17 FEB 09: The Return of Indy's
If you're going to have 15 of something, you might as well use one of them to try something new, experimental and different. Well, let me hedge that a bit. Unless you're that mother of octuplets in California....
The Carmike 15 at Hollywood Connection plans to try something new. We found out about it from Monday's e-mail:
Hello. I am contacting you regarding a movie entitled Remarkable Power! which will screen in Columbus from March 2 -- 7, 2009. An independent comedy-mystery starring Kevin Nealon & Tom Arnold, amongst others, the movie is headlining the Independent Film Series presented by Carmike Cinemas. A press release, press kit and one-sheet are attached for your review.
Naturally, I'm trying to generate some publicity; a write-up, or ideally a review. If you'd like to take a look at the movie prior to its public exhibition, I'd be happy to send a copy. Thank you kindly for the consideration and please drop me a line at your convenience.
Cheers,
Scott Sampila
Producer
The story for me isn't really Scott Sampila's movie - it's the place where it will be shown. Carmike is showing a series of independent films?! Didn't it learn anything from last year's "world premiere" of a horror film set at a bowling alley?
A news release sent with this e-mail says the Carmike 15 plans to show an Independent Film Series for 12 weeks. The fact that "Remarkable Power" will premiere on a Monday is independent enough. The producers must figure movie fans will see all the big-name movies on Friday through Sunday, then decide none of them are worth seeing again.
The web site for the Independent Film Series has announced only the first six weeks of movies. They range from family comedies to political films about obesity. Please don't hurt the feelings of our lawmakers in Washington, by calling them "fatcats."
It appears all the independent movies have one thing in common - a distribution company in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. You can only make so many movies about college students on spring break and beach bikers, you know....
But anyway: this series is surprising to me, because I've never heard of Carmike Cinemas doing this sort of thing before. Until now, Columbus residents had to settle for one-night film festivals at the museum, a series at the university -- or maybe a couple of cars parked along Cusseta Road on select weekends.
. Perhaps we're entering a new age at Carmike Cinemas, where executives are willing to take some chances. Or perhaps ticket sales have dropped to a point where they have nothing to lose. Come to think of it, that April movie about obesity might come with higher prices for popcorn.
Carmike Cinemas also continues to try a couple of three-dimensional movie stunts. They showed part of N.B.A. All-Star Weekend in 3-D. And a Jonas Brothers concert will be shown that way next week - since 11-year-old girls usually don't think it's a bad fashion statement to put on funny glasses.
There's also news today about a different kind of independent arts project. Former Columbus author Cilla McCain says her book "Murder in Baker Company" on the Richard Davis murder case should be released next fall. A publishing house in Chicago is behind it - which probably will start rumors of a conspiracy between McCain and the Obama administration.
BLOG UPDATE: D-Day has arrived for two Columbus TV stations -- as in DTV. WLTZ plans to make the "Big Switch" to digital television around 12:00 noon. I can't wait to see if they'll have a memorial service for analog, with Calvin Floyd and Al Fleming giving eulogies.
WLTZ NBC-38 news revealed Monday night that by turning off the analog signal four months early, the station will save about $6,000 per month in electricity. This afternoon may be the perfect moment for Stefanie Tiso to ask for a raise.
The GPB stations across Georgia will make the Big Switch together, sometime after midnight. They're promising to broadcast at higher power - and they'd better, or over-the-air viewers in Columbus may not be able to pick up WJSP-TV 28 from Warm Springs. A fuzzy analog picture of Elmo on "Sesame Street" is still nice and fuzzy.
Meanwhile, WRBL had to resort to Phil Scoggins presenting both news and weather at 11:00 p.m. Monday night. When this station loses its analog signal in June, where will those extra thousands of dollars in savings go? For a third meteorologist - or a five-minute newscast on weekends?
Now for some other selected short subjects from Presidents' Day:
+ Who went across several parking spaces between the Columbus Civic Center and McClung Memorial Stadium, and marked them with the number 54? Does Jason Dennis really need groupies like this?
+ Columbus Police arrested the owner of a home on Buena Vista Road where a shooting occurred over the weekend. He's charged with "maintaining a disorderly home." If police can arrest you for this, I can't start spring cleaning soon enough.
(Officers say not only was the house used as a nightclub on weekends -- it's also a hair salon. This smells like a racket to me. Put color on by day, then sweat it off dancing by night.)
+ State Senator Ted Little handed out several grant checks at the Phenix City Central Activities Center. The Alabama state budget allocates money for every lawmaker to give to various causes - and then Richard Shelby complains about that big stimulus bill?!
+ Instant Message to St. Louis Blues radio announcer Kelly Chase: Thanks for the funniest sports line I've heard in a long time. I mean, how you described that lengthy second-period fight Monday night - as an "old-fashioned Saturday night punch-in-the-face contest in Saskatchewan."
SONG OF THE DAY: Several Columbus drivers were caught breaking the law Monday, as they made an illegal U-turn in the middle of Macon Road near Cross Country Plaza. This new traffic sign needs some promotion - and we think the mayor is the perfect person to do it.
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