In an installment of this column last month (12/15), we promoted the first annual Downhill Derby, a soapbox derby race created to raise funds for The Boys and Girls Clubs of Los Angeles. The event, which took place on Jan. 7, was a major success made possible by assorted participants from the spotmaking community.
The derby was the brainchild of Josh Canova, owner/executive producer of Detour Films, Venice, Calif. According to Canova, a little more than $44,000 was raised for The Boys and Girls Clubs, with some 1,500 people in attendance throughout the course of the day. The event even received local TV news coverage from the ABC, CBS and Fox channels.
Proceeds were raised largely through sponsorships of cars and participating in the race. Taking first place in the derby was director Jeff Zwart of @radical.media who drove under the pseudonym “The Royal Speed Bomb.” Finishing second was GARTNER and affiliated shops tight, Outsider and The Viral Factory in a car driven by Sully Carter, the 10-year-old son of GARTNER executive producer and AICP/West president Rich Carter. AICP/West was a major supporter of the event. Third place winner was a car sponsored by edit house Cutters and driven by editor Nadia Hennrich.
Garnering the best design award was @radical for its “Cuban Cigar” auto, aptly named because the driver and handler both showed up dressed like Fidel Castro and the car looked like it had smoke coming out of it as it raced downhill.
But the big winner was The Boys and Girls Clubs of Los Angeles, with funds to be distributed to all 28 Southland clubs. The clubs provide a safe haven for kids primarily after school, enabling them to channel their energies into art and music programs as well as leadership initiatives, helping the youngsters to make better sense of where their skills and talents lie.
Canova’s assessment of the event bears repeating. As he articulated in last month’s column, “We are helping a worthy cause. We researched organizations that help under-served and underprivileged kids and found The Boys and Girls Clubs to be efficiently run with funds and resources going directly to programs that support and nurture youngsters. It’s a chance for the industry to simply give back to the community we live and work in.”
The companies who sponsored cars included: @radical.media; Bob Industries; Chelsea Pictures; Detour, Argyle Brothers; Payday/Need Financial; The Camera House; Cutters; Jigsaw; Musikvergneugen; GARTNER; Cut + Run; Machine Head; Location Creations; Zoic Studios; and Zwart (a.k.a. The Royal Speed Bomb).
Canova expects the Downhill Derby to be an annual fund-raiser. The event steering committee for the successful first go around consisted of Canova, Linda Rahn of the Boys and Girls Clubs/L.A. Alliance, Robert Yniguez, race director of the All American Soapbox Derby, AICP’s Steve Caplan, Rich Carter of GARTNER, Anne Kurtzman of davidandgoliath, Jennifer Smieja of Wieden+Kennedy, Ali Hileman of Mirror Films, Sue Crain of Argyle Brothers, Mel Mathis of The Camera House and Christie Cash of Cut+Run.
Oscar Nominees Delve Into The Art Of Editing At ACE Session
You couldn’t miss Sean Baker at this past Sunday’s Oscar ceremony where he won for Best Picture, Directing, Original Screenplay and Editing on the strength of Anora. However, earlier that weekend he was in transit from the Cesar Awards in Paris and thus couldn’t attend the American Cinema Editors (ACE) 25th annual panel of Academy Award-nominated film editors held at the Regal LA Live Auditorium on Saturday (3/1) in Los Angeles. While the eventual Oscar winner in the editing category was missed by those who turned out for the ACE “Invisible Art, Visible Artists” session, three of Baker’s fellow nominees were on hand--Dávid Jancsó, HSE for The Brutalist; Nick Emerson for Conclave; and Myron Kerstein, ACE for Wicked. Additionally, Juliette Welfling, who couldn’t appear in person due to the Cesar Awards, was present via an earlier recorded video interview to discuss her work on Emilia Pérez. The interview was conducted by ACE president and editor Sabrina Plisco, ACE who also moderated the live panel discussion. Kerstein said that he was the beneficiary of brilliant and generous collaborators, citing, among others, director Jon M. Chu, cinematographer Alice Brooks, and visual effects supervisor Pablo Helman. The editor added it always helps to have stellar acting performances, noting that hearing Cynthia Erivo, for example, sing live was a revelation. Kerstein recalled meeting Chu some eight years ago on a “blind Skype date” and it was an instant “bromance”--which began on Crazy Rich Asians, and then continued on such projects as the streaming series Home Before Dark and the feature In The Heights. Kerstein observed that Chu is expert in providing collaborators with... Read More