Tag Archives: Santa Barbara International Film Festival

Cocktail Corner: Red Carpet Cocktails

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A spirited toast to all things alcoholic!  By Leslie Dinaberg

The Academy Awards are on Sunday. My money’s on Argo to take home the biggest prize of the night—and firmly cement the Santa Barbara International Film Festival as the must-stop red carpet event to strut your stuff on the way to the Oscars. I’m still marveling at how many Oscar-bound stars made it to the festival this year.

Meanwhile, for those of us who won’t be at Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre this weekend, the competition for Oscar-inspired libations is every bit as fierce as the race for Best Picture. Here are some red carpet cocktails to make your home viewing party a hit!

Do your favorite films and your favorite cocktails match up? You’ll have to watch—and try—them all to make an educated decision.

Amour

While beautifully shot and acted, to say this movie is a downer is the understatement of the year. However, CookInDineOut.com’s version of The Amour cocktail is a sparkling champagne cocktail designed to invoke the earlier romance of the movie’s couple. Plus, a few sips of this might help you brace yourself for the intensity of the movie.

Argo

Bacardi USA mixologist Manny Hinojosa (how’s that for a cool-sounding job title?) has come up with a delicious-sounding Argo-inspired Scotch-Campari cocktail with elderflower liqueur, basil and ginger ale, The Diplomatic Escape.  Certainly one of the most purely entertaining movies in the bunch, a little Scotch can only help this film go down even smoother.

Beasts of the Southern Wild

Cajun Lemonade is a great treat to celebrate this bayou-themed beast. This spiked version from Food & Wine includes a generous splash of Vodka (or Rum), but nine-year-old star (and nominee) Quvenzhané Wallis—who gives an amazing performance in this haunting film—should probably stick to good old lemonade.

Django Unchained

Grey Goose Vodka did a whole series of Oscar-inspired cocktails, but this Coco Django is a standout—it even alludes to a quirky coconut drink that one of the characters has in a pivotal scene.

Les Misérables

The Les Misérables Cocktail from Cocktail.com, featuring French brandy, is worth taking your time to absorb, just like this sprawling, epic movie set in 19th-century France.

Life of Pi

The Citrus Seas, from Dallas’s SideDish Magazine,  is sublime and sea-worth salute to Ang Li’s beautiful film. They recommend Shellback Silver Rum, but like the Cajun Lemonade, this one would be equally tasty with Vodka.

Lincoln

Basil Hayden’s Bourbon pays tribute to Lincoln with this take on a traditional cocktail, Lincoln’s Manhattan, mixing Bourbon, both sweet and dry vermouth, and maple syrup. They had me at Daniel Day-Lewis.

Silver Linings Playbook

Word on the street is that Robert De Niro loved this Purity Silver Linings Playbook Martini at the Weinstein Company’s Silver Linings Playbook event. Another one of my favorite movies of the year … and there’s certainly not much to dislike about a pure Vodka and spring water cocktail!

Zero Dark Thirty

The Drake Hotel in Chicago has come up with Zero Dark Worthy, a “heavy martini made from Vodka, Cherry Brandy and Dark Crème de Cacao to commemorate the very heavy substance of the film. The title of the Zero Dark Thirty is, as director Kathryn Bigelow explains, “a military term for 30 minutes after midnight, and it refers also to the darkness and secrecy that cloaked the entire decade-long mission (to capture Osama Bin Ladin).”

Pass the popcorn! Cheers!

Click here for more cocktail corner columns.

Leslie Dinaberg

Leslie Dinaberg

When she’s not busy working as the editor of Santa Barbara SEASONS, Cocktail Corner author Leslie Dinaberg writes magazine articles, newspaper columns and grocery lists. When it comes to cocktails, Leslie considers herself a “goal-oriented drinker.”

Originally published in Santa Barbara SEASONS on February 22, 2013.

 

Film Fest Screen Shots

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Santa Barbara International Film FestivalA Little Teenage Charm Goes a Long Way

One of the best perks of being a reporter in Santa Barbara is access to the film festival. No matter what you’re in the mood for–movie star mania, industry panels, blockbuster film screenings, documentaries, surf films or obscure foreign films that would never otherwise make it to the Metro 4-our film festival has a little bit of everything.

But despite my primo access to the festival I always feel a little jealous of the Santa Barbara Middle School Teen Press. Those guys really have it made–and they’re way, way too young to appreciate it.

This year Shuba, a 7th grader, got James Franco to recite Lord Byon’s “She Walks in Beauty” poem to her. Oh lord indeed. He looked right at her with those big brown eyes. James Franco and Byron … it just doesn’t get much dreamier than that.

My heart was thumping just watching the video, and Shuba’s not even old enough to appreciate it. She probably wishes it were Justin Beiber or Will Smith’s kid.

Youth is wasted on the young, especially when it comes to reporting.

A few years ago those Teen Press kids were the only ones that Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie even stopped for on the red carpet. Sorry, we’re too busy adopting children and saving the world and looking gorgeous to talk to any professional reporters. “Oh you’re in middle school. How’s it going, dude? We’d love to talk to you!”

Yeesh. Those kids get all the breaks.

Then last year, while I rubbernecked on the red carpet, a couple of other teen pressers, Kendall and Lia, got within smoldering distance of Colin Firth. Seriously, I’m getting flushed just thinking about it. Be still my heart, it was Colin Firth, Mr. Darcy in “Pride and Prejudice,” Colin Firth, Mr. Darcy in “Bridget Jones’ Diary,” Colin Firth, Mr. Darcy in the other Bridget Jones’ Diary, and Colin Firth, Mr. Darcy in the other “Pride and Prejudice.” Did I mention my favorite character in all of literature is Mr. Darcy?

I wonder who James Franco’s favorite character is? I could have asked him if I was part of the Teen Press and got to interview him alone in the green room after his award. Alone in the green room! Geez, those kids don’t know how lucky they are.

Like I said, I’m a little teensy bit jealous. Mostly I wish the film festival had existed when I was in high school. I only missed it by a few years. Just think, I could have been interviewing Mary Tyler Moore and Ted Danson instead of watching wrestling matches and exposing the evils of cafeteria food.

For more information (and to see the video of James Franco reciting Byron) on the Santa Barbara Middle School Teen Press visit www.sbmsteenpress.org/TP-v14/5-sbiff-00.html. For more of Leslie’s columns visit www.LeslieDinaberg.com. Originally published in the Santa Barbara Daily Sound on February 4, 2011.

Giving Back: The Hutton Foundation

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logo_hpOne of the biggest obstacles facing local nonprofits is the high price of real estate in Santa Barbara. Luckily Hutton Foundation is helping to fill that gap.

One of Hutton Foundation’s most significant efforts is its Under One Roof program, through which more than 30 local nonprofit organizations are housed in 12 Hutton Foundation-owned and managed properties. “One of the things local nonprofits struggled with the most was finding high-quality, affordable office space,” explains Pam Hamlin, the foundation’s executive director. Hutton Foundation rents the buildings to nonprofits at far below market rates and signs 10-year leases to help give organizations financial stability.

The organizations sharing space run the gamut, from Community Environmental Council to Santa Barbara International Film Festival, United Girls & Boys Club, Alzheimer’s Association and Camerata Pacifica, to name just a few.

The foundation’s broad areas of interest are a reflection of its president, Tom Parker, a Santa Barbara native who returned to town 12 years ago to start the Hutton Foundation, after serving as president of Hutton Companies-one of Southern California’s leading real estate developers-from 1985 to 1995.

“It’s my fault,” says Parker, with a twinkle in his eye. “What happened to me was I was doing grants and I thought, Here’s the homeless shelter, there’s someone who is hungry that needs help, here is an arts organization that is opening children’s minds to music and art and things that will make their life so much better. Who do I donate to? How do I value the two? I realized I couldn’t.”

Consequently, last year Hutton Foundation gave away $4.4 million in grants, donations and assistance to more than 100 local nonprofit organizations.

“We want to be in this community to help the process, to help nonprofits be more effective no matter what their mission-so long as it’s a mission that makes sense,” Parker says.

One thing that made sense, not just to Hutton Foundation but also to the Orfalea and Bower Foundations, was grouping services together to help children arrive in kindergarten better prepared to learn. The three groups are collaborating on an early childhood education and family resource center in Carpinteria. Opening in January at the former site of Main Elementary School, with a Community Action Commission/Head Start preschool at its core, this project represents the next evolution of Hutton Foundation. The foundation also recently made a deal to purchase the former Washington Mutual Bank building in downtown Santa Barbara, and is now evaluating which type of collaborative center will best serve the community.

Parker expected he would be semi-retired when he started Hutton Foundation, but he admits that when a great opportunity comes along he just can’t help himself. “The nonprofit sector intrigues me because there’s so much to be done,” he says. “You can really make a difference in this community.”

Originally published in Santa Barbara Magazine

Getting Creative With Cancer

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Something magical happens when you tune your mind to its creative side. This was the lesson learned when eight local cancer survivors ventured into The Aphrodite Project. Now the rest of us can tune into that wake-up call, thanks to Santa Barbara filmmakers Jennifer A. Reinish‘s and Justin Thomas Rowe’s documentary, The Aphrodite Project, which premiered at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival last week.

The project was the brainchild of social worker Jo-Anne Blatter, who has worked with people with life-changing illnesses for 27 years. She named the endeavor after the Greek goddess Aphrodite because both were meant to inspire growth, passion and wholeness, by pairing people with cancer (“creators”) with professional artists to create collaborative pieces of artwork.

“A cancer diagnosis is not a death sentence; it’s an order … to live every moment,” said Aaron, one of the creators, who worked with Visual Artist Jill Katz to create a collage out of his medical records and photos of his surgery scarred body.

“Getting close to someone that has the potential of dying on you is pretty heavy,” said Katz. Indeed, watching the growth of the bond between Katz and Aaron, like that of the others, was the icing on an already irresistible cake.

“The focus was not on outcome or product, but rather on the process; on the experience of playing with art and music as a means to heal, and to uncover the mysterious messages that life-changing events tend to urge us to search for,” said Blatter. Not only did the creators bond with their artistic collaborators, they also bonded with one another, a journey documented by the film.

“There was an immediate feeling of camaraderie. We knew what the other people had gone through without having to talk about it,” said Randi, who created “before” and “after” masks with paper mache artist Ginny Valdez. “I felt like I was reconstructing my life by tearing up pieces of paper (to create the mask).”

The film travels from the group’s first meeting in January 2003 to the sharing of their art at a showing in June. “The gallery opening was a really nice finale,” said Ann, who created and recorded a song with help of musicians Dan Zimmerman, Jay Ferguson and Sharon “Muffy” Hendrix Roach.

“I’m in the midst of looking for a home for the project,” said Blatter, who did not have any outside funding. “We’re going to see what the universe brings.”

For more information visit www.theaphroditeproject.com or call Blatter at 682.7313.

The Aphrodite Project will air on channel 17 tonight at 5 p.m., Saturday at 11 a.m. and Sunday at 9 p.m. For additional show times visit www.sbchannels.tv.

Originally published in South Coast Beacon on February 12, 2004.

Screen Shots

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Santa Barbara’s spot in the film festival food chain.

Local film geeks are salivating for this year’s film festival, but what about the industry crowd? Exactly what kind of Hollywood buzz is the Santa Barbara International Film Festival generating?

“I think it’s definitely coming into its own,” said producer/manager Andy Cohen, who has been involved in more than 40 films. “Since it’s in Hollywood’s back yard, it feels like a great place to have a film festival. Plus, half of Hollywood lives in Santa Barbara anyway.”

“For people in L.A. it is a must-attend film festival,” said Kim Adelman, who has produced 19 short films that have played at more than 150 film festivals. “At Sundance, people always complain they never get to eat because they’re always rushing from one thing to another. At Santa Barbara you have time to enjoy yourself. … You’re not having to ‘work’ the festival so much … it’s more of an enjoyable experience. Networking happens casually as opposed to maniacally.”

She is a big fan of Santa Barbara.

“These people really love films; it’s not just business for them,” said Adelman, whose book “The Ultimate Filmmaker’s Guide to Short Films” will come out in February. “When one of our filmmakers checked in for the film ’78, they said, ‘Oh I love your film’ and quoted some lines back. Totally made his day.”

In terms of ranking Santa Barbara against other film festivals, Adelman labeled it “very respectable,” similar in stature to the Chicago Film Festival.

“In the U.S. there are what I consider to be three different tiers of film festivals,” said Thomas Ethan Harris, founder of the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival and a film consultant who guided “The Blair Witch Project” along the festival circuit. The top group includes festivals like Sundance, Toronto, Seattle, Telluride and the New York Film Festival.

Top-tier festivals offer exposure for the filmmakers in three different areas. First, they offer the business community. Second, they offer quotable press for the filmmakers.

“The third thing they offer are fantastic public audiences, which are very, very important to actually move a film forward,” Harris said.

The next tier, the community festival circuit, is where Harris puts Santa Barbara.

“I rank it fairly high,” he said, noting it offers very, very good public audiences. “They offer not really quotable press, but regional press … They offer some business community. Santa Barbara does better than most because of where it’s positioned near L.A.”

In general, festivals are on the decline, Harris said. “Financing is drying up. Interest from the business community is drying up. The press has less interest. The one thing that seems to be on the rise … are festivals that take place in a resort town. If the business community (interest) is waning, at least you can get them to come to a beautiful place.”

The film industry itself is seeing a rise of really smart film festivals, of which Santa Barbara is one, Harris said.

“In my eyes, for many years Santa Barbara really tried to look like a mini Sundance. …If it continues to etch out its own personality (in terms of what kind of films it screens), it’s actually in the perfect part of the calendar year with hotels and shops and wonderful restaurants,” Harris said.

“The community film festivals that are going to survive are ones that have a niche and have a really nice atmosphere to offer.”

“These people really love films; it’s not just business for them,” said Adelman, whose book “The Ultimate Filmmaker’s Guide to Short Films” will come out in February. “When one of our filmmakers checked in for the film ’78, they said, ‘Oh I love your film’ and quoted some lines back. Totally made his day.”

In terms of ranking Santa Barbara against other film festivals, Adelman labeled it “very respectable,” similar in stature to the Chicago Film Festival.

“In the U.S. there are what I consider to be three different tiers of film festivals,” said Thomas Ethan Harris, founder of the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival and a film consultant who guided The Blair Witch Project along the festival circuit. The top group includes festivals like Sundance, Toronto, Seattle, Telluride and the New York Film Festival.

Top-tier festivals offer exposure for the filmmakers in three different areas. First, they offer the business community. Second, they offer quotable press for the filmmaker, said Harris.

“The third thing they offer are fantastic public audiences, which are very, very important to actually move a film forward,” Harris said.

The next tier, the community festival circuit, is where Harris puts Santa Barbara.

“I rank it fairly high,” he said, noting it offers very, very good public audiences. “They offer not really quotable press, but regional press … They offer some business community. Santa Barbara does better than most because of where it’s positioned near L.A.”

In general, festivals are on the decline, Harris said. “Financing is drying up. Interest from the business community is drying up. The press has less interest. The one thing that seems to be on the rise … are festivals that take place in a resort town. If the business community (interest) is waning, at least you can get them to come to a beautiful place.”

The film industry itself is seeing a rise of really smart film festivals, of which Santa Barbara is one, Harris said.

“In my eyes, for many years Santa Barbara really tried to look like a mini Sundance. …If it continues to etch out its own personality (in terms of what kind of films it screens), it’s actually in the perfect part of the calendar year with hotels and shops and wonderful restaurants,” Harris said.

“The community film festivals that are going to survive are ones that have a niche and have a really nice atmosphere to offer.”

Originally published in South Coast Beacon on January 29, 2004.