by Lorena Coleman | Feb 24, 2017 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider
Hollywood’s finest will gather this weekend at Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles for the 89th Academy Awards. The awards show, commonly known as the Oscars, will celebrate the year’s cinematic achievements, and some of Lipscomb’s film students are tuning in. Sophomore film student Clay Mortensen said he will “absolutely” be watching and is excited to see who wins the coveted title of Best Picture. Freshman film student Siena DeMatteis will be attending a watch party put on by the film department and said she is hoping to see her two favorite films, “Moonlight” and “Manchester by the Sea,” take home some awards. According to critic’s predictions, “La La Land” will be the film to beat, with a record-tying 14 nominations, including nods for Best Picture, Best Director (Damien Chazelle), Best Actor (Ryan Gosling) and Best Actress (Emma Stone). The film centers on aspiring actress Mia (played by Stone) and jazz pianist Sebastian (played by Gosling), as they try to navigate falling in love while pursuing their dreams in LA. So far, the musical-drama has taken home multiple awards at every other award show this season. DeMatteis said she is “interested in seeing how many awards ‘La La Land’ receives,” given its track record at other award shows and viewers’ mixed opinions toward the film. Mortensen, an aspiring director, said he is rooting for Chazelle to win Best Director, as he has always admired Chazelle’s work. Other films receiving attention for their nominations include “Fences” starring Denzel Washington and Viola Davis, “Moonlight” starring Mahershala Ali and Naomie Harris, “Manchester by the Sea” starring Casey Affleck and Michelle Williams and “Arrival” starring Amy...
by Savannah Stewart | Feb 20, 2017 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider
Opening April 6-8 in Collins Alumni Auditorium is Lipscomb’s annual musical showcase, Singarama. This event features talents from all students, but specifically those in social clubs. Students are divided into three teams and will each put on a show with a complete storyline, song selection and choreography. The theme for this year is “A Blast From The Past” and will only feature music from the 70s, 80s and 90s. Each team was given a specific era and title from which to pull inspiration. The titles are “Far Out” (70s), directed by Meg Mortensen, “Totally Awesome” (80s), directed by Bethany Rowland and “Party On” (90s), directed by Jade Cummings. “We’re trying to do some different things, a different kind of show,” Mortensen said. “Be looking for 70s lingo.” Rowland is taking a different approach with her show for “Totally Awesome” and has based the show at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. “We are going to have five or six leads that will be really conflicting and really fun, and there will be a couple of plot twists here or there,” she said. “My junior year of high school after watching Singarama, I told my mom, ‘Yeah, I’m going to come to Lipscomb.’” For “Party On,” Cummings said she wants the audience to be on the lookout for iconic costumes from the 90s. “Cause who doesn’t love a ‘Rachel Green’ or a ‘Clueless’ type attire,” she said. “I love the music. We had so much fun finding music from the 70s, 80s, and 90s, and I’m really excited for the audience participation.” Singarama’s three directors agree that the show unifies students, alumni and community attendees. “It’s a great way...
by Becca Risley | Feb 17, 2017 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider
Set as a grown-up prequel to Peter Pan, Lipscomb Theatre opens Peter and the Starcatcher Friday night at 7:30 p.m. in Shamblin Theatre. The show is adapted from the whimsical novel by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson. Under the direction of David Ian Lee, senior Joss Yarborough stars as Boy/Peter. Compared to the well-known Peter and Wendy, Peter and the Starcatcher is relatively unknown and gifts the audience with the unique experience of watching how the characters they’ve all come to love were brought to life. “It hasn’t reached that saturation point of certain other shows; it wasn’t produced by every middle school in the nation or anything, so that makes it kind of hard to compare,” Yarborough said. “But I think the integration of our ensemble is really remarkable. “It’s a pretty ensemble heavy show in its original pen, but we added a couple of cast members, and David spent a lot of time and energy crafting vibrant scenes that allow for seriously dynamic action. It’s really beautiful.” At the top of the show, an ensemble of actors assembles onto the stage and addresses the audience. With a bit of bickering, they welcome the audience to the world of the play and tell them what’s in store: flying, dreaming, adventure and growing up. The ensemble invites show-goers to use their imagination to create the British Empire. With the snap of an actor’s fingers, the audience is transported to a bustling port. This is where the audience meets Lord Leonard Aster (Hendrick Shelton), his daughter Molly (Robyn Smith) and her nanny, Mrs. Bumbrake (Nelson Tilley). Two identical trunks are...
by Lorena Coleman | Feb 12, 2017 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider
Some of the biggest music artists of the year will gather at the Staples Center in Los Angeles to celebrate their achievements on Sunday evening. Among them will be two former Lipscomb University students turned Country Music stars: Thomas Rhett and Kelsea Ballerini. Rhett, who attended Lipscomb from 2008-2011, is nominated for Best Country Song with his hit single “Die A Happy Man.” Ballerini, who attended from 2011-2013, is nominated for Best New Artist and is also making her Grammy performance debut with Danish, soul-pop band Lukas Graham. Seeing former Lipscomb students achieving such success in the music industry is inspiring for current students, such as Contemporary Music major Hannah McFarland. “It’s a blessing that we are fortunate enough to go to a school that has developed well-rounded people such as Kelsea Ballerini and Thomas Rhett,” McFarland said. McFarland had the opportunity to open for Kelsea’s show in Alabama last year and recalled getting to meet her. Her first impression of Ballerini was nothing but positive, proclaiming the country-pop star was “sweet, mature and outgoing.” “Going to Lipscomb has proven to me that this university creates not only amazing talent but strong-willed and overall amazing students,” McFarland said. “Their success proves that with perseverance and hard work, you can definitely reach your goals.” The Grammy’s will be hosted by late-night show host James Corden and will feature a star-studded lineup of performances from John Legend, Adele, Metallica, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban and many more. Demi Lovato, Nick Jonas, Little Big Town and Celine Dion will be collaborating on a special performance to salute the music of the Bee Gee’s....
by Ellen Butterfield | Feb 8, 2017 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider, Opinion
The Space Between Us is a heartwarming reminder of the complexity of love, but there are elements in which the film is ultimately lacking. There is nothing shockingly new or overwhelmingly picturesque about the cinematography, and while the soundtrack inspires a feeling of adventure, that’s the best sensation the audience receives from the film. Gardner Elliot, played by Asa Butterfield, is born on Mars after his astronaut mother left Earth unknowingly pregnant. Sixteen years later, all Gardner wants is to return to Earth to find his father and meet a girl he met online named Tulsa, played by Britt Robertson. He returns to Earth, and a breathtaking adventure to find love ensues. The Space Between Us may be the type of feel-good romantic comedy couples will flock to on Valentine’s Day, but the film doesn’t prioritize romantic love as the end-all be-all of relationships. The primary focus is Gardner’s search for his birth father and discovering all he can about his family. Despite the film’s releasing around Valentine’s Day, there is a crucial motif showing that being single is never the same as being unloved. The nature shots are stimulating and immersive, thanks to the beautiful color grading and artistic drone shots. However, if the best shots of the film were the drone shots, that’s not highly redeeming of the cinematography. Warmer color grading is used intentionally on Earth symbolizing the longing and passion represented on the planet. The film mostly showcases the adventurous scenery captured by Barry Peterson, the film’s director of photography. Besides the spirit of adventure, the defining feature of the film is the female characters. So often in films,...
by Lorena Coleman | Feb 3, 2017 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider
Under buckets of snow in Park City, Utah, 10 Lipscomb film students spent a week taking in independent films and discovering a behind-the-scenes look at the industry at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival. The festival, held January 19-29, is the largest independent film festival in the United States. Attending the festival was an experience film student Natalie Risk says left her feeling “artistically fulfilled.” “We saw a lot of movies,” Risk stated. “There were days where we would go see movies at midnight, then get up at 7:30 a.m. to watch a movie at 8:30 a.m. and just keep it going.” When they weren’t attending showings, the students would go back to the condo to watch even more films. Independent filmmakers from all over bring their films to Sundance, not only to premiere to an audience but also to sell their films to movie distributors. “Working in the film industry,” Risk explained, “that is kind of like an independent filmmaker’s goal…to get their film shown in a festival, because that is how it’s going to get picked up.” The festival offered plenty of films for students to take in. Some of Risk’s favorites were documentaries including “Last Man in Aleppo” and “The Good Postmen,” as well as a drama called “Novitiate,” that was shot in Nashville and includes Lipscomb alumna Lacy Hartselle. Besides attending showings, students also went to several discussion panels to hear industry professionals speak on the art and technique of independent film-making. Film student Allison Jobe said that her favorite part of the festival was attending the “Women in Film” panel. “I was really inspired to see a row of successful women discuss the different issues they’ve faced in...
