Russell & Kimora Lee Simmons Call It QUITS!!!

The marriage of hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons and his model-turned-entrepreneur wife, Kimora Lee, has come to an end. In a statement provided to The Associated Press on Friday, Simmons announced the pair had decided to break up after seven years of marriage. Rumors had swirled for the past week that a split was imminent. The couple have two young daughters."Kimora and I will remain committed parents and caring friends with great love and admiration for each other," Simmons said. "We will also continue to work side by side on a daily basis as partners in all of our businesses."

Simmons is head of Rush Communications, but is perhaps better known as the co-founder of Def Jam Records and for his Phat Farm clothing line. In recent years, he has become more involved in politics, and helped to create the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network. Over the years, Kimora Lee Simmons has become almost as famous as her husband, thanks to her successful Baby Phat clothing line and her glamorous diva persona, which has been documented in numerous magazine spreads.

Although the pair have appeared at public events together in recent weeks, the statement said they had been separated for "some time," even though they were still living together.

Basic Instinct 2: Risk Addiction

It has been 14 very long years since we have seen the character Catherine Trammel from Basic Instinct. In the new sequel Sharon Stone Brings Catherine back to the big screen.

Everything interesting begins in the mind…………….

In the psychological thriller Basic Instinct 2, after re-locating from San Francisco to London, best-selling crime novelist Catherine Tramell (Sharon Stone) once again finds herself on the wrong side of the law. Dr. Michael Glass (David Morrissey), a respected London criminal psychiatrist, is brought in by Scotland Yard detective Roy Washburn (David Thewlis) to perform a psychiatric profile and evaluation of Tramell following the mysterious death of a top sports star. Physically drawn to Tramell and mentally intrigued by her, Glass, against the advice of his mentor, Dr. Milena Gardosh (Charlotte Rampling), is quickly sucked into her web of lies and seduction.

Dr. Glass is Charismatic and successful with a thriving practice, he is highly respected by his peers and his academic articles win him praise and accolades. Catherine Tramell, a best-selling American crime novelist whose grisly fictional crimes take place in real life with alarming frequency. The magnetism between the two is immediate and Glass is intrigued by Catherine both mentally and physically.

As people around him are murdered one by one, a deadly battle of wits ensues between Glass and Tramell, leading to a startling climax in which he must make a choice that will change both of their lives forever.

A slick psychological thriller, Basic Instinct 2, explores what happens when the darker side of human nature is uncovered. Has the intelligent, seductive and manipulative Tramell finally met her match?

Basic Instinct 2 Opens Nationwide on Friday, March 31st

All of Hollywood is abuzz with the official announcement by Producer Jerry Weintraub and director Steven Soderbergh. The duo has announced they will helm the third installment in the Ocean’s Series. Soderbergh and Weintraub will team up on Ocean's Thirteen, the latest film in the stylish caper series boasting an all-star ensemble cast headed by George Clooney, Brad Pitt and Matt Damon. The announcement was made today by Jeff Robinov, President of Production, Warner Bros. Pictures.

It is expected that additional cast members of the first two movies, including Andy Garcia, Don Cheadle, Bernie Mac, Casey Affleck, Scott Caan, Eddie Jemison, Shaobo Qin, Carl Reiner and Elliott Gould, will also return. Joining the cast this time will be Ellen Barkin, with another starring role to be cast shortly.

The film will be co-financed by Warner Bros. Pictures and Village Roadshow Pictures. Warner Bros. will distribute worldwide in all territories except Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and Greece, where Village Roadshow will distribute. Principal photography is expected to begin July 21, 2006, in Las Vegas and Los Angeles, from a script by Brian Koppelman & David Levien.

Weintraub will produce the Jerry Weintraub Productions - Section Eight production. Jessica Goodman will oversee the production for Warner Bros. Pictures."Steven Soderbergh came up with a great idea," said Weintraub. "Brian and David wrote a terrific script and that made it irresistible, and everyone thought it would be great to get together and make another one of these movies."

Production Stills From Mission Impossible: 3

Paramount Pictures has provided The Hollywood Bureau with new production stills from their upcoming blockbuster, Mission: Impossible III, starring Tom Cruise, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Ving Rhames, Laurence Fishburne, Billy Crudup and Michelle Monaghan.

Hitting theaters on May 5th, Tom Cruise returns as Special Agent Ethan Hunt, who faces the mission of his life in "Mission: Impossible: III." Director J.J. Abrams ("Lost," "Alias") brings his unique blend of action and drama to the billion-dollar franchise.

All Images Copyright (C) 2006 Paramount Pictures

Desperate Housewives Dominates NCAA March Madness

March Madness -- an overrun of the NCAA basketball tournament -- got things off to a fine start for CBS Sunday night, combing with the start of 60 Minutes to give the network a 9.8 rating and a 17 share in the 7:00 p.m. hour. The network's ratings even climbed to an 11.3/17 in the 8:00 p.m. hour for the conclusion of 60 Minutes and the beginning of Cold Case. But that's all she wrote. At 9:00 p.m. Desperate Housewives scored the top numbers for the night, a 13.5/20 for ABC, leading into a repeat of Grey's Anatomy at 10:00 p.m., which drew a 9.8/16. In the end, ABC won the night with an average 9.1/14, outscoring CBS's 8.8/14. NBC placed third with a 6.2/10, while Fox trailed with a 3.9/6.

INSIDE MAN TAKES TOP SPOT

Inside Man not only garnered the best reviews of any film released this year, it also came close to rolling up the best box-office results. The Spike Lee film, starring Denzel Washington, earned an estimated $29 million, just behind the $30 million posted for Madea's Family Reunion last month. Two other new films -- which were not screened for critics -- registered so-so results. The horror flick Stay Alive debuted with $11.2 million, somewhat better than most analysts had predicted, and Larry the Cable Guy: Health Inspector took in $7.1 million, somewhat worse than most analysts had predicted. Meanwhile, in its second week, V for Vendetta got an F, as its gross fell 52 percent to $12.3 million. The film, which several analysts predicted would become the first big blockbuster of the year, grossed only $12.3 million to bring its total to $46.2 million. Nevertheless, with the top 12 movies grossing, $98.9 million, the box office was able to break out of its latest slump; the figure was up 10.6 percent from the comparable weekend a year ago. The top ten films for the weekend, according to studio estimates compiled by Exhibitor Relations:1. Inside Man, $29 million; 2. V for Vendetta, $12.3 million; 3. Stay Alive, $11.2 million; 4. Failure to Launch, $10.8 million; 5. The Shaggy Dog, $9.1 million; 6. She's the Man, $7.4 million; 7. Larry the Cable Guy: Health Inspector, $7.05 million; 8. The Hills Have Eyes, $4.25 million; 9. Eight Below, $2.7 million; 10. 16 Blocks, $2.2 million.

THE FIVE STAGES OF SOUTH BY SOUTHWEST: Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression & Acceptance

BY KATE SULLIVAN

THE FIRST STAGE: DENIAL

When you first arrive at SXSW, you are invincible, impervious to such forces as bad luck, bad vibes, laws pertaining to room capacity, and scheduled set times. You think: I will see every show. I will get in to every show. I do not need to get on any snobby guest lists. I barely even need a schedule of shows! I will travel among the people, with good will as my badge and Kismet as my guide.

And so it was on Thursday, my first day at the annual music-industry hoo-ha held (largely) in the spooky beer dens of downtown Austin. (Okay, yes, I did have a fancy get-in-everywhere badge — get in everywhere, that is, except the creepy, parasitic underworld of “unofficial” SXSW parties. More on that later.)

With Kismet and good will on my side, I found myself at a show where The Spinto Band, a hip/MySpace-y group the girl from Giant Drag had told me about a while ago, were playing. They’re better live than on MySpace, for sure — hookier, more harmonic, more accessible. You get the feeling they only sound lo-fi because they’re too young to know any better, and sometime down the road may be staring down a Jeff Lynne/ELO revelation, which will either destroy them or make them stronger. U.K.’s Boy Kill Boy gave a pleasingly energetic show of unpleasingly generic post-punk, haircut, Strokes music. (Really, though, energy does count for something; I only wish all the shoegazers in Silver Lake had an ounce of their high-hopes chutzpah.) Then Kismet kissed us all with a surprise gig by The Flaming Lips, who opened their set with a note-faithful rendition of “Bohemian Rhapsody,” urging the entire tiny club to sing along full-volume, which we did. Giant balloons everywhere, of course. And so much genuine love of Queen.

Like an idiot, I left the show early to make it to the Beauty Bar for my first unofficial party, and this is where it all went wrong for me, and nothing would ever be the same. There’s a huge crowd and a big bouncer saying, “NO ONE is getting in.” I text my friend who’s inside, and she says, “go roundbak.” Roundbak, it turns out, is the alley where the bands actually play. D’oh! A mere chainlink fence separates the “ins” from the “outs,” and considering that half the “ins” are look-alike faces I vaguely recognize from Cobrasnake shots, I’m happy to be on the outs with Mark Sovel and TK from Indie 103.1 FM and members of The Prix. Nevertheless I am drugged and dragged inside and suffer through ALMOST AN ENTIRE SET by She Wants the Revenge, a band whom I have decided I completely love, because they are hilarious. Hilarious. I want a T-shirt so bad. It’ll go perfectly with the Limp Bizkit shirt I just made at Kinko’s. (They don’t even make them anymore.)

THE SECOND STAGE: ANGER
On Friday, Ray Davies is giving a talkie-singie thing where the sober old people go: the Convention Center. I’m all hopeful and shit. This is truly the only SXSW event I knew I could not miss. He comes out in cool shades, looks great, younger than Bono somehow. Voice sounds great, all freakishly boyish, and he begins strumming the opening chords to “Waterloo Sunset.” Everyone goes “awww . . .” and claps lightly, like people do, me included. Then he stops, and that’s the last time he plays anything old and good. He shows a lengthy, lengthy home movie he made of his post-9/11 U.S. tour. At every whistle stop, he mentions how far his band has traveled that day, as if it’s some big deal. 400 miles. 345 miles. As if every single musician in the room hadn’t traveled much farther in one day, many times, with much humbler accommodations.

Obviously, the Kinks’ banishment from touring the U.S. in the ’60s prevented Davies’ learning that, indeed, the U.S. is rather large. (As the T-shirts in the tourist shops here read, “Texas is larger than France.”) Some of the new songs are okay but not nearly as attentive to the details of “Other People’s Lives” as he seems to think. I love his music forever, forever, forever, but I know he can do better.

Of his old stuff, he says, with a degree of loathing, something like, “You can avoid ex-wives, but you can’t avoid the back-catalog.”

(Thankfully, I can’t avoid his ex-wives, as I heard The Pretenders sound-checking the next day outside Stubb’s Bar-B-Q. Went round back to get as close as I could, but could only hear Chrissie Hynde’s beautiful voice stop and start. Sounds like she doesn’t smoke.)

That night, I find myself waiting on a friend to go out. Around 11:30 we realize white-hot-hipster-fuckin-buzzband-du-jour Arctic Monkeys go on in a half-hour — across town. We trek on out into the night and text the Cobra, who texts back that the show is packed, he barely got in, huge line, whatnot. I’m feeling under the weather as it is, and the prospect of walking miles to see some overrated MySpace band just so I can, I don’t even know what — live forever? — makes me want to vomit. It’s impossible to get into any shows here. The lines and the lists and the badges and the buzz — all of it seems so at odds with what I thought this was supposed to be about. Fuck this, I decide, and perform a one-woman bed-in protest all night long.

STAGE THREE: BARGAINING

I had a breakthrough moment on Saturday, surrendering to pragmatism and managing to actually get on the list and arrive in time for Art Brut’s very last show of the festival. I am rewarded with the best set by a new band I can recall. Before almost every song, singer Eddie Argos says, “Ready, Art Brut?” The female bassist is like a more feminine, less drunk Kim Deal, the new guitarist is like a comic send-up of Interpol, complete with a paranoid sideways stare, and the general approach is tight/loose; pretentious/unpretentious; alternately heavy on complex verse lyrics and mindless gang-vocal choruses. Perfect. So glad they “Formed a Band”! Art Brut, Art Brut, Top of the Pops!

Next I check out Nine Black Alps for about four black minutes (musta been the drony/boring part of their set) and instead opt to taste-test the Clap Your Hands Say Yeah. Wow. Talk about a band that have been fooled by their own hype. I foresee a long post-hipster career for this group on the jam-band circuit, where people are too high to realize how astonishingly tiresome they are.

So I figure, hey, why not forget the cool young buzz bands and just go for the melodies, the key changes, the timeless romance? I decide to check out weird ’70s singer-songwriter-Lindsay Buckingham-look-alike enigma Andy Pratt, followed byMatthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs, doing their tribute to ’60s beauty-pop. This ain’t cool-buzz shit; I’m sure to get in! Foiled again, dude. The line is halfway down the block, even for people with badges, and a so-called friend refuses to let me cut in line. Fair enuf, dude. I’m out.

I decide to wander the streets like one of the many unwashed untouchables without connections or party invites. Hey! The Living Things are playing at Buffalo Billiards! Oof! They’ve canceled! A mess of Athens bands are at some coffeehouse! Blammo! It’s packed! A buncha bands from Manchester are at another bar! Zowee! I wait 40 minutes for something called Longcut to play, then fall asleep within the first minute of their set!

Finally I surrender and call my girl Lina, who has all the passes and parties and connections. I fake my way into a private Gang of Four show, and spot the elusive yet ubiquitous hobbit, Elijah Wood. Unfortunately, I arrive just as GoF are entering the self-indulgent/audience-punishing part of their set, torturing their newfound fair-weather fans with endless swords of feedback and non-melodic, arrhythmic goo. They sound amazing; I know they’d be amazing if they were playing songs.

STAGE FOUR: DEPRESSION
We end Saturday night at some Dim Mak/Cobrasnake thing, who seem to be hosting half the underground events here. The Outsiders is being projected silently on giant walls — we’re at some sort of half-outside loading dock. It’s raining, and I find that in Texas, apparently, two girls sitting under an umbrella is considered a conversational invitation for the most annoying of Texas’ college boys. I kill them with silent arrows, as I kill the drunk blond girl who keeps bumping into me, as I kill Steve Aoki himself, up on his DJ booth like some self-appointed royal, poorly mixing Neil Diamond. Yeah, I got a little cynical. Depressed, some might say.

Sweden’s The Sounds brightened things up, though. The female singer is the femmiest androgyne I have seen since the drugboys of ’80s hair metal (or, possibly, Hedwig). Her voice ain’t much but she Cherie Curries it up real good; likewise, the songs are forgettable, much like cuts off some Patty Smyth album. All this is proof of how interesting the singer is, because despite it all, I got much respect! I think she may actually be a possibly dangerous lead singer very soon.
Thank you, dear, for ending my SXSW on a positive note.

STAGE FIVE: ACCEPTANCE
By Sunday, I realize that SXSW is a microcosm of life: You get back what you put in. If I’d planned better, felt better, been kinder and gentler, I might have had a better experience. I wish that Flaming Lips moment had lasted forever.
I spot Art Brut in the airport, and am happy not to say hi. It’s barely noon.

Video: Texas Film Hall of Fame Awards 2006 Red Carpet Interviews

If there is a slight lag, pause the video and let the download bar fill up before resuming.

Interviews of
Evan Smith, Eddie Safady, Kris Kristofferson, Turk Pipkin,
John Paul and Eloise DeJoria, Matthew McConaughey,
Kay McConaughey, Nak Armstrong, Lisa Ling, Lyle Lovett, and Clif Loftin

Interviews by John-Scott Horton
Executive Producer Clif Loftin
Producer Todd Sanders of Picture Up Media
Director Dustin Scott of Picture Up Media

Special Thanks to the Following:
Mike Dickinson of Chicken Ranch Records
Chuck Smith of Moonshine Patio Bar & Grill
Everyone at the Austin Film Society

Austin Film Society Prepares for the Texas Film Hall of Fame Awards

INTERVIEW: Rebecca Campbell Austin Film Society - Executive Director

By John-Scott Horton

INT. OFFICE – AUSTIN FILM SOCIETY – DAY

Rebecca Campbell, director of Austin Film Society and Austin Studios, sits in an office chair at a slightly cluttered desk. The office is utilitarian, but the walls are adorned with classic film posters and autographed, framed stills of many of Texas’ elite filmmakers and actors.

Rebecca appears slightly flustered, stuck in overdrive from the hectic events swirling around her during the final week of preparation for The Texas Film Hall of Fame (TFHoF). She straightens her desk, tries to draw in her focus, succeeds and offers a polite smile.

The Hollywood Bureau’s own John-Scott Horton and Clif Loftin sit across from her on a couch, cross legged, patiently waiting, and thankful that they were lucky enough to be granted an interview during such a tumultuous week. Greetings are exchanged and John-Scott places a handheldl tape recorder on the desk and presses the record button.

John-Scott
Start out by telling us who you are and what your capacity is within the Austin Film Society and for this impending event, the Texas Film Hall of Fame.

Rebecca
Well, my name is Rebecca Campbell and I am the executive director for the Austin Film Society, which is comprised of a bunch of different programs. We do exhibition, artists’ services, the grant program [Texas Filmmakers’ Production Fund], and community outreach and education. We run Austin Studios, which is where the Texas Film Hall of Fame takes place, and the event helps fund all of our other programs year round.

John-Scott
How long has TFHoF been running?

Rebecca
It started in 2001, so…this is the sixth one. We started it right after we moved out to Austin Studios and we’d been looking for an idea that would gather the community together and honor Texas and Texas Film and its contributions to film. So, once we had a space that was adequate with these airplane hangars [Austin Studios], it became a perfect fit and was a huge success from the very first event we held.

John-Scott
Tell me a little bit more about the event’s conception.

Rebecca
Let’s see…two board members [of AFS], Lewis Black and Evan Smith basically got together and cooked up the idea once we’d been out at Austin Studios. That first year, when they called me up to suggest the idea, we thought that the best time to do it would be the opening night of South by Southwest. At that point it was only six weeks away from the event but we just said, “Let’s go for it.” Of course now, we spend over six months planning it.

John-Scott
I remember being here the first year as an intern, and it was definitely a hectic time.

(Rebecca puts her hands to her temples, remembering the headaches of the lightning preparation of the first TFHoF event.)

Rebecca
Oh my gosh…Oh my gosh…it was…You know, it was successful and it’s really become a huge part of how we’re able to do all of our programs. But yeah…that first year was really tough.

John-Scott
Tell me a little more about the projects and recipients that benefit from the money raised by TFHoF.

Rebecca
The event will bring in more than $500,000, and there’s some cost associated with it, but then we will still have really strong net proceeds. $75,000 of that will go directly back out to Texas filmmakers at the end of the summer through the Texas Filmmakers Production Fund. That’s a fund that was started back in 1996 by Richard Linklater and it’s given away, now, more than half-a-million dollars. It’s been kind of exciting in the last couple of years that filmmakers who have received funds from TFPF have gone on to have national success. For example, we helped fund the project Room and it was at the Independent Spirit Awards this last Saturday because local actress Cindy Williams was nominated for best actress…We also do community outreach and education [with some of the funds]. We have a program where we’re teaching filmmaking in seven schools out in East Austin—after school programs. It’s film appreciation and filmmaking. And then we show films year round, so it [TFHoF funds] also goes to help pay for them.

John-Scott
So, the Hall of Fame brings together the Texas film community and pools together its money through a really cool event, then channels these funds into a bunch of really great programs through AFS.

Rebecca
Exactly. Ultimately, the money’s going to a good cause. It is expensive to attend, I don’t know if you noticed.

John-Scott
It does look a little pricey, but worth it in the end it seems. The money raised is directly helping projects like Room get off the ground.

Rebecca
Right, and actually, Room is going to have a release around Texas and we’re going to do a premiere of it and the money that’s raised will go directly back into TFPF. We’re really hoping to start a positive cycle there. The one program that is not funded by TFHoF is Austin Studios because we rent out the facilities to productions and that money goes back into the facilities. It’s a partnership, essentially, that we have with the city of Austin.

John-Scott
Now, obviously this event [TFHoF] has a big impact on Austin and the Texas film community, but how has it impacted the rest of the film community outside of Texas?

Rebecca
We definitely reach into the LA markets and productions are talking about coming and shooting in Austin, and they’re all familiar with Austin Studios and TFHoF. So, it has definitely become something that people are widely aware of and we’ve even had a couple of publicists and agents call regarding their client and say, “When is my client going to be inducted?” So that definitely tells us that it’s something that’s taken seriously. But our main focus is Texas. We have folks coming in from Houston this year, we had folks from Dallas last year, and we hope that it will start having more statewide draw—although it did sell out by January this last year. (Laughs) So I don’t know how much it can grow…Dana Harris [from Variety Magazine] talks about the event in our 20th Anniversary Book. She says:

…if you were from Austin, you looked forward to the chance to bring out your cocktail gowns; if you weren’t, you looked forward to an awards show that didn’t require a cocktail gown.

(Laughs again) Basically, it’s something for everyone.

John-Scott
Well, I’m getting all gussied up for the event. Hair, wardrobe, you name it.

Rebecca
(Laughing)
Very nice, I’m going to be all dressed up.

John-Scott
We’re from Texas, we have to.

Rebecca
Right, exactly.

John-Scott
There’s a real sense of state pride in Texas and now we have our own film hall of fame. Why does Texas get one and are there other events like this?

Rebecca
That was something that Evan Smith pointed out the first year, that Texas has a mystique. It doesn’t sound right to say something like the Vermont Film Hall of Fame. There’s something about the Texas mystique and maybe the fact that Texas has contributed a lot of talent to film for such a long time. It just makes perfect sense so you don’t question the Texas Film Hall of Fame.

John-Scott
There are certainly a lot of implications that go with Texas. The Lone Star State, everything is bigger in Texas, etc…Tell me a little bit about this year’s inductees.

Rebecca
Well, JoBeth Williams…she’s just a wonderful actress, and we’ve been preparing the clip reels to honor each of them and it’s always such a treat to prepare these reels and be reminded of what a wide and lengthy career these actors/actresses have had. You know she was in The Big Chill and Poultergeist and she’s really talented. I think people that are kind of outside the film industry often don’t realize how long the path is to stardom. It’s great when you can become a star, but sometimes you have to work in the trenches for years and years and years. It’s really a moment where you can appreciate how much has gone into a career like that. Cybill Shepherd will be here to help honor The Last Picture Show and I guess she’s originally from Memphis, which is funny because she seems to personify small town Texas. The Last Picture Show is just such an amazing film. It just really captures this era that was…just the very last moment of the small town and all that’s kind of harsh about it but there’s also something very nostalgic about it. So that’ll be fantastic. We’ve got a new award this year, which is the AMD Soundtrack Live Award and that is picking up on the fact that music is a huge part of film. It’s very broadly set up to honor musicians' careers in film, whether it’s in front of the camera or doing the music. This year’s recipient, Lyle Lovett, is perfect for the first award and there will be a performance of a couple of his songs. That’ll be new and different. Then, we’re also honoring Kris Kristofferson. Talk about the span of a career...His reel starts out with a clip from Songwriter, maybe, where he says, “Let’s go to Austin.” Then it goes all the way to a clip of a film he’s in that hasn’t even come out yet, which is Richard Linklater’s Fast Food Nation. [Kris] is also a very interesting person who has a lot of strong political beliefs. He’s really had a lot of integrity in his career and that comes out as well. And our own Matthew McConaughey, who has done so much for the Austin Film Society over the years…we are so pleased to get him into the hall of fame. We’ve kind of been saving him and this is a good year for him to be inducted. I think it will be a year where every single inductee will…there’s going to be a lot of love coming from the audience. They’re going to be very happy about the people being honored

(Everyone in the office beams, clearly in accordance with the warm feelings expected by this year’s Hall of Fame attendees.)

John-Scott
In addition to the AMD Soundtrack Live Award, what else is new? How is the event evolving?

Rebecca
Well, every year we have a gala committee and co-chairs that help set the tone. This year we’ve had Carla McDonald and Alexa Wesner and they’ve had a very strong vision of wanting to honor the art of film as the theme and make sure and highlight the fact that it’s our [AFS’s] 20th Anniversary. I expect it to be pretty dazzling from what I’ve heard. [The hangar] is being draped right now and the grunge factor has been eliminated this year. We’ll see how that plays. Every year a fresh set of volunteers gets to put their imprimatur on it.

John-Scott
What are some of the highlights that stick out in your mind from past years’ events?

Rebecca
I like it when spontaneous things happen on the stage. Peter Fonda stayed on stage for more than 10 minutes one year and kept repeating himself. Then Dabney Coleman got up there to induct Farrah Fawcett and he goes (infectious laughter interrupts her dialogue), “Peter!” (snigger) “Where’s Peter Fonda? I--I knew your father and I was in a movie with your sister, and Peter, if your father was alive today…he would KICK YOU ASS!” I just loved that moment (sigh) because it was affectionate. I know Peter was exhausted because he lives in Wyoming and there’d been a blizzard and there was some difficulty getting here and he was exhausted. He was just going on and on and he wasn’t very focused…and it was just funny. That one always sticks in my mind. One year we honored Cyd Charisse, and we sang Happy Birthday to her that night. And we said it’s Cyd Chairsse’s 81st birthday and then we sang to her—she’s so beautiful—we sang her Happy Birthday, then she gets on stage and says, “I’m only 79!” (she breaks down in nostalgic laughter again). (Pause) Matthew [McConaughey] did a great job. This was when he inducted Woody Harrelson, and Woody is just this fun loving natural kind of guy. He was coming to SXSW to show his documentary and he also was told that he was going to be honored. So, Matthew said he got onto the private jet and he saw Owen and Luke Wilson…a bunch of people really, and he said, “This may be a bigger deal than I thought it was!” So, ultimately, I guess that my favorite moments are when spontaneous things happen on the stage.

John-Scott
Going back to AFS, are there more events planned? What else is up your sleeve?

Rebecca
We’re always open to whatever comes along, and we’ve been very lucky that we have friends that want to work with us to show their work. So, this year we’ll have two of Richard Linklater’s films, a premiere of Fast Food Nation and a premiere of A Scanner Darkly. Those will both be this summer but before that we’re going to have another Quentin Tarantino Film Festival. QT7 is going to be in April and it will be the best of the previous QT festivals. That will mean that we’ll have had 2 QT fests in one fiscal year which is incredible. Beyond that, we always do a lot of stuff at SXSW…On Saturday night we’re having a 10 year reunion for the Texas Filmmakers’ Production Fund and we’re working with AMD and Microsoft and we’re having a party. Everybody who’s ever gotten a grant from TFPF has been invited and if we get a good turnout we can do a class photo. Felipe Cazals, a Mexican filmmaker, is coming during SXSW and I’m sure there’s a lot more stuff going on…I don’t know if I can remember it all offhand. There’s always a new high profile event and the programs run year in and year out. What you want is a strong film culture, and that’s what Austin has. It comes from people showing up at the screenings, whether they’re going to the film festivals here or whether they’re going to the AFS’s Essential Cinema Series—they’re educated and informed and they’re hungry for independent work.

(A phone rings in the background, grabbing Rebecca’s attention. There is a bustle somewhere in the front room. It’s as if the machine finally realized one of its cogs wasn’t working and has begun to repair itself.)

Rebecca
(picking up the phone, muffling the receiver)
I’d better take this.

(After a brief conversation, Rebecca hangs up the phone and returns her attention to our HollywoodBureau.com reporters. It is clear that pressing matters are now looming, though.)

John-Scott
One more question then. Play Oracle for us and tell us where you see Texas Film and the Austin Film Society in the future—a year from now, five years, ten years…

Rebecca
I think, first of all, that what we’ve got going on now is a very strong healthy community culturally speaking and economically speaking. What’s important to recognize is that the film business is cyclical and for all I know we could be at the top of our game now and we could go up and down. There’s no way of knowing. But I think, for me, the most important thing is to really appreciate what we’ve got going now, which is pretty incredible. The thing is, regardless of whether or not we have a strong industry here—meaning a lot of films being shot locally—what we’re always going to be committed to is making sure that the culture is promoted and that there’s film appreciation going on. As long as that’s there, and as long as we have good facilities for filmmakers, I think that they’ll keep on coming and I think that Austin will remain one of the top film industries in the country. We will improve Austin Studios' facilities and other facilities will get built around town…so there could be more and better of what there is now, but I don’t see there being much difference from it. I guess one thing that I would love to see develop is a really strong post production community. Certainly there are a lot of people here who are good with special effects and editing and other kinds of post production and we also have a strong gaming community. So it seems to me that there’s a lot of room for growth because of the way it works now where you can be anywhere in the world and do your editing and shoot your results to your clients. Austin has a lot of potential to grow in that area and I’d love to see it get developed and I’d love for AFS and Austin Studios to play a role in that.

(After a brief moment of silence and small, satisfied smiles, everyone gets up and shakes hands. Murmured niceties and parting words are said and the trio leaves the office.)

TRIBUTE: Dana Reeve 1962 - 2006

the Hollywood Bureau's OSCAR Album

POST Oscar Parties by Elizabeth Snead

Anyone heading for the Elton John 14th annual Oscar bash — held in a huge tent outside the Pacific Design Center — was in for a rude shock. First, there was the usual limo-lock. But folks who hopped out of their cars to walk, hoping to beat the traffic, were held back from the main check-in desk and red carpet by burly security guards — even "NYPD Blue" actor Henry Simmons and "Entourage" star (and Nicky Hilton beau) Kevin Connolly had trouble.
Why the delay? Guards said guests had to wait because fire marshals had temporarily halted arrivals to the packed party, co-hosted by Chopard, Audi and VH1.

An irate Entertainment Weekly editor and Marilyn Heston, Hollywood’s hottest fashion rep, were detained for almost half an hour, even though other guests arriving in cars were being allowed to check in. Heston was frantically texting Lindsay Lohan on her Blackberry about what the star should wear to the other after-parties. Decisions, decisions!

Lindsay had been at Elton’s bash for a while and met the singer-philanthropist. But she left to go back to her hotel and change into another sexier frock, more suitable for the hot Vanity Fair action across the street. “I told her to wear something short,” said Heston. “It’s easier to dance on the tabletops in a short dress than a long one.”

But Lohan actually turned up wearing a long dress. Guess she doesn’t always listen to solid fashion advice. Or maybe she wasn't planning on dancing. Inside the tent: Elton, Donatella Versace, Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne, Pamela Andersonand her photog pal David LaChappelle, Mary J. Blige, Ben Stiller, Tori Spelling, Nicollette Sheridan and new/old beau Michael Bolton, Nicole Richie and Lisa Rinna. Elton played the piano, John Legend sang some songs, a good time was had by all inside and over $3 million was raised to help fight AIDS.

Paris Hilton, who definitely was on Elton's guest list, arrived in a bright blue gown with an attention-getting peacock feather train and beau Stavros Niarchos in tow. The cooing couple later left to try out the Us Weekly/Rolling Stone party inside the PDC. Paris and her entire entourage took the private elevator up to the third floor bash while sister Nicky, who was with Connolly, took the escalator. When asked how the Elton bash was, Nicky replied. “I don’t know. I didn’t stay long enough to find out."

So many parties, so little time...

Vanity Fair's A-list (ONLY) Party

Vanity Fair honcho Graydon Carter reportedly culled the Hollywood herd for the mag's 2006 post-Oscar bash at Morton’s. Chatting with Bill Maher, he told the political talk show host that Paris Hilton would definitely not be on the VF guest list this year. Apparently, he looked around his party last year and realized — Good Lord! — the place was lousy with reality TV stars! And the real movie stars didn’t want to be near them. Eww, small screen cooties!

So this year, the VF bash was an A-list only event with nominees and winners such as Dolly, Madonna, Joaquin, Terrence, Jake, Matt, Jamie Foxx, Philip, Reese and Ryan, Jennifer Aniston, Hilary Swank, Jerry Bruckheimer, Jay Leno, Keanu Reeves, Kirk Douglas, L’Wren Scott with beau Mick Jagger, Les Moonves, Teri Hatcher, Steve Tisch, Harvey Weinstein and Lauren Hutton.

Memorable Moments from the party: Heath and Joaquin swapping funny stories. Heidi Klum helping Seal puff on a cigar. Jennifer Lopez dancing with Marc Anthony. Keira acting like a couch potato. Guy Ritchie kissing Mickey Rourke. Mischa Barton and Nicole Richie huddling and giggling, perhaps planning practical jokes to play on Paris Hilton, who was most definitely not at the party.

Sandra Bullock hanging on hubby Jesse James. Sienna Miller wearing another Thomas Wylde frock and kissing Tom Ford. Jennifer Aniston’s date Vince Vaughn entertaining Will Ferrell. CNN's Anderson Cooper amusing Patricia Clarkson. Beck sticking close to fellow Scientologist Giovanni Ribisi. Maher, whose date was a foxy Arianna Huffington, sat briefly with Winona Ryder, maybe asking her to be on his show. Eve consoling Matt Dillon up close and personal. Naomi Watts sparkling in a bright turquoise frock that was way prettier than her boring beige Givenchy gown. And Angelica Huston catching up with...Jimmy Buffet?
Gosh, it's almost as good as being there, isn't it? Maybe even better.

Ah, the Oscars post parties. More like ugh.
It's been a veeeery long awards season and you'd think everyone would just go straight home after the Academy Awards, right? I mean, aren't these people a little sick of each other after all these months of award shows?

Apparently not.

Immediately after the ceremony, everyone who held — or had hoped to hold — a little gold naked man headed straight for the Governors Ball, an elegant Art Deco decorated affair in the Kodak Ballroom. Ever-gracious George Clooney was still acting like he was campaigning, talking to every single press person about his final win, followed around by his still-intrepid pub Stan Rosenfield and CAA head dude Bryan Lourd. Clooney even posed with rival hunk Matt Dillon, whom he beat out for the best supporting actor honors. Wow, guys. Talk about playing well with others. You’d think he might relax, take a week off, get away from it all at his Lake Como retreat. But he had no time to chill. Clooney was getting on a plane Monday to go back to the New York set of “Michael Clayton,” the dramatic thriller in which he plays a slick attorney whose defense of high profile creeps comes back to haunt him big time.

“Brokeback” couple Heath Ledger and Michelle Williams sat at one high-level table together, looking like they couldn’t wait to get out of their formal duds and get home to Matilda. Williams was even on the cell phone, perhaps talking with the baby sitter? Then she disappeared for a few minutes, leaving an exhausted Heath to sit back and chill by himself.

When Reese Witherspoon finally walked into the ball, dozens of cameras started madly flashing, as her hubby Ryan Phillippe walked behind her, carrying her train. Talk about a supportive husband. She ended up at the “Walk the Line” table, along with her parents, Joaquin Phoenix and his mom, and was happily dancing in her seat to the piped-in big band tunes and bopping her glass of bubbly up and down. Lauren Bacall was having as much trouble finding her table as she did with the TelePrompTer lines on the show.

“Tsotsi” Oscar winner Gavin Hood was chatting with his boyhood idol Steven Spielberg about having won an early filmmaking award or kudo that was apparently partly sponsored by Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment. Hood said that honor inspired him to take his film director career path. “And now you’ve got an Oscar,” Spielberg said, congratulating the South African winner of the best foreign language film.

After an hour, some great Wolfgang Puck food and celebratory bubbly, everyone started asking where everyone else was going next. “Are you going to Prince’s party?” “No, I’m going with the 'Crash' folks,” said Ludacris who actually ended up at the crowded Elton John AIDS fundraiser and the exclusive Vanity Fair bash in West Hollywood, Calif.

Don't these people ever sleep?

THE OSCAR REPORT by Buzz Austin

Sitting high up in the nose bleed section of the Kodak Theatre all I could do was sit and fidget. Bored. Waiting patiently for all the fun post Oscar parties to begin. The lenses of my binoculars were glazed with a thin layer of something that made everything down below look blurry. The show was flat. There was so much buzz leading up to this year’s awards show that I had worked myself into a frenzy – only to be let down as each minute ticked away. Of course the evening did get unpredictable in many categories, creating a tinge of excitement.

In one of the most stunning upsets in Hollywood history, "Crash," a story of racial tensions in Los Angeles, took home the best picture prize. Written and directed by Paul Haggis, "Crash" won a total of three Academy Awards, including best screenplay, tying with "Brokeback Mountain," "Memoirs of a Geisha" and "King Kong," the latter film winning exclusively for the technical categories. "We are humbled by the other nominees in this category,'' said "Crash" producer Cathy Schulman about taking home the award for best picture. "You have made this year one of the most breathtaking and stunning maverick years in American cinema."
Of course going into this year’s Oscars, "Brokeback Mountain" was touted as a sure thing for best picture, having won the Golden Globe and numerous critics' prizes. The announcement of "Crash," by presenter Jack Nicholson, you could hear the gasp that engulfed all of us seated in the audience at the Kodak.

I had predicted that Ang Lee would win best director for "Brokeback Mountain," and that Philip Seymour Hoffman would probably take home the award for best actor for his riveting portrayal of Truman Capote in "Capote," and my sweetheart Reese Witherspoon took best actress honors for her portrayal of June Carter Cash in "Walk the Line." She also delivered my favorite speech of the evening.

Indeed, the victory for Lee seemed to erase what little doubt there may have remained about a best-picture victory for "Brokeback Mountain." It's rare when the best picture and best director awards don't go to the same film.

Speaking of "Crash," Sunday's show was the first hosted by Jon Stewart, who didn't exactly crash and burn in his opening monologue, but did seem tentative and uncomfortable at first. But the receptive crowd rooted him on, and he warmed up over the course of the program.
The choice of Stewart, known as a political satirist, was in harmony with a year in which all the best picture nominees dealt with social or political issues. Politics were the order of the day for both nominees and winners.

George Clooney, winner of the best supporting actor award for his performance in "Syriana," alluded to the frequent criticism that film actors are "out of touch" with mainstream America. Clooney said that he was glad to be out of touch, and that only as a result of Hollywood's being out of touch had film championed causes such as civil rights long before they became popular. He also got one of the best laughs of the night. Upon receiving the award, Clooney, who was also nominated in two categories for the movie "Good Night and Good Luck," quipped, "I guess this means I'm not getting director."

In winning the best original screenplay prize for "Crash," Haggis -- who didn't expect to be on the podium again minutes later -- thanked everyone who "works for peace, justice and against intolerance."

The real surprise of the evening that seemed to delight everybody, the song "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp" from "Hustle & Flow" won for best song.

Bottom line............................ this year's Oscars were a sober and sedate affair, destined to be remembered for little besides earnest politics and a plethora of endless montages. At one point, Stewart remarked that the montages had used up every clip Hollywood had at its disposal.
However, the unexpected win of Crash had erased the memory of everything that had gone before, and if the 78th Academy Awards are to be remembered for anything, it will be for the absolute shock that went through the audience at the announcement of best picture -- and for the astonished elation of everyone connected with that movie.

And last but not least DOLLY ROCKED THE HOUSE!!!!!!