Monday, April 20, 2009

Issue 4 Theme!

20 April, 2009

Good morning, messy readers. Okay- depending on the time you read this email, it may not even be morning, but you have to feel it... we are on the verge of a true awakening here.

The staff at messy have been on a wild ride these past few months. We released our first ever film guide in February and had a blast as a media sponsor at the 33rd Cleveland International Film Festival. A few weeks after that we churned out another issue (our third!) titled The Happiest Lie. Then, Vanessa and Genna were interviewed by John Panza of Heights Arts Radio. (Check it out here!) After all of this, we took a step back, looked around, scratched our heads and came together to bring you your next challenge...

It's a bit of a play on words, but it's fitting for the times we're living in. So, ladies and germs, without further adieu, we present to you the theme for issue 4 of messy magazine:

Emerge and See.

From sunny (hey- it was sunny a few days ago!) Cleveland, Ohio, we encourage you, wherever you are, to arise from your wintry slumbers, dust off your spring outlook, and see things through a lens of renewal. Take a look around you. We're living in historic times, kids.

This is OUR emergency.

The idea of Emerge and See came about not only because we are on the cusp of a seasonal change, but also because we are lucky to be alive during a time where we are the agents of change. Now, more than ever, there is a force sweeping the earth. If you don't have a sense of urgency, you better hope online and order one for next day delivery. (Shipping and handling charges may apply).

The papers (um, or online news sources?) are screaming gloom, but we say "NO WAY." We are the strong, the creative, the hopeful. What better place than here? What better time than now?

We hope you all saw the feature Artist v. Blight from WSJ.com, starring our lovely city of Cleveland and the people that are taking chances here and in cities like Detroit (hi Detroit pals!) If you didn't see the article, then we invite you to slowly remove yourself from that rock under which you live. All over the country, people are snapping out of it, focusing on what's real and what's important. Now it's your turn. Don't delay. We won't allow it.

We want you to wrap your head around Emerge and See. It's not only about what's going on around you, but it can also be about something that's going on inside you. Tell us where you are right now, how you are shedding your winter skin and what you're looking forward to in the coming months. Have you just come out of a negative situation, shed a weight that has been holding you back? Have you finally developed your own unique identity after years of searching? Has something magical happened to provide you the courage to try something new? or did you find that urge to just stop bitching and start doing?

Give us your view from this critical point in history. It's taking place out in the world as well as in your living room. How will you encourage others to see things differently? You have the power to do something wonderful. So stop complaining. Turn off the TV, step away from facebook, and actually do it.

When you are done, send it to messy magazine and we'll share it with the world.*

We invite you to Emerge and See with us. The time really IS now. Yep. That sticky thing that held up the rear view mirror in your lifemobile just fell off and all you can see is the road ahead...

*Submitting work to messy magazine
(it's super easy, we swear):

We look forward to receiving your submissions for issue 4. If you don't know the drill, or would like more information about what types of work we are looking for, a quick refresher can be found on our website.

Go to messymagazine.org and click on 'submit' for details.

Notes on the theme:
So, every few months, we sit around at Gypsy or lie awake at night racking our brains to come up with a theme for you to create around. We struggle sometimes because we don't want to limit anyone, yet we know that what makes messy magazine fresh and new and what keeps us constantly evolving is the fact that we have the power to drive the content of an entire issue simply by setting a guideline with our themes. In case you didn't know, this is a hot one, kids. We are excited about Emerge and See. Not everything you submit has to be related to the theme, but we strongly encourage it. If this one doesn't get you thinking, then we don't know what will.

DEADLINE for submissions:
Write it in your calendar. Tack a note up on your bulletin board. Tell your mom or cousin or aunt that somehow remembers everyone's birthday, anniversary and kindergarten graduation date to call you with a reminder. Submissions for issue 4 of messy magazine: Emerge and See are due no later than May 4, 2009. If you have any questions, email info@messymagazine.org.

Happenings:
This list includes a few events that interest us and that might interest you. Check messymagazine.org for updates. This is by no means an exhaustive list... it's just highly likely you will see one of your friendly messy magazine staffers at one or all of these events. Be sure to say hello (we are kind of nice)!


Ok, ok, that's all from us.
We hope you really get into the theme for issue 4, Emerge and See. We can't wait to see what you submit! Thanks for reading, sending us your work and supporting us. Remember to sign up to receive emails about events, themes and also to receive messy magazine, directly in your inbox! (WOW!) Sign up, sign up, sign up and don't forget to tell your friends!

You can also add us on MySpace, join our group on facebook, and follow us on Twitter.

Ready, Set, Create!

from,
4 people who might never get the song 'How Soon is Now?' out of their heads
aka your friends at messy magazine,
Vanessa. Michael. Genna. Lauren.

Art vs. Blight!

Check out this great The Wall Street Journal about Cleveland and it's Art scene, here!!

Sunday, April 5, 2009

Heights Arts Radio Inteview and Banff Film Festival!

Hi Guys,

Last week Genna P and Vanessa had the opportunity to sit down with John Panza of Heights Arts Radio and talk about messy magazine! Check out our interview with John at http://heightsartsradio.blogspot.com/! Thanks John and H.A.R.!

Also, there is a special film festival coming to Cleveland on April 17th and 18th! The Banff Mountain Film Festival is a touring festival that travels around worldwide. The Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour will be at the Allen Theatre for an exclusive Northeast Ohio showing at Playhouse Square Center. Journey to exotic locations, paddle the wildest waters and climb the highest peaks with these amazing big-screen stories!

The 2008/2009 Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour brings films from the 33rd annual Banff Mountain Film Festival to over 275 communities around the world. From an exploration of remote landscapes and mountain cultures to adrenaline-fueled action sports, films in this year’s world tour are sure to captivate and amaze the explorer within you.

FRIDAY: The two-night extravaganza that is the festival in Cleveland showcases different films each evening, beginning at 7:30 p.m. Friday’s Opening Night Reception features light appetizers by Chipotle and McCormick & Schmick's, beer by Great Lakes Brewing Co., dessert by the Cleveland Cupcake Co. and music by The Rhondas.

SATURDAY: Light appetizers will also be served Saturday and on tap for both nightly receptions are complimentary Red Bull and Caribou Coffee in addition to prizes and exhibits for outdoor enthusiasts from 6:00-7:30 p.m.

SATURDAY HIGH ALTITUDE: The High Altitude Party, held in the balcony of the Allen Saturday night, returns in 2009! High Altitude ticket holders will be treated to beer from Fat Head's Brewery, dessert by Main Street Cupcakes, goodie bags from Green Clean, exclusive balcony seating and live music by Laura Varcho (plus appetizers in the lobby). Tickets to this special section are limited, so be sure and reserve your space early.

Partial proceeds from the BMFF in Cleveland benefit the Cleveland Foodbank’s Harvest for Hunger campaign. For ticket information and film selections, go to www.theedgefilms.com.

Check out their facebook page at
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/event.php?eid=53588188729

Enjoy the weather!!

Vanessa::Genna::Lauren::Michael
messy magazine

Saturday, April 4, 2009

Hitchcock in April at the Cedar Lee

Click on Photo for specific movie dates and times!
Check out the Cedar Lee site for all movie dates and times.


Thursday, April 2, 2009

Michael-An Alternative to Slitting Your Wrists


This film is a healthy dive into the deep dark well of the quarter-life crisis. If you deny the existence of this place in the human timeline, well then you’re either not 25 or your parents bought you lifelong adolescence for your 16th birthday. Life between 25 and 35 is a ghost hunt. You’re constantly hearing voices in the dark. Childish giggles from your past and fading apparitions of what your future could be. You’re moving into a mansion you’ve inherited from your dead great grandpa, but he failed to tell you that it was built over your family burial ground.
All of the usual spooks haunt this film. The father who’s been dead to you since he moved out, the mother who wishes that she could save you, the jerks who scarred your innocence so deeply that the gash still bleeds, drinking until it becomes an issue that you don’t like to talk about, the crushing weight of loneliness, and the significant others who stepped over you in their effort to grow. These aspects give this film a brutal sense of normality. Within the first 15 minutes you know Owen (the main character), and develop a sympathy for him and his plight. Genius.
For those who grew up in the Greater Cleveland area, this film’s familiarity doubles. No, triples. Big Boy, the restaurant with the creepy greaser holding a burger as a mascot, plays a key role in the film. Owen takes a picture in front of the giant “free” stamp. The dark and gritty secrets of Berea are revealed. Passer-bys are interviewed in front of the Jake. All of these aspects make this a Cleveland movie, and add another frothy layer you can relate to.
The film follows Owen down a kind of quarter-life bucket list, as the title implies. The first scenes are light and comical. We find out that fishing for squirrels isn’t cruel and we are given an explanation as to why. We see a staggeringly low health insurance payout turned into art. We laugh, we’re buttered up. Then the film goes a little deeper into the well. It gets a smidge darker. Then a smidge darker. Then whammy, we crash into the fiery magma of our beloved Owen’s personal hell. These transitions add tragedy, and for many viewers, will rip away the cushy shag relationship that they feel towards the main protagonist and drop them into the lake of fire that he feels every day. The theatre is a little hotter. The audience is a little uncomfortable. The film maker is a pro. This emotional demon drop does what I love for films to do, catch the watcher off guard. Lull them in with laughs, tender moments, and fond remembrances, then when they least expect it pull the pin and the trap goes *snap*. While the watchers may have similar experiences, this film shows Owen’s personal pain. Viewers witness firsthand how it’s torn him apart, and how they can never relate to his reactions. It becomes the blood sweat and tears of Owen’s body splattered onto the big screen making it his film. It becomes brave and brazen. As courageous as Rocky Balboa himself.
The entire film is a roller coaster that you think that you’ve been on. You recognize the loops. You throw your hands in the air at the peak of the next drop, but then the ride breaks and just as you turn to the rider at your left to ask what happened you’re launched onto a rail beyond recognition and the breathe is sucked from your gaping mouth. I loved it. I give it 10 out of 5 (because I saw it twice).