Schmooze with the Jews
Because I work for a company that sponsors and promotes indepedent films, I'm plugged into all sorts of indie film things happening in our area. This week we're doing the on-line short-film competition for the Seattle Jewish Film Festival (go watch and vote!), so Omaha and I managed to go hang out at the opening night gala.
It was a nice event, crowded and noisy. We ran into an acquaintance of ours, and my boss eventually showed up with another woman. She introduced the woman as IndieFlix's podcaster, which made Omaha's eyes light up, and there was an exchange of business cards while I took notes. My boss said, "I can tell you two are completely perfect for each other." Everyone always says that.
She also commented on my accent. "What?" I said. Then I realized what she meant. "I'm in a room full of people who all look like my aunts and uncles. Of course I have an accent."
There was entertainment that would have absolutely enraged one of my friends, since the singer was recently from Israel and had a rather one-sided view of the conflict there.
On the other hand, the filmmaker of the night, Andy Schocken, a local who's done well making documentaries, showed off some of his early work and much of it was fascinating. Clips documenting a local famous cantor, another documenting a woman who fled Germany early and her reaction to climbing Mt. Ranier in the 1940s, and a very touching one about Governor Booth Gardner, a former state governor of Washington who the day before he announced he would not run for re-election he had the highest approval ratings of any governor anywhere, ever. Gardner was diagnosed with Parkinsons's Disease, and his last campaign was to get Washington's Death With Dignity Act passed. He succeeded.
Gov. Gardner was at the event, and he gave a short speech that, sad to say, nobody could understand because he slurred and he didn't keep the mic close enough to his mouth. Omaha kept saying that all night: "Learn to eat the mic, people."
Omaha and I left after the Governor's speech. We missed the shorts demo, but I'd already seen them; they're the same ones at the IndieFlix SJFF presentation site.
It was a nice event, crowded and noisy. We ran into an acquaintance of ours, and my boss eventually showed up with another woman. She introduced the woman as IndieFlix's podcaster, which made Omaha's eyes light up, and there was an exchange of business cards while I took notes. My boss said, "I can tell you two are completely perfect for each other." Everyone always says that.
She also commented on my accent. "What?" I said. Then I realized what she meant. "I'm in a room full of people who all look like my aunts and uncles. Of course I have an accent."
There was entertainment that would have absolutely enraged one of my friends, since the singer was recently from Israel and had a rather one-sided view of the conflict there.
On the other hand, the filmmaker of the night, Andy Schocken, a local who's done well making documentaries, showed off some of his early work and much of it was fascinating. Clips documenting a local famous cantor, another documenting a woman who fled Germany early and her reaction to climbing Mt. Ranier in the 1940s, and a very touching one about Governor Booth Gardner, a former state governor of Washington who the day before he announced he would not run for re-election he had the highest approval ratings of any governor anywhere, ever. Gardner was diagnosed with Parkinsons's Disease, and his last campaign was to get Washington's Death With Dignity Act passed. He succeeded.
Gov. Gardner was at the event, and he gave a short speech that, sad to say, nobody could understand because he slurred and he didn't keep the mic close enough to his mouth. Omaha kept saying that all night: "Learn to eat the mic, people."
Omaha and I left after the Governor's speech. We missed the shorts demo, but I'd already seen them; they're the same ones at the IndieFlix SJFF presentation site.