I Like Mahurin and Desimini
I spoke with Matt Mahurin last week. You may remember me writing about Matt and his Sundance documentary I LIKE KILLING FLIES. The film was about SHOPSIN'S, a wonderful restaurant in Greenwich Village owned and operated by Kenny Shopsin. An outspoken, creative chef, Shopsin makes the documentary a tasty treat. During the conversation, Matt said I LIKE KILLING FLIES will be in theaters this spring! According to IMDB, the film is being distributed by THINKFilm. Be sure to watch for it in your local theaters.
Matt is a terrific artist, illustrator, photographer and filmmaker. He's done some memorable portraits of folks like Tom Waits, Queen Latifah, David Letterman, Courtney Love, and Marilyn Manson. You may recall that Matt has produced music videos for Peter Gabriel, U2, REM, Tracy Chapman, Sting, Bonnie Raitt, Ice-T, Metallica, David Byrne and Joni Mitchell.
Matt was in L.A. editing his new feature film, FEEL. The screenplay for the film was actually written before I LIKE KILLING FLIES was produced. FEEL was backed by VOX3 FILMS (the same folks who funded the Diane Arbus biopic FUR which stars Nicole Kidman and Robert Downey, Jr.). FEEL is the story of a single day in a massage parlor. Four different men visit looking for some kind of emotional or physical connection. Simultaneously, the film explores the complex emotional experiences of the women who work there. Starring Billy Baldwin, Fiona Lee, Tom Bower, Kevin Corrigan and WRISTCUTTERS Clayne Crawford, I've got a good feeling about FEEL.
Matt is married to artist and illustrator Lisa Desimini. Lisa is also a fantastic illustrator! Lisa did the covers for Barbara Kingsolver's books. Kingsolver is one of my favorite authors and I was so pleased to discover that Lisa created the covers of some of my favorite books! Lisa also illustrated numerous children's books including TRICK OR TREAT, SMELL MY FEET and GOOD MOUSEKEEPING.
It must be fabulous in their house! Their whole lives are about art. The conversations at the dinner table must be fantastic. No doubt they've collaborated intellectually on numerous projects. (Lord knows we're always talking about our latest projects around the house.) Anyway, they did a book together. Lisa wrote and Matt illustrated the children's book MY BEAUTIFUL CHILD. In her review of their book, School Librarian, J. Mckee (Pittsburgh, PA) says, "Within its spare text and quiet illustrations lies the powerful message of teaching a child to appreciate the simple things in life through a parent's unselfish love. This is one of the most beautiful books I have ever read." As you can tell by the images on the post, they're pretty talented people and their work is all around you.
