Films - about the film festival

I met Gregg Bray maybe about a year ago, when he asked me to participate in a panel discussion on the media at my alma mater, SUNY New Paltz, which I can either thank profusely or blame heavily for my "career" in journalism...JUST KIDDING!! HA!

Anywho, I saw Gregg, an instructor in the video production program at SUNY New Paltz, in the lounge at the Bearsville last night, sitting with Bill Kollar. Both are WFF staff members and are producing 2-3 minute videos on the film fest, that will be posted starting this afternoon on youtube.com and www.woodstockfilmfestival.com.

The goal is to let the viewer experience the film fest, Gregg said.

"It's like, if you weren't with us, here's what you missed."

Bill also runs his own production company, London By Night, and today will be recording an interview that legendary New York City DJ Pete Fornatele will conduct with the singer Donovan, who is all over this film festival. Click here to see where Donovan will be at the film fest.

That's Gregg on the left. Bill said Fornatele's interview with Donovan will be broadcast sometime in the future on XM Satellite Radio, and maybe Bronx-based WFUV.

Elliot Landy

There was something surreal about speaking with legendary Woodstock photographer Elliot Landy, while surrounded by many of his famous photos, which adorn the lounge at the Bearsville Theater. Click here to be reminded of the Elliot's work, which encompasses the 1969 Woodstock festival, Bob Dylan's "Nashville Skyline" album cover and much more.

Elliot told me about a very interesting multimedia project he is working on, and which he may debut, coincidentally, with the 40th anniversary of Woodstock next August, but more about that later.

Here Elliot is with Valerie Naranjo and Barry Olsen, who opened last night's show. Valerie played marimba, Barry played hand drums, and they rocked. Bela came out and joined them for a bit and that was improvisation at its best. Valeria has performed with the "Saturday Night Live" band; Barry has played trombone with Paul Simon and David Byrne.

Click here to learn more about these two fine musicians.

Out in the lounge.

Last night marked the first time I have ever watched an entire concert from the outside lounge at the Bearsville Tehater, which is a separate room from the main theater. It was a nice experience, comfortable and the sound was great. There were candles all over the place and this was one of them. Just a moment to relax.......

Bela Fleck involved with a banjo movie?

I noticed a Nevessa mobile recording truck outside the Bela Fleck concert last night, so I inquired with WFF Developmental Director Laurent Rejto and he introduced me to Marc Fields, who filmed last night's concert for a documentary on the banjo.



That's Marc.

Marc is working with banjo great Tony Trischka, who I believe was greatly involved with Bela's early career, on "The Banjo Project: The Story of America's Instrument." Click here to go to the Web site for this film.

Marc met Tony when he was working for public television in New Jersey, on a program that highlighted the arts. He's hoping to release the movie in 2010.

Bela's involvement with this movie follows the movie that is screening today at the WFF, "Thrown Down Your Heart"; and "Obstinato: Making Music for Two." Obstinato won the 2004 WFF award for best short documentary. Both of Bela's films were made by his brother, Sascha Paladino.

"Obstinato" and "Thrown Down Your Heart" both focus around the banjo.

William Puck Merenda.

There was no surprise for me in seeing Ruth Ungar and Mike Merenda at the Bela Fleck concert last night. Ruth, the daughter of fiddle master and Ulster County favorite Jay Ungar, and Mike, long-ago established themslevs as anchors of the Hudson Valley and national traditional-acoustic-edgey-jam scene, with their band The Mammals, which also features Tao-Rodriguez Seeger, grandson of Pete Seeger.

Ruth tears it up on the fiddle and Mike, like Bela, can beat the heck out of that banjo. Ruth and Mike were joined at the show by their baby son, whose got a great name, William Puck Merenda, who is a very cute kid, and seemed to be having just about as much fun out in the lounge a Bela as having on stage. But he just goes by Will.



Ruth and Mike will be playing Unison Arts Center in New Palts in November, with their duo, Mike and Ruthy. They gave me a copy of their new CD, which you'll be hearing more about soon.

I asked Mike if he had any thoughts on his fellow banjo player Bela, and he hesitated, not wanting to use any cliches in his description. But then he told me this wonderful story about hanging out with Bela and a bunch of others on Bela's front porch, at his home in Nashville, which has a porch swing, just playing a bunch of tunes.

Bela at the time was producing a record by The Duhks, a group of young musicians from Canada whose music is a first-cousin to that of The Mammals. In fact, the two groups have shared stages in the past under the monikor of "Platypus." Too much!

Anyway, Mike painted a nice picture of the group just hanging out, jamming. And then he mentions, at the end, that oh yeah, bluegrass legend Peter Rowan was there too.

Thanks Mike and Ruth. See you at Unison.

Leon Gast. He still is the king.

I'm sorry to say that I haven't seen Academy Award-winning director Leon Gast and his lovely wife Geri since last year's WFF. Leon is a very nice guy and in terms of Hollywood, a real legend. That's Bearsville Theater manager Lisa Hantes, WFF publicist Ilene Marder, Leon, and his wife Geri last night at the theater in the photo.

Leon, of course, made "When We Were Kings," the great movie about the infamous 1974 boxming match in the Congo between Muhammad Ali and George Frazier.

I was lingering around the after party last night in the Bearsville Theater green room, when WFF Executive Director Meira Blaustein introduced Bela Fleck to Leon. Bela seemed very excited to meet Leon and connected with him as a fellow filmmaker - Bela of course is in town to promote his new movie, "Thrown Down Your Heart" - but took things even further.

He told Leon that "When We Were Kings" was constantly watched on past Flecktones - Bela's other band - tour buses. Bela also told Leon that one of the Flecktones, I couldn't hear who, actually ran into Ali once in Kentucky.

Good stuff. And we'll have much, much more on Leon later.

Good to see you, Leon.

Bela at the Bearsville

Banjo maestro Bela Fleck made a triumphant return to the Bearsville Theater in Woodstock Wednesday night. The New York City native and current Nashville resident tore it up during a show with the Sparrow Quartet, held as part of the WFF. His fingers were on fire and the unanimous decision from the hundreds who streamed out of the cozy Catskill Mountain theater afterward was an overwhelming thumbs-up.

That's a picture of Bela and WFF Executive Director Meira Blaustein, downstairs in the Bearsville Theater green room after the show.

Abigail Washburn's vocals were sweet like honey and smooth as velvet. Casey Driessen and Ben Sollee were sidemen who stood out and oh my goodness, the version of "Eleanor Rigby" by The Beatles that closed out the show, with Bela leading the way on banjo, was one that will be remembered for the ages, a truly historic moment in a truly historic theater.

I'm sure Paul McCartney would have liked to have been there for that one - where Bela's banjo creatd a crossroads where backwoods Louisiana met working-class Liverpool.
Bravo!

In the spirit of this truly interpretation of "Eleanor Rigby," click here to check out Ray Charles doing HIS rendition of this very sad song.

The buzz is back

The magic of movies, music that moves you and escape from $700 billion bailouts, failed mortgages, the New York Yankees, the New York Mets and politicians speaking out of both sides of their mouths has all arrived. Come up to Woodstock, withdraw into a darkened theater and relax. The 9th Annual Woodstock Film Festival is here.

The Filmonista

Movie preference is a pretty personal thing, but we all read reviews, we all look for guidance on how to spend our movie money and we all love to read and talk about movies. For some seriously professional and insightful input, I suggest checking out the wise words of The Filmonista, who maintains a blog on movies at the Journal's Web site.

In my humble opinion, she has the best blog on cinema - next to "Peace, Love and Movies," of course.

My apologies to Bogey and Bette.

I am ashamed to say that I forgot to mention that I watched a ridiculously great movie Saturday night that starred one of my favorites, Humphrey Bogart. The movie was "The Petrified Forest," and it had it all - Bogey as a gangster, Leslie Howard as an upper class drifter, a lonely lunch joint in the middle of the Arizona desert, and beautiful Bette Davis, who I am sorry to say I know only as a bitter old woman far, far past her prime as an actress and a person.

This movie was made in 1936. Bette's dad runs the lunch joint, she wants to escape to France, Bogey is on the lam, Bogey takes hostages, the meathead pumping gas is constantly hitting on Bette, but she resists, falling in love with the drifter. THE most interesting aspect of this movie was that Leslie Howard - I never heard of him - got top billing, with Bogey number four in the final credits.

I'm hoping to see some similar movie magic this week in Woodstock.

We're here

We're just hours away from film fest time. I wanted to direct your attention to my story about Bela Fleck and his movie that ran in today's Poughkeepsie Journal. Click here to check it out.

There is also a quick overview with information about the awards, etc., that you can check out by clicking here.

See you up there.

Da dum. Da dum. Da dumdadumdadum.

You haven't heard from me in a couple of days because I resting my bones in anticipation of the full onslaught the Poughkeepsie Journal - meaning me - will launch on the Woodstock Film Festival starting Wednesday afternoon.

The film fest opens Wednesday night, I will pick up my press credentials and schwag Wednesday afternoon and after racing through a few duties at the office, head up to Woodstock for three days of non-stop blogging, yukking it up with the cinema elite and getting completely exhausted.

I am out a my mother-in-law's in Eastern, Long Island and picked up the local weekly paper, the Southhampton Star, oops, I meant the East Hampton Star, only to learn yet ANOTHER big piece of cinematic news.

Capt. Frank Mundus, who fished often out here in Montauk, and who was said to have been the inspiration for "Quint," the salty dog of a sea captain in "Jaws," played by Robert Shaw, died Sept. 10 in Hawaii..

Rest in peace....

to quote another cinematic legend, that's all folks, (for now).
ciao