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Report from Traverse City Film Festival

mydreamatw1 — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 10:34:33 +0200

Former Kalamazoo resident and Western Michigan University graduate Jake Ziegler has been a freelance entertainment writer for the Gazette for several years. He's currently living in the Traverse City area, which meant that he was able to attend last week's Traverse City Film Festival. Since I could not make it -- and I am doubly upset because in addition to missing some good movies I missed out on those delicious cherry burgers that are a Traverse delicacy -- I asked Jake to share some of his observations and he happily obliged.The fourth annual Traverse City Film Festival wrapped on Sunday night after six days with more than 80,000 admissions to screenings of 71 films at six venues, five panel discussions, and six parties to celebrate another record breaking year.The small Northern Michigan town was graced with the presence of pop royalty Madonna on Saturday night for a special screening of her new documentary "I Am Because We Are," but the fun didn't stop there. The last day of the festival offered plenty for filmgoers, and 17 awards were handed out.The big winner of the festival was the Jordanian film "Captain Abu Raed," the first independent film to ever come from Jordan, and their first feature of any kind in the last fifty years. Both screenings on Friday evening and Sunday afternoon were greeted with a standing ovation and thunderous applause. It won the Audience Award for Best Fiction Film, as well as the Best of Fest Fiction Film.

Pro-Tibet film gets rare Beijing showing

mydreamatw1 — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 10:34:09 +0200

By Ben BlanchardBEIJING (Reuters) - A new documentary made by a pro-Tibet group on what Tibetans think of the Olympics premiered in Beijing on Wednesday under a veil of secrecy.The film, "Leaving Fear Behind", was shown to a small group of foreign reporters in a dingy hotel room in central Beijing, not far from Tiananmen Square.Security officials did not interrupt the screening but Dechen Pemba, a British Tibetan woman deported from China last month, told Reuters by telephone that a second screening was halted by the hotel, under police instructions."Now that the Olympic Games are finally upon us, it's a chance to show how Tibetans feel and what their hopes are," Dechen Pemba said in a videoed statement.The film featured a series of interviews with Tibetans talking about how their culture had been trampled on, how they still loved exiled spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, and how they viewed the Olympics as having done little to improve their lives."Outsiders may think that the Tibetans are treated very well and that they are happy. But the truth is that Tibetans are not free to speak of their suffering," one Tibetan said on the film."Even if I had to sacrifice my life for this message to be seen by the Dalai Lama, I agree and welcome this chance," said another.The Dalai Lama fled into exile in 1959 after an abortive uprising against Chinese rule.

Horror Author Lia Scott Price's Free Fil...

mydreamatw1 — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 10:33:50 +0200

LOS ANGELES, Aug 05, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Horror Novelist and Film Producer Lia Scott Price has launched a series of free short stories and film shorts online. The short stories, called Lia Scott Price's The Dark Fiction Chronicles(TM), and their companion film shorts (released by DarkAngel Distributors(TM)), Lia Scott Price's Dark Fiction(TM), focus on the fictional diary of a female serial killer. "I write about what goes on in the mind of my character," Price says. Price even plays the female serial killer character in one of her film shorts. The diary spells out in detail the motivations behind the serial killer's actions, revealing an abusive childhood and a deadly desire for revenge against the character's abusers. "Female serial killers fascinate me. You don't see that many of them in popular fiction. If you do see them, they are most likely portrayed as Black Widows with motivations limited to money. Poison or guns are the weapon of choice." However, Price's female serial killers employ more gruesome methods involving sharp objects. The diary is written at random, "Based on whatever thoughts the character has at the moment, in jagged but almost poetic format, in no particular order, about what the character is thinking or doing at that particular moment." Price had suffered through an abusive childhood and, "This is my way of venting creatively, through fiction." However, Price stresses that, because of the dark nature of her stories, "Remember that this is all just fiction." Lia Scott Price's Dark Fiction(TM) Film Shorts and Lia Scott Price's The Dark Fiction Chronicles(TM) Short Stories can be viewed at

"The Dark Knight" tops 400-million-dolla...

mydreamatw1 — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 10:33:31 +0200

LOS ANGELES, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- "The Dark Knight" topped the 400-million-dollar mark in box office receipts in just 18 days, shattering the record set by "Shrek 2," according to figures released on Tuesday. The latest installment of the Batman film series earned nearly 6.3 million dollars at the box office on Monday, giving it a total of more than 400 million dollars in its 18 days of release, according to box-office tracker Media By Numbers. The 18-day sprint to 400 million dollars beat out previous record-holder "Shrek 2," which needed 43 days to reach the financial milestone in 2004, the company reported. "The Dark Knight" has topped the box office during all three weekends in release. The film stars Christian Bale as the Caped Crusader and the late Heath Ledger as the Joker. Ledger died of an accidental overdose of prescription medication in January. "The Dark Knight" is his last completed film role

News Corp. profit rises 27% on film, cab...

mydreamatw1 — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 10:33:12 +0200

CHICAGO (MarketWatch) -- News Corp. said Tuesday its quarterly profit rose 27% on improved results at its film studios and cable television networks, as well as gains related to its sale of stakes in Fox Sports Bay Area and Gemstar-TV Guide.

Pants author cheerleader for film

mydreamatw1 — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 10:32:51 +0200

"I really have been a cheerleader from the sidelines," says the amiable Brashares in a phone interview to promote the film. ". . . You can't worry about the literal stuff. Will purists be upset? If they were lesser movies, I would have been more concerned. I'm not exactly objective, but I think these are very emotional movies and they don't flatten them out or simplify them or make them brighter and happier than I had imagined."The four books have earned a strong following since the first one debuted in 2001. They chronicle the globe-trotting adventures of a group of girls who bond over a magical pair of jeans that fit all four of them perfectly, despite them being of all shapes and sizes. The sequel, which opens today, is based primarily on the fourth book of the series, Forever in Blue, and reunites the cast of young actresses from the first movie. Alexis Bledel, Amber Tamblyn, Blake Lively and America Ferrera have all seen their profile rise in the past three years, something Brashares saw first-hand last week.

Royal premiere for new Bond film

mydreamatw1 — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 10:32:33 +0200

Princes William and Harry will attend the world premiere of the next James Bond film, Quantum of Solace. They will be joined on the red carpet in London by 007 actor Daniel Craig, as well as co-stars including Dame Judi Dench and Gemma Arterton.

Batman film breaks another record

mydreamatw1 — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 10:32:14 +0200

Batman film The Dark Knight has broken another box office record after taking just 18 days to make more than $400 million (£204m) in North America.

Garda CCTV training to boost long eye of...

mydreamatw1 — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 04:07:32 +0200

Big Brother's eye sight is set to get a whole lot clearer on ourstreets with an updated CCTV training system in the offing forgardai.

As part of the on-going expansion of CCTV systems in towns acrossthe country, garda chiefs have put to tender a new in-depth coursefor members.

They have advertised for applications from relevant bodies tosupply and deliver CCTV training for offices and garda stationsacross the country.

Development

"This would be part of on-going development within the gardai.There is continued training in the force for this type of thing. Itis a development thing," a garda spokesperson said.

The chosen applicant will be charged with the task of traininggardai in the use of the system and also providing them with thetools necessary to get the most from the camera system.

The widespread introduction of the closed circuit televisionsystems around the country has helped gardai in their fight againstanti-social behaviour and public order offences.

Pointed and strategically placed cameras are a common sight on ourstreets and a roll out of the systems to rural towns and villageshas been welcomed by residents.

Naas in Co Kildare is one such town that recently benefited fromthe addition of a newly installed CCTV system.

CCTV cameras are seen to be both a deterrent and an aid whencracking crime.

A number of cases before our courts today rely on or arestrengthened by the presence of CCTV footage.

The system is particularly helpful to gardai in the fight againstpublic order incidents which include drunken rows and assaults.

It can also help gardai pinpoint the movements of known orsuspected criminals.

It has also been used in recent times to provide a timeline formissing people.

- Lisa-Anne Crookes

CCTV.com and Adobe Partner to Bring 2008...

mydreamatw1 — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 04:07:11 +0200

today announced a strategic relationship with CCTV InternationalNetworks Co., Ltd.(CCTV.com) to deliver the 2008 Beijing OlympicGames' coverage through the Web. The coverage will be delivered tomillions of sports fans in mainland China and Macau through the"Olympic Network TV Station," CCTV.com's next-generation onlineexperience based on Adobe(R) Flash(R) and Flex(R) technology.CCTV.com owns the online video rights to the 2008 Beijing OlympicGames for mainland China and Macau. With thousands of hours ofcompetition video available on CCTVOlympics.com, the OlympicNetwork TV Station will allow sports fans to view the Olympicsports, athletes and country teams of their choice.

China's CCTV.com to Stream Live Coverage...

mydreamatw1 — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 04:06:54 +0200

CCTV The views expressed in the articles are not necessarily those ofearthtimes.org and we accept no responsibility for the views oropinions

expressed in the articles either direct or indirect.

How do I use the CCTV monitor?'

mydreamatw1 — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 04:06:35 +0200

MUMBAI: A CCTV monitor installed in Ghatkopar station manager S PJagtap's office is not serving its desired purpose . "I have noworking knowledge about it. The contractor appointed by CentralRailway (CR) installed this monitor more than two months agowithout educating me about its elementary operations . I have triedoperating it through trial and error, but I can't understand how itfunctions,'' said Jagtap.

Generally the sets are installed in RPF chowkies at nodal stationswhile at smaller stations they are kept in station masters'offices. The purpose of a CCTV is to prevent crime and aidinvestigations as the data collected can be stored for up to fivedays.

The CCTV monitor at Ghatkopar station was installed in Jagtap'soffice as there is no RPF chowkie there. However, one wonders howmuch justice the station master can do to his newly-addedresponsibility along with his other duties.

Jagtap said there was a proposal to install 16 CCTVs at Ghatkopar.However, as he fiddled with the buttons on the regulator projector,the screen showed views from only three cameras. One of which isprojected to the ceiling. Even the clock was twenty minutes behind. "I am clueless on the know-how of these CCTVs. I even can'tfigure out if the CCTVs are working as I don't know where they arelocated. I wasn't given any information about their locations,''said Jagtap.

Jagtap said even the service personnel couldn't help him." Theservice personnel come here periodically but say they don't knowhow the equipment works. One of them even asked me to show him howto operate it,'' he said.

Chief PRO S C Mudgerikar said CR appointed contractors through itssignal and technology department. "The contractor , has to explainto the RPF or the railway staff how to use the monitor. Queries canalso be cleared at the time of supervision. I am sure such problemsare rectified if and when they are brought to our notice,'' saidMudgerikar.

IMG & CCTV Agree Sports TV Deal

mydreamatw1 — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 04:06:16 +0200

Global sports marketing company, IMG Worldwide, has agreed anexclusive 20-year deal with China Central Televesion (CCTV) todevelop and market new sports events, Sport Business reports.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the venture aims tocapitalise on the post-Olympics commercialisation of sports inChina and will develop sports and entertainment events across Chinafor broadcast on state-owned CCTV. IMG will sell sponsorship rightsfor those events.

"The fundamental purpose of the joint venture is to marry whatCCTV does in China and what IMG does all over the world," saidTed Forstmann, IMG's Chairman and Chief Executive. "If we aresuccessful [in China], there are going to be a whole lot of eventsthat do not exist today," he added.

Last update : Sunday, 03 August 2008

NexxNow, Inc. to Congratulate IMG and Ch...

mydreamatw1 — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 04:05:59 +0200

CCTV This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaningof Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, andSection 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Allforward-looking statements are inherently uncertain as they arebased on current expectations and assumptions concerning futureevents or future performance of the company. Readers are cautionednot to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements,which are only predictions and speak only as of the date hereof. Inevaluating such statements, prospective investors should reviewcarefully various risks and uncertainties identified in thisrelease. These risks and uncertainties could cause the company'sactual results to differ materially from those indicated in theforward-looking statements.

China TV, US agency IMG launch sports ve...

mydreamatw1 — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 04:05:41 +0200

Chinese state television and IMG, the U.S. sports marketing giant,announced a 20-year partnership Thursday to produce and broadcastsports in China.

The deal, unveiled ahead of the Aug. 8 start of the BeijingOlympics, comes as Chinese and foreign broadcasters and promotersrace to tap into China's increasingly lucrative sports market.

The new venture, CCTV-IMG Sports Management Co., will produce livesporting events and television and multimedia programming, thecompanies said in a statement. No financial information or detailsof planned sports events were released.

The venture "will generate many different opportunities to enhancethe sports and media landscape in China," said IMG Chairman andChief Executive Ted Forstmann in the statement. IMG said it was thefirst non-Chinese company to form such a multiyear, multisportventure with CCTV.

IMG Sports Media says it is the world's largest independentproducer of sports programming.

CCTV, China's national broadcaster, operates 17 channels includinga 24-hour sports channel. The network says it commands an 80percent share of China's TV sports viewership.

The popularity of professional sports, especially basketball andsoccer, has exploded in China in recent years. CCTV and some 50smaller Chinese broadcasters air National Basketball Associationgames.

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