Wishing You All A Wonderful Wintertime and Truly Magical New Year!

A snowman, created by Hudson using the Doodlebuddy app on the iPhone:)

Peace and blessings to all throughout the Holiday Season and the New Year!

The Elf Train Song

The Elf Train Song (my first song ever), written and
performed with our wonderful friend, Camila Arnold (music),
for our Woodland Winter Fair last Saturday at our Waldorf-
inspired home-based Woodland Nursery School. More details
at: www.woodlandchildcare.org or email Charong Chow at:
charong@woodlandchildcare.org.  Happy Holidays!

My New YouTube Channel

Please take a look at my new YouTube channel, AlexanderChowStuart. It is in its infancy, but I think it will be fun. While you're visiting, please subscribe.

I have posted a film I made when I was sixteen (time is infinite:) and my wife Charong Chow's wonderful I Am The Daughter of Fu Manchu, plus our unexpected and unlikely sighting of a UFO while we were swimming one Saturday afternoon last year (2008) - we could not believe it, and I was surprised that when I posted it on an earlier YouTube page, it had over 4,000 viewings and I had a lot of contact about it, along with other videos sent to me, including one apparently of the same craft on the same afternoon!

Soon there will be a video of me reading from The War Zone, and other surprises to come. In the meantime, have a Wonderful Wintertime (I love Christmas, although I have been a Buddhist for twenty years - it is the season and the tree and the magic that delight me in a childlike way, not any particular religious interpretation).

The War Zone now available on Kindle

The new, updated and fully revised 20th Anniversary Edition of my novel, The War Zone (written under my original/professional name, Alexander Stuart), is now available on Amazon Kindle for $9.99, and as a regular book from Amazon, BarnesandNoble.com and other bookstores.

A dark, ironic, emotionally-charged novel about incest, adolescent fury and parental morality, the novel won Britain's prestigious Whitbread Prize for Best Novel (now the Costa Book Awards) when it was first published, only to have the prize snatched away amid much public controversy when one of the judges politicked behind the scenes.

Dubbed a contemporary Catcher in the Rye by Time Out magazine, The War Zone was turned into a powerful, multi-award-winning film by Oscar-nominated actor-director, Tim Roth, which premiered at Sundance and went on to attract great acclaim at film festivals around the world. (The film can be streamed from Netflix and is available on DVD through Amazon.)

The new 20th Anniversary Edition is fully revised and updated and includes both the original British and American opening chapters, as well as an Afterword by Tim Roth, my diary of the making of the film, and an introduction that includes the striking prepublication letter that Anthony Burgess, author of A Clockwork Orange, sent me, along with his cover quote:

"This is a pungent shocking book, superbly written (sharp, sensuous, bitter) which...presents the theme of incest...as a symbol of social breakdown. I was horrified but seduced from first to last. The writing is remarkable."

For more information about the new edition, read Merrel Davis' excellent review of the novel at his blog, Uncompleted Works.

The War Zone: $9.99 on Amazon Kindle, $14.39 from Amazon.com, $15.99 from BarnesandNoble.com, £12.49 from Amazon.co.uk and available from other booksellers.

This article by Edo Segal from Yodspica Ltd Blog Group is without doubt the most intelligent and thought-provoking analysis of where the media industry must go that I have read.

Apple did create something seamless and easy with iTunes and the suggestion that in a sense it is "alive," changing constantly and changing the way consumers think about media and applications (and fusing media and applications into one), is brilliant.

This is the first piece I have read that actually proposes a real vision of the future, rather than merely lamenting that traditional media are dead. (Thanks to the power of Twitter for alerting me to this:)

The Future Of The Media Industry

by YODSPICA AUTHORS on NOVEMBER 1, 2009

This post was written by Edo Segal.

The prospects for the old media industry appear bleak, as the rest of the media industry follows the music industry into decline. Indeed in my discussions it is apparent that the smart money in Hollywood already sees the writing on the wall. While the trend will take longer, it is clear which direction the wind is blowing. The main lesson to learn is that the market will punish you if you don’t deliver the goods.

Apple has created a media consumption experience that has reduced friction to such a point that soon the consumer will not know if he is buying music, a movie or a game. The notion of App is changing. The lines between these different forms of media are quickly blurring and soon will be completely artificial. Already these distinctions are merely fossilized conventions that stem from consumers’ discovery habits. As those evolve, like learning that it is easier to go to Amazon and search to find a product than going to aisle 9 at the store. The coming confusion of the consumption experience where a user won’t care or know if what they are buying is a movie, a game or a music track presents vast opportunity.

But the entertainment industry has a vested interest in the success of this new type of convergence, as within it lies the secret to its continuing prosperity. The only way to block the incredible ease of pirating any content a media company can generate is to couple said experiences with extensions that live in the cloud and enhance that experience for consumers. Not just for some fancy DRM but for real value creation. They must begin to create a product that is not simply a static digital file that can be easily copied and distributed, but rather view media as a dynamic “application” with extensions via the web. This howl is the future evolution of the media industry. It has arrived from a company that is delivering the goods. Apple has made it painless for consumers to spend money and get the media they want where they want it, proving that consumers are happy to pay for media if delivered in ways that make it easy and blissful to consume. For all the criticism Apple draws on the walled garden nature of its business, it has even come around to stripping DRM and allowing users to download mp3 files.

Even today if you look in the iTunes App Store you will see a myriad range of “Apps” that are just evolved ways to package media. While the traditional part of iTunes still mirrors the product taxonomy of a Tower Records, the App Store is creating a folksonomy of media products. It is where new ideas evolve, thrive and go instinctively based on market power. The App Store is where the action is. This is where evolution is unfolding as direct consumer spending spurs media development.

In preparing this post, Erick asked me, “Is Apple is a media company?” I thought about that and the answer is really that Apple is what media companies are missing. The missing part of the puzzle is what made media conglomerates such juggernauts in the past. Namely, distribution. The internet is stripping them of their control over the how their products are distributed. Media companies used to be able to create scarcity merely by delaying the distribution of their products across different channels—theaters, pay-per-view, DVD, cable channels, network TV, and so on. The internet disrupts this ability to create media scarcity. It is such a huge disruption, in fact, that it threatens the fundamental profit engine of the media business.

Both during my time interacting with senior management at Time Warner (where I worked at AOL after it acquired the company I founded, Relegence) and with some of my current portfolio companies that are working with the film and music industries, it is clear to me that many of the smart people running these media companies understand which way the wind is blowing. The music industry, as the one that has suffered most of the carnage, is ripest for change. Executives there are receptive to new ideas and move forward quickly, leaving me somewhat optimistic. It is also clear to me that it is hard for the industries which have not endured their level of pain to flee the golden cage of media’s past. But for those firms which rise to the occasion, there will be vast rewards. People’s hunger for good content will not subside. It will continue to grow, but so shall the unbearable ease of pirating it. The premise of extending the media experience to the cloud is a core necessity for the survival and growth of the media industry. It is the only way to for media companies to weather the coming tsunami of increased bandwidth and the ever open web. Hybrid media packaging with both files and an application layer in the cloud is core to a lucrative future.

For a great example of how change is happening see what Britney did today at @BritneySpears. It was, I believe, the first time a major artist premiered a music video on Twitter. This drives people to Amazon or iTunes to buy the track but in the not too distant future it could be the start of much more than that. A complete experience will unfold that will be interactive and convert to new revenue streams. Not just a purchase of a track but of an app that pulls consumers into an experience and further promotes user engagement and virality. Media becomes a platform with a funnel of traffic and conversions to alternative revenue streams. All boosted by the frictionless billing that Apple has created in the App Store. Media executives will have realtime metrics for their success as it maps to revenue and in turn this will accelerate innovation and help redefine media.

If you are a media exec and you look at your product and at the end of the day it’s a digital file that can be copied, then you have a serious problem with your format. Think of your product like a pie chart of the value you are giving the consumer. If 100% of the value is in that file, it is not a sound approach for defending the future of your business. However, if a portion of the experience is derived thorough an integration with a Web component that will yield additional value in functionality or social elements, then it will be more sustainable. There are many such examples emerging in the app store (I am T-Pain, TapTap and many more). Applications that let consumers interact with the media. Create things and share them with their friends. These will not only make the consumer the one who markets your product, but also create an unprecedented level of engagement. That level of engagement will directly map to reduction in piracy as consumers will pay for this experience and wont be able to copy it. Sell access and experiences, not media files.

Author Edo Segal

THX Sound System logo by Hudson

Huddy (five years old) made this with wooden blocks this morning - he has been writing/drawing the THX logo a lot recently. As a result of his Waldorf/Steiner education, he has barely seen any movies, but he loves the THX logo in the Pixar films.

Amy Weisberg: Listen

Our son started a new kindergarden this week, a big and exciting step for him (and for us), and we find ourselves very fortunate to have him under the care and guidance of a wonderful teacher and writer, Mrs Amy Weisberg, one with great experience, wisdom, kindness and a remarkably open approach both to her role as a "guide" to her children and to the children's own differing sensibilities, levels of awareness and achievement, and the fact that their minds are at a precious and vital turning point between a wonderful acceptance of and unity with the world and the beginnings of "critical thinking," if you like - which brings with it the further growth of both character and the ego, and so is a stage that needs delicate attention and nourishment.

Mrs Weisberg has her own wonderful blog, Between The Words, and I asked her if I might reproduce here a marvelously atmospheric piece she wrote about her classroom, just before the school year begins. It is called, Listen, and one of the things I liked most about it was her appreciation of silence, along with that of the children "unhampered by thoughts of how things should be."

Anyway, here it is, and thanks to Amy Weisberg for letting me reproduce it:

Listen

The classroom is mostly quiet now, with the exception of the hum of the blessed air conditioner and the occasional ringing of the two bells indicating the necessity of the plant manager. The chairs are pushed in and the tables almost clear of the materials readied for the new year, a year that will be different, yet the same, as many others. Right now the playground is waiting patiently for the laughter of children that will fill it next week and the dolls in the playhouse wait patiently in their crib, clothing in tact and the plastic multicultural foods await preparation in the labeled bins. The smell of fresh, new crayons is in the air and the computers are happily waiting to begin their whir and hum of activity. For me, even music is not necessary yet; the silence is a giant space, open with possibilities and fresh with optimism. A bigger class this year, 24 or 25 new little students, some scared, some overly confident, most excited to begin an adventure that will last for the next 13 years. They enter the institution in the best of possible ways, a soft landing filled with songs, games, colorful paint and new stories told while they sit in squares on a colorful carpet rapt with attention. Friends wait to be made, blank paper filled with colorful drawings and easels beckon for young artists unhampered by thoughts of how things should be, instead filled with the endless imaginings of how things can be. Soon enough, the rhythm instruments will ting and jingle, sticks will tap and little children will bounce around the room, most unable to sit for long. They will be introduced to letters sounds, counting songs, The Pledge of Allegiance and happy songs of friendship. They will make life-long friends here in this safe place and will tell secrets, whisper, and hug with abandon unable to keep from expressing the simple joy of loving a friend or the happiness of running out the door to play. They will learn to appreciate the stillness of their own breath while in yoga postures stretching their bodies and minds to appreciate the stillness and space that allows for peacefulness. The silence is space, yet it is full of possibilities, experiences yet unknown and the peace of planning for future memories that will resonate in a happy place contained in the hearts of the future residents of Room K.

(Photo above of the parents gathered for the principal's commencement address.)

A Brief Extract from The War Zone: 20th Anniversary Edition

A brief extract from The War Zone: 20th Anniversary Edition, a newly updated (see two posts below) and revised edition now available from Amazon, Barnes&Noble.com, AuthorHouse and other booksellers:

"There is a moment which is so beautiful it makes everything else
worthwhile. You stand on the cliff above the village, early in the
morning or late in the evening, and you gaze out at the sea – a
huge, changing wash of light and movement, bigger than any of us,
a joker with a patience longer than any one life and an inconceivable
strength that can snap your back against the rocks as easily as you
might flick a fly off your nose.

I can feel how cold it is, even when it’s warm. Even when the water’s
not skimmed with a purple film of oil, and the pebbles and seaweed are
stewed in the sun, I can sense the ocean’s cold heart further out, out
by the skyline. Jessie’s tried to paint it, but she can’t get close. Either
the beauty is there or the darkness, but not both...

It’s not just the color, it’s the color of light, it’s the mood of the sky
and your own cross-wired soul. Down on the beach, it’s the druggy
thunder-hiss of the surf dragging at thousands of pebbles, as if the sea’s
in training for the greatest glue-sniffing contest on earth. Up here, with
a view of the sheep and the cottages and the coastline, there’s just the
image, no sound, and a faint tang of brine in the air, like a taunt or a
memory."

It’s more than a moment. It’s repeatable, though it’s never the same
twice. It’s where I go to stay sane down here, it’s where I go when I
miss London, when I want to work out what the fuck I’m doing with
my life."

(Image above from Tim Roth's film of The War Zone: the family on the beach)

Twitter Contest: Win a Signed Copy of The War Zone: 20th Anniversary Edition

My friend, fellow blogger and Twitter-ist, Merrel Davis, suggested an exclusive Twitter contest to commemorate the 20th Anniversary Edition of my novel, The War Zone, by offering a signed copy of the book to the person who provides the best answer, in three "tweets" or less, to the question:

“WHAT EXPERIENCE IN ADOLESCENCE MOST SHAPED YOUR LIFE OR WORK?”

To win, simply submit the best answer in three tweets or less to my Twitter account @AlexanderChow (just to confuse things, and for a degree of privacy sometimes, I am Alexander Chow on Twitter) by midnight PST Sunday August 23rd 2009. [Full Disclosure: Merrel is co-judging this Twitter contest. You can follow him at @UncompletedWork.]

Stay tuned for the second part of Merrel Davis' Stepping into The War Zone, where he reviews and compares The War Zone novel to Tim Roth's film of my book.

More iPhone Dawns

Just a spectacular, radiant dawn - the cosmos gives us a good reason to greet each day.

This and the photos below (including the full moon rising) were all taken with my iPhone, with no filters and no changes to the pictures afterward.

Dawn light through the trees - what a way to wake up!

Another radiant dawn. Note the planet to the top right of the picture (I think it's a planet and not a star, they are equally beautiful anyway).

A slightly blurry picture (best I could do with my iPhone) of the full moon rising. I watched this with Huddy after he had been swinging from our tree in the dark. The moon was spectacular.

Huddy's Fifth Birthday/Sunset from Griffith Observatory

We had a wonderful time at the Griffith Observatory yesterday evening as part of Hudson's Fifth Birthday Treat. We saw Saturn through the big telescope, we saw twin stars (one white, one blue) through a smaller telescope, and we saw the amazing planetarium show about the origins of the universe.

Huddy loved it all - not least this amazing sunset over the Hollywood Hills (actually over the Hollywood Sign). Happy 5th Birthday again, Hudson xxxxx

iPhone Dawn

Dawn with rare summer cloud (rare for California, anyway). I like the Van Gogh effect of this picture. This is a series of photographs of dawn that I have been taking, using my iPhone camera. I love the quality of pictures the iPhone creates, kind of in the way that Warhol loved Polaroids - although the colors and resolution here reflect more accurately what I see with my eyes:)

A friend said that if you look at this picture upside-down, it resembles waves on the sea breaking onto a beach.

Dawn Thursday July 16th 2009, the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 launch in 1969. Radiant beauty!

The moon and a star (just visible toward the left of frame), photographed on Thursday July 16th 2009, the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 launch.

Dawn with the mountains floating in the clouds.

Pixar's UP - Geniuses of LOVE

I'm repeating what I said on Twitter after we saw UP yesterday: Pixar are geniuses of LOVE.

Who but Pixar could even make a film about the friendship between an old man and a boy – and a floating house?

And without giving too much away, the way the story of the old man’s life is told is sublime…or quite possibly divine.

Wholly original beautiful moving cinema. See it - and see it in 3D if you possibly can, although it would be just as magical projected on a paper bag:)

GATE: Jim Carrey, Eckhart Tolle and John Raatz

I attended an astonishing event last night at 20th Century Fox Studios: the first gathering of GATE, the Global Alliance for Transformational Entertainment, a creation of John Raatz, Jim Carrey, Eckhart Tolle and others - including the phenomenal Melissa Etheridge and Donovan - dedicated to raising the bar among those of us who create entertainment, so that we think about the impact our work has on people and try to make that impact as positive, meaningful and, ultimately, transcendent as possible.

It doesn't mean avoiding the dark side - that can be addressed intelligently, since it is clearly a part of life and the world - but listening to and watching this group of people was a truly inspiring event. Jim Carrey seemed a thoughtful (and funny) man, and Eckhart Tolle is like a magical, highly enlightened, plain-speaking, extremely moving elf! (He spoke of his mother's death in the most personal yet relevant way.) Melissa Etheridge just made me cry when she spoke and sang - she is extraordinary.

I cannot blog fully about it now as I'm under deadline on a script, but I hope @thecitizen on Twitter will not mind me posting his lively account of the evening here (read from the bottom up!). By the way, I'm with Eckhart re: Groundhog Day - I think it is one of the best and funniest, most illuminating comedies ever...aside from all of Jim Carrey's films, of course:) There is a great chapter on Groundhog Day in a fascinating MoMA book called, The Hidden God.

1. @ashleyvandyke is practicing the power of now...and its killing her...slowly (and I'm loving it)about 13 hours ago from TwitterBerry
2. One of tolle's favorite films (he's seen it six times) is one of my faves too: Groundhog Day. Bill murray is my favorite actor ever.about 14 hours ago from TwitterBerry
3. Eckart says: Jim is truly a hard act to follow....this stuff is pricelessabout 14 hours ago from TwitterBerry
4. Jim Carrey: Dumb and dumber as a study in pre-egoic innocence! Fabulous. Media/news today is not what the world is or what the world wants.about 14 hours ago from TwitterBerry
5. "My name is Jim Carrey and I've come to free the world from sin." Absolutely hilarious.about 14 hours ago from TwitterBerry
6. Jim Carey is up. He's not just funny but one of the most active environmentalists on the planet. And he's damn down to earth.about 14 hours ago from TwitterBerry
7. Just chatted with Adrian Grenier about collaborating on @3rdwhale @belugaboyd @greenmob @argam He's all about it.about 14 hours ago from TwitterBerry
8. Melissa Ethridge just rocked the house to a standing ovation. I got extended chills. Super epic.about 15 hours ago from TwitterBerry
9. Melissa Ethridge is having a moment (last time I saw her live was at the green ball in DC #gb09) so lovely (she's hilarious too)about 15 hours ago from TwitterBerry
10. John Raatz aka @visioneering1 has worked on just about every important film ever: whatthebleep, baraka, mindwalk, etc etc epic man & friendabout 15 hours ago from TwitterBerry
11. What does transformed Hollywood look like? A place where business and consciousness work hand in hand to transform our species & planetabout 15 hours ago from TwitterBerry
12. John raatz just read the personal statement from the Dalai Lama about this event and the attendees: gave me chillsabout 15 hours ago from TwitterBerry
13. Let the gratefulness overflow into blessings all around you, then it will be a good day; live each day like it was ur 1st & last #gateabout 15 hours ago from TwitterBerry
14. Hollywood is the biggest playground for collaborative creativity imaginable_sandra hay, unseen pictures, earth dance& architectsof a newdawnabout 16 hours ago from TwitterBerry
15. Carlin is repping the strength of #twitter! Says its a critical step to the transformation of consciousness! Yes! Go HBO!!!about 16 hours ago from TwitterBerry
16. Oprah and Tolle's online ten part series was a tipping point in transformational entertainment & one of most simultaneous viewed events everabout 16 hours ago from TwitterBerry
17. Content that comes from the place of love is the key to the transformation_scott carlin of HBO (just like I said) brilliant!about 16 hours ago from TwitterBerry
18. Scott Carlin, pres of domestic tv distro for HBO, grad of univ of santa monica's spiritual psych: discussing the dilemma of consumerismabout 16 hours ago from TwitterBerry
19. Hollywood and the world are now ready for an upleveling of consciousness._John Raatzabout 16 hours ago from TwitterBerry
20. Listening to an "invocation for world peace" by michael fitzpatrick, famous chellist...amazingly beautiful. Frought with emotions.about 16 hours ago from TwitterBerry

Baba and Paradise

One more picture, this time of me with Paradise. To hold your baby in your arms is such an incredible joy and privilege, a true celebration of the fullness of life.

Paradise Rose

Mostly I am not making this a personal blog, but I cannot resist posting this picture of our two month old daughter, Paradise Rose, who is the light of our lives, along with our beautiful four year old boy, Hudson.

It is amazing how much in two months a baby can change...a transformation from the tiny creature that emerges from the womb into a little girl, already displaying her own character traits (although that much is true even on the day you are born).

Wishing all our love to Paradise and Hudson xxxxx

A Working President

Photograph courtesy Stephen Crowley/The New York Times

I have been a huge supporter of President Barack Obama

since the earliest days of his campaign, and I continue

to support him now in these extremely challenging times.

Obama inherited from George W Bush one of the most

disastrous economies, two wars (at least one of which

could have been avoided) and the legacy of probably the

most disastrous policies in our nation's history.

Obama has worked tirelessly in his first months in office

and has already taken vast steps in terms of passing

legislation to address the global economic meltdown and

the many other vital issues we face, including

universal healthcare, which I believe should be a

fundamental human right along with education.

He has not been helped in this by the Republicans, who

have chosen to use this critical point in determining the

future not only of the United States but of the world

by disengaging from a positive participation in the

political process and instead focusing their energy on

criticizing Obama and trying to gain political capital from

the many current crises.

My hope is that we all allow Obama the time and give him

the support needed for his policies to take effect.

Above all, it is critical that we remember that this is

a situation that he inherited, and not one of his making.

May we all wish him well.

See Coraline in 3D NOW!

This is my IMDb review of Henry Selick's remarkable 3D animated movie, Coraline, which a friend of mine, Bill Mechanic, fought long and hard to get made. (Producers rarely get the credit they deserve for the commitment and passion they bring to their projects...their days do not exist solely of torturing writers in dank dungeons.) The movie is wonderful, fresh, funny and visually unique, go see it in 3D while you can!

Coraline: Original, beautiful, funny...and remarkable 3D

First, this film is excellent with or without the 3D. It is beautifully written and designed,

brilliantly directed by Henry Selick, the characters are totally engaging, the tone is

perfect animated-suburban-teen-goth with a sardonic edge, and the whole movie feels

fresh and funny and dark and satisfying.

Visually, it is stunning...and in 3D it is even more stunning. The circus mice alone (a

relatively minor element, but quite unforgettable) make it worth seeing in 3D, and the

decidedly trippy garden in the parallel world (eat your heart out, Alice In Wonderland)

made a friend of ours long for the days of 1990s rave culture!

One word of warning: it is fairly scary by children's movies standards, but a lot depends

on the child, and although at times it seems to echo (in a fairly gentle way) Japanese

horror movies of late, there is probably nothing more disturbing here than Cruella de Vil

in Disney's original animated 101 Dalmatians.

Even the score feels fresh, much of it performed by the Hungarian Radio Orchestra (if I

remember correctly from the credits) but with contributions, too, from Bruno Coulais and

They Might Be Giants (who made one of the best children's CDs, No!).

See Coraline and make every effort to see it in 3D. And if you do, sit through the entire

closing credits, for there is a nice little kicker right at the end.

Oscar Tweeting

Even though I work in the film industry, there are years when I don't watch the Oscars, but this was not one of them.

Danny Boyle is an old friend of mine - we worked together for eighteen months on an adaptation of my novel, The War Zone, before Tim Roth took over as director - and Danny's amazing Slumdog Millionaire was produced by Film4, the company for whom I am currently adapting Toby Barlow's remarkable book, Sharp Teeth.

So all in all there was good reason to watch this year's telecast and I thought it might be fun to "tweet" it on Twitter as well.  Here is my record of the night - a great one for Danny, Film4 and Slumdog - including the epic struggle with our four year old son, Hudson, to watch it at all.  Hudson is being raised in the Waldorf/Steiner philosophy and does not watch TV, with the notable exception of Wall-E on DVD - so a night with the TV on was unusual for all of us.

Because of the nature of the Twitter feed, you have to read these entries from the bottom up! (The times of the postings are a little random as they reflect when they were saved as PDF pages.)

YESSSSSSSS! Slumdog and Danny and Film4 and everyone

else. What an amazing night!

about 2 hours ago from TwitterFon

Fabulous for Danny...and love the Tigger jumping:-)

about 2 hours ago from TwitterFon

Slumdog's music ROCKS...but I love the Peter Gabriel song

from Wall-E, too (we have watched Wall-E 50 times). Go

Slumdog, to the biggies!!!

about 3 hours ago from TwitterFon

Another win for Slumdog, amazing. They should use Segways

for everyone to reach the stage at the Oscars!

about 3 hours ago from TwitterFon

You can't fail with Grease...or All That Jazz...or Lady

Marmalade. But where's the Slumdog closing number?

about 4 hours ago from TwitterFon

Another win for Slumdog, fantastic...the cinematography and

editing were outstanding.

about 4 hours ago from TwitterFon

That was Joaquin, iPhone keys close together:-)

about 4 hours ago from TwitterFon

Had a DVR freeze for dinner, catching up now. LOVE Ben

Stiller as Joaquim Phoenix...I thought Joaquim was really

funny on Letterman.

about 4 hours ago from TwitterFon

YAYYYYY...great win for Wall-E, it really deserves it.

about 4 hours ago from TwitterFon

Love the Wall-E Oscar animation.

about 5 hours ago from TwitterFon

And great to hear a shoutout for Tessa Ross of Film4.

about 5 hours ago from TwitterFon

Fantastic to see Slumdog win the first of many Golden Boys

tonight.

about 5 hours ago from TwitterFon

Hope Slumdog wins Adapted Screenplay... I like the way

they're presenting the clips with text over.

about 5 hours ago from TwitterFon

Great acceptance speech for Milk.

about 5 hours ago from TwitterFon

Milk is a great film, a testament to the human spirit. Glad to

see it win.

about 5 hours ago from TwitterFon

I loved Milk, too...a tough choice.

about 5 hours ago from TwitterFon

Time to make some tea, like a good Anglo-American. Hope TimeTraveler-FlyingSquirrel

Wall-E wins, I love it and so does our 4 year old, Hudson (he

of the epic battle).

about 5 hours ago from TwitterFon

YAY for Penelope Cruz!!!!!

about 5 hours ago from TwitterFon

Like the 20 minute delay line for Mickey Rourke.

about 5 hours ago from TwitterFon

Just survived an epic battle with our four year old who didn't

want to watch the Oscars. Amazingly he liked the musical

number.

about 5 hours ago from TwitterFon

Answer to the Danny Boyle/Trainspotting quiz: first 2 words

were, "Choose life."

about 5 hours ago from TwitterFon

I LOVE Penelope Cruz, one of the nicest and most beautiful

people in the film industry.

about 5 hours ago from TwitterFon

Great to see two accountants unconcerned (at least tonight)

by the bailout...unless the Kodak Theatre floods!

about 5 hours ago from TwitterFon

Danny Boyle quiz: what were the first 2 words of the amazing

opening voiceover to Trainspotting? A trip to the 90s for the

winner:-)

about 6 hours ago from TwitterFon

Love the Slumdog cast welcome to the official Oscars

telecast.

about 6 hours ago from TwitterFon

It will be Slumdog's night, I feel it in my bones!

about 6 hours ago from web

Oscar excitement building...and Hollywood is as cloudy as it

is here a few miles away in Topanga:-)

about 6 hours ago from web