Street Performer’s - The Movie

[Butterfly Man]

Living Large

Everyone gets a copy ... except Nery ... take him off the list.

[scot]

I don't need your spindly bootlegs.

Saw the screening at the Sony lot thursday. It's pretty good. Not made for us, more for the average person. Does an okay job of showing what street's about. I could see it as a good tool to teach your parents.

[Rachel Peters]

I wouldn't use it to "teach my parents".

I want to wait to do a full critique though, until more people have seen it and can respond.

[martin ewen]

I'm so bent that if you put me in a film I'll love you.

The obviously adopted arc and treatment of the movie was presumably made by someone who once studied for 3 weeks as a social worker before opting out and writing jingles for 20 years and saw in this the opportunity to return to their roots and utilize their miniscule mono-dimensional mental health diagnostic skills to cunningly create a one hour audition tape attempting to re-enter the psychiatric establishment presumably in somewhere like Romania where the standards are less than vigorous .

Here's a wee nugget that obviously bypassed someone who probably specialized in writing in the pregnant pauses in the 'Days of our Live's' scripts.

The human condition as reflected by street theatre is slightly more complex than some symptomatic cartoon epiphany that is more revealing of the individual giving the film it's treatment than the individuals within it, who, if allowed to speak for themselves, are more than capable of explaining their motivations more honestly and entertainingly than having some condescending goober decide that the 'sick puppy' treatment is where the big bucks are.



Jim, I wrote 'specalised' yeah I know it's not the American spelling, and when I posted it it changed into 'spamspamspam'

I'm so upset I may just juggle in public.

[Rachel Peters]

well, if you're doing it...

I knew I could count on Martin to say it better than I could have.
...Although I would have been nicer.

It is the most well constructed doc about street performance I've seen so far. It's put together well. It's professional.

I reaaaaally wanted to see more depth.
This community is full of depth.
I wanted to see more than the three or four basic questions about what it's like to be a street performer. If I watched it again, I'd probably be able to gather more than "three or four basic question", but that's the impression I was left with.

I mean, having someone like Lucky Rich in the film, among others, and NOT digging deeper into that bottomless well of philosophy feels like such a wasted opportunity.

There were so many colourful humans flashing by, but I never got to know them. They just answered some questions.

I wanted to see a few stories about a few individuals, wrapped up in the overall.

I also agree that the "sick puppy" treatment made me feel a little defensive. It felt a little bit pitiful.
I would not want to "teach my parents" or "the average person" (which sounded a little patronizing, by the way. Not as much as usual, but still a little) that THAT is what a street performer is.
All of its elements are a part of street performance, but it wasn't whole.

For the angle it chose, it was made well. But I felt the angle was simple.
I would have chosen a completely different angle.
But then, it's not my film.

So hey. We all like what we like.
I didn't dislike it.

...And I feel mean, having been so blunt about it. I'm trying to explore my "them's the facts of what I think" side, but I hope it doesn't come back to bite me.

[Jim]

Martin,

I was trying to figure out why the spam filter kicked in and then I realized... The way you spell "specialized" (with an 's' instead of a 'z') contains the word "c-i-a-l-i-s" which is the second most common spam word after v-i-a-g-r-a. I have a bunch of standard spam words set to change to "spam" when the bots post them.

------------------
Re: The movie

Has anyone posted it on the web yet?

[martin ewen]

Thanks for the detective work there Jim.

You know I'm pretty merciless aren't I?

for someone who relies on the kindness of strangers.

Or did, I mainly do paid gigs now.

I like being merciless though, I really enjoy it.

So bite me.

[Butterfly Man]

mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa

someone who

someone who

someone condescending goober

Next time, critique the art ... not the artist.

[martin ewen]

the third quote is incorrect and worse english than even I'm happy with.
If you are going to have a go don't leave your mis-shapen scrotum of a slam dunk hanging out there like a tempting rebuttal pinata.
I'd critique the artists if i could hack my way through the veil of sympathy I have to feel for them in order to do so.

It's a little fluffy film 10 years in the making. It has lots of street performers in it. Some of them talk, not enough of them are allowed to.

It's not a bad doco but it's not to my taste.

How come you're picking on me Robert? Come-on! you know we both hate our mothers.

[Butterfly Man]

slam dunk

How come you're picking on me Robert?

Sorry, I was just scratching my mis-shapen scrotum!

[nick nickolas]

Hey Martin

///I'd critique the artists if i could hack my way through the veil of sympathy I have to feel for them in order to do so.////

go on mate critique all, hacking your way through them will be more fun than hacking your way through banana trees wouldn't it mate,

I wanna know what happens to Hotch,,

Nick

[Butterfly Man]

Coofee...regular

Buskers; For Love or Money

Sunday September 28th, 12:00 Noon

Coney Island Film Festival

Sideshow by the Seashore, 3006 W 12th St, Brooklyn, NY

Tickets at the door or: http://www.coneyislandfilmfestival.c.../program11.htm

[Whaleman]

I can't imagine we will be seeing it in Wellington any time soon...but we live in hope. Perhaps Robert you could pop back down here for old times sake...I am pretty sure that dog is dead now!

Cheers,

Whaleman

[Frisbee]

Hi B-Man,

why are you posting more about this movie and it whereabouts than Chad?

I am waiting to see a movie just about you...

I may be in Hawaii this winter and would love to cross paths with you and Wheeler.

-G

[Rex Boyd]

I'm getting Chad's movie for my birthday I hope.

In the meantime I've been enjoying this vintage clip of the Butterfly Man. I'm pretty sure that this same clip was one of the first juggling videos I ever saw. Heck it's probably old enough to count among the first juggling videos ever made. Go have a look and boost the viewing numbers for this clip or else one of the greats will simply languish in Youtube obscurity and in the dusty corners of my memory.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EfZwwjx9X2I