Silence is Golden— The second annual Santa Fe Live Music Silent Film Festival gets going (quietly) this weekend at the Lensic Theater just off the Santa Fe Plaza. This year, the festival will kick off with a special conference on Thursday, May 25, at 7 p.m. This Film-Music Gathering is intended to highlight the potential opportunities that the expanding film industry may offer to local professional musicians, composers, producers and technicians. Keynote speakers include Dave Grusman, who has scored such films as Gidget (1966), The Graduate (1967), On Golden Pond (1981), The Milagro Beanfield War (1988) and Mulholland Falls (1996). Following the speakers will be a question and answer session. This free event is presented with cooperation from the New Mexico Film Office, the New Mexico Music Commission and the Santa Fe Economic Development Department. On Friday, May 26, the Silent Film Fest proper begins at 8 p.m. with a screening of Early Magical Cinema Shorts. This collection of fantastical, turn-of-the century shorts from the likes of Méliès, Cohl and Roach will be accompanied by live music from Round Mountain, BING, DJ Ultraviolet and JA Deane. On Saturday, May 27, the horror classic The Man Who Laughs will be screened at 8 p.m. with a live score by BING (composers Molly Sturges and Chris Jonas). On Sunday, May 28, the festival concludes with Buster Keaton’s comedy classic Steamboat Bill, Jr. The film begins at 2 p.m. and BING will be back providing musical accompaniment. Tickets for individual film screenings are $8 to $15 and can be purchased at the Lensic box office (211 West San Francisco) or online at www.tickets.com. For more info, log on to www.lensic.org.
Reel World
Plot Advancement— The 8 th Annual Screenwriting Conference in Santa Fe is scheduled to take place this Wednesday, May 31, through Sunday, June 4. If you’ve been heming and hawing, debating whether or not you should sign up, this should serve as your last-minute notice to get up there and get writing. Wednesday through Saturday afternoon is the “Screenwriting Symposium,” concentrating on the art and craft of screenwriting with live readings, panel discussions and mentor sessions with Hollywood professionals like Gerald DiPego ( Phenomenon ), Kirk Ellis ( Into the West ), Jeff Arch ( Sleepless in Seattle ), Thomas Pope ( F/X ), Lemore Syvan ( The Ballad of Jack and Rose ) and many more. Saturday afternoon though Sunday will be “The Hollywood Connection,” focussing on the marketing and selling of scripts. If you’re interested, you can register online at www.scsfe.com or by calling (866) 424-1501.
