Film News

• Dazed and Consumed: It's looking like autumn will bring Richard Linklater's unique take on the nonfiction hit Fast Food Nation to Austin. Eric Schlosser's book examined the evils of corporate quickie chow; the film will be a fiction thriller starring Catalina Sandino Moreno (Maria Full of Grace) and produced by Tim Haslam of HanWay Films and Malcolm McLaren, the guy who created the Sex Pistols.

• Corporate Rock Sux: Andrew Shapter, famed hereabouts as a fashion photog, has set his sights on both the rock & roll and film worlds. Shapter is directing the ambitious documentary Before the Music Dies, which aims to put the spotlights on the Britneys and Ashlees and, of course, Clear Channels, that have taken the rad out of radio in the name of profit. "If we continue to just take what's given to us, we're going to have more Justin Timberlakes taking the place of Stevie Wonder," Shapter said from the road in New Jersey on his way to interview Elvis Costello for the project. The film will feature interviews with other rock luminaries, including Eric Clapton, Erykah Badu, and Dave Matthews, and came about after the death of Shapter's musician brother. "I took all the energy from his passing and put it into making this film," he said. Distribution is a lock, he says, with a goal of premiering next year at Sundance. The first public showing will be at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio, in March. For more details, check in at www.faronwest.com.

• Lone Star Trail: Bentley Mitchum, grandson of Robert Mitchum, is currently directing his own script of Soul Searchers in the Dallas area with Billy Drago (The Untouchables), Robert Rusler (Weird Science, Babylon 5), and his dad, Christopher Mitchum (Rio Lobo, Big Jake), starring. Austinites in the cast include Luke Tingle, Scott Staggers, Curtis Wayne, Mary Buchek, David Blackwell, and Dan Silver. Mitchum has moved to Texas and plans even more shoots here.

• Be There: Filming of the country musical Austin Angel has been pushed back to the fall, but director Zalman King has been shooting the film's expected star and king of Austin cool, Dale Watson. It's for a second project based on a book Watson wrote after the death of his girlfriend in a car crash. Some scenes will be shot during Watson's shows Sunday at Ginny's Little Longhorn and Monday at the Continental Club… Scoot to the Austin Film Society screening room where at 7pm Dante James, producer of PBS's Slavery and the Making of America, will honor the legacy of native Texan and civil rights leader James Farmer… Attention Orangebloods: The deadline for Cinematexas entries is May 20, and just applying gets you in for free to the Sept. 14-18 fest. More at www.cinematexas.org.

• Wrap It Up: The Sarah Michelle Gellar thriller formerly known as Revolver is in the can. And wave goodbye to the Real World gang. If you're in MTV withdrawal, catch the dish at the totally unofficial Web site RealWorldAustin.com. And, hey, wouldn't it be cool if MTV unearthed dusty episodes of Austin Stories as a kitschy counterpart to the squabbling A-town roomies when RW premieres in June? Just a thought.

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