Bayou City Film News

Social Networking 2.0 for Independent Filmmakers Tuesday, March 31, 2009 Rice University Media Center (Corner of University Blvd. & Stockton St., Rice entrance #8) 6:30pm - Networking & Light Snacks 7:30pm - Presentation by Grace Rodriguez Cost: FREE and open to the public Please Note: We will not be serving the usual food and beverages during this salon. Light snacks will be served. SWAMP will host a Social Media seminar, presented by Grace Rodriguez of AYN Brand, to help Houston's film and multimedia community learn how to effectively use Social Media for building and engaging audiences. Participants will be introduced to a variety of online tools that can help them: Build audiences online and offline Promote your films and projects Seek talent and crew Distribute content Find funding and screening opportunities The seminar will show filmmakers, producers, directors, vodcasters, etc., how to integrate these tools into a manageable system that enhances their productivity a...

Our enhanced incentive legislation, HB 873 by Rep. Dawnna Dukes will be before the House of Representatives on Wednesday, March 25th. This means it will be voted on by the full House (all 150 members). We need each of you to call YOUR State Representative. Phone calls must be made on Tuesday, March 24th between 8 am and 6 pm or before 10am on Wednesday, March 25th. Calling after 10 am on Wednesday will be of no additional benefit and will be a waste of your time (and the legislator’s time). Here is the link to find out the contact information for your Representative, http://www.fyi.legis.state.tx.us/ , if you do not already have it. Enter your HOME address and look for your STATE REPRESENTATIVE. You should see a 512.463.xxxx number listed. Call that number. DO NOT CALL YOUR SENATOR AT THIS TIME. Only call State Representatives. Also, please only make ONE phone call. Do not make additional calls to other Representatives outside your personal district. Here is a basic script to re...

Our Lobby Day was a big success! Thank you to our volunteers and supporters. An estimated 600 people showed up at the State Capitol for the morning rally: coordinated by members of the Austin Alliance. House Bill 873 was heard in committee the day we were there. It was approved with a 9 - 0 vote and then sent to “Calendars” on March 19th. The Senate Bill (SB605) is scheduled to be heard in committee on Monday. We are very optimistic this enabling legislation will pass. Nearly every legislator’s office was visited on TXMPA’s Lobby Day and the feedback from the meetings was very positive. Those of you who are familiar with how the legislative process works know that this is only half the battle. We need the funding for the legislation to be included in the appropriation bills, HB1/SB1. This is a separate issue from the enabling legislation. In 2005, we experienced the frustration of unfunded legislation and we are commiting ourselves at every level to ensure our incentive is funded come ...

For 32 years, Southwest Alternate Media Project (SWAMP) has promoted the creation of film, video and new media. With a desire to help emerging Texas film and video makers to develop their craft, SWAMP inaugurated the Emerging Filmmakers Fellowship Program in 2008. This program provides funds for worthy projects, and, most importantly, provides mentorship and peer forums in which emerging artists can strengthen their artistic skills and knowledge while fine-tuning their work. This year's call for applications is open to Texas filmmakers only. Each proposal will outline a potential production project based upon a theme selected by SWAMP, in collaboration with our international EFFP partner Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City. For 2009, there is a choice between two themes (select 1 only): Modern Slavery OR Violence Against Women. A panel of film/video professionals will choose up to 5 filmmakers to be a part of the fellowship program. The selected artists will be chosen on th...

Beyond the Walls: The Battle for Iraq's Future On Saturday, March 21st, as part of its monthly film series, Houston Indymedia will screen a series of short films on Iraq by Big Noise Films titled Beyond the Walls: The Battle for Iraq's Future. In attendance will be co-founder of Big Noise Films, Rick Rowley. Beyond the Walls: The Battle for Iraq's Future is a collection of short films that covers a very different side, from war-torn Falluja, the giant US prison at Umm Qasr, the Mehdi Army stronghold inside Sadr City and other places the mainstream corporate channels can not or will not go. Rick Rowley has directed several award winning feature documentaries with international distribution and has reported from the front lines of wars and the inside of social movements in Iraq, Afghanistan, Lebanon, Palestine, Mexico, Venezuela, Argentina, Brazil, South Africa, East Timor and others. Big Noise's film credits include: This is What Democracy Looks Like, The Fourth Wor...