Short Cuts

In a bizarre, sorta-but-not-quite turnaround, the University of Texas is presenting a series of fall movies at the Texas Union Theatre, with each screening sponsored by a different campus committee. This comes in the wake of Kyle Henry's Cinematexas Fest win for his film "University, Inc.," which documented UT's rightfully maligned decision to scrap the beloved Texas Union film program. The upcoming films, which screen every Tuesday night for free, include mainstream hits as well as a couple of token classics, so make of this what you will. You listening, Kyle?... The Film Alliance of Austin's next meeting will be held Wed., Oct 27, 6:30pm at Top of the Marc, and will feature Melissa Puch de Fripp of WRS Motion Picture and Video Laboratory, a former publicist who will offer tips on her experiences at WRS and elsewhere... And finally, before I get into the Cinematexas winner's deluge, we'd like to say adios to Austin Film Society administrative director Nichole Worrell, who's leaving after two years to pursue other ventures in Dallas. This, of course, leaves a crucial position at AFS vacant. If you think you can handle the notoriously chaotic volunteer position of office manager, check out the classified ad on page 122 for more specifics... The (many) winners of the Cinematexas 1999 University of Texas and International Short Film Competitions have been announced. In the International Competition, the Gecko Awards go to Austria's Peter Tscherkassky for "Outer Space," USA's Kelly Reichardt for "Ode," Canada's Jean-Marc Vallée for "Les Mots Magiques," and Israel's Debbie Jivan for "Take Omry, For Example." The screenplay award goes to USA's Joe Hamersky for "Gofer." Mexico's Ximena Cuevas wins the No Budget Award for Maverick Spirit for "Dormimundo." Special Jury Awards go to USA's Jim Trainor for "The Bats"; USA/Mexico's Naomi Uman for "Removed"; USA's Hyoe Yamamoto for "A Glance Apart"; and Iran's Bahman Ghobadi for "Life in Fog." In the Artistic Director's Picks category, awards go to USA's Antek Walczak for "Dynasty" and USA's Ben Coonley for "Andy Warhol's Forbes Factory." Finally, the International Audience Award goes to Austria's Peter Tscherkassky for "Outer Space." But wait, there's more! Winners of Cinematexas University of Texas Competition include -- deep breath -- for the Gecko Awards, Spencer Parsons for "A Common Confusion," Karen Skloss for "Homage," Kyle Henry for "University, Inc.," and Jeannette Kassem for "Isabelle." The No Budget Award goes to Tim Warden for "At Room Temperature." The Screenplay Award goes to Alethea Douglas for "Indigo Days." The Cinematography Award goes to Isaac Mathes for "A Common Confusion." The Editing Award goes to Dina Kagan for "Beila Was a Baba-Kazak." The Acting Award goes to Jana Brockman for "Isabelle." Special Jury Awards include Geoff Marslett's "Monkey vs. Robot," Dina Kagan's "Beila Was a Baba-Kazak," Mark Jones' "Vanishing Point," Isaac Mathes' "Between the Dog and the Wolf," Adam Stoddart's "Girl From Jupiter," and Gregory Gilpatrick's "Appetite for Construction" featuring Brian McGuire. Jae Sung Kim snared the Artistic Director's Pick with his film "Spring," and, finally, the Audience Award went to Jeannette Kassem for "Isabelle." Congratulations are due to one and all and to the staff of Cinematexas for another rousing series of screenings. Until next year ...