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August 2005 Newsletter

Contents
  1. Debra Winger and Arliss Howard named as 2005 Festival Guests
  2. 18 Correctly Guess Identity of the Guests
  3. Volunteers Still Needed
  4. New Venues Announced for 6th annual Port Townsend Film Festival
  5. Born Into Brothels kids' photographs on display in Manhattan
  6. Frequent flyer miles and ADUs sought
  7. Deep discounts at the Uptown Fair
  8. Festival Tributes 30's Star Greta Garbo & Others
  9. Freshman Moviemakers to be Showcased
  10. Film Camp Pass Deadline September 9
  11. Clip Those Newspapers, please

Debra Winger and Arliss Howard named as 2005 Festival Guests

Actress Debra Winger, whose ascendancy to Hollywood stardom came partly as the result of an acting job that brought her to Port Townsend in 1981, will return with her actor/writer/director husband, Arliss Howard, as the special guests of the 6th annual Port Townsend Film Festival, scheduled for September 23-25.

The announcement was made today by festival officials after waging a month-long contest to see who could correctly identify the guests based on four sets of clues released weekly. Seventeen contestants made correct guesses. Another thirty correctly guessed one of the guests, but not both.

Winger and Howard will be honored at the festival following a screening of their 2001 film, "Big Bad Love," on Saturday night. Winger co-starred with another up-and-coming actor of the period, Richard Gere, in "An Officer and a Gentleman," which was filmed almost entirely in and around Port Townsend for two months in the spring of 1981. The film went on to become the second highest grossing film of 1982 (first was "ET: The Extraterrestrial") and, in 1983, earned Academy Awards® for Lou Gossett Jr as best supporting actor and Jack Nitzsche, Buffy Sainte-Marie and Will Jennings for their song, "Up Where We Belong."

Winger was nominated as best actress, but the statuette went to Meryl Streep for "Sophie's Choice."

From her lead role in "An Officer and a Gentleman," Winger co-starred with Jack Nicholson and Shirley MacLaine in "Terms of Endearment." Again, she was nominated for a best actress award but MacLaine, who played her mother in the film, won instead. (The National Society of Film Critics, however, chose Winger over MacLaine.)

She earned a third nomination as best actress in 1994 for her role as American poet Joy Gresham, opposite Anthony Hopkins' British writer C.S. Lewis in "Shadowlands."

But by 1995, Winger had had enough of Hollywood.

"I have trouble with star billing," she was quoted as saying. Commenting on her name placement for "Cannery Row," based on the novel by John Steinbeck, she said: "How can I put my name ahead of Steinbeck's?"

On her early roles in commercials during the 1970s, she said: "I was the all-American face. You name it, honey - American Dairy Milk, Metropolitan Life Insurance, McDonald's, Burger King," she remembered. "The Face That Didn't Matter - that's what I called my face."

She was also said to be "difficult" to work with, reportedly wanting to rewrite dialogue and objecting to sex scenes. In 1995, she stopped acting with no intent to return.

Her absence became so pronounced that her name was used in the title of a 2002 documentary film. Roseanna Arquette's "Searching for Debra Winger," about being a woman in the entertainment industry, brought the actress to the public's consciousness just as she had appeared in her first film in six years, "Big Bad Love," with her husband Arliss Howard.

He convinced her to star (and produce) the film about a struggling Southern writer that he had adapted with his brother, James Howard, from stories by Mississippi writer Larry Brown, and that he would direct. After screenings at the Cannes and Toronto Film Festivals in 2001, the film was critically well-received, but when it opened in the fall the critics were not so kind. And the public stayed far away. The opening weekend gross was $5,293. Between its release in October 2001 and April 2002, the film had earned $100,420.

But the film is considered by many to be a flawed masterpiece, and its soundtrack, with songs by Tom Waits, has enjoyed good sales.

Speaking about her decision to give movie-making another try, the straight-talking actress says, "(Arliss) talked me into this and I thought, 'So long as I have control, it will be okay.' I didn't know how tough it was going to be. Acting is one thing. Being the boss is hell."

Despite the commercial failure of "Big Bad Love," the two have continued collaborative efforts, most recently the television cable drama, "Dawn Anna," in which Howard directed his wife to an Emmy nomination as outstanding lead actress in a miniseries or a movie. Emmy awards will be announced in Los Angeles September 18, a week prior to their appearance at the Port Townsend Film Festival.

A recent director, Howard is noted for his character roles in such films as "Full Metal Jacket," "Tequila Sunrise," "To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything July Newmar," "The Lost world: Jurassic Park," and "Amistad."

Winger has been considered by many as one of "Port Townsend's own," though this will be her first visit since filming here 25 years ago.

Eighteen Correctly Guess Identity of the Guests

Cheryl Brass of Seattle offered the first among 18 correct entries in the annual Port Townsend Film Festival "Guess-the-Guest" contest. Just 13 days into the contest, Brass correctly identified Debra Winger and Arliss Howard as the husband-and-wife special guests.

Weekly clues were issued during the month of July.

Brass will be invited to a private reception to meet and have her photograph taken with Winger and Howard during the festival.

The 17 other correct guessers include: Greg Blackmer, Neptune Beach, FL: Linda Bovee, Bothell; Esko and Megan Cate, Port Townsend; Ed Francis, Oakland, OR; Sherri Howard, Port Townsend; Jill Kinyon, Seattle; Connie Kinyon, Sequim; Melanie Krouse, Oak Harbor; Sharon Miller, Pensacola, FL; Elena Mullin, Seattle; Mary D. Rizzardi, Port Townsend; Leslie Schroeder and Lee Wolodkewitsch, Port Townsend; Erin Shield, Port Angeles; Trish Stornetta, Port Townsend; Diane Thrasher, Escondido, CA; Richard Whittier, Sequim, and Sharon Doe (last name and residence not given).

Connie Kinyon was randomly selected from the above list to also meet the actors.

Each winner will receive a poster for the 2005 festival. Thirty other contest participants correctly guessed the names of one of the guests, but not both. "We were admittedly tricky in our clues," Peter Simpson, festival director, said. "Some years the clues have been so obvious that we had several correct guesses the first week."

Those who correctly guessed at least one of the guests included:

No other actresses were proposed by contestants, but 10 actors were: Sir Richard Attenborough, William Baldwin, James Franciscus, Jeff Goldblum (the most frequently mentioned after Howard), Jake Gyllenhaal. George Hamilton. Dustin Hoffman. Anthony Hopkins. Samuel L Jackson. and Seattle-based actor, Tom Skerritt.

The clues centered around the guests' careers rather than their private life.

The first week identified roles they had played: superhero sibling, and western army man. Winger played Wonder Woman's sister in the 1976 television series, while Howard played the role of Private Cowboy in "Full Metal Jacket."

The second clue looked at the dilemmas faced by their characters: "Half tourist, half traveller, and dinosaur exploiter. Winger's character in "The Sheltering Sky" described herself as "half tourist, half traveller." Howard's character in "The Lost World: Jurassic Park" was bent on the exploitation of the ancient creatures.

Characters' surnames had a local ring in the third week's clues: Winger played a character named "Dawn Anna Townsend" in the recent television film, "Dawn Anna," while Howard's character in "The Lost world: Jurassic Park" was named Peter Ludlow.

Finally, two lines of dialogue were offered the last week: "You know something? You ain't nothing special," a line of Winger's character in "An Officer and a Gentleman," and "Some dreams ruin being awake, if you know the difference. Best not to know," spoken by Howard's character in "Big Bad Love."

Each year, the film festival honors actors of special note during the weekend event. Previous honorees have included Tony Curtis (2000), Eva Marie Saint (2001), Patricia Neal (2002), Shirley Knight (2003), and Jane Powell (2004), All but Powell were Oscar® contenders or winners. Winger received three Oscar® nominations as best actress, the first being for "An Office and a Gentleman," the 1982 film shot mostly in Port Townsend.

Volunteers Still Needed

Help is still needed to run the new locations listed in the first item above. While these are venue manager positions, they will not require the supervisory responsibility that theatre managers perform. At talkmovies@theupstage, one person is needed to oversee arrangements and equipment, with some managing of patrons. At Digital Port Townsend, the drop-in theatre, one person is needed to assist in operating the projection equipment. Other positions still vacant include:

Call 360-379-1333 for details or sign up online, www.ptfilmfest.com, click on "volunteer."

New Venues Announced

Additional space expands festival offerings to include discussion panels, art & video

Three downtown Port Townsend businesses have stepped forward to open their doors to movie lovers this September as the Port Townsend Film Festival's newest venues.

The Upstage Theatre and Restaurant, Digital Port Townsend, and the Silverwater Café, have signed on in supporting roles for the sixth annual event September 23-25.

Popular demand from festival-goers prompted the creation of a new "Talk Movies" venue at The Upstage.

The idea arose out of the desire for panel discussions. Last year, festival organizers presented panel discussions at Pope Marine Park Theatre, a regular festival film venue. But putting panels together with films in the same venue did not seem to work, so a decision was made to find a separate location to do nothing but talk movies.

Enter Mark Cole, owner of The Upstage.

Cole has always thought his nightclub was a great place for film events. Last year he hosted one festival event, but this year a greater number have been scheduled.

The Upstage will be a hub of activity for filmmakers, cast members, and the public alike. With more filmmakers planning to attend PTFF than ever before, this will be the place to meet them and ask questions. talkmovies@theupstage will be host to several panel discussions over the weekend on a wide range of topics covering everything from ethics in documentaries to the hurdles faced by the independent filmmaker. Additional Q&A sessions will appeal to even the most casual film enthusiast, so be sure to stop in.

The Upstage will also take center stage when PTFF goes nationwide on the morning of Saturday, September 24. Sedge Thomson will broadcast his National Public Radio syndicated-program West Coast Live! from Port Townsend. Thomson is well-known for taking his show on the road and broadcasting from unique locations around the country to bring the tales of small towns to the ears of big city folk.

The schedule for the Upstage will be posted in the festival program in the September 14 issue of the Port Townsend Leader. The new venue has an advantage in that the exits of the Rose Theatre and Rosebud Cinema lead directly to the entrance to The Upstage.

Digital Port Townsend owner Steve Schauer admits the idea stemmed from a desire to play with cool high-tech gizmos, but his new screening room with digital surround sound and a large projection system makes for a perfect venue for showing short films.

Digital Port Townsend's screening room, known on festival weekend as the Drop-In Theatre, will be a place for people to go if a larger venue is sold out. It will seat about 20 people.

Program lineups include "Film 2880" movies made during past festivals. (The name "Film 2880" derives from the number of minutes elapsed in the 48 hours crews have to create their 10-minute movie short.)

Other movies scheduled to appear at the video theater will be announced at a later time. Admission will be by donation. The third new Port Townsend locale for Film Festival activities, Silverwater Café, will allow diners to enjoy the restaurant's renowned entrées amid Hollywood flair.

Richard Miller, a local photographer and art enthusiast, and Irma Millard, an artist and part-time hostess at the café, will curate an exhibit featuring portraits of classic Hollywood stars. The collection is on loan from collector Bruce Paddock of Sequim. A key part of the exhibit will display of portraits of the late 1930s film icon Greta Garbo, whose talents will be prominently displayed at this year's festival in celebration of what would have been her one-hundredth birthday September 18. Three sections of the Silverwater will be turned into an art gallery, with the Garbo display located at the entrance to the restaurant. Images of a variety of other stars from Hollywood's golden era will adorn the walls of Silverwater's newly redecorated mezzanine level, Mezzaluna, and the lobby area at the entrance to the building.

George Hurrell, a prominent photographer of the stars in the 1930s and `40s, will be one of the featured artists. Hurrell was head of the MGM portrait gallery in the early 1930s, worked with Warner Bros. and formed his own studio on Sunset Boulevard. And Silverwater's Mezzaluna lounge is another place people will be encouraged to use to "talk movies."

Brothel kids' photographs on display

Manhattan gets a look at life in Calcutta

One of the favorite films from the 2004 film festival, Born Into Brothels, has had an extraordinary life since screening in Port Townsend.

The film tells the story of a group of children born to prostitutes in one of Calcutta's largest red light districts. Zana Briski, a photo-journalist, was so captivated by their plight that she gave them cameras and taught them photography in the hope that the skills they learned might earn them a ticket out of poverty. She and Ross Kauffman made the film chronicling that effort.

The film touches a nerve in everyone who sees it, witnessed by the fact that:

And now, the childrens' photography has been curated into an exhibit at the School of the International Center of Photography in midtown Manhattan.

"The photographs form a close to ravishing, sometimes wrenching exhibition that in many ways confirms (one of the children's comment that `we are one soul and nine bodies'), for there are only intermittent signs of individual sensibilities," writes Roberta Smith in today's New York Times.

"But nearly all the images are amazing in one way or another, as documents, artifacts or artworks, or for their sometimes uncanny resemblances to photographs that you might come across in a Chelsea gallery," Smith continued.

The exhibit continues through Sunday.

On Tuesday, the film will receive it's television premiere when it is shown on Cinemax at 7 p.m. PDT, with repeat showings this month and next.

Frequent Flyer Miles Wanted

Have any spare frequent flyer miles that you can't use before they expire? It seems as though every filmmaker whose work we've selected wants to come to the festival, but our budget won't allow it, so if you have any miles you won't be using, or would just like to donate, we will be most appreciative. And if you have an empty ADU (additional dwelling unit) or very private room you'd be willing to let a filmmaker crash, please let us know. Call 360-379-1333.

Deep discounts at the Uptown Fair

Step right up Saturday, August 20, and own a piece of Port Townsend Film Festival history or walk away with a free pass to this year's silver screen gala.

T-shirts and other items commemorating five years as a Port Townsend mainstay attraction will be sold at deeply discounted prices during the Uptown Street Fair starting at 10 a.m. at the intersection of Lawrence and Tyler streets.

There's something for everyone. Need to entertain visiting relatives? Bring them on down. Need back-to-school clothes for the kids? We have something for you!

Bargains galore and no assembly required!

A drawing for a free all-venue pass will take place at 3 p.m. at the fair. The winner will be pulled from a list of people who completed an event survey during last year's film festival. But wait, there's more! For those who do not walk away with a pass from the street fair raffle, there will be a second opportunity to win a pass Saturday evening.

The Rose Theatre will have a drawing for two, one-month passes to the theatre, 235 Taylor St., and one film festival pass at the outdoor presentation of "E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial" at dusk. Gates to Memorial Field on Washington Street downtown open at 6:30 p.m. Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for children 12 and under. Attendees are encouraged to bring a picnic dinner, a blanket and an appetite for the theater's renowned popcorn.

Festival Tributes 30's Star Greta Garbo & Others

Walk into the lobby of Silverwater Café next to the Rose Theatre in Port Townsend between now and the end of September and you will enter another era, a different realm.

Hanging there are thirty-eight Classic Hollywood Portraits from the 1930s and 1940s by such famed celebrity portraitists as George Hurrell, Clarence Sinclair Bull, William Grimes, Ernest Bachrach, and others.

To look at this exhibit of luminous and stylized portraits is to understand why these celebrities were called "stars of the silver screen." The photographers' dramatic use of light and shadow evokes a period no longer embraced by the more candid times in which we now live.

The subjects of the exhibit include: Lucille Ball, Tallulah Bankhead, Claudette Colbert, Gary Cooper, Joan Crawford, Bette Davis, Marlene Dietrich, Alice Faye, Clark Gable, Cary Grant, Jean Harlow, Rita Hayworth, Audrey Hepburn, Katharine Hepburn, Veronica Lake, Jeannette MacDonald, Herbert Marshall, Robert Montgomery, Norma Shearer, Gloria Swanson, and, most prominently, Greta Garbo.

Several formal portraits of the most celebrated face from the movies in its first century are seen as you walk into the restaurant's front hall, with stills from Garbo's more famous films hanging on the other side of the passageway. Those films include Mata Hari, Grand Hotel, Anna Christie, and Camile, and Ninotchka, all from the 1930s.

The focus on Garbo comes as part of a nation-wide celebration of the centenary of her birth. The Swedish actress, who in her youth was often called "the divine Garbo," was born September 18, 1905. In its sixth edition, the Port Townsend Film Festival will honor her in three programmatic efforts:

  1. A screening of her famous 1926 silent film, Flesh and the Devil, in which she starred with John Gilbert, one of the leading heartthrobs of the silent era. The film will be accompanied on the grand piano by Michael Mortilla of Los Angeles who has built a career out of accompanying and composing scores for silent movies.
  2. Joining the U.S. Postal Service which is issuing a commemorative stamp in honor of Garbo's centenary, the festival has created a "first day" (in reality, it will be a "second day") cover with a special design. The limited edition (100) will be numbered and postmarked at the post office on September 24, then sold during the remaining of the festival.
  3. The Classic Hollywood Portrait exhibit in the halls and mezzanine of the Silverwater Café will hang through the end of September. On September 15, from 5 to 7 pm, a reception will be held with the collector, Bruce Paddock, available to discuss his interest in the glamorous portraits. The exhibit is sponsored by the Max Grover Gallery, upstairs at 820 Water Street (above the Imprint Book Store), where individual prints from the original negatives will be available for sale through September.

Dates of the festival are September 23-25, 2005.

Freshman Moviemakers to be Showcased

While Hollywood touts multi-million-dollar blockbusters this summer (many of which are not registering well at the box office, we might add), a dedicated group of independent filmmakers will screen their low-budget features during the sixth annual Port Townsend Film Festival.

Film festival programmers are showcasing three independent movies in a new segment called "First Features." The full-length films represent what is becoming commonplace in the independent film movement: low budget and high quality. The three films include:

Straight Line is a film about a Chicago boy who falls in love after moving to Montana with a girl who soon leaves for Panama. Sean Ackerman and his colleagues took 18 months of real time and three photographic formats to bring the touching story to life. Ackerman will attend the festival.

Hank Williams First Nation traces the generational gap in a Cre Tribe family in Alberta. The quiet daily life of the Fox family is interrupted as 75-year-old Martin suddenly decides to travel to Nashville in search of evidence that Hank Williams, his longtime hero, has really died. He is accompanied on his journey by his young niece who uses the experience to learn about herself and her heritage along the way. Director Aaron J. Sorensen will attend.

In Ocean Front Property Rick Noonson attempts to gain perspective after being dumped by his fiancé by visiting the beach house where they spent many summers together. Instead of nursing old wounds, however, Noonson is forced to cope as the situation gets progressively worse when she shows up at the ocean front cottage.

Seattle film critic and historian Warren Etheredge will interview the directors of the showcased features prior to each screening on Saturday and will conduct a public discussion of the films at the Upstage Theatre and Restaurant on Sunday afternoon. Etheredge is founder of www.TheWarrenReport.com,, a weblog that reviews movies under the belief that "smarter audiences make smarter movies." He also curates the 1 Reel Film Festival at Seattle's annual Bumbershoot celebration on labor day weekend and a founding faculty member of TheFilmSchool in Seattle. As a writer or director, he has stages more than 40 theatrical productions.

Film Camp Pass Deadline September 9

Have you ever wanted to see a movie during the festival, but you decide not to because it would most likely bore the kids? We have the solution.

Firefly Academy, a registered pre-school located downtown on Washington Street across from the festival mall, will hold a film camp for kids 2 to 12 on Saturday and Sunday of the festival. It's not just a baby-sitting service. Kids will be involved in:

Movie making * Claymation workshop * Special movie screenings and nutritious meals and snacks will be provided.

Passes at $40 entitles your child to up to ten hours of film camp. Have more than one child? Each additional child's pass is $20. Buy as many passes as you need. The passes are punch cards sold in 10 hour increments.

Registration deadline for passes is September 9. Space is limited. Only by buying a pass by September 9 do you guarantee a place for your child. Last minute drop-ins are accepted on a space available basis only. Drop-ins are $7 per hour.

Registration/Information:

Erica Delma, Firefly Academy
842 Washington Street, Suite 104
Port Townsend, WA 98368
360-379-1129

Firefly Academy Preschool is a child-centered, multi-age preschool located in the heart of Downtown Port Townsend. The Academy offers year-round preschool for children ages 2-6 and a special summer program that serves older children, 1st grade and up. Because of our great downtown location, next to the Haller Fountain on Washington Street, we are able to have many adventures around town including trips to the beach and the Uptown Playground, bus rides to the library and Kah Tai Lagoon, just to name a few. Throughout the year we offer Saturday Evening School on Gallery Walk nights (the first Saturday of each month) so you can get out and enjoy what PT has to offer while your children spend a fun and educational evening at Firefly.

Clip Those Newspapers, please.

A request of our out-of-town guests: If you see any articles about the Port Townsend Film Festival in your local papers will you please clip them and bring them with you if you plan to attend or mail them if you can't make it this year.

We have a young experienced writer available to us this year by the name of Luke Bogues who has been writing and sending news releases as if the only news of interest in the world is about the Port Townsend Film Festival (well, isn't it?). But we don't have access to all papers. We do see the Port Townsend Leader and the Peninsula Daily News regularly, but that's about it. And, we'd like to keep our clipping file as complete as possible.

Thanks.

Mail to:
Nancy Sendler, Operations Director
Port Townsend Film Festival
P.O. Box 594
Port Townsend, WA 98368

This eNewsletter is sponsored by

Port Townsend/Jefferson County Leader
Port Townsend Paper Corporation
Rose Theatre
Skookum, Inc.

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