Blog

A Man, His Computer, And A Movie Editing Program

“Tarnation may be the first feature-length film edited entirely on iMovie, and it cost $218.32 in videotape and materials. Despite its low budget, the film has already earned a high profile. Both John Cameron Mitchell, the actor and director of Hedwig and the Angry Inch, and independent film maverick Gus Van Sant have signed on as executive producers.”

Marketing Arts Like Sports

Marketing of the arts is getting more aggressive. And one of the models arts organizations are looking to is…professional sports. “People have always assumed that the sports audience and the arts audience are two entirely different entities. But our surveys have shown that people who go to professional sports events are the most likely to attend professional arts events. It’s about having a robust social life, and as more people realize that there is a crossover of these two audiences, we’ll see this type of marketing increase.”

Charities Report Income, Expenses Up

A survey of American charitable institutions reports that while many organizations raised more money in 2003, their expenses were also higher. “While 64 percent of the 236 organizations across the country that responded reported more income, 66 percent said they had higher costs for health and liability insurance as well as for wages and salaries and other expenses. More than half of the respondents reported being in “severe” or “very severe” financial stress.”

National Book Critics Awards Nominees

The National Book Critics Circle anounce their finalists for this year’s awards. “Ninety-one-year-old Studs Terkel, the oral historian and self-described champion of the “uncelebrated,” will receive a lifetime achievement prize. Competitive nominations went to two books released by McSweeney’s, an irreverent publishing house founded by best-selling author Dave Eggers.”

Ivories Stolen From Ontario Museum

Five le Marchand ivory cameos were stolen from the Art Gallery of Ontario this week. The pieces are so well-known, it’s likely the thieves will have difficulty selling them. Art theft is said to be rare in Canada. “Observers say it’s likely about 150 art works, antiques or artifacts are stolen or reported stolen each year in Canada from galleries and homes. The return rate tends to be less than 20 per cent.”

The Royal Ballet’s Monica Mason – A Love Story

It’s been 15 months since Monica Mason took over as head of London’s Royal Ballet after Ross Stretton was fired after only a year on the job. “What is remarkable is that Mason’s honeymoon period seems still to be continuing. People at Covent Garden speak of her with respect, often love. This is the way she talks about the company – as something greater than herself that she wishes to serve. And yet she is a forceful presence: a woman of purpose.”

Clamoring For John Cage (Who Knew?)

Who could have predicted that last weekend’s London festival dedicated to the music of John Cage would be a hit? But it was. “Surely three larger factors counted for more. Cage’s wide reputation, even posthumously, as a witty, pawky, down-to-earth maverick (though he was no real subversive); the fact that this was another BBC-Barbican weekend which promised a grand, enlightening survey of one composer’s work, like others in past years; and above all the super-intelligent programming of the main concerts, which surrounded a few key Cage pieces with comparable and enticing works by his “maverick” American contemporaries.”