A Late Thank You

We were remiss not to post this last week, but a big thank you to the readers of the Tucson Weekly, who voted us Best Movie Theater in Tucson for the seventh year in a row! Here's the blurb:

The Loft is more than a movie theater—it's a celebration of cinema in all its wonder. Besides the rotation of new art films, foreign movies and other top-grade releases, the Loft shows cult movies like The Big Lebowski and Planet of the Apes on weekends; wacky stuff like Plan 9 From Outer Space on Mondo Mondays; cinematic classics—for free!—on Sunday afternoons; and short films by local filmmakers on the first Friday of every month, in a mini-marathon hosted by local cartoonist Max Cannon. And that's not even mentioning the festivals, the contests and the best concession stand in town. What else can we say? Lights, camera, action!

Found Footage

In case you're not familiar with what the Found Footage guys do, here's a short video interview conducted when they were here before.

This Saturday at 8 and 10PM, they'll be back to present their treasures and film the show for their new DVD release. It's always a blast, and you're pretty much guaranteed to laugh harder and more often than you ever have or will again in a movie theater. For good measure, here's another interview.

Rogue Film School

In the file under "insane weekend" department, Werner Herzog now has a film school, teaching such valuable lessons as "the art of lockpicking. Traveling on foot. The exhilaration of being shot at unsuccessfully. The athletic side of filmmaking. The creation of your own shooting permits. The neutralization of bureaucracy. Guerrilla tactics. Self reliance." Sign us up.

Reasons for Optimism

Here's a great article from Sunday's New York Times. A roundtable discussion on the future of independent film.

Volunteer Vignette

Loft volunteers do many things. We sit at the membership table before screenings and talk to people about the benefits of being a member, and we talk to people about upcoming shows at the Loft. We sometimes go to special events like the UA Master’s in Film students’ final films and sit at a table talking to people about The Loft (then we can stay to watch the films if we want!). We take tickets before highly-attended shows at the theater, we sometimes help the staff with special projects, and some of us even meet Luanne in the office and do data entry.

I volunteered at the Tribute-to-Michael-Jackson-Sing-Along, which sold out—-and it sold out fast! As I looked around at the 500 people in the theater having a great time singing and dancing to the music, I realized this was how we were saying goodbye to an icon from our time and culture who gave us so many tunes and dance moves. During the dance-off at intermission, all 500 people chanted the name of the winning dancer—-a truly incredible Michael Jackson-inspired young dancer. The energy was a mixture of sentiment, spontaneity, and happiness. I felt lucky to be there that night.

A volunteer earns free movie tickets by volunteering. I volunteer for so much more than that, though of course I LOVE free tickets. I am being paid in experiences: I am witnessing the passion and the joy that art and film and music and interesting topics can incite in those around me, and each time I volunteer at the Loft, I feel in some small way that I am helping The Loft happen. I Love Volunteering at The Loft!



~ Peggy Springer, Loft Volunteer since January 2009

If you are interested in volunteering at The Loft Cinema, please visit our website for more information.

R.I.P.

On MJ's birthday, The Loft sent him out in style. Here are some highlights.

The Man in the Mirror


Happy People


The Ghost of Jacko?


AJ


The New King of Tucson Pop?


Click here to view the whole set.

World Cinema by the Coen Brothers

Stumbled upon this "lost" short about cowboys and art films by our favorite filmmaking brothers.

Lists Are Fun

Sight and Sound magazine has picked their "Wild Bunch"--the 50 most dangerous filmmakers of all time--and, coincidentally, also some of our favorites. No disrespect to anyone on the list, but we'd have included Monsieur Godard, as well. Vive la cinema!

Firsts

We here at The Loft want to open things up a bit with this blog, throw the doors open to the public. Here you might expect to find interviews with upcoming guests, staff reviews, and links to articles we think are cool, neat, or otherwise intriguing. Cinema might not always be about fun, but at its best it should inspire strong reactions. Expect to find those here. Thanks for coming by.