Stuff! All kinds of stuff!

First off, awesome congrats to writer Audrey Niffenger whose second novel just scored her a $5 million advance from Scribner. Check it out in the New York Times. The book sounds totally like my cup o' tea:

"Her Fearful Symmetry  is a supernatural story about twins who inherit an apartment near a London cemetery and become embroiled in the lives of the building’s other residents and the ghost of their aunt, who left them the flat."

In totally different other stuff

If you are a serious BDSM-er and into the best BDSM porn in the known universe, you will be awed and astounded to learn that the Kink.com crew is at it again. This time with The Upper Floor. They will be giving a free live dinner party on TrainingOfO.com Friday night, March 13th, 5 - 11PM California time, to accept new female trainees into service. And the supreme Guest of Honor is writer Laura Anontiou!! (Creator of the Marketplace series.) Yippee ki yi yay! Go, Laura.

This is serious hardcore female submissive BDSM with graphic sexual punishment, gang, so if you are even mildly offended by this type of lifestyle, do yourself a huge favor and do not go anywhere near TrainingOfO.com. On the other hand, though, if you aren't offended...

More stuff, slightly related

Carol Queen and San Francisco's Center for Sex and Culture announces the launch of their brand new website! If you have sex-culture related news to announce, you can add it to their site, you just need to register first -- it's free.

This non-sex-related news came by way of the Women & Hollywood blog.

Cynosure Screenwriting Awards competition is celebrating 10 years of honoring screenplays that feature female and minority protagonists in bold, non-stereotypical roles. Founded by BroadMind Entertainment, the competition was created to bring more diverse stories to mainstream cinema. Two (2) $2,500 cash prizes will be awarded: one to the best screenplay showcasing a strong FEMALE PROTAGONIST and one to the best screenplay with a compelling MINORITY PROTAGONIST.

Past competition judges include industry professionals from Fox Searchlight, Showtime, The Jacobson Company, Paradigm Literary and Talent Agency, Icon Productions, New Regency Entertainment, The Steve Tisch Co., Oxygen, Jersey Films, and DiNovi Pictures, to name just a few.

If you have a winning script, one with a great role for a woman of any age, or with an untold story featuring minorities, then enter online today here.

EARLY DEADLINE: Postmarked by March 14, 2009

REGULAR DEADLINE: Postmarked by May 16, 2009

LAST MINUTE DEADLINE: Postmarked by June 27, 2009

Other film-related news

Here are some of the films Tribeca is showing this year out-of-competition. I really wish I were in New York City and could see these, darn it!!

”Blank City,” directed by Celine Danhier. (USA) - World Premiere, Documentary.  Celine Danhier’s kinetic doc mirrors the urgent, anything-goes energy of her subject: the DIY independent film movement that emerged in tandem with punk rock in late ‘70s downtown New York. New interviews with a impressive array of artists including Amos Poe, Bette Gordon, Debbie Harry, Eric Mitchell, Jim Jarmusch, Lydia Lunch, Steve Buscemi, John Lurie, and Nick Zedd flow into clips from landmark No Wave films, and the still-thrilling music of the era floods the soundtrack.

”Serious Moonlight,” directed by Cheryl Hines, written by Adrienne Shelly. (USA) - World Premiere, Narrative.  High-powered attorney Louise (Meg Ryan) arrives at her country nest for a little R and R only to discover that her husband (Timothy Hutton) has been cheating on her with the hotter and younger Sarah (Kristen Bell). Enraged, she sets out to derail their plan to go to Paris. Cheryl Hines (Curb Your Enthusiasm) skillfully directs Adrienne Shelly’s (Waitress) wry and often hilarious script.

”Soundtrack for a Revolution,” directed and written by Bill Guttentag and Dan Sturman.  (USA) - World Premiere, Documentary.  A timeless film about the American civil rights movement told through the soul-stirring music that birthed and fortified the fight from picket lines and mass meetings to paddy wagons and jail cells. This powerful doc, crafted by Oscar(R) winner Guttentag and Sturman (Nanking), pairs modern renditions of freedom songs by Wyclef Jean, John Legend, Joss Stone, The Roots, and others with a retelling of this important moment in history.

”All About Actresses” (Le bal des actrices), directed and written by Maiwenn. (France) - US Premiere, Narrative. Maiwenn sets out to resolve her tortured actress identity by making a faux-documentary around a bevy of famous French actresses—only to transform into the treacherous position of the director, falling in love with her subjects and subjected to their starlet-driven wrath. Indulging in the interior insecurities of divas and has-beens, she blurs reality through real-world-like footage and fantastical musical sequences.  In French with English subtitles.

”FILM IST. a girl & a gun,” directed and written by Gustav Deutsch. (Austria) - North American Premiere, Narrative. Gustav Deutsch, the maestro of found footage filmmaking, excavates silent movies from archives worldwide (including the Kinsey Institute) to weave together a stunning vision of the natural and mythological order of the universe, love between the sexes, and weapons of mass destruction. Recommended for adults only.

”Variety,” directed by Bette Gordon, written by Kathy Acker.  (USA, 1984).  In Bette Gordon’s newly restored, pioneering indie narrative about voyeurism from a female perspective, a young woman (Sandy McLeod) works as a ticket taker in a porn theater, and her curiosity leads her to shadow a male patron. This film features an unparalleled collaborative team of downtown artists from the early 1980s, including composer John Lurie, cinematographer Tom DeCillo, writer Kathy Acker, photographer Nan Goldin, and actor Spalding Gray. Variety was shot on location in New York City at the now bygone landmarks of the Variety Theatre, Fulton Fish Market, and Yankee Stadium, as well as an edgier incarnation of Times Square.

That's it for the moment, gang. Gotta get crackin' around here! See ya!