Bad Dog Bites Golden Airbat Boys Booty Dept: “What the f**k?” I hear you yelp? Okay, granted, if you’re not one of the teeming millions of Japanese anime fanatics around town (okay, thousands) then the above department header probably makes about as much sense to you as the recent Floridian declaration of G.W. Shrub’s electioneering prowess does to the Gore gang. This is an easily vaulted impasse for you, however, since those wacky cut-ups over at Bad Dog Comedy Theater (110 E. Riverside) have taken it upon themselves to initiate anime screenings of anime programs produced and distributed by legendary Houston-based ADV Films. The two kick-off features — Goldenboy and Airbats — were dubbed here in Austin at ADV’s Monster Island Studio and will feature “many of Austin’s finest stage and comedy talents.” Can’t you just hear snarky Austin character actor Bill Wise as, oh, I dunno, Totoro? Heaven forfend. Friday, Dec. 1, at midnight begins what is sure to be an ongoing Bubblegum Crisis and/or extravaganza, and just in case you’re curious, Goldenboy is blurbed as being about “a horny guy and his bicyle,” while Airbats features a squadron of female jet pilots. Top that, Go Nagai! More info can be had online at www.advfilms.com or from www.baddogcomedy.com… It’s been almost two weeks since we’ve mentioned Austin’s small-gauge filmmaking group the Austin Cinemaker Co-op and, as everyone should know by now, that’s way too long. Monday and Tuesday, Dec. 4-5, at 7:30 and 9:30pm, at the Ritz Lounge Upstairs (320 W. Sixth), the Co-op will be holding its first international festival. Titled Against the Grain: Viva La Revolucion, it includes over 20 local and international Super-8 films which will be screened, as well as the usual guerrilla filmmaking havoc. Admission is $5 general, $2.50 for Cinemaker members. Need more info? Call 236-8877 or send e-mail to cinemkr@texas.net… Tuesday, Dec. 5, 7pm, at the Hideout is Alchemy Works‘ year-end grand finale in their ongoing Movie Midwifing screenplay reading series, this time featuring the 11th-century romantic drama Tristan & Izolda by Austin screenwriter Karen Holcomb. Struggling screen scribes need all the TLC they can manage, so do your local brooding keystroke genius a favor and hit this final installment of the popular series. Admission is $5 and more info can be had by calling 443-8229 or online at info@moviemidwifing.com… Effects-heavy films like Dungeons & Dragons and Vertical Limit are due in cineplexes near you any day now, but really, is that any way to celebrate the true meaning of Christmas? I think not. Get back in a Santafied groove with the Austin Gay & Lesbian International Film Festival-sponsored screening of the romantic comedy 24 Nights, which poses the timeless question, Does Santa deliver tall, dark, and handsome Christmas swag as well as butchy anatomical eunuchs G.I. Joe? (Gotta love that kung-fu grip, though.) The film screens Thursday, Dec. 7, 7:30pm, at the Arbor Theatre ($5 general admission, $4 aGLIFF members). More info at 458-1515… Congratulations are in order for Austinite Dan Brown, whose 35mm feature American Detective nabbed the Jury Prize for Best Feature at the Deep Ellum Film Festival two weeks back. Kudos also to producer Karen Jacobs, co-producer/cinematographer/man-about-town Mark Miks, star/chanteuse Juliana Sheffield, and, lest we forget, the aforementioned “Three Dollar” Bill Wise, character actor extraordinaire. Now when do we get to see the film locally?
This article appears in December 1 • 2000.