Topic: Film

Documentary filmmaker, Chris Pilaro, stops by the MorningNoon&Night show to discuss the amazing films he has been a part of, including "Everything's Cool," a toxic comedy about the reality of global warming.

This weekend Sun Valley was graced with a fabulous film festival featuring movies from all over the world. Each night the nexStage Theatre was packed with crowds who were more than moved by these stories of courage.

This Sunday, Feb. 24, the Oscars will be airing at 6pm MST and there are sure to be many Oscar parties happening in Sun Valley. For a few ideas on how to throw the ultimate party for the ultimate awards ceremony, click here.

Sun Valley is chock full of fabulous visiting speakers and film festivals all year long. But never before have we been exposed to a film festival that focuses solely on women and their plight in other nations. Introducing the Family of Women Film Festival, organized by local Peggy Goldwyn for the purpose of raising awareness about Americans for UNFPA, which represents the official U.S. support for the United Nations Population Fund. The group, while under the umbrella of the UN, is primarily concerned with reproductive health and rights of women. For this festival, Goldwyn, a women’s rights activist and filmmaker, has picked four fabulous films to show.

On Friday, Feb. 22 watch “Motherland Afghanistan”. Made by Sedika Mojadidi, an Afghan by birth whose father was an ob-gynforced to flee the Taliban. Under the Taliban, women’s health suffered severely and Mojadidi’s father always felt guilty for leaving. In response, he decides to go back in order to help Afghani women. The two journey together to see their war torn country for the first time in decades.

Saturday, Feb 23 catch “Shame," a documentary about a woman in a remote village in Pakistan who is gang raped as punishment for her brother’s actions against a neighboring clan. After surviving the rape, the woman decides not to commit suicide, as is custom, but instead to press charges. When she wins the settlement, she takes the money and builds school for women in her hometown, enrolling herself in the fourth grade at age thirty.

On Sunday, Feb 24, enjoy screenings of two dramas. The first is “Water,” a film about widows in India and the difficulties they experience as single, shunned women. Then at 7p.m. watch “Moolade,” a film from Senegal that focuses on female genital mutilation.

While the subjects are intense and serious, all films are quite tame making them suitable for young teenagers who want to get an education, although a troubling one, about the world at large. All films are being shown at the nexStage Theatre in Ketchum. Tickets are $15 per film. For a complete list of events please check our calendar.

There were some serious doubts that the Oscar ceremony wouldn’t happen this year, but with the writer’s strike officially over, the 80th Annual Academy Awards are on. (Phew!) This Sunday, Feb. 24, the Oscars will be airing at 6pm MST and there are sure to be many Oscar parties happening in Sun Valley. Here are a few of our ideas to throw the ultimate party for the ultimate awards ceremony.

Make Your Own Ballots

Throw an element of fun into your fete and have your guests pick their choices for Oscar winners. Whoever guesses the most correct, gets a prize, a bottle of champagne perhaps? This will keep everyone engaged and adds some friendly competition to the event.

Play Fashion Police

Admit it, one of your favorite parts of the Oscars is the red carpet and talking about who is wearing what. Play Joan and Melissa Rivers for a night and break down everyone’s hair, makeup, dress and jewelry. You and your friends can all pick your favorites and least favorites. But be nice, and remember it’s all in good fun!

Food and Drink

Obviously, the most important aspect of the Oscar party is the food and drink. You can get domestic and make a fancy meal like the one the stars will have post-Oscars at the Governor’s Ball. Or, get some ready-made gourmet food from Ciro Market or H&G’s Reserve. Either way, champagne and a signature cocktail are a must!

Have Your Own Mini-Oscars

Pick your favorite movie star or character and get in costume. Put on a ball gown and emulate Hollywood royalty like Nicole Kidman, or go to the Goldmine and find a character costume like Holly Golightly from “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.” Make it a costume contest and hand out mini Oscar statues to the winners.

Calling all filmmakers 18 and under! Introducing Plum Sun Valley’s first ever youth film competition. We want to see how YOU celebrate life in the Wood River Valley on film. Contest ends at 5 p.m. on March 28, 2008. For more information, please read instructions below.

Categories are:

• Best Film Overall
• Best Ski/Board Short
• Best Film about the Community

All films:

• Must celebrate our Wood River Valley community
• Must be 5 minutes or less in total length
• Must be delivered on DVD to the Plum office in Hailey by 5pm on March 28, 2008
• Must include names of all filmmakers, as well as participants in the film
• Filmmakers must be 18 years old or younger to participate

Awards:

• Winners will be announced and prizes awarded on March 28th, 2008 on the MorningNoon&Night Show
• Winning films will play on Plum in Sun Valley and on our website, sunvalley.plumtv.com!

 

Our Hailey office is located at 16 West Croy Street, Suite N. The film can be dropped off Monday-Saturday, from 9am-5pm. A release must be signed upon delivery. Call 208.788.4504 with questions. And, remember, you MUST have fun creating your film. GO FOR IT!

World renowned film maker, Dick Barrymore, chats with Tara Bell before hitting the slopes in Sun Valley.

Wood River High School students got a taste of life with a physica disability. They watched the acclaimed documentary "Darius Goes West," and rode around in wheelchairs for a day. For the complete story, click here.

The classic film Sun Valley Serenade plays at the Sun Valley Opera House. To find out more about the film and future screenings click here.

On Thursday, Jan. 17, Wood River High School students had five special guests at their school. They were not new students or teachers, but rather wheelchairs donated from various organizations in the Wood River Valley. The purpose? To teach students about life in a wheelchair and the difficulties faced by physically handicapped individuals.

The inspiration was a documentary film, “Darius Goes West.” The film centers around a young man named Darius, who has a terminal disease that leaves him severely handicapped. He convinces his friends to drive him across country to California in hopes that MTV’s hit car makeover show, “Pimp my Ride”, might “pimp his ride” -- his ride being a wheelchair rather than a car. Of course, the story is more than just tricking out a wheelchair; it shows young men working to support and care for Darius, which, in turn raises awareness about the challenges people with disabilities must overcome.

Special services teacher Janet Dennis whose personal growth class organized the school-wide screening and the wheelchairs, said the day received an “overwhelmingly positive response.” Students laughed and cried and learned while watching the movie and watching their peers struggle for a day in a wheelchair. For more coverage, check out our slideshow of the students and their responses to the event.