“Meek’s Cutoff” Opens at Portland’s Fox Tower on Friday

For all of you who haven’t seen “Meek’s Cutoff”, the film opens at Portland’s Fox Tower on Friday.  Local Writer Jon Raymond and Producer Neil Kopp will be on hand for a Q&A session at screenings on Friday and Saturday night.  Almost a month ago we held a screening of the film at the Elsinore Theater in Salem and the film was very well received.  It is a stunningly beautiful film featuring great acting, great directing and great locations!  Please do check the schedule of the Fox Tower later in the week to get more details about the show times as well as the times that Jon and Neil will be doing their Q&A. Continue reading... ““Meek’s Cutoff” Opens at Portland’s Fox Tower on Friday”

Mayor Sam Adams Unveils Portrait of Filmmaker Todd Haynes in City Hall

[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/22418896[/vimeo]

Yesterday Portland Mayor, Sam Adams unveiled a portrait of local filmmaker Todd Haynes that will be displayed in Portland’s City Hall.  Haynes is the creative force behind movies such as “Velvet Goldmine,” “Far from Heaven,” and the recent HBO miniseries “Mildred Pierce.”  This is just one example of the city’s ongoing support of local artists and the local film/television community.   The portrait was painted by local artist  Steven Cohn, who paints under the pseudonym “Jasper Marks.”

You can read a full review of the unveiling and view additional videos on PortlandOnline.com Continue reading... “Mayor Sam Adams Unveils Portrait of Filmmaker Todd Haynes in City Hall”

Van Sant’s Restless to Open the Cannes Film Festival

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgq6SQTDYi8[/youtube]

As you will read in Shawn Levy’s blog post today Gus Van Sant’s film “Restless” is set to open this year’s Cannes Film Festival.  Van Sant has been a long time favorite of the festival dating all the way back to the 1995 film “To Die For” which opened the festival back then.  This is the second Oregon film to premiere in a major international film festival over the last year.  The first one being Kelly Reichardt’s “Meeks Cutoff” which opened in theaters this past week.  Continue reading... “Van Sant’s Restless to Open the Cannes Film Festival”

Payroll Update for Crew Work in New York

Under New York State’s Wage Theft Prevention Act (“WTPA”), Employers are required to provide a Payroll Notification to workers at the time of hire that advises workers of their rate of pay and regular pay date.

  • This form is required each time you are hired, even if you have worked for that employer in the past.
  • The form must be completed within 10 days of the date of hire.
  • Working under a union contract or collective bargaining agreement (“CBA”) does not absolve the employer of this responsibility.
Continue reading... “Payroll Update for Crew Work in New York”

Live Wire! Radio Celebrates Seven Great Years with Special Guest Todd Haynes

Live Wire! Radio celebrates is 7th Anniversary and 150th Sesquisensational Episode at the Portland Art Museum on Friday, April 15, 2011. Among the many special guests for the evening will be Oregon’s own Todd Haynes. The Academy-Award nominated writer/ director of Far From Heaven, I’m Not There, and Safe will be on hand to discuss his most recent project, Mildred Pierce, the 5-hour miniseries currently airing on HBO.

Tickets are on sale now. Get $5 off with a special OMPA discount code: SEVENYEARS (all caps) Continue reading... “Live Wire! Radio Celebrates Seven Great Years with Special Guest Todd Haynes”

Changes to FUTA Rates for Some States

The U.S. Department of Labor will require supplemental FUTA tax assessments in some states due to budget deficits.  Attached is a chart from the U.S. Department of Labor indicating projected increases beyond the base rate of 0.8%.  If an increase rate is 0.3%, then the revised FUTA tax rate will be 1.1%.  FUTA tax contributions are assessed per employee on the first $7,000 in wages.  Changes are not scheduled for Oregon or Washington, but if you are filming in other states, you may have to make adjustments to your payroll budgets.   Continue reading... “Changes to FUTA Rates for Some States”

“Meek’s Cutoff” Insustry Night at the Elisonore Theatre

[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/21400776[/vimeo]

March 15th was a night to celebrate the screening of “Meek’s Cutoff” at Salem’s historic Elsinore Theatre.   As seen in the video above, many local film industry workers took the time to show their support by giving a brief interviews discussing how important it is  to Oregon and to Oregon’s film community that productions like this continue to be filmed here in our state.  Many people from the Oregon film industry along with quite a few state senators and representatives showed up for this special screening to benefit the Oregon Cultural Trust. Continue reading... ““Meek’s Cutoff” Insustry Night at the Elisonore Theatre”

Concert and Event to Raise Money for Local Film on April 8

Mississippi Studios Concert & Auction

Featuring Storm Large

benefiting

Rid of Me

a film by James Westby

and The Sexual Assault Resource Center

April 8TH, 2011

Performances By:

Storm Large, Grand Archives, Ohioan, Oracle, & Part Time Pony

This event will be the film’s kick-off to New York City, where it will premiere at the

Tribeca Film Festival in April.

VIP tickets include a 6 pm cocktail hour with hors d’oeuvres with Storm Large, an intimate  performance, swag bag (valued over $300), handcrafted chocolates, and reserved concert seating.

Continue reading... “Concert and Event to Raise Money for Local Film on April 8”

Film Festivals coming to Oregon

Oregon is host to two very exciting film festivals coming soon to Ashland Oregon as well as Eugene Oregon.

Either as a viewer of film maker you can visit these sites below to view the lists of films showing at the festivals.   At Cinema Pacific, you get the chance to watch not only some interesting films from China but on Thursday April 7 the festival is hosting an interesting industry symposium featuring some top level producers including the producer of all of John Woo’s films.  Continue reading... “Film Festivals coming to Oregon”

Documentary HOOD TO COAST returns to Oregon

Documentary HOOD TO COAST returns to Oregon!

The locally produced feature film documentary Hood To Coast just finished two successful nationwide Event screenings in over 380 theaters, selling out shows in New York, Los Angeles, Boston, San Francisco, Seattle, Portland, Atlanta, and several other major markets.  The film Hood To Coast follows four unlikely teams on their epic adventure as they try to conquer the world’s largest relay race. The film, produced by Film For Thought, Inc., was shot over the span of 11 months in Oregon in 2008 with half of the 100 crew members hired locally. Continue reading... “Documentary HOOD TO COAST returns to Oregon”