Green Grinch™ Granted Glorious Greetings November 2000 Dr. Seuss' How The Grinch Stole Christmas™ ©2000 Universal Studios, all rights reserved Photo: Digital Domain Grinch TM (c) Dr. Seuss Enterprises L.P. The Royal premiere of "How the Grinch stole Christmas™," the classic children's book by Dr. Seuss (Ted Geisel), will take place in London on November 15th. Among those present for the occasion will be Jim Carrey, Taylor Momson, Ron Howard, and Queen Elizabeth, of course. The funds raised by this event will be donated to the "Cinema and Television Benevolent Fund (CTBF)." Oscar winner Rick Baker has created the special make-up for this fantastic Christmas special and those of us who have had a small peek of what is in store must say it's fab (and so green). Truly, truly Green!!! Move your sled over to www.grinched.com or www.uip-netherlands.nl and get yourself grinched. The 10th edition of the International Student Film Festival Amsterdam will be taking place at the Kriterion Cinema from the 10th till the 18th of November. A platform for the filmmakers of the future dealing with contemporary themes, this event includes films with original, intriguing, and sometimes disturbing visions made by students around the globe. Participants from the past have included such names as Roman Polanski, Martin Scorsese, George Lucas, Paul Verhoeven, Jim Jarmusch, Jane Campion, and Mike van Diem. All films presented this year have been made in the period between 1995 and 2000. Further info available both about the Festival at: www.cinestud.com Giovanna D'Arco Rossellini Retrospective photo courtesy Filmmuseum Amsterdam Roberto Rossellini (1906-1977), founding father of neorealism and the "nouvelle vague", is enjoying a retrospective in the Amsterdam Filmmuseum, The Hague Filmhuis and the Rotterdam Lantaren/Venster cinema until November 22nd. This director's documentary style and preference for working with amateur actors have resulted in masses of criticism being hurled at his work. (One anecdote tells of how Dov'e La Liberta? Rossellini Retrospective photo courtesy Filmmuseum Amsterdam he directed the fishers in "Stromboli" by attaching strings to their ankles and pulling on them whenever they were to act.) History has noted him for his "notorious" relationship with actress Ingrid Bergman, his eventual marriage to her, and his actress daughter Isabella as well as for his contribution to the "nouvelle vague." Early acclaimed for his war trilogy, "Roma, Città Aperta" ("Rome, Open City"), "Paisà" ("Paisan"), and "Germania Anno Zero" ("Germany Year Zero"), he achieved his first commercial success with "Roma..." When he consequently made five films with the Hollywood star Ingrid Bergman, however, it was not appreciated by many who felt that, by switching emphasis to the introspective struggle of his characters, he had turned his back on the roots of the documentary style explored in his earlier neorealistic films. On the other hand, such figures as Jean-Luc Godard, Jacques Rivette, François Truffaut, Michelangelo Antonioni and Wim Wenders have always remained strongly supportive of his role as director and his place in modern cinema. After saying that "'Le cinéma est mort, vive la télévision", Rossellini moved into the 60's by directing historical film essays for television which included lives of Socrates, Descartes, Louis the XIVth, and Jesus. Twenty-five films, realized between 1941 en 1974, will be screened this month in Holland to show the world as Rossellini viewed it. Further info available at www.filmmuseum.nl The International Documentary Filmfestival of Amsterdam (IDFA) will be running from the 22nd until the 30th of November. This festival has been growing vastly in popularity during the past decade and awaits a bigger audience than ever this year. The festival, spread throughout several locations, offers many special events as well as the main screenings. The "Reflecting Images" portion of the festival concentrates on the use of new forms and advances made by challenging documentaries. There will also sections of the festival focusing on Iranian films as well as "Ajax: Daar Hoorden Zij Engelen Zingen" "Ajax: Where They Heard the Angels Singing" photo courtesy RCV Film Distribution BV "Children and Docs." 25 films (chosen from among 1500 submitted) will be competing for the VPRO Joris Ivans award this year. Among the top 10 films chosen for screening by visiting guest director Michael Apted are the magnificent "Burden of Dreams" (chronicling the situations surrounding the making of Werner Herzog's "Fitzcarraldo") and the fascinating Maysles brothers' feature length documentary "Grey Gardens." Apted's own 1988 dramatic feature "Gorillas in the Mist," based upon the life and work of Diane Fosey, will also be shown during the festival. Further info about the entire festival available at www.idfa.nl BREAKING NEWS>> IDFA is launching an online site (under the domain name www.docs-online.nl) on the 27th, 28th, and 29th of this month discussing the future of the documentary genre. >>Check it out, you doc film freaks!! (In the meantime, you can always take a peek at the reviews of films like "The Eyes of Tammy Fay," "Die Wahlkampfer ("Election Campaigners"), "Ajax-Daar Hoorden Zij Engelen Zingen" ("Ajax-Where They Heard the Angels Singing"), "The Video Diary of Ricardo Lopez," and ""Havana Mi Amor" on The Green Hartnett website. The second edition of the "Shadow Festival" will be taking place at the Melkweg in Amsterdam between November 23rd and 26th. It is a special podium for documentaries that strive to maintain a personal authenticity despite the pressures frequently imposed by the reigning media climate found among the broadcasting systems in Holland. Seductive imagery attempts to replace the position usually usurped by topical or fashionable subjects. No specific theme (such as one country's concerns or specific social problems) has been used to determine the choice of films on offer. Apocalypse - Beauty and Horror in Contemporary Art Jeff Koons, "Balloon Dog" (1994-2002) Jeff Koons, "Moon" (1994-2002) Photo: Mike Bruce, Gate Studios Photo courtesy ©Royal Academy of Arts "Apocalypse - Beauty and Horror in Contemporary Art" (what an inviting title) is on exhibition at the Royal Academy of Art in London until the 15th of December. Thirteen installations, paintings, sculptures, and video works reflect the richness, beauty, horror, and diversity of the world today. A contemporary, secular interpretation of the biblical story of St. John the Divine, it contains elements ranging from the horrors of genocide to the beauties of Utopia. The artists, all of whom have been given their own space, are Darren Almond, Maurizio Cattelan, Jake and Dinos Chapman, Chris Cunningham, Angus Fairhurst, Mike Kelley, Jeff Koons, Mariko Mori, Tim Noble and Sue Webster, Richard Prince, Gregor Schneider, Wolfgang Tillmans and Luc Tuymans. Take a trip to the gallery and get your own private Long Dark Night of the Soul going. Shooting began October 9th and ends this month on Laurence Malkin's and San Fu Maltha's new production "Soul Assassin." Alongside American stars Skeet Ulrich and Kristy Swanson are the Dutch actors Thom Hoffman, Antonie Kamerling, Serge Henri Valcke, and Derek de Lint. Writer/director Malkin's new action thriller is about a security expert whose life falls apart when he witnesses his wife's murder. While hunting the perpetrators, he finds himself pursued not only by the police, but also by colleagues from his work. The "IT-Kenniscafé," a new initiative in which interested participants can gather together informally (every third Thursday of the month) and discuss the challenges and dilemmas experienced in new technology and their relationship to the developing economics in the field. This month will be the third time such a gathering will be taking place at the Felix Meritis Foundation, Keizersgracht 324 in Amsterdam. Producer Rick McCallum marks the first shot of "Star Wars, Episode I production on the Coruscant balcony on model shooting stage 2 at Leavesden studios. Photo © 2000 Lucasfilm, Ltd., all rights reserved This snapshot (and many more) can be viewed at website: www.starwars.com "Star Wars, Episode II" is well on its way and images can already be seen by visiting www.starwars.com. Due for release in the Netherlands during 2002, this tidbit of information may give you star-wars-freaks a taste of what you're longing for. Episode I, incidentally, has now been showing for a year (happy birthday) at the Arcaplex Theater in Spijkenesse, Holland. Something to do for a Friday night? The Dutch magazine "Muziek en Beeld" ("Music and Image") is about to celebrate its 25th anniversary and has lanced a digital website for the occasion. Although most of the information on this site is only available through subscription, there is a portion of available free to web surfers at: muziek-en-beeld.nl. Information on this site is extracted from the magazine publication, which itself will be appearing in a new bi- weekly instead of weekly format, and includes only that material chosen as relevant to the electronic site. Subscribers will also receive a weekly newsletter. The film series being screened at the Goethe Institute (Herengracht 470, Amsterdam) from the "International Filmfestspiele Berlin 2000 (see October's "Buzz of the Month") is still running until November 9th. Still on schedule are: "Neustadt, Stau - Der Stand der Dinge" (2 Nov.), "Die Unberhührbare" (3 Nov.), and "Sonnenallee" (9 Nov.) Now that Angelina Jolie has become the real life embodiment of Lara Croft, who better to have become Lord Croft than Jon Voight? The Holland Animation Film Festival will be taking place at three different cinemas in Utrecht from the 15th through the 19th of November. Further information available at www.awn.com/haff © 1994-2006 The Green Hartnett