Saturday, February 4 @ 7-9pm

United Filmmakers of Oklahoma (UFO) is hosting an Independent Filmmakers Showcase on February 4 at Istvan Gallery in Oklahoma City.

UFO will be showing an eclectic mix of cross genre short films and music videos.  “We are very excited about this opportunity to present a fun night of exciting and provocative Indie Filmmaking,” states UFO Board Member Rachel Fansler. The Showcase will feature UFO produced short films as well the amazing work of UFO’s talented members.

The cost for admission is $5 and will be hosted by Istvan Gallery at 1218 North Western in Oklahoma City.  Refreshments will be provided.  This is an all ages show, but there will be adult content, so please be advised.

UFO is an ever expanding group of directors, writers, actors, artists, producers, crew people and volunteers in the Oklahoma City and surrounding areas that come together for the sole purpose of creating independent films.

UFO has only been in existence since April but has grown exponentially due to public interest and a prominent presence in events including the Plaza Arts District’s “Live on the Plaza” and The deadCenter film festival in Oklahoma City.  UFO consists of working filmmakers here in Oklahoma and has plans for a variety of diverse film projects. All skill levels are welcome.

Watch the United Filmmakers of Oklahoma Shorts Promo Reel.

Chair – Adam Beatty

Co-Chair – Sara Brown

Public Relations Chair – Angela Startz

Treasurer – Brent Shambaugh

Photographer – Aaron Stark

Special Initiatives Chair – Craig Nelson

2nd Friday Chair – Lauren Carter

Production Chair – Geoffrey K. Boyd

Thank you to everyone who voted and congratulations to the next leaders! We hope to see you at our next meeting which will be the Writer’s Circle on Wed. February 1. Read more about it here.

Michelangelo’s Coffee and Wine Bar, 207 East Main St., Norman.

It’s fun to imagine yourself in the writing room of one of your favorite television shows, bouncing ideas around a table, creating story lines and interesting characters in Los Angeles or New York. Now, you will be able to do the same thing here in Norman, at the Cinematic Artists of Norman Writers’ Circle. Its inaugural meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 1 at Michelangelo’s Coffee and Wine Bar, 207 East Main St., Norman.

All interested writers and beginning writers are welcome.  Future meetings will be decided upon that evening.

University of Oklahoma instructor Kyle Bergersen will moderate the group. Bergersen is a member of the Writer’s Guild of America, West, and a prolific writer in film and television.

What are you waiting for? Go vote! http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/PGQ5W95

Every year we look for the best to be the next leaders of the filmmaking group the Cinematic Artists of Norman. Be the next!

Nominations: Jan. 10, 6:30pm
@ Blu Fine Wine and Foods

Nominations for candidates will be taken at the January 10 at the CAN Connect meeting. Members can contact canchair@gmail.com before January 11 if they would like advertisement for their position to appear on the CAN website. You must be present at the January 10 meeting, or have someone present to speak on your behalf. The election will take place on January 11-13. Election results will be officially announced on January 15.

RUN FOR:

Chair:

The chair is responsible for overseeing the group and upholding the group’s mission and goals. The chair also is responsible for meeting agendas, maintaining canchair@gmail.com, updating and monitoring the CAN website, booking meeting locations and updating and maintaining the social media sites (which currently is Facebook). The Chair is also responsible for being accessible to questions and should be prepared to do interviews for local news sources and publications to help spread the word about CAN.

Co-Chair:

The co-chair assumes the responsibilities of the chair in their absence. They are responsible for scheduling and contacting workshop speakers. ­­­­They are also responsible for monitoring and updating the CAN website, and other social media accounts.

Public Relations Chair:

The public relations chair oversees all aspects related to the promotion of CAN. This person writes press releases for workshops and disseminates to appropriate sources. They also send important dates to calendars such as the Norman Arts Council, Wimgo, KGOU etc. They are also responsible for monitoring and updating the CAN website, and other social media accounts.

Secretary:

The secretary is responsible for taking notes at CAN exec meetings and sending them out to the exec group. The secretary is also responsible for taking general notes at workshop meetings and CAN Connect meetings to send out to paid CAN members and publish on the CAN website. Also, this role entails contacting the next featured profile member for the website and coordinating the shoot, and/or photo, and questionnaire. The secretary is also responsible for updating emails and membership information in the necessary documents. They are also responsible for monitoring and updating the CAN website, and other social media accounts.

Treasurer:

The treasurer is a new position for CAN, and will oversee the budget for the fiscal year of the group. This person will maintain a close relationship with the Norman Arts Council and will handle all reimbursements or transactions on behalf of the group, including ordering business cards.

Photographer:

The photographer is responsible for photos during workshops, productions, and special events . The photographer may also be called upon to shoot bio pics for the website and other marketing areas involving CAN.

Educational Outreach Chair:

The educational outreach chair works closely with Norman Public Schools to build and maintain relationships with their video production courses. This position should explore options involved mentor/mentee art programs with the Norman Arts Council and other ways to get involved with the 18 and under crowd.

Production Chair:

The production chair oversees any production CAN is currently involved with. They act as a guiding force and the go-to person for these projects. They are in charge of updating the CAN Vimeo with the CAN Production projects and keeping CAN crew informed and updated.

Special Initiatives Chair:

The special initiative chair helps develop partnerships with other arts organizations in Norman, including the Norman Music Festival and the Summer Video Camp for Kids.

2^nd Friday Chair:

The 2nd Friday chair oversees CAN’s involvement with 2nd Friday Circuit of Art.

Introducing our first Behind the Artist video!

I am JUURI (pronounced as the English name “Julie”), a Tokyo-born Japanese + American artist currently residing in Norman, Oklahoma in the USA. My work portrays the delicate beauty of the female face, often enveloped by traditional Japanese patterns, motifs, and flora. These colorful elements are combined through layers of mixed media, gold leaf, and strategic paint drips. I explore the juxtaposition of broad washes and tight detail, realism and non-objectivity, tradition and modernism, innocence and mortality. Fashion, film, music videos, and literature all provide me with inspiration for my surreal-looking subjects. I hope you as the viewer are engaged, intrigued, mesmerized. My work is a true representation of the thoughts and strivings that are in my soul.

www.juuriart.com
www.Facebook.com/juuriart
@juuriart
www.juuriart.blogspot.com

produced by Lauren Carter
directed by Victoria Dickinson
edited by Cassie Ketrick
lighting by Scott Mellgren
song: “In the Ear Park” by Department of Eagles

12 filmmaking professionals, 5 minutes.

Imagine you are standing at the front of the room, all eyes on you as the clock hand sweeps around, marking five minutes. Your time is over. What did you get out to your audience and what do you wish you’d shared? This is what will happen to twelve film industry professionals at the Twelve by Five presentation by the Cinematic Artists of Norman.

Confirmed guests include:
• Adam Davis Beatty, screenwriter and reporter for Discover Oklahoma
• Kyle Bergersen, OU’s Gaylord College film production, writing and post-production
• Lagueria Davis, filmmaker and unit production manager
• Sean Patrick Eaton, locations manager
• Jed Fox, actor
• Chris Freihofer, CSA, casting director
• Kim Haywood, director and chief operating officer of deadCENTER Film Festival
• Beau Leland, local documentarian
• Victoria Sturtevant, director of Film and Media Studies at the University of Oklahoma
•  Deana Thompson-Elkington, production coordinator
• Sunrise Tippeconnie, lighting designer and filmmaker
• Elizabeth Wheat, producer

The Twelve By Five event is free and open to the public. It is sponsored by the Cinematic Artists of Norman, a division of the Norman Arts Council. For more information, visit www.cinematicartistsofnorman.org, call (405) 355-3226 or email canchair@gmail.com.

Beginning at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 1, those in the Norman area interested in filmmaking and networking are invited to the CAN Connect meeting at Blu Fine Wine and Food, 201 South Crawford, Norman.

Guests are encouraged to bring copies of their work, business cards, headshots or other materials to the bi-monthly mixer.  Announcements are welcome, as are discussions on current trends in filmmaking.

The monthly meetings will provide members an opportunity to share job announcements, pitch script ideas, network with industry professionals, discuss equipment, hold script readings and share tips and tricks for film and video production.

Upcoming meetings are scheduled for Nov. 1, 2011, Jan. 10, 2012, March 6, May 1 and July 3, 2012.

The public is invited.  Norman Arts Council memberships are available for those interested in joining.  NAC members receive many perks, including discounts at various local businesses.  Visit their website at www.normanarts.org for a complete list of participating vendors.

Cinematic Artists of Oklahoma was founded by a group of local filmmakers, and strives to strengthen the community of filmmakers in Norman and the surrounding areas by providing valuable resources and outlets for local filmmakers.  No matter the age or experience level, CAN seeks to build a support system for the creativity of film and video, and seeks to grow the film industry’s interest in Norman.

Celebrate what, you ask? 2 years of the Cinematic Artists of Norman working hard to provide a valuable resources to the Oklahoma filmmaking community.

Who says a sequel isn’t as good as the original?!

The Norman Arts Council and CAN would like to invite you to a wine share and birthday event to celebrate the second year of CAN!

WHAT IS A WINE SHARE, YOU ASK!?
Bring 1 bottle of wine for every 2 people and we share! Glasses are provided. Must be 21+ to participate, but not to attend.

AND WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON AT THIS BIRTHDAY…?
-Live music featuring local Norman artist Russell Kabir!
-Raffle drawings for cool stuff (seriously, cool)!
-CAN Member of the Year Award announced
-Announcements about the future of CAN!

48 Hour Film Project: Dead Last from Cinematic Artists of Norman on Vimeo.

This is the first year the 48 Hour Film Project held its international competition in Oklahoma City.  Eleven teams from across the Sooner state met Friday night to draw the genre of their film and to learn what prescribed prop, character and line of dialogue would be required in their film.  Once these were distributed to team leaders, the race was on.

The Cinematic Artists of Norman team drew horror for their genre.  With its talented group of filmmakers, the script was written by 10 p.m. and team members were able to rest for a full day of shooting on Saturday.

Principle photography began in Oklahoma City, using the red sculpture at Leadership Square for the opening sequence.  Team members traveled back to Norman, where they were based at Norman High School.  Norman High teacher Judith Blake served as locations manager, and the use of the facilities at the school made filming faster and more comfortable on a hot Saturday in August.

Produced by Robert Lane, written by Angela Startz and directed by Cait Brasel, Dead Last stars Marcie Price, Cait Brasel and Angela Startz are three actors at an audition.  David Bizzaro provided the voice of the director in the film.  Jonathan Stapleton served as cinematographer, Temple Tucker handled sound design and Cassandra Ketrick worked as continuity and team leader.

Once the raw footage was finished, the production team handed the film over to the editors, Stephen Jones and Kaylan Aksel-Paizis.  The pair worked overnight to provide a rough edit around noon on Sunday. Team members reviewed it and the film was turned into the 48 Hour Film Project office two hours ahead of schedule; the first film to be passed off to officials.  Special thanks go to Jack Patchell and Brent Shambaugh for their help with the project.

On Friday, Aug. 26, all of the short films were screened at the Kerr Auditorium in Oklahoma City.  Oklahoma City winners are being tabulated and next will be screened at Filmapalooza.  From there, winners may go on to screen at the Cannes Film Festival. We will definitely keep you informed if that happens! Look out for next years Team CAN and join up with us for the 48 Hour Film Project 2012!