Blurb from YAMS:

Recommended by a special person, I traveled to Sunshine Theatre to watch the “Exit Through the Gift Shop“. The documentary was about street art and the most notable artists who create it. In addition, this documentary has a chilling, meaningful twist. I don’t want to give away the story, but I do encourage that you go see it before it leaves theaters. The theatre experience does the film justice! Watch the trailer below and follow this link to find local listings. Photos by yours truly.

Blurb from YAMS:

Nearly, two years ago I met with Todorovic, a special director from Serbia. I am in love with her subjects. Her work hurts and inspires. Now, she is on her way to showing her documentary at the Cannes Film Festival! Kindly, click this link to donate via Kickstarter. Thank you. For more about Harlem Mothers S.A.V.E. and Ivana Todorovic, kindly click here.

About A Harlem Mother:

Life is good as long as you’re living. A tragedy inspires a mother toward action, in the hopes of stopping deaths of the innocent by gun violence. A reason to get out of bed in the morning. In 1998, 18 years old Latraun Parker made documentary about harshness growing up in Harlem. Eights years after, he was shoot dead on the street. Today, his mother Jean fights youth gun violence and helps other parents survive the pain. Short documentary ‘A Harlem Mother‘ tells its story from the dual perspectives of Jean and Latron, using footage from his own documentary.

Photo: 'Sex Positive', a film by Daryl Wein

Sex Positive’s Synopsis:

Most young filmmakers quickly define themselves in terms of both their creative roles and genre specialties, however Daryl Wein has so far benefited from doing exactly the opposite. Born in Santa Monica in 1983, Wein grew up in Connecticut and commuted to auditions in New York City as he pursued a career as a child actor, mostly in commercials. At the same time, Wein’s father’s interest in chronicling their family life on home video lead the young thespian to become fascinated with being on the other side of the camera. At the age of 16, he made Life is a Train, a short film which won him an award at the International Young Filmmaker’s Festival in New York, as well as the inaugural You Belong in Connecticut Young Media Maker Award. He went to NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts to study drama and film, and also appeared in small roles in the films Magic Rock (2001) and The Hebrew Hammer (2003) as well as the Comedy Central TV movie Porn ‘n Chicken (2002). In 2007, he co-wrote, directed and edited the short film Unlocked, starring Olivia Thirlby and executive produced by director Stephen Daldry, which played at the Tribeca Film Festival. Wein’s first narrative feature, Breaking Upwards, which is based on Wein’s relationship with actress Zoe Lister-Jones and features the pair playing versions of themselves, premiered at SXSW earlier this year.

It is demonstrative of Daryl Wein’s openness as a filmmaker that, despite his strong acting background, his first feature length film is, in fact, a documentary. Sex Positive is a portrait of Richard Berkowitz, a figure now penniless and forgotten, who was a fearless and controversial AIDS activist in the 1980s and, along with Dr. Joseph Sonnabend and actor Michael Callen, one of the architects of the safe sex movement. Berkowitz was hugely unpopular for his contention that the AIDS epidemic was exacerbated by the gay community’s promiscuous lifestyle, however, he responded to accusations of being “sex negative” by proposing that responsible actions, such as condom use, should not inhibit sexual activity. Sex Positive has the virtue of not only telling an important story but having, in Richard Berkowitz, a fascinating subject truly worthy of scrutiny. Berkowitz is a compelling presence who talks candidly about not only his activism and his own battle with AIDS but also his time as an S&M hustler and drug addict. Wein ably balances historical background and his focus on Berkowitz, while the handsome work by DP Alex Bergman adds further character to the piece.

Photo: 'Shortbus' Movie Poster

Blurb from YAMS:

For the readers who have gotten their cute, warm paws on GrungeCake Magazine’s “The Dance In My Belly Episode” can identify what Mr. John Cameron Mitchell is talking about. Two years ago, I had the pleasure of being introduced to this film when researching for the magazine. GrungeCakers, if you are can muster sexual graphics and comfortable with your sexuality, you will enjoy ‘Short Bus’ without a doubt. It is a film like no other. If I had the opportunity and revenue to promote and spread ‘Short Bus’ around to new audiences, I would. I hope that this trial works.

Shortbus’ Plot:

Numerous New York City-dwellers come to the exclusive club Shortbus to work out problems in their sexual relationships. Rob and Sophia are a happily married couple, except for the fact that she has never experienced sexual climax. This irony follows her to work, because she is a couples counselor who frequently has to deal with the sexual issues other couples have. Two of her patients are Jamie and James, a gay couple who have been monogamous for five years and counting. James wants to bring other men in to the relationship, and his own history with depression may hint at an ulterior motive. Ceth (pronounced like Seth) may be the perfect addition to their family, but Caleb, a voyeur from across the street, may have his own ideas about that. Sophia visits Severin, a dominatrix with secrets of her own to reveal.

To order, ‘Shortbus,’ kindly click here.

To order GrungeCake Magazine’s ‘The Dance In My Belly Episode,’ kindly click here.

Blurb from YAMS:

My mother and I watched this and she cried. We are Liberians. We look forward to parts 2-8. Thank you, Vice. We love and admire you.

In The Vice Guide to Liberia, VBS.TV travels to the capital city Monrovia to meet three men who participated in the 14 years of civil war that ravaged the West African country. Former warlords General Rambo, General Bin Laden and General Butt Naked give us guided tours of some of the most dangerous, impoverished spots including jails, brothels and heroin dens. The film is out later this year, but you can watch the trailer here and read on for an interview with the film’s producer Andy Capper about making friends with former mass-murderers.

Despite the UN’s intervention in the country, the majority of Liberia’s young people live in desperate poverty. Surrounded by filth, drug addiction and teenage prostitution, the ex-child soldiers who were forced into war struggle to fend for themselves. As the former President Charles Taylor fights accusations of mass war crimes in The Hague, the people strive for positive change. America’s one and only foray into African colonialism is keeping a very uneasy peace indeed. I spoke to the film’s producer, Vice editor Andy Capper, about it.

About La Dolce Vita:

La Dolce Vita (Italian for “The Sweet Life”) is a 1960 film by the critically acclaimed director Federico Fellini. It was rated PG-13 upon US release. The film is a story of a passive journalist’s week in Rome, and his search for both happiness and love that will never come. Cited as the film that signals the split between Fellini’s earlier neo-realist films and his later art films, it is considered as one of the great achievements in world cinema.

We recommend this film.

Feature-length documentary on renegade filmmaker, novelist, musician and theater impresario, Melvin Van Peebles.

Watermelon Man is a 1970 comedy-drama film directed by Melvin Van Peebles and based on the book The Night the Sun Came Out on Happy Hollow Lane by Herman Raucher. Written by Herman Raucher and distributed by Columbia Pictures, it tells the story of a typical 1960s, somewhat bigoted white insurance salesman named Jeff Gerber who wakes up one morning to find that he has become black.

*Random Fact — Melvin Van Peebles’ How to Eat Your Watermelon in White Company was crowned the Best Film Category in The Virgin Episode. I take it Mister Melvin likes watermelons, huh? (smiles)

A charming valentine to women born with a space between their teeth, ranging from lighthearted whimsy to a deeper look at issues like self-esteem and societal attitudes toward standards of beauty. Interviews were conducted with over one hundred women, including model Lauren Hutton and Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. This film is 31 minutes.

GrungeCake Magazine has listed Gap-Toothed Women as a Must-See Film in The Push Episode. For more must-see films, order The Push Episode now and support Les Blank and order Gap-Toothed Women!

Photo: Courtesy of Whygee

Whygee’s Bio:

Whygee’s walked the Earth in Colorado from Red Rocks to Boulder. Doctors might be quick to call it ADHD, but he just calls his journey curiosity. He has walked Colorado’s mountains and plains first hand, both in the vast open areas for a zen-like experience, and showing more crowded towns like Vail and Breckenridge how Denver’s Underground Hip-Hop scene is second to none. With “Colorado Hip-Hop” taking a name of its own, Whygee is waiting patiently behind the commercial success of The Flobots, and 3OH!3. Whygee’s music sounds like a translation of Colorado’s landscape, by encouraging thought by exposing beauty through his words, but remembering to stay grounded as to be one with the earth, and not by preaching a message. Whygee IS Hip-Hop. His message is spoken like a true hip-hop fan by respecting the classics, and progressing the art in his unique, Colorado manner. He has the ability to see what’s next, and reach an audience on a uniquely personal level. Whygee’s music is for those who are a fan of Mos Def, Wu-Tang, Black Thought, Fort Minor, Lupe Fiasco and Al Bundy (yes…from Married with Children). He’s opened for Afroman, The Grouch and Eligh, Rahzel, among others. Following his video for Chumpsin Pink, Whygee, in true form, has not been able to rest. “Nevah Asked Fah This” was picked as the 1 Colorado Hip-Hop song of 2007 from the Westword’s Backbeat editors, and was nominated for best Hip-Hop MC as a part of the Westword Music Showcase 2008. By holding an open mind, and moving through life always writing, always searching, learning, and asking questions, Whygee’s rhymes are the perfect compliment to music that remembers the past, yet moves beyond what it is now. He has nevah asked for anything more than love from his audience, and has never received anything but. Now Whygee looks to carry his Colorado message on, and a brand new journey awaits him.