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AS = Ashley Sabin
DR = David Redmon

DR 6-3-08 MARDI GRAS: MADE IN CHINA
DVD available on July 29, 2008
Review copies available now

Pre-order at Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, Best Buy, Borders, Circuit City, Buy.com

Rent Online: Blockbuster and Netflix

Nominated for the Grand Jury Award at the Sundance Film Festival
Winner of 20 awards, Theatrically Released in the U.S.
Curated by the Sundance Channel as one of the "Classical Festival Moments" of all Sundance films
New York Time's Critics Pick

"Punchy documentary critique of globalization looks at the conditions in a factory in the Chinese city of Fuzhou where young workers make the beads showered onto revelers in New Orleans in exchange for baring their breasts at Mardi Gras." New York Times

"Cleverly juxtaposes the apex of American bacchanalian excess with the sweatshop-like conditions that facilitate the fun." Los Angeles Times 

"This is one of the best films I know about real (as opposed to op-ed) globalization.   Please welcome it." The Nation

June 3, 2008 - Carnivalesque Films will release the Award Winning documentary MARDI GRAS: MADE IN CHINA in stores everywhere on July 29, 2008. Winner of twenty national and international awards, Mardi Gras: Made in China follows the path of Mardi Gras beads from the naked streets of New Orleans during Carnival – where revelers party and exchange beads for sexual acts – to the disciplined factories in Fuzhou, China – where teenage girls live and sew beads together all day and night. Blending curiosity with comedy, Mardi Gras: Made in China is the only film to explore how the toxic products directly affect the people who both make and consume them.

Carnivalesque Films is a new production and distribution company whose goal is to explore how personal stories relate to complex social issues. David Redmon and Ashley Sabin - directors of the award winning films KAMP KATRINA and INTIMIDAD - founded Carnivalesque Films and will release three award winning films ORPHANS (Ry Russo-Young), THE HOLY MODAL ROUNDERS: BOUND TO LOSE (Paul Lovelace and Sam Douglas), and MANHATTAN, KANSAS (Tara Wray) on September 28, October 30, and November 16, 2008.  

For screeners, publicity and interviews contact David Redmon and Ashley Sabin,  203 417 3136 and 347 282 6132
info@carnivalesquefilms.com

For Sales (national and international) please contact Ewa Bigio at Smiley Films

Pre-book date: July 4, 2008
Street Date: July 29, 2008
SRP: $19.95
Bonus features: PG version, deleted scenes, extra scenes, 7 min version, clips from upcoming films,
and a worker's diary.

PRE-ORDER NOW at Amazon.com 

DR 5-29-08 We've arrived to Columbia, MO after only 2 days of driving. Now, we're getting ready to settle into our new home and begin working on several goals we want to explore and pursue during the next year. 

Recently, INTIMIDAD won Best International Film at the Connecticut Film Festival. Last month it won the Human Rights award at the RiverRun Film Festival, and during the previous month it won the Excellence in Filmmaking award at the Magnolia Film Festival in Mississippi. We are honored for these awards and will be sure to share the recognition with Cecy, Camilo, and Loida (as well as all the money made from Cecy's jewelry that we're selling online). 

Lately I've been hesitant to mention that Ashley and I don't send our films to the Full Frame Film Festival or the Silverdocs Film Festival. Sometime in the near future I hope to write a brief article explaining why these two festivals, in particular, are not festivals we consider "storytelling" festivals. Instead, these two festivals prioritize liberal films that focus on politics, presented in a journalistic manner over the aesthetics and craft of storytelling. Additionally, the two film festivals operate in a top-down manner in which they assume to be "enlightened" and therefore it's their duty - even obligation - to "enlighten" the remaining people who don't conform to their liberal beliefs. As such, the two festivals - Full Frame and SilverDocs - sacrifice story by replacing it with ideological dogma and the dissemination of ideologies that confirm what they want to hear and what they already believe - and hope to convince audiences or at least change their minds. These two festivals select films that reflect what the programmers of the festivals already believe. Ashley and I don't make films to reinforce what we want to hear. Our films are not mouthpieces for our beliefs. Our films don't attempt to convince anyone of anything. Yet,  our "nonsubmission" is our own small way of being political. But we'll never make a film about it. 

DR 5-26-08 Most recent review of INTIMIDAD by Hammer to Nail's Michael Tully.

Ashley and I are back in Mansfield, TX after taking three long trips to Reynosa, Monroe, and New Orleans. Tomorrow we leave for our new "home" in Columbia, MO (home of the True/False Film Festival). Both of us are excited to leave Texas, but also looking forward to some downtime, finishing a few more films, and kick-starting our new distribution company Carnivalesque Films. We have several titles to release (Mardi Gras: Made in China on July 29) followed by ORPHANS, BOUND TO LOSE and several more gems! WAITING FOR JONIE (title in progress) will be done in a few months at which point Ashley and I will begin another film that we'll talk about when it's done.

Ahhh, life on the road as a dependent (yes, DEPENDENT) filmmaker. On our way back from Mexico our car overheated every 30 mins. So, we'd pull over at a station (or the side of the road), wait 20 mins for the engine to cool off, fill up the radiator with water (stored in bottles), and drive for 30 mins at 30mph (sometimes cruising with the engine turned off while coasting down a hill) - repeating the process for the next 14 hours. Yep, we made it back to Mansfield, and now we're looking forward to the same routine while driving to Columbia (not really, the car has been repaired - we hope). You can't do anything but laugh about it all (or film it).

Cecy, Camilo, and Loida are doing well. For those of you who donated money to the family (or purchased jewelry) please know the money was used to pay for a few months of bus service, their land, and additions to their home (cement floor, another room, bathroom, water container). They're still living "off the grid" without electricty, but they're doing fine. Ashley and I have sold a few DVDs, booked the film in theaters and colleges, and are working on television distribution for INTIMIDAD. Half the profits go directly to the family (yes, they helped shoot it).  

DR 5-17-08 Ashley and I are in Reynosa, Mexico for the next two days where we're visiting Ceci, Camilo, and Loida. They've started to build another room onto their current home and Loida turned 7 years old last month. Ashley and I have been on the road for what seems like three years and therefore we're getting ready to hopefully settle down in Columbia, MO in two weeks. 

DR 5-8-08  MARDI GRAS: MADE IN CHINA will have its official release on July 29,2008! You can preorder the DVD from Amazon.com and rent it from several outlets. Here's a recent article written about MGMIC. Click NOLA.COM Critics have also been responding to INTIMIDAD in a positive manner. We don't have links to all the press right now, but here's one review that captures the effort of INTIMIDAD.

DR 5-6-08  Hope to have some updates on festival films and new releases in the next few days. At this moment both Ashley and I are viciously tired from too much traveling. We're in CT getting some work done, some much needed rest, preparing to release more films on DVD, and editing the next film about Charles and his girfriend, Jonie. IFFBoston was absolutely a blast this year - new friends, one of the best programmed festivals all year, and of course Werner Herzog's most "mature" film to date: ENCOUNTERS AT THE END OF THE WORLD. The Maryland Film Festival was equally as solid with supportive crowds and three days of packed screenings for a variety of films.

DR 4-13-08  The last few weeks have been packed with too much travel - so much that I'm truly dizzy and ready to stay still. At this moment I'm in sitting in La Guardia airport, leaving NYC where I've been staying for the previous two days in order to get some work done for upcoming films and releases. Prior to NYC Ashley and I were in Sarasota where Intimidad screened to an inquisitive audience who stayed for the entire duration of the Q&A. Before and after the screening we needed some downtime so we went to the beach, watched a few solid films, and spent time with a few friends who happened to also be in Sarasota. Over the next few days we'll finalize the release of Mardi Gras: Made in China with our designer Roanld Wong, then meet with Joanne Rabinger in Austin so we can begin to finish Waiting for Jonie. Afterwards, we're heading to Boston to show Intimidad at one of our favorite festivals on the circuit: IFFBoston!!! We love this festival and can't wait to sink our eyes into some incredible films and see friends who we haven't seen in a while. We'll also be screening our films at Wheaton College on the side and then travel to the Maryland Film Festival. More updates soon!   

DR 4-6-08  It seems that it's that time of the year again where we lose track of dates, place, and time. Today we leave the warm hearted Florida Film Festival and drive to Sarasota where Intimidad plays on Tuesday and Weds. We're very much looking forward to the beach, but also relaxation and time to ourselves. Florida Film Festival was packed with reunions where we met both old and new friends, solid films, and greetings by volunteers that remind us exactly why people make films in the first place.

DR 4-1-08 Today Ashley and I returned from a delightful week of excellent crepes and expensive coffee in Paris where we screened Mardi Gras: Made in China three times at the Paris International Human Rights Film Festival. Cinemas in Paris (Latin Quarter) seem to be on every block; indeed, Paris has the most cinemas per capita in the world. Mardi Gras screened in the center of the Latin Quarter – walking distance from the Sorbonne, the University of Paris, and Ecole Normal University. It’s a stunningly romantic area in terms of its architecture and original buildings, though the entire area is structured by high rent, commercialism, and $5.00 cups of coffee at numerous coffee shops. Any signs of May 1968 are obviously dead (though the spirit of existentialism and Society of the Spectacle are present in art, sociology, film, and history books). Instead, American Apparel and Starbucks have finagled their way into the Quarter, though the fact remains that people still care about specific struggles given the turnout for the festival. The screenings went well and the discussions and debates afterwards were excellent. It is definitely comparable to the Southern Film Circuit (which I can’t stop talking about. It’s one of the best tours Ashley and I have been on so far).

Right now we’re in Cincinnati, on our way to Dallas, where Intimidad screens three times at the well organized AFI Dallas Film Festival. Can I be blunt? AFI has their shit together! Tomorrow morning we have three more interviews (with local papers and CNN) – they’ve already set up numerous interviews for Intimidad (I’ve honestly lost count) and still have more planned. It’s a festival that appears to be spoiled on the surface, but like all surface appearances, simple glances are deceiving. Every person on the AFI staff (Michael Cain, James Faust, Sarah Harris, and John Wildman), works 18-20 hour shifts to ensure that every film is cared for and obtains individual attention. Few festivals can match the dedication of the AFI Dallas staff (here I’m thinking of True/False and IFFBoston). It’s definitely a festival that we’d love to spend more time attending, but impossible due to the number of screenings for Intimidad this year. 

Tomorrow night, just before Intimidad’s second screening at AFI, we fly to Orlando for three days to attend another one of our favorite festivals: the Florida Film Festival. FFF will be screening Intimidad at the warm and intimate Enzian Theatre. Three days later we leave for Sarasota, Rutgers University, and Smith College, and then Intimidad screens in New Orleans, Lafayette, Indianapolis, River Run, Boston, Maryland, Houston, and Madrid (with more screenings on their way, though we do not apply to Full Frame or Silverdocs so don’t expect to see any of our films in those two festivals). So far the reactions to Intimidad have been overwhelming (you can read the updated press links below to understand how some people are responding). Thank you to everyone who helped with obtaining press over the last few weeks (John Wildman, Matt Dentler, Joe Leydon, Karina Longworth, Charlie, Heather Courtney, Marcy Garriot, AJ Schnack).

Sometime near the end of May we return to Monroe, LA to complete the final shooting of Waiting for Jonie. Afterwards, Ashley and I are renting a house in Columbia, MO near the Rag Tag Theater (home of the True/False Film Festival) and 9th Street Bakery so we can hopefully complete two more documentaries, finish a book that I’ve been writing for several years (more information soon), and see some fantastic films at the theater. We’ll also be releasing a few documentaries on DVD later this year so look of those starting in July!

DR 3-20-08 Here's an interview I meant to post last week... Sorry! I haven't heard it yet... There's so much to write about - Mobile, Baton Rouge, and West Palm Beach. I'll update as soon as I can.

AS 3-20-2008 While I am back in Texas David still has one more screening on the Southern Circuit.  I got a great google update today of Cinematical's insightful review of Intimidad.  Oh and also to add to the stockpile of embarrassing video footage please check out, Filmcatcher.  You have to really take a look at the end of the clip where part of the Weinstein family (Josh Weinstein on the far right made Flying on One Engine) do a wonderful rap inspired by Intimidad.  

DR 3-17-2008 During the editing of Kamp Katrina, Tim Messler recommended that Ashley and I watch a documentary titled Seventeen, a film made in Muncie, Indiana for PBS that never actually premiered on TV because of its controversial subject matter (nor was it released - we were able to watch a bootleg copy in NYC). Seventeen is the kind of film that I aspire to make one day. After researching the filmmakers - Joel DeMott and Jeff Kreines - I came across another documentary they created titled Demon Lover Diary (which I've never seen). Like Seventeen, Demon Lover found its way into obscurity, never having a release in the US for reasons unknown to me to this day. A few months later, Jeff and Joel's name came up during a film festival panel. Later that day I looked up their names on google and found an article that explained during the making of Demon Lover Diary, Ted Nugent chased Joel and Jeff out of town at gunpoint, all which was captured on film. The article ended by saying that the couple had not made another film and they were living somewhere outside of Montgomery, AL inventing new cameras.

Jump ahead one year. Ashley and I are in Montgomery, AL, getting ready to screen Kamp Katrina at the Capri Theatre when Martin, the programmer, was giving us a tour of the town and mentioned Joel and Jeff in a passing conversation. It turns out that Jeff and Joel sometimes show up for screenings at the Capri. Low and behold, two hours later a man with a greying beard walks into the Capri and Martin leans over to me and says, "That's Jeff." After the screening - which was well attended by about 45-50 people - Jeff took three hours of his time to sit and talk with us about his years of filmmaking, the making of his and Joel's films, and how they ended up in Montgomery. Indeed, it was a major highlight of the Southern Film Circuit's tour! Next, we're off to Mobile, AL for another screening tonight.  

DR 3-16-2008 It's 12:42AM and we're in a hotel in Greensboro, GA, getting ready to show Kamp Katrina in Montgomery, AL tomorrow night. We'll be sure to write about today's experiences as soon as we have a chance. For now, here's a link to our acting debut: a spoof of Ashley's mishandling of David Lynch's crystal award from last year's AFI Dallas Film Festival. 

DR 3-15-2008   It's been a whirlwind of activity in the last few days on the Southern Film Circuit. We're currently in the Common Ground coffee shop, taking a moment to write from Beaufort, SC, one of the most beautiful and romantic Southern cities we've visited so far! The entire historic district is laced with colorful three story homes surrounded by Spanish Moss in a picturesque quality that would make any DIY movie look like a million bucks. Our screening last night was PACKED - the largest audience so far (and everyone stayed for the Q&A). Every venue has been well attended by inquisitive and understanding people who patiently sit through Kamp Katrina and then asked direct, honest questions afterwards. This morning Ashley and I had a delicious breakfast (blueberry pancakes with coffee) and then took a 3 hour stroll alongside the sandy beach with our camera in hand, capturing brown pelicans diving into the ocean to catch fish. We also found a few people to interview and they eagerly shared stories about shark teeth and David Lynch; we hope to include this footage in our upcoming film.

If you ever have a chance to visit Columbia, SC, be CERTAIN to find the Nickelodeon Theatre and visit LARRY. How shall I describe Larry? Perhaps I shouldn't. He's the most outgoing, blunt, energetic, friendly and exuberant person I've met in the last 10 years. After almost attacking Ashley and I with friendliness, he then asked us a million questions, made us feel at home, gave us a walking tour of Columbia, brought us to a bar (and paid for EVERYTHING after greeting almost everyone who entered) and then invited us into his home and let us sleep in his extra bedroom. He woke us up early in the morning, prepared coffee and directions, and then set up another screening before we left. Yes, Larry is the kind of person who defines a town's mood and in a way that makes someone never forget their experiences. Plus, his theater is one of the most intimate spaces we've visited (similar to the Rag Tag Theater in Columbia, MO). However, the Nickelodeon is about to shut down and reopen a few blocks down in a newly renovated 1940s building with two screens and a $5 million dollar renovation! I'd like to keep writing about our experiences in Columbia and Larry's gregariousness, but the coffee shop is closing in just a few minutes and we need to leave before they turn off the internet. More to come soon!  

DR 3-12-08      SXSW was a long, tiring, and inspiring week of films, parties, two screenings of Intimidad (and a third one on Thursday), and a tedious job of transcribing Mardi Gras: Made in China into French (next week we leave for a one week stay in Paris to show MGMIC). We spent most of our time with Adam Roffman, programmer of IFFBoston Joshua Weinstein (Flying on One Engine), Tatiana McCabe (our translator), and Heather Courtney (director of Las Trabajores and Letters from the Other Side). Our friends and new designer, Ronald Wong and Tammy Yu, also came out from Mansfield just to see the film. My high school friends Jamie and his wife Carrie were also there. And so was my mom, aunt, and her friend Linda! Yes, what would the world premiere of a film be without the presence of your mother! Likewise, Deborah and Dale Smith have always claimed that Intimidad is "the" special film, and after watching it Friday night, I have to agree with them.

Intimidad looked incredible on a big screen as it engaged the audience from start to finish! We can officially claim that Intimidad was an opening night documentary at SXSW and that EVERY PERSON STAYED for a Q&A session on both nights! Furthermore, last night’s 10:15pm screening ended at 12:30AM, even though Intimidad is only 72 mins (though we’re making a shorter version for TV). We sold ALL of Cecy’s jewelry and raised over $260US for their land. The audience’s reaction to the film varied from disbelief in how Cecy, Camilo, and Loida let us into their lives, to utter magic of how well told the story was. In fact, I was shocked by how different Intimidad looked on a theatrical screen instead of a 15 inch computer monitor! It is truly a stunning and beautiful film because the family shares so much of their personal lives with an unknown audience. It’s a true gift in every sense of the word. Here’s a few reviews and stories on Intimidad.  

Austin American-Statesman

Austin Chronicle 

Spout 

Film Threat 

Dallas Morning News Blogger Chris Vognar

A.J. Schnack's blog 

Right now Ashley and I are in Athens, GA as part of the Southern Film Circuit. Tomorrow we drive to Columbia, SC. Last night, however, we left Austin at 1:00am (after telling Joel Heller Happy Birthday) and drove all night to Mansfield where we dozed into a 45 minute nap before waking up in a rushed daze to catch an early morning flight to Atlanta. We rented a car in Atlanta and then drove to Athens where Kamp Katrina is screening at the Georgia Museum of Art! [note: we JUST completed the Q&A with a fabulous audience who were both disturbed and intrigued by what was in the film (and what was left out). It was one of the most honest Q&A's so far]. We are delighted that Allen chose to program Kamp Katrina as part of the screening series and can’t think of another tour that we’d rather be part of. Thankfully, the Southern Film Circuit has stepped in to fill a needed gap in community involvement by providing a film series that focuses on storytelling as opposed to putting forth a political agenda or reinforcing a particular ideology. It’s also beyond our belief that Kamp Katrina is still finding locations in which to screen, colleges are programming our film(s), and teachers are using it in their classes.

All of the above mentioned events seemingly come out of nowhere. For instance, my claim of catching an “early flight to Atlanta” and “renting a car and droving to Athens” are a bit misleading. Hardworking people who care about the function of the organization they work for set up those events, of course. All the car rentals, tours, food, and flights were arranged ahead of time. Therefore, I think it’s realistic to describe me and Ashley as “dependent” filmmakers as opposed to “independent” filmmakers. In truth, no one does it alone. We (and other filmmakers) are dependent on organizations to secure screening venues, people who raise money to show Kamp Katrina (and our other films), fly us in for a workshop or Q&A, donate their time and energy for feedback, provide finishing, startup funds, or stipends, create and audience, and offer a much needed social and psychological support network for everyone involved in the complicated world of documentary storytelling.

The Southern Film Circuit provides all of the above functions and much, much more for filmmakers and audiences. Please check out their organization and welcome a filmmaker (or film) into your hometown, or volunteer a local venue to screen a documentary or two. Inviting people over to watch documentaries or sponsoring a screening in your hometown or neighborhood is a fantastic way to become engaged.
 

DR - 3-8-08 SXSW Here's a news ciip of Ashley talking about INTIMIDAD. She appears, along with Cecy and Camilo, at the end of the clip. More later about the fantastic screening last night! We sold all of Cecy's earrings! 

DR - 3-7-08 Final update from True/False Film Festival and a safe arrival at SXSW. Ashley and I finally made it to Austin, TX, in spite of the hail, sleet, rain, and snow that tried their damnest to prevent us from arriving. However, we armed ourselves with coffee, Vitamin water, and snacks in our pursuit of the SXSW Film Festival while ripping down I-35 (picture FEAR AND LOATHING IN LAS VEGAS, except without the drugs, convertable, and desert). Needless to say, four hours later we arrived safely and immediately began passing out postcards in the local Moose Lounge, Vulcan Video store, Waterloo Records and Video, coffee shops, Bookpeople, and Bookwoman bookstore. We're staying at Heather Courtney's house, a friendly and wonderful director of LETTERS FROM THE OTHER SIDE and LOS TRABAJADORES/THE WORKERS. 

Tonight our film, INTIMIDAD, premieres at 10:00pm in The Alamo (Lamar) Theatre. It's opening night and we're truly nervous about how people will respond. More updates from SXSW coming soon.

True/False. A knock out film at every emotional, intellectual, and humanistic level, FORBIDDEN LIES is, hands down, the most stunning and captivating documentary I’ve ever seen. Anna Broinowski, a 5th time director, has single handedly created a new visual language for documentary storytelling. I don’t want to “explain” the story in this entry or reveal what happens in her amazing gem of a film (you can read about it here). Instead, what’s important to me is how Anna reveals her story, what it does to an audience, and her desire of pursuing something that one will never, ever obtain. In brief, the film’s essence lies in its interactive language of pure desire, seduction, and disappointment, ad infinitum.  In contrast, most films follow a typical dialectical form of storytelling based on character driven conflict. That is, a scene or Act is presented as a thesis, followed by another scene/Act that differs from the previous scene/Act (antithesis) and thus creates a logic of conflict that advances the story until a synthesis is created. Ultimately, the dialectical story ends in a resolution that synthesizes the previous material into a coherent transformation – the end moment of satisfaction (or, synthesis). FORBIDDEN LIES, by contrast, starts with a thesis, poses an antithesis, and then - in a deductive process - proceeds to introduce layers of seduction and desire in pursuit of a deferred satisfaction or resolution. The viewer is left with an unresolved story that introduces seduction  and desire as the final logical pieces. I simply can’t stop thinking about Anna’s film; I hope it finds a home in the U.S. It completely reminds me of the late Jean Baudillard's 1979 book, "Seduction."

Here's an entry on "Seduction" from the Standford Encyclopedia of Philosophy): At the same time that his work was becoming extremely popular, Baudrillard's own writing became increasingly difficult and obscure. In 1979, Baudrillard published Seduction (1990), a difficult text that represented a major shift in his thought. The book marks a turning away from the more sociological discourse of his earlier works to a more philosophical and literary discourse. Whereas in Symbolic Exchange and Death (1993a [1976]), Baudrillard sketched out ultra-revolutionary perspectives as a radical alternative, taking symbolic exchange as his ideal, he now takes seduction as his alternative to production and communicative interaction. Seduction, however, does not undermine, subvert, or transform existing social relations or institutions, but is a soft alternative, a play with appearances, and a game with feminism, a provocation that provoked a sharp critical response.[6] Baudrillard's concept of seduction is idiosyncratic and involves games with signs which set up seduction as an aristocratic "order of sign and ritual" in contrast to the bourgeois ideal of production, while advocating artifice, appearance, play, and challenge against the deadly serious labor of production. Baudrillard interprets seduction primarily as a ritual and game with its own rules, charms, snares, and lures. His writing mutates at this point into a neo-aristocratic aestheticism dedicated to stylized modes of thought and writing, which present a set of categories — reversibility, the challenge, the duel, — that move Baudrillard's thought toward a form of aristocratic aestheticism and metaphysics. 

AS 3-3-08 David and I got back this evening from Columbia, MO just avoiding the SNOW in Texas.  It very rarely snows here so we got pretty excited.  I think David's summary below is a great sum up but since his entry we have seen many other great films at True False.  My favorite films were, Very Young Girls and Forbidden Lies. I'm pretty tired so I don't feel like my summaries right now would do these films justice but what I will say is that these films make me excited to be a part of an everchanging field of making documentary films.  Another side note as reviews come in for Intimidad I figured I would post them check out this one from The Austinist.  Nighty night!

DR 3-1-08 I feel like it's been forever since we've updated our online "blog" (it's not a"blog" - "blog" is such a funny name, something similar to a horror film, "Return of the Blog!"). Ashley and I arrived to Columbia, MO on Tuesday for the True/False Film Festival where we've been watching 2-3 films a day. So far, the most thoughtful, articulate, and complex film we've seen is called "How I Am." Fresh out of college, and made as their senior thesis project, HOW I AM is a 50 minute elegant documentary about an 18 year autistic young man named Patrick who lives in Northeastern Italy with his parents and two younger brothers. The film's stunningly beautiful photography, combined with the tender and intimate access to his daily life (shaving with his dad, going to high school, playing with his brothers), makes this film a true experience as opposed to a lecture or lesson. The directors (Ingrid, Daniel, and Caroline ) bring us into Patrick's world by recording his complex thoughts, fears, and affirmations onto a computer screen, thus rendering his thoughts into philosophical poetry. 

We've been traveling so much in the last few months that it's becoming difficult to remember all the changes taking place: college screenings, Sundance and Slamdance films, surprising Cecy, Camilo, and Loida in Reynosa, meeting with folks in Austin, seeing Charles and editing the film about him titled WAITING FOR JONIE, visiting Ms. Pearl and New Orleans, and launching our new and novel distribution methods - both domestically and internationally. 

The trick is to create films, distribute them, and sustain ourselves (and other filmmakers) by staying healthy, paying bills, and finding a stable place to live while traveling so much. The other problem is putting up with pyschopaths who impersonate us, our company, and threaten to harm us (yes, indeed it happens). Over the last few months a certain someone - whose name will later be revealed - has created a Myspace webpage in our name, false email accounts in our name, and has called companies we're dealing with and threatened to sue them for trying to release our films in novel ways. In short, this person has broken several criminal laws and there's a trail of evidence leading directly to his PC computer out in Lake County, IL. Yes, it's nuts and immature, but it's true. Ahh, the adventures of low budget filmmaking is both comical and absurd. 

Next week we return to Mansfield, TX for one day and then embark on a city-wide campaign (Obama style) to market and advertise INTIMIDAD at the SXSW film festival! INTIMIDAD's world premiere is on opening night at 10pm, which makes us both nervous and excited. Will anyone show up? What will happen when people show up? It's almost as disconcerting as the first time we premiered Mardi Gras: Made in China... We love SXSW for what it represents in documentary film: it's a festival that is truly ahead of its time. Docs selected for the festival are eclectic and risky to program, but they're the kind of films which always seem to be situated in the future. 

In addition to the excellent SXSW film festival (which is a MUST ATTEND), we'll also travel on the Southern Film Circuit for ten days to show KAMP KATRINA in several theaters in the South. It's our first time selected for the tour and Ashley and I are preparing materials to distribute for Carnivalesque Films. Sonn afterwards, however, we're flying to Paris to share Mardi Gras: Made in China with Parisians for one week. It's a much needed break and vacation, and it's also a way to meet with European TV stations since the festival sets up meetings with acquistions people. It's a rapid life.  

Although it's a rapid life filled with transient experiences, we're super-excited to show INTIMIDAD in a few more of our favorite festivals: Florida, IFFBoston, AFI Dallas, and Maryland (among others which we'll write about when we attend). Florida has a special place in our hearts for one simple reason: Matthew and the talented staff and volunteers know how to host a truly warm and intimate film festival. Ashley and I can't think of another festival that's dedicated to creating an event strictly for the shared experience between filmmakers and audience. AFI Dallas, however, is a ton of fun and unforgettable! The staff (James, Michael and Sara) work day and day to bring some of the best films to Dallas that result in large audiences, excitement and buzz in the air, and pampering like no other festival experience. Still, how can anyone with or without a film miss out on IFFBoston? All film lovers need to at least experience IFFBoston and True/False once in their life. The only difference between the two is the midwest and the east coast locations (as well as venues spread out in Boston whereas in Columbia they're all walking distance to each other). Last, the we're returning to the Maryland Film Festival again this year for the second time. I can't think of another festival on which to end the circuit other than Maryland. Still, it would be an honor to attend the Sidewalk Film Festival this summer. We're keeping our fingers crossed for Sidewalk (they're call for entries went out this week). More to come tomorrow.     

AS 2-27-08
David and I are in Columbia MO to introduce films for the True False film festival and to present Mardi Gras: Made in China at University of Missouri at Columbia.  We love Columbia and are excited to be back!  I just wanted to do a quick post that may seem like bragging but really we are just excited about it.  Texas Monthly did a short piece on four Texas filmmakers and they included us as the next, "Great Texas Directors." Christopher Kelly continues on and says, “INTIMIDAD—a portrait of a couple in Mexico trying to save enough money to reunite with their young daughter—is their strongest yet.  It’s a documentary with its heart (and brain) in the right place.” Hopefully this article will get some people to our SXSW screening.  As for True False films we will fill you in our opinions in the next few days.   

DR 2-20-08
We no longer have the flu! We're in Reynosa, Mexico visiting the family in INTIMIDAD (Ceci, Camilo, and Loida). More updates soon regarding film festivals, cyberstalkers (and impersonators), designs, travels in CT, New Orleans, South Carolina, Georgia, and of course reviews of films at Sundance. SXSW is around the corner!!! Obama and Clinton will be debating on Thursday in Austin - we might be there to film... 

AS 2-08-08
Yah!  We're updating our blog so all of you people with PCs out there can finally open it again!  More to come later after David recovers from the green gumboo!   

DR 1-10-08
During the last month Ashley and I have been back and forth from LA, TX, and CT while editing our new film about Charles (Charles was one of the characters in KAMP KATRINA). So far the story is coming along nicely and it looks to be a true cinematic experience as he rides his bicycle from Monroe, LA to New Orleans, LA meeting people along the rural routes. We hope to finish the film in the next few months during which our third documentary, INTIMIDAD, will be screening at several confirmed film festivals and colleges over the next 6 months. Furthermore, we will be announcing several changes within our small company as we move to release our films - and others - on cable TV, DVD (retails chains, independent stores, autonomous spaces, small video rental stories, Amazon, Blockbuster, Netflix, etc), and PPV.