Slackery News Tidbits, July 26

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Here's the most up-to-date Austin film news for you today:

  • All the Boys Love Mandy Lane screened at Comic-Con in San Diego last week. The indie horror film was shot in Austin and Bastrop in 2005 or 2006, and played SXSW in 2007. It stars Amber Heard but the cast also includes Robert Earl Keen. Due to what we'll call Issues With the Distributors, the film never received theatrical release, and the only DVDs you can buy of it are in foreign countries. However, this may be changing soon: Producer Keith Calder posted on Twitter this weekend that "I now see a light at the end of the tunnel for Mandy." I assume he doesn't mean the Barry Manilow song. We'll let you know more tangible news about this film when we hear it. (Thanks to Scott Weinberg for the heads-up.)
  • Also at Comic-Con: Machete cast and crew, showing previews and serving tacos. Robert Rodriguez, Danny Trejo and Michelle Rodriguez appeared at a big Machete party where they worked a taco truck all dolled up for the occasion. Over at Cinematical, Jen Yamato posted a gallery of photos from the evening.
  • You now have several chances to see the restored version of The Red Shoes in local theaters next month. You may already know that the Paramount will be showing the film on August 14 and 15 -- I actually have those days on my personal calendar so I won't miss it. But if you want a more glamourous evening for a good cause, Ballet Austin is having a fundraiser screening of the film on Thursday, August 5 at Alamo South Lamar. Admission includes a five-course meal (where nearly everything is a shade of red) with wine pairings. Personally, I'm torn -- I suspect the movie will look better on Alamo's 4K digital screen but I don't want to be distracted by food while watching it.
  • The Lights. Camera. Help. film festival starts later this week, and Debbie will have a preview for you in the next couple of days. The festival has also just announced it is teaming up with Greenlights, a local group that provides consulting/professional services for nonprofits, on a video production class for nonprofits and community groups on August 25.
  • Finally, some sad news: Austin filmmaker Kyle Henry (Room, Fourplay) is moving to Chicago to take a tenure-track teaching position in filmmaking at Northwestern University. Chris Garcia has the details.