After 12 days of film screenings, venue crises and trying to figure out who has YOUR VIP tickets, you would figure I would be sick of the word FILM or FESTIVAL. NOPE.

Art By Chance ultra short film festival is back for it’s second year and I am happy to announce two special US screening.

May 11th Cinema Speakeasy hosts ART BY CHANCE at ECHO PARK FILM CENTER in LA.

Art By Chance: Tuesday May 11 at 7:30p
On May 11, we’re hosting a special presentation of about forty 30-second silent art films, also at the Echo Park Film Center.

The program is part of the Art By Chance Ultra Short Film Festival- and the coolest thing about this screening is that we’re asking you to bring noisemakers and instruments: Pots and pans, toy trumpets, drums, whistles, a kazoo, your dog’s favorite squeeze toy, or your grandmother’s Stradivarius.

We’re going to compose music for the films collectively, on the spot, on the fly, with no prior knowledge of film composing, musicianship, or foley for that matter.

Can we do it? Come find out.

Art By Chance NY Screening with Live Soundtrack Performances: May 23rd 7p-10p at Angels & Kings

Performances by Anthology Strings, Clay Franklin, DJ Chad North and Special Guest

Art By Chance films will  be leaving the cinemas and headed to the streets May 7 to June 4th. For more info on where to see films and our special screenings in NY and LA visit us at www.artbychance.org

Once again the Apple Store along with Indiewire host an array of FREE filmmaker events as part of this year’s Tribeca Film Festival. Be sure to get there early (1 hr), you don’t need a ticket but seats and standing room fill up fast!

The Future of Filmmaking: Where Is It and Where Is It Going?A panel of acclaimed producers discuss the state of filmmaking today and where it’s headed tomorrow. Panelists include Karin Chien (winner, 2010 Piaget Producers Award), Lisa Cortes (producer of the Oscar-nominatedPrecious), Mynette Louie (producer of the award-winning film Children of Invention), Jason Kliot (leading producer of indie films), Jay Van Hoy (producer of Old Joy andTreeless Mountain), and Mary Jane Skalski (producer of Mysterious Skin, The Visitor, and Dare).Friday, April 23, 5:00 p.m.

Director Bryan Goluboff and Actors Ezra Miller and Zoë KravitzThe talented writer-director discusses his new teen comedy, Beware the Gonzo. The film stars Ezra Miller as Eddie “Gonzo” Gilman, who is kicked off his school paper by editor Gavin Riley (Jesse McCartney). Bent on revenge, Gonzo starts his own underground newspaper with surprising results.Friday, April 23, 6:30 p.m.

Emily and Sarah KunstlerThe sisters discuss William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe — their powerful documentary about the life of their father, the late radical civil rights lawyer William Kunstler. The film recounts the historic causes Kunstler fought for, revealing a man who risked public outrage and the safety of his family to promote justice for all.Tuesday, April 27, 6:30 p.m.

The Directors ofFreakonomicsJoin Eugene Jarecki, Morgan Spurlock, Seth Gordon, Alex Gibney, Heidi Ewing, and Rachel Grady as they discuss their documentary film collaboration, Freakonomics, in which they each interpret a different chapter of the best-selling book by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner.Friday, April 30, 6:00 p.m.

Jean-Pierre JeunetThe French auteur behindDelicatessen and Amélie discusses his latest film,Micmacs. The story follows Bazil (Dany Boon, Joyeux Noël), raised as an orphan, who now has a bullet lodged in his brain from a previous mishap. Gentle-natured and kind, he exacts a revenge plot against the giant weapons manufacturers responsible for his accident. It’s a whimsical David and Goliath story, reminiscent of Buster Keaton.Friday, April 30, 7:30 p.m.

FOR A FULL LIST OF SPECIAL TRIBECA EVENTS AT THE APPLE STORE CLICK HERE

For the second year in a row, I have been involved with Art By Chance, an ultra short film festival that screens short films on digital signs around the world. While these short films will be playing here and there, I organize the official New York screening of the films which includes a unique music element…

Art By Chance is currently seeking musicians to participate in the second annual Art By Chance Screening & Music Scoring party in New York on May 23rd.

Art By Chance is an ultra short film festival that screens short film on digital signs around the world. Part of the idea behind Art By Chance is to bring film to the public in an unexpected way, in an unexpected place, while also acting as an alternative means of short film distribution.

As part of our celebration of this year international festival we are inviting music makers of all kinds to create impromptu scores of the films live.

If interested in performing, please submit a sample of your work to stacey.burgay@anbean.org by April 16th.

For more information on Art By Chance visit us www.artbychance.org

THE 2010 ART  BY CHANCE “TIME” THEMED FILMS WILL BE ARRIVING TO A CITY NEAR YOU MAY - JUNE. If you would like to help bring the world’s largest public art event to your city, email us!

Take 1: Brooklyn Vegan pre-SXSW showcase at The Knitting Factory (Brooklyn) on March 15th

BrooklynVegan.com are throwing a pre-SXSW party on March 15 at the Knitting Factory with some of their favorite bands…all on their way to Austin for the festival: Let’s Wrestle, Casiokids, The Wave Pictures, Banjo or Freakout and WhoMadeWho (DJ only).

Take 2: New Directors, New Films starts March 24th to April 4th.

You really can’t go wrong with NDNF, close your eyes and just point anywhere on their program and you will see something good.

Take 3: Who needs the Salt Lick anyway? There are plenty of good BBQ places here in NYC (Daisy Mays, Blue Smoke, Bone Lick, Rub BBQ)

and then call me in the morning.

I apologize as I totally dropped the ball. Only writing about pancakes for the month of February is shameful, unless of course I was a food critic blogger.

What’s going on this week in NYC? Tons of cool stuff!

Friday Feb. 26th

Wonderland: A Tim Burton Ball - dress up in your favorite character and learn to dance!

Dumbo Art Center: Pop Up Art Sale - Help support them and some wonderfully talent artists while also adding something to your wall. Art prices start at $50 a pop.

On Saturday 27th

The Music Hall of Williamsburg is screening UNPROTECTED, a series of 2 minute films by members of The FilmShop. For more information click here

Bike Buddy & Bike Tweetup in Brooklyn.

On Sunday Feb 28th

NYC Food Crawl Presents:  The February Pork Bun Crawl, Manhattan

Don’t forget to stop by City Bakery for the last day of the Hot Chocolate Festival! Sunday is their FINALE!!!!

What’s going on this week in Stacey Land? I was interviewed by The Film Talk two weeks ago, along with my counter part in Istanul but the interview was kind of cut out of the show and replaced with a really great promotion of Art By Chance. I guess we have to work on our audio interviewee presence…

Anyway, BIG THANKS to Jett Loe and Gareth Higgins for graciously giving our festival props on their show. If you are unfamiliar with The Film Talk and their podcasts head over to their website and hear intelligent conversations / arguments on the latest film releases.

Submissions for ART BY CHANCE are open till March 24th. Plenty of time to make a 30 second “TIME” themed film.

In other news, this Thursday at 8pm, I’ll be hosting a screening/fundraiser of  Poto Mitan, a documentary exploring the roles of Haitian women in the global economy. All proceeds go towards Partners in Health an organization that has been working on the ground in Haiti for 20 years.

How have I NOT HEARD of RunPee.com? Bladder issues, check. Hate going to the bathroom during a film, check. Hate missing out on that moment that reveals who did it or that moment when the protagonist comes of age, check.

Thanks to Dan Florio and his mom and pop shop, he tells you the best time to go to the bathroom. He’s also has a good heart and wants to help other developers with their projects. See for yourself at RunPee.com and of course you can access on your mobile device m.RunPee.com

P.S.  Thanks Mom for sharing this possible life alternating news!

So you are so over BAM’s Sounds Like Brooklyn festival, you’re in the mood for something more foreign, new or avant-garde, let me suggest the Unsound Festival that’s happening in venues throughout New York and Brooklyn starting tonight Feb 4th till 14th.

Opening night at Lincoln Center features Vladislav Delay, one of the most innovative musicians working in electronic music today, and Lillevan, the highly-regarded video artist who has worked with Fennesz and Morton Subotnik, continue an ongoing collaboration on a brand-new free-form audio and visual improvisation, creating their performance specifically for the David Rubenstein Atrium. There is also a special screening of Andy Warhol’s Kiss and Blow Job. You know if you want to star at one image on a screen for a very very long time. More information about Unsound Festival can be found at http://unsound.pl/en you can also find Unsound Festival 2010 lineup and music clips at though Last.fm page

This year’s Sundance has done a lot to revamp their programming. Adding the new Next (low-budget) features and the traveling premiers of films in several different cities.

If you can’t make it to Utah, If you don’t leave in on of the choosen cities above then what do you do?

You can watch 5 Sundance Films 3 of which are 2010 premiers on YouTube (for a small price of course).

Three  American independent feature films from the 2010 Sundance Film Festival will debut on YouTube even before audiences get a chance to see the movies at the festival in Park City, UT. Launching this Friday for VOD rental online in the United States - from this year’s Sundance fest - are Michael Mohan’s “One Too Many Mornings,” Todd and Brad Barnes “Homewrecker,” and Linas Philips’ “Bass Ackwards.” Meanwhile, from last year’s Sundance, YouTube will also be renting Tze Chun’s “Children of Invention” and Louie Psihoyo’s “The Cove” online.

Awhile back I boasted about my love and admiration for Spike Jones as well as my trepidation about the adaption of my favorite childhood book, Where The Wild Things Are. Well now that the film is behind us, Spike is cooking up something new, something ”TOP SECRET”!

A Call for Filmmakers by Spike Jones & Co. via  We Love You So

“Do you live in the New York area? Are you over 25 years old? Are you an amazing filmer/editor/cinematographer/photographer? If you are any of those things, or all of those things you should let us know. We are looking for a few rad human beings to be part of a truly fantastic top secret upcoming project happening in NYC in and around Feb-April of 2010. Strengths include : desire to make beautiful work, ability to work on the fly, love of art, music, and culture, knowledge of the internet and an overall sense of the difference between what is good and what is bad.

If this sounds like you, or sounds like someone you know, or sounds like someone that someone you know might know please respond to contact@weloveyouso.com with the subject: TOP SECRET. Please include a link to your site/reel/blog/tumblr or whatever other means you think best communicates how great you are.”

p.s. If you haven’t checked out Spike’s blog We Love You So, please do as it’s filled with such great nuggets of inspiration!