This is an important movie - I saw it at 2008 Berlinale Forum, and was not the same after viewing. What more do you want from a film?
See it on Monday, 6 July @ 7pm
Barbés
376 9th St (at Sixth Ave)
Park Slope, Brooklyn
Subway: F to Seventh Ave
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The UN Global Compact has set a date for its 2010 summit.
24-25 June 2010
New York, USA
“A triennial gathering of the top executives of all Global Compact participants and other stakeholders. The Leaders Summit represents a unique opportunity for Global Compact participants to discuss the Global Compact and corporate citizenship at the highest level, and to produce strategic recommendations and action imperatives related to the future evolution of the initiative.”
More information on agenda and registration to follow.
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Two years after my first post, Majority World has expanded their geographical reach with more local photographers of the requisite skillset to produce professional photography with a local eye.
Before you fly a photographer to a majority world location, consider hiring locally. You’ll get a new perspective while saving money (while paying a fair price) and reducing your carbon footprint.
“Majority World negotiates and obtains commissioned assignments for its contributing photographers and encourages clients to reduce their costs and carbon footprint by commissioning majority world photographers, gaining access to the in depth and balanced view which only local indigenous photographers can provide.”
What’s not to like?
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People in Tehran are dying for their country, and for us.
These holy martyrs remind us that progress sometimes comes very hard. This quote from Churchill gave me courage during the darkest Bush years:
Mousavi’s policies toward the US may not be different from Ahmad Dinejad’s, but that is irrelevant. We must speak to the elected voice of the Iranian people.
Mir Hossein Mousavi on Facebook.
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Long C, Li S, Long B, Shi Y, Liu B. Medicinal plants used by the Yi ethnic group: a case study in central Yunnan. J Ethnobiol Ethnomed. 2009 Apr 23;5:13. PMID: 19389251
Researchers at Chinese Academy of Sciences, Minzu University of China, Yunnan Agricultural University, and Chuxiong Research Institute of Yi Medicine and Pharmacology inventoried traditional Yi medicinal plants in Chuxiong, central Yunnan Province, Southwest China. From the results:
“One hundred sixteen medicinal plant species were found to be useful by the local people in the treatment of various diseases or disorders, especially those relating to trauma, gastrointestinal disorders and the common cold. Among these 116 species, 25 species (21.55%) were found to have new curative effects and 40 species (34.48%) were recorded for their new preparation methods; 55 different species were used in treating wounds and fractures, and 47 were used to treat gastrointestinal disorders. Traditional Yi herbal medicines are characterized by their numerous quantities of herbaceous plants and their common preparation with alcohol.”
Speaking of alcohol:
“Traditional Yi medicine is especially characterized by its use of alcohol. The Yi people adore alcohol, and it has come to symbolically represent this cultural minority due to its significance in their lives. Home-made alcohol is the most important beverage for the Yi: it is used daily, for ceremonies and holidays, served to respected guests and friends, and is the most common method of administering plant medicines. The practice of combining plants and alcohol has a long history in Yi medicine.”
The authors are motivated by a desire to preserve “indigenous knowledge, and folk knowledge in particular,” which “continues to be impacted by mainstream culture and decreasing biodiversity; traditional practices using specific medicinal plants decreases more quickly than that of the general biodiversity. It is thus urgent and necessary to prevent the further loss of the specialized knowledge of minority peoples.”
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Idowu OE, Idowu MA. Environmental causes of childhood brain tumours. Afr Health Sci. 2008 Mar;8(1):1-4. PubMed PMID: 19357723
Something new in the world, and not welcome. From the summary:
“Brain tumours hitherto said to be rare in Africans are now known to be common. They cause considerable concern due to their relatively high morbidity, mortality and enormous cost of care, especially in the developing world.”
No likely causes are verified. Investigation most warranted.
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Ever seen a green roof atop a parking garage? The Lotus Garden (on 97th Street, between Broadway and West End Avenue) is having a Pre-Summer Benefit & Garden Party on Wednesday, June 10, from 6:30-8:30 PM.
Sneak preview:
Lotus Garden on Flickr
For details, click the June 10 Garden Party image on the Lotus Garden home page (www.thelotusgarden.org),
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This year I’m focusing on Tumor Biology and Human Genetics, with close attention to molecular diagnostics.
Lots of abstracts look promising, including these:
CANCER GENETICS
Comen EA, Lautenberger J, McGee K et al. (Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, National Cancer Institute.)
Use of genome-wide scan in women with breast cancer to identify common germline variants that may be associated with recurrence.
J Clin Oncol 27:15s, 2009 (suppl; abstr 11049).
Conclusions: “Genome-wide SNP genotyping of women with breast cancer identified two novel loci that may be associated with disease recurrence. Further studies in larger cohorts will be performed to replicate these findings.”
Read the ASCO abstract.
Geier LJ, Sheehan M, Elia M et al. (Kansas City Cancer Center.)
The oncologist as genetic consultant: Two-year results in a large community-based practice.
J Clin Oncol 27, 2009 (suppl; abstr e22140)
Conclusions: “This oncologist-centered model proved to be very effective in identifying mutation carriers, particularly among cancer survivors in whom the hereditary syndrome had been previously overlooked. Acceptance of this approach by pts, physicians, and payers has been extremely high. This model should be considered by oncology practices wanting to add GCRA to their service lines.”
Read the ASCO abstract.
EPIDEMIOLOGY/MOLECULAR EPIDEMIOLOGY
Cheung WY, Zhai R, Kulke M et al. (University of Toronto, Harvard School of Public Health, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, Princess Margaret Hospital.)
Epidermal growth factor (EGF) gene polymorphism, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), and esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) risk.
J Clin Oncol 27:15s, 2009 (suppl; abstr 11029)
Conclusions: “EGF A61G polymorphism exerts its effect on EAC susceptibility through an interaction with GERD. Performing EGF genotyping for patients with severe or longstanding GERD can help to identify individuals at the greatest risk of EAC.”
Read the ASCO abstract.
IMMUNOBIOLOGY
Busse A, Asemissen A, Schmittel A et al. (Charité-CBF, Charité-CBF/CCM.)
Immune self-tuning in renal cell carcinoma patients.
J Clin Oncol 27, 2009 (suppl; abstr e22069)
Conclusions: “RCC caused an immune-suppressive phenotype in PBMC characterized by increased mRNA expression levels of IL10 and TGFβ. Surprisingly, in contrast to IL10, a high TGFβ mRNA expression level was an independent good prognostic factor. Whether this observation can be attributed to recently described immune promoting functions of TGFβ needs to be determined.”
Read the ASCO abstract.
MOLECULAR DIAGNOSTICS & STAGING
Tobin D, Bårdsen K, Kauczynska M et al. (Bhagawan Mahavir Jain Hospital; Shrey Hospital Private Ltd; SP Medical College; Dr. Kamakshi Memorial Hospital; Department of Genetics, Radium-Riskhospitalet; Mercy Health Center.
Performance of a blood-based gene-expression test, BCtect, for early breast cancer detection.
J Clin Oncol 27:15s, 2009 (suppl; abstr 11012)
Conclusions: “The blood based gene expression test showed similar diagnostic performance between women with early and late stage BC, and the test was independent of the subject’s BMI and menopausal status suggesting broad applicability of the test and indicating its clinical potential in younger women where mammography is of less value due to dense breast tissue. No correlation with lesion size was seen suggesting the lower limit of detection is below 8mm.”
Read the ASCO abstract.
Müller BM, Kronenwett R, Hennig G et al. (Charité Hospital; Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics; University Hospital.)
Quantitative determination of predictive cancer biomarkers in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue using a new, fully automated method for RNA isolation.
J Clin Oncol 27:15s, 2009 (suppl; abstr 11032)
Conclusions: “This novel RNA extraction method is a major technical improvement for implementation of reproducible, high-throughput and cost-efficient testing of cancer biomarkers in the clinical routine and in gene-expression research studies using archived FFPE material in molecular labs.”
Read the ASCO abstract.
Rosenwald S, Gibori H, Gilad S et al. (Rosetta Genomics; Sheba Medical Center; NYU School of Medicine; Rabin Medical Center.)
Identification of tumor tissue origin by a microRNA-based molecular assay.
J Clin Oncol 27:15s, 2009 (suppl; abstr 11036)
Conclusions: “Previous studies highlighted the tissue-specificity of microRNA expression. We developed this potential into a diagnostic assay that identifies tumor origins with high accuracy. This assay provides an important new tool for diagnosing tumor tissue origin.”
Read the ASCO abstract.
Lebanony D, Benjamin H, Gilad S et al. (Rosetta Genomics; NYU School of Medicine; Rabin Medical Center.)
MicroRNA-based assay for differential diagnosis of squamous from non-squamous non-small cell lung carcinoma.
J Clin Oncol 27:15s, 2009 (suppl; abstr 11069)
Conclusions: “MicroRNAs are becoming an important tool for classification of cancers. A diagnostic assay based on the specificity of a single microRNA accurately identifies squamous from non-squamous NSCLC. This assay provides an important new tool for the classification of NSCLC.”
Read the ASCO abstract.
Greco FA, Spigel DR, Yardley DA et al. (Sarah Cannon Research Institute; bioTheranostics.)
Unknown primary cancer (UPC): Accuracy of tissue of origin prediction by molecular profiling.
J Clin Oncol 27:15s, 2009 (suppl; abstr 11070)
Conclusions: “RT-PCR performed on FFPE initial diagnostic tissue was accurate in predicting the primary site of origin in 11 of 16 pts with UPC who eventually had their primary site identified clinically. These data provide a direct validation of the reliability of this RT-PCR assay in predicting the primary site in pts with UPC. When used in concert with clinical features and IHC stains, molecular profiling may provide the basis for more successful site-directed therapy for many of these pts. Prospective studies of RT-PCR in UPC are ongoing.”
Read the ASCO abstract.
PROGNOSTIC FACTORS
Pachmann K, Camara O, Runnebaum IB et al. (Clinic for Internal Medicine II; University Hospital Friedrich Schiller University.)
Gauging the response of circulating epithelial tumor cells (CETC) and tumor stem cell subpopulations to therapy of early-stage cancer in the individual patient.
J Clin Oncol 27:15s, 2009 (suppl; abstr 11026).
Conclusions: “CETC and subpopulation monitoring provides an invaluable tool for prompt gauging of systemic therapy in early stage solid tumors as a tool for therapy guidance and optimal personalized therapies to improve therapy results and spare unnecessary treatments.”
Read the ASCO abstract.
Mook S, Schmidt MK, van de Velde AO et al. (Netherlands Cancer Institute; Comprehensive Cancer Center Amsterdam (IKA); University of Texas.)
Validation of the web-based tool Adjuvant! in 5,381 Dutch breast cancer patients.
J Clin Oncol 27:15s, 2009 (suppl; abstr 11090)
Conclusions: “Adjuvant! accurately predicts 10-year OS for common tumor types in this first large scale European validation study and is of use for adjuvant treatment-decision making.”
Read the ASCO abstract.
TUMOR & CELL BIOLOGY
Kalinsky K, Jacks LM, Hedvat C et al. (Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center).
Use of multiplex mutation genotyping to identify novel and protective mutations in breast cancer.
J Clin Oncol 27:15s, 2009 (suppl; abstr 11004)
Conclusions: “We have recently defined the positive prognostic significance of PIK3CA mutations in breast cancer. RAS mutations are confirmed to occur rarely in breast cancer. The finding of RET mutations in breast cancer is novel. Future tumor biomarker identification directed towards predictive measurement will assist in tailoring therapy to appropriate patient populations.”
Read the ASCO abstract.
Tsai C, Chen T, Chang K, Hsiao S. (Taipei Veterans General Hospital; Taipei-Veterans General Hospital.)
Combination effects of gefitinib plus cisplatin in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC): Why have phase III trials failed?
J Clin Oncol 27:15s, 2009 (suppl; abstr 11022)
Conclusions: “In NSCLC cells, combination of GC showed antagonistic interaction likely because gefitinib interfered with cisplatin cell entry. Three-drug combination PCG was not better than two-drug combination PC or PG in either EGFR wild type or mutant cells. Clinically, simultaneously combined EGFR TKI with platinum in NSCLC should be avoided regardless of EGFR mutation status.”
Read the ASCO abstract.
Kaiser T, Klein G, Solomayer E et al. (Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology; Center for Medical Research.)
Interactions of breast cancer cells with the microenvironment of the human bone marrow.
J Clin Oncol 27, 2009 (suppl; abstr e22097)
Conclusions: “These data indicate that the crosstalk with osteoblasts affects both the adhesive and the migratory ability of BrCa cells favoring the bone colonization process. Furthermore, the presented experimental conditions may provide useful tools to study effects of antiresorptive drugs like bisphosphonates to improve therapeutic strategies for treatment metastatic bone disease.”
Read the ASCO abstract.
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Pietropaolo V. In the face of cancer. CMAJ. 2009 Mar 17;180(6):645-6. PMID: 19289813
Photosensitive, a collective of photographers using photography as a vehicle for social change, and the Canadian Cancer Society cosponsored this online gallery and traveling exhibition of more than 400 photographs (and growing) of people with cancer.
From the review by Vincenzo Pietropaolo:
“The photographs are mostly portraits of people who look just like you and me, except that that they have physical and/or psychological scars from the experience of having lived with, through and in spite of myriad forms of cancer. The people portrayed are patients, survivors, health care workers, friends — in short, what can be loosely called the “cancer community.” A short and often poignant descriptive caption, usually identifying the subjects, accompanies each picture."
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Bowles J, Kotkin J, Giles D. Reviving the City of Aspiration: A Study of the Challenges Facing New York City’s Middle Class. New York: City Futures, Inc., 2009. [Full text available for download.]
The Center for an Urban Future has published a timely and thorough report on the tenuous state of New York City’s endangered middle class. In just fifty pages, this creatively researched, thoughtfully written, and well-edited monograph surveys a shrinking base of opportunity from its origins in 17th century Holland to our present economic crisis.
Jonathan Bowles and his co-authors cannily describe a grim landscape, in which New York is ranked “the worst urban area in the nation for the average citizen to build wealth,” while finding real glimmers of hope, not least in the attitudes of the hardy souls who continue to strive for a better life in the megacity.
Perhaps most important, their report makes the case for why a middle class matters:
“The middle class are the backbone of the city’s workforce—the book editors, web designers, lab technicians, architects, nurses, paralegals, actors, university professors, carpenters and bus drivers that provide the foundation for so many key industries….”
“The middle class contributes significantly to the city’s vitality and vibrancy. They are far more diverse than the wealthy, not only ethnically but also in terms of their backgrounds, shopping habits and entertainment choices. While they may not regularly frequent boutiques on Madison Avenue or the city’s four-star restaurants, the middle class provides the customer base for a wide mix of businesses across the city, including many of the independent stores, cafés, shops and cultural venues that help give New York its unique identity. They also add to New York’s street life simply by being in the city; while many wealthy residents leave the city on the weekends for second and third homes in Aspen, the Hamptons and other hot spots, the middle class are more likely to stay put and spend their weekends in the city.”
Reviving the City of Aspiration is essential reading for people who care about the future of cities and the people who live in them.
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My most-viewed photographs to date.
Obviously, #2 isn’t mine. I inherited it from my grandfather.
4. Metro Theater, Broadway & 100th Street
5. Frank Gehry Construction, Novartis Campus
10. They Were Building Mountains
11. Mixed Scene
12. M.I.A., Siren Music Festival
13. Shingai Shoniwa at Siren Music Festival
14. Rebecca Moore, Tonic Eviction Concert
15. Locks
16. Museo Dolores Olmeda Patino - Xoloxcuintle
25. Decorative Tile, Formerly Hidden
28. W. Houston & Varick, Looking Downtown
29. Belvedere Fountain, Central Park, NYC
30. Young Fish
32. Linienstrasse 16
35. Unions Discount Surgicals, NYC
37. Afternoon Light, Tempelhof
38. Barbed Wire
40. Arnavutköy 1
43. Sonic Youth 8
44. Stolpersteine, Linienstrasse
45. Beach, Seattle
46. Honoring the War Dead, NYC
47. Friendly Parrot
48. Gustav 2
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What exactly is Forum?
The question rose anew after a screening of Calimucho, when an audience member asked why such a good film hadn’t been selected for competition. Having come to Berlinale this year specifically and exclusively to view Forum selections, the question puzzled me, and set me on a path of reflection that helped me understand why I drop everything to fly to Berlin in the dead of winter to see movies that may likely never be screened back home.
Born forty years ago in an act of protest (see History of the International Forum of New Cinema), the The International Forum of New Cinema - arguably the most consciously political section of this most political of the mega film festivals - fosters movie makers who explore of the cracks between philosophies and genres.
For the past three years that I’ve attended, the Forum selections have been most effective in shifting my perceptions of film, art, and culture.
This year, three important movies examined the peculiar space between documentary and fictional feature film.
Yanaka boshoku
In Funahashi Atsushi’s Yanaka boshoku (Deep in the Valley), a Tokyo district gradually emerges, through the morning routines of its people, as place apart. The film combines historical narrative, a fictional love story, and real-life film forensics to make an entirely original entertainment about a peaceful, leafy, and traditional neighborhood that changed forever one summer night in 1957, when a five-story wooden pagoda dating from the Edo era burned down.
Atsushi confronts his frustrations with preconceptions of documentary and fiction film head on, as well as conceptions of what is high (pagoda building) and low (movie-making). The stories that emerge depict film-making and viewing as essentially social historical endeavors, building context for contemporary lives and rescuing significant human events from the interstices of reported history.
Calimucho
Filmmaker Eugenie Jansen continues on a path first cleared by journalist and novelist Natasha Gerson, who researched the lives of a troupe of circus travelers, writing an article for the Dutch magazine Vrij Nederland, and then continued living and performing with them for another five years before working on the script of Calimucho.
Harking back to the beginnings of sound film, Jansen frames the story with narrative songs composed and performed - with much argument - by the circus band. We first see the heroine Dicky in close-up, flinching at each misthrown blade, as her boyfriend Willy practices his knife-throwing act on her. We come to know these two mismatched souls, their families, and members of the company as they raise and strike tents, tend after animals, promote the circus in forlorn border towns, perform, and go about their lives as circus people.
A remarkable tightrope walk between documentary and narrative fiction, Calimucho employs the means of reportage to make a robustly entertaining feature film. The story is pure fiction, told with the tools of documentary. Willy Soeurt really is the Harlekino’s clown and magician - though a skilled performer, not the drunken loser of the story. He and Dicky Kilian really are partners, and the winning child Timo Soeurt is their real son. Circus Harlekino is real too, though more artisanal than threadbare.
La sirena y el buzo
La sirena y el buzo (The Mermaid and the Diver) layers elements of narrative and essay onto what look like unstaged documentary sequences of life in a Miskito fishing village to tell “an imaginary tale transporting us to reality,” in the words of director Mercedes Moncada Rodríguez:
The body of Sinbad the Diver is discovered floating off the Atlantic coast of Nicaragua. The mermaid turns his soul into a turtle, and the turtle returns him to the world of men. Sinbad is later reborn as a member of the Miskito tribe living on the banks of the Coco River. When he grows up, nature carries him back to the sea, where the mermaid is waiting for him.
The film that results is equal part documentary, anthropological essay, and mythic evocation of an indigenous culture in limbo.
Born of dissent, the International Forum of New Cinema serves film-makers and audiences who - while appreciative of cinema’s power to entertain and knowledgeable of the tools of entertainment - want something more.
I believe the singular value of Forum is to be found in the evergreen ability of its sponsored artists to change our minds, figuratively and literally, as the world changes around us.
It’s worth the trip.
Posts for peace, sound environmental stewardship, humane economic policy and promotion of human health and creativity. About the blogger.
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