Double Feature

Suzie Harrison

Looking at a resume, it wouldn’t be too bad to have the credentials

Laguna Beach has. It would read quite impressively with vast

experience in the arts year after year. From still life, to living

pictures, to art in every medium imaginable, the list continues to

grow. And now with the addition of motion pictures, the Laguna

experience becomes even more cultured.

The film revolution began with the Laguna Beach Film Festival a

couple of years back that included five years of film. However, since

it was run solely by volunteers from the Exchange Club, they decided

it couldn’t reasonably be sustained with its time intensiveness.

That brought the independent film movement back to zero. So then

there was none and now there are two -- two different film entities

in Laguna Beach -- both serving the art of independent film on a

monthly basis, both as different as art itself. The “Laguna Beach

Film Society” and “cinema” are opening their doors to this medium on

Sept. 11.

The Laguna Beach Film Society is sponsored by the Laguna Art

Museum, and cinema is sponsored by [seven-degrees] and individuals

Ami Garavi and Sian Poeschl. Each feels there is plenty of room for

the other and will only add to the reputation of Laguna art much like

the different art festivals.

“I think it’s fantastic, it gives more synergy to film in the

area,” museum director Bolton Colburn said. “It gives more variety

and attention to film -- what could be better.”

Managing partner of [seven-degrees] Mark Orgill and Dora Wexell,

director of sales and programming, are excited to bring this venue to

Laguna Beach.

“I think it’s an added bonus as opposed to having just one or the

other,” Wexell said. “There’s room for everybody -- the festival was

thinking about having films, it’s cool there will be lots of film

opportunities in Laguna Beach on ‘Second Thursdays.’”

The founders of cinema explained that cinema is dedicated to

bringing independent, international and innovative film to Laguna

Beach.

To clarify her position, Poeschl, who is the city arts manager, is

working on cinema on her own time and it is not affiliated with the

city.

Wexell said they just wanted to support this kind of experience

and believes [seven-degrees] is a perfect forum for this type of

happening.

“This is the thing we want to do, we’re sponsoring it on the

second Thursday of every month,” Orgill said. “It’s something we

talked about before [seven-degrees] opened, explored putting it

together and working on a general concept.”

They have been fine-tuning the idea and will be working on the

details as they go through the process, by talking with people about

what they are looking for in a film and this experience as a whole.

“It’s an experimental thing, we’ll throw it out there and see, it

could have a life of its own -- we don’t know what is going to

happen,” Wexell said. “I think it’s going to be great no matter what

happens.”

The project will be exploring the art medium of film in a social

setting, with the films being shown simultaneously on three large

screens and several smaller ones and will include live music, a light

meal and an opportunity to talk to producers and actors in the film.

“We wanted it to be a different environment, which is one of our

specialties,” Wexell said. “We really want to support art in all

mediums, it’s good for us to be a forum -- we like that rebellious

spirit around here. It makes it a lot easier without a board of

directors.”

Wexell explained that Garavi brings to cinema a lot of film

background including the Cannes Film Festival.

“He wants to do what he knows well and will pull in the innovative

films that we are looking for,” Wexell said.

Garavi said he helped put it together because he’s always wanted

this type of film outlet in Laguna Beach.

“My background is film,” Garavi said. “I was a film director by

profession.”

Garavi said he found that the general consensus was that Orange

County dramatically lacks this format. Garavi explained that every

year cinema will pick a different theme with this year focusing on

the human condition.

“We’ll be showing mostly independent films and if possible somehow

connected to Orange County,” Garavi said.

Their first film is called “The Utopian Society,” and is the story

of six college students assigned to work together on a final paper

describing the fundamentals of civilization.

“This was filmed in Fullerton in 11 days, the idea of the theme is

near to the way of thinking of the human condition,” Garavi said.

“Six students forced by a professor to write an essay together and

they basically have prejudices of each other before they start.”

He said the film is about getting past these biases and through

this the students start to connect.

“We’re looking for the whole experience,” Orgill said. “It gets

back to our original ideas as a multi-media event medium with

emerging independent art.”

Cinema can be experienced at 7 p.m. Sept. 11 at [seven-degrees] at

891 Laguna Road. The event is free and to find out more information

call Garavi at (949) 497-1212.