Levees, not lambs
Legendary filmmaker Jonathan Demme (“The Silence of the Lambs,” “Philadelphia”) took center stage at the SILVERDOCS Film Festival in Silver Spring on Thursday, as he premiered his new documentary on the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, “New Home Movies from the Lower Ninth Ward.”
Clad in a corduroy blazer and sneakers, the director said it was the first time he’d seen the theatrical cut,
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although much of its content had aired previously on “The Tavis Smiley Show.”
“It’s a triumph of content over form,” he joked. “I shot it myself.”
He said he hopes to turn his 200 hours of footage into a 12- to 15-hour record of the disaster. Today, he has a meeting with a TV network to expand one of the film’s segments for broadcast.
At night, Demme was honored at AFI’s 2007 Guggenheim Symposium. And at sunset, AFI screened Demme’s 1984 film on the Talking Heads, “Stop Making Sense,” in the Silver Plaza. Tonight, it’s his 2006 Neil Young concert film, “Heart of Gold.”
In related news, AOL Vice Chair and Washington Capitals owner Ted Leonsis gave the festival’s keynote address Thursday, a talk on what he’s dubbed “filmanthropy” — the increasing connections between filmmakers and social causes.
Jenna’s homecoming
This morning, Laura Bush is set to deliver remarks before the graduating class at the Elsie Whitlow Stokes Community Freedom Public Charter School.
Making the trip uptown with her: first daughter Jenna Bush, who taught at the school for 18 months following college.
