Synecdoche NY PosterCharlie Kaufman is an unusual dude. Little to nothing is known about his life, he is intensely private, a man who's reportedly married and has a kid, but even the internet doesn't know the names of his wife or child (to any degree of certainty). Something that's recently been debunked, however, is that Kaufman is a depressed, aloof loner — an idiot-savant incapable of human interaction. In this respect, he has been continually... [continue]

lukequintonGreenling Organic Delivery Location: Your place. Phone: 512.440.8449 Website: www.greenling.com The 411: Greenling packages grocery essentials and seasonal organic produce from farms usually within 100 miles, and sets them at doorstep. There's something undeniably luxurious about delivered food. We're not about to pass up a pizza delivery, but we're talking local/organic (loganic?) revolution here. So, we were quasi-hardcore into the city's farmer's market scene, dabbling in it like the delicious gateway drug it is: first... [continue]

Sunday, October 19, Speaker Tom Craddick and his District 82 opponent, Bill Dingus, squared off in a televised debate in Midland. Candidates discussed issues from the merits of CHIP, TxDOT, property taxes, and lobbyists. The surprise at the debate, however, was that Leslie Ward, a vice president and lobbyist for AT&T, was allowed to sit at the table with local journalists and have a turn at asking questions. AT&T was the debate's official sponsor, and its Political Action Committee (PAC) recently donated an even 50 G to Craddick's own PAC three days before the debate. ... [continue]

Luke Quinton Congratulations, you're getting a Hey Cupcake! Sans hitch and wheels, that is. A brief stop in the new digs, still under construction, led to a chat with Wes Hurt, who co-owns and operates the operation with Brian Morris. The storefront is lined with a pink, chocolate, and red color scheme, while the interior retains nods to the airstream roots. Stainless steel flashes on the countertops, and an actual piece of trailer sits behind... [continue]

still from Synecdoche, New York AFF Presents: Synecdoche, New YorkTuesday, October 21Paramount Theater (713 Congress Avenue)7:30pm; $9 30 mins. prior to show; Badge & AFF Film Pass holders have priority[info]Charlie Kaufman exists on this earth to mess with your mind. His directorial debut, Synecdoche, New York, will screen at the Austin Film Fest tonight, with the famously media-shy writer in attendance. Our advice? You may as well see it Tuesday, because you're going to need... [continue]

Road to Tlacotepec follows Austin director Brendt Mader around as he travels in the footsteps of his father, a well-known photographer and photojournalist, whose recent death leaves a family in traction. In an effort to connect with his father's past, Mader embarks on a trip to a small Mexican village where his father and mother spent time in their young, married lives.... [continue]

Luke Quinton Zocalo Cafe Taqueria Fresca Location: 1110 West Lynn [map] Phone: (512) 472-TACO Cost: Apps $2-7; Mains $6-10 The 411: A Clarksville standby with counter service in a minimalist/modern setting, Zocalo strives for healthful, interesting twists on casual bistro-mex at a reasonable price. If you have friends who live in Clarksville, you probably tire easily of all their bragging about the 'hood, with all of its "walking" distance to delicious restaurants, wine bars, drugstores,... [continue]

In what might be called Waking Life meets Rain Man, Bob Sabiston, the braintrust behind Linklater's two animated films (and those Charles Schwab commercials), brings beautiful backgrounds, and another insightful, revelatory use of filmic animation. The premise is the documenting of a road trip to Six Flags with Ryan Powell, who is autistic. This is the latest in a series of trips the pair has taken (along with a group of friends).... [continue]

Commiserating, of course, is commonly done in pairs, but reaches ecstatic levels in large groups. Accordingly, one of the best ways we've experienced a connection to the election in general and the people of this town is to head out and watch the debates at one of the many planned and unplanned viewing parties in Austin TONIGHT.... [continue]

There's something in the water affecting documentary filmmakers lately, because this week marks the third time this month a high-profile doc has been freely released to the public. Maybe it's the election, or maybe it's the recession, but it's starting to look like a sea-change in distribution patterns. Tonight KLRU screens The Choice 2008, a new film co-written and co-produced by Peabody-winning filmmaker and UT professor Paul Stekler, who'll be there tonight.... [continue]

Zack Galifanakis goes "Good Will Hunting" in a dystopian satire that critiques our country's obsession with material goods and 8 to 5 corporatism. Yes, this Zach Galifianakis. The film is shot in dark color tones, replicating George Washington Winsterhammerman's (Galifianakis) dreary job as a "visioneer," which requires him to wear strange glasses and sit at a desk, though we never discover exactly what his job entails. Drama arises when it's learned that the team's missing member exploded. Not in a sort of espionage, car bomb, way, but spontaneous combustion due to existential crisis.... [continue]

If you smell something fishy emanating from the low-key release of Michael Moore's new documentary, turns out your nose "knows." Not a lot of press has come out from Michigan's man of the people, and you can't catch it at the Alamo. Instead he has released Slacker Uprising online, free for anyone to download. This move, which no doubt will be soon dubbed "In Rainbows" (e.g., "Moore released his film in rainbows last week" — a new idiom!) may reflect the quality of the story's material. Moore has some faith in it, because he bought back the distribution rights from the Weinsteins to broadcast it over the series of tubes. That implies that they'd been sitting on it for a while, and although that's part of the Weinstein reputation, it looks like the material just wasn't so hot to start with.... [continue]

If you walked down the drag yesterday hoping to grab a barbacoa burrito at Chipotle, you may have been interrupted by a throng protesting the chain's alleged poor payment of Florida tomato pickers. The Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW), from Immokalee, Florida, is on a small "Chipocrasy" tour, on its way to the company's home base in Denver. The CIW's complaint is that workers are paid 40 or 50 cents per 32 lb. bucket of tomatoes, the same price paid in 1978.... [continue]

Canada, the Austin of North America, let loose its reigning metaphorical exporters at the Mohawk last night for a solid crowd enjoying an unusually crisp September night outdoors. They got everyone hot and bothered, opening with a new song called "Black Swan," as the vocals soared above 17 layers of sound, pleasing fans of a band whose lyrics demand audibility. ... [continue]

Please Vote for Me documents a Model UN-styled event held by a Chinese elementary school to elect a class monitor, a position that (surprise, surprise) is usually appointed by the teacher. The ensuing melee is a Nixon/Stalin-like wheeling and dealing from which, evidently, only one can emerge as "Supreme Leader."... [continue]

First time writer/director Courtney Hunt creates a sombre and realistic drama that explores the effects of poverty and culture on the struggles of motherhood in an unfriendly world. Shot in a gritty style with digital cameras, in two weeks last year, the film works on different levels. It's sparse but gripping. The drama unfolds patiently and productively, engaging us in its characters and their decisions.The whole thing has a sort of late Clint Eastwood feel to it (as a director, of course): emotional heft, powerful, if slight, musical score, strong acting. ... [continue]

ypical European excellence defines this beautiful story of six characters in Turkey and Germany. As usual, the Euros have a strong eye and ear for reality and a penchant for politics. This one convincingly crosses international borders, as we follow the philosophy professor, Nejat and his dad, Ali, who's just asked a prostitute to live with him; a young Turkish revolutionary (the prostitute's daughter), and a German mother and daughter. ... [continue]

After a string of local and national accidents involving construction cranes, Austin's City Council will decide tonight if it should ask the city manager to study whether the city should regulate the safety of cranes. Cranes have towered over Austinites in greater numbers these last few years, showing a city in flux with a dramatically altered skyline. The Statesman counts two dozen on a given day. Of late, however, the greatest concern has not been the long-neck steel eyesores, but whether the cranes won't come down on your head, or the lunchroom in your office building. ... [continue]

With more than 1,600 weekend screenings of Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight already sold out (according to movietickets.com), it's quickly shaping up to be one of the summer's hottest flicks. So hot, in fact, that we had to stage a brutal dance-fight for the right to review it. Austinist contributors Luke Quinton and Darcie Duttweiler both caught IMAX screenings earlier this week, and what follows is a conversation about human nature, Oscar nominations, and shirtless Christan Bale.... [continue]

Local filmmaker Bradley Beesley will be at the Alamo tonight to screen and chat about his films Okie Noodling II, and Summercamp!. Noodling, (about the revived sport of hand-fishing) was shot in Oklahoma in the late '90s, and won the 2001 Audience Choice award at SXSW, as well as first runner up for Best Documentary. Noodling II is the follow-up. Summercamp!, directed by Beesley and Sarah Price (American Movie), shows what being a kid at camp is about.... [continue]