Greetings all,
Riffing (not really commentary)
If you are reading this, well, we made it out of 2020 alive. Let’s hope we make it for a while. I just found out that being over 65, I can get the vaccine if I can find a place that has it in stock. I have no idea which one is better; I just want to start the process for me and for all of you.
I’ve been working on my class syllabi. This spring, I am teaching two new courses. One is a graduate-level editing class, and the other is a new class about film festivals. Both classes deal with subjects near and dear to my heart.
The festival class will put on a video race at school dealing with equity issues during spring break and the end of semester screening. The students will also learn how to get into festivals and how to take advantage of the festival experience. While prepping for this, I get to think about the things I have been doing but never articulated. It should be fun.
I’ve taught an advanced editing class, but I’m rethinking how to broaden the editorial process and go deeper than before. For both of these, I want to bring in lots of online guests. (Doesn’t that sound fun? If you have something to offer or have a suggestion, let me know.)
Cinematic Conversations
Last week’s conversation about the film Soul was really great; if you missed it, you could check it out.
Next week Jan 14th we are showing Zodiac, which you can see on Amazon Prime Video. While I know about the film, I haven’t seen it, but I will before Wednesday night. In a few weeks, we will need to move the meeting night, since I will be teaching on Monday and Wednesday nights, so would you prefer Tuesday night or Thursday nights? Let us know.
Recommendations
This week, we watched what used to be called The Godfather Part 3. The new film, while having a much longer title, Mario Puzo’s The Godfather, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone, is a much better film. While I enjoyed the original version, I remember being really confused about exactly what was happening at the Vatican, and now I get it. It is a rich cinematic experience and worth your time. You can rent it on Amazon. If watching reworked Francis Ford Coppola films are your thing, you can see the director’s cut of The Cotton Club that he did last year called The Cotton Club Encore, which is on Amazon Prime Video for free. It’s nice that as he gets older, Coppola gets to tweak his films; the Apocalypse Now Redux, in 2001, is another excellent recut. I wonder what other movies he will tweak.
Have a great week.
January 5, 2021- -
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