Kate Dollenmayer, Deanna Erdmann and Glenna Jennings at the Cinema Lounge

Sushi Performance & Visual Art is pleased to announce the new Cinema Lounge series. The Cinema Lounge series screens unique and challenging films for local audiences in an informal atmosphere that provokes thought, dialogue, and inspiration. Cinema Lounge is more than movie-going. It is film, emerging directors, local music, visual art, food, and fun. The series takes place on the last Tuesday of the month: January 29, February 26, and March 25 at 7pm. The Cinema Lounge series is hosted by Basic Urban Kitchen & Bar, 410 Tenth Avenue at J Street downtown.

Tuesday, January 29, 2008 7pm - Shorts, Indies, & Locals
10th Annual HI/Lo Film Festival (2007)
Deacon’s Mondays (2007) by Lowell Frank & Destin Crettin
• Discussion with filmmakers
• Live Music by Kill Me Tomorrow, dance punk noir-wave
• Visual Art by Deanna Erdman and Glenna Jennings (photographic portraits)
This new series kicks off with a screening of the 2007 Hi/Lo Film Festival. Now in its 10th year, Hi/Lo embodies exactly the type of film that Cinema Lounge espouses at its core - high on concept and low on budget (some cost about as much as a box of Legos). Working with the tag line, "because $40 million dollars can kill a good idea," the 2007 Hi/Lo compilation features artists from San Francisco to London working with formats as diverse as DV, Pixel-vision, Super 8, hi-8, and 35mm. These short films (all under 30 minutes) will teach you everything you need to know about junior high, show you the infinitely expanding universe from the vantage point of a pizza box, and engage you in a poetic journey exploring the origins of paper. To compliment the Hi/Lo series, Cinema Lounge will screen Deacon's Mondays (2007) by San Diego filmmakers Lowell Frank and Destin Crettin of flagpop productions. Deacon's Mondays was made for just $2500 and is the story of Deacon, a simple-minded landscaper, and his quest to become a good person. Frank and Crettin will be present to discuss how to find and make films on a student budget.

Tuesday, February 26, 2008 7pm - mumblecore films
The New Brad (2000) by Jay & Mark Duplass – Premiere
People’s House (2007) by Andrew Bujalski
Andrew is Tired (2005) by Kate Dollenmayer
• Discussion with filmmakers
• Live Music by The Muslims, party angst
• Visual Art by Spencer Little, wire bender
The second installment of the Cinema Lounge series introduces some of the minds and spirits behind mumblecore, a new breed of independent filmmaking. Mumblecore uses untrained actors, improvised dialogue, and bare-bones production to capture the awkward stumblings and relationships of today's 20- and 30-somethings. Jay and Mark Duplass, makers of The Puffy Chair, will premiere their unseen gem, The New Brad (2000). Kate Dollenmayer, star of Funny Ha Ha (2002), will screen Andrew Is Tired and Andrew Bujalski, director of Funny Ha Ha and Mutual Appreciation (2005), will screen People's House (2007).

Tuesday, March 25, 2008 - Politics, Hip Hop & Immigration
La Haine (1995) by Matheieu Kassovitz
Yeah Yeah, We Speak English Just Serve (2006) by Wholpin
• Live Music by MC Flow, hip hop
• Visual Art by Ricardo Islas, painter
La Haine is the first feature-length film in the Cinema Lounge series. Called France’s Do the Right Thing, this stunning exploration of racism, violence, and disaffected youth in modern Paris earned Mathieu Kassovitz Best Director honors at the 1996 Cannes Film Festival. La Haine provoked so much debate over its unflinching portrayal of urban and police violence, then-Prime Minister Alain Juppé ordered his entire cabinet to view the film at a special screening. Shot in black-and-white on location in the Paris suburbs, the plot centers around a day in the life of three friends - Vinz (a Jewish youth filled with rage), Hubert (a quiet, completive black boxer), and Said (an Arab and the trio’s source of non-stop commentary).

Yeah Yeah, We Speak English Just Serve. “A human-rights lawyer told us we probably wouldn't get within a mile of the wall,” director Wholpin says, “and even if we did, it would likely be double- or triple-fenced with razor wire…We'd heard that sending anything across international borders without clearing customs could result in a felony charge, which meant that after three hits of the ball we'd all be subject to mandatory life imprisonment under California's three-strikes law. At the border we held up our volleyball and called out the Tijuanans we could see through the slats in the unfinished wall: ‘Pelota?’ Before we could remember the world for ‘play,’ a kid on the other side said, ‘Yeah yeah, we speak perfect English. Just serve.’ And so, as six half-curious members of the border patrol watched through binoculars from the hill above, we did.”

All admissions for the Cinema Lounge Series are on a Pay-What-You-Can basis and are available at the door only. (No Advance sales or reservations accepted).

For more information about Sushi:
www.sushiart.org

New Audience Initiative: Pay-What-You-Can

For the 2007-2008 season, Sushi is launching the new Pay-What-You-Can audience development initiative. This initiative eliminates set tickets prices and offers all Sushi presentations at a flexible price determined by each individual patron. This exciting new initiative continues Sushi’s deep commitment to presenting cultural events that are accessible to all. With seed funding from The San Diego Foundation, this pilot project will be the first of its kind in the United States. Funding for Sushi’s PWYC initiative is provided by The San Diego Foundation and The James Irvine Foundation.

Going Home: Our New/Old Permanent Location
Sushi is pleased to announce that in the fall of 2008, we will return to our downtown/East Village home in the Icon complex (a mixed retail/residential project). The ground floor location at 11th Avenue & J Street is over 5,000 square feet. The new facility at Icon will allow Sushi to increase the quantity of its performance events and create a dedicated visual art/gallery space.

Sushi Performance and Visual Art, a San Diego-based non-profit multi-disciplinary presenting organization, cultivates alternative voices in the contemporary arts. Sushi is committed to providing artists and audiences with a laboratory where creative exploration, community engagement, and new ideas flourish.

Citizen Video, located in the hub of South Park, rents and sells the best in foreign and independent film. From the auteurs of cinema to classic lowbrows such as Plan 9, Citizen Video has sifted through the rubble and pulled out the gems. The selection of films at Citizen Video is primarily DVD-based (save for those overlooked titles that never made
it past VHS), and contains a healthy share of Criterion Collection releases. In addition to film rental, Citizen Video is quickly becoming San Diego's premiere source for information on original voices in film. At www.citizen-video.com, cinephiles can search the Citizen Video catalog for films and reviews, view trailers for the best upcoming titles, read interviews from new and emerging directors, and purchase locally-made and indie film-related goods.

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