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*J Vundance shows off new talent, style in independent films
CITY, Utah (AP) — The
locals c>i1l them [’IBs: Peoplein
Black.
Bentstheco"- Every year they arrive, clad in
Bater ack and armed with cell phones,
H|H's and attitude, ready to do bat-
Film Societ)!, Hollywood style, in this moun-
- theater Co'in ski resort.
IBie Sundance Film Festival end-
■ nd.aclas;:! last weekend, and PIBs went
)me, some with movie deals, some
ithput. Some moments in the
'ock band, i iow:
Be OVERCOMING ADVERSI
a t i ve band, is TY AWARD
It wasn’t among the honors
m<jed out last Saturday night, but
re lust couldn’t ignore what the
akers of American Movie had to go
roligh to get their documentary
ild.
During the Jan. 26 screening,
ece 5 of the movie theater’s venti-
tion system broke loose and fell
ito the audience, which included
any studio executives looking to
" "jssibly buy the film.
Brree people were hurt, none se
ne rMera/. 3usl y-
__ man , -imie to the show-business ethic,
. , , t .. te screening went on. In the end,
.my Pictures Classics paid $800,000
G, / t the movie, the true-life comedic
agent to e 0 0 j- a man 0 b se ssed with mak-
77, was the y
the Earth
red to space
scovery last
fc> X atThel
sents the cc*
eater
sc, is playingci
ing independent films.
BIGGEST DEAL THAT MAY NOT
HAVE BEEN THAT BIG
Depending on whom you talk to,
Miramax either did or didn’t spend
$2.5 million for Happy, Texas, a hi
larious tale of two escaped convicts
who wander into a small Texas
town, only to be confused with be
ing a gay couple hired to help train
the town’s little girls for a beauty
pageant.
Sources close to the acquisition
deal insisted that Miramax spent
only $2.5 million in cash, plus
agreed to a generous cut of the box
office if the movie does well.
Some of Miramax’s rivals said the
studio couldn’t have gotten off that
cheaply and suggested Miramax —
burned before with big Sundance ac
quisitions that didn’t meet expecta
tions — was playing loose with the
facts to save face.
Miramax denied that. And all the
filmmakers would say was that Mi
ramax didn’t have the top cash offer,
but they were impressed with the
studio’s commitment to market and
distribute the movie. It’s expected to
arrive at theaters later this year.
COMING TO THEATERS ...
Other deals struck in the snowy
ski resort above Salt Lake City did
n’t generate any controversy — nor
that much money. All were in the $1
million range or below, peanuts
compared with the $6 million to $10
million transactions the festival has
seen in the past.
Among the deals: Artisan Enter
tainment picked up the creepy hor
ror film The Blair Witch Project for a
little over $1 million. Fine Line Fea
tures paid $1 million for one of the
best movies at the festival, the moth
er-daughter road picture Thmble-
weeds, and $400,000 for one of the
funniest, the boy-meets-boy gay sex
comedy Tick.
In addition to getting American
Movie, Sony Pictures Classics paid
what sources said was the “low six
figures” for Tlvin Falls, Idaho about
Siamese twins.
Rogue Pictures,
a division of Octo
ber Films, picked
up Kill the Man
with Luke Wilson
(price unknown),
while October got
the festival’s Cen
terpiece Premiere
movie. Sugar Town
with Rosanna Arquette and Ally
Sheedy, for $1.25 million.
FACES TO WATCH
The best performances at Sun
dance came from a young Canadi
an actress, Sarah Policy, in two
films. She played the awkward
young woman living with a much
ALLY SHEEDY
older photographer in Guinevere’
and the teen-ager having a truly
bad night in the Gen-X actioner
Go.
Another standout, though in
much different fare, was Steve Zahn
as the none-too-bright escaped con
vict who finds himself teaching a
bunch of 5-year-old girls how to
prepare for a beauty pageant in
Happy, Texas. Zahn won a special
prize at Sundance for his perfor
mance.
Other performances offered new
looks at familiar TV faces including:
Jean Smart of “Designing Women”
as the steely mother in Guinevere,
Tori Spelling of “Beverly Hills
90210” as the high-strung actress in
“Trick,” and Barbara Barrie of “Sud
denly Susan” as the brittle middle-
aged teacher in Judy Berlin.
HOW BOUT THAT STEVEN
SPIELBERG, INDIE GUY
Normally, the independent film
scene is associated with your out
law directors with fashionably hip
goatees, overextended credit cards
and lots of that independent vision
thing.
You don’t normally think Steven
Spielberg. But actress Laura Dern,
who was honored at the festival,
singled out the box-office king as
being as indie-minded as the next
PIB on the block.
restaurant
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3 I 7 College Ave. • Old Albertson’s Shopping Center
ok lie wing habits bridging race issue
• 55-yearmd ^pw YORK (AP) — By standard television
and his 2- Tieasurements, “The Steve Harvey Show” isn’t
1 hit. Last week it ranked 101st on the Nielsen
Deen wori ^ e( ii a Research list of 132 prime-time pro
as along the ?r J lls _
Wunong African-American audiences,
who reti - though, the WB’s Thursday night comedy is the
st month. p 0 p U i ar show on the air.
Nick Taylor.^ fc’ s one example of how African-Americans
! ),IM ' nts ' and whites differ in what they watch.
/ E ncl - ■ |y new study, however, shows the races may
be finding more common ground as networks
S name Jo a better job putting together multiethnic
^ D U hng the last three months of 1998, six
Tows ranked among the 20 most-watched se-
iN (AP)—Kf jes in both African-American and white
id best actor lonieS) accorc }jng to the study by TN Media, an
ndon Critics l( j ver tising buying firm,
mance inast^Jhey were “ER,” “60 Minutes,” “Monday
3 O'Neill’s I sjight Football,” “Touched By an Angel,”
RfPD Blue” and “The CBS Sunday Movie.”
rises the P aft ®wo years ago, the two races had only
this season. ‘Monday Night Football” in common as a fa-
Cusackwon norite show.
r Lady of SI^HThe three entertainment series on the re-
r best direcK jent list have multiethnic casts, which is be-
eth and F/i# joining a more frequent practice, Stacey Lynn,
• best play rice president of broadcast research at TN Me-
and the Roy 8 7
viva I of
ica/. «
romisingpWj
r-old Rebec#
Sal.”
tics' Circle $
of leading K
nine theater
dia, said.
Younger networks that tried to establish
themselves by appealing to an African-Ameri
can audience — Fox, the WB and UPN — have
recently broadened their appeal, she said.
CBS is now the top-rated network among
both African-Americans and whites after sev
eral years in which Fox had the largest claim on
the black audience, the study said.
CBS’s ratings are remarkably similar for both
races.
That may be because CBS’s shows appeal to
an older audience and many of the African-
American-oriented programs on other networks
are aimed at young people, Lynn said.
“At some point, there is a lot of common
ground, and age is one of those things,” she
said.
The WB and UPN still have significantly
higher ratings among African-Americans.
So far, the WB is doing a much better job
than its rival in broadening its audience with
out alienating African Americans, Lynn said.
NBC is having the most difficult time at
tracting an African-American audience. NBC
Entertainment President Scott Sassa said last
month the network needed to do a better job
reflecting the country’s diversity instead of con
centrating on wealthy, white city-dwellers.
Ezra
Continued from Page 3
Ezra purchased a building themselves and
transformed it into Fudge Studios.
With the combination of a new studio, pro
ducer and a new drummer, Travis McNabb,
the band has created asound promising to
please the hardcore Ezralites as well as aver
age listeners.
Bassist Tom Drummond said in a press re
lease he thinks Better Than Ezra is an example
of a band with albums that do not keep a con
sistent sound, but instead set out to inspire.
“There are a lot of bands who feel like they
started writing music ... that sounded one way
and feel like they are supposed to write an al
bum that still sounds like their first record,”
Drummond said. “You should write music that
inspires you.”
Better Than Ezra will perform at Rodeo
2000 as post-party entertainment for Delta
Sigma Phi’s Miss Greek A&M pageant this Fri
day. Stretch Princess, a trio from England, will
open for Better Than Ezra. Jeremy Newton, di
rector of the Miss Greek A&M pageant and a
senior management major, said the concert is
primarily a charity event and not just another
Greek event.
“Really and truthfully, it’s a great event that
benefits a great charity,” Newton said. “The
Delta Sigs aren’t out to turn a profit for them
selves. They’re out to benefit the battered
women of Brazos Valley. ”
Proceeds from the concert will be donated
to Phoebe’s Home, a battered women’s shelter..
STARTS FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 5!
Check Local Listing For A Theatre Near You
fou learn >
cal resonn
fe.
JOHN J. KOLDUS III
FACULTY/STAFF ACHIEVEMENT
AWARD
Recognizes an outstanding faculty/staff
member for his or her interest in student growth,
education and unity through student
organization work. Any student, student organization,
faculty, or staff member may nominate.
For more information or an application, contact
Jane Bailey, MSC Directors Office, 845-1914.
Nominations due Monday, February 15 th , 1999,
p.m. at MS 1237 or delivered to Jane Bailey #223 MSC.
MUSI ClH E AR □ !
Send your tunes to America’s only
nationally broadcast unsigned
artist show.
Put your songs in 5 million households.
No contracts!
No strings! No fees!
Just send a DAT or CD with Bio to:
Music Choice Unsigned
414 Eagle Rock Ave
Suite 300
West Orange, NJ 07052
Sorry, nothing will be returned.
ress
The Texas A&M
University Career Center
presents...
for
in interviewing
uccess
February 4
7 p.m.
159 Wehner
Make sure you know what is “suitable” to wear to your on-campus interviews,
Both men’s and women’s clothing will be discussed.
Presenters are: lassie Boultinghouse, ‘90, Foley’s
David Shellenberger, The Suit Club
2 lucky Ags will each receive a FREE interview suit - other
great door prizes will be given away!
845-5139
aggienet. tamu. edu/cctr