We will have informational workshops on campus and at WRC for students who will be taking the Regents’ Test this semester. Please pass this schedule along to your students and encourage them to attend:
Macon – Wednesday, June 30th – LS-201 – Reading, 9:00-10:30, Writing, 10:30-12:00
WRC – Wednesday, June 30th – 110 Thomas Hall – Reading, 1:00-2:00, Writing 2:00-3:00
Constructing Identity: Race, Class, Gender and Beyond
Macon State College’s School of Arts and Sciences is proud to announce its second annual undergraduate conference–”Constructing Identity: Race, Class, Gender, and Beyond.” This event, which will take place on November 19-20, 2010, is open to undergraduate students from the University System of Georgia, Mercer University, and Wesleyan College.
CALL FOR PROJECTS
What is identity? How is our understanding of self constructed by factors such as race, class, and gender? Conference organizers seek scholarly essays and creative projects on the theme of identity. Topics may include but are not limited to: Identity conflict, family dynamics, the self in society, the politics of identity, the psychology of self, the self and the other, philosophical and religious approaches to selfhood, the construction and/or deconstruction of the self, education and identity. Projects that analyze selfhood through lenses such as race, class, and gender are encouraged.
CREATIVE SUBMISSIONS
Creative work can take the form of poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, drama, or digital video.
Submit final drafts of creative work by October 11, 2010.
Written creative submissions should be five to eight pages of poetry or prose. All final presentations must not exceed 15 minutes.
Digital video submissions, which should be no more than 15 minutes in length, should be uploaded to a video sharing site such as YouTube and delivered to conference organizers via a URL address.
SCHOLARLY SUBMISSIONS
Research can come from any scholarly arena, including literary, historical, cultural, psychological, political, educational, business, sociological, or technological studies. Interdisciplinary approaches are welcome.
Submit 200-word proposals by September 13, 2010. Proposals should include a clear thesis and overview of key points.
Submit final drafts of essays by October 11, 2010.
Final conference papers should be approximately eight pages; final presentations must not exceed 15 minutes.
Send all inquiries and submissions to Dr. Mary Wearn at undergradscholars@gmail.com.
All proposals and final drafts must include student name, email, phone, and college affiliation. Final drafts must be accompanied by the endorsement of a faculty member in the form of a blank email sent to undergradscholars@gmail.com with “Endorsement of [Student’s Name]” in the subject line.
Dr. Patrick Brennan will be giving a talk March 23rd at 12:30 in Room H/SS 124 on “Film Analysis for the Humanities Classroom.” Please come join us. As more and more of us are using more and more film in our classes, this will be a great opportunity to query on of our resident experts about his modes and methods for analysis, selection of films, selection criteria, and all of those good questions we ask when we prepare to use films in the classroom.
The Macon Film Festival offers six filmmaking workshops that are FREE and open to the public, thanks to a grant from the Knight Neighborhood Challenge. They can rsvp to jcindyhill@gmail.com or join the Macon Film Festival group on Facebook and RSVP to the events there.
Friday, February 19, 10 – 11:30 a.m.
Topic: Branded Entertainment & New Media with Illeana Douglas and Dominik Rausch
Location: TBA at Mercer University (we’re in the process of moving it to a larger room)
Illeana Douglas is an actress familiar to film buffs with numerous memorable roles in films including Message in a Bottle, Cape Fear, Goodfellas, To Die For, Grace of My Heart, Stir of Echoes, The Perfect Woman, and Happy, Texas; and recurring roles on television series including Ugly Betty, Law & Order: SVU, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Action, and Six Feet Under, for which she was nominated for an Emmy Award. In addition to acting, she has written, directed and produced for film. Ms. Douglas and producer Dominik Rausch will screen their innovative web-based series, Easy to Assemble, at the 2009 Macon Film Festival. Ms. Douglas stars in, writes, and produces the comedy about an actress who “quits Hollywood” and goes to work at Ikea. The series co-stars Justine Bateman and a list of special guests that reads like a who’s who in Hollywood independent film, including Jane Lynch, Jeff Goldblum and Robert Patrick. In addition to being a MaGa Special Guest in her own right, Ms. Douglas will represent her family as we dedicate the award given for Best In Show to her grandfather, actor and Macon native Melvyn Douglas.
Dominik Rausch was born and raised in Stuttgart, Germany. He began to write and produce short films in 1999. He began as a documentary filmmaker but discovered a passion for narrative and commercial filmmaking that inspired him to move to Los Angeles, where he earned a BA in Film/TV Production from Columbia College and began to work professionally. An internship as assistant to the producers of the critically acclaimed indie feature April Showers led to many more assistant directing jobs on film, TV, and commercial sets, including Comedy Central. Taking on all positions of assistant directing, Rausch refined his knowledge about film and TV production and decided to set his main focus on becoming a producer. Dominik met actress/writer Illeana Douglas on the set of April Showers, and they formed a friendship and work partnership on her innovative and successful web series Easy to Assemble. Coordinating production and relations with IKEA, he came on as a producer to season 2. He also composes for feature and short films and his work includes Junction, an award winning feature film that has played several domestic and international film festivals. His work on April Showers won Best Score at the California Independent Film Festival.
Friday, February 19, 1:30 – 2:45 p.m.
Topic: Documenting Disasters with Tom McPhee (following the Noon screening of his documentary)
Location: Cox Capitol Theatre
Prior to founding The World Animal Awareness Society (WA2S), Tom McPhee has been an award-winning producer & director of film, TV, and multi-language interactive media, as well as a specialty film/media distributor, all within the last twenty years. Tom began in 1984 working as a marketing specialist in Delaware politics. Following a few highly successful years in mid-range computer hardware and software sales for a Fortune 100 service company, 1991 saw the advent of Tom’s cutting edge digital interactive software company MultiDynamics, Inc., with a focus on the development and production of multi-language interactive software. He sold MultiDynamics, Inc. and produced his first independent feature film with indie cult film icon Bruce Campbell. In 1998 Tom was called an Innovator by Movie Maker Magazine for his creation of flixtour, a new film distribution model – ‘the premiere indie film tour of the 90’s”. Tom is the owner of 2 media companies, Cave Studio (HD cameras, HD production and post-production tools and services) & Man Smiling Moving Pictures (film and TV production company). Over the last 4 years, buoyed by his documentary An American Opera: The Greatest Pet Rescue Ever! (a popular selection of 26 film festivals on 4 continents winning 5 awards), Tom has organically navigated toward developing filmed content with a focus on animal/pet-centric themes. Tom served as producer and host/character on two animal-centric TV shows in 2009 for Canada’s The Pet Network: they were Tom McPhee’s Rescue Journal, a continuation of his work on An American Opera; and Rock N’ Roll Dogs, a new type of animal show aimed squarely at the funny bone of teen boys.
Saturday, February 20, 10 – 11:30 a.m.
Topic: Filmmaking 101 with Michael Buchanan and Jason Winn
Location: 110 McCorkle Music Building @ Mercer
Michael Buchanan’s latest co-authored novel, The Fat Boy Chronicles, was adapted into a screenplay by Buchanan in 2008/2009. The movie began filming this past July and is scheduled for release in 2010. The novel is being used by schools around the nation to address current teen issues. His screenplay, Treasure of the Four Lions, is in pre-production with Riverwood Studios and Tin Roof Films. Other screenplays by Buchanan include Bait and Tackle along with Ryan’s Heart. His short film, Last Bullet (premiered at MAGA 2009) won several awards during its film festival tour in 2009. Novels by Buchanan include Micah’s Child (2006) and Cry of the Quetzal, an epic tale set in the deep South that examines the saga of Anna and Jacob, two Quakers caught between the Korean War and their religious convictions. Michael and fellow special guest Jason Winn are partners in Tin Roof Films.
Jason Winn is the director of The Fat Boy Chronicles, a movie adapted from a teen novel now in bookstores. The story is a heartwarming, funny, and sometimes heartbreaking realistic view of high school life as told through the eyes of an overweight and bullied 9th grader named Jimmy Winterpock. Other recent credits for Winn as a director include Last Bullet, a narrative short depicting two Vietnam soldiers caught in a life or death situation where an anguished decision decides which friend will live. Accepted into many festivals (Atlanta, Macon, Washington D.C., and others), Winn’s efforts won accolades for the movie and for himself (Finalist awards, Winner of Best Short, and Best Director). After release of The Fat Boy Chronicles, Winn looks forward to moving into pre-production for The Treasure of the Four Lions, the story of three kids helped by Civil War ghosts to find the lost Confederate Gold. Winn and fellow special guest Michael Buchanan are partners in Tin Roof Films.
Saturday, February 20, Noon – 1:30 p.m.
Topic: Acting for Stage & Screen with Illeana Douglas
Location: 110 McCorkle Music Building @ Mercer
Illeana Douglas is an actress familiar to film buffs with numerous memorable roles in films including Message in a Bottle, Cape Fear, Goodfellas, To Die For, Grace of My Heart, Stir of Echoes, The Perfect Woman, and Happy, Texas; and recurring roles on television series including Ugly Betty, Law & Order: SVU, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Action, and Six Feet Under, for which she was nominated for an Emmy Award. In addition to acting, she has written, directed and produced for film. Ms. Douglas and producer Dominik Rausch will screen their innovative web-based series, Easy to Assemble, at the 2009 Macon Film Festival. Ms. Douglas stars in, writes, and produces the comedy about an actress who “quits Hollywood” and goes to work at Ikea. The series co-stars Justine Bateman and a list of special guests that reads like a who’s who in Hollywood independent film, including Jane Lynch, Jeff Goldblum and Robert Patrick. In addition to being a MaGa Special Guest in her own right, Ms. Douglas will represent her family as we dedicate the award given for Best In Show to her grandfather, actor and Macon native Melvyn Douglas.
Saturday, February 20, 2 – 3:30 p.m.
Topic: TV Comedy Writing with R.J. Fried
Location: 110 McCorkle Music Building @ Mercer
R.J. Fried co-created, executive produced, and wrote for the sketch show POPZILLA (MTV), executive produced and wrote for BOB & DOUG (Fox pilot, Global TV), and was a creative consultant for ROB & BIG (MTV). Along with his lovely wife Rachael, R.J. resides in New York City where he is a contributing writer for the Huffington Post and teaches writing at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre. Before becoming a TV writer, he was a professional hockey player and NHL Draft pick of the Florida Panthers. He is a 2004 cum laude graduate of Harvard University with a degree in Government. His parents, Jeffrey and Linda, and sister, Susie, resides in Macon.
Sunday, February 21, Noon – 1:30 p.m.
Topic: Renegade Filmmaking (Small Budget, Big Film) with Steve Balderson
Location: 110 McCorkle Music Building @ Mercer
Filmmaker Steve Balderson presents the Georgia debut of his latest independent film, “Stuck!” at the 5th Macon Film Festival. “Stuck!” was shot primarily in Macon in the spring of 2009. Steve discovered Macon when he attended the 2009 Macon Film Festival as a guest director screening “Firecracker,” with actress Karen Black. While here, he was inspired and returned later that spring to shoot “Stuck!” bringing with him an excellent cast including Ms. Black, Starina Johnson, Jane Wiedlin, Pleasant Gehman, Susan Traylor, Stacy Cunningham, and John Waters’ staple, Mink Stole. The supporting and extra roles star dozens of Central Georgia actors familiar to theatre-goers, including actress September Carter as the mother of the main character.
“Stuck!” premiered in October, 2009, at the Raindance Film Festival in London. It then screened as an official selection at Skeive Filmer in Norway, the Seattle LGBT Film Festival, the Southwest LGBT Film Festival, Reeling – Chicago’s LGBT Film Festival, and others. In a review, critic MJ Simpson writes, “Steve Balderson is the best-kept secret in American independent cinema.” Roger Ebert gave Balderson’s second film, the surrealist crime drama FIRECRACKER (starring Karen Black and Mike Patton) a special jury award on his list of 2005′s Best Films. Balderson’s other work includes the critically-acclaimed PHONE SEX (featuring Margaret Cho, Ron Jeremy, Penn Jillette and Lloyd Kaufman), PEP SQUAD (the satire that predicted American school violence), UNDERBELLY (a year in the life of dancer Princess Farhana) and the award-winning WAMEGO documentary series about DIY Filmmaking.
On Feb. 8, local novelist Shana Burton will read from her works (Suddenly Single, First Comes Love, Flaws and All) and talk about the writing process, especially how she got started as a writer. She will speak at 11 a.m. on Monday, Feb. 8, 2010, in the Arts Complex Theatre on the Macon campus, and she will speak again at 6 p.m. in Thomas Hall, Room 116, on the Warner Robins Campus.
On Feb. 16, there will be a poetry reading by Affrilachian Poets as part of Black History Month. This year’s theme is Finding, Loving and Respecting Self. Poets Ricardo Nazario-Colon, Bianca Spriggs-Floyd and Keith Wilson will be reading Feb. 16, in the Arts Complex Theatre at the 11 a.m.
Frank X Walker, who read here two years ago, was a founding member of this group, as is Ricardo. Winner of student poetry contest will be publicly announced. Library has DVD resource on this group of poets, Coal Black Voices.
Macon State College will hold its Seventh Annual Macon State College Fall Digital Video Festival from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, December 10, in the Macon State College Learning Support Auditorium. The festival will feature final documentary videos by students from Dr. Patrick Brennan’s fall 2009 Principles of Production class at Macon State College.
Each student video runs from 5-10 minutes. Some of the video titles for this year’s festival are “Hold ‘Em: An Amateur Poker Story,” ”The Life and Times of Mae Chancey,” ”A Day at Mother Goose,” “Michael Brooker: Hometown Hero,” and “W.O.W. Reality.” This event is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served.
For more information, please contact Dr. Patrick Brennan at 478-471-5776.
Macon State College is hosting a Flu Clinic for the campus community for seasonal flu vaccines, as well as H1N1 vaccines in mist form to members of the campus and surrounding community who are members of priority groups. The Flu Clinic will be held from 2 to 6 p.m. Monday, Nov. 30, and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 1, in the lobby of the Charles H. Jones Building. Seasonal flu vaccines are $30 each, payable through the following methods: check, Aetna, or Medicare part B. H1N1 vaccines are $15 each, payable through the following methods: check, BCBS of GA, UHC, and Aetna. Priority groups for H1N1 vaccines include pregnant women; caregivers of children under six months of age; healthcare workers and emergency medical service personnel; and those between the ages of 25 and 64 with one or more health conditions associated with higher risks of medical complications from influenza. Attached is a consent form for the H1N1 vaccine to complete and bring to the Flu Clinic. For more information, call the School of Nursing and Health Sciences at (478) 471-2783.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Cox Capital Theatre
To benefit the Crossroads Writers Conference, Feb. 25-27, 2010
Kathy Shimeta (mezzo-soprano) and Martin Hennessy (pianist) are performing artists based in Manhattan. They will be in residence at MSC next week, on Tuesday and Wednesday, November 10-11. On Tuesday, they will present a one-act musical entitled “Life! Love! Song! A Visit with Gena Branscombe.” Gena Branscombe was a prominent woman composer and conductor in the early 20th century. She was an active member of the American Penwomen society. Ms. Shimeta is the leading scholar of Ms. Branscombe and portrays her in this one-woman show. On Wednesday, they will teach a masterclass for the music voice students. You won’t want to miss their presentation on Tuesday, and you are all invited to observe the masterclass on Wednesday.
Tuesday, November 10, 12:30-1:30, Arts Complex Rehearsal Hall: The one-act, one-woman show, “Life! Love! Song! A Visit with Gena Branscombe.”
Wednesday, November 11, 10:30-11:30, Arts Complex Rehearsal Hall: Masterclass with MSC Music Students.
