by ADAMAFILMS on SEPTEMBER 3, 2010

An intimate portrait ten years in the making, of Hollywood’s pre-digital master craftsmen, “Something’s Gonna Live” celebrates the work, friendship and indelible contribution of renowned production designers Robert F. Boyle (NORTH BY NORTHWEST), Henry Bumstead (TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD), Albert Nozaki (THE WAR OF THE WORLDS) and Harold Michelson (STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE), as well as master cinematographers Haskell Wexler (IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT) and Conrad L. Hall (IN COLD BLOOD).

Written & Directed by Academy Award®-Nominated Filmmaker Daniel Raim
Featuring Cinematography by Two Time Oscar®-Winner Haskell Wexler, A.S.C.

Filmmakers in-person: Please join us Friday September 10th after the 7:10pm show for a Q&A with director Daniel Raim and cinematographer Haskell Wexler.

Additional Q&As with the director throughout all weekend screenings.

LIMITED ENGAGEMENT September 10-16, 2010
Laemmle Music Hall 3
9036 Wilshire Boulevard Beverly Hills, CA 90211 (310) 274-6869
Showtimes:
Friday 5:00, 7:10 & 9:40
Saturday 12:40, 2:50, 5:00, 7:10 & 9:40
Sunday 12:40, 2:50, 5:00 & 7:10
Mon-Thu: 5:00 & 7:10

For tickets, go to http://www.laemmle.com/viewmovie.php?mid=6542 and click on Laemmle’s Music Hall 3.

On opposite pages of August’s ICG Magazine, two cinematographers look at each other.  The President’s Letter gives us information on the new Canon DSLR cameras, all of it loaded with the first person singular and letting us know, from his vast experience, how well he is acquainted with this new technology.

So much for the important information from Our Union President, all of which is available over the counter at Samy’s.  Looking at him from the opposite page is Chris Menges, one of the great cinematographers of our time, an outspoken, progressive union man. He seems to be smiling at Poster. Perhaps it is with indulgence, but I’m sure there is something in the expression that’s asking, “What the hell is he talking about?”  Kodak paid for Menges to be in the magazine.  It costs $500,000 a year to put out a Union publication in which Poster is the only union voice permitted. Perhaps ICG should allow Chris Menges to submit an article that not only excites us about technology, but discusses the fundamental reason for having a union.

- Haskell Wexler, ASC

THE DOCUMENTARY CHANNEL® PRESENTS THE EXCLUSIVE NETWORK PREMIERE

OF  “WHO NEEDS SLEEP?”

FROM OSCAR® -WINNING CINEMATOGRAPHER HASKELL WEXLER

Documentary Features Interviews With Hollywood Stars Including Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Annette Bening, Billy Crystal, Paul Newman and Tyne Daily, among many others

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (June 1, 2010) — The Documentary Channel® (DOC) presents the exclusive network premiere of the critically acclaimed feature-length documentary “Who Needs Sleep?” from Academy® Award winner Haskell Wexler on Friday, June 25 at 8:30 p.m. ET/PT.

NEXT scheduled screening is Sunday, July 11th at 6pm

Distributed by Chatsworth, Calif.-based Image Entertainment (NASDAQ: DISK), the film features intimate interviews with some of Hollywood’s biggest stars, including Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Annette Bening, Billy Crystal, Paul Newman, and Tyne Daly, as they discuss health risks associated with long production work days surpassing the 14-hour mark.

Award-Winning Filmmaker Haskell Wexler Returns to Chicago

Haskell Wexler is considered one of the most influential cinematographers in film history. And with Oscar-winning films like Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? and Bound for Glory to his credit –you can see why. His most famous film is a little more outside the movie mainstream. Medium Cool was shot in and around the 1968 Democratic convention in Chicago. The film combines real footage of the protests and violence with a fictional framework – an unorthodox approach at the time. The Chicago-born filmmaker has lived in California for some time now. But he’s back for a special screening of Medium Cool at the University of Chicago’s Film Studies Center this evening. And we’re delighted he decided to stop by our studio for a chat.

LISTEN to THIS

Thursday, May 27th, 2010  7:00 pm

Introduction by Judy Hoffman, Department of Cinema and Media Studies

Within the framework of the groundbreaking film Medium Cool (1969), Haskell Wexler will discuss his approaches to cinema, filmmaking and the career he forged in Chicago during the era just before video changed the method and technique of documentary image gathering. What does it mean to film on film…as a documentarian… as a cinematographer? These questions intrigue and resonate with Wexler and will inform the discussion of his work in this very special screening with the award-winning director. (more…)

Dr. Charles Czeisler is known in the N.B.A. as the Sleep Doctor. He advises players to sleep 8.2 to 8.4 hours a night, which requires nine hours in bed.

A growing interest in sleep science — and a recognition that players need more time to recharge — is fueling the trend. Simply speaking, N.B.A. players often fail to get enough sleep.

READ THE ARTICLE from The New York Times

The making of “Hope Is A Thing” video with Lisbeth Scott

WATCH THE VIDEO

Chris Hedges, courtesy of truthdig.com

Chris Hedges says America is gone. It’s lost to consumer culture and the cult of the self. We’re barreling towards collapse. Hedges points to Michael Jackson’s funeral, made into a maudlin form of entertainment where a celebrity attendee like Magic Johnson could plug his sponsor, A.K.A Kentucky Fried Chicken. In Hedges’ view of this world, lies and manipulation win over truth, as evidenced everywhere from Wall Street to reality television. Over time, says Hedges, corporations have morphed our consumption into a constant, nagging compulsion. One homogenous culture sold to us by large companies has stamped out our nation’s distinct regional differences, and there’s no turning back.

In this talk at Town Hall Seattle, Hedges makes his case against consumerism, celebrity culture, mainstream media and unfettered capitalism.

His latest book is “Empire of Illusion: The End of Literacy and the Triumph of Spectacle.” Elliott Bay Book Company co–sponsored his talk on July 22, 2009.

Could both pilots on the Northwest plane that traveled 150 miles off course have just fallen asleep? It is hard to imagine what sort of distraction could cause these pilots to so seriously overshoot their destination.

UPDATE:

It may well be that the pilots were fully awake, but in a sleep deprived state resulting from chronic long hours. None of the news reports regarding this incident or the ongoing investigations seem to mention one of the main consequences of sleep deprivation. While researching for my documentary “Who Needs Sleep?”, medical specialists stated that sleep deprived people lose cognitive powers — they think they are awake but actually are easily distracted and function in a never-never land state — a stupor. This sleep deprived state could be the “distraction” that caused the pilots to miss the proper descent and landing procedures.

Check with the National Sleep Foundation.
http://www.sleepfoundation.org
or
Who Needs Sleep Website
http://www.whoneedssleep.net

from Wall Street Journal:

Pilot fatigue has long been regarded as one of the most serious safety issues confronting commercial aviation. The FAA, airlines and pilot unions now all agree U.S. rules dealing with pilot fatigue are outdated and don’t reflect the latest science.

The FAA wants to replace the one-size-fits-all rules on pilot workdays with a system that takes into consideration things such as the time of day pilots work, the number of takeoffs they perform and the internal body clocks of crew members.

Though the practice of nodding off midflight in the cockpit is prohibited by the FAA, U.S. airlines and pilot unions say there is a growing body of research supporting the notion that so-called controlled napping by part of a cockpit crew can enhance safety by making crews more alert during critical, often hectic descents and landings.

For years, several foreign airlines have endorsed the idea of having one pilot at a time briefly doze off during routine cruise portions of certain flights.

Wednesday night’s incident is the second time in less than a week that a cockpit crew was involved in a high-profile safety mix-up. On Monday, a long-range Delta Boeing 767 en route from Brazil to Atlanta’s Hartsfield International Airport landed on a taxiway, rather than the parallel runway. There were no injuries to any of the 182 passengers or 11 crew members.

The NTSB is investigating whether pilot fatigue or distraction was an important factor in that incident. The Delta crew had flown all night and was landing in darkness. The approach lights for the runway weren’t turned on. But the lights on the runway, which are different in color and pattern from those on the taxiway, were illuminated, according to the safety board.

READ THE ARTICLE