Dir. Jean-Marc Vallée/2009/UK/US/105 minutes
Emily Blunt is generating Oscar buzz and has already been nominated for Best Actress in a Motion Picture-Drama for her role as the young Queen Victoria. Victoria turned 18 a month before she was crowned, but the young girl still fell prey to the interferences of the men around her. It was her marriage to Albert that gave Victoria the independence and inner strength she needed. This film is a love story that focuses on the protracted courtship of the teenage princess and her first cousin, but it also deals with the political intrigue that revolved around her. http://www.theyoungvictoria.co.uk/

Dir. Jason Goldwatch/ 2010/NZ/ 62 minutes
For fans of the dynamically different Metal band System of a Down, one of the main draws is lead singer Serj Tankian, with his vibrant delivery and impassioned, beguilingly operatic vocals. The documentary Elect the Dead Symphony takes his critically acclaimed, solo masterwork, Elect the Dead, and transforms it into an impressive work of epic grandeur with newly arranged material and lush backing orchestration from the 70-piece Auckland Philharmonic. Performed and filmed in one night in the Auckland Town Hall in New Zealand before a live audience, Elect the Dead Symphony captures an unforgettable concert that fills the big screen in this extraordinary theatrical presentation.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDs0kk1OR2Y&feature=PlayList&p=D3D02054ED55D68B&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=74

Artist Trust’s Meet the Artist program is an integral component of the annual Artist Trust/Washington State Arts Commission Fellowship. Meet the Artist events bridge our artistic community with the diverse communities in Washington State, increasing awareness about the vital roles art and artists play in our culture. Find out more at www.artisttrust.org.
“… turning traditional methods of filmmaking upside down, James Coupe takes an algorithmic approach to cinema and, in doing so, transforms reality into narrative.” Artist James Coupe’s controversial work with ‘surveillance cinema’ uses computer vision software to extract demographic and behavioral information from video footage. The footage is then automatically reorganized and recontextualized into narratives, often based upon classic film scripts. Coupe will discuss his work and screen several of his recent short films, alongside extracts from cinematic ‘templates’ that he has used, such as Antonioni’s Blow-Up. More information is available at http://jamescoupe.com

Dir. Oren Moverman/ 2009/ US/ 112 minutes
Woody Harrelson received Best Supporting Actor nominations at this year’s Golden Globes and Screen Actors Guild Awards for his performance as Captain Tony Stone, an officer in the Casualty Notification Office who mentors Iraq War veteran Will Montgomery (Ben Foster). As someone who had a close brush with death himself, Will isn’t sure that he’s the man to tell families that their own loved ones will never be coming home. Thankfully, in between his assignments, Tony offers a sympathetic ear and the two men form a bond that will ultimately help them to readjust to “normal” life. http://www.themessengermovie.com/