Posts
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Saturday, March 17, 2012
In Chicago for Story Week this week
Columbia College Chicago has graciously invited John to be part of their internationally-known Story Week event, being held in Chicago this coming week.
The event will feature both Amigo and A Moment in the Sun.
Here's all the info from Columbia about readings, screenings, and signings on March 21-23.
Filmmaker John Sayles Visits Story Week
The work of John Sayles has been integral to the development of independent film in the United States. Beginning with his first feature, Return of the Secaucus 7, his movies have helped define the "other" that exists beyond Hollywood. Despite an unwillingness to tailor his subject matter and style to the dictates of the mainstream, he has managed to direct sixteen feature films, including his most recent film, Honeydripper (2007), which starred Danny Glover. His seventeenth feature, Amigo, was filmed in the Philippines in early 2010.
His novel A Moment in The Sun, set during the same period as Amigo, in the Philippines, Cuba, and the US, was released in 2011 by Dave Egger's publishing house, McSweeney's. Sayles was recently honored with the Ian McLellan Hunter Award for Lifetime Achievement by the Writer's Guild of America.
Co-Sponsored by the Fiction Writing and Film & Video Departments:
Wednesday, March 21 at 4 pm
Screening/Q&A with John Sayles, Filmmaker
Hosts: F&V faculty member Dan Rybicky and F&V Chair Bruce Sheridan
Film Row Cinema, 1104 S. Wabash, 8th Floor
(You can RSVP to the Facebook Event for the above screening)
Thursday, March 22 at 1 pm
Reading/Conversation/Signing with John Sayles, A Moment in the Sun
Hosts: FW faculty member Randall Albers and F&V Chair Bruce Sheridan
Film Row Cinema, 1104 S. Wabash, 8th Floor
Thursday, March 22 at 6 pm
Literary Rock & Roll: American Dreamers
Readings and Signings including John Sayles
Metro Chicago (all ages), 3730 N. Clark
For more information, visit the Story Week page.
From March 18 through March 23, 2012, the Columbia College Chicago Fiction Writing Department presents the sixteenth annual Story Week Festival of Writers with a feast of readings, panels, and performances celebrating the written word. All events are free and open to the general public. 2012’s theme “Surviving the American Dream” was chosen to provoke some serious questioning and prompt new thinking about the future of our country, as well as the future of creative work.
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Vote for Didi Barrett March 20, 2012
Here I am with our Half Moon Yoga Barn teacher Nancy Causey.
We are lucky to have a smart woman to vote for in this special election for State Assembly.
Visit www.didibarrett.com to learn more.
Don't forget to vote!
Monday, January 23, 2012
A nice mention of me at Sundance from the ever gracious Sarah Green at the INDIEWIRE KEYNOTE.
Sarah Green's Sundance Keynote: "Be as generous as you can be."
Sarah Green has earned a long-held reputation as a tenacious producer, with credits that include last year's "The Tree of Life" and "Take Shelter;" she's currently in post on Terrence Malick's new film starring Rachel McAdams and Ben Affleck. Today, she delivered the keynote at Sundance's annual Producers Lunch, an honor that's previously gone to "Beginners" producers Jay Van Hoy and Lars Knudsen, "Blue Valentine" producer Lynette Howell and "Win Win" producer Mary Jane Skalski.
With kind thanks to Sundance and Green, we're publishing her speech in full.
Thanks to Michelle Satter, Anne Lai and Sundance, for honoring you all by hosting this lunch, and for giving me the honor of addressing you.
I am in awe of you all. I have pored over this year's festival catalog and watched movies since my arrival, and I am so heartened by the films, by the movies that are being made because of you. Yes, money is tight, but we are making movies! Your accomplishments strengthen us all, and I am very grateful to you.
I am also grateful for the extraordinary generosity of my fellow producers. There are many fine examples right here at Sundance -‐ so many folks giving up their precious time to mentor others through the programs encompassed by the Creative Producers Initiative, for instance. Mentorship is a powerful force; I know that without the guidance of those who mentored me, I'd likely still be flipping hamburgers, which is an excellent profession but one that I was certainly less suited for than this.
I was doing just that, cooking in a restaurant and attending Emerson College, when I got the opportunity to intern for Debra Franco, who was self distributing her films through a co-op of independent filmmakers. Not only was she insanely generous with her time and expertise, she offered me a job with the flexibility to work on others' movies, all while becoming well versed in DIY educational distribution. Who would have guessed how relevant that would be in today's distribution landscape?
Debra introduced me to cinematographer Nancy Schreiber. I was living under the fantasy that because I was technically inclined, and really wanted to be an artist, that I might become a DP. Nancy did her best to train me, but one day, working as an electrician and listening to Nancy debating a particular lighting nuance with her gaffer, it occurred to me that, not only do I not have an opinion on the problem, I don't see it... I was not destined to be a cinematographer.
I stumbled my way into production management, where fortunately I had the amazing Peggy Rajski to turn to. Peggy was producing films on which she also served as production manager, and generously offered to teach me, which was fortunate because when I say I stumbled my way in, I am not kidding. I remember Peggy showing me a call sheet, which blew my mind. All that information in one place! Cost report? A revelation!
I learned a lot from Peggy, enough so that when she and Maggie Renzi decided to move on from their producing partnership, I felt empowered enough to say yes when invited by Maggie to be her new producing partner. I was hardly qualified, but fortunately for me Maggie likes to mentor. I watched her get "City of Hope" financed over one lunch, from which I took that producing was easy. It took a while to understand the background of that one lunch: an established and well-loved writer/director, a good script, a cast assembled through past relationships and reputations, a budget that made sense, a timely niche in the marketplace, and a direct and personal relationship with Larry Estes who made that particular financing call. Super easy!
While I was learning to coordinate and then to production manage, I took on a trainee coordinator called Georgia Kacandes. Yes, that Georgia Kacandes, the one who got a shout-out from Martin Scorcese at the Golden Globes last week, the one who ran physical production at Paramount Vantage and then at Paramount. While I was mentoring Georgia from APOC to Coordinator to UPM, I was learning valuable lessons in how to be a boss. Those of you who know Georgia won't be surprised to hear that she sat me down one day and explained that if I wanted her to take responsibility, I had to give her the reins; micromanaging wasn't doing either of us any good. I learned a lot from Georgia, as you will from your mentees.
I belong to a producers' group. You know that person you've known forever, who you trust completely and can ask anything of, who you know is truly on your side? Belonging to this group means I have 20 of those, 20 people who have come together for the sole purpose of supporting each other as producers, to be as generous as we possibly can be with each other.
We advise each other, we share information, we introduce each other to financiers and actors and other collaborators and we cheer each other on. It's insanely enriching, empowering and rewarding, and it brings out the best in us all. I recommend it to every one of you; find a group to join that brings out your own generosity.
Beyond the Sundance programs already mentioned, there are many existing groups to join: the PGA, which is reforming its Independent Film Producers Committee in which I am involved, Film Independent, IFP and the Independent Producers' Alliance that formed out of Jay Van Hoy and Lars Knudsen's keynote speech last year, to name a few. Or you can form a group of your own; within an intimate group, you can afford to be even that much more generous.
You are the people getting movies made. You have likely benefited from someone else's generosity in getting where you are. I encourage you to pass that on, to be as generous as you can be with each other, and to new folks coming up. You are probably doing that already -- maybe consciously, maybe unconsciously. Make it a priority, because that's how we will all thrive.
It may seem like someone else's film getting made precludes yours, but I don't believe that to be true. If that happens, it's more likely that their material is stronger or more accessible, or their relationships more developed. Working from your most generous place will feed your relationships and make them stronger; and being generous with your time and resources when it comes to others will likely result in that same generosity back to you. A little tough love from your peers can go a long way toward making your project more viable.
So give some of your time, your expertise, your energy to mentor, to train, to advise and to cheer. What benefits one independent film benefits us all. Who hasn't referenced "Brokeback Mountain" or "Little Miss Sunshine" or "Precious" when trying to explain that our "female-driven," "period," "coming-of-age," "Americana" (oh, and here's the real eye-roller in a pitch meeting) or "drama" was going to make pots of money. A truly successful indie gives us all something to point to when pitching our own film, and makes it easier to get another independent film made.
I wish you all, every success.
http://www.indiewire.com/article/sarah-greens-sundance-keynote-be-as-generous-as-you-can-be
"The Tree of Life" and "Take Shelter" producer Sarah Green
With kind thanks to Sundance and Green, we're publishing her speech in full.
Thanks to Michelle Satter, Anne Lai and Sundance, for honoring you all by hosting this lunch, and for giving me the honor of addressing you.
I am in awe of you all. I have pored over this year's festival catalog and watched movies since my arrival, and I am so heartened by the films, by the movies that are being made because of you. Yes, money is tight, but we are making movies! Your accomplishments strengthen us all, and I am very grateful to you.
I am also grateful for the extraordinary generosity of my fellow producers. There are many fine examples right here at Sundance -‐ so many folks giving up their precious time to mentor others through the programs encompassed by the Creative Producers Initiative, for instance. Mentorship is a powerful force; I know that without the guidance of those who mentored me, I'd likely still be flipping hamburgers, which is an excellent profession but one that I was certainly less suited for than this.
I was doing just that, cooking in a restaurant and attending Emerson College, when I got the opportunity to intern for Debra Franco, who was self distributing her films through a co-op of independent filmmakers. Not only was she insanely generous with her time and expertise, she offered me a job with the flexibility to work on others' movies, all while becoming well versed in DIY educational distribution. Who would have guessed how relevant that would be in today's distribution landscape?
Debra introduced me to cinematographer Nancy Schreiber. I was living under the fantasy that because I was technically inclined, and really wanted to be an artist, that I might become a DP. Nancy did her best to train me, but one day, working as an electrician and listening to Nancy debating a particular lighting nuance with her gaffer, it occurred to me that, not only do I not have an opinion on the problem, I don't see it... I was not destined to be a cinematographer.
I stumbled my way into production management, where fortunately I had the amazing Peggy Rajski to turn to. Peggy was producing films on which she also served as production manager, and generously offered to teach me, which was fortunate because when I say I stumbled my way in, I am not kidding. I remember Peggy showing me a call sheet, which blew my mind. All that information in one place! Cost report? A revelation!
I learned a lot from Peggy, enough so that when she and Maggie Renzi decided to move on from their producing partnership, I felt empowered enough to say yes when invited by Maggie to be her new producing partner. I was hardly qualified, but fortunately for me Maggie likes to mentor. I watched her get "City of Hope" financed over one lunch, from which I took that producing was easy. It took a while to understand the background of that one lunch: an established and well-loved writer/director, a good script, a cast assembled through past relationships and reputations, a budget that made sense, a timely niche in the marketplace, and a direct and personal relationship with Larry Estes who made that particular financing call. Super easy!
You are the people getting movies made. You have likely benefited from someone else's generosity. I encourage you to pass that on.
These are extraordinary examples of generosity, I know, and I can only hope you have had, or can create similar opportunities. Those of you who are new to producing: if you get them, use them; work your butt off and don't stop until you have learned everything possible from the situation. And then work some more; it's good training for the tenacity you will need to get your next film off the ground.While I was learning to coordinate and then to production manage, I took on a trainee coordinator called Georgia Kacandes. Yes, that Georgia Kacandes, the one who got a shout-out from Martin Scorcese at the Golden Globes last week, the one who ran physical production at Paramount Vantage and then at Paramount. While I was mentoring Georgia from APOC to Coordinator to UPM, I was learning valuable lessons in how to be a boss. Those of you who know Georgia won't be surprised to hear that she sat me down one day and explained that if I wanted her to take responsibility, I had to give her the reins; micromanaging wasn't doing either of us any good. I learned a lot from Georgia, as you will from your mentees.
I belong to a producers' group. You know that person you've known forever, who you trust completely and can ask anything of, who you know is truly on your side? Belonging to this group means I have 20 of those, 20 people who have come together for the sole purpose of supporting each other as producers, to be as generous as we possibly can be with each other.
We advise each other, we share information, we introduce each other to financiers and actors and other collaborators and we cheer each other on. It's insanely enriching, empowering and rewarding, and it brings out the best in us all. I recommend it to every one of you; find a group to join that brings out your own generosity.
Beyond the Sundance programs already mentioned, there are many existing groups to join: the PGA, which is reforming its Independent Film Producers Committee in which I am involved, Film Independent, IFP and the Independent Producers' Alliance that formed out of Jay Van Hoy and Lars Knudsen's keynote speech last year, to name a few. Or you can form a group of your own; within an intimate group, you can afford to be even that much more generous.
You are the people getting movies made. You have likely benefited from someone else's generosity in getting where you are. I encourage you to pass that on, to be as generous as you can be with each other, and to new folks coming up. You are probably doing that already -- maybe consciously, maybe unconsciously. Make it a priority, because that's how we will all thrive.
It may seem like someone else's film getting made precludes yours, but I don't believe that to be true. If that happens, it's more likely that their material is stronger or more accessible, or their relationships more developed. Working from your most generous place will feed your relationships and make them stronger; and being generous with your time and resources when it comes to others will likely result in that same generosity back to you. A little tough love from your peers can go a long way toward making your project more viable.
So give some of your time, your expertise, your energy to mentor, to train, to advise and to cheer. What benefits one independent film benefits us all. Who hasn't referenced "Brokeback Mountain" or "Little Miss Sunshine" or "Precious" when trying to explain that our "female-driven," "period," "coming-of-age," "Americana" (oh, and here's the real eye-roller in a pitch meeting) or "drama" was going to make pots of money. A truly successful indie gives us all something to point to when pitching our own film, and makes it easier to get another independent film made.
I wish you all, every success.
Thursday, January 5, 2012
AMIGO on VOD!
I know I promised to catch you up on posts of where we've been with AMIGO in the past few months. Apologies! The holidays overtook me and now I am getting an early start on valentines production while watching what the Academy sent us For Consideration.
In the meantime, if AMIGO is not coming to a theater near you soon enough, catch it on VOD.
Go to amigomovie.com to see the many carriers for VOD. The website has some live links that will take you directly to the pages where you can stream: Watch it on iTunes, Amazon, YouTube, and various local carriers. And for all of you with Netflix, AMIGO will be out on January 18. Stay tuned.
Monday, November 28, 2011
AMIGO at the Smithsonian
Okay, it was ages ago, but at the kind invitation of our friend Konrad Ng, Director of the Pacific Asian Program of the Smithsonian, we went down to DC to show AMIGO.
Here we are at a terrific Mexican restaurant called Oyamel with, from the right, Konrad, John and me, Robert Perkinson, and our pal Catherine Park, all the way from LA. That's Robert's book and his other project is campaigning to locate the President Obama Library in Hawaii. Seems like a good idea to me.
We never got any state money for any of our films, but I am considering this trip paid for by the government. They covered our train ride from Poughkeepsie and two nights in the lovely Washington Plaza Hotel, built in 1962 and kept amazingly intact.
Our room was tiny but the price was right and the atmosphere in the lobby and bar was international.
Nicole joined us and we visited Occupy Wall St. Washington.
They had a library
and a very tidy campsite. We dropped off some used towels and floor mats to make life there more comfortable. I can mother this movement and I am proud of how it has captured the conversation in this country and around the world.
Through AMIGO we continue to meet smart, young Filipinos (and some great older ones! like Sonny Izon with whom we had a nice but hurried dinner during the show-both interrupted by power failure at the theater in the Museum of the American Indian). Teddy Gonzalves is a professor in American Studies, which discipline is now including Empire Studies.
Here is Teddy's lovely wife, Charita.
John makes anyone look small.
We never got any state money for any of our films, but I am considering this trip paid for by the government. They covered our train ride from Poughkeepsie and two nights in the lovely Washington Plaza Hotel, built in 1962 and kept amazingly intact.
Our room was tiny but the price was right and the atmosphere in the lobby and bar was international.
Nicole joined us and we visited Occupy Wall St. Washington.
They had a library
Through AMIGO we continue to meet smart, young Filipinos (and some great older ones! like Sonny Izon with whom we had a nice but hurried dinner during the show-both interrupted by power failure at the theater in the Museum of the American Indian). Teddy Gonzalves is a professor in American Studies, which discipline is now including Empire Studies.
Here is Teddy's lovely wife, Charita.
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
I've been away
Did you miss me? I have actually had some time off-and I'll be doing more of that, just watch me-but we haven't stopped promoting AMIGO and MOMENT IN THE SUN.
I'm going to work backwards, and take you to the most recent stop on our American Lakbay/Tour: The Sixth Annual Sanibel Writers Workshop. John was the keynote speaker and also read from the Tampa chapter to a warm crowd of about 300. Speaking of warm, thank you to Tom De Marchi for the invitation-once accepted, we cooked up a mini-tour of Florida and Louisiana, follow us along. For more about the conference, go to http://www.fgcu.edu/siwc
Here's Tom with John. Florida Gulf Coast University is very lucky to have teachers as enthusiastic as Tom and his wife Karen Tolchin. Their students had to buy John's book!
Here are some getting autographs.
Here is the view, through the screen of our 2nd floor lanai, of the beach on Sanibel Island.
We fled New York after 9.5 inches of snow and 4 days without power. We deserve a view of the Gulf.
I'm going to work backwards, and take you to the most recent stop on our American Lakbay/Tour: The Sixth Annual Sanibel Writers Workshop. John was the keynote speaker and also read from the Tampa chapter to a warm crowd of about 300. Speaking of warm, thank you to Tom De Marchi for the invitation-once accepted, we cooked up a mini-tour of Florida and Louisiana, follow us along. For more about the conference, go to http://www.fgcu.edu/siwc
Here's Tom with John. Florida Gulf Coast University is very lucky to have teachers as enthusiastic as Tom and his wife Karen Tolchin. Their students had to buy John's book!
Here is the view, through the screen of our 2nd floor lanai, of the beach on Sanibel Island.
We fled New York after 9.5 inches of snow and 4 days without power. We deserve a view of the Gulf.
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
AMIGO has a billboard on 5th Avenue
(Does anybody have photos from this event?)
We showed the AMIGO trailer and John answered really good questions about AMIGO and the history between the U.S and the Philippines. The site was the Philippines Center at its posh address, 5th Avenue between 45th and 46th. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philippine_Centeren.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philippine_Center.
When Ms. Elena Maningat of the Consul asked if perhaps they could move the monitor to the window and show the trailer in a loop to passersby, I gasped and said YES.
Go see for yourself.
Thank you, NY Consulate. Your support means a lot to us.
Monday, August 15, 2011
That's the way it's supposed to be
Here's an anecdote from Dylan Marchetti, head of VAriance Films which is doing such a good job releasing AMIGO in the U.S.
"The night security guard in our office stopped me and asked me if we were doing Amigo. He said he'd seen the ads popping up on TFC and his grandmother said she wanted the family to go on opening weekend."
"The night security guard in our office stopped me and asked me if we were doing Amigo. He said he'd seen the ads popping up on TFC and his grandmother said she wanted the family to go on opening weekend."
Monday, August 8, 2011
One month later...
Time passes!
It's been a month since my last post, urging you to see AMIGO in the Philippines. We did just fine there, stayed in the theaters for 10 days, against TRANSFORMERS, and started a positive buzz for the provincial and scholastic release of the film in the upcoming month.
WE ARE ABOUT TO OPEN IN THE US! I think we have a really good strategy, opening August 19 in cities with large Filipino populations, and expanding during the following weeks to more cities where lots of Filipinos live. Our outreach to the FilAm community has been so rewarding, resulting in more openings than we had originally planned, and- thanks so many times to Dylan Marchetti and his team at Variance Films- we are in all the right theaters. We'll be playing in mainstream theaters in cities like Milpitas and Tukwila and also in art cinemas, where we hope the non-FilAm Sayles fans will find us easily.
NEW YORK AMC Empire 25! Little AMIGO in a great 42nd St theater. How cool is that? Come for the 7pm show on August 19 and 20 and you'll see John Sayles answering questions at the end of the show.
Here's the line-up for August 19 openings around the country. Spread the word to your friends and family.
19-Aug New York, NY AMC Empire 25
19-Aug Los Angeles, CA Laemmle's Monica 4
19-Aug Los Angeles, CA (Cerritos) Edwards Cerritos Stadium 10
19-Aug Los Angeles, CA (West Covina) AMC Puente Hills 20
19-Aug San Diego, CA UA Horton Plaza 14
19-Aug Tukwila, WA (Seattle) AMC Southcenter 16
19-Aug San Jose, CA (Milpitas) Century 20 Great Mall 20 + XD
19-Aug Stockton, CA Regal Stockton City Center Stadium 16
19-Aug San Fran (Daly City) UA Stonestown Twin
19-Aug San Fran (Union City) Cinemark Union Landing 25 + XD
26-Sep San Jose, CA (Santa Clara) AMC Mercardo 20
26-Aug Honolulu, HI Regal Dole Cannery
26-Aug Guam Micronesia Mall 10
2-Sep Virginia Beach, VA (Norfolk) AMC Lynnhaven 18
2-Sep DC West End Cinema
2-Sep DC (Gaithesburg, MD) AMC Rio 18
2-Sep Las Vegas, NV Regal Village Square 18
2-Sep Seattle, WA Northwest Film Forum
2-Sep Portland, OR Hollywood Theater
8-Sep Albuquerque, NM Guild Cinema
16-Sep Dallas, TX Texas Theater
16-Sep Minneapolis, MN St. Anthony Main Theater
16-Sep
Chicago, IL Gene Siskel Film Center
23-Sep Denver, CO Denver FilmCenter/Colfax
If you don't see your city here and you think you can help us bring out an audience for AMIGO, go onto our website www.amigomovie.com and let us know.
It's been a month since my last post, urging you to see AMIGO in the Philippines. We did just fine there, stayed in the theaters for 10 days, against TRANSFORMERS, and started a positive buzz for the provincial and scholastic release of the film in the upcoming month.
WE ARE ABOUT TO OPEN IN THE US! I think we have a really good strategy, opening August 19 in cities with large Filipino populations, and expanding during the following weeks to more cities where lots of Filipinos live. Our outreach to the FilAm community has been so rewarding, resulting in more openings than we had originally planned, and- thanks so many times to Dylan Marchetti and his team at Variance Films- we are in all the right theaters. We'll be playing in mainstream theaters in cities like Milpitas and Tukwila and also in art cinemas, where we hope the non-FilAm Sayles fans will find us easily.
NEW YORK AMC Empire 25! Little AMIGO in a great 42nd St theater. How cool is that? Come for the 7pm show on August 19 and 20 and you'll see John Sayles answering questions at the end of the show.
Here's the line-up for August 19 openings around the country. Spread the word to your friends and family.
19-Aug New York, NY AMC Empire 25
19-Aug Los Angeles, CA Laemmle's Monica 4
19-Aug Los Angeles, CA (Cerritos) Edwards Cerritos Stadium 10
19-Aug Los Angeles, CA (West Covina) AMC Puente Hills 20
19-Aug San Diego, CA UA Horton Plaza 14
19-Aug Tukwila, WA (Seattle) AMC Southcenter 16
19-Aug San Jose, CA (Milpitas) Century 20 Great Mall 20 + XD
19-Aug Stockton, CA Regal Stockton City Center Stadium 16
19-Aug San Fran (Daly City) UA Stonestown Twin
19-Aug San Fran (Union City) Cinemark Union Landing 25 + XD
26-Sep San Jose, CA (Santa Clara) AMC Mercardo 20
26-Aug Honolulu, HI Regal Dole Cannery
26-Aug Guam Micronesia Mall 10
2-Sep Virginia Beach, VA (Norfolk) AMC Lynnhaven 18
2-Sep DC West End Cinema
2-Sep DC (Gaithesburg, MD) AMC Rio 18
2-Sep Las Vegas, NV Regal Village Square 18
2-Sep Seattle, WA Northwest Film Forum
2-Sep Portland, OR Hollywood Theater
8-Sep Albuquerque, NM Guild Cinema
16-Sep Dallas, TX Texas Theater
16-Sep Minneapolis, MN St. Anthony Main Theater
16-Sep
Chicago, IL Gene Siskel Film Center
23-Sep Denver, CO Denver FilmCenter/Colfax
If you don't see your city here and you think you can help us bring out an audience for AMIGO, go onto our website www.amigomovie.com and let us know.
Friday, July 8, 2011
This is it.
This is your moment, like voting for the candidate you really want to win. Go tonight to a theater near you to see AMIGO. Small movies don't stand a chance if YOU don't support them. Don't wait till your whole crowd wants to go. Be the first.
This movie will not be out on DVD for at least two years.
See it now.
This movie will not be out on DVD for at least two years.
See it now.
PHILIPPINES
06 July 2011
Selected Theaters
TriNoma*
SM Cinemas
SM North Edsa*
Others
Gateway Cinemas*
MAKATI
Ayala Cinemas
Glorietta 4**
MANDALUYONG
SM Cinemas
SM Megamall*
Robinsons' Cinemas
Robinsons' Galleria*
MANILA
SM Cinemas
SM Manila*
Robinson's Cinemas
Robinson's Ermita*
PASAY CITY
SM Cinema
SM Mall of Asia**
OTHER AREAS
CAVITE
SM Bacoor*
CEBU CITY
SM Cebu**
DAVAO CITY
SM Davao** Only Spanish and Cantonese dialogues have English subtitles
** All non-English dialogues (Filipino, Spanish, Cantonese) have English subtitles
06 July 2011
Selected Theaters
QUEZON CITY
Ayala Cinemas TriNoma*
SM Cinemas
SM North Edsa*
Others
Gateway Cinemas*
MAKATI
Ayala Cinemas
Glorietta 4**
MANDALUYONG
SM Cinemas
SM Megamall*
Robinsons' Cinemas
Robinsons' Galleria*
MANILA
SM Cinemas
SM Manila*
Robinson's Cinemas
Robinson's Ermita*
PASAY CITY
SM Cinema
SM Mall of Asia**
OTHER AREAS
CAVITE
SM Bacoor*
CEBU CITY
SM Cebu**
DAVAO CITY
SM Davao*
** All non-English dialogues (Filipino, Spanish, Cantonese) have English subtitles
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Have a look at some of the recent AMIGO press:
An interview on The Bottomline with Boy Abunda: http://www.flipbooth.com/video/2feb5278841e43e/The-Bottomline-02-July-2011-courtesy-of-ABS-CBN-FlipBooth
The Philippine Star, by Wilson Lee Flores: http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=702095&publicationSubCategoryId=86
The Philippine Star, by Bibsy Carballo: http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=702211
Pep Takip Silip coverage: http://www.pep.ph/photos/2379/%22Amigo%22_reveals_the_truths_untold/num/0
Monday, July 4, 2011
Good Bye, Manila
On our last day Joel and John and I visit Bee and the Rottweiler at the Veterinary Hospital in Mandaluyong. We were hoping to see Bee at Fully Booked and the AMIGO premiere, but flooding stranded her in the hospital (Manila, get it together!) and she needed to be with Leo.
Good bye, Bee. See you next time. Good luck, Leo.
Goodbye, the Pasig River. Be cleaner next time?
Goodbye, Joel. See you in New YOrk. Goodbye Tess and Sharon. Thanks for taking care of us.
Goodbye Bobby and Olivia. Thanks for making us part of your family.
AMIGO Premiers in Manila
Trinoma Mall, opposite SM North EDSA. Origin8 has organized a very nice reception around the beautiful show of Gino Gonzales' costumes for AMIGO.
Here is Joel doing an interview-one of many since we had a lot of press there-in front of a selection of the costumes. Each was "hero" costume, worn by one of the principles, and each came with a caption that named the actor and described the character. Very elegant and subtle, very Gino. Of course he and Grace weren't able to attend the opening of the exhibition because they had been up all night setting it up! Gino is designing the TV series "Amara" with Rodell Cruz as Production Designer. Thank you for a beautiful job, Gino.
Re-enactors from Buhay na Kasaysayan attended in force and their presence added to the festive atmosphere. Everybody wanted a picture with them. Including Beth Day Romulo. Learn more about this wonderful group at www.pinoyhistory.proboards.com
We were happy to see Beth and our hostess Olivia Romulo and our pal Salito Malca from HIT Productions, here in the pink.
HIT is a top-notch sound studio and I know Salito and his business partner Dennis Cham are thrilled with the new sound mix on AMIGO.
Lots of last minute drama as Katski Flores from Origin8 flew in from Hong Kong with the newly subtitled print, just in time for DP Lee Meily to check it out projected in the cinema. LOUD AC, but Lee had the projectionist boost the sound, and we had no complaints. Whew!
Yours truly looking hefty with Loy Arcenas, director of NINO (featuring Arthur Acuña). Loy is a good friend of my NY pal Jean Passanate and I hope she sees this photo!
Here are some new friends. From the right Fiona Malca looking glamourous in her new scarf from Legazpi Market, Ray Potter and his wife Joy Yamamoto whom we met at Fully Booked reading, Mrs. Isabel Caro Wilson, ex-Ambassador from the Philippines to Spain, and our new Consul General from the US in Manila, Michael Schimmel. I have already hit up Michael for help expediting Joel Torre's visa for his trip to the US in August. Thank you in advance, Con Gen Schimmel.
Two stars meet at last.
It was wonderful to see so many of the AMIGO cast and crew here. You know who you are.
To the rest of you, we missed you. I hope you will rush to see AMIGO in the theaters when it opens July 6. For ongoing listings of the theaters where it is playing, go to amigomoviephil.com
AMIGO is small but important, TRANSFORMERS is big. Go see AMIGO first.
Lots of last minute drama as Katski Flores from Origin8 flew in from Hong Kong with the newly subtitled print, just in time for DP Lee Meily to check it out projected in the cinema. LOUD AC, but Lee had the projectionist boost the sound, and we had no complaints. Whew!
It was wonderful to see so many of the AMIGO cast and crew here. You know who you are.
AMIGO is small but important, TRANSFORMERS is big. Go see AMIGO first.
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Back to Business in Manila
First, an hour delay before we arrive in driving rain. Thank you Dayno Dinopol for picking us up, and to Joel for doing the TV interview without us.
We have moved to Maritina's comfortable, convenient apartment in Makati and the arms of her welcoming family. Quick change from our beach clothes, and up to a lovely dinner party at Roberto and Olivia Romulo's. Here is John with our friend Beth Day Romulo.
Two writers. See if you can find Beth's book Inside the Palace for a bird's eye view.
John reads at Fully Booked, Bonifacio High Street. It's a great bookstore, absolutely to the standard of the best of the US bookstores. They have ordered a 400 copies, so buy one!
Here is actress Ermie Concepcion, displaying the product.
John read with a mic from a space in the center of the store. I enjoyed watching shoppers be pulled in by the reading (Diosdado, the principle Filipino character in A MOMENT IN THE SUN) and by the brilliance of his answers in the Q & A. They stayed to buy books.
At Maritina's we are conveniently located near Glorietta 5. Sarah Green's (okay, Terry Malick's) TREE OF LIFE is playing in the cinema there. Crazy poster with a little bit of everything. It succeeded I guess, because the theater was packed. John and I enjoyed the movie-and most of the Filipino audience stayed to the end, a little baffled you could tell, by a movie far artier than what usually plays in the mall.
Manila is not all work of course. Raymond Lee from Origin8 takes me to BBFH. Six hands on me at once, pedi, mani, hot oil hair treatment. I felt like Dorothy-in 1978.
John does most of the work and never gets a pedicure.
Here he is with Boy Abunda, recording Bottomline.Boy Abunda is not shy and John rose to the questions. I think you will be able to catch it on YouTube.
Post interview dinner at JT's Original Manukan Grill, with Lee Meily and Uly. We have some good friends in Manila.
We have moved to Maritina's comfortable, convenient apartment in Makati and the arms of her welcoming family. Quick change from our beach clothes, and up to a lovely dinner party at Roberto and Olivia Romulo's. Here is John with our friend Beth Day Romulo.
John does most of the work and never gets a pedicure.
Post interview dinner at JT's Original Manukan Grill, with Lee Meily and Uly. We have some good friends in Manila.
Farewell Bohol
How could I have fogotten to take a photo of us with Jun Evasco, Mayor of Maribojoc? We stopped by City Hall to leave posters of AMIGO, with our thanks. No photo of the Mayor, but here is the beautiful poster from the Philippines campaign, from a photo by Mary Cybulski.
When will we be back?
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