Promo - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUtB25k6kwU

Kevin Smith Award Acceptance Speech (must see!) -  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnYn3vKLxWY&feature=channel_page

Michelle Monaghan Award Acceptance -  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgmG-zhG2DI&feature=channel_page

Kevin Smith Interview/Q&A Part 1 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Yoas4Mj6RQ&feature=channel_page

Kevin Smith Interview/Q&A Part 2 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ktr3a5WlTsI&feature=channel_page

Last year was an odd year for movies. More than half of the movies I had really expected to make this list either didn’t quite measure up once I saw them or they were pushed off by films I knew nothing about beforehand or didn’t expect would make it. While I got to see a lot of what I really wanted to last year, there were a couple I just wasn’t able to make it to that had a good chance at being on this list.

1) THE FALL - I loved this movie and saw it a couple of times in the theater. Beautifully shot and imagined and the film that I think was the absolute best of last year. I thought it wasn’t eligible for the Academy Awards since it was made in 2006 but when I saw that it was actually on the official eligibility list, I was surprised that there wasn’t even one nomination for this film. The art direction, design, and cinematography were phenomenal.

2) WALL-E - Pixar has always been at the top of their game and this film is no exception. The animation was incredible and it was hard at times to not “see” certain parts as filmed models even though I knew they weren’t. Wall-E is one of the cutest and sweetest characters to come along in a while and there were such great little moments with him and Eve. This film is a prime example of how a story can be told with few words and it truly stands out above other animated, and even many live-action, films. Pixar is unlike any other company around.

3) LET THE RIGHT ONE IN - This is a film I went to with very little knowledge of what it was going to be about. I’d read a bit of a review and was hooked enough to give it a shot. It was one of those films that just blew me away and I left the theater thinking to myself over and over “What a great fucking movie.” I immediately got the score and thought about the whole thing for days. It was such a refreshing change in what I hate to call the “vampire” genre.

4) SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE - This was one of those movies that I loved from every aspect. Cinematography, Editing, Acting, Writing, etc… — it really just all came together so well.

5) DEAR ZACHARY: A LETTER TO A SON ABOUT HIS FATHER - This movie crushed me. Holy crap, I don’t think there’s been a film or documentary that has moved me so much. This was such a tragic topic to begin with and some of the turns it takes throughout are just heartbreaking. I know this would have affected me before I had my son, but having a three-year-old and seeing this just makes it much more emotional. If you see this film, you will be saddened and angered by what happens in ways that you probably haven’t felt in a long time, if ever.

6) MAN ON WIRE - This was just such a fun documentary. Philippe Petit is great to watch just by himself but to see the scope of his plan and the way it was carried out is just incredible. The director uses recreations of the events in an extremely effective way to really help you understand the way things were at that time for Petit and his crew without it feeling like those cheesy “dramatizations” you see on Dateline. The whole thing flows extremely well between the actual people involved telling the story, the recreations, and real footage/photos from it all. I highly recommend it to anyone.

7) SON OF RAMBOW - Wow, what an unexpected surprise. I knew practically nothing about it and ended up loving it. It reminded me of MILLIONS with the imagination, heart, and the two great child actors it had in it place. Very well done all-around.

THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON - This is one I had to think about for a while. There were a lot of wonderful moments and the film was extremely well done but there was something about it that just kinda kept me from loving it. I work quality assurance for a studio at a handful of theaters and so in downtimes, I’ll peek into a movie I’ve seen and rewatch parts of it. It was in doing so with this film that I was able to appreciate certain moments by themselves. It reminded me of the sections of the movie that worked so well and took the focus off of the parts that didn’t. In thinking back to the film as a whole, it’s not something that I was telling people they HAD to go see in a theater RIGHT NOW as I did with LET THE RIGHT ONE IN, The FALL, and WALL-E. But when I think of moments along the way and various pieces of this long life that was shown, there were some striking and poignant parts and the movie was very worth seeing.

9) THE VISITOR - I finally caught this one recently and it makes the list, though there are a couple of others I could have substituted here and almost did. Richard Jenkins does a fantastic job and uses the whole length of the movie to slowly grow out of the lonely and disconnected man we see him start off as. It’s a very subtle change that happens over the course of the events that transpire and his performance really makes the film so much better. The rest of the cast is great and the pacing and music of the film work really well.

10) FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL/ROLE MODELS - I’m including these two in a tie because I couldn’t decide which to use. If it messes up the numbers, I’d be fine with either being chosen. Both are hilarious, well-cast, and touch on emotions that lead to some very nice moments. I wish there were more comedies of this nature and a lot less of the EPIC MOVIES and the like.

Honorable Mention that almost made it: THE WRESTLER. Also great were THE DARK KNIGHT, MILK, and ROCKNROLLA.

 http://www.flickr.com/photos/imaginemichael

Am editing spots for the Vail Film Festival that I shot again earlier this year. The plan is to have me back next year, I hope it doesn’t change. You can check out information at http://www.vailfilmfestival.org

I’m involved in a worldwide photo project called The Head Project (stop laughing, perverts). It’s a pretty cool project where they send you a mannequin head for two weeks and you photograph it however you’d like and then send it on to the next person. I just got it a few days ago from Reading, UK and I send it to Bogota, Colombia in a little less than two weeks. You can check out their site at http://www.theheadproject.com

So yeah, all is well. Not a whole lot to update you on but I’ll see you next year! haha.

- Sarah’s album. I’m producing the album and I photographed and designed the cover off of her idea. You can hear the first 6 songs from her album “Songs You’ll Never Hear” at www.sarahbousquet.net .

- The Vail Film Festival (Official site). I’ll be returning as the cinematographer and documentarian for 2008. The festival will be from April 3-6th. You can see the short promo reel for the documentary in the vail section of the main site . I’m not sure what they’re going to allow me or provide for me regarding a crew right now. I assume I’ll have at least one assistant again. Last year it was Vadim Elkind as an additional cameraman and photographer and he’s set to return next year as well. He’s awesome and you can visit his Offical Site . I would like to bring my friend Tim out as well if it can be allowed, Tim and I have worked on many projects together since we started becoming filmmakers back in 2001. Though Tim officially started many years before that with his own homemade projects and action films. His site is PEC, LLC (though it’s still converted to his Film Championship at the time I’m writing this).

- The film “Simon Chance.”- This is a sequel to the film entitled Wilson Chance and is a James Bond-like comedy with lots of action. Their site is here . I’ve been in talks with the director, Jeff Bunzendahl, to come out and do some additional cinematography for them, especially for some large action fighting scenes with explosions and guns. Hell yeah. I’ve not gotten a chance to work with Jeff or his brother George yet but it’s something I’ve wanted to do since I lived in Colorado and met them many years ago. They’ve very talented filmmakers and it’ll be a pleasure to get a chance to work with them. As of now, that’s set to being filming in Spring of 2008.

Everything else is kind of up in the air right now. I’m always available and wanting to do more work in regards to filmmaking and photography so if you hear of anything, please let me know.

Have a good one.