John Bergquist (photo credit J. Bergquist/Twitter)
We are deeply saddened by the passing of John Bergquist, one of the founders of Soma Games, (along with Chris Skaggs and Rande Bruhn). John passed away recently as the tragic result of an auto accident. Soma Games is known for its Christian company culture and video game storytelling, and was the first video game studio to create a licensed game based on the well-known, and popular Redwall book series.
John was described by Soma Games as, “a true man of God, a mentor to many, a storyteller, and an amazing friend.
OregonMade, “COVID-19 Response,” is a family drama written and directed by Andrew Jacob Brown, owner of Confound Productions. A global pandemic hits the stock market, so a day trader hits the stores to stock his shelves. But when his teen daughter unexpectedly shows up on his door step, she wants to ransack his supply and give it away to his neighbors.
$25.9 million to be distributed statewide by Sept. 15
Applications are now live and open for Oregon’s Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF) Cultural Support program. Funds allocated to the Oregon Cultural Trust will be available to Oregon cultural organizations facing losses due to the COVID-19 health crisis. The $25.9 million in funding was made available through a $50 million relief package for Oregon culture recently approved by the Emergency Board of the Oregon Legislature.
The Northwest Film Center and Portland Art Museum are creatively collaborating during these socially distanced times to connect with audiences and bring innovative film and new media exhibitions to our community. The Cinema Unbound Drive-In, running August 6–September 27, 2020, welcomes guests to safely gather and experience the power that truly radical and entertaining cinematic storytelling can bring. This will be the first of many ways to change the archaic paradigm of what cinema can—and will—be.
As many of you may have seen over the last few weeks, Safe Sets launched a simple certification program to help crews get some basic training and insight on set safety in the post-COVID world. Since so many of us signed up and took the course, we wanted to share some further insights into just what SSI is. To that end, we spoke to Founder Alex Kolodkin this week, and he provided some detail and history.
Safe Sets International is a collaborative partnership that encourages the industry to #practicesafesets.
The Portland-based Tag! Queer Shorts Festival is offering monthly online community support events with all ticket sales and donations split evenly between participating filmmakers, the Tag! festival, and LGBTQIA+ serving community partners.
The next screening kicks off with a live viewing party of erotic shorts on July 31 at 8pm in collaboration with Catalyst: A Sex Positive Place, a venue that offers education, events, and space for fetish/kink communities.
Portland’s out of work production community formed Together4Oregon to produce a live, virtual fundraiser benefiting Oregon residents hit hard by the pandemic.
Our young filmmakers were on the scene, filming skits by local artists for the event. Lydia Rose, an OTF filmmaker, says, “It’s amazing to see creatives coming together and collaborating to raise money for Oregon citizens, especially since artists aren’t the most supported community. I think it’s cool they’re giving back no matter what.”
The Couch Collective presents an event with screenwriter/director/producer Desiree Akhavan on Friday, July 24 at 11a.
In this two hour online workshop, Desiree Akhavan will share insights into her career development, and how to create successful queer content in an industry & country that is “terrified of female sexuality.” We will have an opportunity to analyze a scene from one of her films, as she takes us from concept, to writing, to the finished scene, discussing the writing as well as directing processes.
The queerest weekend at OSF is back—digitally! From July 17-19, Pride content will take over the OSF O! digital platform and their social media accounts. Join them for creative content from your favorite queer OSF artists, deep conversations about queer art and activism, and a digital drag show and dance party on Saturday night!
The auction takes place from Monday, September 28 at 9a to Friday, October 2 at 5p.
$14M of Oregon state tax credits will be auctioned off with a 90% minimum bid.
The Oregon Production Investment Fund (OPIF) is a state incentive program that directly supports the continued growth of Oregon’s creative film, television and interactive industry. OPIF is funded by the sale of discounted Oregon income tax credits to taxpayers who contribute to the fund. Residents and businesses bid at auction to purchase state tax credits at up a 10% discount that can then be used for up to three years on their state income taxes. Continue reading... “The OPIF Tax Credit Auction Opens on September 28, 2020”
The Oregon Production Investment Fund (OPIF) is a state incentive program that directly supports the continued growth of Oregon’s creative film, television and interactive industry. OPIF is funded by the sale of discounted Oregon income tax credits to taxpayers who contribute to the fund. Residents and businesses bid at auction to purchase state tax credits at up a 10% discount that can then be used for up to three years on their state income taxes.