Heat Death

Last night I was reading the New Scientist's article on photographing black holes, particularly the one presumed to be at the center of the Milky Way. I then took off on a Wikipedia spree in the following order:

• Solar System
• Milky Way
• Galaxy
• Dwarf galaxy
• Great Attractor
• Dark flow
• Timeline of the Big Bang
• Universe
• Ultimate fate of the universe
• Heat death of the universe

Histories in tabbed browsers are notoriously bad at representing the precise order in which the user actually read the pages listed, but I'm fairly sure that I had to shut the computer off at some point near the bottom of the list after my brain exploded.

Rolling SIFF Updates

After running through the catalog again, I believe I've got a tentative schedule set at 48 films.

Thirteen on Memorial Day weekend, nine the short week after that, fourteen in week two, and twelve the final week.

Hard to say exactly how many will actually get watched. Any besides Humpday definitely getting theatrical release in Seattle will be stricken from the list. Probably half of these are can't-miss, and the rest I'd like to see if possible. Hopefully I can compile a manageable list of a dozen or fewer to suggest to interested parties.

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Andy Horbal's Film Blogs, Etc. search tool at Google is exceedingly helpful in trying to get an idea of general reaction to smaller films. It includes both of David Hudson's blogs, Twitch, Slant, The Auteurs Notebook, and of course a load of personal blogs. Variety is also a necessity, though their review database is slightly less than comprehensive.

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After the first run-through, I've scheduled ~45 films over the 24 days of the festival. This doesn't include several I've marked to look up later, so I will also need to start trying to find reasons not to watch some as well.

20090503

Today is significant for three reasons. First is the biggest cache of information thus far on SIFF '09 in the Seattle Times. Most startling to me was the re-scored film at the Triple Door: No Age performing new music for The Bear (Annaud, 89). The Album Leaf and Kinski, who I know have filled the musicians' role in the past, both seem like rational choices, but I would probably have gotten through most of Sub Pop's roster before guessing No Age. The film might be longer than their entire recorded output to date.

Second is the second time I've recognized someone onscreen in a commercially released movie. Ivan popped up in a Joe Swanberg film or two, and today I spotted Isaac Smith in Sugar, the middle third of which is set in Iowa.

Third is that I finally finished walking the last block on Capitol Hill, unless you're the sort of perverse Seattle geographer who considers anything north or Roanoke to be part of the neighborhood. And I don't.