In Town: David Lynch (!) and More

Don't miss genius auteur David Lynch's free talk at UH on Tues, 12/4 @ 1:30pm!

OK, OK, so he won't be blabbing about his genius films (Eraserhead, Blue Velvet, Twin Peaks, Mulholland Drive, Inland Empire, etc.) exactly, but rather something about "Consciousness Based Education, Creativity and the Brain," courtesy of UH's Transcendental Meditation (TM) Club. A practitioner of TM for decades, UH is one stop on Lynch's college tour to promote TM. Refreshments will be served. Just don't drink the Kool-Aid.

Here's some other stuff going on around town:

• Tues, 11/27, 7:15pm: Screening of Paul Booth's "Empty Streets" + Q&A with muse Ely Kalikane at rRed Elephant Cafe, 1144 Bethel St, $5.
• Fri-Sat, 11/30-12/1, 7pm: Hawaii Ocean Film Fest at University of Hawaii at Manoa, Spalding Auditorium, $8 general, $5 students/faculty.
• Tues, 12/4, 1:30-3:30pm: David Lynch, John Hagelin (the quantum physicist featured in "What the Bleep Do We Know" and "The Secret") plus other local speakers will talk about TM at UH-Manoa Campus Center, Rms 307-308.

Square USA is Back (Sorta...)

Avatar Reality, Inc., a game development co. founded a little over a year ago, is hoping to revive Hawaii's gaming industry with Blue Mars, an online multiplayer game set to launch next year. The co. had hired dozens of former Hawaii-based Square USA employees who'd been cast to the wind after the failure of "Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within."

>> Blue Mars [Hnl Star-Bulletin, 11/23/07]

UPDATE: Video game industry adds $21.3M to Hawaii economy [Hnl Advertiser, 11/27/07]

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Films on Hawaiian Martial Arts & Female Surfing Get PIC Grants

Pacific Islanders in Communications recently announced the recipients of this year's R&D and Production Awards. The non-profit group, whose mission is to "support, advance, and develop Pacific Island media content and talent that results in a deeper understanding of Pacific Island history, culture, and contemporary challenges" gave a total of $60K to two documentaries:

• "Pa Kui A Holo - Kauai's Warriors," produced by T Lulani Arquette - The R&D Award was given to this film about Pa Kui a Holo-Kauai, a Kauai-based organization of Hawaiian men who practice lua, an ancient Hawaiian martial art.
• "Women on Waves," produced by Karin Williams - The Production Award was given to this film about the culture and history of Native Hawaiian women surfers.

>> PIC group awards $60,000 for film projects [Hnl Advertiser, 11/21/07]

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Seeking Hapa Actor for "Kung Fu" Remake

Legendary Pictures (Superman Returns, 300) is enlisting the help of the Academy for Creative Media in seeking a lead actor for its remake of Kung Fu, the popular 70s TV series starring David Carradine. As part of its Master Class series, the ACM will be holding an open call for the lead role of CAINE:

Date: Fri, 11/30
Time: 4-7pm
Place: UH Manoa, 2550 Campus Road, Crawford 115
Seeking: Hapa male, 20-30, martial arts experience preferred but not required

For more details, please go to:
>> ACM to Hold Open Call for Lead Actor For Adaptation of Kung Fu
>> Kung Fu Open Call (Note: this site has details on open calls being held in L.A., Vancouver, Singapore, and Hong Kong, as well)

WGA Strike Hits "Lost" HQ

Watching "Lost" on ABC.com

About 20 Hawaii-based WGA members marched down to the Hawaii Film Studio last week to picket in a show of solidarity with fellow mainland writers. The studio is home to ABC's "Lost" production. "Lost" became an immediate hit when it premiered in 2004, and its interweaving sci-fi storylines have translated nicely to alternate platforms like the Internet, iPods, and cell phones.

The show has been a pioneer in alternate distribution, which is precisely the issue that the WGA is striking over. In fact, "Lost" producers had already pounded out a deal with writers for "Lost: Missing Pieces," a series of "mobisodes" that reveal additional details about the show's characters. According to the New York Times, writers were paid $800 flat for each mobisode in exchange for the studio's right to run them on Verizon cellphones for 13 weeks. After the 13 weeks, any repeats on any media will earn writers residuals equal to 1.2 to 2% of the license fees paid to studios.

Some hope that the "Lost" mobisode deal will serve as a model during contract negotiations that resume tomorrow. However, the WGA is seeking alternate media residuals worth 2.5% of license fees.

>> ‘Lost’ set picketed by writers [Hnl Star-Bulletin, 11/20/07]

>> Hollywood Writers Picket Diamond Head Set of 'Lost' [KHNL, 11/20/07]

>> Webisodes of ‘Lost’: Model Deal for Writers? [NY Times, 11/20/07]
>> Strike Takes Out 'Lost' [NY Post, 11/23/07]

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