In this edition of “Today at Cinequest, The Smith Brothers, Tony and Brandon, chat with Edward James Olmos, Lymari Nadal and Sonia Fritz of the film ‘America.’ And: Richard von Busack talks about his best bets for today, including ‘Dreaming Nicaragua’ and ‘Desert Rain.’
Check back daily on SanJose.com during Cinequest and subscribe to the SanJose.com YouTube channel for the Smith Brothers interviews with filmmakers, directors and writers, and Richard von Busack’s Best Bets. And check out this Cinequest Guide, with capsule reviews of many of the films being shown at Cinequest.
Transcript
Congressman Mike Honda arrives to join a panel discussion of Dreaming Nicaragua playing at 11:30 AM at Camera 12. Marcelo Bukin’s documentary profiles four children, in a particularly desperate corner of a blighted Central American nation. We watch as the children are given art supplies and cameras to record their existence.
A day-long forum on the marketing of films starts at 11 m. It’s The Biz of Art at the Hal Todd Studio theater at San Jose State University. It’s followed by a pair of forums on 3D as a marketing and aesthetic tool; on hand is former Palo Altoan Jon Chu, director of the 3D Justin Beaver movie Never Say Never.
Premiering tonight at 9:30 is Desert Rain, at the Camera 12. It’s about a pair of characters on the run in Albuquerque: Alexandria Morrow is Skye, a would be actress; Dan (Daniel Van Hart) is a would be musician; evicted, unemployed and carless, the two try to head for LA where everything is cool and end up falling into crime. The Duke City looks good; the cast carries themselves well, and if first-time director Steve Loff’s main question is whether this pair of caroming losers are sympathetic enough to care about, he’s got no worries
A big Hollywood style premiere is planned for Samual Bleak tonight at 7; I’d say glimpse the stars and skip the movie.
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