Let's make haste - Only true love waits

Hello There. Hi There.

At the moment I am watching "Family Feud", starring the brilliant John O'Hurley. You may also know him as Mr.Peterman, from Seinfeld, who is equally as brilliant. I'd like to say Thank you! to all who have donated to the film or have bought items from the Land Dog Store. It really is super helpful and we all appreciate your contribution.













The Oscar nominations were announced the other day. If you haven't seen the list you should check it out. A lot of people I've talked to aren't too thrilled with some of the decisions that were made. I haven't seen a few of the Films that are nominated so I can't judge things fairly. I don't have any huge complaints. The two things that are rubbing me the wrong way is The Boss wasn't nominated for his song for "The Wrestler" and I was hoping "Doubt" would be nominated for Best Picture. But I'll celebrate the fact Grand Torino wasn't nominated and Clint has been kept out besides Angelina Jolie being Nominated for The Changeling. And sorry, but I don't feel that the Dark Knight got snubbed. I just really don't think it deserved Best Film or Best Director, which people seem to be complaining about. If you're leaving out The Wrestler, Doubt and Revolutionary Road, it'd probably be hard to squeeze in The Dark Knight. But enough of that. Onto important matters...the Artist of the week Sean Leonard.

When I first had the idea to showcase artists that I enjoy, Sean immediately popped into my head. Sean was one of my first friends at SCAD. I met him in the film program and was lucky enough to work with him and along side of him for the three years I was there. Sean is an amazing writer, filmmaker and musician. He also acts on the occasion and was one of the leads in my Senior Thesis. I'm a big fan of his musical project, Coquette, which you can listen to my clicking on the Coquette link, going to www.txtforresults.com or going to his myspace. I recommend going to txtforresults.com so you can listen to both of his albums in there entirety. It's hard to pick a recommendation since I really enjoy all of his material and hope you listen to all of it, but if you're pressed for time I'd say The Bold Word Brat, Lipstick Together Forever and True Life. Coquette definitely has a distinct pop quality to it but his lyrics go beyond that of any pop song that I listen to. "Skipped school for a week to treat the sore on your lip, went through volumes of "Teen People" and thought about existence and it's cruelty, towards you personally. And lost in the longings for the summer at the Villa, applying your lip gloss with the flavor of vanilla, for the comfort of cherry no longer has the will to thrill you." Love it.

As far as his videos go, check some out here. I'm a big fan of Omphaloskepsis. Hope you enjoy!

We started putting out Casting Ads for Nobody Has To Stay and will be location scouting next week in Poughkeepsie. Have a good weekend and check out some of the other blogs I follow listed on the right hand side of my page.

P.S. How good was LOST?!

Do you have a sledgehammer in your heart? Because I have a sledgehammer in my heart.

Hi there. Hello there.

This weeks blog will showcase a very talented artist and, though it's mid January, I'll be listing some things I enjoyed during 2008. I know all of the "Best of 2008" lists have already been made by everybody but this really is more of a "Things I enjoyed in 2008" since I didn't see nearly enough movies or listen to enough music to make such bold statements.

I'll start with the artist for this week, Amanda Finn. The term "artist' is fairly broad. I use it to describe anyone that creates, whether it be music, films, illustrations, fashion, photography, poems, stories etc. Amanda does a number of those things. I met Amanda in college after being very intrigued by one of her screenplays. She is a filmmaker, writer and also does amazing work in Fiber Arts.
































Her website www.AmandaFinn.com is, at the moment, only focused on her films. There are 5 films you can watch and they are all pretty great. I especially recommend "Dear Polly" and "Nocturna". Enjoy!

So I was lucky enough to see and hear some good stuff in 2008 and I would like to list only a few of those things...I also have a terrible memory and so I'm sure there were things I really liked but forgot or just don't feel like listing.

Films:

Ballast: I'm starting with this movie because I think it serves as my main inspiration for "Nobody Has To Stay". And I don't mean I was inspired by the content but really the process that the filmmaker went through and the style in which it was done. I don't know if I loved this movie but i do know that I'm glad someone made it and that people took the time to see it. There was something very poetic about this film. The cinematography was really wonderful and the location was perfect and was the main reason Lance Hammer made this movie. He had such a connection to this particular town that he knew he had to express it in someway and he chose film as his medium. I was lucky enough to see a Q & A with him and that was even more inspirational then the film. I really recommend it.

Snow Angels: David Gordon Green can shit in a box and I'll love it. It's why I'm also choosing Pineapple Express.

Cloverfield: This seems like one of those movies that are really made for the theater and so I'm glad I got to see it in one. It was just an hour and 1/2 of fun. Also, because of LOST, I'll see anything that involves J.J. Abrams.

The Wackness: This movie isn't for everyone. The New Yorker gave it a review, trying to put a "Little Miss Sunshine" label on it and claiming Ben Kingsley's role is "fake and vain, a shameless play for an Oscar nod" and said "This Sundance prize-winner, made on the cheap, is as formulaic and calculated as the most banal big-studio productions." Like I said, not for everyone but the New Yorker's review is way off. I thoroughly enjoyed this film and enjoyed the soundtrack even more. You don't get to catch many movies where the soundtrack is dominated by 90's hip hop. Plus, any movie that takes place in New York in the 90's is a lot of fun. And Josh Peck's transformation from Nickelodeon's Drake and Josh to this role is unreal.

BOY A: I don't know a lot of people that saw this but it was pretty great but incredibly sad. Andrew Garfield is perfect in this role and it really makes you think.

Burn After Reading: I dug it even though I've talked to a lot of people who didn't. I was even Chad Feldheimer for Halloween.

Religulous: Bill Maher + Larry Charles + Religion, pretty much equals the perfect documentary for me.

Dear Zachary: I watched this Documentary one night with my roommate after she recorded it on our DVR. I cried like a little baby and declare it the saddest doc i've ever seen. I almost don't want to recommend it but it was really good.

Doubt: Saw it in 2009 but still an 08 movie. It's one thing to have great acting but it's way more satisfying to have great acting when the scenes last so long. That's the case in this film. Probably top 5 of this year along with...

Slumdog Millionaire: Obvs.

Role Models: Surprisingly funny.

Music:

Dr. Dog - "Fate" - I really like this band and am so glad I was introduced to them a couple of years ago.

Okkervil River - "The Stand Ins" - Similar to David Gordon Green, shit in a box and I'll love it. The first time I heard this band was from Amanda Finn ( This weeks artist) on a cassette tape of "Down the River of Golden Dreams". I really liked it then and am fortunate to have kept up on then. They are easily my favorite band. Stand Ins was the second half of "The Stage Names" that was supposed to be released as a double album, so even though there are 11 tracks, there are only 8 full songs on it. Still, those 8 tracks are pretty amazing. I also really enjoy this video.



Wale - The Mixtape About Nothing: Good Hip Hop and Seinfeld? How is this a combination? It's like Religulous. I feel like someone went in my head and took out my favorite things and managed to put them together. Listen to "The Kramer" (Below) for something profound, and listen to "The Vacation From Ourselves " for something less heavy but still great. If you're a Seinfeld fan, you'll appreciate the fact that there are Audio Clips from the show and each track follows the series' naming conventions for episodes, formatting each title with the definitive article "The". And Julia Louis Dreyfus even makes a guest appearance!



"Nobody Has To Stay" is going well. Next week I'll have some important updates on the film. Don't forget you can Donate! and please, take a second and look at our store!

Winter comes too soon, Radiators hum out of tune.

Hello There. Hi There.

At some point in the next month or two I will be working along side Children's Media Project to host a Fund Raising Event. The idea is to have a night of short films from people who will be helping us with the Nobody Has To Stay Film. We'll have food, raffles, live music and of course some really great short films. Once there is more information on the event, I'll be sure to post it and keep everyone updated.

The artist that I'd like to showcase this week is a band by the name of "The National Lights from Richmond, Virginia. I met Jacob Berns around 2003/2004 in Poughkeepsie, New York through a friend of mine. He's a great guy and an awesome musician and singer. So please take a moment and check out some of his tracks. I especially recommend "O Ohio" and "Riverbed". Just click on the National Lights link  above or go straight to  www.myspace.com/thenationallights

Remember to check back every week for more updates and new artists. Don't forget, you can help us out by donating!

Side A - Track 1 - Introduction

Hi there. Hello there.

This is the first post of a weekly blog I will be composing for various reasons. Number 1: Promote a Film I will be creating this Winter/Spring. Since I'd like to be writing in this weekly, I don't feel that it would be productive to just attempt to promote the movie every week in some mundane way. so...Number 2: Promote other artists and just write about whatever it is I feel like jotting down. I'll start by tackling Number 1, The Film...

"Nobody Has To Stay" is a Short Film I've written and will be directing this Winter/Spring of 2009. The facts are the following: Dan Gutt will be the Cinematographer. Manuel Valdivia will be the editor. It will be shot in Poughkeepsie and Brooklyn, New York.

Right now we are currently raising money for the film. We are attempting a variety of ways to fund raise. This blog is one of those ways. We have put a donation button located at the bottom of this post. If you wish to contribute you can just click on that button and choose the amount you'd like to donate. Any little bit will be incredibly helpful. Even if you decide to give $1, that $1 will be absolutely helpful. We'd like to give a special thanks to Sara who was the first to donate. Thanks Sara!

Another way we are raising money is through our Promotional Designs. We have set up a Cafepress Store where we are selling T-Shirts, Tote Bags, Hats, Calendars, Mugs and a ton of other stuff. ALL profit made from those products will go directly to help fund "Nobody Has To Stay". If you have no interest in us or the movie you still might find something you'd like at our Store, so please feel free to browse though it. We also have a myspace dedicated to the film and to our store. www.myspace.com/NobodyHasToStay. You can also find some of my video work at www.myspace.com/RosarioPellerito.

Please Check back every week to this blog for updates on the film and other fun postings. I'll be sure to put up some work from other artist so you may find something new you'll like. Thanks and Happy New Year!