Cayle Chernin Blog March 1st 2007
Okay, I started to make Oscar notes, days, now weeks ago: Oscar, post 9/11 comes of age: Sex scenes as seen through the glass lightly: Babel: Cate Blachett peeing while amouring with Brad Pitt, had to be a first, Borat, fighting while rolling around man to man with a very fat man sitting on his face – it wiped out most other aspects of the movie for me, had to be a last. Outrageous filmmaking. Little Miss Sunshine, a good twist about the twisted penchance of Americans to sell their children down the river of instant fame and bad values which died for me once Alan Arkin was gone, lovely actors not withstanding, they lacked energy. And on to desolation row: Factory Girl, Edie Sedgwick and Warhol the guy who started the celeb culture craze(y). The film has been panned and was not up for Oscar but I liked it a lot. Edie was a heroine on heroin when I was growing into the big Bad World. She was one of the lovable loons who self-destructed and who we all loved and many tried to look like. Last King of Scotland, magnificent performance by Forrest Whittaker, which we now know he won the Oscar for. An excellent movie. Liked seeing the slant of the POV of the young Doctor who had no idea what in Hell he was getting into and who’s naivety caused untold damage. Ryan Gosling, rising rising star, who took his sister Mandy who was in my George Randolph ‘Acting for Film’ class several years ago. Lovely to see her all dolled up in red on the red carpet. Venus, Peter O’Toole, 8th nomination, etc, etc, because I just couldn’t follow through..you see my computer is in the room we call our office – the main area has open kitchen, fireplace, TV, record player – yes I have a turntable, a great Christmas present because when we moved here beginning of December, forced to leave our 10 year digs in the rapidly turning over ‘Film District’ formerly, the welfare East End of Pape and Gerrard, I dreamed a Winter hide-away where family and friends can sit by the fire and brave the elements with the wondrous smell of burning wood, we bought a face cord and make fires whether we need ‘em or not.
Okay so what’s my blogging issue: I have to go into the office to use the computer, because I don’t have a laptop and somehow, it makes it impossible to blog the way I wanna. Because a blog is really an on-line journal. I kept journals for years, until I decided that the pre-occupation with my own mind and feelings needed to move on. And I enjoyed not keeping journals for years, found it contributed to new writing and new ways of thinking. The blogging I’ve done on my website www.cayle.ca (has a link to my former blog). Before Matt gave me this opportunity, it was a place that I did address from time to time, when I wanted to write about something in particular, but having this new situation has made it incredibly clear that I cannot really blog, until I have a laptop and can sit by the fire and (a)muse myself and hopefully anyone who reads me. Like a journal, the blog needs to be your best friend, constant companion and my friend Jason Brown, www.jasonjbrown.com for the latest trailer for our live action/animation short The Light house Keeper’s Wife, clarified the whole situation for me..Blogging came from laptops..it is a result of the laptop life-style, no wonder I’m having a hard time! Cayle Chernin talks about Bills and Costs But guess what..I priced cheap laps at CP Used, and the cheapest was $695..I said I just need a crappy word processor that I can disc on and they told me they don’t bother with such. Good friend and great publicist Penny East uncovered some Buy and Sell and computer paper listings and it looks like $3-400. I just paid $600 in bills today, our Utilities bill in our new home climbed from $35 in Jan to $130 in Feb and I still was juggling last payments to Enbridge and Hydro from the old location..and well you know, it never stops. Where on the list is my laptop? Well certainly after whatever payment we are going to have to make as a lump sum to Actra Fraternal to keep our coverage this year. Life in the fast lane. Cayle Chernin goes back to the Oscars Never mind, back to Oscar, who I felt could have taken a page or a frame from our very own Actra Awards..yes, I kid you not. The AA’s were a fabulous day and night – Actra Conference with plenary where we congratulated our executive for the great work they did in the strike negotiations. I enjoyed participating as a coach in David Gale’s Auditions 201 afternoon session, followed by the evening’s annual festivities. Actra limits the awards to best Actor, Actress and special Award, this year to Wendy Crewson, who spoke with sincerity and intelligence after an amazingly erudite and funny intro from Shirley Douglas. Gordon Pinsent was lovely and touching in his acceptance speech and Maria Del Mar was lively and full in hers. There was a special voice award given posthumously to Les Carlson. And then we partied on. The point is it was a great evening and the attenuated Oscars seem, except for the inspiring speech from Forrest Whittiker and Helen Mirren’s win and a chance to gawk at the ‘star’ in their designer gowns..this year marked by no necklaces on all the strapless gowns, an exercise in agony for the fore-mentioned Starts. It’s certainly part of their job description these days to appear at numerous awards shows, sit for long hours in ball gowns which they model in dread of being on someone’s bad dress list and sounding like beleaguered idiots who have trouble putting a few words together. And who can blame them. For the most part the questions are stupid and repetitive, it’s a big ‘shew’ and stars are herded along to make room for the next. Well, we all know the winners have a ball and drink the best champagne out of the glassiest slippers and that it is a celebration of the industry, but I hope that while we try to build our own Star System, and forge our Canadian identity, we will try to not imitate the ‘american way’ but rather take heart from our very own Actra Awards, where content is Queen and the celebration is of the work and not how much money it made at the BO. No disrespect to the wonderful work that the Academy Awards draw attention to..I haven’t seen the Departed and though I respect Martin Scorsese, I did see Babel and it was an extra ordinary achievement in movie making. Let me be clear. I LOVE MOVIES. They saved my life when I was a kid. They took me to Worlds apart and within. They taught me about love and hate and life in general and particular. For ninety minutes, being in one of those big movie houses of the past that don’t really exist any more, I knew, skipping school, I could escaping for 90 minutes or more into a safe place and it was a wonderful saving grace All this to say, I do love the Academy Awards, for me it’s a pj and popcorn night where you fight to stay awake ‘til the bitter end and get to feel sorry for the poor stars. But the numerous award shows that now abound have become yet another venue to pump out the celebrity worship religion that threatens to shame us all. Anyone got a really cheap laptop they want to unload so I can really start blogging with vengeance?
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