Issue 745
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The Scene - Local Entertainment NewsDriving ‘round, Faking Clever
It took Machine Gun Fellatio's Matt Ford (not to be confused with his close personal friend Pinky Beecroft) 12 years to write the hauntingly beautiful ‘Unsent letter' – but given the band's writing process that doesn't seem unreasonable. 'We have a sort of chain letter process to writing songs. For example I'll sit down at the piano and write something really personal and then pass it on to Loveshark to see what he thinks and then he'll add something and pass it on to Chit Chat. With most songs the final direction we go in depends on whoever screamed the loudest in the argument – who had the angry pills that day – who can argue the most passionately for what they want,' Ford said. Machine Gun Fellatio released their debut CD, Bring it on, late last year. It had remarkable success, despite being shunned by commercial radio stations. Their music has been featured on both the ABC TV drama Love is... and Channel 10's The Secret Life of us. Two songs ‘Unsent Letter' and ‘Mutha F#@*a' made the Triple J hottest 100. 'I'm a huge Triple J fan. At first they were the only station that would give us a go. That means we do have a big base in the country – we seem to do the best there. I think the audiences are more likely to embrace the f@#$ed-upedness. We're a bit too colourful to be an inner city band,' he said. 'I love finishing the show and ripping your clothes off and diving into the water – it's like a post gig ritual.' ‘Alterna-funkers' whose armoury of songs vary from the melancholic lyrics of Unsent Letter (‘the friend I thought I knew found somethin' somewhere better) to the pumpin' energy of Mutha F#@*a (‘I'm a mutha f#@*a on a motor cycle'), Machine Gun Fellatio are one of the most interesting, original new bands in Australia. Machine Gun Fellatio perform at the great Northern this Saturday, November 17. Door open 9.30pm. Tickets $10 from the ABC shop in Ballina or the bar. Rudi Maxwell Queens of the East
Christie McNicole was discovered by the legendary Carlotta in the early 80s and asked to join ‘Les Girls' in Kings Cross, Sydney. A few years later drag was out of fashion, so Christie headed for Europe. When the hit movie Priscilla, Queen of the Desert lit up the silver screen in 1994, it all changed and suddenly boys and feathers were hot once again. Christie wanted to recapture the brilliant era she kicked off in – the costumes and choreography, so she created Boylesque, a 150 minute extravaganza brimming with favourite songs, 70s glam rock, impersonations of Hollywood stars, comedy routines and audience participation. A quick-witted MC keeps the one-liners flowing. Boylesque is hours of fun-packed Priscilla-style entertainment and a must-see for anyone who enjoys Las Vegas style productions and some very clever high camp costumes. Boylesque is performed at the great Northern in Byron next Tuesday and Weds nights. After the show, you can meet the cast and ask all the questions you've always wanted to put to Terence Stamp. Tickets at the door. Take a Fence
The hilarious Over the Fence Comedy Film Festival, Australia's largest touring film festival, will be screened in Lismore next Saturday, November 17, at the Star Court Theatre from 7.30pm. Pictured above is a scene from the film Boot, one of the 16 short films to be shown as part of the screening. This eclectic collection of off-beat films was selected from more than 250 entries around Australia. Like Tropfest or the Buzz Film Festival, the entries are a diverse mix of styles and genres with many a quirky theme and bizarre twist. Should be a good laugh. Tickets are $10/8 at the door. The same screening will also be held on Sunday, November 18, at the Great Northern Hotel in Byron Bay from 7.30pm. Tickets at the door. Intimate PicsA new exhibition by Lina Eve, People, Places and Intimate Spaces, will go on show at Caddies next Monday, November 19, replacing her current exhibition Bad Girls. The photographic exhibition features candid portraits of exotic Australian artist Vali Myers, and Michael Taylor. It also features photographs of well-known Sydney and Melbourne icons, taken from the unusual perspective of a passenger in a hire car. There are also a selection of graphic prints, predominantly computer enhanced images of nudes. People, Places and Intimate Spaces is on show until December 3. A Great TasteThree of the regions most accomplished acapella choirs will mix ingredients this Saturday, November 17, at Lismore City Hall to dish up an evening of aural delights. You can savour the luscious creamy chords of Byron's Allegro Gone Troppo, move on to the zesty gourmet rhythms of Lismore based Gregarious Chance, described as 'acapella with attitude – and occasional instruments', then add the heavenly harmonic topping of SCUs Isabella Acapella, recently returned from their second tour of Japan. This is an exciting contemporary smorgasbord, ranging from gospel, jazz and folk, to sacred and classical arrangements, both serious and funny. And at this time of approaching gift giving, all three groups will have CDs of their work available. The concert sings its first entrees at 8pm. Admission is $10/8 conc, and kids are free. Supper and drinks will be available. How to PitchGot any bright creative screen based projects in film, TV, multimedia, web or media arts in need of life support? Here is your chance to propose in three minutes flat why your project should live to see the light of day! Northern Rivers Screenworks Ltd is calling for entries and an audience for a two tiered pitching competition for local media writers and project developers to present their hottest digital media, film, video and web projects to an impressive panel of experts and audience. Five winners of Round One will be given professional coaching with their presentations and will go to Round Two for the opportunity to pitch their projects to potential producers and investors. The judges will assess content, treatment, market potential, audience appeal and the delivery of the pitch itself. Life's a Pitch, round one, is at the Cotton Club in Byron Bay next Friday, November 23, from 7pm. To pitch in Round One send your synopsis (limited to 3 paragraphs) and contact details to Screenworks PO Box 1726 Byron Bay 2481 or e-mail lois@helio.com.au or tltobin@dingoblue.net.au The show starts at 10am. A Few Places Left.The Northern Rivers Writers' Centre is running another Regional Novice Screenwriting workshop. The one-day workshop will be held at Southern Cross University this Saturday, November 17. It's aimed at the novice screenwriter or anyone who wishes to refresh their interest or knowledge in this area. At the end of the workshop you will have an understanding of the process of writing and structuring a script and developing a funding proposal for your film project. The cost is $38.50 (NRWC members, students) or $55 (non-members). It runs from 9.30am to 4pm. To book phone 6685 5115 Dolphin TimeTickets are now on sale for the 11th annual Dolphin Awards Gala Awards Night, to be held on Tuesday, November 27 at the Lismore RSL Club from 7pm.Presented by the North Coast Entertainment Industry (NCEIA), this year's award presentation will feature local poet David Hallett as MC. Six live performances by local dancers and musicians will be held in between awards presentations, giving many talented up and coming performers a chance to strut their stuff. More than 30 awards will be presented on the night in a variety of categories including songwriting, production, koori achievement and contribution to the music industry. Tickets are $25 (or $20 for NCEIA members) and bookings are essential. Phone 6622 0222 or call in to NCEIA at the ACE North Coast building, 59 Magellan Street. Editing TrainingNow that Lismore's community access television station, LINC TV, is about to begin transmission, North Coast CAMERA will be running editing workshops on a regular basis to facilitate community involvement in production. The first of these is a one-day Video Editing Training workshop, to be held next Saturday, November 24 in Clunes (places are limited and people are asked to book early). The workshop will teach would-be video makers how to edit using Adobe Premiere 6. Participants will also be instructed in the basics of computer editing, capturing (the various methods and advantages), different ways of cutting an edit, working with audio, doing effects and refining an edit as well as look at what's necessary for broadcast. Poets LiveThe region's poets will become fodder for the new conservative government when they return to the LIVE POETS! stage at the Rous Hotel, Lismore, on Wednesday, November 21. The show will feature Canberra writer Hal Judge together with popular Nimbin poet/real estate merchant Robin ‘Archie' Archbold. Recent Lismore poetry cup winner Catherine Stewart will also read and new and visiting writers are welcome. For info call David 6621 7931. Water Wise in Alstonville
In an effort to make the community aware of the importance of being water wise, students from St Joseph's Primary School in Alstonville are performing a play, Life Without Water, this Saturday, November 17. The free performance has been created by four students (pictured above) who wrote, produced, rehearsed and will perform the play in their own time. Life Without Water is centred around two 12 year-old girls – Sarah, who lives in Australia and her pen pal Zawe, who lives in Africa. Sarah then wins a competition where the two pen pals and their families swap places for a month. While in Africa Sarah's family realises how lucky they are to have so much fresh water, while Zawe's family is shocked at how much water is wasted in Australia. When the two families meet again in Sydney, Sarah and Zawe devise a cunning plan to teach people how to be more water wise. The performance will be held near Bi-Lo in the Alstonville Plaza Local Gig Guide
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Machine Gun Fellatio play the Great Northern in Byron Bay this Saturday.
Cocks in frocks rock the Great Northern next week.
The film Boot will feature in the Over the Fence Comedy Festival.
Writers and producers of the Life Without Water play, St Joseph's Primary School students (l-r) Clare Kempnich, Louise Higgins, Emma Hart and Courtney Barnes.
