Please vote for "A Friend's Take" on Vimeo!

Dear friends:
Please take a second to sign up on Vimeo and vote for my video, "A Friend's Take" in the Project Pushback contest!

http://vimeo.com/4957872

A Friend's Take from Project Pushback on Vimeo.

Current TV Project Updates

Dear friends,
Hope you’re all having a spectacular summer! Here are a couple updates about my Current TV projects:

1. FOOD FIGHT SPECIAL now airing
2. LITTER INTO LITERATURE bought by Current
3. OUR GENERATION’S WAR segment in production
4. I NOW PRONOUNCE YOU TRENT AND GREG screening at SIE Film Fest
________________________

1. FOOD FIGHT SPECIAL now airing
GOT RICE?, a pod I produced about the rice shortages in LA, is now airing on Current. The piece is part of FOOD FIGHT, an hour-long Vanguard and Collective Journalism special that investigates the promise and peril of using food for fuel, and the far-reaching consequences of the global fight for resources.

To find interview subjects for this pod, I visited over 20 rice-serving restaurants in Alhambra and Monterey Park. Thank you to Xiao Qi Liang, owner of ACC Chinese Fast Food, for agreeing to speak with me, and to Jerome Jiang, one of her customers, for serving as our interpreter. Thanks too to Kimpo Ngoi for sharing his family’s reaction to the rice shortage with me.

The segment that I produced runs from 31:20 – 33:20.
You can watch it below:

2. LITTER INTO LITERATURE bought by Current
I have finished editing LITTER INTO LITERATURE, the short documentary I co-produced in Buenos Aires with CJ Contributor Sarah Gilbert. The film is about the cartoneros, Buenos Aires’ unofficial recyclers, and Eloisa Cartonera, an independent book publisher where cartoneros can get a good deal on cardboard and contribute to great art as well. Current bought the doc and will be airing it soon. Thanks to Henry Goldman for bringing it in.

3. OUR GENERATION’S WAR segment in production
Current contributor Alex Paris and I have also begun work on a segment for another Current special called OUR GENERATION’S WAR. This piece examines the sacrifices that our country’s service people have made in the War on Terror. The piece attempts to document the entire cycle of service: from recruitment to extensions of service commitments, to what our service people find when they return home and the families they leave behind. For my segment, I will be profiling a service person who has been stop-lossed. If all goes well, we intend to shoot the piece next weekend.

4. I NOW PRONOUNCE YOU TRENT AND GREG screening at SIE Film Fest
My first Current pod, I NOW PRONOUNCE YOU TRENT AND GREG, will be screening at the Stanford in Entertainment Film Festival next weekend. This is the film festival’s 10^th anniversary, so the group is planning a jam-packed afternoon of screenings at Cinespace, followed by a reception. My film will screen with the other shorts from 3pm – 4:30pm, but I plan to stay for the whole event. Come check out TRENT AND GREG on the big screen—I’d love to see you there!

Date: Saturday, July 26
Time: 3pm – 4:30pm screening of short films (including mine) / 5pm – 7pm feature screening / 7pm - 8pm reception with appetizers and cash bar
Place: Cinespace / 6356 Hollywood Blvd. (corner of Ivar and Hollywood) / Los Angeles
Price: Free for members plus a guest; $15 for non-members
RSVP to Amy Taylor, ’98 at amytaylor1@verizon.net

Hope to see you next Saturday!

Sincerely,
Steven

Jack Conte's "Yeah Yeah Yeah" Video

Hey everyone,

Make sure to check out Jack Conte's music video for "Yeah Yeah Yeah," a song on his Nightmares and Daydreams album.

It's absolutely stunning, and it just won an award for Best Music Video in the 2008 Alice 3-Minute Film Festival.

Jack and I have collaborated on numerous projects together. He was my director of photography on MODEL MAN, and an instrumental version of "Yeah Yeah Yeah" is featured in I NOW PRONOUNCE YOU TRENT AND GREG.

Here's the YouTube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dzr32OqGlOA
If you like his music, visit him on Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/jackconte

Current @ New Hampshire

Here are the broadcasts from my week in New Hampshire covering the primaries with Current TV:

Update

I'm going to the New Hampshire primaries with Current TV!

I Now Pronounce You Trent and Greg

Dear friends,

Over the past month, I’ve been working on a mini-documentary for Current TV’s initiative, “The Current Election 08: What’s Your Issue?” For those of you who don’t know, Current TV is Al Gore’s cable news channel and website for the 18-34 demographic. I decided to address the issue of gay marriage by profiling my high school friend and his boyfriend.

After several crazy weeks of filming and editing, the documentary is now finished and can be viewed online at Current:
http://current.com/items/88793356_i_now_pronounce_you_trent_and_greg

In many ways, this doc is a big milestone for me. It’s my first documentary, the first film I’ve made with my own equipment, the first time I’ve shot and lit each and every scene. But even working as a “one-man show,” I had tons of help. First and foremost, I’d like to thank Trent and Greg for letting me into their lives and for not minding the personal questions and the ever-present camera. As you’ll see, these guys have something truly special, and they showed me what a loving, committed relationship could be like. Second, I’d like to thank Nathan Kurisu, Trent and Greg’s friend, for having the courage to stand up for his beliefs and for offering them humbly. Thanks to Sumi Somaskanda at Current for guiding me through the process and to Danielle Lurie, John Jackson, and Matt Dyer for watching cut after millionth cut. Thanks to maestro Jack Conte for his brilliant music, and Leon Tsikitikos for pulling an all-nighter on my behalf.

I’m really proud of this project, and people are responding well to it. Yesterday evening, Current offered to purchase my documentary to broadcast on their cable news station. They are also considering me to join their team at the New Hampshire primaries from January 4-8.

Check it out and keep your fingers crossed for me!

Sincerely,
Steven