"A Brighter Tomorrow"

Sometimes all you need is the sun, a camera, and a small group of dedicated nature lovers all in one beautiful place.

A couple of Sundays ago, by 3 am we were all up, and by 4 am we were carpooling together to the badlands just outside of Los Angeles, California. Why? Because the wildflowers were in full spring bloom, and we wanted to catch the sunrise. With a camera. And 2 wonderful actors.

It was the chance to do something special for SunChips by making an ad for Current TV. Oh, and Al Gore would see it. In other words, it was an opportunity we couldn't resist.

We wanted to film a story about a young couple taking...well, never mind. It's all backstory anyway. Come check out the spot and see what a small group of dedicated film and nature lovers came up with.

And here's a pic of us. We were surrounded by wildflowers in every direction. Mother Nature was definitely in full effect.



If Al Gore calls, we're ready.

:: bogna ::

4 More! "Sparkly Count"

Speaking of sparklies, here's some more fun news:

Beauty World, the commercial for Almay Pure Blends directed by Arlene Bogna & produced by Vista Point Pictures, has won an Aurora Award, a Davey Award, an Accolade Award, and a Remi Award.

A Big Congrats to Cast & Crew!


For more information & credits click here, or you can watch the winning spot here.

:: bogna ::

"Sex Change: The Rise of the Female-Driven Blockbuster"

I love that title. And it's the title of a new article in The Wrap. I didn't realize that since November "every number-one movie not called "Avatar" has been a chick flick." But I think what's also happening here is that the "chick flick" is being redefined. For example, the upcoming action thriller SALT starring Angelina Jolie in the lead, which looks like a cross between The Fugitive and The Bourne Identity but starring a chick (finally!), that's the new chick flick.

Here is an excerpt:

Indeed, the lightly regarded chick flick seems to have given way to a new box-office force: the female-driven tentpole.
...
And it's not that there is some big new trend of more women going to the movies. Rather, said Vinny Bruzzese, executive vice president of the motion-picture group for research firm OTX, the over-performance among women for certain films shows that “studios are catching on that you have to make the movie for someone. Movies that are for a specific audience tend to overperform.”

Martha Lauzen, executive director of the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film at San Diego State University, concurred. “Women are just as likely to go to the movies as men,” she told CNN, right after the huge premiere of “The Blind Side.” Instead, she noted, studios are making more movies now that accurately reflect women’s experiences and interests.

Ever since I saw Thelma and Louise, I had hoped to be part of something in Hollywood where more quality films with complex female roles, roles I could relate to, would exist. Is it finally happening before my very eyes?

:: bogna ::

"Stunned, Honored and Proud"

According to Variety, the DGA just honored Director Kathryn Bigelow. Here is an excerpt:

"Adding another wrinkle to awards season, Kathryn Bigelow has won the Directors Guild of America trophy for helming the gritty drama, "The Hurt Locker" -- the first woman to take the DGA kudo in the 62 years of the awards.

Bigelow said she was "stunned, honored and proud" in her acceptance speech at the end of the awards show on Saturday night at the Century Plaza."

Like I said, 2010 is going to be a great year. Or wait, maybe it already is?

:: bogna ::

Women Behind the Camera

And now a little something from the New York Times:
Women in the Seats but Not Behind the Camera
by Manohla Dargis

Certainly women have been a considerable force this year, whether flocking to “The Twilight Saga: New Moon” in record numbers or helping to turn “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” from an unknown quantity into the most passionately debated women’s picture in memory. Meryl Streep (in “Julie & Julia”) and Carey Mulligan (“An Education”) have scooped up loads of critical love. And Sandra Bullock, at 45, has hit gold with “The Proposal” and, more recently, “The Blind Side,” in which she plays a sexy Christian mother who, from her faith to her high heels and gun, is right out of the Sarah Palin playbook.

“New Moon” and “The Blind Side” might not make a lot of critics’ Top 10 lists, but their popularity with audiences is good for women in film — and might be too great for even Hollywood to ignore.

Manohla Dargis goes on to explore the presence of women directors in the industry, and she does a brilliant piece on one of our most talented action directors Kathryn Bigelow. A must read to say the least.

:: bogna ::

Ladies at the Box Office

And now a little something from CNN's article "Yes, Hollywood, women do go to movies"

"There's no difference in movie-going by gender; women are just as likely to go to the movies as men," says Martha Lauzen, executive director of the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film at San Diego State University.

If you give women movies reflecting their experience and interests, Lauzen says, they will go -- even on opening weekend."

[AND]

"Women are a dramatically underserved segment of the moviegoing population, and if the industry would produce films that are not, by the way, just about shoes and clothes, but really had multidimensional female characters doing interesting things, women will go to see these movies in droves," Lauzen says.

Well, I know what I think about this gamechanger. What do you think?

:: bogna ::

Speaking of Sparklies...

Wasn't I just talking about sparklies? Here's some fun news:
--
Beauty World, the commercial for Almay Pure Blends directed by Arlene Bogna & produced by Vista Point Pictures, has won a 2009 Davey Award. A Big Congrats to Cast & Crew!

For more information & credits click here, or you can watch the winning spot here.


ABOUT THE DAVEY AWARDS
The annual International Davey Awards honors the achievements of the "Creative Davids" who derive their strength from big ideas, rather than stratospheric budgets. The Davey is sanctioned and judged by the International Academy of the Visual Arts, an invitation-only body consisting of top-tier professionals from a "Who's Who" of acclaimed media, advertising, and marketing firms. IAVA members include executives from organizations such as Alloy, Coach, The Ellen Degeneres Show, Estee Lauder, Fry Hammond Barr, HBO, iNDELIBLE, Wunderman, MTV, Polo Ralph Lauren, Refinery, Sotheby's Institute of Art, Victoria's Secret, Wired, Yahoo! and many more.
Award: Silver Davey Award
http://www.daveyawards.com/

ABOUT ARLENE BOGNA
Arlene Bogna is an award winning writer/director. She won a Davey Award for "Beauty World", and the Platinum Aurora Award for Best of Show, a Telly Award, and a Davey Award for the PSA "Canvas". Her feature screenplay "Earth Kids", which she co-wrote with Nicole Schubert, won 1st Place Best Screenplay at the 2007 KIDS FIRST! Film Festival as well as the Sponsor Award. Currently she is developing an untitled action feature to direct.
http://www.vistapointpictures.com/arlene.html

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A Big Thanks to all who supported this project!!!

:: bogna ::

"Beauty World" - the TV version

It's here! The television version of "Beauty World" is now airing nationwide on Current TV.

And if you are near a TV today (Saturday, May 30th), you can catch it @ 10:05 am, 12:52 pm, and 8:15 pm PST (I think) on Current TV. (I posted more info here, including credits and channels)

Thanks for taking a look!

:: bogna ::

"Beauty World" to air on television

I am very excited to say that "Beauty World" was selected by Almay Pure Blends to air on Current TV! We were #1 with the popular vote, and we are absolutely THRILLED Almay Pure Blends chose our work. And because so many talented peeps worked so hard on this, I am glad it will have a new audience now that it's going national.
Beauty World
:30 commercial for Almay Pure Blends
Directed by Arlene Bogna
Written and Produced by Arlene Bogna & Tony Ferranti
Starring Karyn Nesbit, Jason Fedusenko, & Grant Tanguma
Cinematography by Nathan Levine-Heaney
Production Design by Jem Elsner
Key Makeup and Hair by Meredith Scott
Camera: Nick Militello
Boom Op: Ben Hunter
Edited by Michael Thibault
Music Supervision by Brian Saur
Sound Design by Brett Coleman
Sound Engineering by Mike Boeltl
GFX & VFX: Vista Point Pictures

And a big thanks to everyone who supported this project, and thank you Current for this wonderful opportunity!

Current TV can be found on:

USA
+ DirecTV 358
+ Comcast Nationwide 107
+ Dish Network 196
+ Time Warner
New York 103
Los Angeles 142
Nationwide Check your local listings
+ Verizon FiOS 192
+ AT&T U-verse 189

UK & IRELAND
+ Sky 193
+ Virgin Media 155

ITALY
+ Sky Italia 130

:: bogna ::