Ingrid Bergman, Margaret O'Brien, and Delusional Downtown Divas

I've spent the last couple of days reading Notorious, Donald Spoto's biography of Ingrid Bergman. I'm just less than halfway into it. Not bad.

I spent some of yesterday afternoon watching Lena Dunham's web series for Index Magazine, Delusional Downtown Divas. Despite being a Computer Art major and having studied 20th Century Art History extensively, I had no idea that Lena Dunham's parents were prominent artists in the '80s art scene until I googled her after seeing Creative Nonfiction. No doubt that growing up in this environment served as the inspiration for Delusional Downtown Divas. Since Index's website doesn't allow you to embed the video elsewhere, I'm going to link to the best episodes:

Ry Russo-Young and Amy Seimetz guest star in this episode, which features them as members of Mountain Don't, the Feminist Art Collective that the title characters are trying to get into

This episode features a not-immediately-recognizable Mary Bronstein as an assistant to a legendary "Penis Painter" that AgNess is trying to get a job with.

Finally, Isaac Mizrahi guest stars in an episode. The girls seek Mizrahi out for advice on how to make art their career.

Also yesterday afternoon, I saw a movie I DVR'd on TCM called Her First Romance, starring Margaret O'Brien and released by Columbia in 1951, not long after O'Brien was released from her contract. I've been intrigued by this movie since I read about it in Cinemania (Microsoft's CD-ROM forerunner to the IMDb) when I was 13.

It was entertaining enough. The plot isn't really that much different from your average DCOM. O'Brien's character has a crush on a boy, chases him to summer camp, and goes so far as to hitchhike back to her father's ice factory to steal money (and, accidentally an important note), which nearly puts her father out of business so that she can compete in "Mardi Gras Games" with him. Elinor Donahue, a few years before Father Knows Best, appears in the film as O'Brien's rival.

However, seeing O'Brien in this after seeing her in Meet Me In St. Louis is a little disappointing. The intensity she had in that movie is not present here; if anything, it seems marginalized. Still, O'Brien managed to make something of a transition into being an adult actress, but like her fellow child star Hayley Mills, her greatest adult successes have been in the theater.

Parallel Life

There's nothing like having your hands tied. On one hand, I have visions of a more exciting life ahead of me. Yesterday, I published the Ry Russo-Young interview, and next week, I'll be off to Austin for SXSW. Also, I have the Are You From Bingo? DVD project, and the other project I'm working on right now.

Today I was reading a memoir of the person I'm hoping to do a documentary on, where she talks about her experiences with her travels, and her relationships--romantic and friendly. I also peered through a travel guide on Costa Rica in preparation for another interview I'm hoping to do for The Film Panel Notetaker. When I was young, I wanted to travel the world, going this place and that place. Unfortunately, money and circumstance eventually tempered those ambitions, but now I'm entertaining those fantasies again. Costa Rica would be fun, but I'd love to visit Greece, Italy, the South of France, and Bali, among other places.

At the same time, I must contend with my current reality. I continue to look for work the way I always have--sending out resumes, going for interviews. It's never been particularly fun (unless I've gotten a job), but job hunting anywhere is becoming more and more out of place. With that being said, I'll be taking a test tomorrow with the possibility of working on the 2010 census. The job will start in April and last 6-8 weeks. If I get the job, I figured by the time it starts, I'll be ready for another job. It's only temporary, and it doesn't seem too dull, so why not?

My Ry Russo-Young Interview

My interview with Ry Russo-Young is now online at The Film Panel Notetaker. Click on the picture of Ry below, and it will take you directly to the interview.

I plan on starting to lay out the zine soon, but I don't know if I'll have a chance to start before I leave for Austin. I have an incredibly busy week ahead of me as I also begin to coordinate to shoot the new interviews for Are You From Bingo? DVD.

Catching Up

I've been incredibly busy the last few days. Thursday and Friday were in the 50s, and I took advantage of that by doing a lot of walking. Thursday, I put some finishing touches on Are You From Bingo?, and yesterday I taped an introduction that will go on the on-demand and the video download of the movie.

This morning and in the early afternoon, I readied the Ry Russo-Young interview for The Film Panel Notetaker, and I plan on posting it Monday morning.

Last night, I watched a press screener of Modern Love is Automatic, which is premiering at SXSW this year. (I'll write more about it soon.) This afternoon, I saw The Wrestler, which was very good, but the wrestling scenes were pretty gruesome. Good to see Mickey Rourke back in the game, though. Tonight, I'm going to watch Luis Bunuel's Simon of the Desert, which looks really good.

When I found out that they were cutting all temps at Emerson, I was a little disappointed. Two months later, I realize that it may have been for the best. I've gotten a lot of stuff done that may have been very difficult to do otherwise, like Bingo, and the other projects I'm starting on now. The time off has given me a real chance to clear my head, and I'm in a much better place now.

Erin's Stimulus Package

The verdict is in. I will be able to collect unemployment. The judge based my decision on me having admitted to making an honest mistake--that when I first applied for unemployment, I put down "discharged" rather than "fired". For most of the weekend, I had flashbacks to the worst parts of my work experience. I didn't really want to know the verdict, since I thought it would be "no" based on my incompetence. I will be conservative with the money and will continue to look for work, but this is a great relief.

Yesterday, I finally got a call from the person I wanted to do a documentary on. She raised a lot of valid concerns, such as what kind of audience this potential movie might have, and clearances I'll have to make in regards to taking a camera into prison. (I'll elaborate eventually.) But she seems to be interested. We told each other that we would stay in touch. Today I went to the library in Ithaca and picked up her memoir. This person isn't a big celebrity, but I'm not ready to disclose who it is, either.

I also interviewed Ry Russo-Young for The Film Panel Notetaker and the zine. My method I used to record the conversation involved holding my shotgun mic to my speakerphone, so some of the audibility is questionable. But I should be able to transcribe most of it.

Looking for an Orphan'd House

I've decided to look for a place to house sit for next month. Right now I'm staying with a friend, but it's a little cramped, and I where I sleep isn't too comfortable. I'm going to put up an ad in Ithaca's Craigslist, and I have posted a couple of flyers downtown. I hope I get a response and a decent bed.

In other news, I just found out Ry Russo-Young's Orphans has been out on DVD for two months, and has a new movie premiering at Sundance. I've been wanting to see Orphans forever, and her new movie looks pretty good, too. I have put it at the top of my Netflix Queue, and I can't wait to see it.