Directors...

Monday - Got to attend the Directors Press Conference, mediated by Roger Ebert, at the American Pavilion (all the major countries have pavilions set up as promotion for their movies and places for their citizens to hang out...we generally boycott the American one because you have to pay to get in, but we got special passes for this event, so it was ok!). Present were Richard Linklater (Dazed and Confused, School of Rock, showing Fast Food Nation and A Scanner Darkly in Cannes), Gus Van Sant (Good Will Hunting, showing Mala Noche in Cannes), M. Blash (first-time director showing Lying in Cannes), Larry Clark (Kids, showing a short film about pornography and how it shapes children's perspectives about sex in Cannes), Brett Ratner (Rush Hour movies, showing X-Men 3 in Cannes) and some others.

I heart Richard Linklater! He stayed after the press conference (which was really just a mediated conversation with only a few questions from the audience) to talk to our class and is awesome! He talked a lot about his experience and why he thinks FFN and ASD are important.

Brett Ratner is absolutely the most "LA" type I've seen yet. As soon as he walked in the room, you could read the Hollywood all over him!

Tuesday - Paul Cox, who has directed a documentary about a leper colony in Hawaii, came to talk to our class and give us a private screening of the film. It was still a rough cut, but very beautiful. Hearing the people in the colony talk was amazing. Paul entertained us by feeling so very sorry for us for having to grow up in America...he was dead serious! :)

Wednesday - Geoff Gilmore, director of the Sundance Film Festival, talked to our class and answered any and all questions we had. I was going to ask how he felt about Paris Hilton coming to Sundance, but another girl beat me to a similar question (she asked more nicely than I would have, though). He said he feels like the purpose of Sundance hasn't changed, regardless of all the celebrities and free stuff they get while there. Riiiiight.

Just after that, I went to a "conversation" in the American Pavilion with M. Blash and some people from his movie, Chloe Sevigny and Jena Malone. I also heart M. Blash! He seems like such a cool guy and I'm so interested to see his movie when it screens tomorrow. He said he feels like everyone has lied and been affected by lies at one time or another, so it should be a movie everyone can relate to.

Jena Malone (who, I know, is not technically a director, but she was there!) is the consummate actress. She was so metaphorical ("It's like you're doing a dance with the camera...") and wacky. She seemed like a nice girl, but after a while, her answers were just hysterical. Asked to give advice to people who want to get started in the business, she said: "Imagine your favorite animal. Your very favorite animal from the whole animal kingdom. Now imagine you have to be swallowed by that animal and have digestive juices and other disgusting things happening to you inside the belly. There you are in the belly of the beast you love so much, but you have to find a way to be true to yourself while getting hit on all sides from the other junk." I'm serious. She really said that! It was very "Inside the Actor's Studio" of her!

Peace. Out.