Wednesday March 22, 2006 arts.michigandaily.com artspage@michigandaily.com Te Sigtnt ti 5 . ... .... ... . ... ... . ANGELA CESERE/Daiy The Funambulists serve popcorn to patrons at the Michigan Theater last night. 'U' alum screens film By Sarah Schwartz Daily Arts Writer AARON SWICK/Daily Former Inmate Wynn Satterlee and program coordinator Jean Borger talk at the Prison Creative Arts exhibit yesterday. BREAKING BARRIERS EXHIBIT SHOWCASES MICHIGAN PRISONERS' By Abigail B. Colodner For the Daily Imagine it's late at night and you're having trouble finishing a charcoal drawing without disturbing your roommate, who sleeps only a - few feet away from you. Now imagine your room- Prison Creative mate is your cellmate, and that Arts Project drawing is your only way to Now through escape the pressures of prison March 29 life. Work arising out of these circumstances like these is on 10 a.m. to 7 display through March 29 at Tuesday to Saturday 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. the annual Prison Creative Arts Sunday and Monday Project exhibition at the Dud- Free erstadt Center, a showcase of A ee artwork by prisoners from 44 of At the Duderstadt Center Michigan's 52 prisons. PCAP has put on 11 shows since 1996, when Univer- sity English Prof. Buzz Alexander founded the project. The show, which he co-curated with Art and Design Associate Prof. Janice Paul, has grown exponentially since then. Last year, 303 works were presented from 188 artists, and this year there are 320 works by 247 art- ists. The artwork ranges from meticulous pen-and-ink drawings and splashy acrylic paintings to photorealistic colored-pencil drawings. Nearly all are for sale. The show's content is equally varied, but patterns emerge: familial love, natural beauty and, inescapably, the experience of life in prison. Former prison artist Martin Scott considered a wall of works the exhibit dominated by this theme. "Prison is a mental experience as well as a physical one, but it's more a spiritual experi- ence. Black or white, it makes no difference," he said. Scott, who was incarcerated for more than 30 years in a Michigan prison, was joined by two other former inmates in a discussion on Sunday about the creation of art in prisons and the project's role in supporting prison artists. He spoke of the segregation he imposed upon himself to avoid the resentment of other inmates who recognized his art as a connection to the outside world. "These artists are creating their own happiness or well-being, brightness, vividness," Paul said. Jerry Moore, another former prison artist, spoke pas- sionately about one wall of paintings on display, identify- ing how the prison experience is evident in all of them. "You juxtapose these beautiful landscapes, these buildings that are designed to empower you with build- ings designed to destroy you. That's how I felt in pris- on," he said. The Project conducts workshops in theater, writing and visual art in a few state and juvenile prisons and in Detroit-area high schools. The vast majority of the fea- tured artists are self-taught and were not provided with either instruction or materials. This is perhaps the most :REATIVE EXPRESSION revelatory aspect of the show - the value of the works doesn't lie solely in their context or emotional expres- siveness. The works are of high technical quality and some exhibit a familiarity with canonical artists such as Van Gogh and Georges de la Tour. The visitor may be taken aback by scenes of natu- ral beauty and studied paintings of woodland creatures, wondering how such idyllic images present themselves to inmates. But Paul thinks this line of thought can lead to another, more fruitful inquiry: "I'd rather have people question themselves than the artist - 'What's wrong with me that I think this is surprising?" The acrylic painting "Tell the Truth Ladies, Who's Smoking in My House?" by an artist called Pasha #72 is a disarming combination of technical prowess and light subject matter. The large painting shows a view of a festive get-together from the floor, where a limp cigarette smolders. Pasha's manipulation of the acrylic gives a shellacked effect that amplifies the elaborate garishness of the scene. The former inmates at the discussion Tuesday stressed the importance of supporting inmate artists when they get out so that they become artists, not just prison art- ists. Scott sees a link between creating art in prison and learning to take responsibility, which can keep a former inmate from going back in. "Artists have learned that because it takes time to sit down and decide what you want to draw. I believe that's the process inmates need when they get out," he said. Jeff Sabatini knows that it takes cour- age to stray from your chosen path. After graduating in 1994 with a dual degree in English and film and video stud- ies from the University, Sabatini left Ann Arbor to pursue a career as a freelance journalist for the New York Times. But after putting his English major to good use as a writer, Sabatini decided to give his other degree a try. "Foreman," a 10-minute documentary, is the culmination of his efforts. The film was accepted into the prestigious Ann Arbor Film Festival and will premiere tonight at 7 pm. "Foreman" tells the story of Jerry Bowden, Sabatini's father-in-law, a Gen- eral Motors employee who worked in the Flint plant until its closure in 1999. "(He was) in the plant, a lowest-level supervisor'" Sabatini said. "He was right there with all the blue-collar people. But they're doing away with lower-level management as they switch manage- ment styles, so he's the last of the era of guys in the United States who worked their way up and became white-collar management employees." The film gave Sabatini a chance to combine his journalistic experience in the automotive world with his knowl- edge of film. "I love my job and writing about cars," he said. "Now I'm using it in a different way." Sabatini first thought of focusing on multiple workers at the plant, but decided to focus on his father-in-law's experience there instead. With the help of Bullet- Proof films, a Chicago-based production company, Sabatini interviewed Bowden and his friends. He gathered stock footage of the plant, as well as training films and shots of Flint today. Making this biographical documen- tary was a new experience for Sabatini on many levels. Materials and techniques have changed since he was a film major in the early '90s. The process of making the film was a way for Sabatini to acquaint himself with current technology. "The biggest challenge comes from my own learning curve," he said. "I (first) learned how to shoot on film and make primarily narrative fiction films. This was a way to teach myself how to use digital video and edit it on a computer." Sabatini used MiniDV film and edited the entire movie on his computer - a far cry from the cutting room he used during his time at the University. The learning experience paid off, as out of more than 2,000 films entered in the festival, "Foreman" is one of fewer than 150 chosen. Sabatini says his inclusion encourages him to continue this mode of documentary expression. "I have fallen in love with journalism and telling true sto- ries instead of making them up," he said. "Documentaries are important and people are beginning to recognize (that)." Sabatini is hopeful for the future and excited about the doors that technologi- cal advances have opened for filmmakers. "The one overriding thing is you can do it, and there is no reason that anyone with a good idea (who) wants to make a movie can't," he said. Seventh season of 'South Park' digs into Iraq war, Affleck on DVD By Michael Passman Daily Arts Writer Trey Parker and Matt Stone just don't give a fuck. ______ ,_____ Apparently, no subject matter is taboo to the mas- South Park: terminds behind Comedy The Complete Central's most success- Seventh ful original series, "South Season Park." They won't shy away from controversy if Paramount it means they can make a point. This philosophy has left a slew of enemies in the duo's wake, and recently caused longtime cast member Isaac Hayes - the voice of Chef - to leave the show after its unrelenting attack on Scientology. Now, on the eve of the show's 10th season, "South Park: The Complete Seventh Season" is making its DVD debut with a collection of hit-or- miss episodes and a limited number of features. A few years into production,"South Park" aban- doned the multi-plot sitcom format and devoted its episodes to tight single plotlines - often ren- dering main characters absent for entire episodes. By the time the seventh season came around, the show's humor had drastically changed. While still blatantly offensive, "South Park" developed into one of television's most socially observant shows, aiming for more than just the lowbrow humor its popularity was founded upon. Dubbed "the Iraq War season" by Parker and Stone in the episode commentary, the seventh sea- son premiered at the onset of the current war. In the show's 100th episode, the town's citizens are divided between the rock'n'roll protesters and the country-loving warmongers. This leads Cartman to travel back in time to 1776 where he discovers that America is "an entire nation founded on say- ing one thing and doing another." In the season finale, the boys find themselves in Canada trying to retrieve Kyle's adopted brother Ike, who was taken back to Canada following an order from the new prime minister - who just happens to be Saddam Hussein. The episode climaxes with the capture of Saddam in a "Wizard of Oz"-esque spoof. Amazingly, the episode aired just three days after Saddam's actual capture. This season also had its fair share of jabs at celebrities, an increasingly popular trend in later seasons. Jennifer Lopez, Ben Affleck, the cast of "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" and Rob Reiner all fall victim to the show's merciless wrath. While season seven includes some of the show's better episodes including "Casa Bonita" and "Cancelled;" in which the boys discover that earth is just a big intergalactic reality show, it also has some significant slumps. By devoting each episode to a single focus, the show is left with little room to falter. "South Park" doesn't have the luxury that shows utilizing multiple plotlines do. If an episode premise isn't great, chances are the entire episode will bomb with a large number of its devotees. Thankfully, a great number of the season's episodes are first-rate, and the weaker episodes are easily overlooked. As with all the "South Park" DVD sets, Stone and Parker have brief mini-commentaries on each episode, covering inspirations and high- lights for each show. While humorous and even informative at times, these mini-commentaries are lacking, especially when they are the only bonus features on the set. "South Park" might have hit its prime a season or two before this, but season seven is close to its best. At a time when cartoons are often vehicles for social commentary, let's be thankful we still have the fourth graders from South Park Elemen- tary to put everything in perspective. Show: **** Special Features: *I Hope. See. Feel. Model.A University8tudents AgaInst Cancer presents... Cancer Awareness Week FASHION SHOW MACBOOK PRO At: U-M Computer Showcase, Michigan Union www.apple.com/students What's an Intel chip doing in a MacBook Pro? A whole lot more than it's ever done in a PC. Now with Intel Core Duo, MacBook Pro is up to two times faster. So you get super-high performance using the new iLife'06 for music, photos, movies, even your own blogs. The built-in iSight camera makes video chatting a breeze. And with Front Row and the apple Remote, you can put on a show from anywhere in the room. t+ y 4{ " , Special Appearance by U of M Football Players March 22, 2006 -Union Ballroom 7:00 pm Tickets: VIP-$12 At the door-$10 Presale-$7 All proceeds go to Coach Carr Cancer Fund and I