AFF 2010 Daily Dispatch: Day Two
Got a late start this morning, but that happens when you go to bed at 3 am. Started it off at Frank, with the guys behind S&M Lawn Care, all spiffy in their tuxedos and ready to have corndogs. Only the flapjacket that is corndog-ish is a cornmeal-based jacket, so it didn't quite carry the corndog theme, but that didn't deter us. And amazingly, the guys did not have any unfortunate food malfunctions and not a single stain on their crisp white shirts before they had to turn off to do the tech prep for their regional premiere of S&M Lawncare. From the picture above, you can tell that was quite a feat. The guys talked a bit about their world premiere with the Friars Club, and some of the unexpected interpretations of their mower driven comedy. Pictured above are Mark Potts, Cole Selix and William Brand Rackley. I haven't seen the final edit, but the early version I saw was hilarious, so I highly recommend you go see it when it plays again at the Ritz.
If you're paying attention to the rooms at the Ritz, as locals no it, "Ritz 1" and "Ritz 2" don't necessarily match up with the ones we're used to. I did confirm with Mark that S&M Lawn Care is playing the larger of the two rooms at the Ritz. And congratulations to the guys for the largest crowd at the new ACC screening room to date this year. Way to go!
Next up was the panel on The Black List, moderated by The Black List founder Franklin Leonard. The Black List is an annual list of the "best" unproduced scripts in town, the ones influential script readers think stand out as memorable in the best way. The panel included local screenwriter Kyle Killen, whose script for The Beaver was one of the most voted on scripts has since been made into a film directed by Jodie Foster (with the dubious honor of featuring Mel Gibson before his latest meltdowns). Killen has the oddest luck; he's also the creator of the hot until Fox cancelled it second episode, Lone Star. Pictured below are Franklin Leonard and Kyle Killen talking to attendees.
Also featured was Matthew Cook, who moved from Austin to LA after getting on the Black List with his western screenplay, By Way of Helena, which was featured in a script reading with several actors reading various parts, including DB Sweeney and Jeff Fahey. Interesting to see how some actors infuse a reading with performance, particularly the actress reading Marisol, one of the principal characters.
Didn't run into many people I knew until the tail end of the BBQ, and then of course I was so busy catching up I ended up missing he start of the next round of films so I'm sitting here hanging out in the Driskill lobby catching up a bit on the day. Then, Blue Valentine, which recently received the controversial NC-17 rating. If the cut we saw last night was the same, then the MPAA has no sense of humor, or drama. It's not a film to see if you're recovering from a breakup or on the verge of one, you might want to avoid it.
Stopped by the LUNA Happy Hour hosted by Elizabeth Avellan, where the food was vacuumed up. Literally; I got there after Blue Valentine and the food was already gone (apparently a second wave appeared and was devoured while I was trying to track someone down. Apparently the party people knew I was trying to eat better; at the barbecue I got a whopping single slice of brisket and a bite of sausage and the beer was already gone by the time I got that. Of course, any value of eating less was shot by the two shots of tequila I had at the party, so it all balances out. I just may have to stop by Parkside for some of their wonderful soup, especially since it's raining today.
So what's on the books for today? Besides another really late start? I'm very interested in the panel The Showrunners, about the aptly titled role that keeps television shows afloat. Then, back to the Paramount for John Wells' The Company Men. Don't recognize the name? If you ever watched shows like The West Wing, ER, and Southland, you should.
So what have you been seeing? Tell us, we want to know.