Here at IDFA in Amsterdam, some thoughts on a master of cinema, Frederick Wiseman.

photo by eugene hernandez

It’s Tim Burton week at MoMA.
The massive, five-month, exhibition of Burton’s work opens later this week and was previewed this morning ahead of tonight’s gala museum fundraiser and tomorrow night’s opening bash. I’ll be at MoMA a few times for the festivities.
“The Museum of Modern Art will never be the same again, after Tim Burton,” MoMA director Glenn Lowry said today, in remarks at the museum. He noted that there are some 700 pieces of artwork included in the show. While there’s certainly a number of movie related items, there’s also a lot of other Burton artwork that has never been seen: photos, drawings, sculptures, and seven new pieces created for this exhibition. Lowry said that the exhibit is the museums largest monographic show ever.
The filmmaker opened up his archive, giving MoMA’s Ron Magliozzi and Jenny He all access to his work. “You actually helped me more than you know in terms of getting my act together,” Burton joked today. A sneak peek is below.
photos by eugene hernandez













An iPhone photo on Friday evening, New York City.
(this one goes out to miguel and marcelo)

Oscar picks are up at Movie City News. Week 2 of Gurus o’ Gold looks at the supporting actor races, along the latest best picture prognostication. My picks are below and the full list is at MCN.
NOTE: These are predictions of where the race currently stands, not necessarily my personal preferences.
BEST PICTURE
1. Precious
2. Up in The Air
3. The Hurt Locker
4. A Serious Man
5. Up
6. An Education
7. Where the Wild Things Are
8. Bright Star
9. Inglorious Basterds
10. The Road
11. Julie and Julia
12. A Single Man
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
1. Mo’Nique, “Precious”
2. Anna Kendrick, ” Up in the Air”
3. Julianne Moore, “A Single Man”
4. Melanie Laurent, “Inglourious Basterds”
5. Vera Farmiga, “Up in the Air”
6. Mariah Carey, “Precious”
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
1. Christoph Waltz, “Inglourious Basterds”
2. Alfred Molina, “An Education”
3. Peter Sarsgaard, “An Education”
4. Anthony Mackie, “The Hurt Locker”
5. Brian Geraghty, “The Hurt Locker”
6. Paul Schneider, Bright Star


Hard to re-capture the intensity of that moment, twenty years ago today, when the German wall came down in Berlin: 11.09.89. I recall being quite in awe, while in college at the time. It’s only after visiting Berlin many times over the past decade, and visiting many of its historical sites, that I gained a much deeper sense of the city and its stunning history. Tonight in Berlin, they appropriately marked the occasion by topping a mile of wall-sized dominoes.
Here’s a photo of a piece of that original wall as seen in a small park on 53rd St. in Midtown Manhattan tonight.
iphone photo by eugene hernandez
