumblings under the radar ourselves, but now it appears the news has gone public. /Film has posted a report and some photos from the set, and while they really don’t reveal anything other than the fact that something is afoot, it’s exciting to think that one of the most respected names in cinema will be producing his next film here in OK. We hope to confirm a Malick sighting soon, but considering he’s known for never speaking to the press, we aren’t holding our breath for an interview.

CALL FOR ENTRIES

deadCENTER Film Festival is now accepting entries for the 2011 festival, which will be held June 8-12, 2011. Submitting your film or short screenplay is easy and free. Clicky on the link above to check out categories, deadlines, and entry rules.

Happy submitting! Read More »