Maurizio Giammarco Discusses THE GREAT BEAUTY

BMFI faculty member Maurizio Giammarco, Ph.D., delves into the Academy Award-nominated Italian film The Great Beauty, which BMFI is currently showing. Join him for a free discussion of the film on Sunday, February 9 after the 1:30 pm show.

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Paolo Sorrentino’s The Great Beauty

By Maurizio Giammarco, Ph.D., Intellectual Heritage Program, Temple University

It's been fifteen years since an Italian movie, Roberto Benigni's Life is Beautiful, won the Academy Award for best foreign-language film, and in that interim only one film from Italy has even received a nomination. However, this year's list of foreign film nominees includes a compelling entry from Italy, The Great Beauty (la grande bellezza), directed by Paolo Sorrentino.

Paolo Sorrentino was born in Naples, and after making a series of short films, followed by his 2001 feature debut, One Man Up (L'uomo in piu), achieved international recognition in 2004 for his stylish thriller The Consequences of Love (Le conseguenze dell'amore), which explores the mindset of a lonely businessman who is being used as a pawn by the Mafia. The film, starring Toni Servillo, won many awards and was nominated for the Palme d'Or at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival. After his next feature, The Family Friend (L'amico di famiglia), Sorrentino achieved recognition for Il Divo, a dramatized biography of Giulio Andreotti, the controversial three-time Italian prime minister. The feature, which won the Prix du Jury at the Cannes Film Festival, reunited Sorrentino with the star of The Consequences, Toni Servillo, who plays the role of Andreotti. In 2008, Sorrentino directed This Must be the Place, an English-language story featuring Sean Penn as a rock singer who tries to avenge his Holocaust-survivor father.

With The Great Beauty, Sorrentino not only returned to Italy, he has also taken on its past and how it weighs upon the present and future. Set in Rome, the Eternal City, the film follows Jep Gambardella, a sybarite played with wit and soul by Toni Servillo, who dances into the story while celebrating his 65th birthday. Four decades earlier, Jep's only novel, The Human Apparatus, was celebrated as a masterpiece, but these days he works—if barely—as a journalist and lives in a terraced apartment overlooking the Colosseum. He was, he says during his party, “destined for sensibility.”

The film opens with lines from Céline's Journey to the End of the Night: "To travel is very useful, it makes the imagination work, the rest is just delusion and pain. Our journey is entirely imaginary, which is its strength..."

The film has been widely praised, described as ravishing in its look as it examines la dolce vita in Italy after the years of the Silvio Berlusconi era. Indeed, many critics have noted the influence of the maestro himself, Federico Fellini, upon the film. In fact, The Great Beauty is indebted to three films by Fellini: La Dolce Vita, 8 1/2, and Fellini's Roma.

In an interview with The New York Times, Sorrentino offered several reflections on The Great Beauty, Italian alienation, Federico Fellini, and Rome. On the comparison made between The Great Beauty and La Dolce Vita, and on Fellini:

“...I know that the idea of this movie worked in the same context as some of [Fellini's], but 50 years later. La Dolce Vita is a film that tries to understand the meaning of life in a world that is losing this meaning. That is a sensation I can feel right now in Rome, the sense that life is futile, that you can't find a real sense of purpose. I think the vulgarity is more accentuated [today than 50 years ago] as is the loss of the sense of pudore, of shame or modesty or reserve. This is the feeling of my movie...For me Fellini is the most important director, my point of reference. So such comparisons [between the two films] are flattering. I'm also embarrassed, because I think he made masterpieces, and I don't.”

On the idea for the film:

“I'm from Naples, but I always wanted to do a movie about Rome. I had the idea of a character who could be a kind of Virgil from The Divine Comedy, of a journalist and writer who could be inside. But before starting, I read many things about Flaubert and his idea to write a book about nothing. All the things I had collected about Rome were exactly about this: it's life, but it's nothing. This was very fascinating for me.”

Jep, a one-time successful novelist, spends his days entertaining socialites and the literary elite. A shock on his 65th birthday causes him to reexamine vivid memories from his past as he struggles to find meaning in the present.

On the film's portrayal of the Berlusconi era:

“Berlusconi made a great contribution to this culture of nothing. He's an example of this attitude. There were all sorts of reports of Berlusconi being expected in Parliament to discuss important matters, and he kept everyone waiting because he was busy doing frivolous things. So Berlusconi has contributed greatly to this culture of distraction from important issues. He has promoted a culture of escapism.”

On Rome:

“The city is one of the most beautiful in the world, built by the Italian people many, many years ago. But now the people who are in Italy are not able to replicate that beauty. In a very simple way, the contrast between the beauty of the city and the lack of beauty of the people could be a motive for reflection...Rome is a place where, more than any other city, the sacred and the profane go together, and so I decided to use both kinds of music [sacred and disco] to show what Rome can be. Rome is a city where in every corner you have a reminder of the sacred world. That's why I have sacred music, minimalist sacred music, which is also music I like, because at the end of the day that's what I want to do. I'm thinking of pieces by David Lang, Aarvo Part or Tavener. They are useful for me to talk about the nature of a city which is imbued with sacrality but inevitably ends up diving deep down into emptiness.”

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Maurizio Giammarco received his M.A. in Creative Writing and Ph.D. in English from Temple University and has taught at the university for eighteen years. He is one of Bryn Mawr Film Institute’s most popular instructors and is currently teaching the sold-out course, Il Maestro: The Carnivalesque Cinema of Federico Fellini, Pt. 2. He will lead a free discussion of The Great Beauty at BMFI after the 1:30 pm show on Sunday, February 9.

Devin Wachs: Three Reasons Why I Love Oscar Night

Bryn Mawr Film Institute is gearing up for its The Best Exotic Oscar Party on Sunday, February 24, featuring the Academy Awards simulcast on the big screen, a gourmet buffet dinner, exotic décor, raffle drawings, and more. Learn why Public Relations Manager Devin Wachs loves this special night.

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Three Reasons Why I Love Oscar Night
By Devin Wachs, Public Relations Manager, BMFI

One of the first Oscar ceremonies I vividly remember involved Roberto Benigni climbing over chairs to reach the stage to accept his award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture, the first given to a male performer in a non-English-speaking role. That was fourteen years ago, and I’ve tried to watch at least some of the broadcast every year since.

Why do I love the Academy Awards? Here's my countdown:

3) The glitz and glamour.
When every fashion faux pas or bad hair day that an actor has is broadcast around the world instantly online and in celebrity gossip magazines, it’s nice to see a little bit of the classical Hollywood glamour return, even if it’s just for one big night each year. Seeing starlets posing in designer gowns with their hair done just so is a nice dose of fantasy. I know that I’ll see a shot of them in yoga pants running to the mini-mart when I open my browser the next day, but they really do appear larger than life for a little while.

2) It’s a game.
I may not always see every nominated “Best” film or performance, and until the short films began being distributed to theaters (we’re showing the Oscar-nominated animated and live action shorts starting today), I never saw any of those. Even so, I love making predictions about who is going to win. It’s like a giant, global game for film buffs and anyone can join in on the fun. Several years ago I even won a prize for getting the most predictions right in our office. (Which isn’t to say I got them mostly right—I didn’t—I just had more luck than some of my colleagues did.) Even when prizes aren’t on the line, it’s fun to test yourself to see how well your cinematic ideals match up with the Academy.

1) Dreams come true.
What child or teen who loves film hasn’t imagined winning an Oscar and practiced their victory speech? I know I certainly did. (It is a very gracious speech.) Winning is still the ultimate validation of one’s work in the film industry. Although the value of that endorsement and how it is determined can be seriously debated, “And the Oscar goes to…” is the stuff dreams are made of. When I watch the Oscars, I imagine what it must be like for the people called to the stage. Some might think displays like Benigni’s are showy or crass, but I love it when winners show how excited they are. It makes me think that my own dreams can happen too, however unlikely or improbable. And that’s the real reason why I love the Oscars.

Those are three reasons why I make watching the Oscars a yearly ritual, and why I’ll be catching as much of this year’s ceremony as I can at BMFI’s The Best Exotic Oscar Party. I’d love to compare ballots with you.

What do you love about the Oscars? Tell me in the comments below.

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Devin Wachs is the Public Relations Manager for Bryn Mawr Film Institute. She joined BMFI in 2005, following her graduation from Bryn Mawr College. If you send BMFI a message on Facebook or Twitter or are interested in onscreen sponsorships, she's the one who'll be in touch!

The Best Exotic Oscar Party Contest: We Have a Winner!

By Devin Wachs, Public Relations Manager, BMFI

Thank you to everyone who entered our contest to win two tickets to BMFI's The Best Exotic Oscar Party! We enjoyed reading about which Best Picture nominee you thought should walk home with the Academy Award on Sunday, February 24.

Entries were judged on how persuasive and creative they were. We enjoyed all of them, but one proved to be a resounding favorite.

Whether or not Beasts of the Southern Wild wins the gold, film fan Robin Terry is our winner!

It is without a doubt I support Beasts of the Southern Wild for Best Picture of the year. Asking us to probe deeply into our own fears and dreams, in a way redolent of Where the Wild Things Are, this movie challenges our notion of safety, complex interpersonal reactions and joy. In a manner akin to magical surrealism, this movie transcends the ordinary in a way that makes you believe, just a little bit, that our inner monsters are real and our dysfunctional life is normal. The music, acting, directing and general tone of the film trigger all sorts of feelings in the watcher and it is fairly riveting in nature. I saw this movie twice and promoted it by writing the producers and having post cards to hand out to my therapy clients (I am a psychologist). I want to come to your party and jump for joy when they call this picture's "family" to the stage.

I don't know if the film will win Best Picture, Robin, but you and a guest will be able to watch in style at The Best Exotic Oscar Party as our guest. Congratulations! Please call me at 610-527-4008 x105 to claim your prize.

You can read all of the entries in the comments here.

Even if you didn't win this contest, you can still attend The Best Exotic Oscar Party. Tickets are available online here and in person at the Box Office. See you on Oscar night!

BMFI's Oscar Party

By Devin Wachs, Public Relations Manager, BMFI

Sunday, February 26 might seem a world away now that blossoms are on the trees, but the time has moved quickly at BMFI with the roll out of our spring events. I hope that you'll forgive us for the delay in posting these photos from our Oscar Party.

Over 230 guests enjoyed BMFI's fourth annual Oscar Party, which featured the Academy Awards broadcast larger-than-life on the big screen. In addition to the live simulcast of the Oscars, the event included a silent auction and a gourmet buffet dinner from JPM Catering & Events that was paired with complimentary beer selections from Victory Brewing Company. The evening was sponsored by the Delaware Valley Audi Dealers and all proceeds benefited BMFI.

We appreciate the support of our sponsors, auction donors, guests, volunteers, and staff--thank you for helping to bring a little bit of Hollywood to Bryn Mawr.

BMFI President Juliet Goodfriend dressed in Oscar gold for the theater's fourth annual Oscar Party fundraiser. Photo by Alexis Mayer.

Oscar Party guests browse the silent auction items in BMFI's arcade. Photo by Alexis Mayer.

Delaware Valley Audi Dealers sponsored BMFI's Oscar Party. Audi's Laura Zieske and Michael and Lauren Walsh of Wynnewood show off their red carpet style. Photo by Joel Perlish.

BMFI's Valerie Temple and Andrew Douglas were psyched for their night as emcees. Photo by Alexis Mayer.

Our volunteers are all-stars! Frequent volunteer Jack Rutkowski, one of the evening's bartenders, pours a glass of wine for a guest. Photo by Joel Perlish.  

We hosted a raffle to win a five-night stay at an apartment in Paris. Volunteer Sara Douglas poses with the raffle display at the Oscar Party. The drawing was held on March 12, BMFI's seventh anniversary. Photo by Alexis Mayer.

Volunteer Barbara Murray of String Variations graciously provided lovely music in the arcade. Guests in the upstairs Multimedia Room enjoyed a live guitar duo. Photo by Joel Perlish.

We encouraged guests to dress in their red carpet best or come in costumes inspired by the nominated films. Gladys Saldana dressed in this vintage outfit as a tribute to Best Picture winner The Artist. Photo by Joel Perlish.

Elana Starr, the winner of BMFI's Oscar Party contest, brought her husband, Larry. Her beret is also a "nod" to the French The Artist. Photo by Joel Perlish.

Brief and Definitely Sweet: The 2012 Oscar-nominated Animated Shorts

Here at BMFI, we are excited for the Academy Awards! We'll be celebrating in style at our Oscar Party, and in addition to showing many of the nominated features over the past year (including The Artist and The Descendants), the Oscar-nominated animated, live action, and documentary shorts have recently taken our screens by storm. BMFI guest blogger Diane Mina Weltman presents her review of the animated shorts below. If you've seen them, which one will you be rooting for on Oscar night?

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Brief and Definitely Sweet
By Diane Mina Weltman, BMFI Guest Blogger

And the Oscar goes to...

That familiar pregnant pause on Oscar night gives viewers one more chance to silently choose the winner before it is revealed. Up until that moment, who will win Best Actor and Actress, Best Director and Best Picture are topics on moviegoers’ tongues for weeks before the Academy Awards ceremony.

But when is the last time you heard someone argue the finer points of what animated short film will capture the golden statue? Thanks to some clever marketing, the likelihood of just such a conversation is greater than ever as Oscar’s lesser known contenders have become more accessible to filmgoers.

Bryn Mawr Film Institute (along with other area art cinemas) is screening three categories of Oscar-nominated films that otherwise would go unnoticed by the general public. Separate screenings of the nominated live action shorts, animated shorts, and documentary shorts are being shown to better acquaint movie fans with these time-condensed genres. ShortsHD opened up this annual screening practice in 2005 and audiences have jumped at the chance to learn more about entries in these genres.
As a film enthusiast, seeing them makes me feel like an Oscar insider.

The animated short films emotionally transported me back to my Saturday-morning-cartoon-filled youth. I watched transfixed at the colorful, whimsical parade of images floating across the screen. The cartoon analogy ended there, however, because these films swim in sophisticated waters. Themes of isolation, hope, the environment, parental expectations, and more are interpreted in broad color spectrums using minimal dialogue.

The notable differences between each animated short film emphasize the endless creative options filmmakers have available today to realize their vision.

"Dimanche/Sunday", directed by Patrick Doyon

Two Canadian entries, "Dimanche/Sunday" and "Wild Life", use the vast Canadian landscape as backdrop to their stories. A young boy and his routine weekly visit with relatives is juxtaposed with a speeding train that literally shakes everything around it as it frequently passes by the sparse homes in "Dimanche". No dialogue is used as the boy’s understated isolation and childhood ennui are bracketed by oversized adults and the overpowering locomotive. Life is moving too fast and loud on the outside while the child’s world reflects a slow, quiet interior. The “T”-shaped feet drawn on every character made me chuckle and created a cartoonish style to the black and white short.

"Wild Life", directed by Amanda Forbis and Wendy Tilby

"Wild Life"’s sweeping vistas of softly colored quilt-like images make up the countryside where a young adventurous man of means sets off to be a gentleman farmer. With an overly romanticized view of his new surroundings, the young dandy is a curiosity to his few rural neighbors as well as a disappointment to his entitled father. He realizes the gravity of his choice as winter approaches and he literally succumbs to its overwhelming power. It reminded me of the 2007 feature film Into the Wild and how an untamed world can crush the most curious of souls.

"A Morning Stroll", directed by Grant Orchard and Sue Goffe

A lone, unsuspecting chicken saunters along the same urban street in 1959, 2009, and 2059 in "A Morning Stroll". While the chicken follows the same path, hops up several steps, pecks on the same front door to gain entrance, nothing is the same around him. The nonplussed capon travels through three vastly different scenarios before he reaches his destination, making this stark short film the most rambunctious of all the contenders. The bird’s journey is short, but each time period presents its own brand of danger and dark forces, giving a pointed view of humanity’s decline over time. The bird reminded me of a much slower, plumper version of the beloved Looney Tunes character, the Road Runner, as things and people explode around him while he casually continues on his way.

"La Luna", Disney’s Pixar Studios offering, presents a child’s wide-eyed wonder as he helps his father and grandfather harness the moon to do some lunar clean up. The threesome climb a ladder into space to sweep up the sparkling glass stars covering the moon. Both men rediscover the magic of their duties as they watch the youngster embrace the enchanted lunar surface. Moonlight and starlight illuminate the human warmth in this sweet, multi-generational tale.

Pixar's "La Luna", directed by Enrico Casarosa

My favorite of the bunch, however, was "The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore". We meet the bookish Mr. Morris as a hurricane-like wind blows him and his book stacks off an iron-railed porch in New Orleans (a Katrina reference perhaps?) and sends him into a world of life-like books. He hesitantly enters a wondrous home library where books dance and play with exuberance and he learns to embrace their whimsy. Books as birds strike the perfect chord as they excitedly flutter when Mr. Morris gives them attention. The film demonstrated for me how we, as readers, are transported by books, if we just allow ourselves to become lifted into their worlds.

"The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore", directed by William Joyce and Brandon Oldenburg

Three additional films titled "Amazonia", "Skylight", and "Nullarbor" rounded out the animated short offerings and added a rich dimension to the whole experience. You can bet I won’t be getting popcorn out of the microwave this Sunday when the Oscar for Best Animated Short Film is about to be presented.

This year I’ll whisper my personal choice, like any other Oscar insider.

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Diane Mina Weltman is a BMFI member who enjoys attending performing and visual arts events and writing about them. Check out her blog, A Subject for Consideration.

BMFI's Oscar Party a Winner!

By Devin Wachs, Public Relations Coordinator

Bryn Mawr Film Institute celebrated its third annual Oscar Party in style on Sunday, February 28. Over 240 guests watched a big screen simulcast of the 83rd Academy Awards in the theater and enjoyed a gourmet buffet dinner, La Colombe coffee, a cash bar, and a silent auction. All proceeds benefited Bryn Mawr Film Institute. We met our fundraising goals for the party and had fun doing it! Check out some of our photos below. You can also find more photos online at Bryn Mawr-Gladwyne Patch.

Guests were serenaded by String Variations' Barbara Murray and Gael Abbasi.

Guests were encouraged to wear their red carpet best or come in costumes inspired by one of the nominated films. Joan Shrager (posing here with our Oscar ice sculpture) spent two hours getting her Black Swan makeup just right.

Allyson Gaht and Shannon Leahy-Miller took their costume cue from nominee True Grit, while Debra McKaibben  (center) was ready for the red carpet.

JPM Catering and Events catered our Oscar Party. The menu included braised beef shortribs, lemon chicken, and chilled spinach tortellini.

Oscar Party volunteer committee members Toby Blender and Gus Cileone manned the upstairs bar.

Joel Shoulson chats with event co-chair Phyllis Liebert and event chair Betsy Klausman.  

Our Oscar Party Contest winner Janice Marini (right), who got our vote for "Best Acceptance Speech", posed with friend Lisa Longo. 

Chris Daly and Brian Crawley study the silent auction items. Guests bid on everything from gift certificates to Margaret Kuo's and The Capital Grille to a deluxe vacation in Aruba.  

Lee Cummings posed with her silent auction find: an "Oscar statue" of her very own!

Our committee members posed with BMFI President Juliet Goodfriend (seated) before the event. A big thank you to our volunteers!

We hope that everyone enjoyed themselves. Our sincere thanks go out to all of our guests, members, sponsors, and volunteers! We appreciate your support of BMFI and look forward to seeing you at next year's Oscar Party!

Check out this week's issue of City Suburban News and next week's Main Line Times and Main Line Suburban Life for more photos from our Oscar Party.

Photos by Devin Wachs and Emmy Chotalal for Bryn Mawr Film Institute

Another Winner Will Walk Our Red Carpet on Oscar Night

By Devin Wachs, Public Relations Coordinator

Only nine days until BMFI celebrates the 83rd Academy Awards with its third annual Oscar Party! on Sunday, February 27. Guests will watch a big-screen simulcast of the Oscars and enjoy a gourmet buffet dinner, drinks, cash bar, and silent auction. Tickets are going fast! Have you bought your ticket?

Last week we announced a contest to win two tickets to our Oscar Party! Thirty-one contestants made their cases for the award category that they'd most like to see added to the ceremony. All of the entries were creative and entertaining. But, like the Best Picture Oscar, only one can take home the prize: Lawrence, you've won two tickets to BMFI's Oscar Party! The winning award category: Best Movie We Forgot to Nominate a Decade Ago.

The three runners up were Brenda McFadden (Best Break-Out Role), Miranda (Best Low-Budget Picture), and Rhianna Shaheen (Best Meryl Streep Performance of the Year). Runners up will receive two free passes to BMFI! Read the winning entries below and the rest of the entries in the comments here.

The Winner:
Lawrence for Best Movie We Forgot to Nominate a Decade Ago
What do movies like Metropolis, Scarface, King Kong (1933 version), Modern Times, Sullivan’s Travels, The African Queen, The Searchers, Some Like it Hot, Psycho, 2001: A Space Odyssey, The Wild Bunch, The Empire Strikes Back, and Blade Runner all have in common? They would arguably be considered classic and/or great movies that were never recognized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences with a nomination for Best Picture. This award has been created to correct such injustices. This award for the “Best Movie We Forgot to Nominate a Decade Ago” goes to the movie that 10 years ago should have been recognized with a Best Picture award nomination (or win) but received neither. This film has stood the test of time, and has continued to receive critical and popular acclaim, and finally deserves to be recognized. Partly to avoid this omission, the Academy has now expanded the number of nominees for Best Picture from five to ten films, so it will be harder to find a winning picture starting in 2019 (although Star Trek stands a chance). The award considers films released 10 years ago, so that the 2010 Academy Award would go to a film released in 2000. My proposed six nominees (I had trouble whittling it down to five) for the 2010 award are: Almost Famous, Billy Elliot, Cast Away, Memento, O Brother, Where Art Thou?, and Requiem for a Dream, although we would have to go through the formal nominee selection process (and only have five) to be fair.


The Runners Up:
Rhianna Shaheen for Best Meryl Streep Performance of the Year: 
Obviouslyyy the Academy should give Meryl Streep her own category. How about Best Meryl Streep Performance of the Year…Yes/Yes? Let’s just face it; this woman should just get an award for simply EXISTING! First of all, her perfection on screen can make any so-so movie absolutely fabulous. Mamma Mia anyone? Secondly, what's an Oscar season without Meryl's magic? I mean really it feels a little empty this year. And lastly for having received an astounding total of 16 nominations over the course of her 34 year career the MOST deserving actress in Hollywood has only won TWICE!!! TWICE?? HOW DOES THIS EVEN HAPPEN? With her own category all can be forgiven, Academy. No worries! ☺
For your consideration:
Rhianna Shaheen

Miranda for Best Low-Budget Picture:
I’d like to see an award for Best Low-Budget Picture. Maybe use $5 million as a cut-off. A few of my favorites this year were Blue Valentine, Fish Tank, Tiny Furniture & Please Give, none of which cost more than $3 million and Tiny Furniture cost just $45,000! Compare that to the Oscar front runners - The King’s Speech at $15 million, True Grit at $38 million and Social Network at $40 million. Consider that ALL Academy members vote to nominate the ten Best Picture candidates and the production designers, costumers, cinematographers and sound designers probably have a lesser appreciation for low and micro-budget films, which by necessity have more technical limitations.

Brenda McFadden for Best Break-Out Role:
I would like to see a category for Best Break-Out Role--something like the Grammy for Best New Artist, though it would not necessarily have to be a brand new actor--just an actor or actress who has not had a Stand-Out performance in the past. It could be a young, new actor or it could even be a veteran who has always been cast in small roles or bad movies. This award is often stolen by a Best Supporting Actress nominee, sometimes leaving the true BSA without her Oscar. For instance, this year Hailee S. in True Grit would be one of the Break-Out (or Stand-Out or "Best Role") nominees (and in my opinion the Winner). Plus I like the idea of a category that includes male and female actors. Yes, we need to have an Oscar for "Best Role"!

Thanks for competing, everyone!

Another Chance to Win Two Free Tickets to BMFI's Oscar Party!

By Devin Wachs, Public Relations Coordinator

BMFI is awarding two free tickets to our third annual Oscar Party! on Sunday, February 27 to one lucky contestant! Great movies deserve to be watched on the big screen, and so do the 83rd Academy Awards. Enjoy a silver screen simulcast of Hollywood’s biggest night while you and a friend enjoy a gourmet buffet dinner, drinks, cash bar, and silent auction.

Every year, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Board of Governors meets to consider new categories. It's been ten years since they added a new award: Best Animated Feature. (Shrek took home the gold.)

Pretend that we’re on the Board. Make a case in for the award category that you’d most like to see added to the ceremony by commenting below. The person who submits the most creative and convincing entry, as judged by BMFI staff, will win two tickets to our Oscar Party! Perhaps you’d like to bring back awards long since eliminated (eg. Best Dance Direction, Best Assistant Director), or maybe you’re part of the campaign to recognize the work of stunt coordinators. Post your entry by Monday, February 14 at 5pm. We'll announce the winner next week.

And remember to buy your tickets before it's too late!

Please note: When posting your comment, you will be asked to select a log-in from a list. If you do not have a Google account, etc., please select either 1) "Name/URL", which requires that you have a valid website address of your own, or 2) "Anonymous". If you select the latter, please be sure to sign your name in the post. Thanks!

The nominations are in... and we have a winner!

By Devin Wachs, Public Relations Coordinator

It's official. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced the contenders for the most coveted prize in Hollywood, Oscar gold. The King's Speech snagged the most Oscar nominations--a whopping twelve--and Black Swan has a chance to take home five prizes. But who will take home a statue? Who will give an acceptance speech? Who will become a part of Hollywood history?

Last week, we encouraged you to write your own Oscar acceptance speech for a chance to win two tickets to our Oscar Party! on February 27, which will feature a big screen simulcast of the Academy Awards, gourmet food, delicious drinks, a cash bar, and a silent auction. We received a number of wonderful (and very creative) entries, but it was Colin Firth and the cookies that put us over the top. Congratulations, Janice Marini, you've won!

Here's her winning entry:

Colin Firth reads the card. "And the Academy Award for Best Screenplay Adaptation goes to... JANICE MARINI for Salmon and Name Tags: My Life in Special Events, based on her novel of the same name..." I slink to the stage in red Prada. Somehow my hair stays perfect, and my mascara isn't running even though tears are slowly running down my face. Colin hands me the statuette and kisses me like it's the end of Bridget Jones's Diary. When I catch my breath, I look out toward the audience and camera and jokingly send a message to Ardmore: "Eat your heart out, Rosemary." Then I thank the studio, my agents, my publisher, my publicist, and the incredible cast, especially Keira Knightley, for bringing the main character to life. I thank my incredible director Ken Loach for his stunning work--since a slapsticky American comedy was a bit of a departure for him... I thank my former boss by name (which I won't do here!) for the endless supply of material and daily humiliations that beame the backbone of Salmon and Name Tags. I thank Archway Dutch Cocoa cookies for fueling the effort to write the screenplay. I acknowledge my family by name, all my friends in Philadelphia, and end by thanking my wonderful husband Joe. I couldn't have done it without his endless reserves of good humor, encouragement and love.

You can read all of the entries here (scroll down to the comments). And remember to buy your tickets before it's too late!

Win Tickets to BMFI's Oscar Party!

By Devin Wachs, Public Relations Coordinator

It's that time of year. Time for red carpet, champagne, and glitzy dresses. Time for the movie stars to truly shine. Time for BMFI's Oscar Party!

Join us on February 27 for BMFI's third annual Oscar Party! Celebrate Hollywood's hottest night in style. Enjoy a gourmet buffet dinner, drinks, a cash bar, and a silent auction, and watch the Oscars simulcast live on our big screen. Tickets are available at the Box Office and online here.

Want to be a winner yourself? Imagine that you're in the Kodak Theater and your name is called. Did you hear right? Yes, you won! You can hardly believe it, you've been dreaming of this day since you were a kid.

Tell us what you would say or do in your acceptance speech. Post it in the comments here. A jury of your peers will choose a winner to receive two tickets to our Oscar Party! Entries must be posted by Monday, January 24 at noon. We'll announce the winners next week.

Please note: When posting your comment, you will be asked to select a log-in from a list. If you do not have a Google account, etc., please select either 1) "Name/URL", which requires that you have a valid website address of your own, or 2) "Anonymous". If you select the latter, please be sure to sign your name in the post. Thanks!

And the Award Goes to... BMFI's Oscar Party 2011!

By Meredith Slifkin

“There’s no other way to describe it, it’s the moment of a lifetime.” Kathryn Bigelow uttered these heartfelt words at the 2010 Academy Awards after winning Best Director for The Hurt Locker, but she could easily have been referring to last year’s Oscar Party at BMFI!

The anticipation is mounting as Hollywood prepares to celebrate its best and brightest, and you can experience Oscar magic larger than life at BMFI’s third annual Oscar Party. The 83rd Academy Awards will be simulcast live from Hollywood on BMFI’s big screen on Sunday, February 27 at 7:00pm.

"Hello Gorgeous"

There’s no better way to experience Hollywood’s party of the year than right here where we’ll have all the glitz and glamour of the real thing, but with a better view. At the Kodak Theatre you’d be stuck in the nosebleeds, but you’ll be able to see every glorious pore on George Clooney’s face on the big screen at BMFI. You may not walk home with a gold statue, but there will be good food, good company, plentiful spirits, and a silent auction! Back for its third year by popular demand, this year’s Oscar Party will offer a gourmet buffet dinner prepared by JPM Catering, and a myriad of social-lubricating cocktails at the cash bar.

"You like me, you really like me!"

There will also be a silent auction featuring gift certificates to some of the Main Line’s best restaurants and businesses including Mediterranean Grill, LeBus, and Margaret Kuo’s. All proceeds will benefit Bryn Mawr Film Institute so really it’s a win-win—you'll get to enjoy dinner at a delicious restaurant, while helping to ensure that your favorite non-profit movie theatre can keep on keeping on.

Don’t forget to come in your red-carpet best—evening gowns, dapper suits—or costumes inspired by the films. I expect to see at least one Black Swan-inspired outfit, and maybe a few Western hats to channel True Grit, or Harvard sweatshirts from The Social Network. (But please, don’t go so far as to pull a James Franco in 127 Hours…) However you show up, this party will be an amazing event full of fun, food, and film, all leading up to that exciting final moment—Best Picture!

"I'm the king of the world!"

Tickets for the Oscar Party are $55 for BMFI members and $65 general admission, and are available now for purchase online or at the box office.