WWW stands for Works (in progress), Wrinkles or Whoops (whenever and wherever they happen) and Wraps (completed films and projects of any kind). As always, your contributions to this feature are solicited and encouraged.
Stories by Eric Reeves, Henry Ferrini, Bob Lamm, Wendy Harrold, Karin Segal, & the Imagine Staff.

"Memory and Dreams
are intermixed in this
mad universe."
-Jack Kerouac
in Dr. Sax

Boston-based Art Directors Adam Roffman and Wayne Kimball's co-directorial debut THE TERROR OF THE INVISIBLE MAN has been selected for presentation in the 25th Cleveland International Film Festival. It is one of 56 shorts selected from over 350 submissions. The 35mm film is one minute in length and has a cast of one, who incidentally, is invisible for the entirety of the film.

Adam and Wayne had worked together previously on such projects as DOG DAYS, LIFT and HARVARD MAN in the art/props departments. They hired Beecher Cotton to work as their Director Photography and Robert Patton Spruill (SQUEEZE) of the Filmshack acted as Executive Producer.

"It took 5 minutes to write this film, a day to shoot it and it spent 2 days in post. We've spent more on festival submissions than we did to make the film," says Roffman. "I've written another film that I plan to shoot this summer that should clock in somewhere between 3 and 5 minutes. After having worked on a number of features and even shorts with first-time directors that were basically train wrecks, I think both Wayne and I see the benefit of taking baby steps towards directing".

Any plans to turn it into a feature? "UmŠhave you seen the film? Like a lot of shorts, this is a one-joke movie. We shouldn't try to stretch it out for over an hour. Don't be surprised though, if there's a one-minute sequel called "The Return of the Terror of the Invisible Man".

This work is a labor of love of the Friends of the Massachusetts Film Office. It all began in 1991 when a group of Boston business executives created the first gala benefit around the Academy Awards as a fundraiser to support the Massachusetts Film Office. Recognizing the important work of the Film Office in generating jobs, tourism and revenue in the Bay State, members from a variety of businesses celebrated film in Massachusetts and the event has continued to grow in prestige and popularity since then.

This year, the Friends will bring their gala to the Four Season Hotel Boston for a night of elegance and style. Massachusetts films THE PERFECT STORM and STATE AND MAIN will be feted. Actors from LA and Boston will be in attendance, as will members of the local film and business community. Beneficiaries of the 2001 Gala Benefit are The Wang Center's Suskind Young At Arts Program, The Boston Film and Video Foundation, The Boston Children's Theatre and the Massachusetts Film Office. Debbie Soprano of Loews Cinemas is the sole original member of the Board of Directors and serves as Chairperson for the event, which is scheduled for March 25th, at 7 PM.

Filmmaker Henry Ferrini's film LOWELL BLUES: THE WORDS OF JACK KEROUAC opened at the Kerouac Festival in Lowell, MA and has played on WGBH-TV and at the MFA in late February. March 12, Kerouac's 79th birthday, the film will be shown to junior-year American Literature students and teachers at Lowell High School. Wendy Jack, LHS English Department Chair and the filmmaker will present it.

LOWELL BLUES is a 30-minute film poem fusing language, music and image to explore Jack Kerouac's childhood holyland - Lowell, Massachusetts. The film is excerpted from Kerouac's novel, Dr. Sax, which is set in his hometown. Johnny Depp, Robert Creeley, Gregory Corso, David Amram, Carolyn Cassady, Roger Brunelle and Joyce Johnson read text.

THE TERROR OF THE INVISIBLE MAN. A Film by Adam Raffman and Wayne Kimball.

The film interprets how place activates the writer's imagination, and how the writer's art reshapes his city with reverence and respect. Between the frames, we recollect the life of a young writer exploring his origins - education, The Catholic Church, birth and death. Kerouac's text speaks to the 1930's in which he grew up. By using both archival and contemporary footage, Lowell Blues melds modern experiences together with Kerouac's childhood to create a timeless sense of place.

LOWELL BLUES is a canvas in motion painting an illuminated landscape rich in mystery and possibility A canvas made even more vivid by a haunting soundtrack by alto saxophonist Lee Konitz and Boston's own godfather of punk, Willie Alexander.

LOWELL BLUES, like Kerouac's writing, swirls word and image, music and movement into ethereal images of America's abundant, ever morphing character. LOWELL BLUES remembers the place Kerouac could not forget, the city on the river where Memory and Dream are intermixed in this mad universe.

For screenings, check out www.artsgloucester.com/ferriniproductions.

This could be a Wrap item, but Imagine is calling it a New Wrinkle because it's so new it doesn't even have a name yet: It's Sony's new HD/SD nonlinear editing station, and it was just one just one of the many HD nonlinear editing systems that were on display at the January 17 SMPTE/New England Annual Nonlinear Showcase at WCVB-TV.

What else was there to see? Video editing and compositing systems of just about every stripe and flavor: There were several analog and DV editing systems, including a very nice one from Matrox:

The RT2000. $4000 gets you analog AND DV editing, lots of realtime effects (including 3D and particles) and CD/DVD/web authoring.

At the other end of the scale was Discreet's edit* and Combustion (see Tech Edge this issue of Imagine). These are designed for pros that need a fast, powerful user-interface with things like bezier keyframing of virtually all effects and very high-quality computation. Combustion is based on the high-end Flame that Discreet makes.

Another compositing package at the show was Eyeon Digital Fusion: It has a very unique user-interface that organizes all the effects by process rather than layer. This makes it very easy to lay out complicated effects.

This was also the first time the Pinnacle TARGA 3000 was shown at this event: Several different versions were on display: The standard version running Premiere, the Mac version (called CineWave) which runs with Apple Final Cut Pro, and a HD version of the CineWave. The standard-res version offers a lot of real-time effects, including true RGB color correction.

There were also some offbeat exhibitors: One of the most unique was Storage Computer Teleserver, a Linux-based video server that provides up to 64 channels of scheduled or on-demand video for master-antenna and cable-TV systems, complete with 24/7 scheduling and billing!

How did people find their way through all these exhibits? Bob Turner, the media guru from Video Systems magazine, gave a 20-minute presentation that explained the differences and advantages of the different products.

So be sure to mark those calendars off for next January's event! It's gonna be even bigger and better! SMPTE/New England is the local chapter of the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers. Meetings are open to the public and information is posted on their web site at www.v-site.net/smpte-ne

Filming wrapped up last month on the independent film MADE UP (A Vanity Production) a comedy "mockumentary" about beauty and aging, and our cultural obsession with youth. The film was shot at the Jamaica Plain Victorian house that screenwriter Lynne Adams shares with her husband, Boston Cyberarts Festival Director, George Fifield. Some scenes were also shot at the restaurant Mistral and at the DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park. The actors and a local film crew took over the entire house for three weeks, beginning January 15th and ending with their wrap party. Next will be a few days filming in Los Angeles.

MADE UP is the feature film directorial debut for Tony Shalhoub. Brooks Adams, sister of the screenwriter, stars as Elizabeth, a woman rapidly approaching middle age and forced to come to terms with issues of beauty and aging.

Gary Sinese (THE GREEN MILE, REINDEER GAMES, BEING JOHN MALKOVICH) plays Elizabeth's ex-husband and newcomer, Eva Amurri plays Elizabeth's daughter, in her feature film debut. Eva recently made a guest appearance on the sitcom "Friends." Mark Donadio is co-producer of the film and George Fifield and Bob Wiener are the Executive Producers.

Neighbors on the quiet Jamaica Plain Street seemed delighted to have a film being shot right in their neighborhood. Though most of the activity took place inside the house, the comings and goings fascinated the neighbors, as many of the actors and crew stayed in local B & Bs and dined at various Jamaica Plains' restaurants.

Contact the production by email: sisterfilms@aol.com

The Harvard Film Archive and the National Center for Jewish Film at Brandeis honor the academy award winning director Andrzej Wajda to celebrate his 75th Birthday.

Hot tip of the film going month is: Don't miss Poland Through the Prism of Andrzej Wajda The Harvard Film Archive and The National Center for Jewish Film at Brandeis announce a landmark retrospective to honor the academy award winning director Andrzej Wajda to celebrate his 75th Birthday. The thirteen films to be screened from March 1 to 11 at both venues cover Wajda's extraordinary career from Kanal (1956) to Pan Tadeusz (1999).

The Harvard Film Archive series will showcase eight of Wajda's most memorable and visually creative works including a new restored print of Man of Iron (1981). The HFA screenings will be held in the Carpenter Center, 24 Quincy Street in Cambridge. 617-495 4700. www.harvardfilmarchive.org

Film Admission Prices $7 General Public $5 for Students, and Sr. Citizens

The National Center for Jewish Films series will be held in the Edie and Lew Wasserman Cinematheque (in the Sachar Center) on the Brandeis campus in Waltham. This series will open with Ashes and Diamonds (1958) to be followed by 6 features focusing on Wajda's long lasting fascination with the relationship of Poles and Jews. From the characterization of Gold in Samson (1961) to Irena in Holy Week (1995) Wajda's Jewish characters have beome increasingly richer and more complex. All seats are $6 For more information call 781 736 8600 or visit our web site www.jewishfilm.org

4 Wall Films is creating a film releasing and distribution community that is committed to providing up-and-coming independent filmmakers with access to the traditional tools of distribution.

Using the channels of Prophecy Entertainment Inc.-their parent company's Production and International distribution arm, 4 Wall Films work with directors, producers and corporations seeking alternative strategies to release and market their unique and challenging films. To this end, we are curators to release and distribute various projects that need specialized attention to find success in the marketplace.

So, dust off those old movies and videos laying around your home or office that no one ever got the chance to see-you could be sitting on dollars you never knew you had. 4 Wall Films is currently seeking films for releasing and worldwide distribution. If you have a fascinating movie that needs that extra push, contact them. They have told Imagine they will also consider films seeking post-production. When you do, please email your experience with 4 Walls to publisher@imaginenews.com.

What are you waiting for? Submit your flick! It's free! Send Films to: Submissions, 4th floor, 225 West 8th Avenue, Vancouver, B.C. CANADA. Email sarah@4wallfilms.com