Showing posts with label Filmmaker Life. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Filmmaker Life. Show all posts

Oct 17, 2024

International Film Festival Tour Expands to 25+ Cities

"Hey, what's been happening with the Monarch Theatre documentary and when can we see it?" I've probably been asked this question more than any other this year. With the last festival schedules now being finalized, here's a brief (and overdue) update about the international film festival tour for "Your Cinema Needs You" directed by Luke Fandrich.

Film Festival Your Cinema Needs You Monarch Documentary

Film Festival Your Cinema Needs You Monarch Documentary


Needless to say, there have been no shortage of surprises throughout this entire experience. Since the premiere run ended back in February 2024, "Your Cinema Needs You" has been on an ambitious international film festival tour which quickly surpassed expectations for what this release would look like.

In the last 8 months, the indie doc about Canada's oldest cinema has gone on to screen in over 25 cities across 11 countries. From Los Angeles to Montreal to Berlin to Istanbul to Tokyo, the movie continued to pick up official selections in new venues that further pushed the release down the road as we built momentum.

These were all really good problems to have.

Film Festival Your Cinema Needs You Monarch Documentary

Film Festival Your Cinema Needs You Monarch Documentary

Film Festival Your Cinema Needs You Monarch Documentary



Where are we now? The notifications about final festival selections for 2024 are expected in the next few weeks. Regardless of the outcomes, this will see the festival run conclude this December and should fast-track public viewing options soon after. This means the long-teased wide release is finally on the horizon.

I'll get into more of the behind the scenes about this entire chapter in a future post.

Once again, thank you for the continued interest, patience, and support through all of this. I wouldn't have even pursued this detour had all the premiere shows in the Monarch Theatre not been such a huge success. It's been a life-changing ride.

More details to come.

Film Festival Your Cinema Needs You Monarch Documentary

Film Festival Your Cinema Needs You Monarch Documentary



Oct 12, 2024

Twin Pines Mall: Back to the Future Location

Located in City of Industry, California, the Puente Hills Mall served as the location for the Twin Pines Mall (and Lone Pine Mall) in the 1985 film, Back to the Future. This is the parking lot where Doc Brown first performs the time travel experiments with his custom DeLorean. As such, the mall has long been a popular site for fans of the iconic trilogy.

Twin Pines Mall Location Back to the Future



We visited before news broke about the sale of the mall and its intended closure. The full plans are yet to be revealed, but with much of the Puente Hills Mall already vacant it's expected that the site will be completely redeveloped, likely destroying the lot where the movie was filmed.

One of the few remaining attractions here was a replica of the Twin Pines Mall sign located inside. A small collector's shop was also the perfect spot to pick up a few Back to the Future souvenirs. I'm just glad we had the opportunity to see it before it disappeared for good.

Twin Pines Mall Location Back to the Future

Twin Pines Mall Location Back to the Future

Twin Pines Mall Location Back to the Future

Twin Pines Mall Location Back to the Future

Twin Pines Mall Location Back to the Future

Twin Pines Mall Location Back to the Future

Twin Pines Mall Location Back to the Future

Twin Pines Mall Location Back to the Future

 

Oct 4, 2024

The Oldest Surviving Cinema in Stockholm, Sweden

After a year of film festival screenings for my documentary, Your Cinema Needs You, including two of which that took place in Sweden, I made a point of visiting the oldest still-operating movie theatre remaining in Stockholm. This is the Zita, a small, but beautiful art house cinema that first opened in 1913. What can I say? All of the research about old cinemas that went into the production now has me actively searching them out on my travel shoots.

Zita Stockholm Your Cinema Needs You Documentary



Zita Stockholm Sweden Your Cinema Needs You

Zita Stockholm


 

Sep 5, 2024

Searching For Hollywood's Oldest Cinema

With the film festival tour for my documentary, "Your Cinema Needs You" and some of my travel shoots overlapping this year, I've made a point of searching out old cinemas in a lot of the different places that I've been going.

In Los Angeles, a city full of incredible theatres, I thought it would be interesting to find the oldest cinema in Hollywood. This lead me down a bit of rabbit hole.

Hollywood Oldest Cinema Movie Theatre



For starters, until Hollywood was incorporated into Los Angeles in 1910, the town had regulations specifying no theatres. Once incorporated, this changed quickly. The first cinema built in Hollywood in 1910 was called the Idyl Hour, which was later renamed the Iris Theatre, however the location changed several times in just a few short years. A very familiar story.

Hollywood Oldest Cinema Movie Theatre

Hollywood Oldest Cinema Movie Theatre

Hollywood Oldest Cinema Movie Theatre


With only a few images and an old fire map to go on, the theatre would've been located on prime real estate on Hollywood Boulevard. Unfortunately, when I went to see what was there today this is what I found - an empty lot with a direct view of the Hollywood sign.

The cinema had been defunct since the 1920s and the name moved again, but I was curious if the building had been repurposed or modified. What makes this location special is just how many incredible cinemas are still in the area.

Hollywood Oldest Cinema Movie Theatre

Hollywood Oldest Cinema Movie Theatre



Grauman's Chinese Theatre (now the TCL Chinese Theatre) is just a few blocks away and in addition to still hosting movie premieres to this day, it's endured as one of the most famous movie palaces in the world. Quite the contrast from where the Iris began over a century ago.

Each of these detours makes me further appreciate what was uncovered in making the documentary about Medicine Hat's Monarch Theatre. It's a fascination about how much has changed, what's been left to find, and that through it all that little cinema back in Medicine Hat has survived when so many others didn't.

Hollywood Oldest Cinema Movie Theatre

Hollywood Oldest Cinema Movie Theatre


Sep 1, 2024

A Film School Reunion in Saskatchewan

This last week I was soaking up the nostalgia on a film school reunion tour around Saskatchewan with some of my closest friends. While we've all been back over the years, I don't think we've all been back at the same time since we were actually students.

With so many of us living out of province now, this Saskatchewan trip became the perfect excuse for us to all travel back to Saskatoon and Regina to hangout, reminisce, and go back to some of our old stomping grounds. I can't quite remember the last time I've consumed this much beer in a single week lol.

University of Regina Film School


Amazingly everything always seems to fall back into place when revisiting old friends. The trip coincidentally lined up with move-in week at the University of Regina, which immediately triggered so many great memories of my years living in the dorms there.

If there was any more glaring reminder of just how much has changed since my days as a film student, my feature-length documentary was also playing at the 2024 Regina International Film Festival just days before I made it back. With the trip finalized long before I even knew the doc would pick up the 'official selection' here, it was another serendipitous bit of timing.

These moments always seem too few and far between, but what a great week. I'm glad we're still making memories all these years later.



Aug 20, 2024

I Funko'd Myself in Hollywood (Again)

My strict rules for purchasing any Funko Pops aside, I took the bait at the Hollywood Boulevard store in in Los Angeles, California and created myself in miniature vinyl form once more.


As was the issue last year, a blonde dude in a hoodie doesn't look personalized. Then I saw the popcorn and trophy accessories and it clicked. 
In keeping with this year's over-extended theme I made the Monarch Theatre premiere / film festival version of myself to compliment last year's mini-me Funko travel photographer. 

In short, this became another brilliantly kitschy souvenir from the latest Hollywood travel shoots ... and, let's be honest, one more opportunity to name-drop "Your Cinema Needs You" as the international festival tour rolls on through 2024. 

Aug 10, 2024

Inside Hollywood's Iconic Chinese Theatre

The iconic TCL Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles, California attracts plenty of attention along Hollywood Boulevard, however the interior of this movie palace is even more impressive. With painted murals and embellished Chinese decor, the lobby of Grauman's Chinese Theatre is completed with classic movie memorabilia and programs from some of the Hollywood premieres that have been hosted at this landmark over nearly a century.

Inside TCL Chinese Theatre Graumans Hollywood Interior Movie Palace


Inside TCL Chinese Theatre Graumans Hollywood Interior Movie Palace


Inside TCL Chinese Theatre Graumans Hollywood Interior Movie Palace

Inside TCL Chinese Theatre Graumans Hollywood Interior Movie Palace

Inside TCL Chinese Theatre Graumans Hollywood Interior Movie Palace


Inside TCL Chinese Theatre Graumans Hollywood Interior Movie Palace

Inside TCL Chinese Theatre Graumans Hollywood Interior Movie Palace

Inside TCL Chinese Theatre Graumans Hollywood Interior Movie Palace

Inside TCL Chinese Theatre Graumans Hollywood Interior Movie Palace

Inside TCL Chinese Theatre Graumans Hollywood Interior Movie Palace


Inside TCL Chinese Theatre Graumans Hollywood Interior Movie Palace

Inside TCL Chinese Theatre Graumans Hollywood Interior Movie Palace

Inside TCL Chinese Theatre Graumans Hollywood Interior Movie Palace

Inside TCL Chinese Theatre Graumans Hollywood Interior Movie Palace

Inside TCL Chinese Theatre Graumans Hollywood Interior Movie Palace