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Film premieres

By Michele Narov 11:23am

Film premieres

Susan Sarandon and director Alison Klayman. (Andrew Toth/PatrickMcMullan.com)

Susan Sarandon on the Perils of Censorship at the Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry Premiere

New Yorkers who walked by the Pulitzer Fountain outside the Plaza Hotel last summer might have been familiar with the artist Ai Weiwei, or at least with his work. His large, striking bronze sculptures, an interpretation of the Chinese zodiac, were impossible to miss on the walk across town on 59th Street.

But what they may not have known was that the installation went on without the artist: he was missing, detained by the Chinese government, supposedly for tax evasion, after many his acts of protest against censorship.

Alison Klayman wants to fill in these gaps of knowledge. Her new documentary, Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry premiered last night at a Peggy Siegal Company screening at the Chelsea Clearview Cinema, hosted by Susan Sarandon, to a crowd mostly of New York City artists and film makers.

“I think whenever anyone sees censorship of any kind that the only way [censorship] can continue is if everyone is silent,” Ms. Sarandon told The Observer. “They used to say silence equals death.” Read More

By Drew Grant 6/21/12 9:30am

Film premieres

Mike Birbiglia invites Brooklyn to sleepwalk with him

BAMcinemaFest’s Opening Night: Sleepwalk With Me and Mike Birbiglia’s Birthday Bash

“I just want to dedicate this movie for anyone who has just moved in with their girlfriends,” Mike Birbiglia deadpanned last night after the screening of his directorial debut,  Sleepwalk With Me. Based on his one-man show that has been building up buzz for the past six or so years that he’s been performing it–resulting in a book, an off-Broadway show, and now a feature film– the cinematic version of Mr. Birbiglia’s story of strange sleep habits is full of pathos, comedy, and weird, weird imagery.

After premiering at Sundance, Sleepwalk was chosen to open the yearly BAMcinemaFest, an annual self-referential Brooklyn film festival in which the majority of the films feature characters suffering from New York ennui and the term “psychodrama” is used haphazardly in the blurbs. For this purpose, opening BAM’s movie week with Sleepwalk was a smart move by the festival’s organizers: it’s about a New Yorker who, for all the film’s comedy, has to deal with deeply distressing sociometry stemming from his night time behavior.

Without spoiling the plot, let’s just say that Mr. Birbiglia’s relationship comment was a tad…barbed.

But not to end the screening on a sad note,  the co-host for the evening, NPR’s Ira Glass, announced a special surprise: As a giant cake decorated like a pizza was brought onstage, Mr. Glass wished  Mr. Birbiglia’s a happy 34th birthday. Read More