This weekend we're playing as a part of the Sense of Discovery program. Our whole crew is heading out there to partake in the celebrations! Whoo-hoo!

Check out our 4 page review by Microfilmmaker Magazine. So exciting!

http://microfilmmaker.com/critiques/Issue30/Truth_1.html

Felix Vasquez at Cinema Crazed has given us their Indie Spotlight!

"Shockley's direction is top notch..."

"Keeps us at the emotional height from minute one..."

"Dripping with talent..."

"Invokes the works of Robert Altman..."

The Truth About Faces screens TONIGHT at 7:05 at the Atlanta Film Festival as a part of the COMING OF AGE SHORTS

2007 Angelus Student Film Festival Announces Finalists in Live Action, Animation & Documentary Categories
September 19, 2007

23 Chosen From More than 400 Submissions
Student Filmmakers To Vie for Nearly $25,000 in Cash and Prizes

The Peter Glenville Foundation Joins List of Angelus Sponsors Including Mole-Richardson, Priddy Bros. Entertainment

Hollywood, CA – The 2007 Angelus Student Film Festival has announced that 23 finalists have been selected in three categories – live action, animation and documentary – from more than 400 entries, representing 141 film schools in nearly two dozen countries. Since its inception in 1996, nearly 4,500 films have been submitted to the annual competition, recently named by Moviemaker Magazine as "Best Festival Bet for Student Filmmakers".

Six finalists represent New York University; three, Stanford University; and two each, Columbia University, N.Y., and the University of Southern California. Schools with one finalist include American Film Institute, Los Angeles; UCLA; Chapman University, Orange, Calif.; Los Angeles Film School and the Polish National Film School, Lodz, Poland.

A jury comprised of professionals from the fields of live action, documentary and animation will convene and judge the films within their specialization. The winning films will then be announced and screened at the Angelus Student Film Festival, to be held at the Directors Guild of America on Saturday, October 27, at 5:30 p.m.

Among the more recent festival sponsors is The Peter Glenville Foundation, joining long-time supporters and sponsors Mole-Richardson Company and Priddy Brothers Entertainment. The Peter Glenville Foundation, which provided underwriting for the 2006 Angelus screening and awards ceremony, has expanded its commitment to fund other screening events of the Angelus winners, including at the University of Notre Dame and in Rome.

"The quality, scope and diversity of these films are excellent in reflecting such themes as compassion, redemption, triumph of the human spirit, tolerance, peacemaking and hope," said Monika Moreno, director of the Angelus Student Film Festival. She added, "The scope of the festival itself continues to increase in the quality and number of entries, and the interest and support of the film industry as evidenced by the jurors and sponsors involved. The students continue to express how much they are affirmed through their participation in this festival."

Currently in its 12th year, the international festival cultivates, honors and showcases future filmmakers as they explore and create works that respect the dignity of the human person. Family Theater Productions created the Angelus Student Film Festival in 1996 and continues to conduct the annual festival.

Nearly $25,000 in cash and prizes will be presented to the winning filmmakers, including the coveted $10,000 Patrick Peyton Award for Excellence in Filmmaking, one of the highest cash awards for student filmmakers in the industry.

Since 1947, Family Theater Productions, a Catholic media outlet, has been creating award-winning radio, television and cinema programs, which celebrate individual dignity and the value of the family. Family Theater gave 1950s star actor James Dean and producer/director George Lucas their first on-screen credits. Hundreds of major film and television stars have appeared in Family Theater Productions' programs since its inception.

For more information, please visit the website at www.angelusawards.org

Review of "The Truth About Faces" by Richard Propes

Filmed entirely in one take (after 27 tries), "The Truth About Faces" benefits greatly from that sort of focused, energized but downright stressful approach to filmmaking. This 14-minute film takes place entirely within a closing store as a mother and daughter attempt to come to terms with a tragic event.

Watching the interplay between mother (Julie Pop) and daughter (Hanna Hall) becomes all that more powerful because the camera never turns away from these characters…each glance, each sigh and each twitch caught on film and a reflection of the awkward moments we all face when healing from tragedies and feeling as if we are under a microscope. Writer/director Lindsey Shockley's theatrical background clearly pays off as she patiently follows mother and daughter through the peaks and valleys of human emotion and expression.

While both Pop and Hall perform admirably, Hall gives the film a remarkable emotional depth with a performance that speaks volumes even when she isn't uttering a word.

Reviewed by Brian Morton at Rogue Cinema

Sometimes we say one thing but we mean something else. We've all done it and we've all seen it, that look on someone's face that they're saying much more than is coming out of their mouths. That's what the new short, The Truth About Faces, by Lindsey Shockley is about.

Basically a short movie about a Jules and her mom, who are shopping for a graduation dress, but if you read between the lines, there's so much more going on here. When Mrs. Hall (played by Julie Pop) expresses concern for Jules (played by Hanna Hall) traveling so far from home on an archaeological expedition to Africa, is she having empty nest syndrome or is something else going on. If you just listen to the conversation, you'd be misled into thinking that this was mostly a shopping trip, but, if you pay attention to the title of the film and watch the faces of the characters, you'll see that something else is going on here. When Jules and her mom run into a man from their past, we learn that not only do they know him, but this man used to date Mrs. Hall's other daughter, who is now dead. The conversation, while on the surface is very inconsequential, is much more than that. We can see that discomfort of everyone involved, Mrs. Hall's not sure what to say to this man, Jules is holding back information and everyone concerned wants to just get away, but they all feel that this conversation is the right thing to do.

The Truth About Faces really hinges on the performances of Hall and Pop, both of whom are amazing! Both these actresses are great, if they don't have a real relationship to draw from, then the performances are that much more amazing. While The Truth About Faces is a short, I'd love to see what Lindsey Shockley could do with a feature film, what she gets out of her actors here, in one continuous shot, is what all low budget movies should strive for. The Truth About Faces impressed me by using the story and the acting together to tell the story, both are reliant on the other to get across the entire feeling that Ms. Shockley is going for, if all the elements weren't working perfectly together the entire film falls, but everyone is firing on all cylinders here and The Truth About Faces is one of the best movies I've see this year, it's definitely the one that made me think the most, about what people are saying and what they're actually meaning. I'm giving The Truth About Faces four out of four cigars, because it's the perfect film, it's warm, touching and thought provoking, I really enjoyed this movie! You can find out more about Lindsey Shockley and The Truth About Faces by dropping by her My Space Page. So, until next time, when I'll tell you how much I loved Battlefield: Earth and you'll have to read the expression on my face to tell if I'm lying or not, remember that the best movies are bad movies.

No Cuts
Lindsey Shockley Shoots Non-Stop Thesis

April, 2007 | JAMES TELLA

The average eight to ten days of a thesis film shoot could very well be the most important and stressful time spent on a set for any SCA production student, so when third-year M.F.A. candidate Lindsey Shockley cut that schedule to three days and added the challenge of capturing the entire film in one take, the pressure was enormous.

Today, with The Truth About Faces completed, Shockley admits shooting a 14-minute film about a mother and daughter forced to come to terms with a tragic event ensured that everyone involved in the project was at the top of their game.

"This movie is all about very awkward tensions," said Shockley, who has always been fascinated by long takes in movies such as Rope and Nine Lives. "There are all these private and painful things going on inside these two women and by never cutting away, we never give the actors a chance to escape their character."

Filmed in a Glendale clothing store, whose owner "gave us amazing access to clear everything and literally take over," Shockley added that the intense preparation was pivotal before she even called "action." From repainting the store, to building a dressing room large enough to accommodate two actors, a costumer, the Steadicam operator and his equipment, to laying the lighting scheme above the action in order to hide the equipment from the camera, the physical challenges seemed overwhelming and were "a total team effort."


"There came a point when I had to give up all the pre-planning and let the film become real. I owe so much to everyone involved and knew that we were ready and that it would work," Shockley said, commenting that the trickiest parts to film were the scenes in the mirror. "If an actor dropped a line, or we caught the camera's reflection, we'd have to start again from the very beginning."


Since the doors to the outside world were shut once the camera rolled, the Glendale store became a vacuum of movie making. With characters hidden behind props waiting for their cues, windows scrimmed over to control the lighting, actors equipped with body mics, and crew members strategically placed out of sight, Shockley had to "let my baby fly" and relinquish control. With each retake, Shockley's sympathies were immediately turned toward her Steadicam Operator, Daniel Stilling, who "literally carried 85 pounds of equipment on his shoulders."

"There was no net and no sleight of hand," said the North Carolina native, acknowledging that her theater background helped her feel completely comfortable in an atmosphere where the action is live and there is no room to stop. "It taught me that you only have to be in one place at one time, and if you know what that place is, it clarifies what your story needs."

Out of 27 attempts, the cast, which included Hanna Hall (Forrest Gump, The Virgin Suicides) and Julie Pop (Will & Grace) and crew reached the finish line eight times, leaving Shockley with the difficult task of picking the best of the batch.

"It was definitely tempting to edit," laughed the director. "There were nuances in one take that I liked over another, but this freed me from having to make knee-jerk reactions and made me love the one that we chose—flaws and all."

Now that The Truth About Faces is completed, would she recommend others follow her lead?

"Don't stress. You'll hear 'why?' and that it's 'too risky,' but do it and have fun," Shockley laughed.

LINKS TO THE ARTICLE:

http://cinema.usc.edu/programs/production/

http://cinema.usc.edu/

http://cinema.usc.edu/about/news/no-cuts.htm

Julie Pop to appear on ABC's "Desperate Housewives" episode 'Come Play Wiz Me' which will air January 21, 2007.

Star Hanna Hall
On Set in Los Angeles, March 19
By: Mr Disgusting

After being committed for 17 years, Michael Myers, now a grown man and still very dangerous, is mistakenly released from the mental institution (where he was committed as a 10 year old) and he immediately returns to Haddonfield, where he wants to find his baby sister, Laurie. Anyone who crosses his path is in mortal danger.

BD: You've been acting since you were a small child, what brought you to HALLOWEEN?

HH: I have been acting since I was about eight, but I still grew up in Colorado. Then I went to college in Hawaii for a few years, and then Vancouver to study film production. Which brought me back to L.A. where I am now acting, writing, and producing.

BD: Are you a fan of horror films or do they frighten you?

HH: I have always enjoyed a good horror film, but I am gaining a new respect for the genre.

BD: Have you seen any of the original HALLOWEEN films?

HH: I have only seen the first Halloween.

BD: You never had a chance to see the adult Michael Myers, as all fans of the franchise know, but what was it like working with Daeg Faerch?

HH: It was great working with Daeg, he did an amazing job.

BD: How creepy was Daeg as young Michael Myers?

HH: He was very creepy, especially when he had on of the masks. He is a very cool, sweet kid, and it was great to see how much fun he had being a disturbed young Michael.

BD: What can you tell us about your character?

HH: All I'm going to say is you probably won't feel too sorry for her when she dies….

BD: How is your relationship with your mom, who's played by Sheri Moon?

HH: In the film, our characters reflect to each other everything we hate about ourselves. So basically we don't get along very well. Sheri was awesome to work with, and we had a lot of fun creating our dysfunctional mother, daughter relationship.

BD: This sounds like a more "extreme" HALLOWEEN, does anything 'extra' happen to your character?

HH: Well, I don't want to spoil anything, but the main difference is that Judith plays a larger role in Michael's life.

BD: How was Rob Zombie as a director compared to others you have worked with?

HH: Rob has been a pleasure to work with; he is a very talented filmmaker. Horror was not necessarily my favorite genre, but I could appreciate Rob's understanding of how to affect people with it. It was interesting meeting the real Rob Zombie, because there are many things someone might assume about what he is like after watching his films. When really he is a very focused, intelligent artist… and even kind of shy.

BD: Did you hear about any of the fan backlash?

HH: I did read a few comments from fans that were upset about the film, although I try not to take it too seriously. If you are getting that strong of a reaction, it probably means that you are doing something right!

BD: Did it have any impact on what went on during filming? Did anything change?

HH: It did not change the way I felt about the movie because I trust Rob as a director. I know he understands the genre very well. It seems like a lot of the issues that people have with the film are about it being different then the original, but if it were the same movie what would be the point of making it?

BD: Will you ever do another horror film after this?

HH: Sure! Getting killed was really fun…

BD: What are you working on next?

HH: I am in development on a feature that I am producing.

BD: If you could have chose which killer to slay you, who would it be?

HH: Oh god… I don't know, what could be better then being killed by a maniacal 10-year-old?

BD: Is there anything else you want to add?

HH: This movie will be wonderfully disturbing… definitely worth seeing!