While SHOOT has covered crossover chapter and verse over the years, it’s a dynamic particularly prominent in this week’s issue. We offer the DGA Award nominees story which includes David Fincher’s accomplishment of gaining nominations in both the feature and commercial categories, as well as our features in the Editors & Post Series–one on spot savvy editors Angus Wall and Kirk Baxter of Rock Paper Scissors who cut the Fincher-directed The Curious Case of Benjamin Button; the other on commercial editors who contributed to fare at the recently concluded Sundance Film Festival.
Adding an extra dimension of social importance is the latest crossover endeavor of hybrid artist Larry Bridges, founder of Red Car. Director/editor Bridges has helmed a series of video conversations with leading authors as part of The Big Read, an initiative of the National Endowment of the Arts (NEA) designed to restore reading to the center of American culture.
The Big Read–which the NEA presents in partnership with the Institute of Museum and Library Services and in cooperation with Arts Midwest–brings together partners across the country to encourage reading for pleasure and enlightenment.
Bridges (who also edited several of the videos, with others cut by his Red Car colleagues) directed insightful individual conversations with such luminary authors as Amy Tan, Rudolfo Anaya, Tobias Wolff, Ernest J. Gaines, Cynthia Ozick and Ray Bradbury.
These videos will be screened at assorted venues, most notably at Big Read events in some 400 U.S. communities in ’09 during which attendees get the opportunity to read and discuss a single book, with related sessions such as author readings.
Bridges’ conversation with Bradbury reflects the inspirational spirit of the Big Read. Bradbury talks about his childhood, which was energized by his love of books and his “discovery” of public libraries. His fascination with dinosaurs, fairy tales, ideas and humanity led him to his career pursuit. As a struggling writer, he needed an office and recalls his first professional workspace, the basement of a UCLA library where he could rent a typewriter for 10 cents a half hour.
For a typewriter expenditure of $9.80, he wrote The Fireman, the predecessor to what became the now classic Fahrenheit 451. He came upon the title of that book by calling a fire department chief in downtown Los Angeles, asking him at what temperature book paper burned. The response was 451 degrees Fahrenheit.
The Big Read hopes to address a big need. An NEA report titled Reading at Risk: A Survey of Literary Reading in America, found that not only is literary reading in America declining rapidly among all groups, but that the rate of decline has accelerated, especially among the young (a more recent study shows an encouraging bit of improvement on this front for adults but there’s much more progress to be made).
The Big Read includes innovative reading programs in selected cities and towns, resources for discussing classic literature, a national publicity campaign and a website providing comprehensive information on authors and their works. Log onto www.neabigread.org.
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt Reach Divorce Settlement After 8 Years
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt have reached a divorce settlement, ending one of the longest and most contentious divorces in Hollywood history but not every legal issue between the two.
Jolie and Pitt signed off on a default declaration filed in Los Angeles Superior Court on Monday, saying they have entered into a written agreement on their marital and property rights. The settlement was first reported by People magazine.
"More than eight years ago, Angelina filed for divorce from Mr. Pitt," Jolie's attorney, James Simon, said in a statement. "She and the children left all of the properties they had shared with Mr. Pitt, and since that time she has focused on finding peace and healing for their family. This is just one part of a long ongoing process that started eight years ago. Frankly, Angelina is exhausted, but she is relieved this one part is over."
The filing says they give up the right to any future spousal financial support, but gives no other details. A judge will need to sign off on the agreement. An email late Monday night to Pitt's attorney seeking comment was not immediately answered.
Jolie, 49, and Pitt, 61, were among Hollywood's most prominent pairings for 12 years, two of them as a married couple. The Oscar winners have six children together.
Jolie filed for divorce in 2016, after a private jet flight from Europe during which she said Pitt physically abused her and their children. The FBI and child services officials investigated Pitt's actions on the flight. Two months later, the FBI released a statement saying it would not investigate further, and the U.S. attorney did not bring charges.
A heavily redacted FBI report obtained by The Associated Press in 2022 said that an agent provided a probable cause... Read More