Cinequest Zoom meetup

Cinequest Zoom meet-up and Ryuichi Sakamoto

Author

Chris Shimojima
March 23, 2021

Hey guys,

Some new things:

  1. This Thursday, March 25th, 9:00 - 9:45PM EST.
    Join a virtual after-party/meet-up.
    Friends, strangers, Alberto cast&crew... you're all welcome!

    Zoom link here: https://zoom.us/j/8402974776?p...
    FB invite: https://fb.me/e/1XLSXVmWW

    The occasion is that Alberto is currently available to stream at the renowned Cinequest Film Festival. Many Cinequest films are holding these Zoom meet-ups to mimic the experience of real-life after-parties. Come chat, ask about the film, talk about anything else, meet others. (We'll separate into smaller breakout rooms if needed).

    *******Make sure to watch the film before attending, so we have something in common for conversation. Only $3.99. Sign up on Cinequest's Cinejoy platform: https://rb.gy/1x6ibz

  2. Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda gives a look at the composer's soulful personality -- thanks for the recommend, Jeremey Catterton -- and a sense of what and how he creates, outside of his already expansive portfolio (Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence, The Revenant, The Last Emperor (which I now feel the need to watch again soon)).  Cool seeing his constant desire to include real sounds and non-typical instruments, often traveling to find them.

    The quest for elusive beauty reminds me of that part in Adaptation where the voice of Meryl Streep as Susan Orlean details orchid hunting as a historically dangerous obsession. Smart move, Nat Geo, casting her as the voice of the orchid in this oddly sensual docu segment.

    Tangent: Werner Herzog is the voice of a plastic bag in this brilliant meditation on its indestructible life from Ramin Bahrani.

  3. There often seems to be a surprise Best Director nominee, because eyes aren't on the foreign contenders as much, and this year it's Thomas Vinterberg for Another Round. A personal tragedy happened before shooting this film. They're gratefully not using that too much to promote it.

    Some choices really click -- like the text treatment of titles and messages -- but what shines the the most are the performances (Mads Mikkelsen's range continues to amaze) and the concept: seeing drinking culture with nuance and joy and not totally shamed. The characters look to Norwegian philosopher/psychiatrist Finn Skårderud, who asserts, "humans are born with a blood alcohol content that’s 0.05% too low."

  4. The empty religions of Instagram.

  5. Italian furniture manufacturer Plank sent Mr. Zanotto some pieces and asked him to make a video with them.

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Chris