Monday, November 14, 2005

Artsy Weekend

Congrats to the Booked L.A. Book Club for celebrating five years of reading, friendship, and coming together without shade, competition, or drama. I was the featured author at the Booked L.A. September 2005 meeting, and have become good friends with several of the guys since that time. Anyway, they had the most fun celebration party on Saturday evening. Caribbean theme. Good food and drink. Oh, that dangerous rum punch!

Sunday met up with some friends at the Fusion film festival and saw some great new work that I hope you'll be able to support.

Of course we all know about Noah's Arc, and the cast and creator, Patrik-Ian Polk gave a great talk. Alec Mapa, the discussion facilitator, is fabulously funny! Alec is Mona's secretary on Half and Half, UPN Monday nights.

But hoping to come to your television screen are:

Rosa Negra, a pansexual, multicultural telenovela with its adventures of sexy butches, knife-weilding girlfriends and hot Latino men in seedy back rooms. Directed by Viva Ruiz, 24 minutes.

Rosa Negra was really fun, and really dramatic... like the novelas we all look at from time to time.

Saint Martin de 4th Street, about Martin, a 13-year-old boy living in 1980s Montebello, CA (hmmm, sounds familiar), who can't stand his mother's new girlfriend, but seeks solace in his drag queen neighbor and pray to Saint Martin de Porres. Directed by Robert Banks Ramirez, 30 minutes.

The boy who played Martin was fabulous, and reminds me of how a lot of us were growing up -- the eye rolling, talking back, the facial expressions.

The DL Chronicles, a sexy new drama. When a respectable married man can't resist the sweet temptation of his brother-in-law, keeping their desire on the down-low becomes the new soapy, sexy playground for sexual ambiguity, denial and betrayal. Directed by Deondray Gossett and Quincy LeNear, 30 minutes.

This was a crowd favorite... the scandal of the affair, the downfall of a marriage, the beautiful cast. Lots of oohing and aahing.

So google the films and the directors, send a short congratulatory note, and if you're in the position... try to schedule a screening so that these films can build buzz and momentum.
fs

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I attended this event and loved all three shorts. And yes, The DL Chronicles was my favorite. Unfortunately, I'm not able to find more information on the Internet about Saint Martin de 4th Street although I'm really curious about the writer/director and the actors.