Film is Truth 24 Times a Second

That’s right, free tickets! As sponsors of Conservation Northwest’s Grizzly Awareness Week, we’ve got a free pair of tickets to the Groovin’ with Grizzlies fundraiser show this Friday at the Boundary Bay Beer Garden, featuring Wisconsin Slim, Lucky Brown and Yogoman’s Wild Rumpus. And we’ve decided to pass those tickets on to our blog reading public. Hey, that’s you!

What’s the catch? Well, it’s in the beer garden, so you have to be 21, but other than that, there is none! All you have to do is come in, mention this blog post, and ask nicely for your free pair of tickets. It’s a first come, first served deal, though, and we’ve only got one set of tix to go around, so the this is winner take all time!

Thanks for reading the blog and supporting your Friendly Neighborhood Video Store, and good luck!

Our friend and former co-worker Andrew has just had a significant piece of criticism - the cover feature, no less - published in Cineaste magazine, which you can read about here. Unfortunately the article is not available online, so make an effort to track down the actual publication, either at your local library or periodical vendor (such as The Newsstand, here in Bellingham — hello Stephen!).

Anyway, congrats on the article, Andrew, hopefully it’s the first of many.

Friday at Sehome! Be there! (And be sure to complain as much as humanly possible to the ushers/employees who have absolutely no authority or weight in regards to picking up this or any other movie. They’ll really love you for it!)

Former Film Is Truth employee Andrew (along with Ian Morgan) has made a documentary film about a shameful incident from Bellingham’s past. The film will have two showings locally in the next week; please read the press release below and consider attending the film: 

First Showing:
Location: Whatcom Museum and History and Art
Date: Sunday, January 13
Time: 2:00pm
cost: FREE

Second Showing:
As part of the 10th Annual Martin Luther King Jr.
Human Rights Conference*
Location: Whatcom Community College - Syre Auditorium
Date: Saturday, January 19
Time: 1:15pm
cost: Free
*Please come participate in the whole exciting and
educational conference.  For more info, see the
Whatcom Human Rights Task Force website.

Here is a short description of the video:

Community to Community Development and Whatcom Human Rights Task Force present…

“Present in All That We Do”

In 1907, more than two-hundred South Asian migrant
workers in Bellingham were attacked by a mob of white
workers. In the course of one night, an entire
community was driven from the town – in the approving
words of a local paper, “wiped off the map.” One
hundred years later in 2007, hostility towards
immigrants of color in Bellingham continues. Raids and
detentions by government immigration agents are
ongoing; so are surveillance and harassment from both
government agents and groups like the Minutemen. How
have the events of 1907 shaped Bellingham as we know
it in 2007? What has changed and what remains the
same?  These issues and questions are examined in the
independently produced documentary, “Present in All
That We Do.”

Written and Edited by: Andrew Hedden and Ian Morgan

Length: 52 minutes

The Whatcom Museum and the MLK Conference committee
have been kind enough to give us these venues to show
our video.  If you can, please come to watch our
documentary and ask some questions.

Okay, what’s the deal with movies in this town??? There’s a film out there right now - There Will Be Blood - you might have heard of it. Apparently a film that has already been nominated for and won numerous awards, has an 89% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and already ranks #41 on IMDB’s all time greatest movies (although that will eventually even out), it doesn’t warrant getting to see the damn thing in any theatre near you!

This happened with No Country For Old Men too. All this buzz - but where is it? Any film that is receiving any critical acclaim seems to get in this town a bit too late. Luckily, the Pickford does pick up a few of these, but seriously folks, what’s the hold up? I need a fixing now!

Michel Gagne is a cartoonist, children’s book creator and a contributor to several animated films. Originally from Quebec, he’s lived in Bellingham for a couple years now, and he’ll be giving a free presentation at the Whatcom County Museum of Art this Thursday, October 11th at 10:15 AM. Check it out if you have a chance.