BLACKLISTED FILM-MAKERS - the saga continues P.

59

UNIVERSAL FILM
www.ufmag.org

ISSUE 7 OF 2012

LIFE OF SCREEN LEGEND

MAUREEN OHARA

ROME FILM FEST P.11

WILD & SCENIC FILM FEST

LIFE
OF
Pi

TARRANTINO
DJANGO
UNCHAINED

THE
COMPANY
YOU KEEP

P.14

Issue 7 of 2012

About UFM
The Universal Film Magazine is
a free magazine that delivers
passionate and creative coverage
about the global film and festival
communities. The publication
differs from the competition because it is totally free.
It is the mission of the Universal
Film Magazine to uphold our
uncompromising high standards
in professional journalism with
compelling stories that are unbiased and fact-based.
We are committed to the advancement of the industry by
providing the very best in-depth
features and coverage that will
have a positive impact in the
world. We aim to give our readers
motivational and inspirational
stories that embrace the spirit of
independent film and festivals
and give them a voice in the
media.

Universal Film
Magazine
Editor TYRONE D MURPHY
Creative Director DOM MURICU
Proof Editors TODD VOLZ
MICHELLE GOODE
KATE SPATOLA
PAUL PASTOR
Photographer KEVIN A MURPHY
Marketing Director EV JOHNSON

Contributors PATRICIA J. PAWLAK

PETER SHILLINGFORD
ROY BENSON
RON GILBERT
KEVIN A MURPHY
J R BEARDSLEY
IESTYN B JONES
ZOE MOON
CORI BLAZE

Editor-in-Chief

Tyrone D Murphy

Front cover image SONJUSCHKA

Letters & E Mails Please Contribute

Please send in your letters and stories editor@ufmag.org
Universal film magazine

ISSN 2050-1293

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All editorial content and graphics on this site are protected by copyright
and international treaties and may not be copied without the express permission of Universal Film Magazine, which reserves all rights. Re-use of any
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DISCLAIMER: Readers should consult with a lawyer before solely relying on
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Contents
FEATURED STORIES:

5
9

WHATS IN A TITLE
Richard Morrison has designed the title sequences for the greatest movies of all time
AMMA ASANTES BELLE

BELLE is directed by BAFTA Award

Winner Amma Asante

Django Unchained

P.7

STREET PREACHERS
17 MANIC
The Manic Street Preachers are a

Welsh alternative rock band

FOUNDER JOINS BAFTA COMMITTEE

19 UFFO
Founder of UFFO, Tyrone D Murphy was voted

onto the BAFTA committee in the UK

3D STEREO MEDIA

21 3D Stereo MEDIA was held in Lige, Belgium on

3-6 December.

IN PARIS
27 AA MONSTER
Monster in Paris is a French CGI and 3D ani-

mated feature directed by Bibo Bergeron.

THE GROUCHO CLUB CHILD ABUSE SCANDAL

29 The
infamous article that exposed the

The Company You Keep P.23

Groucho Club child abuse scandal

33 ACTRESS - COLEEN MOORE

Interesting look at the the life and work of the

silent era actress Coleen Moore

FILMS IN FILM COMMUNITY

37 DEVLOPING
Filmcontact.com has launch Film Projects by

harnessing the collective talents

GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD

47 AGood
Day to Die Hard is an upcoming

American action film directed by John Moore

INTERVIEW WITH PIXOVI CEO

49 Cori
Blaze conducts an interview with PIXOVI
CEO about the platforms future

Life of PI

P.25

BLACKLISTED, THE SAGA CONTINUES

59 After
blacklisting a filmmakers one festival

who took part plays the blacklisted film

MARSHALL NEILAN
62 DIRECTOR
A look at the life and body of work of the

silent era movie Director, Marshall Neilan

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g

Maureen OHara P.39

Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

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Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

by J.R. Beardsley

J.R.: Excellent story-telling and

film-making, gentlemen. You present your ideas without forcing
the thought. Your research and
understanding of the subject is
comprehensive.
What inspired
you to make this movie?
DANNY: Gray State came from
discussions about what the country will look like if it continues on
its present course. I had been researching for over 5 years: Agenda 21, Martial Law, FEMA Camps,
Government Black Ops, saying,
Even if this stuff isnt true, it
would make for one hell of a film.
J.R.: You show frightening events
that are possible in the near future. Do you see this penetrating
our normalcy bias?
DANNY: Hollywood creates the illusion that everything is fine. If
people watch Gray State, think
What if? and question their own
values, then I feel we have accomplished something.

J.R.: What is the most important

theme in Gray State?

the state has their best interests

at heart.

DANNY: The overall theme is

about free will. We allow the audience to discover through the
characters facing hard choices.

J.R.: What do you need in the way

of financial support to get this
movie made?

DAVID: I use this as backdrop to

explore human truth: the nature
of the maturity necessary to embrace death as a part of life, to let
go of the things you love, to have
the depth to absorb coercion and
chaos without revenge.
J.R.:
Do your personal experiences as martial artist and warrior
affect your perspectives on our
cultural?
DAVID: Yes. The nature of violence
cannot be appreciated by someone who hasnt experienced it.
Dannys character in the film says,
Just because you have Stockholm Syndrome doesnt mean
they wont kill you. Our population does not recognize its own
gradual enslavement and will vehemently deny there is a problem
- even as the gallows door drops.
DANNY: Weve been conditioned
this way since birth; our institutions reinforce this.
Any honest information is mocked to the
point where younger generations dont even bother being informed. They blindly trust that

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DAVID: We met our initial goal

$50k to get the project off the
ground.
DANNY: To see this film made on
the scale that it deserves, we
would need to have $10-15 million as working capital.
J.R.: What message would you
like to share with our audience?
DAVID: I would like to issue my
promise that I am making as realistic, terrifying and beautiful
a film as possible. If you arent
scared or offended by the film, we
need YOU to make it happen: get
the word out.
DANNY: I want to give a very
large Thank You to all the fans
who helped us already by making
it viral.
This is only the beginning. There are a lot more exciting things in the pipeline and we
want to keep our supporters engaged.
.
J.R.: I look forward to seeing the
finished project.

There is a hot little production

company in the Twin Cities that
has a story to tell. GRAY STATE has
been a two-year effort by David
Crowley, Mitch Heil, who are Hot
Head Productions and Danny Mason. A trailer can be seen on YouTube. The interview that follows
was conducted by J.R. Beardsley.

Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

Whats in the title?...

Richard Morrison A Reel eye opener

by Dean Wares

If like me, you love movies. Then youll have probably

watched hundreds of them!

the design, but also to create something which complimented

the style of the film, for both the main and end titles.

Youll probably also know lots of great title sequences

to many of those films. But what youll probably not
know is that one man has been responsible for creating the
titles, more likely for most of your favourites!

Richard says Normally, the running of the front titles is a period during which the audience rustles popcorn, makes small
talk with their neighbours, or simply explores their seat for
long-range comfort.

During the course of a creative rich career for over

more than 30 years, Richard Morrison has designed
the title sequences for some of the greatest movies
of all time. With over 150 in the show reel already
from cult classics like QUADRAPHENIA, GHANDI and
the KILLING FIELDS through to modern day blockbusters such as HIGH FIDELITY, VANTAGE POINT and THE
GOLDEN COMPASS, Richard Morrison is the most prolific
British feature film titles designer the industry has even seen.
Richard started off his career under the guidance of great
luminaries such as Maurice Binder, creator of the early Bond
series and since, has worked for many of the industrys most
respected film directors and producers including Sir David
Lean, Kenneth Branagh, Jean-Jaques Annaud, Sir Richard Attenborough and Ridley Scott.

When the movie itself begins, there is usually an initial

cold period.

an initial cold
period

I had the absolute pleasure of meeting Richard nearly 20 years

ago and since I have had the great honour of working with him
closely, on what has been an incredible journey so far.
With the latest release of Tim Burtons new 3D animated film
FRANKENWEENIE, it is yet another one of Richard Morrisons
sequences to hit our cinemas.
We completed Frankenweenie only a few weeks ago, hot off
the foot of designing the titles for another Burton film DARK
SHADOWS. The sequence is another collaboration between
Tim and Richard, following SWEENEY TODD and the first BATMAN film and we were delighted to see Frankenweenie kickoff this years BFI Film Festival.
Being involved on this particular film has been a thrill for us,
knowing how special the project has been to Tim. While talking
through ideas with him, it became clear we needed to embrace
the simple look of the classic black and white horror genre in

However, a strong main title or sequence can be sufficiently provocative and entertaining to induce the audience to sit down and look and listen as something
is really happening and communicating with them onscreen.
I believe at this moment it is possible to project a symbolic
forecast of what is to come and to create a receptive atmosphere that will enable the movie to begin on a seamless and
higher level of audience participation.
The end of the movie when the credits start is again another
chance to graphically communicate and reintroduce the visual
style, which is unique to each movie. Like a book has a front
and back cover.
Frankenweenie is one of an incredible 15 films we have created
the titles for in the last year alone, including THE COLD LIGHT
OF DAY for Mabrouk El Mechri, Kasper Barfoeds THE NUMBERS
STATION starring John Cusack, Eran Rikliss ZAYTOUN, NOW
IS GOOD for Ol Parker and WELCOME TO THE PUNCH for Eran
Creevy starring James McAvoy and Mark Strong.
Were currently working on an exciting new HBO feature MUHAMMAD ALIS GREATEST FIGHT for Stephen Frears, having already completed an HBO film PHIL SPECTOR BIOPIC starring Al
Pacino for David Mamet earlier in the year. The Ali film is also
the second film we have done for Stephen Frears this year, as
we created the title sequence for the comedy drama LAY THE
FAVORITE starring Bruce Willis.
www.richardmorrison.wordpress.com
www.richard-morrison.co.uk

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Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

CME Visual

CME

making films the best they can be

Film Production
Cinematic Intros & Trailers
CME Visual offer a full film production and post production editing service

for first time filmmakers

Phone +44 (0) 20 7193 8870 | e-mail info@cmevisual.tv | www.cmevisual.tv

SPECIAL RATES

Films and Documentaries

Music Videos, Trailers and Commercials
Full Post Production & Editing Services
Keying for Green & Blue Screen
Color correction & Color Grading

Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

Django
Unchained
D

jango Unchained is an upcoming western film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. The film stars Jamie Foxx,
Christoph Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kerry
Washington and Samuel L. Jackson. The
film is scheduled to be released on December 25,
2012 in North America. Principal photography
started in California in November 2011, Wyoming
in February 2012,[4] and at the National Historic
Landmark Evergreen Plantation in Wallace, Louisiana, outside of New Orleans in March 2012.
Django Unchained is set in the Deep South,
and follows Django (Foxx), a freed slave who
treks across America with Dr. King Schultz
(Waltz), a bounty hunter. The film is inspired by
the 1966 Sergio Corbuccis spaghetti western
Django, with star Franco Nero having a cameo.
Django (Jamie Foxx) is a slave living in the
Deep South after having been separated
from his wife Broomhilda (Kerry Washington).
When Django is held for a slave auction, Dr.
King Schultz (Christoph Waltz), a German

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Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

It was originally reported that Will Smith was Tarantinos

first choice for the role of Django, but in the end Jamie
Foxx was cast for the role. Additionally, Franco Nero was
rumored for the role of Calvin Candie. Kevin Costner was
in negotiations to join as Ace Woody, but dropped out due
to scheduling conflicts. Kurt Russell was cast instead, but
also later left the role. When Kurt Russell dropped out, the
role of Ace Woody was not recast but instead the character would be merged with Walton Goggins character, Billy
Crash.
Jonah Hill was offered the role of Scotty in the film, but he
turned it down due to scheduling conflicts with The Watch.
On June 15, 2012 it was announced that Hill was available
and joined the cast, but in an unspecified role. On April 4,
2012, Joseph Gordon-Levitt announced that he would be

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unable to star in the film because of a prior commitment to

make his directorial debut on Don Jons Addiction. GordonLevitt explained, I would have loved, loved to have done it.
Hes one of my very favorite filmmakers.
Development
In 2007, Quentin Tarantino, speaking with The Daily Telegraph, discussed an idea for a form of spaghetti western
set in Americas Deep South which he called a southern,
stating that he wanted to do movies that deal with Americas horrible past with slavery and stuff but do them like
spaghetti westerns, not like big issue movies.
I want to do them like theyre genre films, but they deal
with everything that America has never dealt with because
its ashamed of it, and other countries dont really deal with
because they dont feel they have the right to. Tarantino
finished the script on April 26, 2011, and handed in the final draft to The Weinstein Company.
The film was shot in the anamorphic format on 35 mm film.
Django Unchained was the first Tarantino film not edited by
Sally Menke, who died in 2010.

bounty hunter who uses his former profession as a dentist

as a cover, frees Django from his vicious masters, the Speck
brothers (James Remar and James Russo), and gives him the
option of hunting down and killing the Brittle Brothers, a
ruthless gang of killers whom only Django has seen. In return, Schultz will free Django from slavery completely and
help rescue Broomhilda from the plantation of the charming but brutal Calvin Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio).

Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

FIRST PRODUCTION STILL

FROM THE SET OF AMMA
ASANTES BELLE RELEASED
Photo credit - David Appleby

ugu Mbatha-Raw stars in the

title role, alongside a cast
which boasts an impressive
ensemble of Britains finest
actors as well as some of the most
exciting up and coming international stars, including: Tom Wilkinson;
Sarah Gadon; Miranda Richardson;
Penelope Wilton; Sam Reid; Tom Felton; Matthew Goode; James Norton
and Emily Watson.

winning A Way of Life in 2004.

BELLE is directed by BAFTA Award

Winner Amma Asante and produced
by Damian Jones whose previous
credits include the Academy Awardwinning The Iron Lady.

BELLE is a tale of passion and romance in the face of overwhelming

adversity. Inspired by a 1779 painting of Dido Elizabeth Belle, and her
life story, BELLE tells the tale of a
mixedrace girl raised as an aristocratic lady in 18th Century England.
Battling social prejudice against the
backdrop of a controversial slavery
case, BELLE brings to life the love
story of Dido Belle (Gugu MbathaRaw) and John Davinier (Sam Reid),
in a world where one of Englands
most powerful men stands between
them.

BELLE is Asantes second film as

writer/director following the award-

Filming on BELLE has taken place in

The Isle Of Man, London, Oxford, as

well as Pinewood Studios, since 24

September, with the shoot due to
wrap on 9 November.
Bankside Films is handling exclusive
worldwide sales, with CinemaNX on
board to distribute in the UK. Presales concluded by Bankside include
Icon in Australia, Benelux Film Distributors in Benelux, Rialto in Switzerland, Shooting Stars in Middle
East, Bonton in Czech Republic, and
Jaguar for World Airline rights.
A DJ Films production, presented
by Isle of Man Film, Pinewood Films
and the BFI, in association with Head
Gear Films and Metrol Technology.

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Universal Film

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Issue 7 of 2012

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COMMITTED TO FILM
Committed is an English-language feature film set on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus.
Its a comedy about a chance meeting between a man trying to escape the pressure of proposing to his girlfriend and a runaway bride. Its a road-trip movie in the spirit of When Harry Met
Sally with a big twist at the end. When government film funds were cut, South African Cypriot
filmmaker Stelana Kliris decided to treat this as an opportunity to be really creative and resourceful. She wrote and designed Committed so that it would cost next to nothing without
losing its artistic or technical integrity. This film will not only tell a good stroy, but it will also
promote the film industry of Cyprus and the country of Cyprus itself. A heartfelt venture worth
supporting.
www.indiegogo.com/committed

ROME FILM
FESTIVAL
he 15th of december 2012 is
the deadline for submitting
to the 12th Edition of the RIFF
(Roma Independent Film Festival) that will take place in Rome
at Nuovo Cinema Aquila in Rome,
from the 4th to the 12th of April
2013.

This year as well, filmmakers from

all over the world will be able to
present their original works as a
first-ever preview in the section
New Frontiers dedicated to the
first work of an artist. For the last
6 years, RIFF has collected and
presented in prime time, works
coming from all over the world,
giving particular attention to Italian productions.
Among the awards, the Distribution Prize, offered once again
this year by Nuovo Cinema Aquila - the events venue - which
consists in the possibility for the
winning movie to be part of the
regular cinema programming.
The program of the RIFF 2013
will be enriched by retrospectives and seminars on different
aspects of the Indie film industry. At the end of the Festival, the
winners will be presented with
RIFF Awards worth over 50.000 .
For further information
+39 06 45425050
fabrizio@riff.it
RIFF
Via Po 152
00198 Roma
Italy

Bollywood Hits On Demand celebrates Diwali

by Tyrone D Murphy
International Media Distribution (IMD) and Eros International announced today that the Bollywood Hits On Demand lineup for the
month of November will include premieres of the summer hit Cocktail about friendship and love, and the critically-acclaimed English
Vinglish about a woman coming into her own. Also included in the
lineup is the record breaking hit of 2011, Ra One, and one of the highest grossing Bollywood films of all time, Dabangg.
Diwali, also known as the festival of lights is the most important holiday of the year for Indian families. Diwali takes place on November
13, 2012. In celebration of Diwali, Comcast and Verizon are each offering customers free access to Bollywood Hits On Demand content
for a limited time.
Verizon will offer a free preview of the entire SVOD service, Bollywood Hits On Demand from November 8-16. STAR India PLUS and TV
Asia signals will also be open as part of a South Asian network free
preview for Diwali.
Comcast will offer a special selection of movies, behind the scenes
programming and music videos from Bollywood Hits On Demand
to allow customers a free sampling in their Top Picks section ON
DEMAND for a limited time, November 13-27. Comcast customers
should go to Channel 1 > Top Picks > Bollywood Freeview to access
this complimentary content. To view the complete SVOD service and
subscribe, Comcast customers can go to Channel 1 > Premium Channels > Bollywood.
We are proud to share such an exciting lineup of movies and commend Comcast and Verizon for recognizing this special time of year
by offering a free preview to their customers. said Scott Wheeler,
Senior Vice President, International Media Distribution.
Were excited to celebrate Diwali with Bollywood fans by offering
special access to popular Bollywood blockbusters the whole family
can enjoy. said Ken Naz, President of Eros International, USA.
November highlights for Bollywood Hits On Demand include:
Cocktail Available Until Dec. 16
Ra. One Available Until Dec. 16
English Vinglish Available Nov. 16 Dec. 20
Dabangg Available Nov. 30 Jan. 3

11

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Hawaii Movie Goes International

By Jacek Adamski

MEDIAVOLT

The movie was written/directed by

Brian Kohne and was his four year
journey.
Stefan Schaefer was the
producer and he has had other releases in Europe. At the historic Iao
Theater in Wailuku, Maui during the
successful theatrical run Kohne said,
The movie was done in layers, people are going to be so surprised by
the underground stories they discover behind all that laughter. We
are showing a bit of local Hawaii
tourists never see.
Associate producer Raymond Rolak
was happy to see how well the
soundtrack has been received. The
principals hit a giant homerun with
the music and Brian Kohne used a
team approach to bring it all to market, added Rolak.

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Get A Job also had an international

added twist with Polish Nationals as
part of the sound design team. Kohne was pleased with the end result
as the DVD and Movie Soundtrack
CD will be coming to market in time
for Christmas.
Marcin Tyszka and Allan Zaleski were
great additions to the sound tech
and sound engineering efforts. Not
only does the movie have a Pacificfusion feel, it is also culturally enriching with first nation and global
reach. Even the ever polite Japanese
tourists scenes that get featured
bring forth giant audience laughs.
In this movie besides the laughs, it is
the music that really shines. Veteran
island entertainers Willie-K and Eric
Gilliom take the comedy to another
heightened level with their special
talents. They get some great cameo
help from rockers Mick Fleetwood,
Willie Nelson, and Pat Simmons of
the Doobie Brothers. Pinoy comedian Augie-T is a riot as the overzealous Maui policeman.
The Motion Picture Soundtrack by
the Barefoot Natives also goes on
sale in mid-November.
Both products can be purchased online at
www.GetAJobMovie.com
in addition from select retailers.

Designed by industry experts,

the Media Volt team strongly
believes that the site acts as an
essential tool for creative individuals to promote their skills
and experience through the vital process of networking, which
will allow them to enrich their
professional lives within this
tough industry.
Media Volt allows members to
build
industry
relationships,
post and view upcoming events
within specific localities, and
keep up to date with the latest
industry news by contributing
to discussions and reading interviews with well-established media professionals. Members can
also view and apply for employment opportunities, by searching for castings, acting auditions,
and productions roles.
Media Volt has been promoted
by many recognized organisations as a valuable resource for
those aiming to further their future career opportunities, by becoming the only site needed for
development within the media
industry.

12

HONOLULU-The award winning

comedy Get A Job with the giant soundtrack was filmed entirely
in Hawaii. Every state and province
across America and Canada wants
film production for their localities
because of the economic impact.
Hawaii offers some tax incentives
just like many other state do. It is an
incentive for producers to bring production and post-production to their
communities. The tax credits that
Get A Job received are now helping the film come to market.

A new UK based website has

launched to create networking
and job opportunities allowing
newcomers or well-established
professionals in the media industry, to further their career prospects. Media Volt is an online social community for performers,
actors, dancers, models and TV/
film production crew members,
presenting them with the opportunity to find work, build up
industry contacts, communicate
with other like-minded people
and create personalised profiles.

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Red Carpet at Gijon Film Festival

Festival Internacional De Cine De GIJN pretty little festival in Spain this year celebrated
golden jubilee 50 years Anniversary 16th to 24th of November in a great manner. The festival opened Spanish actress Leticia Dolera and during the ceremony the famous Asturian
casting director Luis San Narciso has been awarded with the Nacho Martnez award for his
whole professional career. Luis San Narciso has also been responsible for casting the actors for
such films as By My Side Again (Gracia Querejeta, 1999), The Sea Inside (Alejandro Amenbar,
2004), Volver (Pedro Almodvar, 2006) or The Counselor (Ridley Scott, 2012).

PITCH YOUR
MOVIE IDEA TO
HOLLYWOOD

itching your idea to the Hol

lywood elite just got easier.
Record yourself pitching your
movie or TV show idea, and upload it to iGottaPitch, established
industry professionals will view
your video, and connect with you.
No more unattainable meetings.
No stress. No closed doors. Just
you in control of your career.
The concept is simple enough and
the technology is already there.
Its a matter of bringing the two
together by attracting the idea
generators and connecting them
to movie industry executives.
Todays smart phone makes this
accessible to nearly everyone.
Uploaded pitches will only be
viewable by producers, agents,
and managers. The general public will not be able to view the
pitches, nor will other individuals
who have uploaded their pitch.
iGottaPitch already has dozens
of producers and managers who
signed up for this service. iGottaPitch will become the premiere
site that agents, managers, and
producers go to when seeking
new movie ideas.

SCREEN NATION GOES

UNDER FOR 2012
by Tyrone D Murphy
Recently UFM applied to Screen Nation for press accrediation to cover
the event. We were informed that due to the high demant of press applicants on this occation they were unable to provide UFM with accrediation. A week or so later Screen Nation announced that the Screen
Nation Awards 2012, listed to take place on the 11th of November,
were postponed to a later date.
This is appartently caused by severe difficulties faced by delays in receiving committed finance, late rejections of partnership approaches
and finally an insurmountable major HR issue, it was felt that this was
the only decision we could take at this time to protect the interests of
the Screen Nation brand and reduce the negative effects that would
be felt by the participants of the event.
Nominations still stand and voting procedures will be revised to take
account of this unexpected circumstance. Announcement of the winners of all relevant categories will be made at the future show.
Charles Thompson, CEO of Screen Nation says: On the very day the
Guardian online publishes an article that I am quoted in posing the
question Do black actors still need the Screen Nation Awards, I regret to announce this sudden untimely setback to the awards show.
However I give my assurance to you that the extraordinary pool of talent that reside in the UK, will continue to be celebrated on a date to
be set within the next few months. I sincerely apologise for the huge
inconvenience this has caused many of you and take full responsibility for this difficult situation.
Perhaps Charles Thompson CEO of the Screen Nation Awards should consider giving press accrediation to any and all industry publications that may
help raise the porfile of such an event.

Scriptapalooza has nearly 20

years of experience dealing with
the movie industry. By changing
the rules of the game (and who
can play), iGottaPitch has the
potential of streamlining movie
ideas and connections to the executives in the movie industry.
www.igottapitch.com

13

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Wild and Scenic On Tour

By Tyrone D Murphy

The WSFF On Tour is not just a film

festival. It is a community builder
and a critical mechanism to build
our movement to defend the earth.
says venue host, Cascadia Wildlands,
Eugene, OR.
The festival has been a great success
for the non-profit SYRCL; so much so
they decided to share it with other
non-profits as a model event and
means to fundraise for their organization or as a membership drive.
Lori Van Laanen, the manager of the
On Tour program, has increased the
venues from 86 to 109 in the last
two years, and expects to expand to
300 venues in the next three years.
Part of the reason that non-profits
love our program is the amount of
support that they get, Van Laanen
explained. Mentoring, a toolkit and
the choice to pick their own films
from the 55 available are part of the
deal.
The tipping point for a shift from
environmental apathy to responsible stewardship will be inspired by
transformative experience. The Wild
and Scenic Film Festival brings that
powerful opportunity to audience
members. It is creating a groundswell of inspired action one screening at a time! The Nicholas School

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of the Environment, Duke University,

Durham NC.
Three hundred or more films are presented to Wild and Scenic every year,
the Festival committee culls that
down to about 100 that are shown
at the home festival in Nevada City,
and 55 are available for the on tour
program. The aim of the Festival is
to increase the groundswell for the
environmental movement by using
film to inspire environmental action.
Each tour venue is an opportunity
for an organization to reach out into
their community and bring people
together around community based
activism.
Wild & Scenic continues to reinforce our core mission within the
community and inspire our members. The event has become a terrific friend-raiser for the Ventura
Hillsides Conservancy. We have surpassed our membership goal each
year, and look forward to hosting
next year! Ventura Hillsides Conservancy, Ventura, CA
The home festival returns to Nevada
County in early January. January 13,
2013. The Festival will be featuring
films, art and workshops on climate
change, as well as highlighting the
change makers who are helping rethink how we inhabit our planet.
Festival Locations: Downtown Nevada City, CA: Headquarters TBA.
Film Screenings at the Miners Foundry, Nevada Theatre, (Haven) Nevada
City Elementary and Veterans Building. In Grass Valley: Del Oro Theater
and The Center for the Arts.
Tickets: Online at www.wildandscenicfilmfestival.org beginning Dec.
1st. In person at SYRCL office, 216
Main St., beginning Dec. 1; MondayThursday, from 12-5pm until January 10th.

Calgary
Student
Film
Festival
In September, we sat down and
thought about how difficult it is
to find other people interested
in film production. There are
teams in Calgary that make movies, sure, but there isnt a wide
reaching community, and especially not of youth. Enter the Calgary Student Film Festival, our
attempt at solving this problem.
The Calgary Student Film Festival is a new event in 2013 created by students for students
which seeks to showcase student talent in high schools,
promote competition between
schools in the arts, and build a
community of young filmmakers. Films no more than seven
minutes in length will be created and submitted by students
in Calgary and surrounding area
representing their schools. The
submission deadline for these
films is April 5th. To work toward
cultivating a talented network
of young filmmakers, these films
will be critiqued by industry experts in a workshop environment
before being screened on May
11th at Cardel Theatre and juried
for awards and prizes. Awards
will be based on a combination
of originality, writing, cinematography, and editing. Finally, a
Peoples Choice award will be
included, as voted on by the audience.

14

There is a movement underfoot that

many in Northern California are unaware of.
Hollywood might be the hub of entertainment, but Nevada City is the
birthplace of activism via the lens
of film. South Yuba River Citizens
League (SYRCL) created the Wild and
Scenic Film Festival 11 years ago. Today it brings thousands into downtown Nevada City and Grass Valley.
And for the last six years Wild and
Scenic has been touring the country,
inspiring and motivating thousands
more with screenings in museums,
cinemas and colleges.

Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

The New Screenwriters Survival

Guide: Or, Guerrilla Meeting Tactics
and Other Acts of War:
EBook Now Available for Presale and Review

Are you looking for the secret decoder ring owned by all successful
screenwriters? Or at least a map with
a spot marked X? Sit down with Max
Adams.
The Screenwriters Survival Guide
delivers 65 chapters ranging from
Dont Write Batman to What You
Really Get Paid. Other topics include
pitching, the screenwriters uniform,
meetings, the etiquette of getting
read, navigating social media, and
the care and feeding of agents
along with lists of screenwriters
directories and organizations, a
generic release form, examples for
cover pages and query letters, and
other useful resources.
Adamss authority is unmistakable.
After scooping up the prizes at a
number of prestigious screenwriting
contests including the Nicholl
Fellowships in Screenwriting and the
Austin Film Festival, Adams launched
her Hollywood career with a big spec
script sale (Excess Baggage). The
book shines with Adamss streetwise
attitude. She shares her worst
Hollywood memories the cold
calls to producers, the credit arbitrations, and the meetings, meetings,
meetings as well as her victories.
Max Adams has the inside story on
the writers life in Hollywood. Now,
you will too.
http://the-screenwriters-survivalguide.com

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Issue 7 of 2012

The
Manic Street
Preachers
The Manic Street Preachers are a
Welsh alternative rock band that was
formed in 1986 in Blackwood, South
Wales and consists of James Dean
Bradfield (lead vocals and lead guitar), Nicky Wire (bass guitar and lyrics)
and Sean Moore (drums and percussion). The band is part of the Cardiff
music scene, and were at their most
prominent during the 1990s. They are
colloquially known as The Manics,
or simply, Manics. Originally a quartet, the band became a trio when
primary lyricist and rhythm guitarist
Richey Edwards disappeared on 1
February 1995.
In 1992, the Manics released their
debut studio album, Generation
Terrorists. Their combination of
androgynous glam punk imagery
and critical social lyrics about culture, alienation, boredom and despair soon gained them a loyal
following and cult status. The bands
later albums retained a leftist politicisation and intellectual lyrical style
while adopting a broader alternative
rock sound.

The band
is part of the
Cardiff Music
Scene

Following Edwards disappearance,

Bradfield, Moore and Wire persisted
with Manic Street Preachers, and
went on to gain critical and commercial success, becoming one of Britains
premier rock bands. Altogether, they
have garnered eight Top 10 albums,
fifteen Top 10 singles and have
reached Number One three times
with their 1998 This Is My Truth Tell
Me Yours album, the 1998 If You
Tolerate This Your Children Will Be
Next single and the 2000 The
Masses Against the Classes single.
To celebrate the re-release of the
Manic Street Preachers album
Generation Terrorists, the iconic
Welsh rockers have released Culture,
Alienation, Boredom and Despair
documenting their rocky journey
towards acceptance in the early 90s.
With their unique fusion of rock and
politics, the Manics were never going
to be the average band. If you ever

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wondered what their secret to success was this film will show what set them apart from
the rest; their unbounded motivation and self
propelled zeal to succeed.
Stifled by a stagnant and fruitless music scene
in the UK, Cardiff and Newport the motley
foursome sell their rare indie records to fund
their first Pay to play gig in London. The film
features an honest and frank running commentary from the current trio - they reminisce
charming moments like the picnic in the park
after reaching London too early, the pivotal gig
at The Horse and Groom and also recount how
the late Richie Edwards obliviously played a
fruit-machine as the other band members were
being interviewed ... this timely memento is not
only an exhibition of their vulnerabilities and
their insecurities but also highlights their determination to win over their critics during this
productive era.
We learn about the endless, passionate letters
they wrote about their inspirations and beliefs
to potential labels and promoters. And then,
after months of gigging and self promotion we
see their efforts bloom into fruition as they
grace the cover of NME for the first time, sign
with Heavenly Recordings and release You
Love us and Motown Junk. We then go on to
share their joy and excitement as they reach
the Top 40 for the first time and also have the
pleasure of performing on Top of the Pops.
One of the most likeable things about this
documentary is the drama; The disappointment of failing to crack America, followed by
the shock and surprise of being mobbed by
hundreds of Japanese fans this film invites
you to experience that riotous time and place
in welsh rock folklaw.
After years of hard work the efforts of their
labour are rewarded as they sign to Columbia
and collaborate with producer Steve Brown to
record a collection of singles. Unintentionally,
the recording with Brown lasts up to ten weeks
and in February 1992 they release their timeless masterpiece.
Theres no denying that Generation Terrorists
is the reason why the Manics transcended other
groups during this innovative period and went
on to become one of Wales biggest exports.
Featuring the notable Motorcycle Emptiness
,the thrilling You Love us and also the bonus
track Theme from M*A*S*H (Suicide is Painless).
Beautifully re-packaged and carefully re-mastered, this classic sounds as mind-blowing and
exciting as it did in 1992. Happy Anniversary!!
The double Legacy Edition of Generation
Terrorists featuring the mentioned DVD is out
now.

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by Iesten B Jones

Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

UFFO
FOUNDER JOINS
BAFTA COMMITTEE
he founder of UFFO, the Universal Film & Festival Organization, Tyrone D Murphy was voted
onto the BAFTA committee unopposed. The
appointment was announced at the BAFTA
AGM on the 26th november. Murphy is also an
award winning filmmaker and editor of the Universal
Film Magazine.
The Academy has a membership of 6,500 individuals
in the UK and the US and celebrates excellence at its
internationally-renowned, annual BAFTA Awards ceremonies. The Academy is committed to sharing insights
into the crafts of the people who work in film, television and games by staging over 200 public events a
year across the UK and beyond.
This wide-ranging programme of events gives members, the industry and the public at large many opportunities to learn first-hand from the finest practitioners
in the business. BAFTA online, at www.bafta.org

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Issue 7 of 2012

3D Stereo MEDIA

by Tyrone D Murphy

The European Forum on stereoscopic 3D

he fourth edition of 3D Stereo MEDIA, the European

Forum for stereoscopic 3D (S-3D) for Science, Technology, and Digital Art, will be held in Lige, Belgium on
3-6 December.

This year, the Professional Conference welcomes

over 40 international speakers, and three prestigious
keynote speakers: Chuck Comisky (Avatar), Buzz Hays
(Beowulf ), and Robert Neuman (The Lion King).

numerous projects from a dozen countries for a total

budget of 155 million. The jury selected 20 projects
that will be pitched before a panel of eleven investors
(sales agents, distributors, financiers, etc.). Producers
and investors will interact during the pitching sessions
and pre-organized one-on-one meetings. The panel will
then select the best of these projects and the producer
will be eligible to receive an award in the amount of
3,000.

In addition to the professional and scientific conferences, and a training session for 3D filmmakers and students, 3D Stereo MEDIA also features a 3D Film Festival
and the first 3D co-production Film Market in Europe.

The 20 selected projects of the 3D Film Mart and the 20

nominated films of the 3D Film Festival are presented
in the press kit available on the website
at www.3dstereomedia.eu/press.

This year, the international reputation of 3D Stereo MEDIA is bearing fruit. Indeed, the International 3D Society (Hollywood, California) chose our event to organize
jointly their European 3D Creative Arts Awards. These
prizes reward the best film and television productions in
3D in Europe, the Middle-East and North Africa.

The Royal Opera House will host the Awards Ceremony

of 3D Stereo MEDIA, where prizes will be awarded to the
best productions for the 3D Film Festival, the best scientific contribution, the best pitch for the 3D Film Mart, as
well as the AWEX prize1. The first part of the ceremony
will then be followed by the Lumiere Statuettes handed
out by the I3DS European Committee. A random member
of the audience will then be called onstage to receive a
voucher for a trip for two to Hollywood. All those who
which to participate simply need to visit the website
www.hollywoodaliege.be and follow the instructions.

For the fourth year, the 3D Film Festival will also be held
in the framework of 3D Stereo MEDIA. This year again,
Ben Stassen will be the president of the jury. Over sixty
S-3D movies were submitted to the Film Festival. Twenty
S-3D movies have been nominated in six categories. The
now famous Perrons Crystal will be handed out to the
winners of each category during the Awards Ceremony
on 6 December at 8:30pm (Royal Opera House of Lige).
The 3D Film Mart has been developed for 3D Stereo MEDIA by TWIST and peacefulfish. It is mainly funded by the
regional government of Wallonia, and by the MEDIA Programme of the European Commission (EC) which gives
it wide visibility and a significant notoriety in Europe
and beyond. For this second edition, we have received

3D Stereo MEDIA is now recognized as the most comprehensive event dedicated exclusively to ALL forms of
3D imaging (stereoscopic, holographic, integral...). 3D
Stereo MEDIA aims to encourage interaction between
3D artists, scientists, engineers and businessmen.
Press kit : www.3dstereomedia.eu/press
Contact: Alain Gallez c/o Eventis
+32 (0)4 233 62 97 alain@3dstereomedia.eu

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THE
COMPANY
YOU KEEP
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Jim about the arrest. Billy is surprised and disappointed that Jim doesnt want to take Sharons case, and he
conveys this information to Ben when Ben questions
him. Ben pursues Jim and tries to question him, but
Jim tells him to get lost.

Redford plays Grant, the reporter is Shia LaBeouf

(Ben), and Susan Sarandon and Julie Christie (Mimi)
play former Weather Underground members. Terrence Howard and Anna Kendrick play the FBI agents
on the case, and Brendan Gleeson is the retired Michigan Chief of Police who had first investigated the
bank robbery. The film also features Sam Elliott, Nick
Nolte, Brit Marling, and Stanley Tucci, among others.

Spooked by the investigation, Jim takes his 11-yearold daughter, Isabel (Jackie Evancho), and drives to a
bus station at the Canadian border; there, he buys bus
tickets to Toronto. He tells Isabel that they are taking
a little trip. A neighbor has filed a missing persons
report. Ben tells the FBI about the report and that a
middle-aged man matching Jims description bought
bus tickets to Toronto. Ben has also found out that
Mimi Lurie (Julie Christie), an accomplice in the Michigan bank robbery, was last seen in Canada.

The film premiered on September 6, 2012, at the 69th

Venice International Film Festival and then played at
the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival on September 9, 2012.Sony Pictures Classics has agreed to
distribute the film in the United States, and StudioCanal has acquired the United Kingdom distribution
rights. The film is expected to be released in the U.S.
in March 2013.
The story centeres on a recently widowed single father, Jim Grant (Robert Redford), is a former Weather
Underground militant wanted for a Michigan bank
robbery and the murder of the banks security guard
(an off-duty police officer) in the 1970s. He has been
in hiding from the FBI for over thirty years, becoming
an attorney in Albany, New York. When Sharon Solarz
(Susan Sarandon), another former Weather Underground member, is arrested, an ambitious young reporter, Ben Shepard (Shia LaBeouf ), is assigned to the
story by his prickly editor, Ray Fuller (Stanley Tucci).
Bens ex-girlfriend, Diana (Anna Kendrick), is an FBI
agent.
He presses her for information about the case. She
tells him that Sharon came to town to visit Billy Cusimano (Stephen Root), an old hippie who runs an organic grocery. Billy, a friend and client of Jims, tells

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A private investigator tells Ben that Jim had no Social

Security number prior to 1978. Ben tells the FBI to
check Jims fingerprints against Nick Sloan, another
fugitive from the robbery. Meanwhile, Jim and Isabel
arrive at a New York City bus station. They go sightseeing and check into a fancy hotel. The manhunt for
Jim is now national news.
In early reviews from the Venice Film Festival, Variety
called the film an unabashedly heartfelt but competent tribute to 1960s idealism ... in its stolid, old-fashioned way, it satisfies an appetite, especially among
mature auds, for dialogue- and character-driven drama that gets into issues without getting too bogged
down in verbiage. ...
Time wrote: With a welcome mixture of juice and
grit, the movie dramatizes the lingering conundrums
of young people in the time of the Vietnam morass. ...
[The film] is streaked with melancholy: a disappointment that the second American Revolution never
came. ... Nonetheless, this is a pulsating drama of a
man who goes on an intricate, often interior journey
to outrun his past.After seeing the film in Toronto,
NPRs Linda Holmes called the story undercooked
and thought that it all seems to have been a lot of
noise and running for nothing.

24

he Company You Keep is a 2012 political action thriller, produced and directed by Robert
Redford. The script was written by Lem Dobbs
based on the 2003 novel of the same name
by Neil Gordon. Produced by Nicolas Chartier
(Voltage Pictures), Redford and Bill Holderman, the
movie filmed in Vancouver in autumn 2011

Universal Film
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LIFE OF PI

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The film is about a 16-year old boy named Piscine

Molitor Pi Patel, who gets stranded in a lifeboat
after a shipwreck in which his family dies, with a
Bengal tiger named Richard Parker. The film received positive reviews from critics.
Pi Patel, an immigrant from India living in Canada,
is approached by a local novelist who has been
referred to him by his uncle (a family friend),
believing that Pis life story would make a great
book. Pi relates an extended tale:
He is named Piscine Molitor by his parents after
a swimming pool in France. He changes his name
to Pi when he begins secondary school, because
he is tired of being taunted with the nickname
Pissing Patel. His family owns a local zoo, and

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Pi takes a curious interest in the animals, especially a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker (after
a clerical error); to teach him the reality of the tigers nature as a carnivore, Pis father forces him
to witness it killing a goat. He is raised Hindu and
vegetarian, but at 12 years old, he is introduced
to Christianity and then Islam, and starts to follow
all three religions (as an adult he states that he is
Catholic-Hindu, and when asked if he is also Jewish, he replies that he lectures in Kabbalah at the
university).
When he is 16 (and experiencing first love), his father decides to close the zoo and move to Canada,
transferring the animals in the zoo in the process.
They book passage for themselves and their animals (to be sold in North America) on a Japanese
freighter named the Tsimtsum. The ship encounters a heavy storm and begins to sink while Pi is
on deck marveling at it. He tries to find his family, but is thrown overboard with a lifeboat, and
watches helplessly as the ship sinks, killing his
family and its crew.

26

ife of Pi is a 2012 American adventure drama film based on Yann Martels 2001 novel
of the same name. Directed by Ang Lee, the
film is based on an adapted screenplay by
David Magee, and stars Suraj Sharma, Irrfan Khan,
Grard Depardieu, Tabu, and Adil Hussain. Visual
effects are by Rhythm & Hues Studios.

Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

Monster in Paris (French: Un monstre

Paris) is a French CGI and 3D animated
feature directed by Bibo Bergeron. The
story begins by documenting the flooding of the
River Seine of 1910, of which the film is also set.
Emile, a shy projectionist, has a passion for film
and romantic interests for his collaborator of
the cinema, Maud, but has trouble admitting his
true feelings. His friend, an exuberant inventor and delivery driver, Raoul, is picking him up
from work to transport him in his crafted vehicle,
named Catherine, to assist in retrieving a new
belt for his projector, due to a mishap with him
daydreaming. In the process of purchasing a new
belt, he also gets himself a new camera. The story
also introduces Lucille (Vanessa Paradis), a childhood friend of Raoul, and cabaret singer at the
club LOiseau Rare (The Rare Bird). As Paris is
diverse in the category of the rich and the poor,
though she is a successful singer, her aunt Carlotta does everything to push her into the arms

of the Police commissioner, Maynott, a man devoured by pride and ambition.

On a particular evening, Raoul, accompanied by
Emile, is making a delivery to the Botanical Gardens. In the absence of the Professor who works
there, the place is guarded by his assistant, a proboscis monkey named Charles. Appreciating the
opportunity to browse through the laboratory,
Raoul experiments with an Atomize-a-Tune
mixture which temporarily gives Charles the
voice of an opera singer and an unstable super
fertilizer which grows a sunflower seed into a giant sunflower in the blink of an eye. Due to the
enormity of the plant in a small amount of water, it starts to topple towards Raoul and Emile.
In the ensuing chaos, an explosion occurs due to
the mixing of the two chemicals. Everyone comes
out unscathed, but Emile is convinced he has
glimpsed a monstrous creature which is recorded
on camera. The next day, the creature is featured
in the newspapers

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28

A MONSTER
IN PARIS

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LONDON CRITICS
CIRCLE FILM AWARDS
JOIN WITH MISSING PEOPLE
ANNOUNCE 2013 DATE

ritains leading film critics have today announced that

their 33rd awards ceremony will be held to benefit the
charity Missing People. The awards will be presented on
20 January 2013 at BFI Southbank, with the event expected to
attract a host of well-known British and international film talent. The awards are presented by the Film Section of The Critics Circle, which celebrates its centenary in 2013. This years
ceremony will also launch Missing Peoples 20th anniversary
as a lifeline when someone disappears.

Since the first edition in 1980, the London Critics Circle Film
Awards have become an anticipated and respected fixture in
the annual film calendar. The awards are unique in that they
represent the opinions of the UKs leading film critics and are
held in aid of a charity. In recent years guests and award winners have included Daniel Craig, Quentin Tarantino, Cate Blanchett, Michael Caine, Sienna Miller, Martin Scorsese, Vanessa
Redgrave, Emma Thompson, Marion Cotillard, Kate Winslet and
Lord Attenborough.
This years ceremony drew a star-studded red carpet with
guests including Michael Fassbender, Jean Dujardin, Carey
Mulligan, Kenneth Branagh, Olivia Colman and iconic filmmaker Nicolas Roeg, who was presented with the Dilys Powell
Award by Donald Sutherland. Winning films included international hits The Artist and A Separation, both of which went on
to receive further acclaim at the BAFTA and Academy Awards.
British films were also strongly represented with other awardwinners including We Need to Talk About Kevin,Shame, Senna,
Weekend, Tyrannosaur, The Iron Lady and Tinker Tailor Soldier
Spy.
Chairman of The Critics Circle Film Section, Jason Solomons,
comments: I am delighted that we are working with Missing
People to present this years ceremony and raise the profile of
this charity, which does important work on behalf of missing
children and adults and their families.
The London Critics Circle Film Awards stand out from the
crowd they are a part of the awards calendar and conversation

by Tyrone D Murphy

and they also highlight film achievements that may be overlooked by other awards events. And I am also delighted that our
event will be staged at BFI Southbanks legendary venue for a
third year, cementing our awards position at the very heart of
British film culture, heritage and industry.
Chairman of Missing People, John Reiss, adds: We are immensely grateful to the Critics Circle for making us the charity
beneficiary of their prestigious Film Awards, an occasion which
will mark the start of our 20th anniversary. Missing People is
a 24/7 lifeline when someone disappears. We are a lifeline at
2am when a frightened teenager rings from the streets. We are
a lifeline to the family of the elderly father who has not been
seen since he went to the shops. We are a small charity but
punch way above our weight in responding to situations such
as these.
About The Critics Circle
Established in 1913, The Critics Circle is the oldest organisation of its kind in the world, with more than 400 members who
work in the UK media as critics of drama, art and architecture,
music, film and dance. The Film Section has more than 120 voting members working as film critics, journalists and broadcasters, and has presented its awards annually since 1980. www.
criticscircle.org.uk
About Missing People
An estimated 250,000 people go missing each year in the UK.
The youngest of those can face physical and sexual abuse
while 1 in 4 missing adults end up sleeping rough. Missing
People has a team on hand 24 hours a day, providing a confidential free lifeline when someone disappears. The charity
also coordinates a UK wide search network of volunteers, community and media partners. For every 1 donated the charity
delivers 2 of value, enabling the safe reconnection of 1,051
missing people last year. www.missingpeople.org.uk

all contact - www.premiercomms.com

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Coleen Moore

STAR OF THE SILENT ERA

past the Howey residence (they occupied at least two

residences between 1910 and 1916: 4161 Sheridan and
4942 Sheridan). In interviews later in her silent film career, Moore claimed she had appeared in the background
of several Essanay films, usually as a face in a crowd. One
story has it she had gotten into the Essanay studios and
waited in line to be an extra with Helen Ferguson: in an
interview with Kevin Brownlow many years later Ferguson told a story that substantially confirmed many details of the claim, though it is not certain if she was referring to Moores stints as a background extra (if she really
was one) or to her film test there prior to her departure
for Hollywood in November 1917.

Born Kathleen Morrison on August 19,

1902 in Port Huron, Michigan, Miss Moore
was the eldest child of Charles R. and Agnes Morrison. The family remained in Port
Huron during the early years of Moores
life, at first living with her grandmother
Mary Kelly and then with at least one of Moores aunts.

The contract to Griffiths Triangle-Fine Arts was conditional on passing a film test to ensure that her heterochromia (she had one brown eye, one blue eye) would
not be a distraction in close-up shots. Her eyes passed
the test, so she left for Hollywood with her grandmother
and her mother as chaperones. Moore made her first
credited film appearance in 1917 in The Bad Boy for
Triangle Fine Arts, and for the next few years appeared
in small, supporting roles gradually attracting the attention of the public.

Two great passions of young Moores were dolls and movies; each would play a great role in her later life. She and
The Bad Boy was released on February 18, and featured
her brother began their own stock company, reputedly
Robert Harron, Richard Cummings, Josephine Crowperforming on a stage created from a piano packing
ell, and Mildred Harris. Two months later it was
crate. She admired the faces she saw on the silver
followed by An Old Fashioned Young Man, again
screen and on magazine covers. She had resolved
with Robert Harron. Moores third film was Hands
Coleen
at a young age that she would be not only an acUp! filmed in part in the vicinity of the Seven
starred in
tress, but a star.
Oaks This was her first true western. The films
over 50
scenario was written by Wilfred Lucas from a
movies
Her aunts, who doted on her, indulged her other
story by Al Jennings, the famous outlaw who
great passion and often bought her miniature
had been freed from jail by presidential pardon
furniture on their many trips, with which she furby Theodore Roosevelt in 1907. Monte Blue was in
nished the first of a succession of doll houses. Another
the cast and noticed Moore could not mount her horse,
one of her passions was to get married. She didnt have
though horseback riding was required for the part. Blue
the best luck; Moore was married four times. Her first
gave her a quick lesson essentially consisting of how to
marriage was to John McCormick of First National Stumount the horse and how to hold on for dear life. He
dios. Moores second marriage was to Albert P. Scott;
also suggested she go out and get lessons. In a climactic
this marriage was short. She married Homer Hargrave in
scene she was locked in a closet and was able to scream
1936; he provided funding for her dollhouse. After Harher head off for the camera.
grave died in 1964, Moore took many years to get over
her grief. In 1982 Moore married her final husband, Paul
On May 3, 1917, the Chicago Daily Tribune said: Colleen
Maginot.
Moore contributes some remarkable bits of acting. She
is very sweet as she goes trustingly to her bandit hero,
The family summered in Chicago, where Moore enjoyed
and, O, so pitiful, when finally realizing the character of
baseball and the company of her Aunt Lib (Elizabeth,
the man, she goes into an hysteria of terror, and, shriekwho changed her name to Liberty, Lib for short) and
ing Daddy, Daddy, Daddy! beats futilely on a bolted
Libs husband Walter Howey. Howey was the managing
door, a panic stricken little human animal, who had not
editor of the Chicago Examiner and an important newsknown before that there was aught but kindness in the
paper editor in the publishing empire of William Ranworld. About the time her first six-month contract was
dolph Hearst, and was the inspiration for Walter Burns,
extended an additional six months, she requested and
the fictional Chicago newspaper editor in the play and
received a five weeks release to do a film for Universals
the film The Front Page.
Bluebird division, released under the name The Savage.
This was her fourth film, and she was only needed for
At the time, Chicago was the center of the motion picture
two weeks.
industry in America. Essanay Studios was within walking
distance of the Northwestern L, which ran right
Soon after, the Triangle Company went bust, and while

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Little Orphant Annie was released in

December. The Chicago Daily Tribune wrote of Moore, She was a lovely and unspoiled child the last time
I saw her. Lets hope commendation
hasnt turned her head. Despite her
good notices, her luck took a turn
for the worse when Selig Polyscope
went bust. Once again Moore found
herself unemployed, but she had begun to make a name for herself by
1919. She had a series of films lined
up: She went to Flagstaff, Arizona
for location work on The Wilderness
Trail, another western, this time with
Tom Mix. Her mother went along as
chaperon. Moore wrote that while
she had a crush on Mix, he only had
eyes for her mother.
The Wilderness Trail was a Fox Film
Corporation production, and while
it had started production earlier, it
would not be released until after
The Busher, which was released on
May 18. The Busher was an H. Ince
Productions-Famous
Players-Lasky
production; it was a baseball film
wherein the hero was played by Jack
(later John) Gilbert. The Wilderness
Trail followed on July 6, another
Fox film. A few weeks later The Man
in the Moonlight, a Universal Film
Manufacturing Company film was
released on July 28. The Egg Crate
Wallop was a Famous Players-Lasky
production released by Paramount
Pictures on September 28.
The next stage of her career was
with the Christie Film Company, a
move she made when she decided
she needed comic training. This was
in 1920, and it was a good move
because it allowed her to work on
her comic timing, and because the
arrangement she had made with Al
Christie allowed her to go out and
look for other work while with the
comic troupe. While with Christie,

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g g

she made Her Bridal Nightmare, A

Roman Scandal, and So Long Letty.
At the same time as she was working on these films, she worked on
The Devils Claim with Sessue Hayakawa, in which she played a Persian
woman, When Dawn Came, and His
Nibs with Chic Sales. All the while,
Marshall Neilan had been attempting to get Moore released from her
contract so she could work for him.
He was successful and made Dinty
with Moore, releasing near the end
of 1920, followed by When Dawn
Came.
For all his efforts to win Moore
away from Christie, it seems Neilan
farmed her out most of the time.
He loaned her out to King Vidor for
The Sky Pilot, released in May 1921,
yet another Western. After working
on The Sky Pilot on location in the
snows of Truckee, she was off to Catalina Island for work on The Lotus
Eater with John Barrymore. While it
is popularly believed the work on
this film was done in Florida, it was
in fact shot on location on Catalina
Island. From there she was off to
New York for more location work,
then back to California where Neilan
put her to work in Slippy McGee.
In October 1921, His Nibs was released, her only film to be released
that year besides The Sky Pilot. In
His Nibs, Moore actually appeared
in a film within the film; the framing
film was a comedy vehicle for Chic
Sales. The film it framed was a spoof
on films of the time. 1922 proved to
be an eventful year for Moore as she
was named a WAMPAS Baby Star during a frolic at the Ambassador Hotel which became an annual event,
in recognition of her growing popularity. In early 1922, Come On Over
was released, made from a Rupert
Hughes story and directed by Alfred
E. Green. Hughes directed Moore
himself in The Wallflower, released
that same year. In addition, Neilan
introduced her to John McCormick
(18931961), a publicity man who
had had his eye on Moore ever since
he had first seen her photograph. He
had prodded Marshall into an introduction. The two hit it off, and before
long they were engaged. By the end
of that year three more of her films
were released: Forsaking All Others,
The Ninety and Nine, and Broken
Chains.
Look Your Best and The Nth Commandment were released in early

1923, followed by two Cosmopolitan

Productions, The Nth Commandment
and Through the Dark. By this time
she had publicly confirmed her engagement to McCormick, a fact that
she had been coy about to the press
previously. Before mid-year, she had
signed a contract with First National
Pictures, and her first two films were
slated to be The Huntress and Flaming Youth. Slippy McGee came out in
June, followed by Broken Hearts of
Broadway.
Moore and John McCormick married
while Flaming Youth was still in production, and just before the release
of The Savage. When it was finally
released in 1923, Flaming Youth,
in which she starred opposite actor
Milton Sills was a hit. The controversial story put Moore in focus as a
flapper but after Clara Bow took the
stage in Black Oxen in December,
she gradually lost her momentum.
In spring 1924 she made a good,
but unsuccessful effort to top Bow
in The Perfect Flapper, and soon after she dismissed the whole flapper
vogue; No more flappers...people
are tired of soda-pop love affairs.
Decades later Moore stated Bow was
her chief rival.
Through the Dark, originally shot
under the name Daughter of Mother McGinn was released during the
height of the Flaming Youth furor
in January 1924. Three weeks later,
Painted People was released. After
that, she was to star in Counterfeit.
The film went through a number of
title changes before being released
as Flirting with Love in August. In
October, First National purchased
the rights to Sally for Moores next
film. It would be a challenge, as Sally
was a musical comedy. In December,
First National purchased the rights
to Desert Flower, and in so doing
had mapped out Moores schedule
for 1925: Sally, would be filmed first,
followed by The Desert Flower.
By the late 1920s, she had accomplished dramatic roles in films such
as So Big, where Moore aged through
a stretch of decades and was also
well received in light comedies
such as Irene. An overseas tour was
planned to coincide with the releases of So Big in Europe, and Moore
saw the tour as her first real opportunity to spend time with her husband John. Both she and John were
dedicated to their careers, and the

34

her contract was honored, she found

herself scrambling to find her next
job. With a reel of her performance
in Hands Up! under her arm. Colin
Campbell arranged for her to get
a contract for her with Selig Polyscope. She was very likely at work
on A Hoosier Romance before The
Savage was released in November.
After A Hoosier Romance, she went
to work on Little Orphant Annie..
Both films were based upon poems
by James Whitcomb Riley, and both
proved to be very popular. It was her
first real taste of popularity.

Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

hectic schedules they had kept them

from spending any quality time together. Moore wanted a family; it
was one of her goals.
Plans for the trip were put in jeopardy when she injured her neck
while filming The Desert Flower. Her
injury forced the production to shut
down while Moore spent six weeks
in a body cast in bed. Once out of
the cast she completed the film and
left for Europe on a triumphal tour.
When she returned, she negotiated a
new contract with First National. Her
films had been great hits, and so her
terms were very generous. Her first
film upon her return to the States
was We Moderns, set in England
with location work done in London
during the tour. It was a comedy, essentially a retelling of Flaming Youth
from an English perspective. This
was followed by Irene and Ella Cinders, a straight comedy that featured
a cameo appearance by comedian
Harry Langdon.
It Must Be Love was a romantic comedy with dramatic undertones, and
it was followed by Twinkletoes, a
dramatic film that featured Moore
as a young dancer in Londons Limehouse district during the previous
century. Orchids and Ermine was released in 1927, filmed in part in New
York, a thinly veiled Cinderella story.
In 1927 Moore split from her studio
after her husband suddenly quit.
It is rumoured that John was about
to be fired for his drinking, and that
she left as a means of leveraging her
husband back into a position at First
National. It worked, and John found
himself as Colleens sole producer.
Moores popularity allowed her productions to become very large and
lavish. Lilac Time was one of the bigger productions of the era, a World
War One drama. A million dollar
film, it made back every penny spent
within months. Prior to the release
of Lilac Time, Warner Bros. had taken
control of First National, and were
less than interested in maintaining
the terms of her contract until the
numbers started to roll in for Lilac
Time. The film was such a hit that
Moore managed to retain generous
terms in her next contract and her
husband John as her producer.
In 1928, inspired by her father and
with help from her former set de-

signer, a dollhouse was constructed by her father, which was 9 feet

square with the tallest tower 12 feet
high. The interior of The Colleen
Moore Dollhouse, designed by Harold Grieve, features miniature bear
skin rugs and detailed furniture and
art. Moores dollhouse has been a
featured exhibit at the Museum of
Science and Industry in Chicago, Illinois since the early 1950s, where,
according to the museum it is seen
by 1.5 million people each year.
Moore continued working on it, and
contributing artefacts to it, until her
death.
With the advent of talking pictures
in 1929, Moore took a hiatus from
acting. After divorcing McCormack
in 1930, Moore was briefly married
(193234) to a prominent New Yorkbased stockbroker, Albert Parker
Scott, one of her four husbands. She
and Scott lived at that time in a lavish home in Bel Air, where they hosted parties for and were supporters
of the U.S. Olympic team, especially
the yachting team, during the 1932
Summer Olympics held in Los Angeles.
In 1934, Moore, by then divorced,
returned to work in Hollywood. She
appeared in three films, none of
which was successful, and Moore retired. Her last film was a version of
The Scarlet Letter in 1934. She later
married the widower Homer Hargrave and raised his children (she
never had children of her own) from
a previous marriage, with whom she
maintained a lifelong close relationship. Throughout her life she also
maintained close friendships with
other colleagues from the silent film
era, such as King Vidor and Mary
Pickford.

cessful real estate broker in Chicago

after her film career.
Many of Colleen Moores films deteriorated but not due to her own neglect, after she had sent them to be
preserved at the Museum of Modern
Art. Sometime later, Warner Brothers
asked for their nitrate materials to
be returned to them. Moores earlier
First National films were also sent,
since Warners later acquired First
National. Upon their arrival, the custodian at MOMA, not seeing the films
on the manifest, put them to one side
and never went back to them. Many
years later, Moore inquired about
her collection and MOMA found
the films languishing unprotected.
When the films were examined, they
had decomposed past the point of
preservation. Heartbroken, she tried
in vain to retrieve any prints she
could from several sources without
much success.
At the height of her fame, Moore was
earning $12,500 per week. She was
an astute investor, and through her
investments remained wealthy for
the rest of her life. In her later years
she would frequently attend film
festivals, and was a popular interview subject always willing to discuss her Hollywood career. She was
a participant in the 1980 documentary film series Hollywood, providing her recollections of Hollywoods
silent film era.

In the 1960s, she formed a television production company with King

Vidor with whom she had worked in
the 1920s. She also published two
books in the late 1960s, her autobiography Silent Star: Colleen Moore
Talks About Her Hollywood (1968)
and How Women Can Make Money
in the Stock Market (1969). She
also figures prominently alongside
of King Vidor in Sidney D. Kirkpatricks book, A Cast of Killers, which
recounts Vidors attempt to make a
film of and solve the murder of William Desmond Taylor. In that book,
she is recalled as having been a suc-

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Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

Developing
films within the
Film Community
by Kevin Murphy
Filmcontact.com has just announced the launch of
Film Projects, an innovative way to develop films
by harnessing the collective talents of professional
filmmakers to move projects forward as a community.
Lilian Baksalevowicz, the founder of FilmContact.
com, says that this fresh concept is based on the
trend of crowd sourcing and aims to get the film
industry involved to offer their services at a discounted rate that will take new projects to the level where completion finance can be attained from
traditional channels.
Filmmakers can add their film project to the system and specify the crew, equipment and services
they need. In turn members can show their interest
to the project with their offer of a special deal.
Another source of income is product placement,
where the project creator can specify which products in the film can be branded. For example, if a
scene requires a hotel, establishments in the area
of the shoot can invest in turn for brand exposure.
The embedded advertising possibilities are endless, says Lilian. The project creator just has to
look through their script and every product can be
bartered for fees or a film credit.
To view new projects, continue to www.filmcontact.com/projects
This original concept fulfills the need to keep production levels stable in a slowing economy and at
the same time bring new projects to the forefront
with the professional support from the industry.
FilmContact.com has been the industry source for
news and jobs for over eight years and we have
the largest database of professional South African filmmakers to pull the resources together,
says Lilian. We intend to promote the system on
an international scale. We are most excited by the
industrys response in the last couple of days and
look forward to bringing this collaboration as an
innovative way to make films.
To add a new project, just login to www.filmcontact.com and Add my Project for immediate exposure and awareness to the industry.

37

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Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

REAL LIFE
STORIES OF
STRUGGLE
AND COURAGE
FROM
AROUND
THE WORLD

To Say GoodBye
by Matt Richards
August 2012. I was working on a TV
series in the UK when I received an
excited phone call from my producer and co-writer, Izaskun Arandia,
saying that our animated documentary To Say Goodbye had been accepted into the 2012 San Sebastian
International Film Festival. Whats
more, it was in competition for the
prestigious Serbitzu Award.
This was our first feature-film and
our first Festival entry, so the news
was fantastic, especially for Izaskun
who is from San Sebastian and had
been attending the festival for
20-years as a film fan.

THIS IS OMAR, A TEENAGE

REFUGEE FROM SOMALIA.

A LIFE ON HOLD

IS A NEW FILM ABOUT

OMARS LIFE IN A REFUGEE
CAMP IN TUNISIA.
WATCH AT
AMNESTY.ORG/REFUGEES

CHILDREN OF
THE JAGUAR

AN INDIGENOUS COMMUNITY IN
THE AMAZON JUNGLE TAKE ON
THE COMBINED MIGHT OF THE
GOVERNMENT AND AN OIL
COMPANY IN ORDER TO SAVE
THEIR WAY OF LIFE AND THE
RAINFOREST THEY LIVE IN.

WATCH AT
BIT.LY/JAGUAR-TRAILER

However, my elation was soon tempered by the fact that the film was
only two-thirds finished and work
on the sound design hadnt even
started. We literally had six weeks
to the Premiere and significantly
less than that to satisfy the Festivals entry demands. While Izaskun
worked tirelessly around the clock
to ensure everyone remained reassured even if she wasnt - I set
about completing the film.
Somehow, we managed to complete
the animation by the end of August
and in early-September I flew to
San Sebastian to work on the sound.
By this stage, Izaskun had managed to get a poster designed and
printed, set up a website and managed to persuade key characters in
our film to attend the Premiere. Not
only that, she had employed a press
team who had arranged interviews,
photocalls and TV appearances for
us during the Festival, and she had
also secured a host of sponsors for
our post-screening party and had
even invited Tommy Lee Jones and
Ewan McGregor!

With barely a week to go until the

Festival, our film was completed
and delivered. But if we thought
our work was done, then we were in
for a surprise as, during the Festival,
we were thrown into an intense period of screenings, speeches, interviews, functions, and media work
as well as numerous meetings with
exhibitors and distributors keen to
learn more about our film.
It was exhausting as we were shuttled between hotels to attend press
conferences or hold TV or radio interviews. But this exhaustion soon
disappeared when we discovered
our three screenings had sold out
within 24-hours.
By the time our Premiere arrived,
we were running on adrenaline
alone. We had given the film all we
could to get it made, publicized and
promoted, and our Festival schedule had literally been 24-hours a
day of work, work, work.
But the whole experience, despite
the stress and exhaustion, was fantastic and a real privilege and made
us realize that Festivals are a crucial
platform for getting feature films
the exposure they need after so
much hard work.
We might not have won the Award,
but to see a packed-out audience
watch your film and hear their applause at the end as the real-life
participants were introduced to the
crowd made it all worthwhile and
something well both never forget.
To Say Goodbye
www.tosaygoodbyethemovie.com

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38

Find out more:

avproduction@amnesty.org

Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

MAUREEN OHARA

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Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

SCREEN LEDGEND...

Her mother, a former operatic contralto, was

a successful womens clothier. OHara was
raised as, and still is, a Roman Catholic. Her
siblings were Peggy, the oldest, and younger
Charles, Florrie, Margot and Jimmy. Peggy
dedicated her life to a religious order, the Sisters of Charity, and the younger children all
went on to receive training at the Abbey Theatre and the Ena Mary Burke School of Drama
and Elocution in Dublin. OHaras dream at
this time was to be a stage actress. She was
first educated at the John Street West Girls
School near Thomas Street in Dublins Liberties Area. From the age of 617 she trained in
drama, music and dance, and at the age of 10
joined the Rathmines Theatre Company and
worked in amateur theatre in the evenings,
after her lessons.
OHaras father was a very practical man and
did not entirely support her theatrical aspirations. He insisted she learn a skill so that she
would have something to fall back on to earn
a living in case her experience in the performing arts was not successful. She enrolled
in a business school and became a proficient
bookkeeper and typist. Those skills proved
helpful many years later when she was able
to take and transcribe production notes dic-

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tated by John Ford for the screen adaptation

of Maurice Walshs short story The Quiet
Man.
She did well in her Abbey training and was
given an opportunity for a screen test in London. The studio adorned her in a gold lam
dress with flapping sleeves like wings and
heavy make-up with an ornate hair style.
Reportedly, her thoughts concerning the
incident were, If this is the movies, I want
nothing to do with them! The screen test
was deemed to be far from satisfactory;
however, actor Charles Laughton later saw
the test and, despite the overdone makeup
and costume, was intrigued, paying particular notice to her large and expressive eyes.
Laughton subsequently asked his business
partner Erich Pommer to see the film clip.
Pommer agreed with Laughton and OHara
was offered an initial seven-year contract
with their new company, Mayflower Pictures. Her first major film was Jamaica
Inn (1939) directed by Alfred Hitchcock.
Laughton was so pleased with OHaras
performance that he cast her in the role
of Esmeralda opposite him in The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939), which was to
be filmed at RKO Studios in Hollywood that
same year.
After the successful completion of Hunchback, World War II began, and Laughton,
realizing their studio could no longer film
in London, sold OHaras contract to RKO.
That studio cast her in low-budget films
until she was rescued by director John
Ford, who cast her as Angharad in How
Green Was My Valley, which won the 1941

40

aureen OHara was born as Maureen FitzSimons on Beechwood

Avenue in the Dublin suburb of
Ranelagh. She was the second
oldest of the six children of Charles
Stewart Parnell FitzSimons and Marguerita
Lilburn FitzSimons. Her father was in the
clothing business and also bought into Shamrock Rovers Football Club, a team OHara has
supported since childhood.

Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

Academy Award for Best Picture.

Six years later, in 1947, she made
what is perhaps her best-remembered film, starring as Doris Walker
and the mother of a young Natalie
Wood in 20th Century Foxs Miracle
on 34th Street, which, despite being released in May, has become a
perennial Christmas classic, with a
traditional network television airing
every Thanksgiving Day on NBC. The
film also helped to further establish
OHaras career after the film garnered several awards, including an
Academy Award Nomination for Best
Picture.
In addition to her acting skills, OHara
had a soprano voice and described
singing as her first love. The studio
heads never capitalized on her musical talent, as she was already big box
office in other genres of film. However, she was able to channel her love
of singing through television. In the
late 50s and early 60s, she was a
guest on musical variety shows with
Perry Como, Andy Williams, Betty
Grable and Tennessee Ernie Ford.
In 1960, she starred on Broadway
in the musical Christine which ran
for 12 performances. That year she
released two successful recordings,
Love Letters from Maureen OHara
and Maureen OHara Sings her Favorite Irish Songs. Love Letters from
Maureen OHara has been released
on CD in Japan and is now out of
print.
She is often remembered for her onscreen chemistry with John Wayne.
They made five films together between 1948 and 1972: Rio Grande,
The Quiet Man, The Wings of Eagles,
McLintock! and Big Jake. A clip of
OHaras radiant face as she waves
from a gate in John Fords Academy
Award-winning How Green Was My
Valley, remains one of the most classic images preserved on film, and is
often featured as a clip in montages
and promotions.
In 1939, OHara secretly married
Englishman George H. Brown, a film
producer, production assistant and
occasional scriptwriter whose best
known work is the first of Margaret
Rutherfords 1960s Miss Marple mysteries, Murder She Said. The marriage
was annulled in 1941. Later that year,
OHara married American film director William Houston Price but the

union ended in 1953, reportedly as a

result of his alcohol abuse. They had
one child in 1944, a daughter named
Bronwyn FitzSimons Price. Bronwyn
has one son, Conor Beau FitzSimons,
who was born on September 8, 1970.
From 1953 until 1967 OHara had a
relationship with Enrique Parra, a
Mexican politician and banker. She
wrote in her autobiography; Enrique
saved me from the darkness of an
abusive marriage and brought me
back into the warm light of life again.
Leaving him was one of the most
painful things I have ever had to do.
She married her third husband,
Charles F. Blair, Jr., on March 12,
1968. Blair was a pioneer of transatlantic aviation, a former Brigadier
General of the U.S. Air Force, and a
former Chief Pilot at Pan Am. A few
years after her marriage to Blair,
OHara for the most part retired from
acting. Blair died in 1978 when an
engine of a Grumman Goose he was
flying from St. Croix to St. Thomas
exploded. She was elected CEO and
President of Antilles Airboats with
the added distinction of being the
first woman president of a scheduled
airline in the U.S. Later she sold the
airline with the permission of the
shareholders.
For her contributions to the motion
picture industry, OHara has a star on
the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7004
Hollywood Blvd. In 1993, she was inducted into the Western Performers
Hall of Fame at the National Cowboy
& Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
In 2004, OHara released her autobiography Tis Herself, co-authored
with Johnny Nicoletti and published
by Simon & Schuster. In the same
year, she was honored with a Lifetime
Achievement Award from the Irish
Film and Television Academy in her
native Dublin.
In 2006, OHara attended the Grand
Reopening and Expansion of the Flying Boats Museum in Foynes, Limerick, Ireland, as a patron of the museum. A significant portion of the
museum is dedicated to her late
husband Charles. OHara donated her
late husbands seaplane (a Sikorsky
VS-44A) The Queen of the Skies to
the New England Air Museum. The
restoration of the plane took 8 years
and time was donated by former

pilots and mechanics in honour of

Charles Blair. It is the only surviving
example of this type of plane.
In 2011, Maureen OHara was formally inducted into the Irish America
Hall of Fame at an event in New Ross,
County Wexford, receiving letters
from Mary McAleese and Bill Clinton.
OHara remained retired from acting
until 1991, when she starred in the
film Only the Lonely, playing Rose
Muldoon, the domineering mother of
a Chicago cop played by John Candy.
Now retired, and living mainly in
Glengarriff, County Cork. In June
2011 she participated at the Maureen OHara Film Festival in Glengarriff. She was named Irish America
magazines Irish American of the
Year in 2005, with festivities held
at the Plaza Hotel in New York. She
was given the Heritage Award by the
Ireland-American Fund in 1991.
In September 2012 OHara flew to
the US after being given permission
to fly by a doctor, and is now living
with her grandson, Conor Beau Fitzsimons, in Idaho.
Achievements.
Maureen took on one more final role
in her long and eventfull career. In
2010 she became the President of
the Universal Film and Festival Organization, UFFO as it is more commonly known promotes best business
practices for film festivals and the
filmmakeing industry. Maureen remains president of the organization
to this day and when asked about her
role with UFFO she replied.
Every once in a while there is something that stands out and compels us
to notice it; I think that is what struck
me most about UFFO when it was first
brought to my attention. I am so tremendously honoured and proud to be
the President of such an international
organization that promotes ethics in
an industry I love so much

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Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

MAUREEN OHARA... FILMOGRAPHY

1938 - Kicking the Moon Around
(Character - Secretary)
Harry Richman was at Elstree and introduced me to the films director, Walter Forde. Forde asked me if I would deliver a line in the
movie. I was not a cast member and do not consider Kicking the Moon Around part of my official filmography. I only agreed to deliver
the line as a favor to Harry Richman for his having helped me with my screen test.
1938 - My Irish Molly (Character - Eileen OShea)
Laughton arranged for me to make my first picture, a low budget musical called My Irish Molly. Its the only picture that I made under my real name, Maureen FitzSimons. I was to play a young woman named Eilen OShea who helps rescue a little orphan named
Molly. Laughton wanted me to become more comfortable with both being on a movie set and being in front of the camera.
1939 - Jamaica Inn (Character - Mary Yellen)
My character was the innkeepers niece, the heroine who is torn between the love of her family and her love for a lawman in disguise. Laughton decided that the actresss name had to be changed since it was too long for the marquee and gave her the choice
between OMara and OHara.
1939 - The Hunchback of Notre Dame (Character - Esmeralda)
We began filming out in the San Fernando Valley... unfortunately, Los Angeles was having the hottest summer in its history, and
I knew from day one that it was going to be a physically demanding shoot, especially taxing on Laughton because of the heavy
makeup and costume requirements for Quasimodo. When I saw Laughton for the first time made up as Quasimodo, I almost fell over.
I took one look at him and gasped, Good God, Charles. Is that really you? He answered me with a wink and then limped off.[19]
1940 - A Bill of Divorcement (Character - Sydney Fairfield)
A remake of the 1932 film. I was cast as Sydney Fairfield, a role played by Katharine Hepburn in the earlier George Cukor version.
The screenplay was mediocre at best, and Farrow was nowhere near the caliber director Cukor was.
1940 - Dance, Girl, Dance (Character - Judy OBrien)
A comedy... I was cast as an aspiring ballerina who joins a dance troupe. Before filming started, the entire cast went right into dance
classes. Pommer hired Ernst and Ginny Matray. My ballet sequences were far more difficult than the dancing I had done in Hunchback, and I struggled to get it right. Lucille [Ball] had a much easier time of it because she was a former Ziegfeld and Goldwyn girl
and a much better dancer than I.
1941 - They Met in Argentina (Character - Lolita OShea)
RKOs response to the Betty Grable hit Down Argentine Way. I knew it was going to be a stinker; terrible script,bad director, preposterous plot, forgettable music.
1941 - How Green Was My Valley
(Character - Angharad)
An artistic collaboration began (with John Ford) that would span twenty years and five feature films. My favorite shot in the film
takes place outside the church after Angharad gets married. As I make my way down the steps to the carriage waiting below, the
wind catches my veil and fans it out in a perfect circle all the way around my face. Then it floats straight up above my head and
points to the heavens. Its breathtaking.
1942
To the Shores of Tripoli (Character - Mary Carter)
The first film I made with John Payne and also the first film I made in Technicolor. Bruce Humberstone [directed], or Lucky Stumblebum to those who couldnt understand why the quality of his pictures never seemed to match their impressive box-office receipts.
1942 - Ten Gentlemen from West Point (Character - Carolyn Bainbridge)
OHara: A forgettable film mostly because John Payne dropped out... Zanuck recast the role with George Montgomery. I found him
positively loathsome.
1942 - The Black Swan (Character - Lady Margaret Denby)
It had everything you could want in a lavish pirate picture: a magnificent ship with thundering cannons; a dashing hero battling
menacing villains (Tyrone Power, Laird Cregar, and Anthony Quinn); sword fights; fabulous costumes... working with Ty Power was
exciting. In those days, he was the biggest romantic swashbuckler in the world. But what I loved most about working with Ty Power
was his wicked sense of humor.
1943 - Immortal Sergeant (Character - Valentine Lee)
The studio publicized the love scene between OHara and Henry Fonda as Hanks last screen kiss before going to war.
1943 - This Land Is Mine (Character - Louise Martin)
OHaras last film with Charles Laughton.
1943 - The Fallen Sparrow (Character - Toni Donne)
OHara: With John Garfield, (my shortest leading man, an outspoken Communist and a real sweetheart)...

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1944 - Buffalo Bill (Character - Louisa Frederici Cody)

I didnt feel Joel McCrea was tough enough to play the lead in a western. He was a very nice man, a good actor, but not rugged like
Duke or Brian Keith. Critics mostly panned the film. I think the picture did so well with audiences because of its masterful use of
Technicolor.

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1945
The Spanish Main (Character Contessa Francesca)
OHara: Pairing me with Paul Henreid, one of my more decorative roles.
1946
Sentimental Journey (Character Julie Beck / Weatherly)
Sentimental Journey was every bit the smash hit that I thought it would be. It was a rip-your-heart-out tearjerker that reduced my
agents and the toughest brass at Fox to mush when they saw it.
1946 - Do You Love Me (Character Katherine Kitten Hilliard)
The musical Do You Love Me? was one of the worst pictures I ever made. Neither Dick Haymes nor Harry James could save it.
1947 - Sinbad the Sailor (Character Shireen)
Playing Shireen, the glamorous adventuress who helps Sinbad (Douglas Fairbanks Jr.) find the hidden treasure of Alexander the
Great. Ridiculous. The picture made a pot of money for RKO action-adventures almost always did.
The Homestretch Leslie Hale
1947 - Miracle on 34th Street (Character Doris Walker)
I have been mother to almost forty children in movies, but I always had a special place in my heart for little Natalie. She always
called me Mamma Maureen and I called her Natasha.
1947 - The Foxes of Harrow (Character Odalie)
Lilli DArceneaux With Rex Harrison and Victor McLaglen at 20th Century-Fox. Harrison and I disliked each other from the
outset. Hollywood might have called him the greatest perfectionist among actors, but I found him to be rude, vulgar, and arrogant.
1948 - Sitting Pretty (Character Tacey King)
With Robert Young... it made a fortune, even winning the Box Office Award for that year.
1949 - A Womans Secret (Character Marian Washburn)
I made no attempt to keep it a secret that I thought the story stank. Dore Schary reminded me that I still had a one-picture-a-year
obligation to RKO..
1949 - The Forbidden Street (Character Adelaide Addie Culver)
Alternative title: Britannia Mews (UK). Shot in London. The only reasons for you to watch this picture today on television are to see
Dana Andrews do a nice job in a dual role, or to watch the fine character actress Sybil Thorndike steal the picture.
1949 - Father was a Fullback (Character Elizabeth Cooper)
OHara: A comedy stinkeroo that got more yawns than laughs.
1949 - Bagdad (Character Princess Marjan)
An escapist adventure and my first picture with Universal. They called these tits and sand pictures. We shot the film on location in
the Alabama Hills of Lone Pine, California.
1950
Comanche Territory (Character Katie Howard)
The film in which I mastered the American bullwhip. By the time the picture was over, I could snap a cigarette out of someones
mouth.
1950 - Tripoli (Character Countess DArneau)
Directed by OHaras second husband, William Houston Price. To be fair, Will did a credible job of directing the picture. He managed to stay sober during the production.
1950 - Rio Grande (Character Mrs. Kathleen Yorke)
The final instalment of John Fords cavalry trilogy, based on three short stories by James Warner Bellah that Ford had read in the
Saturday Evening Post. From our very first scenes together, working with John Wayne was comfortable for me.
1951 - Flame of Araby (Character Princess Tanya)
Cast as a Tunisian princess I wasnt up to making another lousy picture and wanted to save myself for a great performance in The
Quiet Man. But Universal made their intentions known right away: Make the movie or be suspended. I had no choice but to make it.
1952 - At Swords Point
(Character Claire)
The plot of the movie is a little hard to swallow, but it was fun as hell. The sons of the original Musketeers ride to the rescue, with
just one exception. I play Claire, the daughter of Athos. Cornel Wilde was cast as my leading man, (DArtagnan). I trained rigorously
for six weeks with Fred Cavens and his son to perfect my stunt sequences.
1952 - Kangaroo (Character Dell McGuire)
An Irish immigrant, Michael McGuire (Finlay Currie), and his daughter Dell (OHara) are Australian cattle pastoralists who face poverty and death during the drought of 1900. OHara: The director Lewis Milestone rewrote Martin Berkeleys story. He destroyed a
good, straightforward western.
1952 - The Quiet Man(Character Mary Kate Danaher)
OHara: I have often said that The Quiet Man is my personal favourite of all the pictures I have made. It is the one I am most proud
of, and I tend to be very protective of it. I loved Mary Kate Danaher. I loved the hell and fire in her.
1952 - Against All Flags (Character Prudence Spitfire Stevens)
With Errol Flynn. OHara: I respected him professionally and was quite fond of him personally.

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1953 - The Redhead from Wyoming (Character - Kate Maxwell)

Another western stinkeroo for Universal. It was disappointing to be working on such a lousy picture while I was receiving praise
for such a highly regarded piece of filmmaking (The Quiet Man).
1953 - War Arrow (Character - Elaine Corwin)
A second picture with Jeff Chandler. Jeff was a real sweetheart, but acting with him was like acting with a broomstick.
1954 - Malaga
(Character - Joanna Dana)
Alternative title: Fire over Africa.
1955 - The Long Gray Line (Character - Mary ODonnell)
This was the fourth picture Id made with John Ford, and it was by far the most difficult.
1955 - The Magnificent Matador (Character Karen Harrison)
With Anthony Quinn. Critics disliked it, and found it dull.
1955 - Lady Godiva of Coventry (Character Lady Godiva)
I was not in the nude, as the studio claimed to the press. I wore a full-length body leotard and underwear that was concealed
by my long tresses.
1956 - Lisbon (Character Sylvia Merrill)
A Republic melodrama, full of mystery, international intrigue, and murder. For the first time in my career I got to play the villain,
and Bette Davis was right bitches are fun to play.
1956 - Everything But the Truth (Character Joan Madison)
A lousy comedy for Universal. John Forsythe was wonderful to work with, though.
1957
The Wings of Eagles (Character Min Wead )
The film was the true story of an old friend of John Ford, Frank Spig Wead, a naval aviator who later became a Hollywood
screenwriter after breaking his back in a nasty fall... I never worked with John Ford again.
1959
Our Man in Havana (Character Beatrice Severn)
When we arrived in Havana on April 15, 1959, Cuba was a country experiencing revolutionary change. Only four months before
, Fidel Castro and his supporters had toppled Fulgencio Batista... Che Guevara was often at the Capri Hotel.
1961
The Deadly Companions (Character Kit Tilden)
About a drifter running from his past. Sam Peckinpahs feature-film debut... Peckinpah later reached icon status as a great director of westerns, but I thought he was just awful.
1961 - The Parent Trap (Character Margaret Maggie McKendrick)
The Parent Trap wouldnt have been as special without the remarkable performances by Hayley Mills.
1962 - Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation (Character Peggy Hobbs)
OHara: A simple story about a man and his wife who take a family vacation with their children and grandchildren in an old
dilapidated house on the beach.
1963 - Spencers Mountain (Character Olivia Spencer)
On location in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. The picture is loosely based on the novel by Earl Hamner, Jr. about his life growing up
in poverty on Spencers Mountain.
1963 - McLintock! (Character Katherine Gilhooley McLintock)
There are so many great scenes in the picture. Audiences always rave about the fight sequence that takes place at the mine
dump and ends in the mud. A total of forty-two cast members took part in the brawl.
1965 - The Battle of the Villa Fiorita (Character Moira)
OHara: Late April 1964, to Italy to make the film with Rossano Brazzi. I began the picture with high hopes, but the picture
quickly turned into a disaster. Rossano Brazzi wasnt right for the part.
1966 - The Rare Breed (character Martha Price)
1970 - How Do I Love Thee? (Character Elsie Waltz)
With Jackie Gleason. It was a terrible film. The script was awful, and the director couldnt fix it.
1971 - Big Jake
(Character Martha McCandles)
We shot the picture in October 1970, in Durango, Mexico. Reuniting Duke (John Wayne) and me in our last picture together.
1991 - Only the Lonely (Character Rose Muldoon)
John Candy was one of my all-time favorite leading men. He was pleasant and courteous.
1994

A Century of Cinema

Herself

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The Directors Guild of Great Britain celebrates its 30th Anniversary

Founded in 1983 by a group of film, television and theatre directors, the DGGB is one of the select few organisations around the world which numbers both live and recorded media amongst it ranks. Operating together
with their charity, the Directors Guild Trust, the two work to train, promote and celebrate directing and the
work of directors. Over the years, the Guild has been crucially influential in British directing, founding the
Directors and Producers Rights Society (now Directors UK), helping develop the Gulbenkian directors training report A Better Direction, hosting Lifetime Achievement Awards for directors as diverse as Alan Parker
and Joan Littlewood and inaugurating celebration blue plaques for (amongst others) David Lean and Michael
Powell. In recent years the Guild has shifted focus to training and events, running the annual VFX Advantage
Conference and the Peter Brook Lecture and boosting continuous professional development for UK directors
in partnership with Creative Skillset and other organisations and helping to develop new approaches to directing. Details for membership can be found at the Guild website - www.dggb.org

Directors Guild rolls out Three Nations UK Tour of Tools of Directing

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In 2013, Simon Phillips new directing methods Tool of Directing will be promoted at introductory events
in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales as part of a national rollout funded by Creative Skillset, ending in a
week-long, London-based seminar for selected participants from the regional workshops. Simons internationally-acclaimed seminars deliver practical methods that bring new insight and clarity to the complex tasks
of working with actors, writers and cinematographers. Simons ground-breaking techniques give directors
their own unique methodology relating specifically to the directors craft and bring new insight and clarity
to the complex task of directing, guiding participants through the development of emotionally moving storytelling in film. More details on the Guild website in January - www.dggb.org

Universal Film
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Good Day to Die Hard is an upcoming

American action film directed by John
Moore and written by Skip Woods. It is
the fifth installment of the Die Hard film
series and stars Bruce Willis as he reprises the lead role of John McClane, who travels
to Moscow, Russia and is coincidentially caught in
the crossfire of a terrorist plot with his estranged
son. It is set to be released on February 7, 2013, in
Hong Kong and South Korea, and on February 14,
2013, in the United States.
When John McClanes son Jack gets into trouble
while in Russia, McClane travels to Moscow to
help him out, only to get caught up in a terrorist
plot involving the circumstances behind his sons
arrest
Filming began as planned, on April 23, 2012 in
Budapest, Hungary where filming will continue
until May 14, 2012. An action set was moved to
the Hungarian Formula one race circuit Hungaroring. Mi-24 helicopter actions were filmed above
the river Danube in central Budapest, and another
helicopter-related action including live ammo
firing for appropriate damage depiction was

filmed at a military shooting range in Hajmskr,

Hungary.
It was reported in the set photos that Amaury Nolasco has joined the cast in an unknown role. It
was later confirmed that Nolasco, along with actress Megalyn Echikunwoke, have joined the cast.
Nolasco will portray of friend of John McClane
early in the film, while Echikunwokes role in the
movie is unknown.
On May 8, 2012, actor Cole Hauser (who previously worked with Bruce Willis in Tears of the Sun and
Harts War) is reported to portray the supporting
role as a villain named Collins.
It was reported in May 31, 2012 that model Anne
Vyalitsyna has joined the cast in her acting debut.
On July 6, 2012, a fire broke on the set during a
high-flying stunt that went awry, engulfing a building into flames. No one was hurt in the incident.
On August 8, 2012, it was reported that Mary Elizabeth Winstead would be reprising her role of Lucy
McClane

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A GOOD
DAY TO
DIE HARD

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Issue 7 of 2012

PIXOVI
by Cori Blaze

Inside the Creative Mind of Devin Halden

Its 8am on a Friday morning and I am preparing

my notes and questions for my highly-anticipated interview with Devin Halden, one of todays
most sought-after entrepreneurs in the entertainment and movie worlds.

My phone rings. The voice on the other end is Devin Halden himself. Immediately I fear my meeting/interview
will be cancelled, the unfortunate commonality of many
other scheduled meetings with other CEOs/Entrepreneurs- probably a result of me not coming from Variety,
Hollywood Reporter, or some other tech or trade magazine that will be seen by millions of readers. InsteadHalden has just invited me instead to his office-Our
scheduled hour-long meeting has just turned into a
daylong adventure into the creative and business
world of Devin Halden.
Sorry for the change of plans, I just feel experiencing what I do is better than me simply
telling youplus, I have a ton of stuff happening right now---The first words out of Haldens
mouth as I take my seat on the other side of his
desk.

I knew I wanted to program independent films from all

over the world, so why wouldnt I also allow people from
all over the world to experience them as well?
It was during this same time that Halden founded Solstice
Film Festival. And as our informal greetings continue, I finally engage, with my first of many questions:
CB: So, I know you were in school when you also started
Solstice Film Festival, how were you able to do both?

HALDEN: Well, its a bit more complicated than that, or

less, depending on how you look at it. I had every intention of completing my portfolio and venturing into the
advertising world. One thing that always made me
feel, creatively-claustrophobic however, was the
limited space to be creative in advertising and
working with clients that wanted a very simple
,The Pixovi
and bland campaign.
Movie Net-

work

I had just read an article about Devin Haldens VOD platform, Pixovi Movie Network. The article highlighted Haldens vision of the future for monetizing VOD as well as
the direct implementation of social networks to assist
in the viral-delivery of content. Intrigued with the concept, and maybe more so with the concepts brainchild, I
began digging deeper into the depths of the internet to
learn more about Devin Haldenwho is he, where did he
come from, what else has he done.I needed to know.
Devin Halden, a 34 year old resident of Minnesota,
graduated from the University of St. Thomas. While at
St. Thomas, he studied advertising, was Captain of the
Rugby team, and worked for a local entrepreneur and
restaurateur. Seems pretty normal to me.so far. Upon
graduating in 2001, Halden was still uncertain what he
wanted to doand where he wanted to do it. On a whim,
Halden decided he would move to Los Angeles and be a
copWHAT! It didnt take long for him to realize his passions obviously pulled him in a different direction, so he
decided to go back to graduate school and pursue a career in advertising.

During my second year I had the opportunity to

work on a short-film with David Carter, one of the creatives behind the BMW Films. While on set, and throughout the entire development and production process, I
realized my passion was in telling long(er)-form stories,
that allow for more creative freedom. I also realized that
there are vaults and libraries of incredible independent
films that never
find an audience. Immediately following production of
the film, I began designing the business model for Solstice Film Festival.
CB: Very cool. What was involved with your initial vision
for Solstice?
HALDEN: To be honest, my initial blueprint was essentially what we implemented, minus some very forwardthinking technologically-driven aspects that were way
out of my budget at the time.
CB: Like what? Can you explain?
HALDEN: Absolutely. I had a video-on-demand (VOD)
element in the very first blueprint I designed in 2003.
I knew I wanted to program independent films from all
over the world, so why wouldnt I also allow people from
all over the world to experience them as well.

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Executive Director, I was exposed to

every aspect of film distribution. I organized and designed ad campaigns
for individual films, worked with Picturehouse, Warner Bros, Dreamworks
Animation and other studios on the
distribution strategy as it pertained
to the festival and worked directly
with the filmmakers. After all that, it
was also my job to put
butts in the seats.

CB: But the funding wasnt there to

implement it.

people from all over the world to experience them as

HALDEN: Not the first couple years,

no. So I had to make the decision to
use what little budget I did have, create an environment, world, atmosphere that would be different than
the local multiplex. Independent film
has made extraordinary leaps in the
last decade, technology in production equipment allows incredible
story-tellers to finally tell those stories without the need of millions of
dollars for production costs or a studio to buy the storywhich usually
ends up being a completely different
story anyway. That said, with Solstice,
I was still competing with whatever
studio films were playing in the multiplex that weekend. So it was paramount, no pun intended, to create an
atmosphere that separated a Solstice
screening from the other. So I turned
a local live-performance theater,
Fitzgerald Theater, into a temporary
movie theater. It was amazing, people said that when they walked in it
felt like they were transported back
to the 1940s, to an old art-house
nickelodeon. I also served wine and
other drinks, something very unique
back in 2006.
HALDEN: It was, looking back it was
a lot of unnecessary stress I put on
myself. I had good friends who were
on my team, helping out, but I dont
think I was a very good delegator
back thenthat, and it was all very
new to all of us. In hindsight, there
are things I wish I would have let go
of, and allowed the other guys to run
with, but I would never change wearing the programmer hat. Solstice became an intense ,and expensive, film
school. I read hundreds of scripts,
watched thousands of movies, of
all genres. I learned great production value and the most common
oversights of production filmmakers
made that greatly impacted the value
and watch-ability of their film. And as

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Apart from being the visionary of

Solstice Film Festival,
well. And from a business standpoint,
I knew the greater reach, the more
eyeballs, the better advertisers,
sponsors and partners I could pull in,
and I wouldnt have to worry about
limiting my box office to simply the
number of seats available in a physical theater. It
would have been the most effective
way for me to build brand awareness
and brand equity quickly.
CB: But the funding wasnt there to
implement it.
Halden was also the programmer and
Executive Director. Halden points
out, however, that was primarily because he was a new entrepreneur
and not sure how to hand over the
reins of some aspects of his baby.
CB: Was it tough wearing so many
hats?
This is both a birth-place of ideas as
well as a graveyard.
We have just arrived at Haldens office in Chanhassen, MN. It is almost
hidden. No big signs, no front gate
concierge welcoming us, just a small
office nestled among others. I find
out, this is just how Halden likes it.
Low overhead, no unnecessary employees or other staff.
The interior, however, is filled with
Figment Triggers, as Halden explains them. He needs to visually see
concept art, site blueprints and the
other related intellectual property of
his brands and companies to keep his
natural high pushing him to continue
to create.
HALDEN: This is both a birth-place
of ideas as well as a graveyard. One

of the my favorite steps in the creative process is the birth of a new idea
or concept. It allows me to work with
the many incredibly intelligent and
talented people I surround myself
with everyday.
Halden is a believer in working with
the best to achieve the best. As we
walk around his office, he shows me
concept art for a few of the projects
he is working on. One such project,
currently titled, Flight of the Sky
Shepherd , was written by Halden
and is almost ready to move into
development. It will be an animated
feature film, and based on the plot
and storyline he pitches me, is certainly nothing that has been done
before.
Halden also shows me concept art
for two other feature films, Persecuted, and Crowing Lakes, both Executive Produced by Kevin Sorbo, whom
he has built a valued friendship with
over the years and whom speaks very
highly of. In 2009, Halden started
SolCo Entertainment with one of his
producing partners, Andy Salmen.
Both share a passion for film and have
an eye for story. They are currently
working on a slate of films with another production and finance group
out of New York. Each film is moving
into pre- production and hopefully
ready to shoot if financing falls into
place as expected.
There is no question, finding the
money to develop, produce and deliver the concepts to an audience is
the most daunting.
At this time, Halden takes a phone
call from one of his producing partners in LA. Halden has been working
with Adam Jones and his team on a
high-concept puppet show to be produced as a web series. Halden is one
of the most positive and energetic
people I have ever listened to speak.
From my position, sitting in a chair on
the other side of the desk and listening to only what I can hear from Halden, it appears the call is regarding
issues or a problem. Halden calmly,
yet methodically, talks through the
issue with optimism, not allowing the
others on the other end of the phone
to dwell on a negative issue.
As Halden hangs up I am able to
delve into his process on selecting
projects.

50

And from a business standpoint, I

knew the greater reach, the more
eyeballs, the better advertisers,
sponsors and partners I could pull in,
and I wouldnt have to worry about
limiting my box office to simply the
number of seats available in a physical theater. It would have been the
most effective way for me to build
brand awareness and brand equity
quickly.

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Issue 7 of 2012

CB: What is the hardest part of the

process?

nessman is Walt Disney. He understood his business. He made

HALDEN: Financing. There is no

question, finding the money to develop, produce and deliver the concepts
to an audience is the most daunting.
I have focused on aligning with funding groups, both private and other,
that get what we are trying to do.
With our feature films, we have been
building diversified slates that allow
investors to spread their risk over
several properties. With Pixovi Movie Network as well as the upcoming
Pixovi Original Series properties, we
are open to new, creative ideas that
potential investors have and bring to
the table. Strategic partnerships are
a huge part of building Pixovi as well
as the feature film properties. Having
control over our own VOD platform
that is becoming more versatile every month, is a huge asset for us. That,
and our creative and business teams
put us in a good place to deliver what
we say we will.

changes when he had to, but made

it his business to stay ahead of the
pulse. He surrounded himself with
the most talented creatives, the
most talented businessmen and people he could trust. If there is anyone I
would say I have modeled and strive
to continue to model my life after it
would be Walt Disney.

CB: It seems that there is usually

a distinct separation between the
business people of the entertainment world and the creative people.
How is it that you seem to be an active member of both?
HALDEN: I think it was how I trained
myself and the path I chose to get
here. A good friend read me a quote
that I feel speaks volumes. An adult
says I will believe it when I see it; a
child says I will see it when I believe
it. I like to think I have preserved
my see it when I believe it nature.
I knew I always wanted to tell stories,
but I also knew that understanding
every facet of the world I wanted to
make a career in was one the greatest
ways to insure success in that world.
So I have focused the greater portion of the last 10 years learning,
understanding, becoming an expert
on financial models, distribution
models, the development and production process, packaging a project
etc. I became a USPAP Certified Appraiser, focusing on the valuation
of intellectual property of movies
and other media properties. I use
this knowledge when I am creating. I
want to create worlds and characters
that dont exist. They are proprietary,
which opens the door for licensing
and other monetization opportunities, like merchandising and gaming.
The best example of a smart busi-

CB: Tell me about Pixovi. Where did

the idea come from? Where is it presently? What does the future hold?
HALDEN: Pixovi is incredible now,
but will be amazingly incredible
soon. I am currently overhauling the
backend to be up-to-speed with
where I am taking it for the future.
I began designing the blueprint for
Pixovi in 2008. At first, it was going
to be the long- awaited VOD platform
for Solstice Film Festival.
However, a lot had changed since
my initial concept in 2003 to the
landscape of the VOD technology in
2009. I decided to create a separate
entity so it wouldnt carry with it any
possible pre-conceived connotation
or even stigma if it were under the
Solstice Film Festival company.
Again, I blueprinted my ideas, designed my branding, and found some
talented developers who could take
my blueprint and make it a reality. I
remain steadfast on preserving the
high-quality (production value) of
the movies I add to the network, and
I have more of a quality-over-quantity standpoint as well. I also was the
first movie VOD platform to directly
implement the ability to share a film
over popular social networks, allowing a transactional VOD property to
go viral. Its very exciting. The idea
was pushed based on my knowledge
of traditional distribution models,
and what I feel are major flaws in
those models.
Controlling your IP and accounting is
key if you want to see a revenue for
yourself and your investors. Bringing
your films to a film festival and hoping they are acquired by a studio for
distribution is a good way for your
investors to never see a dime of their
investment back. Once you go that
route you have lost control of your IP
and accounting. I designed PIxovi so
we would never lose that control. The

future of Pixovi is exciting as well. We

are in the middle of designing and
developing several web series that
will allow us to build brand awareness, brand equity and brand loyalty
to our characters and the worlds they
live in.
We can then monetize the IP in a variety of ways through logical extension and possible feature films. Stay
tuned, it will be great. Halden also
points out any opportunity to collaborate with other entrepreneurs is
something he hopes to continue to
do more of, stating, There is something energizing about working
among other like-minded and driven individualsknowing that every
phone call and meeting is going to
unveil something exciting and new.
As we concluded our afternoon I felt
as if I was saying goodbye to a good
friend. The person I thought I was going to sit down with for an hour at
Dunn Bros and ask a few questions
over coffee ended up being a completely different person that I had
imagined. It was both exhilarating
and exhausting at the same time. Part
of me wished I had the same thought
process, both creatively and professionally as Devin Halden, while the
other part was glad the presence of
unique individuals like him meant I
didnt have to.
Contact the writer at:
cori_blaze@
yahoo.com Contact Devin Halden at:
media@pixovi.com

CHILDREN OF
THE JAGUAR

AN INDIGENOUS COMMUNITY IN
THE AMAZON JUNGLE TAKE ON
THE COMBINED MIGHT OF THE
GOVERNMENT AND AN OIL
COMPANY IN ORDER TO SAVE
THEIR WAY OF LIFE AND THE
RAINFOREST THEY LIVE IN.

WATCH AT
BIT.LY/JAGUAR-TRAILER

Find out more:

avproduction@amnesty.org

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Universal
Film &
Festival
Organization
Best Business Practices for Film Festivals
No 1: Film Festival organizers should operate a
transparent selection process and publish details
of the selection process and the names of the Jury/
selection committee (publication can be after a
festival concludes)
No 2: Film festivals organizers should provide full
contact details for the festival offices including
address and telephone numbers and the names of
the festival directors and or committee
No 3: A Film Festival should publish its legal status
as a company, charity or non-profit (this only applies to a registered entity)
No 4: Film festival organizers should not share filmmakers financial data with any third parties
No 5: Film Festivals should publish a year by year
history of festival winners and films officially selected
No 6: Film festival organizers, committee and or
jury should not show or demonstrate any favouritism to any film submitted to the festival or attempt
to influence other members of the jury or selection
committee
No 7: Film Festivals should declare the number of
films sought and/or invited by the festival organizers to participate in the festival prior to and before
the general call for submissions is sent out
No 8: Film Festivals should provide the names of
the selection committee and/or jury members who
viewed the submitted film screeners to the festival
(this could be after the festival has concluded)
No 9: Film festival organizers should view at least 5
minutes of all submitted films

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54

No 10: All Festival organizers should declare any

conflict of interest that may arise from any film submitted to or invited to participate in the festival

Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

BLACKLISTED
THE SAGA CONTINUES

BLACKLISTED FILM PLAYS AT FESTIVAL THAT BLACKLISTED FILM

Recently, UFM covered the darker side of social networking, and how some people are all
too prepared to write untrue and malicious comments about others. This was the case when
a group of festival organizers in a Facebook group set about blacklisting filmmakers, with
no evidence other than a casual comment. Now, one of the festival directors involved in
blacklisting the filmmaker has programmed the blacklisted film to screen at his own festival.

Universal Film Magazine recently wrote a

number of articles covering a series of incidents that led to the blacklisting of filmmakers and the posting of libellous comments in
the Film Festival Organizers forum on Facebook. Jon Gann, the festival director of DC Shorts Film
Festival, leads the forum.

been busy conducting their own damage control. Several moderators have resigned from the Film Festival Organizers forum
for fear of a libel action or backlash from filmmakers. One
has even removed herself from her own festival, and another
was quoted as saying, I have been busy salting away money
in Swiss Bank Accounts. Others have taken steps to profess
innocence and counter any backlash from the filmmaking
community.

Racist and
These incidents were wholeheartedly supIn particular, one of these people is festival organizer,
homophobic
Jeff Ross. Ross runs three film festivals: the SF Indeported by the moderators of the forum, who
content for
pendent Film Festival (SF Indie), the SF Documentary
were themselves film festival organizers. It may
Festival (DocFest) and Another Hole in the Head. Ross
entertainseem very odd to the casual observer that film
was one of the main instigators in the blacklisting, and
ment
festival professionals would dare behave in a way
he revelled in the foray.
that would blacklist a film or group of filmmakers;
however, this little group appeared to believe that they
Prior to this incident, Ross was involved in a number of other
were a law unto themselves, with little or no opposition.
incidents, including a forum thread regarding transparency in
The particular film blacklisted on this occasion was The
Killing Game, an ultra-low budget horror movie from
Canadian filmmaker, Barry Gillis. Apparently, Gillis offended or upset the director of the Edmonton Film Festival, Kerrie Long, who posted a comment that portrayed
him as nut case. A number of festival organizers in the
group then jumped on the bandwagon and supported
Kerrie Longs comments. Their unrepentant actions were
clearly damaging to hard earned reputations.
After reading the comments about blacklisting Barry Gillis film, Tyrone D. Murphy, founder and CEO of the Universal Film and Festival Organization (UFFO), immediately stepped in, trying to bring some sanity to what can
only be described as a baying mob. Murphy and UFFO
were then banned from the forum and subjected to false
allegations and libellous statements from members of
the forum as well as from the forums moderator, Jon
Gann, in an attempt to limit the damage.
Since this incident, some members of the group have

film festival operation. When Ross was asked why he is not

truthful with filmmakers regarding the fact that his three film
festivals are non-jury festivals, he replied, If they dont like it
they can vote with their feet.
After the blacklisting incident, Ross was informed that UFM
magazine was writing an article about it. UFM then obtained
evidence that Ross had stated to another festival director that
Ross possessed the home address of the UFFO Founder and
CEO, Tyrone D. Murphy, and was sending something nefarious
to Murphys home address through the mail.
More recently we received the following in an email from Jeff
Ross: Hey! Great piece in the magazine about the blacklisting
of filmmakers! Though, the one filmmaker you said was being
blacklisted seems to have not had too much a hard time getting booked for festivals. Why, lookee here, they are playing at
one of my festivals even. But, why let facts and stuff interfere
with such a riveting, timely story
The very film Ross that was instrumental in blacklisting was
now playing at his own film festival. Leading up to this, Barry
Gillis had received an invite for his film to screen at the Calgary
Film Festival, programmed by Bruce Fletcher. Subsequently,

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Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

the film was also invited to play at Jeff

Ross Another Hole in the Head Film
Festival. While Ross vehemently denies that he had anything to do with inviting or programming Gillis film to his
own festival, its of interest to note that
Fletcher, the same festival programmer
who invited Gillis Film to play at the
Calgary Film Festival, had been the director of programming for Jeff Ross SF
Indie Fest for six years. Fletcher was
also the co-founder of Jeff Ross Another Hole in the Head, the same festival that was now screening Gillis film.
There is a bright side to this dark underbelly of film festivals. By programming Gillis film at one of his own festivals, Jeff Ross was forced to concede
that he was fundamentally wrong in
blacklisting Gillis film. This concession
is reinforced by fact that the support
he originally demonstrated for Kerrie
Long simply evaporated into thin air.
Self-preservation at its finest.

content to be posted, supported the

blacklisting of filmmakers, and permitted abusive comments and libellous
statements to be made without any
thought or regard for anyones career
or reputation. These acts are reprehensible; such a group should not be
allowed to carry on unchallenged. Any
film festival organizer should seriously
consider the implication of being associated with or becoming a member of
the Film Festival Organizers group on
Facebook.
Jeff Ross made these comments about
the forum This has ceased to be a
place where film festival organizers

can comfortably discuss their work

amongst ourselves. Rosss comments
clearly indicate that the diplorable
activity on the forum is simply them
comfortably discussing work amongst
themselves
Recently Jeff Ross as his SF-Indie Festival (in the last few days) applied to
join the UFFO group. This is not a serious consideration for UFFO and has
of course been turned down. Having
someone like Ross in the group may
lead to further incidents or UFFO being compromised in some way.
No matter how we look at this
whether Jeff Ross was manipulating
the programming of his festival to limit the damage caused by the blacklisting of filmmakers, or whether its all a
big confidence it is certain that film
festivals like Ross can programme
any films they wish, and for any reason they wish.
Meanwhile, Barry Gillis is enjoying
what little attention he has gained
from this incident, as his film is at
last being played at a film festival. If
his film was indeed cherry picked for
a specific reason, we must wonder
about the fate of filmmakers whosubmitted their films and paid submission fees to these festivals in good
faith.

Jon Gann now faces a very precarious situation, as Gillis film playing
at Ross festival casts serious doubt
on the veracity and validity of Ganns
very dramatic public statement that
Gillis made a credible violent threat,
behaviour so horrific, unprofessional,
and frightening. Also, Ganns support
for Kerrie Longs comments that led to
Gillis blacklisting as well as his appointment of Kerrie Long as a moderator of the forum were major errors in
judgment.

It seems obvious that any festival that

would blacklist filmmakers, risked serious backlash from the filmmaking
community that could leave a film
festival dead in the water.

Members of the Film Festival Organizers group on Facebook have demonstrated sheer contempt towards
the filmmaking community. The moderators
allowed
racist/anti-Semitic

As the old saying goes, Who needs

Another Hole in the Head?

Jeff Ross Festival Director

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56

Jeff Ross three festivals, Another Hole in the Head - SF Indie - DOC FEST

Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

CHERRY
PICKING

WHAT IS THE CHERRY PICKING POLICY OF FILM FESTIVALS ?

Over the past year we (UFFO) have seen many fraudulent activities
by disreputable film festivals from all over the world. Most of these
festivals recieve 200 to 400 submissions annually and are considered
small in comparison to the bigger film festivals that have 10,000 to
20,000 submissions every year. However, fraudulent activity is not limited to the small film festivals. We were astounded to learn recently from
a respected film festival director in the USA about a major festival in the
US that sets up its entire screening programme with films invited in from
other festivals. Nothing wrong with that, is there? Well, there is with this
festival. After the screening programme is completed in its entirety, only
then does a general call for submissions then go out to the filmmaking
community.
Films that are submitted to this festival are just trashed/binned without
ever being opened. The staff simply look at the tracking number on the
outside of the package, look it up on the computer , verify payment has
been received through the online submission provider and then toss it in
the trash. The submitted films are never opened, never screened, never
looked at.

Look at the numbers!

This story gave us cause for grave concern (where does all this end?) we
began looking into some of the bigger film festivals around the world to
see how they conduct business. From what we have seen, the little guy
has little or no chance competing in the big festivals. Why would you
submit your film to a big festival when there is little or no hope your film
is going to be chosen or selected? Most of the films that are in competition in the bigger festivals have the support of major distributors
and studios with millions in campaign funds. Not only that, most of
the films are invited to take part in the festival are big budget films or
already have distribution in place.
As a filmmaker you can conduct your own due diligence by researching the bigger festivals to which you are thinking about submitting
your film. Look at the numbers, contact the festival and ask them
how many films are invited to take part in their festival. What
percentage of these films wins awards? What percentage of newcomers films are selected or win awards? What percentage of
these films does not have distribution? If the festival refuses to
answer your queries, then we suggest you pass them by.
To try to establish a level playing field we have written an
open letter (opposite) to all the big festivals around the
world asking these important questions. We will be publishing their replies as soon as we receive it, if we ever do!

The Universal Film

Promoting a Good Business
Dear Festival Director

We are writing to you to introduce you to U

which promotes a good business code of pr
we have enlisted the support of 120 interna
2011.

We would ask you to kindly assist UFFO a

the policy of the big festivals is toward film
distributors. The is now known as a Cherr

If I may explain: Given the rise of disreput

have a very difficult task in determining wh
received information that a major festival in
programme prior to the general call for sub

We would therefore ask you in the interests

festival community to provide us with the f
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

What percentage (or how many fil

festival each year
What percentage (or how many fil
take part in the film festival every
What percentage (or how many fil
part in the film festival every year
What percentage of films submitte
festival each year
What percentage of film submitted
festival each year win awards

We would graciously ask you to provide th

in advance for your assistance in this matte
community
Kind Regards
Tyrone D Murphy

Founder & CEO

A copy of the letter is on the UFFO website:

www.uffo.org

Universal Film & Festiva

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Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

Tips to Film Festivals

IF A FESTIVAL SEEMS ODD IN ANY WAY - PASS THEM BY
We all love film festivals and they are a very important part of the industry. However, one thing that all filmmakers should do is to check out
the festival before submitting a film. Use common sense and look at
the history of the festival. If there is nothing available on the festival,
then think twice!

UFFO

m & Festival Organisation

Code of Practice for Film Festivals

UFFO the Universal Film and Festival Organization

ractice for film festivals. Recently dubbed Fest-COP
ational film festivals since our launch on the 1st July

and the filmmaking community in determining what

ms that are invited in from other film festivals and
ry Picking Policy

able film festivals around the world, filmmakers

hich festival to submit their film to. Recently we
n the USA completes its entire screening
bmissions to the filmmaking community.

s of the entire filmmaking community and the

following information

lms) are invited by your festival to take part in your

lms) that are invited by your festival organization to

year win awards
lms) are invited by your festival organization to take
prior to the general call for submissions
ed by newcomer filmmakers are selected by your

d by newcomer filmmakers that are selected by your

his information going back five years. We thank you

r and you have the gratitude of the filmmaking

Find out if the festival is an online festival or an annual event. And

find out where the event takes place.
Find out the names of the festival directors and programmers
and make sure they have an address, telephone number and
web site so they can be contacted.
Find out if the festival has a selection committee and if it is
made up of Industry professionals.
Ask if the festival is non-jury or has a jury made up of industry
professionals?
Find out if the festival directors are connected in any way to
any of the films in competition.
Ask about the organizations publicity for the festival and
where they advertise.
What are the previous years attendance and submissions
figures.
Ask how many films are invited in to take part every year in the
festival. (Cherry Picking)
Ask if the festival is sponsored by distributors or any other company, and whether these companies have films in competition at
the festival. (Review the history)
Do not give out your private financial details unless you are sure
about a festival.
Do not submit a film to a film festival if the awards are going to the
festival directors own films or their friends films.
If a film festival is charging a submission fee and giving you a guaranteed screening for your film but there is no real festival, just a screening event, we suggest that you pass them by.
There are a lot of one man band film festivals out there, many of whom
provide a very valuable service to the local community and to the filmmaking community. However, if such a festival is not in your local community, does it really make good sense submitting your film to a festival half
way round the world to compete with local filmmakers who can bring their
own audience and can canvas the area prior to the festival?
IMPORTANT! Do not rely on any of the online submission providers to weed
out scam festivals. They are in business to take a percentage of your submission
fee and not to make sure your submission fee is protected from fraudsters.
This is about to change as we (UFFO) are currently working toward this

www.ufmag.org

We have much more information available on the UFFO website, www.uffo.org. We

will also be publishing the UFFO book on Film Festivals in the near future that will tell
it the way it is.
www.uffo.org
by Tyrone D Murphy

58

al Organisation 2012 www.uffo.org

Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

ZOE MOON ASTROLOGY DECEMBER MONTHLY FORECAST 2012

ARIES

TARUS

GEMINI

You may have put personal or physical

changes on hold for a while but midmonth you may be ready to break free and
do something different as Uranus goes
Direct in your sign. The universe thinks its
time you expressed your true originality
on some level so let go. A New Moon in
Sagittarius is giving you a cosmic boost to
travel to some far away local, connect with
foreign interests or people, get into
import/export, media, publishing, marketing, or educational outlets, and start
something new from the 13th and 2 weeks
that follow. Matters hit a high note at
home, with moves, real estate deals, mom,
family, or roommates by the 28th in celebrations, achievements or endings.

The planet of change and freedom goes

Direct this month pushing you to shake
things up a bit in film, music, fine art, secret
romances, hidden agendas, spiritual pursuits, at hospitals, prisons or other places
of retreat, dealing with addictions, through research, investigations, or time alone
or working behind the scenes. New sexual
attractions or interests, divorce proceedings or big financial interests open up
from the 13th and 2 weeks that follow with
universal energy behind what you start
now. An agreement, writing project, idea,
decision, meeting, talk, speaking role,
short trip, sibling, neighbor, vehicle, or
electronic interest peaks by the 28th in
achievement or endings.

There hasnt been much excitement, freedom and change with friends, groups, the
internet, astrology, charities, or social
events in the last months but now you will
see things break free and new possibilities
open again. Fresh approaches, people and
situations will arrive, be willing to do the
unusual. New beginnings open up with
romantic or business partners, agents,
attorneys, specialists, or competitors from
the 13th and 2 weeks that follow, seek out
key relationships now. An income matter
or possession reaches a high point by the
28th in celebration, achievement or
endings, whatever you are waiting on
should arrive.

WITTER.COM/ZOEMOON
LIBRA
SCORPIO
Do you feel like shaking things up or
making some changes this month with a
partner, agent, attorney, specialist, client,
competitor, or opponent? Well the stars
are inclined to help you so you can expect
to head off in some new direction with or
without them, depending on your own
personal bent here. Singles may meet
someone quite interesting. New agreements, meetings, talks, writing projects,
short trips, or sibling, neighbor, vehicle, or
electronic opportunities arrive the 13th
and 2 weeks that follow so get out there
and make your move. A career matter, or
something involving a big goal or authority figure peaks by the 28th in celebration
or endings.

Get ready to change things or react to

excitement or shake-ups involving work,
paperwork, co-workers, employees,
health, or pets this month. There has been
too much of the same old scene going on
and now you get a chance to break free,
get noticed or introduce new elements.
You get a New Moon behind fresh income
opportunities from the 13th and 2 weeks
that follow so go all out to secure new
resources or increase current income, the
cosmos has your back. A travel, media,
publishing, marketing, educational,
wedding, or legal matter peaks by the
28th in celebration, achievements or
endings as you wrap things up or they
come through.

SAGITTARIUS
This month brings you a chance to shake
things up or embrace some real excitement or change with lovers, new love
interests, children, or creative ventures. Be
open to different approaches or situations
and trying the unexpected. Your New
Moon comes on the 13th and from here
through the next 2 weeks you get a fresh
personal and physical start to your year
ahead so initiate new looks, take steps
towards that new identity, launch the new
brand, or motivate towards that new body.
A sexual attraction or issue, reproductive
matter, divorce, or high financial interest
peaks by the 28th in celebration, achievements or endings as you wrap things up.

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Issue 7 of 2012

ZOEMOONASTROLOGY@GMAIL.COM OR CALL 818-613-6067

LEO
VIRGO
CANCER
Changes or new blood on the career front,
with bosses, authority figures, ambitions,
goals, reputation, or fame have been unavailable the last few months but this
month that changes as things shake up
with excitement and new arrivals or ideas
manifest in these areas. Be open to what
inspires or takes you down a road less
traveled. New work opportunities, coworkers or employees, services, health
interests, and pets arrive from the 13th and
2 weeks that follow so launch, interview,
audition, submit ideas, start the work-out
or diet, or adopt now. A personal or physical high point comes by the 28th as you
celebrate a moment or wrap things up,
your brand, image, body, or identity is key.

Get ready to shake, rattle and roll in areas

of travel, education, law, media, marketing, publishing, or ceremonies this month
as any stagnation is unhinged and you are
able to plot your own course into some
exciting new territories. Change is a good
thing now. New opportunities in love,
with kids or in creative endeavors arrive
on the 13th and 2 weeks that follow, its
time to launch into fresh starts or meet
new people. You reach a high point with
a film, music or other artistic project, a
hospital matter, dealing with an addiction,
a spiritual pursuit, clandestine affair, research project, or investigation by the 28th
in celebration or endings.

Get ready for excitement, change or interesting new approaches to come your way
through sexual attractions, divorce or big
financial arenas this month. You may have
felt things were never going to shift but
the stars suggest some fresh air heading
your way and the more original or independent your approach, the better. New
beginnings arrive at home, with moves,
real estate deals, mom, family, roommates,
or security needs from the 13th and 2
weeks that follow so launch your desires
here, now. You reach a high point at a
social affair, with friends, groups, the internet, astrology, charities, or aspirations by
the 28th in celebrations or endings.

FACEBOOK.COM/ZOEMOONASTROLOGY
PISCES
CAPRICORN
AQUARIUS

www.ufmag.org

Your ruler has been Retrograde since July

and this month he moves forward again
so you should feel like you are coming
alive on some level and ready to make any
changes, introduce new ideas or express
your originality in the things that you say,
ask for, write, agree upon, sell, or in any
short trips, involving siblings, neighbors,
vehicles, electronics, or local interests. Its
in with the new! Fresh beginnings open
up on the 13th and 2 weeks that follow
with friends, groups, the internet, astrology, charities, and aspirations so say yes
to invitations and connecting socially, and
launch projects in these areas now. A
work, health or pet matter peaks by the
28th in celebrations, achievements or
endings as things come through or wrap
up.

If you want to do something different to

make your living or have wanted to introduce some new idea into the money arena
this month you will see the changes and
excitement you need around income
matters to do so. Go for new ways to earn
or be inventive or original for best results.
New career opportunities, interactions
with bosses, dad or authority figures,
ambitions, goals, reputation matters, or
pursuit of fame open up from the 13th and
2 weeks that follow, launch business ideas
or goals now. A love affair or interest, child
or creative project reaches a high point by
the 28th as something is achieved, celebrated or ended.

60

Are you longing to make a change at

home, with a move, mom, family,
roommate, or real estate? This month the
energy of excitement and shaking things
up turns in the sky so you should be able
to try something new or take a different
approach. There may be something exciting dropped in your lap pertaining to
these themes. Fresh starts open up in film,
music, art, clandestine affairs, spiritual
pursuits, with hospitals, prisons, retreats,
dealing with addictions, research, development, and investigations on the 13th
and 2 weeks that follow, be proactive
going for what you want. A peak moment
comes with a partner, agent, attorney,
specialist, or competitor by the 28th in
celebrations, achievements or endings.

Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

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Universal Film
Issue 7 of 2012

MARSHALL NEILAN

by Tyrone D Murphy

The Great Moviemakers

Marshall Neilan with actress Colleen Moore

arshall Ambrose Neilan (April

11, 1891 October 27,1958)
was an American motion picture actor, screenwriter, film director, and producer.
Born in San Bernardino, California, Neilan was known by most as
Mickey. Following the death of his
father, the eleven-year-old Mickey
Neilan had to give up on school to
work at whatever he could find in
order to help support his mother.
As a teenager, he began acting in
bit parts in live theatre, and in 1910
he got a job driving Biograph Studios executives around Los Angeles
there to determine the suitability of
the West Coast as a place for a permanent studio.
Neilan made his film debut as part of
the acting cast on the American Film
Manufacturing Company Western
The Stranger at Coyote (1912). Hired
by Kalem Studios for their Western
film production facility in Santa Monica, Neilan was first cast opposite
Ruth Roland. Described as confident,
but egotistical at times, Neilans talent saw him directing films within a
year of joining Kalem. After acting in
more than seventy silent film shorts
for Kalem and directing more than
thirty others, Neilan was hired by the
Selig Polyscope Company then Bison
Motion Pictures and Famous PlayersLasky Corporation.
In 1915, Neilan was one of the founding members of the Motion Picture
Directors Association along with directors such as Cecil B. DeMille, Al-

lan Dwan, and William Desmond Taylor. At the end of 1916, Neilan was
hired by Mary Pickford Films where
he directed Pickford in several productions including Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm and The Little Princess
in 1917, plus Stella Maris, Amarilly
of Clothes-Line Alley, MLiss in 1918,
and Daddy-Long-Legs in 1919.
Having all but given up acting, Neilans directing successes led to him
creating his own production company and between 1920 and 1926,
Marshall Neilan Productions made
eleven feature-length films almost
all of which were distributed through
First National Pictures. He received
critical acclaim for directing and
producing such films as Bits of Life
and The Lotus Eater. In 1929, he was
hired by RKO Radio Pictures but had
difficulty adapting to directing the
new talkies.
That year he directed Rudy Vallee
and Marie Dressler in the talking
film, The Vagabond Lover and although Dressler received high praise
for her acting, the film was a commercial and critical failure. Early in
his career Neilan had done as most
others in the pioneering days of film
and helped out in many areas of filmmaking through performing, directing, and writing. A talented screenwriter, in 1927 he wrote the original
story for the Howard Hughes film,
Hells Angels. Initially, he had also
been hired as the films director, back
when it was still a silent, but Hughes
overbearing style forced him to
drop out, and he was replaced a few

weeks into production by a more pliable director, Edmund Goulding; due

to massive reshoots (as well as the
recasting of the lead role with Jean
Harlow), none of the footage Neilan
shot made it into the final film. He
was then hired by Hal Roach Studios,
for whom he directed a few films in
1930, and he made his final directorial effort in 1937. Having battled alcoholism for a large part of his adult
life, twenty years after he made his
last film, Neilan returned to acting
on the screen in a small role portraying an aging and
less than enlightened United States
Senator in the Elia Kazan film, A Face
In The Crowd.
In recognition of his contribution
to the motion picture industry, in
1940 the Directors Guild of America
conferred on him an Honorary Life
Member Award. He later received a
star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
at 6233 Hollywood Blvd. Marshall
Neilan had married actress Gertrude
Bambrick in 1913 with whom he
would have a son, Marshall Neilan,
Jr.. Marshall, Jr. also worked in the
film industry as a successful film
editor, working on almost every episode of The Brady Bunch.
Neilans marriage to Bambrick ended in 1921 and a year later he married actress Blanche Sweet whom he
directed on several occasions. They
divorced in 1929.
Neilan died in Los Angeles in 1958
of throat cancer. He is interred in
Normski
AndersonCemetery.
Angelus-Rosedale

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Issue 7 of 2012

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www.ufmag.org

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