Wow, the fall is here in full force and we are mid-way through the semester! We have been keeping very busy over here (if you have not noticed). We have had a series of incredibly well attended events (thanks y’all) starting with the Film Rally, then Sarah Price’s visit, Corinne Brinkerhoff came to speak with us, visits by members of our Professional Advisory Board (Mike Robe, Ben Krout and Gordy Hoffman), then our Internship Fair, the Hallmark Animation visit, and finally our first fundraising screening where we paid homage to "Carnival of Souls" with discussions led by Chuck Berg and Kevin Willmott .

All really wonderful and inspiring events and these gatherings are what makes being a part of Film and Media Studies such a great place to be. We look forward to future events next semester, so watch this space!! As always, feel free to email me with any questions, suggestions for speakers and fundraising opportunities.

Tamara Falicov Chair, Film and Media Studies

From the Chair...

Coming Attractions 2 & 3

Call for Entries 4

Recognitions and Accomplishments

5—8

2014 Spring Break Trip to LA

9

Committee Memberships

10

In Memoriam 11

Photos from Recent Events

12—16

Academic Calendar Alumni News and More

13

Inside this issue:

Volume 4, Issue 3 Department of Film & Media Studies November 2013

T h e U n i v e r s i t y o f K a n s a s

Department of Film & Media Studies

Coming Attractions

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Department of F i lm & Media Studies

November 2013

Coming Attractions

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Department of F i lm & Media Studies

November 2013

Free State Festival ● Open November 1, 2013

● Deadline March 1, 2014

● Short Films (30 min or less) $15 submission fee/ $10 withoutabox discount

● Feature Films (60 min or more) $25 submission fee/ $20 withoutabox discount

● Youth Films (made by filmmakers 18 and younger) FREE

The University of Kansas will work with the Lawrence Arts Center to curate a series of ideas presented in both panel and lightening round formats in sites throughout the district. Partnerships with area organizations such as the Lawrence Public Library, Wild West Film Fest, Women of Lawrence Film (WOLF), music venues and food vendors will infuse the festival with vibrancy, community spirit and local color.

For more information: http://freestatefilmfest.com/submit/

http://lawrenceartscenter.org/free-state-festival/

Call for Entries

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Department of F i lm & Media Studies

November 2013

In 1999, former Kansas First Lady Meredith Docking made a commit-ment of $1 million to establish the Docking Young Faculty Scholar Award. In 2013, ten exceptional faculty members at the University of Kansas have been honored as the latest recipients.

The Docking Young Faculty Scholar Award was established by Meredith Docking to reward, encourage and retain younger faculty members who have clearly distinguished themselves early in their careers at KU. Assistant and associate professors who have distinguished themselves through exceptional research and teaching are eligible for these awards. The 10 new scholars were selected for the great potential their dean, chair and colleagues recognized in their nominations

Tamara Falicov, chair and associate professor of film and media studies, was one of the ten scholars selected. Falicov joined KU in 1998 after earning her doctoral degree at the University of California, San Diego. Her specialty is Latin American Cinema, in particular the historical and political issues surrounding the development of film industries in Argentina. Her 2007 book, “The Cinematic Tango: Contemporary Argentine Film,” won a 2008 CHOICE Award, and she is nearing publication of two new books based on her current focus on film financing. She has also been committed to bringing Latin American film to the local community, including the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, the Rio Theatre, and venues in Lawrence and Topeka.

To read the full article, go here:

http://news.ku.edu/2013/09/20/ten-new-docking-faculty-scholars-named-ku

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Department of F i lm & Media Studies November 2013

Recognitions and Accomplishments

Professor Chuck Berg was a panelist for a screening of “’Round Midnight” with musicologist Maxine Gordon, whose husband, the iconic jazz tenor saxophonist Dexter Gordon, starred in the much lauded 1986 film for which he received a Best Actor Oscar nomination from the Academy of Motion Arts and Sciences before his death. The panel-screening, the culminating event of KU’s American Studies 60th Anniversary celebration in late-September, also featured Nicole Hodges-Persley of KU’s Theatre Department.

Chuck also participated in the Literature/Film Associa-tion’s national conference held in Lawrence in October with a presentation on “Negotiating Fantasy and Reality in ‘Over the Rainbow’” which probed the hit-making dynamics of the indelible Oscar-winning tune by Harold Arlen-Yip Harburg from “The Wizard of Oz” (1939) which has endured as a ‘standard’ of the American Popular Song (per Alec Wilder).

Chuck’s jazz reviews, a long-standing feature of the “Topeka Capital-Journal,” have continued with recent columns devoted to performances of jazz stars including singer Karrin Allyson, tenor saxophonist Houston Person and pianist Bill Mays.

“Chuck Berg and Friends” performed for the Fall meeting of the Hall Center for the Humanities held in October.

Assistant Professor Germaine Halegoua and associate professor Bonnie Johnson, Urban Planning, gave a presentation on November 11 at the Hall Center for the Humanities entitled: "Can Social Media Save a Neighborhood Organization?: Exploring the Potential and Limits of Social Media within Neighborhood Contexts.”

Assistant Professor Cathy Joritz was invited to give a presentation on digital art, animation & Lotte Reiniger at The Commons on October 25.

As a part of the continued effort to bring together scholars from all disciplines, and in response to the call set forth by Bold Aspirations, The Commons presents the Research Sharing Sessions - a series designed specifically for research exchange. The goals of these sessions are: To introduce KU Researchers to the work of their

colleagues To address questions within current research

using the perspectives of many disciplines To develop collaborative research teams as a

result of overlapping interest and expertise

Big Screens, Small Screens: Size

Matters (In Adaptation) was the

theme of the conference of the

Literature/Film Association held

October 10—12 on campus.

The conference’s focus was on how new imaging technologies and modes of dissemination are altering traditional approaches to

adaptation from literature to film, and featured expert panels, roundtable discussions, workshops and a show-case screening of a film directed by KU alumnus Mike Robe. FMS doctoral alums Heather Addison and Rodney Hill as well as current doctoral students also presented at the conference.

“We in Film and Media Studies are proud of our ongoing agenda to promote adaptation studies as part of our interdisciplinary program. Courses in literature and film, theater and film, and music and film are part of our rotating curriculum,” said John Tibbetts, organizer for the event and an associate professor of film at KU.

KU’s strong focus on adaptation studies partially stems from the many KU faculty and alumni actively involved in film production and interdisciplinary film studies, both locally and in Hollywood. Additionally, Tibbetts is a former vice president of LFA, and the organization’s founder, James Welsh (see page 11 for a tribute), received his doctorate from KU and taught at the univer-sity. Both Tibbetts and Welsh have published various books on adaptation studies, including The Encyclopedia of Novels into Film and The Encyclopedia of Stage Plays into Film.

The conference’s theme addressed how the proliferation of screens in modern society, from the “big screen” to mobile screens, has increased the images people see on a daily basis and how that change in visual culture is influencing adaptation.

http://news.ku.edu/2013/10/09/ku-host-conference-adaptation-literature-film

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Department of F i lm & Media Studies November 2013

Recognitions and Accomplishments

Doctoral student Juli Stone Pitzer works as a Video Producer for KU IT Communications, where she writes, directs, shoots, and edits short non-fiction videos. The past four months, she has been working on two documentary-style short videos for Vice Provost Diane Goddard on the Changing for Excellence (CFE) initiative. One is a case study of the Facilities Services and the other on the Shared Service Center. The Provost has invited her to present these videos at the opening of the CFE quarterly Executive Committee meeting for the Chancellor, Provost, and KUMC administra-tion on Thursday, November 14th. These videos will also be featured on the CFE website.

She also produced a short video this summer for KU IT that was sent to all new students. The video called New2KU can be viewed at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JsHaDXMl3eI. The video features Film and Media Studies undergraduate student Lucas Becker as a KU IT Guide, and some camera work by FMS undergraduates Adrian Steinle and Zachary Clossin and graduate students David Sutera and Patrick Terry.

In addition, Juli is presenting part of her dissertation work “No Texting – No Nonsense Cinemagoing: The Alamo Draft-house Cinemas Changes Movie Theatre Business Practices In the Digital Era, 1997-2013” at the Film and History Conference in Madison, WI from November 20-24.

John Tibbetts is displaying 100 of his celebrity-inscribed and autographed portrait paintings at the Main Library, downtown Kansas City, from December 7 to January 31, 2014. Collectively entitled “Star-Gazing,” the exhibition includes a brochure, a catalogue listing, photos of John with his subjects, and a video installation. John will also present a program at the Library about the exhibition at a date to be announced. The paintings span the years 1966 to the present and are divided into three categories: (1) Filmmakers; (2) Composers and Musicians; and (3) Theater/Television/ Miscellany. Among the luminaries on display are Steven Spielberg, Meryl Streep, Luciano Pavarotti, John Cage, Spike Lee, August Wilson, Ray Bradbury, and Dustin Hoffman.

WOLF (Women of Lawrence Film) is a new organization of female filmmakers in Lawrence with the mission of collaborating, supporting and educating women in the art and craft of filmmaking. The group shot a promotional video to raise money for its collaborative short film, Threads. From left are Marlo Angell, Bailie Richards, Misti Boland Osbern, Laura Kirk, Christie Dobson and Natalie Edmondson.

http://www2.ljworld.com/photos/2013/sep/06/261001/

Hispano Durón, an international Film and Media Studies doctoral student, was recently honored as guest speaker at the II El Heraldo Short Film Festival in Honduras. For many years, Duron has been an active filmmaker and film teacher in Honduras, his home country, and now in the United States. In recognition for his career as artist and scholar, Durón was awarded during the Short Film Festival. As a guest speaker, Durón high-lighted the importance of short films in the development of a film culture in a third world economy as that of Honduras. His latest work “El lugar de la cruz,” a short film produced in collaboration with Oldfather Studios of the University of Kansas, was also screened during the Festival in Honduras.

http://www.elheraldo.hn/Secciones-Principales/Vida/EL-HERALDO-esta-valorando-el-esfuerzo-artistico-de-los-cineastas

http://www.elheraldo.hn/Secciones-Principales/Vida/Hispano-Duron-presento-su-nuevo-corto

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Department of F i lm & Media Studies November 2013

Recognitions and Accomplishments

John Tibbetts and Robert Altman

Assistant Professor Cathy Joritz’s scratch-animation Negative Man has been selected for inclusion in the nearly 3-month exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts Bern, Switzerland, October 18, 2013 – February 9, 2014. Joritz traveled to Switzerland during the fall break to attend the press conference and exhibit opening.

The Weak Sex – How Art Pictures the New Male includes artwork by forty-one international artists seen in forty-five museum installations. It was curated by the award-winning curator, Kathleen Bühler, and asks the questions “Who or what makes a man? How do men define themselves in art since feminism; how do they reflect on their gender and the portrayal thereof?” while, according to Bühler, “addressing a topic that, until now, has hardly been tackled in a museum context...”

The exhibit also includes ongoing theme-related programs as well as children’s workshops conducted by TERRE DES FEMMES Schweiz (Switzerland).

Read more: http://www.kunstmuseumbern.ch/en/

http://www.kunstmuseumbern.ch/en/see/today/229-the-weak-sex-120.html

http://www.kunstmuseumbern.ch/en/service/media/media-releases-2013/16-10-13-the-weak-sex-965.html While in Bern, Professor Joritz was also able to access the Museum of Fine Arts archives in order to personally examine original children’s book illustrations by the Swiss artist, Ernst Kreidolf.

http://www.kreidolf.ch/en/life-work/11-biography

Joritz also made a stop at the Hochschule Luzern (hslu), in Luzern, Switzerland, to tour their animation facilities and find out more about their renowned Bachelor and Master’s animation programs. Faculty member/administrator Jürgen Haas proved to be a wonderful, informative host and, as seen in the photo, a new fan of KU!

http://animation.hslu.ch/

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Department of F i lm & Media Studies November 2013

Recognitions and Accomplishments

Dear FMS Seniors and Juniors:

Join the Hollywood Hawks and FMS alumni in LA for the 2014 Spring Break Career Week! This trip will give you an inside look into the various careers in film and television production (and other sectors of the entertainment industry) during a week in Los Angeles. It will give also give you the invaluable opportunity to interface and network with alumni in the area. An alumnus will provide transportation to various meetings and site visits during your stay. You will also have the opportunity to attend a mixer to meet an extensive and wonderfully resourceful group of alumni, the Holly-wood Hawks, who will help you if you are serious about making the move to LA after you graduate. It will be a life altering opportunity that should not be missed! Students who have gone in past years have said that it gave them the confidence to move to Los Angeles. They then will “pay it forward” and help you navigate all that the film and television industries have to offer. Both seniors and juniors are welcome to apply.

The total cost for one week in L.A. will roughly come to $1,500.00 so you will need to be prepared to have that funding on hand to pay for your hotel, food, and other expenses. The Department will act as a liaison between students going on the trip to coordinate the same plane tickets and transportation to the airport.

As mentioned, there will be someone to pick you up from the hotel and help you navigate the city to various work-places, studio tours (Disney, Paramount, etc.), special FX houses, production companies, etc.

Note that there is a travel fund competition that is sponsored by SOTA which may help defray costs up to $500. We will notify you of that opportunity. The deadline for that is February 14th, 2014.

If you are interested in applying to attend the Los Angeles trip, you will need to provide the department with the following information (see below) by Friday, November 22nd at 5:00 p.m. via email to Sarah Sahin (sarahsahin@ku.edu) or you may leave them at the front desk with Karla Conrad (kmconrad@ku.edu) whichever is most convenient.

Application materials consist of:

A letter of intent Tell us about your specific interests in film and media (e.g., editing, writing, directing, camera work, etc.), and your future career objectives. Explain how this trip will fit into these plans, and what you hope to gain from attending a week long experience of this kind (1-2 pages).

A copy of your current Degree Progress Report with your current GPA

A resume (limited to film experience, internships, courses you have taken in film and media studies)

If you are selected, you are required to submit:

Required Written Report: Within 30 days of the end of the trip, you will be required to write a one-page reflection piece for Department Chair Tamara Falicov about your experience, highlighting some of the key visits/contacts you made and what you learned while in Los Angeles. You also may be asked to speak to a class about your trip.

Best wishes,

Tamara Falicov

Associate Professor/Department Chair

Docking Faculty Scholar

Department of Film and Media Studies

tfalicov@ku.edu

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Department of F i lm & Media Studies November 2013

2014 Spring Break Career Week in LA

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Department of F i lm & Media Studies November 2013

For more information, go to: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/delmarvanow/obituary.aspx?pid=167462727

Through it all, he was as likely to discourse knowledgeably on the masques of Ben Jonson and Shakespearean Textual Studies (on which he assisted the celebrated scholar Charlton Hinman), as he was on the important filmmakers that were subjects in his many books, including Stanley Kubrick, Oliver Stone, Francis Ford Coppola, Tony Richardson, and Douglas Fairbanks.

His was a full life, always in the moment, yet with an eye cocked to future adventures. To the last, he was writing, planning new projects, and revisiting and revising old ones. Despite the age and infirmities that finally claimed him, he held true to the valedictory words uttered by the gallant D’Artagnan, as spoken by Douglas Fairbanks (whose work he was reviewing for a new book at the end): “Come on! Come on! Greater adventures lie ahead!”

Jim is survived by his wife Anne, daughters Kate and Emily, and three grandchildren. Jim taught at the University of Kansas in 1966-1971 and, with John Tibbetts, ran the Film Society of KU. He earned his Ph.D. at KU in 1996. He was a longtime friend of many members of the FMS faculty.

JAMES M. WELSH (1938-2013)

By John C. Tibbetts

Throughout his long career James M. Welsh (he always preferred “Jim”) taught and counseled thousands of students, won the admiration of hundreds of loyal friends and colleagues, and inspired future generations to follow him in his pioneering quest for knowledge, collegiality, and community in the fields of Adaptation Studies, Literature and Film. As an educator at Indiana University, University of Kansas, and Salisbury State University, he garnered numerous awards and grants, including two Fulbright Fellowships, Distinguished and Outstanding Faculty Awards, and Research Fellowships. As co-founding editor (with Tom Erskine) of the Literature/Film Quarterly (1973-2005), founding President of the Literature/Film Association (1989-present), Member of the Board of Directors of the National Film Society (1977-1985), he encouraged and published the work of thousands of scholars in the field of Film and Adaptation Studies, organized and hosted dozens of academic conferences in Romania, Berlin, Amsterdam, London, Leeds, Los Angeles, Chicago, Washington, D.C., and Maryland (Salisbury, Ocean City, and Towson), and he published hundreds of books, essays, and reviews.

Jim’s presence, in and out of the academy, in private and in public, was always marked by his familiar cheery smile, omnipresent pipe, and snowy beard. His loyalty and support for friends and colleagues was legendary. Many were those who benefited from his tireless efforts on their behalf. An indefatigable traveler, he wore out several pairs of seven-league boots. When not at home, he could be found with friends and family sailing the canals of Amsterdam, scaling the slopes of England’s Lake District, touring London’s Globe Theater, and exploring Edinburgh Castle.

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Department of F i lm & Media Studies November 2013

In memoriam

While the Professional Advisory Board accomplished a lot during their visit October 4 and 5, they did take some time to have some fun!

Ann Lerner, alumna, PAB member, and Director of Albuquerque Studios.

During the LFA conference, Hollywood filmmaker and KU alumnus Mike Robe presented Innocent, his newest film, based on Scott Turow’s best-selling novel. The film was screened on Oct. 10 in the Kansas Ballroom. A Q & A session followed. Robe is the president of the FMS Professional Advisory Board.

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Department of F i lm & Media Studies November 2013

Recent Events

Chuck Berg with PAB members Bruce Branit, alumnus, Branit FX production house owner and Arthel McDaniel, alumnus, entertainment and real estate lawyer based in L.A.

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Department of F i lm & Media Studies November 2013

Recent Events

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Department of F i lm & Media Studies November 2013

Recent Events

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Department of F i lm & Media Studies November 2013

Recent Events

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Department of F i lm & Media Studies November 2013

Recent Events The Carnival of Souls fundraiser was attended by over 50 people, including students and community members. Professors Falicov, Berg, and Willmott each shared comments about the enduring power of Carnival of Souls, and the legacy and inspiration for students as well as area filmmakers in Kansas.

The Department of Film & Media Studies

T h e U n i v e r s i t y o f K a n s a s

Page 17

Equipment Check-out, Editing Rooms, and Computer Lab

Equipment Check-in: 10:00 a.m.— 12:00 p.m., Monday, Wednesday, and Friday

Equipment Check-out: 1:00 p.m.— 3:00 p.m., Monday, Wednesday, and Friday

Sign-up to check-out equipment in the binder on the table near the equipment room.

Sign-up for editing rooms by signing the edit room schedule posted on the editing room doors.

The computer lab is available for use Tuesdays from 11:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Thursdays from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and Fridays from 8:30 to 5:00 p.m.

Check with your instructor or John McCluskey, Assistant Technical Director, for more information.

Film Festivals, Contests, Local Film Jobs, Call-for-Papers Announcements of film festivals, contests, local jobs, call-for-papers, etc. are kept in a binder in the reception area at Oldfather Studios (room 204). Check it out!

Department of Film and

Media Studies

Oldfather Studios

1621 W. 9th Street

Lawrence, KS 66044-2488

Phone: 785-864-1340

Fax: 785-331-2671

E-mail: film@ku.edu

Send your news items and

updates to Karla Conrad,

kmconrad@ku.edu.

To view past issues of the

newsletter, go to our website:

http://film.ku.edu/about/

newsletters.shtml

November 2013

Academic Calendar

Wednesday, November 20 — Last day to drop full semester classes

Wednesday, November 27 — Thanksgiving break begins

Thursday and Friday, November 28 & 29 — KU offices closed for Thanksgiving holiday

Thursday, December 12 —Last day of classes

Friday, December 13 —Stop Day, no classes

December 16 through December 20 —Finals week

Friday, December 20—Graduate student Application for graduation deadline

Sydney Stone

Advising Specialist

Office Hours in FMS:

Thursdays and Fridays

215 Oldfather Studios

sydneymstone@ku.edu

785-864-3500

To see more photos of events, visit http://film.ku.edu/event-gallery-0

Ryan Hartford, 2012 BGS, reports that his short documentary, Confessions of a Comic Book Nerd, was shown at the Majestic Crest Theater in Los Angeles on November 11. His film opened for Stan Lee’s documentary, With Great Power: The Stan Lee Story. For more information, visit: http://www.tunestub.com/event.cfm?id=129962

Alumni News