Posts Tagged ‘Brookline’

Journalism icon Mike Wallace died Saturday night, surrounded by family and friends, in New Caanan, CT. Wallace, 93, had a broadcast career that spanned over sixty years. He was probably best known as a correspondent for CBS’ 60 Minutes, where his assertive style of interviewing became legendary.

Wallace was born in Brookline, MA to Russian immigrant parents. He graduated from Brookline High School and went on to attend the University of Michigan, working part-time as a reporter for a local newspaper while attending college. After graduating, Wallace worked as a writer and broadcaster at several local Michigan radio stations before locating to Chicago. During World War II, he served as US Navy communications officer and returned to Chicago when he was discharged.

Over the next decade or so, Wallace went on to host many game and news shows, (common during a time where news and entertainment were melded together), eventually moving from radio to television. One of his most popular early shows was Night Beat, where Wallace first displayed his talent for pit-bull styling reporting. It was that style that producer Don Hewitt remembered years later when he was creating 60 Minutes. The show premiered with Wallace and Harry Reasoner at the helm on September 24, 1968.

He was a regular correspondent with the show until March of 2006, but continued to work as a “Correspondent Emeritus” until 2008. The impressive array of awards he received through the course of his career include twenty Emmy awards, (including a Lifetime Achievement Emmy), three Peabody awards, three Alfred I duPont-Columbia University awards and a Robert F. Kennedy School of Journalism award.

He once told his friend and colleague Morley Safer “It’s astonishing what you learn and feel and see along the way. That’s why a reporter’s job, as you know, is such a joy.”

Brookline, MA.  native Conan O’Brien has documented his difficult year in late night TV.

Whole Foods Market is not normally synonymous with film, but this April the food retailer’s “Do Something Reel” film festival spans seventy cities and features six films about making a difference in our world.  You can check for screenings at the festival’s site, as well as read synopses and view trailers of all the films.

“Do Something Reel” made stops in New England at theaters in Brookline, Pawtucket and Hartford.   For the rest of April, there are only four more chances to check out screenings in the area.

Planeat, a documentary examining Western culture’s obsession with meat and dairy, is screening at Brookline’s Coolidge Corner Theatre this Monday, April 25.  The following evening, Bag It, a film chronicling America’s dependence on plastic, is showing at Coolidge Corner.  The last showing in Brookline is Wednesday, April 27.  The festival concludes with Urban Roots, the story of “urban farmers” in Detroit struggling to find locally grown foods in an environment full of processed foods.  All showings at Coolidge Corner Theater are at 7:30 PM and cost $9.

Urban Roots will also be showing Wednesday night at Hope Artiste Village in Pawtucket, Rhode Island.  Tickets at Hope Artiste Village are free and a Wintertime Farmer’s Market will be held before the 7:30 PM screening.

The 6th annual Science on the Screen series at the Coolidge Corner theater in Brookline, Ma., will begin with The Man in the White Suit. Science on the Screen has been one of the theater’s most popular series and begins September6th at 7 p.m. Marc Abrahams, editor of the Annals of Improbable Research and Harvard chemist Daniel Rosenberg will also present.

The 1951 film chronicles the career of brilliant but under-appreciated chemist Sidney Stratton (Alec Guinness), who invents an everlasting fiber. When they realize Stratton’s invention will be devastating to their industry, textile manufacturers and labor unions do everything in their power to make sure his product stays off the market and unheard of.

The speakers attending the opening will address questions raised by the film, most prominently, if it is scientifically possible to create a fabric that never gets soiled or worn out.

Science on Screen began in 2005 and features movies and documentaries about science, medicine or technology. Co-produced with Boston’s Museum of Science and New Scientist Magazine, the series brings in experts in the fields related to the films.

Previous films shown in the series include Fight Club, Donnie Darko, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and American Beauty. Order tickets online at www.coolidge.org/science.

It can often be challenging to find a really useful collection of film-related articles, how-tos, and interviews on the web.  Even harder is finding a large quantity of film listings, events, and jobs in the New England area – especially for free.  Anyone who has spent time on search engines knows that this information is often disjointed and spread around different websites.

Luckily for local filmmakers, there is a terrific resource in NewEnglandFilm.com.  Founded in 1997 by Michele Meek, NewEnglandFilm.com is a site that offers diverse services and information, including everything from web hosting and design – which is customized for the individual – to targeted advertising and tracking.  According to Google Analytics, the site currently receives over 200,000 page views and 72,000 visits monthly.

Meek saw an opportunity to create a collective resource for the independent film society within New England, and that’s exactly what she did – she established a website that allows the public to log in and become a part of a supportive community that discusses the ins and outs of filmmaking.  Meek herself has a background working in both the Hollywood and independent film industry as a screenwriter, story analyst, director, and producer.

“Our original mission when we started over ten years ago,” says Meek, “remains true today.  We hope to unify the film community and we see New England as an opportunity for states to collaborate through not only their film offices, but their film organizations and festivals.  It’s true that everyone can be possessive of their slice of the pie, but my philosophy is ‘Together, let’s make that pie bigger!’”

On October 15th, 2009, NewEnglandFilm.com hosted and celebrated the award winners of their Online New England Film Festival at the Coolidge Corner Theater in Brookline, MA.  The actual festival was not only the first of its kind for the site, but also for all of New England.  The categories included animation, drama, documentary, and comedy. All of the work screened was in the often ignored form of the short film.  Some of the winners are still available for viewing online, such as A Work in Progress, The Other Way Out, and White Elephants.  A second online film festival is underway for 2010.

As one of the most helpful and free resources for filmmakers in New England, it’s easy to see why it gets so many visits and has over 22,000 voluntary subscribers to its email newsletter.  The consolidation of so much useful information ensures that NewEnglandFilm.com is a premium stop for anyone who is interested in the film industry within the New England area.

With the New Year ahead of us, many will be looking for those fresh films that might be a little under the radar for most moviegoers.  Shot in the Boston area this past spring, The Company Men has already created quite a buzz within the New England film industry, and continues to bring attention to the region with its upcoming premiere at the Coolidge Corner Theater in Brookline, MA.

Directed by John Wells, The Company Men is about the effects of a major company’s corporate downsizing on three men and those in their lives over the course of a year.  The movie stars current Massachusetts resident Chris Cooper, Harvard grad Tommy Lee Jones, Kevin Costner, Maria Bello, Rosemarie DeWitt, and Cambridge’s own Ben Affleck.

After screening at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah, The Company Men was chosen to be one of eight movies to officially premiere around the country as a part of Sundance Film Festival USA.  With the other feature films appearing that same night in places such as Brooklyn, San Francisco, and Chicago, Bostonians should be thrilled that their city will play host to its own red carpet.

The Company Men is set to have its world premiere January 28th at 7 p.m. at the Coolidge Corner Theater.  Tickets for the event are available for purchase online and at the theater’s box office on January 4th.  This is surely an event that New England film enthusiasts won’t want to miss.

In the heart of Brookline lives a one of kind not-for-profit Art Deco called The Coolidge Corner Theatre.

The street is lined with trendy dining and drinking hot spots but the movie house is the main attraction. The hip and ever so lively theatre welcomes over 16,000 patrons monthly.

The community that surrounds the theatre doors come to take in a diverse selection of popular, classic and independent films daily. Not only is art house filled with past classics and upcoming film it also hosts several prominent film festivals annually. This year the Coolidge Corner Theatre is launching a new initiative to support students, professional and every filmmaker internationally by introducing The Coolidge Shorts Film Festival.

“In our commitment to showcase very short films created by emerging and established artists, the Coolidge Corner Theatre proudly continues the historic role of movie exhibition houses,” said Elizabeth Taylor-Mead, associate director of the Coolidge Corner Theatre Foundation and the curator of the Coolidge’s Shorts Film Festival. “Today, technology allows us to cast our net as wide as possible in search of outstanding programming and then engage our audiences in the conversation. It’s exciting for us to both honor the past and bring it with us into the future.”

The future of film lies within emerging filmmakers who choose to bring color and vibrancy to the screen to make movies that bring a smile, laugh or a tear. Only four films will be chosen each month to screen before feature films. All genres are welcome but they can only be up to 5 minutes in length. The first submission period has begun and will end September 25^th. The next submission period will begin in February 2010. It’s new and exciting and there’s no better way to be part of Hollywood East.