Scene Magazine - September/October 2013 by Scene Magazine

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2013

THE NEW

CIVIC THEATRE

FAMILY GUY

REGINALD VELJOHNSON FOOTBALL FALL

LSU + SAINTS BEFORE THE SCENE WITH

KEVIN

COSTNER and Modern West

MICHAEL CUDLITZ preview:

NOLA FW 2013

New Orleans

November 1 - 3, 2013

PEARL JAM + NINE INCH NAILS CALVIN HARRIS + BASSNECTAR + PARAMORE MACKLEMORE & RYAN LEWIS + AFROJACK BOYS NOIZE + THE GASLIGHT ANTHEM + BIG GIGANTIC HOW TO DESTROY ANGELS + MATT & KIM + ALKALINE TRIO

PRESERVATION HALL JAZZ BAND + DIRTY SOUTH

DESAPARECIDOS + BEATS ANTIQUE + NEW FOUND GLORY CULTS + SAVOY + DELTA RAE + ANAMANAGUCHI + MOON TAXI ALLEN STONE + YOUNGBLOOD HAWKE + GTA + ZZ WARD RUDIMENTAL + THE REVIVALISTS + SHOVELS & ROPE + THE OLMS KEYS N KRATES + L.P. + G-EAZY + HE’S MY BROTHER, SHE’S MY SISTER HOCKEY + A SILENT FILM + ROBERT DELONG + THE VIRGINMARYS THE APACHE RELAY + THOSE DARLINS + REIGNWOLF + CC ADCOCK &

THE LAFAYETTE MARQUIS + RUBY AMANFU + FLEUR DE BRIS VODU ALL STARS FEATURING DAVID TORKANOWSKY, GEORGE PORTER, JR.,

& NICHOLAS PAYTON + BILLY SQUIER + JOHN MICHAEL ROUCHELL + FLOW TRIBE ROYAL TEETH + QUINTRON & MISS PUSSYCAT + ROLL THE TANKS + DAN DYER THE PURRS + ANDREW DUHON + THE BRETON SOUND + POOF! THE POP SHOW WITH CARMINE P. FILTHY & A BOY NAMED RUTH + THE SCORSESES + BIG HISTORY COYOTES + KINKY MACHINE + LEOPOLD AND HIS FICTION + CHURCH WITH

UNICORN FUKR, MR. COOL BAD GUY & GUESTS + LESLIE BLACKSHEAR SMITH & DOUBLE BLACK FEATURING SIMON LOTT, DJ RAYMOND, SHANE THERIOT, ALFRED “UGANDA” ROBERTS, TIM GREEN, IVAN NEVILLE, KIKI PHILLIPS, ERICA FALLS & MEHNAZ HOOSEIN PAUL VARISCO AND THE MILESTONES + PANIC IN EDEN + OH, JEREMIAH + HELLO NEGRO THE REAL NIGHT TRIPPER: DR JOHN FEATURING GEORGE PORTER, JR., HERLIN RILEY, ALFRED

"UGANDA" ROBERTS, SMOKEY JOHNSON, SHANE THERIOT, CHIEF MONK BOUDREAUX, NICHOLAS PAYTON, RODERICK PAULIN, SARAH MORROW, & TOPSY CHAPMAN & SOLID HARMONY + MUCH MORE

Join The

Ritual

worshipthemusic.com

VOL. 4, ISSUE 5 • September/October 2013 EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Micah Haley CREATIVE DIRECTOR Erin Theriot DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR Katianna Bear MANAGING EDITOR Catie Ragusa EDITORIAL ASSISTANTS Lindsey Hopton, Leah Stogner GRAPHIC ARTIST Burton Chatelain, Jr. DESIGN ASSISTANTS Alanna Scurlock SALES Brinkley Maginnis, Gene Jones, Casey Lott

EDITOR’S LETTER

his is an issue I look forward to every year. Because the best events of the year all happen in one month: October. As we prepare this issue, we’re also preparing to have more fun than we’ve had all year. First up is football! There’s always one day in the late summer when I wake up, and realize that I’ve been feeling down all summer. That day is the first game of the pre-season. Now that the Saints and Tigers have returned, I am whole again. Next is the New Orleans Film Festival. Jolene Pinder and Clint Bowie are busy planning a weeklong celebration of film, starting with a special opening night screening of Twelve Years a Slave. Reserve your credentials and plan your movie viewing experiences at www.neworleansfilmsociety.org. Now in its sixth season, New Orleans Fashion Week

8 | September/October 2013

returns in just a few weeks. The premiere fashion event promises to bring the best of the coming spring/summer season to the runway from September 28-October 5. As creative director Andi Eaton and everyone at NOLA Fashion Council prepare to present top Southern talent, you can follow along at www.nola-fashionweek.com. Last but certainly not least is the Voodoo Experience. Bar none my favorite music festival in Louisiana, Voodoo not only brings some of the greatest music to New Orleans, but it does it in the fall when the weather in City Park is beautiful. I can’t get enough of it. Get your tickets at www.worshipthemusic.com and I’ll see you there!

MICAH HALEY EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

editor@scenelouisiana.com

COVER PHOTO Beth Kleinpeter CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Beth Kleinpeter, Frank Masi, Suzanne Hanover, Reiner Bajo, Jaimie Trueblood, Jonathan Wenk, Brian Adams, Phillip V. Caruso, Jaap Buitendijk, Alan Markfield, Jamil Jones, Francois Duhamel, Stacy Revere, Matthew Stockman, Clay Enos, Mark Seliger, Chad M. West, Caitlin Barry, Stacy Brimer, Talon Tarter CONTRIBUTING WRITERS AJ Buckley, Leah Stogner, Arthur Vandelay, Susan Ross, Jacob Peterman, Andi Eaton, James Napper, III Scene Magazine At Raleigh Studios Baton Rouge 10000 Celtic Drive • Suite 201 • Baton Rouge, LA 70809 225-361-0701 At Second Line Stages 800 Richard St. • Suite 222 • New Orleans, LA 70130 504-224-2221 info@scenelouisiana.com • www.scenelouisiana.com Published By Louisiana Entertainment Publishers LLC & BIC Media Solutions For Louisiana Entertainment Publishers LLC CEO, Andre Champagne President, AJ Buckley Vice President, Micah Haley Display Advertising: Call Scene Magazine for a current rate card or visit www.scenelouisiana.com All submitted materials become the property of Louisiana Entertainment Publishers LLC. For subscriptions or more information visit our website www.scenelouisiana.com Copyright @ 2013 Louisiana Entertainment Publishers. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be used for solicitation or copied by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying or recording by any information storage or retrieval system, without the express written permission of the publisher.

CONTENTS

Antique rentals for your next production!

ON THE COVER

Kevin Costner ABOVE THE LINE

Kevin Costner & Modern West

SCENE ON

Celebs currently filming in Louisiana

BEFORE THE SCENE

A conversation with Michael Cudlitz

COMING SOON

LAST LOOKS

Family Guy Reginald Veljohnson

TODAY’S SCENE

Preview: NOFF 2013

SPORTS New Orleans Saints LSU Football

SCENE EXTRAS

For fine furniture to fabulous jewelry, We travel the world!

Notable News and Celebrities on the Scene

MUSIC/SOUND SPEED

The Civic Theater Reopens Voodoo Experience Preview

FASHION / THE RED CARPET 60 Preview: NOLAFA S/S 2013

PRODUCER’S CORNER

Doug Blake

ON THE SCENE

48 Hour Film Project

THE UNSCENE

10 | September/October 2013

13726 Perkins Rd. Suite C Baton Rouge, LA 70810 225-761-8444 www.maisonvictoria.com maisonvictoria@yahoo.com

SCENE ON WILL SMITH After Earth

WILL SMITH and his real-life son Jaden Smith are forced to survive Earth’s extreme circumstances as a father-son duo in this summer’s After Earth. Big Willie is currently in Louisiana filming the independent feature Focus, the film that brings I Love You Phillip Morris directors Glen Ficarra and John Requa back to New Orleans.

CHANNING TATUM White House Down Will Smith as Cypher Raige photo by Frank Masi

The magic man himself, Magic Mike star CHANNING TATUM recently rescued the President in White House Down. After filming 2011’s 21 Jump Street in New Orleans, Tatum opened the Bourbon Street bar Saints & Sinners. Now he’s back with Jonah Hill to film the sequel 22 Jump Street in New Orleans.

Channing Tatum as Cale photo by Reiner Bajo

ICE CUBE

21 Jump Street

Jonah Hill as himself photo by Suzanne Hanover

Rapper turned actor ICE CUBE plays a no-nonsense police captain who assigns rookie police officers Jenko (Channing Tatum) and Schmidt ( Jonah Hill) to uncover the forces behind a high school drug deal in 21 Jump Street. Ice Cube is currently in New Orleans filming the drug-bust comedy’s sequel, 22 Jump Street.

JONAH HILL This is the End

From Superbad to superstar, JONAH HILL earned an Academy Award nomination for his role in Moneyball alongside Brad Pitt. He also recently starred in This is the End, a film written, produced and directed by Seth Rogen, and filmed in New Orleans. After filming 21 Jump Street in New Orleans with Channing Tatum, he is currently back in the Crescent City filming 22 Jump Street, a sequel to the successful buddy cop comedy.

Ice Cube as Captain Dickson photo by Suzanne Hanover

MORE SCENE ON 12 | September/October 2013

open

SCENE ON VICTORIA JUSTICE Fun Size

Victorious star VICTORIA JUSTICE plays The actress also stars in 2012â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Fun Size, whose party plans are ruined when Wren brother. Justice is now in New Orleans for

Tori Vega in the hit Nickelodeon show. a Halloween night film featuring teens ( Justice) is forced to babysit her little the new ABC Family series Ravenswood.

NICOLAS CAGE

The Frozen Ground Victoria Justice as Wren photo by Jaimie Trueblood

Prolific leading man NICOLAS CAGE recently starred in The Frozen Ground as Jack Halcombe, an Alaska State Trooper searching for a serial killer. After filming in virtually every city in the state, Cage is now in Baton Rouge filming Left Behind, a series about the people left behind after the biblically foretold Rapture that released Christians from Earth. Nicolas Cage as Jack Halcombe photo by Brian Adams

CHARLIZE THERON Young Adult

Blonde beauty CHARLIZE THERON won an Oscar for her dressed down performance as serial killer Aileen Wuornos. In Young Adult, the South African actress is Mavis Gary, a newly divorced novelist for young adults whose book series is about to be cancelled. She moves back to her hometown of Mercury, Minnesota in an attempt to rekindle a high school relationship. Theron is now in New Orleans filming Dark Places.

Nicolas Hoult as R photo by Jonathan Wenk

NICOLAS HOULT Warm Bodies

NICOLAS HOULT plays R, an intellectual and unusual zombie, in Warm Bodies. When R meets Julie (Teresa Palmer), he feels the need to protect her, leading to a relationship that helps him to regain his humanity. Hoult is now in Shreveport starring as Lyle in Dark Places, a film about a woman who is faced with her dark past after surviving the murder of her entire family.

14 | September/October 2013

Charlize Theron as Mavis Gary photo by Phillip V. Caruso

by AJ Buckley

MICHAEL CUDLITZ Michael Cudlitz is a veteran actor from Long Island, New York. He is best known for playing John Cooper in the critically lauded TNT drama Southland. He also starred as Sergeant Denver “Bull” Randelman on the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers. He can next be seen in the Baton Rouge-shot film Pawn Shop Chronicles.

What made you want to become an actor? It’s all I ever wanted to do as a career as far back as I can remember. I have been involved in theatre since the third grade, one of my first plays being The Wizard of Oz. I was the Cowardly Lion and my mom helped make the costume. I had a big yellow mop on my head. I have always been on stage, have always wanted to be on stage, and I’ve always wanted to entertain.

What was your biggest fear? It wasn’t so much the fear. It was a reality: that you can’t do this for a living. Most people who study theatre don’t wind up doing theatre, at least not as a career. You do it as a side thing, as a passion, but it’s not something that you can raise a family on. Most of them who are doing it on stage are doing it in musical theatre. I’ve had a tremendous amount of musical theatre coming up through the years, which always makes me laugh because I really can’t sing or dance.

What was your lowest point? There were a couple points, early on, where the work wasn’t coming and I was deciding whether or not I still wanted to pursue it. That would have been a low point as far as giving up my dream, but I still was going to continue doing theatre on the side. It wouldn’t be giving up my dream. It would have been giving up trying to pursue acting as a full time career. So, as far as an emotionally low point in regards to my career, I’ve been blessed in a way that I have not really experienced that. I always am extremely realistic about what it is to make a living as an actor. Going into it, I didn’t really know if it was going to be possible. I didn’t have blinders on and say, “I’m gonna make this work and it’s all I’m gonna ever do!” I knew that I had to get another job to make a living and I decided early on that that job would be something that I enjoyed doing so that if I never acted another day, I would be successful financially and I would be happy.

What kept you from walking away? My dad got me in woodworking. I built furniture and all sorts of things. I actually got jobs working with studios building scenery for film and television. I continued doing that after I got out of school. I was in the union as a construction coordinator for Beverly Hills 90210 for the first four and a half years. I was a prop maker for probably fifteen or sixteen years. I finally gave up construction completely right after Band of Brothers. That afforded me the ability to tread water for a bit. 16 | September/October 2013

Who has been your closest ally? My wife. Best friend. Biggest supporter. Twenty-three years married in September and twenty-seven years together.

What were you doing the morning before the audition that changed your life? I was doing construction. They were very cool with us working [elsewhere in film]. They would let me come and go. And they let me go audition for Band of Brothers. Had they not let me go, I wouldn’t have gotten the job. They were very cool. That was the role that changed my life. It changed my career path.

What were the words that kept you going? I was at a point where I was applying for engineering school to do construction. I thought I made a logical choice for a secondary job while I was trying to pursue acting. My dad walked in on me one day while I was doing my homework and just said, “Why are you doing what you are doing?” And I said, “I need a second job.” He said, “Well, why don’t you go try first?” I always remember my dad being the supporter. Saying, “Why don’t you go do it?” There’s been nothing in my years where I’ve had a huge low point. I never wrapped everything I have into my work. It wasn’t like, “If I’m not an actor, I’m not anybody.” I don’t subscribe to that. But I always remember my father being very supportive and saying, “Go do what you want to do.”

How have you changed? I think I’ve settled down. I’ve realized how fortunate I am, and I’ve just chosen to enjoy it. I try to be as straightforward as possible, really in the moment, and enjoy it. Early on, I really didn’t enjoy it. I was just doing it: going from job to job, caught up in that whole thing, and now I enjoy the people I work with. I enjoy the material. I enjoy the experience. Most actors forget to really enjoy the success. Just really enjoy it. Take it in. Soak it up. It’s such a hard business to be successful in and, when you have successes, celebrate those successes. Because the business can be very harsh and your last job could be your last job. You have no control over that. In the last five or six years, I’ve really settled down and started to enjoy what I do while I’m doing it.

What words do you have to inspire others? Don’t give up. Follow your dreams and don’t give up. S

A partner in Scene Magazine and the president of Louisiana Entertainment Publishers, AJ Buckley has starred for the last eight years on the hit CBS show CSI:NY. Originally from Dublin and raised in Vancouver, he has spent the last twelve years in Los Angeles acting, writing and directing. He recently finished producing and starring in North of Hell. Find out more on Twitter @AJohnBuckley and at www.ajbuckley.net.

www.scenelouisiana.com | 17

COMING SOON

by Leah Stogner

12 YEARS A SLAVE Friday, Oct. 18

Rated: R Director: Steven McQueen British director Steve McQueen brings modern audiences back to the horrors of pre-Civil War America. Based on the true story of Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor), 12 Years a Slave follows a once free man’s fight to escape the cruelty of his oppressive master (Michael Fassbender). “Born a free man until the day he was deceived,” Northrup’s story shows courage under the fires of hate. His twelfth year of slavery proves life altering when he meets a Canadian abolitionist named Bass (Brad Pitt). 12 Years A Slave was shot in South Louisiana. Follow Solomon’s twelve years in two hours when his story opens wide on October 18.

photo by Jaap Buitendijk

ESCAPE PLAN Friday, Oct. 18

Rated: R Director: Mikael Håfström Still-going Sylvester Stallone plays Ray, a master of structural security who studied high security prisons to design an escape-proof prison. He never thought he would have to fight his own creation. Framed and placed in supermax of his own design, he must find a way to escape. Arnold Schwarzenegger, 50 Cent and Vincent D’Onofrio are all a part of the plan. Ray’s skills are put to the test as he sets out to find who put him in prison. The mysterious thriller directed by Mikael Håfström was shot in New Orleans and Slidell. See if Ray can outsmart his system on October 18, because no one escapes alone.

photo by Alan Markfield

MORE COMING SOON 18 | September/October 2013

COMING SOON OLDBOY

Friday, Oct. 25 Rated: R Director: Spike Lee A remake of director Park Chan-wook’s seminal 2003 film Oldboy, this twisted thriller is the ultimate story of revenge. A man is held in solitary confinement for twenty years. Just as Joe (Josh Brolin) thinks he is free, he finds that he is still stuck in the conspiracy that has become his life. One of the greatest directors of his generation, Spike Lee attempts to reimagine one of the greatest movies of the last fifteen years. Josh Brolin, Elizabeth Olsen and Samuel L. Jackson star in this revenge thriller that was shot at Second Line Stages in New Orleans. Oldboy opens wide on October 25.

ENDER’S GAME Friday, Nov. 1

Rated: TBA Director: Gavin Hood Seventy years have passed since the Buggers attacked. Now the alien species has returned, determined to destroy. But their plans for invasion have to first go through one boy. Ender Wiggins (Asa Butterfield) has the opportunity to be humanity’s savior, but will he do it? After being separated from his siblings, Ender is brought to a battle school in orbit and taught the tactics of the Buggers. Ender’s Game is adapted from the famous young adult novel written by Orson Scott Card, considered one of the greatest science fiction novels of the last half century. Gavin Hood wrote the screenplay and directed the film, which was produced in New Orleans. Abigail Breslin, Harrison Ford and Hailee Steinfield play the game set to start everywhere on November 1.

20 | September/October 2013

photo by Alan Markfield

FILM |

FAMILY GUY

REGINALD VELJOHNSON by Catie Ragusa photos by Jamil Jones

“E

veryone is here with something that God gave them to do to carry them through life. Acting and performing was mine,” says actor Reginald VelJohnson, best known for his role as Carl Winslow on the beloved 1990s American television series Family Matters. “Carl became the character that would put me in people’s minds for the rest of my life.” VelJohnson recently wrapped Angel’s Wings in Baton Rouge, a heartfelt film produced and directed by Louisiana locals. He stars as Coach Carter, a girls soccer coach who encourages his team to do their very best on the field and in life, rather than crumbling to pressures. “He pushes them to go through that, to look beyond that and become the soccer players that they’re supposed to become,” he explains. “He’s sort of like Carl, with an edge.” It was VelJohnson’s first time visiting the Capital City, so in between filming scenes of Angel’s Wings, he had the opportunity to visit attractions around the city. “I love working on location because I get to see places I haven’t seen before,” he says. “We’re going to go to the malls and whatnot, and I have fun doing that. I’m going to see more of Baton Rouge as I go along, but I’m enjoying the city. I’m enjoying the experience.” This isn’t the actor’s first time in Louisiana, however. He has been to New Orleans in the past to perform live theatre shows in the French Quarter. In 1985, he performed in Stagolee at the Toulouse Theatre three times each night, resulting in a three-month stay in 22 | September/October 2013

the Crescent City. “It was written and directed by a man by the name of Vernel Bagneris. He’s like a local hero here,” he said. “It was a blast. I had a great time, but I haven’t been back since then.” Previously a star in musical theatre, VelJohnson began his on-screen career with a memorable role in 1988’s action classic Die Hard, playing Sergeant Al Powell alongside Bruce Willis. “I didn’t think I was going to get that role,” he says of his Die Hard audition. “I had been auditioning for a lot of stuff and not getting it, and I decided that if I didn’t get this role, I was going to get out of this business and go do something else.” His persistence to be cast in the quintessential actioner was effective. When Willis saw his audition tape, he knew that VelJohnson was Al Powell to his John McClane. He would go on to portray Powell in both Die Hard and its sequel, Die Hard 2. “I was on that film for five months, and I never saw the light of day,” says VelJohnson of the long nights he spent filming Die Hard. “It was interesting. I loved it.” It’s that role that led him to his audition to play Carl Winslow on Family Matters. “Carl is a more well rounded character. He’s a family man and he loves his job,” says VelJohnson. “It gave me the opportunity to do a multi-dimensional performance, and I had the chance to grow into the character after nine years. At some point, Reginald VelJohnson and Carl Winslow became one.” VelJohnson has also played roles in other major films that have stood the test of time, including Crocodile Dundee

| FILM

www.scenelouisiana.com | 23

FILM |

and Turner and Hooch, where he plays Detective David Sutton, a California investigator alongside Tom Hanks. He played a small part in Ghostbusters as well. “I tested for the part that Ernie Hudson eventually got. I was living in New York at the time, and they flew me back and forth to California to test me for this role,” says VelJohnson. “I didn’t get the part that Ernie Hudson got, but [director] Ivan Reitman still wanted me to be in the film, so he got this part for me to play an angry prison guard. It was a short thing, but I enjoyed doing it.” “I seem to have a lot of opportunities to play blue collar people, which is not a bad thing, but I never get to play the leading man,” says the popular everyman. “I played a supporting part to Tom Hanks, of course, and to Bruce Willis. I provide the comic relief.” A veteran actor of large supporting roles in both television and film, VelJohnson says that it’s acting for TV that he is most passionate about because it’s more consistent and it gives actors more time to focus on character development. “You can have a more secure home base,” he says. “There are perks to doing film. You get a chance to do different things with the role. In television, you can only do the character a certain way, but you have a longer time to do it.” VelJohnson is currently playing Dash DeWitt, a gossipy blogger in the town of Bluebell, Alabama, on the CW’s Hart of Dixie. It is a role that he was originally supposed to play for only one episode. “They liked the character so much that they kept writing him in, and now I’ve done two or three seasons with them,” he says of the role. “I didn’t know if anyone would believe me as 24 | September/October 2013

a Southern gentleman. I just dove right in, head to the wind, and it worked. It’s different for me, but it seems to be working.” Hart of Dixie’s lead is Rachel Bilson, who plays Dr. Zoe Hart, an aspiring cardiothoracic surgeon living in Alabama. Bilson is most commonly known for her role as Summer Roberts on Fox’s teen drama, The OC. “She’s just the sweetest, most lovely little thing in the whole world,” says VelJohnson of his Hart of Dixie coworker. “She’s so beautiful, and she doesn’t let her beauty affect what she does. She’s just a joy to work with.” In addition to the incredibly talented actors VelJohnson has already worked with throughout his acting career, there are still other legends with whom he would gladly take the stage. “Morgan Freeman and I go way back,” he says. “We’ve done plays together in New York back in the old days, but we’ve never done anything on film together, and we always say that we’re going to. There are so many actors that I would love to work with and haven’t had the chance to yet.” Al Pacino and Forest Whitaker are among those. He also recently guest-starred on the second season of BET’s The Real Husbands of Hollywood, an improvised faux reality show, starring comedians Kevin Hart, Nick Cannon, Boris Kodjoe, Duane Martin, JB Smoove and Robin Thicke. “That’s a crazy, wacky show. It was like a frat house party,” he laughs. “I had a wonderful time, and I’m going to do some more episodes later on.” Look for Reginald VelJohnson in Hart of Dixie, now streaming on Netflix, and in Angel’s Wings, where he stars alongside Robin Givens and Bill Cobbs. Produced by Sean Huze and Jack Fayard, directed by Aaron L. Williams, the family film is set to premiere this December. S

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TODAY’S SCENE

PREPARE FOR THE

2013 NEW ORLEANS FILM FESTIVAL by Katianna Bear

ow in its twenty-fourth year, the much anticipated, evergrowing New Orleans Film Festival is creeping close. The cinematic city will again welcome talent from across the world this October. With a record breaking 1,500 submissions, storytellers eager to share their passion projects are anxiously awaiting to see if their films have made the two-hundred-slot cut. “We’re not looking to expand and have more films this year,” says NOFF executive director Jolene Pinder. “We are really trying to refine what we have done in the past and focus on what we have created over the last few years.” Growing from a small, regional festival into an increasingly influential event that reflects the growth of the Louisiana film industry itself, NOFF has rightfully been receiving worldwide recognition. Last year, it was named as one of the “25 Film Festivals Worth the Entry Fee” by MovieMaker Magazine and one of the “Fifteen Fests You Should Enter” by Premium Beat. This year’s opening night kicks off October 10 with a screening of Twelve Years a Slave. The film’s director Steve McQueen will be in attendance and several cast members are expected to attend as well. The historical drama is based on the 1853 autobiography of Solomon Northup, a free black man who was kidnapped, sold into slavery and kept in bondage for twelve years on various Louisiana plantations. The man born free was a carpenter, fiddler and resident of Upstate New York before he was hoaxed into a “high-paying job” with a traveling circus. Eager to begin his new career, Northup bypassed telling his wife where he was going. A short time later, the once-free man awoke a slave, drugged and bound in a pen. After demanding equal rights, he was

26 | September/October 2013

brutally beaten and warned never to speak of his life before bondage. The book, published shortly after Harriet Beecher Stowe’s renowned novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, was a major force behind the national political debate over slavery leading up to the Civil War. Northup’s bone-chillingly painful documentation was considered a best seller at the time with a staggering 30,000 copies sold. For the 2013 festival, an app is currently being created that will allow easier access to the fest. “It’s kind of an interesting collaboration,” says Pinder. “The Canary Collective, which is local, and a company in Chicago, who did the app for the Chicago Film Festival, are working together. They are taking the bones of the CFF app and modifying it for our event.” Attendees will be able to download the application to browse show events, buy tickets, watch trailers, read synopses and construct their own schedules. “We are trying to create something that is user-friendly and built around a successful structure. It lets people access the festival easily and readily.” Although still in the works, the app will also inform individuals about sold out screenings and last minute tickets available. As the festival’s popularity grows, it is expanding to new venues. Opening and closing night will be relocated to the Civic Theatre, the oldest theater in New Orleans. The beautiful historic structure was built in 1906 and is still adorned with much of the original detail. After a recent restoration, the festival will be among the first top events held in the eclectic space. The festival also continues to encourage new voices from diverse backgrounds. Among some of the veteran contributors and festival attendees last year were individuals with little or no background in the film industry at all. “Last year, we brought kids to the festival and it was super

TODAYâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S SCENE

Chiwetel Ejiofor and Michael Fassbender in Twelve Years a Slave photo by Francois Duhamel www.scenelouisiana.com | 27

TODAY’S SCENE

Chiwetel Ejiofor with Dwight Henry in Twelve Years a Slave

successful. We had over one thousand kids attend,” says Pinder. “The City of New Orleans is actually putting money behind our education program, both Pitch Perfect and Let’s Geaux to the Movies. The money that [the City] puts into the festival allows us to offer bigger prizes to our pitch winners, which is very exciting.” The Pitch Perfect program allows students to get hands-on experience and constructive feedback from professionals in the field. The students are allotted five minutes to pitch their dream project to a panel of industry insiders. The winners of the two-round competition (documentary and narrative) will each receive sponsored prizes to go toward their production. The exercise has served valuable to past participants, as “pitching” is often a daunting and commonly unpracticed key element in the filmmaking process. A panel to be introduced for the first time this year is “Mapping the Future of Film in Louisiana.” “This is going to be more of a round table discussion,” Pinder explains. “The Louisiana Film and Entertainment Association (LFEA) is helping to plan this out. It will be based around how to create a sustainable film industry with the tax incentives in Louisiana.” Closing night at the Civic Theatre will include a screening of Bayou Maharajah, a film based on the life of James Booker, a talented musician described as “the best black, gay, one-eyed junkie piano genius New Orleans has ever produced.” A man who never received the praise he rightfully deserved, the footage includes never-before-seen concert recordings, personal photos and exclusive interviews. The culturally-infused film shares the struggles of prejudice and isolation Booker endured in his trek to genius. Just as Louisiana’s film industry continues to catch worldwide attention, the annual New Orleans Film Festival does as well. Each year, this eight-day event honors the dedication and talent grown and tailored in the Bayou State. It welcomes film lovers and creators from all around the world to experience a universal appreciation for the silver screen. For more information on upcoming festival events, panels and parties, visit www.neworleansfilmsociety.org. S 28 | September/October 2013

photo by Francois Duhamel

Official poster for Bayou Maharajah

www.scenelouisiana.com | 29

SPORTS

NEW ORLEANS SAINTS: REASONS TO WATCH

THIS SEASON

by Catie Ragusa

s the 2013 NFL season begins, New Orleans Saints fans have a lot to be excited about. With their head coach back, the arrival of new players and a slew of capable competitors, the Superdome promises to stay an exciting place to be this fall.

1 THE COACH RETURNS.

After what could only be described as a painful season, watching his team play from a TV screen, New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton is back on the sidelines. Payton’s absence resulted from the harsh crackdown of the league on the Saints for a bounty program, encouraging defensive players to make big hits on opposing offensive players. Although any fan of football would immediately recognize that this is a regular, integral part of every NFL football program in the country, the Saints were harshly penalized. Many would say unjustly. The Saints struggled in their strange season without Payton. The team went 7-9, losing more than half of their games, including the first four games of the season. They finished out the season with a defense that was ranked dead last. Quarterback Drew Brees was tasked to lead his team without co-pilot Payton, doubling as a football player and a coach to his fellow Saints during a difficult year in the Superdome. Payton and Brees both became a part of the Who Dat Nation in 2006, a year after Hurricane Katrina turned the Superdome into a makeshift shelter. Four years later, the duo, along with the rest of the Saints, brought hope to a city still rebuilding after the tragic storm when they won the 2010 Super Bowl in Miami. Now, Payton is back in the Dome. With the full support of Saints fans everywhere, and the help of a new defensive coordinator, the Black and Gold are expected to make their comeback into the NFL’s elite.

2 THE DUDE ABIDES.

Twin brother of New York Jets head coach Rex, Rob Ryan was hired this offseason as the Saints’ new defensive coordinator. An easy guy to spot on the sidelines, Ryan resembles Jeffrey Lebowski more than his clean-cut counterparts, Sean Payton and Drew Brees. After being let go from his job as the defensive coordinator for the Dallas Cowboys, Ryan claimed he would be hired by another team within five minutes. The Saints hired him the next month. Known as an outspoken guy, Ryan’s passion and enthusiasm fit New Orleans well. Ryan is currently in his sixteenth NFL season as a coach, spending the last nine seasons as a defensive coordinator with the Oakland Raiders, Cleveland Browns and Dallas Cowboys. The confident coordinator has made significant changes by switching the Saints defensive scheme from a 4-3 alignment to a 3-4, a strategy that has worked for him in previous coaching jobs. 30 | September/October 2013

3 PAIN IN THE NECK. AND THE KNEE. AND THE CHEST.

Several of the New Orleans Saints are sitting out this season due to injuries. Among the injured is Victor Butler, the outside linebacker who was supposed to surface in New Orleans this year, his first year in black and gold. He tore his ACL during what was supposed to be a non-contact practice, colliding with running back Mark Ingram. A former Dallas Cowboy, Butler was expected to be a starter under Rob Ryan, but will now spend the season on injured reserve. Wide receiver Joe Morgan is sitting this season out after tearing his meniscus and partially tearing his ACL. During a practice, rough rookie safety Kenny Vaccaro tackled Morgan from behind, accidentally leaving him injured. “Don’t blame @KennyVaccaro4,” Morgan posted in a tweet. “It was a routine tackle. I admire how feisty a player he is, too. He’s going to be great for us.” Morgan was supposed to be making his debut with the Saints this season. Defensive end Kenyon Coleman is also out this season after suffering a torn pectoral muscle. Coleman was entering his twelfth season in the NFL, a projected starter before his injury occurred. Like fellow injured teammate Morgan, Coleman has spent the past two seasons with Rob Ryan in Dallas and knows the 3-4 defensive scheme well, but this season he will have to watch his new teammates from the sidelines.

4 STEVE BREASTON STEPS UP.

Just when he thought there was a possibility that his NFL career had ended, wide receiver Steve Breaston signed a one-year contract with the Saints on August 5. Breaston was recently cut from the Kansas City Chiefs after experiencing a dramatic drop in productivity last season. The Pittsburg Steelers and the Detroit Lions both expressed interest in signing Breaston, but both teams decided against it because of a knee condition that apparently slowed him down. The Saints soon called the six-season receiver and offered to sign him for his seventh in the NFL as a third receiver, making this the most dynamic offense he has played with since 2009. Breaston is not as fast as his injured teammate Joe Morgan, but may still land a spot on the field next to Marques Colston and Lance Moore.

5 STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE.

New Orleans has the third most difficult schedule in the NFL this season, playing two games against their biggest rivals in the NFC South, the Atlanta Falcons, as well as the NFC West, AFC East, the Cowboys and the Bears. The Bears, Patriots, Seahawks and one Falcons game are all played away from the Dome. In the NFC South, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers acquired

SPORTS cornerback Darrelle Revis. He signed a six-year contract with the Bucs, becoming the highest-paid defensive back in NFL history. He spent the majority of his last season with the Jets rehabilitating a torn ACL, causing him to miss all but the first two games, including the playoffs. Tampa Bay was willing to take the risk for a player with nineteen career interceptions and ninety-seven passes defended. The Carolina Panthers have the power of former Auburn standout Cam Newton. The 6’5” powerhouse is the third player to ever win the Heisman Trophy, a national championship and be the number one NFL draft pick, all in the same year. Carolina drafted him in 2011, after he gave the Auburn Tigers their championship. As an NFL rookie, Newton had 310 completions, ran 4,051 yards, threw twenty-one passing touchdowns and had a 60% completion record, breaking those and several other records in his first year in the pros. The challengers facing the Saints are able and many. But the reunion of Drew Brees and Sean Payton is formidable for all who will take the field against the Black and Gold this year.

6 ATLANTA IS OFFENSIVE.

The Atlanta Falcons have a real shot at the Super Bowl in 2014. The Saints’ biggest rival has an incredibly strong offense, making them tough competition for New Orleans. Wide receivers Julio Jones and Roddy White have become an elite tandem to fear in the NFL. Veteran wide receiver Roddy White was selected as a first round draft pick in 2005 by the Falcons. Since his breakout season in 2007, White has average yearly stats of ninety-four receptions, 1,296 running yards and eight touchdowns. He has never missed a game in his eight-year career, and finished out last season’s final six games with three 100-yard performances, including the playoffs. Currently twenty-four years old, Julio Jones was drafted to the Falcons with the sixth pick overall in 2011 and earned his first career Pro Bowl selection in 2012. Last season he made twenty-nine receptions for 1,198 yards and ten touchdowns. Paired with White, he may be a force to reckon with this year. It only took the Falcons’ quarterback Matt Ryan four seasons to become one of the most elite QBs in the NFL. Struggling with a lack of arm strength, Ryan has been hitting the weight room for the last couple of years, pledging to strengthen his arm to improve his distance and accuracy. His newfound strength and better timing with the ball make him a bigger threat this season. Now there are rumors that Ryan has surpassed even Drew Brees as the NFC South’s best quarterback, but Saints fans and the stats may beg to differ. In 2012, Brees completed sixty-three percent of his throws, forty-three touchdown passes with a 96.3 passer rating, and was named number two in the NFL’s Top 100 Players of 2012, a list that didn’t even name Matty Ice among the thirteen quarterbacks.

7 HIDE YOUR PURSE, HIDE YOUR WIFE.

The NFL has issued a new rule that prohibits fans from bringing purses into football games. The restriction was placed to maximize security and to speed up bag check lines for fans going into the games. People attending games will be allowed to bring in up to onegallon-sized clear freezer bags, small clutch purses or clear plastic, vinyl or PVC bags, no larger than 12” x 6” x 12”. Official NFL logo totes will be available for purchase in club merchandise outlets and online at www.nflshop.com/allclear for ten dollars. S

Saints quarterback Drew Brees

photo by Stacy Revere

2013 NEW ORLEANS SAINTS OFFICIAL SCHEDULE

PRESEASON AUGUST 9 AUGUST 16 AUGUST 25 AUGUST 29

CHIEFS RAIDERS TEXANS DOLPHINS

REGULAR SEASON SEPTEMBER 8 SEPTEMBER 15 SEPTEMBER 22 SEPTEMBER 30 OCTOBER 6 OCTOBER 13 OCTOBER 20 OCTOBER 27 NOVEMBER 3 NOVEMBER 10 NOVEMBER 17 NOVEMBER 21 DECEMBER 2 DECEMBER 8 DECEMBER 15 DECEMBER 22 DECEMBER 29

FALCONS BUCS CARDINALS DOLPHINS BEARS PATRIOTS BYE BILLS JETS COWBOYS 49ERS FALCONS SEAHAWKS PANTHERS RAMS PANTHERS BUCS

HOME HOME AWAY AWAY

HOME AWAY HOME HOME AWAY AWAY HOME AWAY HOME HOME AWAY AWAY HOME AWAY AWAY HOME

www.scenelouisiana.com | 31

SPORTS

LSU FOOTBALL: REASONS TO WATCH

THIS SEASON

by Catie Ragusa

ootball has finally returned. Death Valley is newly renovated. The Tigers have a new offensive coordinator to renew a perennially stagnant offense. Les Miles is here to stay for at least another seven years. What might Tiger fans have to look forward to this season? Well, other than saying goodbye to the BCS.

1 ALABAMA WALKS THE WALK. THE CAKE WALK.

The SEC West is the most dominant conference division in all of college football. Only the delusional dispute this. And tensions between the two greatest powerhouses have been simmering all summer long. Although both LSU and Alabama are in the SEC West, Alabama consistently plays weaker SEC East teams, giving the Crimson Tide an easier path to the post-season. LSU’s schedules have been relatively more difficult, including having to play Alabama more than once in the same season. “A key piece to every conference is that we’d be able to describe the path to a championship in an equal and direct manner,” said LSU head coach Les Miles in a press conference. “Scheduling should not, in any way, decide a championship repeatedly.” To which former LSU head coach, current LSU turncoat and now-Alabama head coach Nick Saban later responded, “There can never be an equal path to the championship, unless everybody plays everybody. That’s the only equal path.” Both SEC West teams have to play two conferencedesignated teams from the SEC East. LSU plays Florida every year, but will also play Georgia this season. Florida and Georgia went 14-2 in the SEC last season. Alabama’s Eastern rivals, Tennessee and Kentucky, combined for a majestic 1-15 record. The Tide’s ebb-less advantage this season puts LSU in a tough spot, making it a bigger challenge for the Fighting Tigers to battle their way to the BCS National Championship, which would guarantee players and fans alike a chance to look down their noses at Alabama for at least a year. If they don’t, y’know, do that already.

2 DOWN THE HILL AND UP AGAIN.

Running back Jeremy Hill is the latest in a long line of LSU standouts at running back. Sadly, he’s also the latest in a long line of LSU players who can’t seem to walk the line. In 2012, his freshman year, Hill led LSU football with 755 yards and twelve rushing touchdowns. He was the most frequent ball carrier in his first season playing for the Tigers. Already serving two years probation for a misdemeanor he plead guilty to in 2012, the key offensive player was charged with simple battery for his involvement in a Tigerland bar fight last spring. Caught on video, the college brawl landed Hill an indefinite suspension from the team after being arrested with the possibility of 32 | September/October 2013

six months of jail time. His punishment was later reduced on July 12 when he pled guilty to the misdemeanor. Though he now faces two extra years of probation and forty hours of community service, Hill has been reinstated to the football team after his teammates voted to support him. The football community at large has also been in support of giving Hill another chance to put his life back on track. “I want to thank Coach Miles and this university for giving me another chance to play football,” Hill said in a press conference. “And I would like to apologize to first my teammates and the community.” Coach Miles said that Hill will face additional disciplinary measures, possibly even sitting out several games. Here’s hoping that this pre-season scandal will fade and Jeremy Hill will slowly continue his progression back up the hill he stumbled down.

3 DO THE CAM CAM.

After a twelve-year NFL coaching career, former Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Cam Cameron has joined Les Miles and the LSU Tigers as the team’s offensive coordinator. Cameron and Miles share a coaching history and a friendship. The two offensive minds shared an office and the sidelines at the University of Michigan in the 1980s, previously working together as assistant coaches. Cameron was introduced as LSU’s offensive coordinator on February 8. Expectations are high that he will have Miles’ ear rather than his ire. Though Miles’ win-loss record as the Tigers head coach speaks for itself, some fans have been frustrated by The Hat’s pre-snap tinkering in the offensive huddle. Cam’s new offense is expected to strengthen the Tigers, who have struggled offensively at times. “It’s tough. It’s a new offense,” said quarterback Zack Mettenberger after LSU’s first spring practice. “It will be slow for a while, but if we work through it and keep at it, it’s going to be an effective offense for us.” At the end of each beer and barbeque-filled season, changes in Tiger Football are welcomed, as long as winning is involved.

4 LET’S JUST PRETEND WE’RE PLAYING ANOTHER GAME ENTIRELY.

The NCAA is really, really interested in protecting players. To encourage safety in college football, a new rule – known as the “targeting rule” – goes into effect this season. Essentially, if one player “targets” a defenseless player above the shoulders, it adds the possibility of ejection from the game. The long-standing fifteen-yard penalty will still be in effect in addition to the ejection. If the penalty occurs in the first half of the game, players could be ejected for the remainder of the game. If it occurs in the second half or in overtime, the players may be ejected for the rest of the game, as well as the first half of the next game. Officials will monitor

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SPORTS the tackles by watching replays, and then decide on the penalty. We believe the NCAA is actually concerned about the well-being of college athletes, but we also believe they are doing their damnedest to avoid litigation. In both the NFL and NCAA college football, there are mounting concerns about long-term, detrimental effects that result from concussions. And with the very real possibility of serious lawsuits on the horizon, both organizations want to be able to say in court they took action to prevent any unfortunate events. The new rule will disallow players from launching, thrusting, striking and leading - four targeting actions that officials will be looking for this season. With a ban on helmet-tohelmet contact already strictly enforced, we’re very curious to see how the new rule will add new calls to each game. Some SEC players are calling the new targeting rule “flag football.” Some are calling it a necessary safety measure. But how safe can football be made before it’s no longer the same game?

5 LUCKY LOUCHEIZ WANTS IT BOTH WAYS

Florida cornerback Loucheiz Purifoy trained exclusively as a wide receiver during Gator spring practices. With only a few offensive snaps under his belt last season, the 6’1” junior is expected to play his usual position at cornerback, plus his new position at wide receiver. To make his in-game responsibilities truly full-time, he will also be returning kicks and punts. Competitive and with enough athleticism to make him truly versatile, Purifoy may see a hundred snaps each game. Currently one of Florida’s most exciting athletes, he’s being given every chance to utilize his skills and athleticism, which may be a big threat to LSU. For the past few seasons, LSU’s offense has tried harder to avoid major mistakes than to make an impact. The true terror that comes from playing the Tigers is the team’s nigh unstoppable defense. But with the addition of offensive coordinator Cam Cameron, hopefully the Tigers will be able to balance out their attack. Les Miles also brings back last season’s top four wide receivers. With Cameron on board, working personally with second-year starting quarterback Zach Mettenberger, the Tigers’ offense may surprise opponents this season, and have a shot at tiring out Lucky Loucheiz before he gets an offensive shot at putting points on the board. Editor’s Note: Alabama will not have to face Florida this year.

6 ONCE BROTHERS.

Georgia Bulldogs quarterback Aaron Murray is returning for his senior season, and what may be his best year yet. If his progress over the past three years continues, he might make Georgia a major threat in the SEC East this season. And to LSU. And to his former fellow Bulldog, Zach Mettenberger. For the oblivious, Mett once wore the ugly red jersey of Georgia. After being kicked off the team for an off-the-field infraction, Mett regrouped in junior college before becoming an LSU Tiger. As a freshman, Murray racked up 3,049 yards and scored twentyfour touchdowns. As a sophomore, he went 3,149 yards and thirtyfive touchdowns, and as a junior he ran 3,893 yards, scoring thirtysix touchdowns. He listens to whatever the coaches tell him, and, like a good soldier, he improves his game based on their guidance. Coaches know he’ll take orders and execute like the veteran he is. 34 | September/October 2013

LSU quarterback Zach Mettenberger

photo by Matthew Stockman

2013 LSU FOOTBALL OFFICIAL SCHEDULE AUGUST 31 SEPTEMBER 7 SEPTEMBER 14 SEPTEMBER 21 SEPTEMBER 28 OCTOBER 5 OCTOBER 12 OCTOBER 19 OCTOBER 26 NOVEMBER 09 NOVEMBER 23 NOVEMBER 29 DECEMBER 7

TCU AWAY UAB HOME KENT ST HOME AUBURN HOME GEORGIA AWAY MISS. ST. AWAY FLORIDA HOME OLE MISS AWAY FURMAN HOME ALABAMA AWAY TEXAS A&M HOME ARKANSAS HOME SEC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME

Look for station information and scheduling updates at www.lsusports.net. Murray also has a leadership lead on Mettenberger: he has been the starting quarterback much longer than Mett, playing for the Bulldogs since his first year at UGA. But Mettenberger has a stronger arm than Murray, and as long as he’s in position to get his hands on the ball, can aim it in the right direction. All in all, when two quarterbacks once brothers take to the field at Sanford Stadium in Georgia, LSU’s offense promises to be more potent this season. Combined with a defense that will surely trounce whatever Georgia can field, the Tigers have a great shot at beating the Bulldogs, even with their veteran QB. Cameron is not just changing the Tigers’ offense; he’s changing the way they think about the game itself. The trick will be beating Georgia twice. If LSU can come out with a win at Georgia on September 28, it’s very possible the two teams may meet again in the SEC Championship game. And it’s never easy to beat the same team twice. Editor’s Note: Alabama will not have to face Georgia this year. S

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ABOVE THE LINE

KEVIN

COSTNER The American by Micah Haley

ather than rest on the weekends while filming in New Orleans, Oscar winner Kevin Costner decided to keep performing. Taking to the stage at the Texas Club in Baton Rouge, the multitalented actor, director and producer put on his cowboy boots, picked up his guitar and saddled up alongside his band Modern West. A full house awaited him. “I grew up in a very blue-collar family,” said Costner to an audience clad in plaid and denim. “When I said, ‘I’m going to be an actor,’ I think my dad had a conniption fit. He struggled with it. Not because he didn’t want me to, but he didn’t want me to not get there, and he didn’t know how to help me. There’s probably no more helpless a feeling for a man than not knowing how to help his children.” “I remember later on telling him that I thought that I would direct,” Costner continued. “He thought that was a terrible idea because the acting was going so good. And so it was with music. I didn’t tell my dad that I was going to do this. But in life, you do the things you want to do. And sometimes the people that love 38 | September/October 2013

you, they catch up with you ninety miles down the road and they’re really happy for you. This is called ‘Ninety Miles an Hour.’ It’s a metaphor for my life.” Though a face internationally known, Costner still comes across in person as an everyman: an American, through and through, vested with the drive to explore new frontiers. Ever the entrepreneur, Costner long ago expanded beyond the entertainment industry, eager to use his personal resources to protect our natural resources. All the while, he continues to impress in front of the camera, recently winning an Emmy for his role in the mini-series Hatfields & McCoys and starring in this summer’s blockbuster superhero hit Man of Steel. On a hot Thursday in August, I was invited to the set of Black & White in New Orleans. The film, which stars Costner opposite fellow Oscar winner Octavia Spencer, was shooting in the heart of New Orleans’ central business district. While relaxing after lunch in his trailer, we discussed his music, his movies and his company’s oil spill mitigation technology.

photo by Beth Kleinpeter

www.scenelouisiana.com | 39

ABOVE THE LINE MH: Our mutual friend Roddy Chong turned me on to your music. He tells me that he has really enjoyed touring and performing in your band. KC: If you know him, you know he’s got a very sweet spirit about him. A lot of quiet confidence. He can command a lot of attention and yet, on the other hand, doesn’t seek it. MH: I was fortunate to catch your show at The Texas Club in Baton Rouge a couple of weeks ago. KC: Man, I like that place. That club was fantastic. It was clean and it was big. There were great viewing corridors, the symmetry of the building was great. I loved it. I’ve been to a lot of rock ‘n’ roll clubs and nine out of ten are not as good as The Texas Club.

with the Motown artist. I was hit with the individual artist. Carole King and James Taylor. And I was hit with the duos: Loggins and Messina and Simon and Garfunkel. And then, rock ‘n’ roll was emerging with the Stones and the Beatles. And then it got a little heavier with Cream and other different groups. And I saw all of it. I was influenced by all of it. Even the one-hit-wonder boy bands of the 60s. It’s interesting those bands have followed each decade. We had The Monkees, right? There was Donnie and Marie. I can think of the songs, but I can’t even name them or even know the group. But we had the bubblegum hits then, too. A lot of things were established in the 60s, you know?

MH: And the crowd was into it, too. I could tell that they were

MH: A lot of great things, especially in music. I was born in the 1980s, but all of the music I listened to growing up was really the music of my parents’ generation. I was raised on Cream and Eric Clapton and other music that my dad loved. And I had no interest in new music until maybe the mid-90s. Maybe I’m crazy and I missed out on a lot, but I really feel lucky that I was exposed to such great music at an early age. KC: Well, you’re not crazy for having an interest in that era. Regardless of the great music that’s come after, you can’t hardly see a commercial that doesn’t involve 60s music. We’re not a generation that’s trying to hold on. It’s just a fact. You know what I mean? It’s a sound. And we had poor music, too. And the truth is, we looked pretty funny. If you look at the style, it was all giant experimentations beginning with your hair. What people don’t remember is that the Stones and the Beatles wore ties. People were outraged, obsessed with the length of their hair, and it wasn’t even terribly long.

KC: There is a bit of curiosity that I think people have, but they get

MH: In August of 2005, you were in New Orleans preparing

MH: And the acoustics are great, too. You guys sounded amazing. KC: I never know that until later. You have to be out front [in the

audience]. I just have to trust that the mix is going out there as well as it can be. And for that matter, when things aren’t even perfect with me at my mic, I have to not try to overcompensate, and just trust that they’re doing their thing out front and back of house.

MH: You really sounded great. And it was obvious that you guys were having fun. KC: Yeah, the band had fun that night. just happy to have you guys.

over it in the first three or four minutes. Unlike a movie, in music, they can turn their back on you and walk out. They have other things to do. But what happens is, we have fun on stage and we bring original music and I think there’s a whole audience that doesn’t have to hear old favorites. There’s some people that are just really willing to listen to a new sound. Every time you walk in a door when you pay money, no matter what, you’re actually hoping something good happens. You’re hoping your meal’s good. You’re hoping your beer is cold. You’re hoping the movie’s good. You’re hoping the book’s good. In life, when you go somewhere, you actually wanna be surprised.

MH: Our culture down here has a mindset that is a little

older. Now, nationwide, people buy concert tickets to go hear a specific band and specific songs. But decades ago, people went out just to hear live music. I think that mentality still exists in Louisiana. People don’t go out expecting to hear hits, necessarily. They’ll go out just to hear good music, not knowing what to expect, and they’re open to enjoying what’s there. KC: And because of that, they see much more. Because they have that attitude, it’s a richer experience. And more experimentation comes through their door.

MH: Who are some of your musical influences? KC: It’s funny. You can really adore somebody, really respect them,

and then your songs sound nothing like them. There’s their music, and then there’s yours. But, you know, I grew up in the ‘60s, so I was hit 40 | September/October 2013

to begin shooting The Guardian. Because the film required lots of shooting in the water, a wave tank was built in New Orleans. But then, Hurricane Katrina struck the city. And you and the producers were forced to decide where to shoot the movie. KC: That was a fundamental decision to stay in the state and try to maintain the jobs. People lost homes and the idea of losing their house and their jobs [would have been terrible]. There was a real debate about what was gonna happen. And then Shreveport opened up its arms. The crew left their troubles - the troubles didn’t leave them, but they left their troubles - to come to work. That’s one of the songs we sang at The Texas Club, called “Five Minutes to America.” That came out of those two movies. Then I was getting ready to do this little movie called Mr. Brooks. I looked around and I thought, “You know, this is a good little community.” I really liked it. I liked the life. I wasn’t raised in the South, but still I was up early and I was out duck hunting and I was out chasing alligators and stuff. I have liked that stuff my whole life. I’m an outdoor guy, so, making a movie and being in a place like this, right on the Red River… it was just great.

MH: Because you took The Guardian to Shreveport, that helped

keep Louisiana film alive, when there was a very real possibility that Hurricane Katrina could have killed it. Immediately after the storm, insurance companies would not even insure a film to shoot in New Orleans. But filmmakers like you could get insurance and still participate in Louisiana’s film incentive program by shooting in Shreveport. That made North Louisiana

a popular place to make a movie. And now, there are movies filmed statewide, from New Orleans to Baton Rouge to Alexandria and Shreveport. So the decision to make The Guardian in Shreveport has contributed greatly to the growth and stability of the film industry here by making it a truly statewide phenomenon that has statewide political support. KC: I didn’t realize that.

MH: It has kept the industry here and film incentive program very stable.

KC: I really wasn’t aware of that, but there’s a lot of boat-

weight behind me that I’m not always aware of. When I did The Bodyguard, I wasn’t aware of how the black community felt when I put Whitney in there. I put Whitney in because I thought she was the best. But for them, that was very important. I was told, but I had no idea. I wasn’t even thinking that way. A lot of times, the moves you make have a ripple effect. That tells us one thing, which is that we need to try to be careful with what we do. Not that we’re perfect, not that we’re not fallible, but what we do has impact.

MH: It’s great that you were able to shoot

both The Guardian and Mr. Brooks in Louisiana. What have you observed while filming Black & White in New Orleans? KC: I’m a strong proponent of taking a movie where it should be. And I’m stubborn enough that I won’t shoot here if I don’t think it serves my movie. But there’s a lot of great technicians down here now. There’s skilled people because they’ve been working with really state-of-the-art directors in certain instances. And a lot of times, working with new directors, you learn some tricks because when you have to go low-budget, people have interesting things about them and all of a sudden, you think, “Wow, that’s some good ole’ American ingenuity.” I like that, and carry that right on to a big movie. You see, it doesn’t take somebody but ten minutes to see a new trick and go, “I’m putting that in my bag of tricks.” And it just blossoms that way.

MH: You recently starred as Superman’s father,

Jonathan Kent, in director Zack Synder’s Man of Steel, one of the highest grossing films of the summer. I’m a big fan of Richard Donner’s Superman and was very interested to see what the new film would be. When you were first approached to play that role, what were your initial thoughts? KC: It was the first movie I had ever done without reading a script. I had never really done that. But Zack [Snyder] is such a compelling person in the kind of movie he does. He said, “Look, I’m going to try to make this very personal.” I said, “Well, that’s what it has to be if I’m going to play an Earth father.” I said, “You know, I have no DNA that’s connected at all to the way these other [superhero] characters behave and what they can do, besides the obvious love that his planetary family had.” So, he was true to his word. My role was so much different than the rest of the movie.

Kevin Costner in Hatfields & McCoys www.scenelouisiana.com | 41

ABOVE THE LINE MH:

Who were the performances you looked to for inspiration? Was Glenn Ford’s performance as Pa Kent in the Donner film an influence? KC: No, I didn’t look at that at all. I’d seem some of the earlier films. I saw the first Superman with Christopher Reeve but I didn’t look at any of them or anything that way. I hadn’t seen that movie since I saw it [a long time ago].

don’t have to use what actually works. I’ve faced that promise since 1995. It doesn’t seem very adult, but that’s the fact.

MH: I’m assuming your company did outreach after finding out about the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. How was that received by the oil and gas industry? KC: At first, they had their hands full with what was happening. There were a lot Costner with director Zack Snyder on the set of Man of Steel of different things coming photo by Clay Enos MH: You’re playing the at them that could be called same role – Superman’s potential solutions. People were throwing hairnets out there and earthly father - but it’s a very different “Pa Kent.” The advice that kind of thing. You know, when you’re “from Hollywood,” it’s that Jonathan Kent gives is very different from the Pa Kent very easy for people to dismiss you as being an airhead, or that this is in Donner’s film. But at the end of the day, I felt that the something that you’ve just “hit upon. ” It’s your cause of the moment. characters in both movies were very similar in that both of What they didn’t realize is that I’d been at this for over twenty years them just expressed an essential humanity. with hard money – cash and my belief of how this problem should KC: Well, you want Superman to land with a good family, right? be handled: with the extraction of oil. And we actually had a solution. You maybe want him to have grown up with his own lemonade What happened [with the Deepwater Horizon oil spill] is that stand because that’s what every kid does, you know? That’s we had very little to no effect on what happened, simply because we what that family unit would have provided: those simple things. weren’t allowed out there [early enough]. When we were out there, no oil was really brought to us. The trick is pulling the oil out of the MH: What is your take on the final moments of your character ocean. The people around the world, and the people here on the Gulf in Man of Steel? Why does he makes those decisions? Coast, don’t really want it sunk. We don’t want it burnt. We don’t KC: Well, there’s this selfless act. As a father, if anybody has to die in your want it taken away, a mixture of ninety percent water and ten percent family, it’s you. If you have to draw straws, you wouldn’t allow that. You oil, and then dumped in somebody else’s state. The responsible thing would say, “No one is going to draw straws. It’s going to be me.” There’s a for an industry that has as much money as the oil industry is to utilize selfless act that you do for your wife and for your child, and this one was equipment that is designed to make sure that the oil is picked up. twofold. He didn’t want his son to reveal himself. He could have easily I can say this—and readers will believe it or you won’t believe flown in there, because I know he could have. The boy that I’ve seen grow it — but with three or four vessels that we know could have been into this young man could have somehow extracted me. He could have out there with our equipment, very little oil would have ever hit the moved quick enough. Could have done something. And so, without really shore. Very little. We would have essentially been able to get all of it. saying that point blank, I just knew that I wanted him to stay where he That’s the truth. Because the great news is that the oil floats, which was at, that I know that [by revealing his powers he puts himself at risk]. means you can find it. It would be a disaster if oil sank naturally, but it doesn’t. The fact is, we made it a disaster when we sank it [by using MH: I really loved the movie. After long anticipating it, I felt dispersants]. And yet, there were seven thousand boats out there, and like it delivered across the board, and has ended up being one that looked like a [disorganized mess] to everyone. To the whole world. of the best films of the summer. But we have never taken our hand off the wheel, and we continue KC: Yeah, Zack Snyder’s a very accomplished director in the world of to be the answer. What we will do is, we will emerge in a quote special effects. He really is. unquote “third world country” that’s actually farther ahead than the United States. And by doing that, I think that it will force America MH: In early 2010, the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded to go, “Jesus. They’re doing it and we like to think of ourselves off of Louisiana’s Gulf Coast. As it became a major news as the leaders!” We’re not the leaders at all. [America] is so far story, which sadly included the tragic deaths of the workers behind. Because there is no answer other than taking the oil out aboard the rig, solutions for cleanup were also discussed. of the water. Short of throwing a grenade on your own position. We stand really poised to protect the Gulf Coast with some partners And I was very surprised to learn that you had been working on a technological solution for oil cleanup since the 1990s. in the future. We’re currently working in South America, where we feel KC: We formed a company. There’s no partners: there’s me, and the like we will create the domino effect that we know needs to happen. company that exists now, I do it with Rod Lake. We still provide the answer to oil spill cleanup. If you live in a world where oil companies are MH: It’s obvious you are invested in a personal way, as well as not legally responsible [for an oil spill], if it’s not legislated, then they monetarily. 42 | September/October 2013

ABOVE THE LINE

Kevin Costner as Jonathan Kent in Man of Steel photo by Clay Enos

www.scenelouisiana.com | 43

ABOVE THE LINE

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KC: We have never left. We’re not people who grab headlines. We invested in marsh restoration. We’ve supplied money as well as labor. We have never taken our eye off the ball. And people shouldn’t attempt to marginalize us. MH: I love that you are taking an entrepreneurial approach to

the problem. That is truly an American response to adversity. Now, after shooting Mr. Brooks and The Guardian in Louisiana, you have brought another film here, Black & White. Without giving too much away, what can you tell me about it? KC: Well, we’ve had a pretty magical production. We’ve done what most people can’t do: shoot a major motion picture in twenty-five days. It’s a big-time movie, in terms of how it will look. I don’t make message movies, but there are some things that bubble up in this movie that are helpful, I think, in that conversation that we have about race.

MH: I have heard that the script is great, and the cast of course is just amazing.

KC: Yeah, it’s a great script. I think this is a movie that really

is, first of all, incredibly funny, as well as powerful and very dramatic. It’s a hard mix to get. And I just think it’s a classic American movie. I think it could have international implications. I see it as a great American movie. People were not quick to want to make this, so I essentially did this myself with Rod Lake.

MH: I can’t wait to see it. KC: I hope you do enjoy it. S 44 | September/October 2013

Over the last fifteen years, Kevin Costner has invested $20 million in the research and development of technology that would facilitate the cleanup of oil spills. The result is a rugged, portable technology that rapidly separates oil and water, allowing cleanup vessels to maximize their capability by storing only oil, while returning pure water to the ocean or river body that has been contaminated. In 2010, during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill off Louisiana’s coast in the Gulf of Mexico, Blue Planet technology was deployed to clean up contaminated water. The Costner-owned company leased thirty-two integrated oil-water separation systems to British Petroleum to assist in the response effort. Although much of the oil sitting on top of the water had already been treated with chemical dispersants, causing it to sink down below the surface of the ocean, the company’s centrifugal oil-water separation technology was proved effective. To date, Blue Planet is the only company that has performed oil-water separation at sea during an active oil spill situation. For more information on how Blue Planet is equipping the oil & gas industry to more effectively respond to the next oil spill, visit www.bpws.com.

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ALL THE KING’S BODYMEN by Arthur Vandelay

teven Zaillian’s adaptation of All The King’s Men began filming in New Orleans in 2004. Calling the film high profile was an understatement. It was based on a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, already adapted into a 1949 film that won the Oscar for best picture, along with two more for its cast. Zaillian’s film starred Sean Penn, Jude Law, Kate Winslet, Mark Ruffalo, Patricia Clarkson, Jackie Earle Haley, Anthony Hopkins and The Sopranos star James Gandolfini. Providing security for the starstudded roster was David Burke, a veteran and former state trooper. “That was our first experience working in the film industry,” says Burke. A film about Louisiana’s past, All The King’s Men foreshadowed great things to come. Louisiana would soon make history, siphoning film projects away from California and New York. Burke worked on many of those films, providing personal protection for Ryan Reynolds, Kate Hudson, Jason Statham, Sylvester Stallone, Kim Basinger, Kevin Spacey, Eva Mendes, Anthony Hopkins and Hilary Swank. He also provided protection at other functions, including security for Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. While observing other security companies on set, he soon saw issues that he could address. “What stood out while watching other security companies was the lack of discipline and knowledge of working on set and with film executives,” says Burke. He and his wife, Dynette, discussed opening their own security company. “The idea of forming our

own security company sounded very exciting and challenging, but we knew we could make a difference if we did it together.” After opening their company with six security agents, David and Dynette Burke’s Tectus Security now manages the work of ninety agents, offering jobs to veterans and former law enforcement officers. “David was a State Trooper and a veteran from the Gulf War,” says Dynette. “He understands and has the utmost respect for those who put their life on the line for our great country. He wanted to work with people who had the same background and discipline.” To date, Tectus has provided security for Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, 2 Guns, Treme, This is the End, Oblivion, Now You See Me, The Expendables movies, On the Road, Parker, Green Lantern, Déjà Vu, The Reaping, Contraband, Aztec Warrior, When the Game Stands Tall and The Hulk. Their biggest film to date is also Louisiana’s biggest film ever, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, with a 100-day shoot and 400-man crew to protect. Clients’ needs are mostly the same. “Privacy is the first and foremost, then personal safety,” says Burke. “Many actors want some type of normalcy, whether going to see a film, having dinner at a restaurant or to buying groceries. We help coordinate their movements, so the spotlight isn’t always on their every move.” With a full fall ahead, the Burkes are staying busy while also providing security for the New Orleans Film Festival. “We are so honored to be the Official Security Sponsor again for NOFF,” says Dynette. “Supporting our local theatre and film community is very important to us.” Find out more about Tectus Security at www.tectussecurity.com. S

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A REAL CASTLE IN WHITE CASTLE

by Susan Ross

lthough Baton Rouge has a large studio facility in Raleigh Studios, one of the capital city’s great strengths as a filmmaking hub is the locations in the surrounding areas, such as the historic Nottoway Plantation. Thirty minutes from downtown Baton Rouge, it’s close enough for crews to commute, while providing the look of an aged property secluded from civilization. “A film starring Paris Jackson, Michael Jackson’s daughter, was recently scouting for a film she will be shooting here,” says Neil Castaldi of Nottoway Plantation & Resort. Completed in 1859, the 53,000 square foot Greek and Italianate style white mansion, which is also known as “White Castle,” has become a favorite of the film industry. It has appeared in films such as The Loss of a Teardrop Diamond and the Louisiana-set Disney animated film The Princess and the Frog. “There’s an allure to seeing a particular location that was in a film,” says Castaldi. “It adds tremendously to our marketing.” He also mentions that The Governor’s Wife, a reality show featuring former Louisiana governor Edwin Edwards, has recently visited the property. “We are a lot more than just a plantation,” says Castaldi of Nottoway’s allure. “We have forty rooms and three different ballrooms, meeting and conference facilities. We are a fully equipped resort.” Business is booming for the historic property, which is looking to add additional rooms for next year. For more info on Nottoway Plantation, visit www.nottoway.com. S

THE MICHAEL J. FOX SHOW PREMIERES WITH WENDELL PIERCE by Susan Ross

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fter completing the fourth and final season of HBO’s Treme, New Orleanian thesp Wendell Pierce joins Michael J. Fox in his return to network television. Pierce plays Harris Green, the old boss of Mike Henry (Fox), a beloved New York news anchor who stepped away from television after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. As his kids grow, Mike grows restless, and Harris jumps at the chance to get him back behind the news desk. The Michael J. Fox Show premieres on NBC this September 26 with back-to-back episodes on its first night at 8pm. S

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SCENE |

THE LOUISIANA SPORTS HALL OF FAME INDUCTION CELEBRATION by Catie Ragusa

he 2013 Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame Induction Celebration took place June 27-29, honoring nine of the greatest athletes to ever play in the Bayou State. The same weekend, the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame and Northwest Louisiana History Museum was opened in Natchitoches, the city where the induction ceremonies have taken place since 1958. The Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame was created over fifty years ago, when the state’s athletes were first recognized for their accomplishments in their athletic careers. The state’s leading sports journalists created the organization eight years after the idea was introduced in a Lake Charles writers’ meeting. The idea was to recognize Louisiana’s most talented athletes, “men or women, amateur or professional, living or dead,” according to Otis Harris, a 1950s sports editor for the Shreveport Journal. With the city’s and Northwestern State University’s support, the first physical location for the Hall of Fame was built in Natchitoches. Football player YA Tittle became the inaugural inductee in the new building in 1972. From 2000 to 2002, induction activities were briefly moved to Shreveport-Bossier City, but eventually returned to Natchitoches. The new, modern building that houses the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame and Northwest Louisiana History Museum now stands in the City of Lights. This year, a new group of sports legends was inducted. Nine athletes with skills in basketball, football, tennis, horse racing, coaching and otherwise outstanding athleticism were added to the Hall’s museum. Perhaps the most famous athlete ever to emerge from Louisiana is Shaquille O’Neal, inducted this year for his outstanding achievements in college and professional basketball. At seven-foot-one, Shaq first played college ball at LSU before advancing to the NBA, where he played for the Orlando Magic, the Los Angeles Lakers, the Miami Heat, the Phoenix Suns, the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Boston Celtics. He retired from the NBA in 2011, after a record-breaking basketball career. Ronald Ardoin was inducted into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame for his thirty-year career as a horse racing jockey. Born in Carencro in 1957, he claims 5,226 wins in his 32,335-mount career, making him the second most successful jockey in Louisiana history. His lifetime earnings are just under $59 million. The football inductees included Tommy Hodson and Kevin 48 | September/October 2013

Mawae. Hodson was born in Mathews, Louisiana in 1967. As LSU’s all-time leading passer, he was a starting quarterback for the Tigers for four years. He had a seven-season NFL career, playing for the New England Patriots, Miami Dolphins, Dallas Cowboys and the New Orleans Saints before retiring in 1996. A former LSU football player, Mawae eventually became president of the NFL Players Association in 2008. He played guard in his first two seasons in the NFL and went on to play for the Seattle Seahawks, the New York Jets and the Tennessee Titans. He retired in 2010, ranking fourteenth in NFL history with 238 starts. Anna Koll was deemed the “Greatest All-Around Girl Athlete” by The Times Picayune in the 1930s. She holds titles in the Southern Women’s Tennis Championship and the Louisiana Women’s Tennis Championship. She also holds titles in track and field and baseball. She passed away in 1998 at the age of ninety-three. New Orleans native Ervin Johnson played basketball at UNO from 1990-1993. He was the team’s leader in rebounds, blocked shots, field goal percentage and double doubles. He played in the NBA for the Seattle SuperSonics, Denver Nuggets, Minnesota Timberwolves and Bucks. Born in Tallulah, Louisiana, James Jones was a six-time All Star in the American Basketball Association, where he played for the New Orleans Buccaneers, Memphis Pros and Utah Stars. He also played for the Baltimore Bullets in the NBA, retiring in 1977 after ten seasons of professional basketball. Chanda Rubin, a Lafayette native, has won seven titles on the Women’s Tennis Association Tour, as well as two other International Tennis Federation events. She was ranked as the number six women’s tennis player in the world in 1996. She has played in the Australian Open, Wimbledon and U.S. Open. She is also a member of the Louisiana Tennis Hall of Fame. Ed “Skeets” Tuohy was inducted into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame for his career as a high school basketball coach at Newman High School in New Orleans. He held an 84.5 winning percentage, with three state championship wins and nine state tournament appearances throughout his fifteen seasons coaching. He quit coaching in 1975 after suffering from a stroke and passed away in 1982. For more information on the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame, visit the official website at www.lasportshall.com. S

MODERN CONVENIENCES by Arthur Vandelay

n Prytania Street in New Orleans is a building screenwriters would call nondescript. Beige and forgettable, it’s a favorite of the film industry, able to house four major studio films at once. The stuffy office space is logistically friendly, but every producer working there can’t wait to escape. A two-minute walk away is their escape: The Hotel Modern. Newly renovated and rebranded, the hotel is the closest respite New Orleans offers to filmmakers on Prytania Street. “The renovation of the hotel has been to attract the entertainment business, more than anything else,” says Miguel Solorzano, general manager of the property that was formerly Le Cirque. “We really cater to musicians, artists, entertainers and celebrities. This year, we’ve had three different film crews stay with us, including Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. One of them also filmed at the hotel.” “Our staff is used to this type of high profile clientele,” says Solorzano, who also hosted several famous faces during Essence Fest. “They let those guests come in and out as they please. They like how comfortable it is.” Additional comforts include Tivoli & Lee, a restaurant serving up modern Southern food from dawn till dusk, complete with a sidewalk café and a menu filled with film-friendly food from local farms. And Bellocq, a classy-but-comfortable cocktail lounge inspired by the pre-prohibition era photos of EJ Bellocq taken in Storyville. Find out more at www.thehotelmodern.com. S

MORE SCENE EXTRAS www.scenelouisiana.com | 49

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TRAVEL AGENCY HELPS KEEP ECONOMIC IMPACT IN LOUISIANA

by Susan Ross

hile many of their employees are local hires, film and television shows shooting in Louisiana still have significant travel needs. Each project flies in producers, directors, actors and specialists that live in Los Angeles, New York or abroad. Some of them stay for months; others stay for only a day or two. Because Louisiana’s film tax credits are only earned on dollars spent in state, producers are particular about where money is spent. A flight booked online is paid to an out-of-state entity, so no tax credits are earned. But a flight booked through a Louisiana travel agency does earn tax credits, allowing the local economy to capture the film’s entire travel budget. “The impact of the entertainment industry on us has been substantial,” says Karen Peeler Wild of Lagniappe Travel Services, a New Orleans area travel agency and concierge service. “The tax incentives the film industry receives for doing business locally have allowed us to have significant growth that we would not have otherwise seen.” Lagniappe has done business in Louisiana for a quarter century. “We provide exceptional service and make our clients the priority,” says Wild. “Our goal from inception has always been to make sure each and every travel experience exceeds our clients’ expectations.” Wild first connected with the entertainment industry in 2008. Five years later, it accounts for 25% of Lagniappe Travel’s business.

“We have worked with a diverse group of entertainment companies, including major films, tv series, independent films, tours and concerts,” says Wild. “Our experienced Entertainment Group is well versed in coordinating air, hotel and ground transportation logistics to ensure that production stays on-schedule at the lowest cost possible. The films Lagniappe has serviced include 2 Bedroom 1 Bath, starring Eric Roberts and Dee Wallace, The Monkey’s Paw, starring Stephen Lang and Charles S. Dutton, andTarantula,starringDannyTrejoandBillyZane.Ahostofrealityshowsandtouring concerts have also booked services offered by Lagniappe. Wild says that servicing the oft-chaotic and exotic needs of the entertainment industry keeps her team flexible. “If there’s a will, there’s a way,” she says of Lagniappe’s concierge services, which extend far beyond simply booking flights. “We’ve had cars dropped off and picked up from clients no matter where they are located, from Grand Isle to the swamps of Pearl River. Recently, for a client scouting locations during Essence Fest, we found a local hotel offering the summer rate of $109, instead of the festival rate of $320.” Entertainment companies require more attention, but the new business is worth it. Film now spends over $1 billion annually in Louisiana, allowing companies like Lagniappe to grow during the national recession. For more on how Lagniappe Travel Services is helping the entertainment industry, visit www.louisianatravel.com. S

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THE REBIRTH OF THE

CIVIC THEATRE by Katianna Bear

n just minutes, Hurricane Katrina washed away hundreds of years of history. A metropolis once vibrant, full of talent and legendary architecture, was left devastated. Two blocks from the Superdome, the temporary housing unit for many who lost their homes, is a historic building that stood vacant for years after the storm. Built in 1906 by architect Sam Stone, the Civic Theatre is the oldest theater in New Orleans. The Schubert original was initially named after the famed composer and built specifically for sound. In the 1970s, it turned into the Civic Disco, later standing idle for many years. Now, after a nine-month renovation, the theater is making its official debut September 19 with a live performance by Empire of the Sun. “The credit is all due to Bryan Bailey and Gary Solomon,” says Tim Sweetwood of Bowery Presents, one of the top music promoters in the US and a new partner with the Civic Theatre. “They easily could have turned this into another apartment building. It’s smack dab in the middle of a couple of apartment buildings, so that would have been really easy for them to do. It’s really great that we were able to partner up and make this vision work.” Tim Sweetwood is in charge of booking on behalf of The Bowery Presents, a New York-based company that is expanding into New Orleans for the first time with the Civic. Sweetwood made his own partnership with Bowery just four months ago. “Bryan Bailey reached out to us, being the head partners of Bowery, when they were very close to completing the theater 52 | September/October 2013

itself,” says Sweetwood. “The part of business where they had no experience was booking talent and putting entertainment in the room, which is exactly what Bowery does. As far as the ticketed experience, we are a straight up 50/50 partner in everything.” “We book talent, promote talent, but also have a consultant role when it comes to the live experience,” he continues. “It’s a combination of management and booking. However, I’m not the GM of the venue. I don’t handle the cast or Civic staff, but we consult and they lean on our expertise when it comes to the live show.” After being introduced to the theater for the first time, Bowery wanted in. “Everything that they put into this specific theater, at this specific capacity, doesn’t really exist around the country. You can go to any market and they have 1,000 to 1,100 capacity venue, but they don’t have 1,000 to 1,100 capacity theater,” says Sweetwood. “That’s what this is. It’s theater-style: it’s big with open, standing room. And frankly, I’ve never seen a theater this big that is so nice. And the sound specs that I have heard are great.” The Bowery Presents has worked with some of the most talented performing artists, including Willie Nelson, Aretha Franklin, LCD Soundsystem, Kings of Leon, My Morning Jacket, Passion Pit and Deadmau5. Their most recent venture is a Southern expansion, working with venues in Atlanta and New Orleans. “I love the depth of culture,” Sweetwood says of New Orleans. “I think that so many other cities are scattered, but New Orleans is really

| MUSIC

www.scenelouisiana.com | 53

MUSIC | defined. You know what you’re getting into when you go down there and that always stays the same. When I have visited, we went to a couple of dive bars and there was such a mix of people. I asked, ‘Why is everyone here?’ And they responded, ‘Well, that’s just where everyone goes on Tuesday nights.’ That doesn’t exist in a lot of cities anymore. That’s a thing of the past. That culture, that feel…these people are proud of their city.” “The challenge for Bowery is the fact that New Orleans is so culturally tight. It gets so much national recognition, but it’s really not that big,” Sweetwood notes. “If you look up Atlanta on Google, the population is probably triple of what New Orleans is, but I’m expected to put bands in New Orleans that will draw just as many people to come out as in Atlanta. That is kind of a challenge for booking and promotions.” Bowery’s main focus is to cater to numerous different demographics with the artists they bring in. “We try to focus on a quality band to create a quality experience,” Sweetwood says. “We are looking for active and modern bands. We want any band to have a chance to come in to the Civic, but at the same time, there’s a certain band that is going to work there.” “We couldn’t be more excited to help curate this live music experience at the oldest theater in New Orleans, the birthplace of jazz and one of the most important cities for music in the world,” says Jim Glancy, a partner in The Bowery Presents. “The Civic Theatre is a dream for musicians and music fans alike.” Along with his partners, Bryan Bailey, a real estate agent with a film background, wanted to meld the old and the new as they restored the Civic. “The Civic is designed to create the optimal experience for both the artist and patron,” says Bailey. “It’s the harmony of humans and technology that brings the space to life. That’s how we approached every decision we’ve made in designing the audio/visual and infrastructure solutions that have been implemented at the Civic. The oldest theater in the city is married with the most advanced integrated tech infrastructure for a venue of its size anywhere in the country. It’s something that makes the Civic a unique and intimate experience.” The natural acoustics of the building were slightly supplemented with 21st century sound. The group decided to remove several rows of seats in the balcony, gallery and floor areas to ensure clear visuals for all audience members and eliminate any sound shadows. Every single one of the 1,100 seats will have a clear visual of the entire space. Walking into the theater, the individual will still sense the years of history laced in the walls. In an interview with Wire, Bailey states, “The biggest challenge in general has been that a project of this scope could go so many different directions. We could have spent three times as much money as we spent. Where do you draw the line with a historic theater? So the question we had to answer was, ‘What is best for the space?’” “It’s like we’re doing surgery on a person. We focused on things we would never do again. We wired the building with fiber optic CAT 6 that allows for large amounts of data transmission. We put in a great infrastructure that allows us to stay up to date, long term, and in line with the latest technologies as we move forward while keeping the historic architecture intact and authentic.” Despite the destruction Hurricane Katrina caused, the music never stopped. If anything, the industry has become stronger. “We designed the Civic Theatre to merge its historic aesthetic with cuttingedge technology to create an experience that is above any other performance venue in the South,” says Gary Solomon, Jr., president of the Solomon Group and one of the Civic Theatre’s partners. “The 54 | September/October 2013

State’s live performance infrastructure tax credits helped us renovate and bring the Civic Theatre back to life. Now through the program’s production tax incentives, we are able to attract a first rate company to partner with us to provide world class entertainment. This is exactly how the tax incentives are supposed to work, and we are delighted that we have been able to utilize the program and optimize its benefits.” To enhance the overall experience, the Civic teamed up with well-known mixologists, Neal Bodenheimer and Kirk Estoppinal of Cure and The Hotel Modern’s Bellocq to develop a one of a kind Civic Signature Cocktail menu. Each drink is made with Americanmade, small-batch spirits. The theater will have three different bars throughout the venue to properly serve the large audience. “Many historic restorations of theaters begin and end with a desire to recreate the past, brick by brick,” says Bailey. “The result in most of these cases is a very expensive relic. Our driving principle revitalizing the Civic is that the best experiences are the ones that are happening right now. We set out to take this beautiful historic structure and create a space where people can experience the best of the past while getting a glimpse into the future. We are honoring the past, creating the future, and reveling in the present.” For more information on the first modern historic theater, visit www.civicnola.com or www.bowerypresents.com. S

| MUSIC

A SELECTION OF SHOWS IN

CIVIC THEATER’S FALL LINEUP: Thursday, September 19

EMPIRE OF THE SUN Friday, September 27

RUSSELL BRAND Tuesday, October 1 and Wednesday, October 2

THE BLACK CROWES Friday, October 11

PASSION PIT, THE JOY FORMIDABLE Monday, October 14

BLACK REBEL MOTORCYCLE CLUB Wednesday, October 16

JJ GREY AND MOFRO Wednesday, October 23

STEVE EARLE Tuesday, October 29

THE WATERBOYS Wednesday, October 30

2 CELLOS Thursday, October 31

GALACTIC Tuesday, November 12

BONOBO (LIVE) Thursday, November 14

JAMEY JOHNSON Tuesday, December 10

JOHN WATERS

www.scenelouisiana.com | 55

MUSIC |

NEW VOODOO THE EXPERIENCE RETURNS NOVEMBER 1-3 by Jacob Peterman The most potent mix of music and art in North America returns to New Orleans this fall. In a newly re-imagined layout that will give festivalgoers a fresh view of City Park, the 2013 Voodoo Experience promises to be one of the most memorable in years. Seattle altrock legends Pearl Jam headline the festival this year, along with one-time New Orleanian Trent Reznor’s Nine Inch Nails. Reznor will also perform with How to Destroy Angels, the band he formed in 2010 with his wife Mariqueen Maandig and Atticus Ross. They’ll be joined by a host of international and local acts, including Paramore, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Afrojack, Matt & Kim, New Found Glory, The Revivalists, Flow Tribe, The Breton Sound, Calvin Harris, Shovels & Rope, Big Gigantic, Cults, Savoy, Beats Antiques, Dirty South Desaparecidos, Alkaline Trio, Big History, Moon Taxi, Allen Stone, ZZ Ward, Rudimental, A Silent Film, Robert Delong, Reignwolf and many, many more. For credentials to Scene Magazine’s favorite music festival in a city known worldwide for its festivals, visit the official Voodoo Experience website at www.worshipthemusic.com. S 56 | September/October 2013

PEARL JAM

| MUSIC

AFROJACK

NINE INCH NAILS

THE REVIVALISTS MATT & KIM

THE BRETON SOUND

PARAMORE www.scenelouisiana.com | 57

RANDALL CUNNINGHAM ACTOR by Leah Stogner

photo by Beth Kleinpeter

ot yet eighteen years old, Louisiana local Randall Cunningham is already booking significant roles in major feature films shooting in his home state. In the 2012 New Orleansshot comedy The Campaign, he played Cam, Jr. to Will Ferrell’s Cam Brady, appearing alongside comedy heavyweights Zach Galifianakis and Jason Sudeikis. He also just finished filming The Maze Runner in Baton Rouge, landing a principal role as Clint, one of several boys separated from freedom by a maze riddled with peril. Still young, most of Randall’s backstory is typical of a boy from South Louisiana. He found himself on the diamond at an early age, but after nine years of baseball, Randall realized that sports were not for him. “Whenever you realize your friends have been improving and you’re still at T-ball level, it’s not for you,” he laughs. He became involved with the now-defunct Baker Little Theatre, quickly realizing there was a big difference between his experiences on stage and those in the outfield. “It was less of a hobby and more what I just loved to do,” he remembers. Randall had to make his pick: acting or sports. Baseball meant more time sitting the bench. “If I can’t bring anything to the team, then there’s no point in doing it,” the seventeen-yearold actor remarks. But on stage, he would be an essential part of the play. After his introduction to acting, Randall met acting coach Debbie Gaudet. Under her guidance, he learned to tone down his stage voice, trading it in for the subtle tools of the screen actor. Randall also took character development to heart. “Emotionally, physically and psychologically” fleshing out each character was a central part of the three-dimensional character development taught by Gaudet. When Randall was deemed ready, Gaudet introduced him to Baton Rouge-based agent Brenda Netzberger of Open Range Management. A veteran of the film, television and commercial video industries, Netzberger began to submit her new client to casting directors eager to find local talent. “Brenda is directly responsible for launching my career,” says Randall. “I would be nowhere without her. She’s a fantastic agent who fights for her clients.” Netzberger submitted Randall to Ryan Glorioso, the casting director working closely with director Jay Roach to cast The Campaign. Randall checked out of school and headed down to New Orleans for the audition. A dear friend from the theatre world had passed away just a few days before. Randall decided to dedicate his audition to him. The audition went well. “It was the first time I felt good about the auditions,” Randall remembers. “Primarily because of Ryan and his assistants’ positive reactions.” His performance earned a callback. This time, director Jay Roach was sitting in. Though incredibly nervous, he landed the part of Will Ferrell’s son, Cam, Jr.

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The first day on the set of The Campaign demanded Randall go toe-to-toe with one of the great comedic actors working today. Having just met Will Ferrell, Randall was swept off to set to shoot an early scene in the movie with Zach Galifianakis. It was the first of many scenes he would share with his famous co-stars as Cam, Jr. Randall’s real parents have been supportive of his budding career. “I could not have better parents,” Randall says. “They support what I do, but they don’t push it on me.” After The Campaign introduced Randall to international audiences, he has continued to audition regularly, balancing the demands of his acting career with his final years of high school at Central Private School. After appearing in the Baton Rouge-shot basketball family film Thunderstruck, Randall finished filming a role in The Maze Runner, playing the part of a medic in the maze. Though the film is set in a post-apocalyptic world, Randall only had to travel to Jackson, Louisiana to shoot the film. Look for Randall Cunningham next in The Maze Runner, opening in theaters on Valentine’s Day 2014. S

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FASHION |

PREPARING FOR

NOLA FASHION WEEK SPRING/SUMMER 2014 by Andi Eaton

designs by Lisa Iacono photos by Chad M. West

ew Orleans Fashion Week’s 6th season is right around the corner. The event, which focuses on Southern-based or born designers, will kick off on September 28 and run through October 5. The twenty shows slated for the Spring/Summer 2014 collection are sure to prove that New Orleans, now Hollywood of the South, is rich with talent across multiple creative industries. Each designer showing has a goal of creating a sustainable business model that will allow their unique perspective on Southern design to set the foundation for the apparel industry in New Orleans. Throughout the week, New Orleans is highlighted as an artistic and fashion-forward venue perfect for editorial coverage. The company that puts on the event is New Orleans Fashion Council (NOLAFC). NOLAFC’s mission is to create “opportunity and exposure for both established and up-and-coming Southern-based or born designers while making an economic and artistic impact on the fashion industry.” Biannually, NOLAFC produces runway shows and presentations, offers industry-based educational workshops and provides a fashion market for both designers and retailers. So what does it take to put on a successful show during Fashion Week? I’ve got a rundown for you.

60 | September/October 2013

| FASHION

www.scenelouisiana.com | 61

FASHION | THE WORK: It all starts with the designer. Once a designer has the concept for the collection – and remember, they’re working a season ahead of what’s in the retail stores - they need the resources to bring it to life. Some designers sew each garment themselves, or have their own studios and production teams. In New Orleans, one go-to resource is NOLA Sewn, owned by Lisa Iacono, herself a designer and industry expert. “Garment making is still very much a living art and cultural pride here, more so than any other city I’ve lived [in],” said Lisa in Women’s Wear Daily in regards to the apparel industry movement in New Orleans. Women’s Wear Daily is the authority for comprehensive business coverage in the world of fashion and retail. Lisa’s facility includes a sewing room, office space for designer meetings, a salon for fittings and a fabric library, along with seamstresses, a patternmaker and the equipment required to produce garments on a larger scale. Lisa’s client list includes Camilyn Beth, Hazel & Florange, Loretta Jane and Libellule, to name a few designers on the NOLAFW S/S schedule.

THE PRODUCTION: It’s all in the numbers. Each runway show typically lasts about twelve minutes. Countless hours go into creating the perfect staging for the show. From lighting design, music, sound and set construction, it takes a village, even before the designer, models, hairdessers and make-up artists show up. Once it’s actually show day, for every ten models, there are upwards of thirty people working on each model, including fitters, show directors, stylists, runners and more. A show could have twenty to forty garments, each with an entire look designed around it, complete with shoes and accessories.

THE SALES: After the glitz and glamour of the show are all done, true success is measured when the crowd is gone. It’s the goal of the designer to garner press coverage and, ultimately, sales. Ideally, the entire collection would land on the racks and shelves of stores. The sales connection for the designer comes from the buyers, who represent boutiques and mass-market retailers who are at the shows with the intention of finding the newest items to carry in stores. Some designers may work directly with showrooms, while others have sales reps. Often, while building their business, designers do the sales work themselves. Gaining post-show coverage through local and national media, including fashion and beauty blogs making big waves in the industry, can land a designer on the map. The New Orleans Fashion Council team works yearround with designers, economic development entities, media, educators and the like to create the infrastructure needed to support the growing Southern fashion industry. To gain access to the shows as an industry member supporter, NOLAFC offers packages via the NOLA Fashion Week website at nolafw.com/support. S

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Designer and NOLA Sewn owner Lisa Iacono

NOLA Sewn pattern maker Amanda Stone

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I recently read that the rights to The Terminator will revert back to writer James Cameron soon because thirty-five years have passed. How can that be true if people are still fighting over the rights to the creation of Superman and that was seventy-five years ago? Great question that presents a very complex issue that is of great relevance today. This has been in the news recently for two reasons. First, 2013 is the first year that any copyrights can be recaptured. Second, the franchise rights to The Terminator have recently been purchased by producers Megan Ellison, David Ellison and Paramount Pictures. Those rights could possibly revert back to James Cameron in 2019. Though it is a mechanism that can be very beneficial for authors who have previously assigned their copyrightable works, reversion of copyright is a very technical and complex issue. The reversion right was created by the most recent copyright act - The Copyright Act of 1976 - which went into effect on January 1, 1978. Section 203 of the Copyright Act of 1976, for the first time, created a right wherein authors of original protected works who transferred, assigned or granted their rights could terminate, recapture or revert the rights associated with the grant thirty-five years after entering into the assignment. The justification for this law is the protection of authors of older works from having to continue living with the terms of a grant where they may have had very little negotiating skill or leverage during the transaction. There are several important technical issues to consider as it relates to the reversion of copyright. First, because the law did not take effect until January 1, 1978, only those copyright assignments taking place on or after January 1, 1978, are eligible for reversion under the law. Second, this only applies to transfers,

64 | September/October 2013

assignments or grants of copyright. It expressly exempts “works-made-for-hire.” Works-made-for-hire are commissioned works wherein the purchaser is deemed the author for copyright purposes. Third, the right of termination cannot be waived, even if there are contractual provisions to the contrary. This means that no matter what term the assignment contract states, the author has reversion rights beginning at thirty-five years. Fourth, the time frame for exercising these reversion rights is five years, beginning at the end of the thirty-fifth year from the date of publication or at the end of forty years from the date of execution of the assignment of rights, whichever is earlier. Fifth, to assert these rights, the author must serve the current rights holder with a notice of termination and such notice of termination must be recorded with the US Copyright Office. The notice may be served as early as ten years before the effective date of recapture, or as late as two years before the effective date of recapture. As to your question relating to the fight over the rights to the character of Superman, the most notable difference is that the character of Superman was created well before January 1, 1978. As such, it is not eligible under the rights discussed here. There does exist a mechanism under copyright law to recapture the rights to works created prior to January 1, 1978. Unfortunately, I do not have space to discuss that now. The reversion of copyright is an extremely complex issue relative to timing and procedure. Should you believe you may have such rights, it is essential you contact an experienced copyright attorney.

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FILM |

photo by Stacy Brimer

Doug Blake’s

SOUTHERN SESSIONS by Catie Ragusa

“I

t literally changed my life in a day,” says producer Doug Blake, referring to the premiere of The Sessions at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival. Starring Oscar winner Helen Hunt and Oscar nominees John Hawkes and William H. Macy, The Sessions follows Mark O’Brien, a man left disabled after contracting polio at the age of six. “I started to cry because I realized the cliché about an audience falling in love with a movie,” says Blake of the Sundance audience’s reaction. “That was actually happening to a film that I had a very significant part in getting to the screen.” A man unable to move his body from the neck down, O’Brien refused to let his life be dictated by disease. He earned a graduate degree from UC Berkeley, despite spending much of his life in an iron lung. At thirty-eight, he decided to overcome another hurdle. With a priest’s blessing and the assistance of a sex therapist, he lost his virginity. The actual Mark O’Brien documented his experience

66 | September/October 2013

in his 1990 article, “On Seeing a Sex Surrogate,” published in The Sun magazine. Nearly twenty years later, Ben Lewin adapted O’Brien’s story into a feature length script. Lewin, who also lives with polio, sent his script to Blake. “As soon as I finished reading the script, I picked up the phone and called Lewin,” Blake remembers. “I said, ‘I’m going to break my first rule: I’ll give advice for free. After that, if you want me to work, you’ll have to pay me. But I want to make this movie.’” The filmmakers started raising money. “It took a year to raise the first chunk of money,” says Blake. “It was all done through friends and family. With that first chunk of money, we hired a casting director and a lawyer. And then we started shooting the film.” The Sessions went on to win the Special Jury Prize award at the Sundance Film Festival in 2012. It was later nominated for two SAG awards, two Golden Globes and an Oscar. “We all tried to keep our hopes high, but our expectations low,” says Blake of the film’s unexpected success. “I like to think that I’m in the efforts business,

| FILM

Helen Hunt and John Hawkes in The Sessions

not the results business. We always knew it had the potential, but up until the first screening at Sundance, nobody had seen the film.” “And I mean nobody. The largest screening was for fifty people at most,” Blake continues. “There was nothing, and then, there were two standing ovations. The phone starts ringing. Fox Searchlight got involved in the bidding. We sold it to Fox that night, and it took off from there.” Blake got a call from Lionsgate the next day with an offer for another project. He has been consistently working as a producer ever since. After connecting with Dukes of Hazzard alum John Schneider, who is also a talented writer/director, Blake has come to Louisiana to produce his next series of independent films. Recently, Blake wrapped his first film in Louisiana, the sentimental horror comedy Smothered. Filmed partially at The 13th Gate haunted house in Baton Rouge, the horror flick was directed by John Schneider. Smothered stars classic horror film icons Kane Hodder, RA Mihailoff, Malcolm Danare, Bill Moseley, Don Shanks and Michael Berryman, all of whom play themselves in the film. Hired to haunt an RV park in rural Louisiana, they soon find the script flipped: the horror icons are being targeted by a mysterious killer. “I was prepping for another film and I saw this location,” says Blake on the decision to shoot in Baton Rouge. “I mentioned to John that this would be a good place for a low budget horror film.” Coincidentally, Schneider already had an idea for a film. “He goes to these culture conventions all over the country all over the world - that gave him the idea for Smothered,” says Blake. “Somebody said, ‘If you can put this together for this amount of money, we’ll fund the movie.’ So we looked at

courtesy of Fox Searchlight

Producer Doug Blake on set with Baton Rouge’s Mayor Kip Holden photo by Stacy Brimer

We had the responsibility to hire as many locals as we could find. www.scenelouisiana.com | 67

FILM |

photo by Talon Tarter

each other and went, ‘Let’s go make this movie.’” Joining Blake on Smothered was a talented group of local filmmakers and technicians, many of whom have worked on numerous big budget production that have shot in Louisiana. They brought their big budget know-how to a fun, low budget project. “As far as I’m concerned, we had the responsibility to hire as many locals as we could find,” says Blake of the film’s local hires. In addition to the many talented crew members behind the camera, the film also features a host of local actors in major roles in front of the camera. With Smothered now wrapped, Doug Blake has his eye on future projects with John Schneider back as his writer/director, all of which will hopefully be shot in Louisiana. “We intend to move forward,” says Blake. “There are two projects of John’s that we’re trying to get the cast and financing for.” In addition to writing and directing, Schneider might step in front of the camera as well. After so many years as an actor on Dukes of Hazzard and Smallville, it’s a place where he’s comfortable. Smothered is currently in post-production, and is expected to be released in 2014. S Horror legend Michael Berryman on the set of Smothered

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photo by Stacy Brimer

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ON THE SCENE

48 HOUR FILM PROJECT at ROUX HOUSE NEW ORLEANS photos by Chad M. West

After the taxing forty-eight hour filmmaking marathon was over, professionals and amateurs alike abandoned their energy drink binging in favor of sleep. The New Orleans chapter of the nationwide short shooting schedule film festival boasted 900 participants this year, combining to create sixty-one teams that would each produce a film. After being given key elements to incorporate into their film, such as a prop and a specific genre, the teams wrote, shot and edited their films in 48 hours or less. Then, their films were screened, selling out with over one thousand tickets to the five blocks of screenings. Find out more at www.48hourfilm.com/neworleans.

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ON THE SCENE

48 Hour Film Festâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Team Red Thunder, who produced the competition film The Last First Time

www.scenelouisiana.com | 71

ON THE SCENE

48 HOUR FILM PROJECT at ROUX HOUSE NEW ORLEANS photos by Chad M. West

Original poster for The Last First Time designed by Katie Joy Crawford 72 | September/October 2013

ON THE SCENE

Original poster for Snapped designed by Kelli Binnings www.scenelouisiana.com | 73

THE UNSCENE Incentive Sense The much-ballyhooed success of Louisiana’s tax incentives has created many imitators. States like Georgia, Iowa and Michigan have all attempted to imitate the original with varying degrees of success. Almost every state in the country has enacted some form of film incentive. But all incentives are not equal. And film incentives do not make sense for every state. In California, many talk of so-called “runaway production,” a term that references the amount of physical production that once took place in California, but now occurs in Louisiana and other incentive states. In response to calls for a state film incentive in California to counteract the outflow of production, California’s state legislature enacted its own incentive program. A capped program with a pre-defined pool of incentive dollars, the program’s participants are chosen via a lottery. Film and television projects participate in the program, just like they do in Louisiana, but the decision to offer such incentives is very different for both states. Economists will tell you that the least effective tax incentive subsidizes an industry that already exists, while also making it extremely difficult to judge the success of the incentive. For instance, if Louisiana offered a 30% subsidy to the oil and gas industry, the response would be tremendous. Billions of dollars would run through the program. But how much of that would be new to Louisiana’s economy, and how much would have been existing business simply taking advantage of the program? No one could say for sure. Likewise, California cannot be sure if it’s program is actually stopping runaway production, or if it is merely giving money away to projects that would shoot in California anyway. The lottery is fair, but how can it effectively target projects that will shoot elsewhere without the incentive?In contrast, because Louisiana had virtually no film production before its incentive, the entirety of the now-billion dollar industry can be fairly credited to its film incentive program. Whether California’s film tax incentive is positively impacting its loss of film production will remain in doubt as long as it exists, but there can be no doubt that Louisiana’s entertainment incentives program makes good sense. - The UnScene Writer Submit tips to unscene@scenelouisiana.com. Anonymity guaranteed.

74 | September/October 2013

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