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FTS News Spring 2011

Guests to Campus

Posted: May 23rd, 2011 by hneroni

This year we hosted many wonderful guests who visited our students, community, and classrooms.  From filmmakers, to photographers, to film theorists, FTS students and faculty encountered a wide range of expertise and experiences as we listened to their ideas and interacted with their work.  Here are just some of the guests we visited with this year:

UVM Alum & Film Producer Jon Kilik

JON KILIK: Please click here to see our separate page about Jon’s visit!

 

Prof Dany Nobus

DANY NOBUS: World-renowned psychoanalytic theorist Dany Nobus visited UVM from London in order to lecture to our FTS students on Jacques Lacan and his most important concept–the objet petit a.  Nobus traced the trajectory of this concept from its birth in Lacan’s early seminars to its various manifestations in his later work.  He even offered a few visual representations of this object that defies representation.  Nobus concluded his talk with a contrast between Michel Foucault’s famous analysis of the painting Las Meninas and Lacan’s less celebrated interpretation.

Prof Hilary Neroni and Peter Turnley

PETER TURNLEY: Acclaimed photojournalist and street photographer, Peter Turnley visited UVM and presented a talk and series of images about his career.  Students were moved by Peter’s own life choices and commitment to photography as well as by the powerful images we saw and discussed.

Professor Rashad Shabazz

RASHAD SHABAZZ: In the Spring, Rashad Shabazz, assistant professor in geography came to speak to Sarah Nilsen’s class on Hip Hop Culture in Film.  He discussed his research for his upcoming book about race and incarceration, and in particular the social and political significance of images of Tupac.

Filmmaker Liz Canner

LIZ CANNER, dir. Orgasm, Inc.

Orgasm, Inc. is award-winning director Liz Canner’s first feature documentary.  Orgasm, Inc is a powerful look inside the medical industry and the marketing campaigns that are literally and figuratively reshaping our everyday lives around health, illness, desire — and that ultimate moment: orgasm.  Liz came to campus on February 23, just a few days after her film opened theatrically in NYC.  She presented the film to a full room and answered questions about this provocative subject.  Liz also visited the FTS 142 Advanced Production Class, where she offered great information about how to get a film out into the world once it’s finished.

Actor and Writer Carl Capotorto

CARL CAPOTORTO, who plays little Pauli on the Sapranos, came to visit FTS and English classes to discuss his role on the Sapranos and his new novel.  We were thrilled to visit with him and hear about his experiences in television acting and his ideas as a writer.

COLIN TREVORROW: In the Fall, the local screenwriter, Colin Trevorrow, and his writing partner, Derek Connolly, visited Sarah Nilsen’s screenwriting class.  The class read and discussed their script, Cocked & Loaded.  Colin is now directing his first feature, Safety Not Guaranteed, in Seattle with 3 UVM students on the crew, including Will Trowbridge who is working as the director’s assistant, and Ashley Neuhof and Daniel Kelly.

DAVID GIANCOLA, dir. Craptastic (a work-in-progress)

On April 4th, Vermont filmmaker David Giancola, Edgewood Productions, Rutland, came to campus for a test screening of his newest film, Craptastic.  Giancola wanted to break out by making a “Movie that mocked B-Movies.”  He thought he could manipulate the media by casting ANNA NICOLE SMITH.  In the end, the media manipulated him as his star, and one of his Producers died in a media feeding frenzy.  It was an interesting opportunity to see a film in progress and talk about the ethics in filmmaking.  Giancola talked to students about his career trajectory, and responded to many comments about his film.  He received a lot of feedback about how an audience would respond to his film, and he went back to work on the edit!  This was a unique opportunity to see a work-in-progress and be involved in the discussion about how to move the film into a compelling documentary.

ART BELL: Deb Ellis took her production class to meet local filmmaker Art Bell and tour his Burlington Studio, Dreamlike Pictures.  Dreamlike Pictures was founded by Art Bell in 2005. In 2000, Bell was part of the founding of Oxygen TV with Oprah Winfrey and others, and prior to that he co founded Alias, creators of MAYA, the worlds leading 3D software.  Today he has his own production company right here in Burlington and his recent clients include CBS, PBS, BBC, Green Mountain Power, Ben and Jerry’s, Rossignol, JDK, HP and numerous state and national political and environmental campaigns.  Bell took time to talk to Film and Television Studies students about his company and his experiences in different facets of the filmmaking industry.

 

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