Knowing that RESTREPO had made the "short list" of 15 towards being nominated for an Academy Award gave me great hope that, for once, Hollywood would do the right thing. Yesterday we came one step closer to that reality when it was announced that RESTREPO is one of five nominees for Best Feature Documentary. The awards will be presented on 27 February 2011 and nothing will keep me away from the TV that night.
Yes I'll happily suffer through all of the Hollywood drama until the Best Feature Documentary is awarded. I can't remember the last time I watched the Academy Awards. Everyone who knows me knows that I'm not a movie afficianodo but this year is different. The men of RESTREPO and all of the men of the ROCK matter to me. I just want to hear, "And the Oscar goes to.........Tim Hetherington and Sebastian Junger for RESTREPO". And I hope to see as many of the Soldiers as possible in the crowd and, maybe even on stage, when (I will not say "IF") Tim and Sebastian accept the Oscar.
Many people have done much to get RESTREPO to this point. First and foremost the Solders about whom the documentary was based. Those Soldier represent many who have served in much the same situation over the years in one war or another. They allowed Tim and Sebastian into their private space and trusted them to do the right thing. Then there are Tim and Sebastian who dug into their pockets to fund the trips to Afghanistan, paid for the editing and to get the film into its final form. To me they did right by those Soldiers. Another thank you to National Geographic for picking up the film and promoting it via their channel as well as through promotion with Laura Kim and her staff at Inside Job - LA. Laura and Kanani spent countless hours working to get RESTREPO shown at theaters around the nation. They had emmense help from military families, friends of the men of RESTREPO and every day Americans who were eager to see the film.
A huge WELL DONE to everyone involved. I hope I am not leaving out people/organizations I should mention here and if I have I apologize for that.
Tune in folks. 27 February 2011.
For those of you in the LA area you might want to check out this link which indicates that beginning on 1 February you can purchase tickets for $5.00 each for an opportunity to meet the Directors of the nominated short and feature length documentaries. I have no idea if Tim and Sebastian will be attending but will update here if I find out.
The Academy spotlights the work of the nominated filmmakers in the Documentary Short Subject and Documentary Feature categories with the second annual “Docs!” night. The program will include film clips from each of the nominated documentaries in both categories, and a panel discussion with each group of nominees (schedules permitting).
When
Wednesday, February 23, 7:30 p.m.
Where
Samuel Goldwyn Theater
8949 Wilshire Boulevard
Beverly Hills, CA 90211
Doors open at 6:30 p.m.
All seating is unreserved
For more information, call (310) 247-3600
I wasn't aware of this fact:
"The Academy’s entire active membership is eligible to select Oscar winners in all categories, although in five – Animated Short Film, Live Action Short Film, Documentary Feature, Documentary Short Subject, and Foreign Language Film – members can vote only after attesting they have seen all of the nominated films in those categories."
Naturally I'm curious as to how the Academy determines that the members "attest" they have seen all of the documentaries.
Hey, it was a lot of work (nervewracking at times), but worth every grey hair! Thank you for helping and being enthusiastic.
ReplyDeleteFYI, Copies of the film are sent to each member, as well as scheduled screenings in areas where Academy members reside (mainly NYC and LA).
I watched this twice as it was shown again on cable. Forget which channel but it was good and I enjoyed it. In fact a good friend recommended I watch it months ago. I also sent him a link to the post.
ReplyDelete"Semper Fi"