The Spirit Awards was the first event to exclusively honor independent film, and over the past 25 years, has become the premier awards show for the independent film community, celebrating films made by filmmakers who embody independence and originality. Artists receiving industry recognition first at the Spirit Awards include Joel & Ethan Coen, Spike Lee, Oliver Stone, Ashley Judd, Robert Rodriguez, David O. Russell, Edward Burns, Aaron Eckhart, Neil LaBute, Darren Aronofsky, Spike Jonze, Charlie Kaufman, Hilary Swank, Marc Forster, Todd Field, Christopher Nolan, Zach Braff, Amy Adams and many more.

This year’s major category winners were Lionsgate’s Precious, which won Best Feature, Best Director, Best First Screenplay, Best Female Lead, and Best Supporting Female; Fox Searchlight’s Crazy Heart, which won Best First Feature, and Best Male Lead; Fox Searchlight’s (500) Days of Summer, which won Best Screenplay; Abramaorama’s Anvil! The Story of Anvil, which won Best Documentary; Sony Pictures Classics’ An Education, which won Best Foreign Film; Magnolia Pictures’ Humpday, which won the John Cassavetes Award; Oscilloscope Laboratories’ The Messenger, which won Best Supporting Male; and Focus Features’ A Serious Man, which won Best Cinematography.

Kyle Patrick Alvarez, director of Easier With Practice, received the seventeenth annual Acura Someone to Watch Award, which includes a $25,000 unrestricted grant and honors a talented filmmaker of singular vision who has not received appropriate recognition.

Bill Ross and Turner Ross, directors of 45365, received the sixteenth annual Chaz & Roger Ebert Truer Than Fiction Award, a $25,000 unrestricted grant presented to an emerging director of non-fiction features who has not yet received significant attention.

Karin Chien, producer of The Exploding Girl and Santa Mesa, received the fourteenth annual Piaget Producers Award, a $25,000 unrestricted grant created to honor emerging producers who, despite highly limited resources, demonstrate the creativity, tenacity, and vision required to produce quality, independent films.

Also given was the 3rd annual Robert Altman Award, given to one film’s director, casting director, and ensemble cast. Joel Coen & Ethan Coen’s A Serious Man received this award, along with casting directors Ellen Chenoweth and Rachel Tenner, and ensemble cast members Richard Kind, Sari Lennick, Jessica McManus, Fred Melamed, Michael Stuhlbarg, and Aaron Wolff.

Also announced during the show, was the recipient of the 2010 ELLE/Garnier Directing Fellowship, which carries a production grant of $10,000, funded by ELLE and Garnier. Film Independent Fellow Jennifer Arnold (2005 Directors Lab) won for her film A Small Act, which will air summer 2010 on HBO.

Dick Clark Productions and independent producer Jamie McGurk served as Executive Producers. John Hamilton and IFC’s Christine Lubrano and Vienna Steiner served as Producers, with Chris Donovan directing and Billy Kimball writing the show.

The Spirit Award encores will air on IFC on Saturday, March 6 at 5:00am EST/PST and 11:15am EST/PST, and Sunday, March 7 at 8:30am EST/PST and 2:30pm EST/PST. In addition, SpiritAwards.com and a dedicated Spirit Awards channel on Babelgum.com will post red carpet and thank you cam interviews the next day.

Premier Sponsors IFC, ELLE, Piaget, Jameson Irish Whiskey, Acura, Stella Artois, LG Electronics and Principal Sponsors Netflix and 100% Pure New Zealand sponsored this year’s event. MySpace and LG Electronics were the Official Hosts of the 2010 Spirit Awards Live Arrivals Show. JW Marriot was the Official Host Hotel. The Standard, Downtown LA was a Participating Hotel and the Official Venue for the Member Viewing Party. Wire Image was the Official Photographer, American Airlines was the Official Airline Partner, and PR Newswire was the Official Breaking News Service of Film Independent. On3 Productions produced the Official Presenter Gift Lounge and Official Ceremony Gift Bags. FIJI Water was the Official Water of the Spirit Awards. On behalf of every celebrity that stopped by The FAGE Total Yogurt Bar backstage in the Official Presenter Gift Lounge, FAGE Total made a significant contribution to Film Independent’s signature diversity program, Project:Involve.

Lead actress Chyna Layne has garnered critical acclaim as part of the ensemble cast of the hit film Precious: Based upon The Novel Push, by Sapphire, which is in the running for six Oscars including Best Picture, at this Sunday’s 82nd Annual Academy Awards.

All Screwed Up is written and Executive Produced by Bud Rebel, produced by Matthew Pellowski and is directed by Neil Stephens. Rebel himself will be attending the screening, and has promised some exciting giveaways for audience members.

The film is a family friendly teen comedy about two high school teenagers — an African American girl (Layne) suffering from Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and a Caucasian boy (Jake Waldman), star of the high school basketball team — who mysteriously take on each other’s personalities after a close encounter with an unusual ‘pet’ she orders on the internet.

Living in each other’s shoes — literally — forces the teens to see life from a different perspective, with funny and touching results that will remind everyone of the awkward teen years — and affect audiences of all ages.

All Screwed Up was shot on location in Rockland County, New York, of which Executive Producer Rebel is a native.

It had its World Premiere at the first ever Friars Club Comedy Film Festival in New York this past fall.

The IFFF advocates and encourages the creation and sharing of family film and screenplay product through film exhibition, professional and children’s hands-on film camps, seminars and post-film discussions. The IFFF has a target audience of Filmmakers, Producers, Distributors, Press, Critics, Industry, Small Businesses, Families and Kids.

“Budrebel Productions is very honored to have the West Coast Premiere of our film as part of the 15th Annual International Family Film Festival,” says Executive Producer Bud Rebel.

“The mandate of the festival — which is to pay tribute to family films — fits in splendidly with the concept of our own film, in which we have used the family film genre to tell a complex and entertaining tale about teenagers at a crossroads in their young lives. Many people see family films as light and superficial, but we believe that they provide a terrific way to tell a serious story without alienating younger audiences. The entire family can be educated and entertained simultaneously by our film, while having a good laugh along the way.”

The first time filmmaker says that after numerous challenges in the post production process, to see the film now enjoying its West Coast Premiere at the IFFF event is “tremendously rewarding.” The filmmaker is in talks with various distributors and cable networks interested in acquiring the film.

Commenting on the announcement, Chuck Viane, President, Distribution, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, said, “This fantastic interpretation of Alice in Wonderland is a film that truly deserves to be presented in Disney Digital 3D™ and the premium IMAX 3D format. It delivers an eye-popping cinematic experience, where moviegoers are taken down the rabbit hole and into dimensional worlds filled with incredible characters, sly humor, and wild adventures.”

“There is an enormous amount of buzz and enthusiasm surrounding Alice in Wonderland, especially among fans of Tim Burton and Johnny Depp. We’re very excited to finally share this much-anticipated IMAX 3D adventure with them,” said IMAX CEO Richard L. Gelfond. “We believe 3D fans are primed and ready for the next big IMAX 3D adventure and this magical film presents a great opportunity to deliver that to them.”

Along with Depp, Hathaway and Wasikowska, the all-star cast also includes Helena Bonham Carter, Crispin Glover, and Alan Rickman.

“Alice in Wonderland combines the imagination of Tim Burton’s creative vision with incredibly outrageous characters and world-class actors, making it a fantastic fit for The IMAX Experience,” added Greg Foster, Chairman and President of IMAX Filmed Entertainment. “Disney has done a great job of making the IMAX release available to more IMAX theatres worldwide than ever before, giving more IMAX fans the opportunity to experience this very special movie event.”

“This started with myself, Mark Biltz, and Arman Zajic,” says Evans. “It was an idea to help bring the tourists back to Hawaii, where the economy had been severely hurting tourism here.”

The Governor of Hawaii apparently agreed, and issued Commendations to all of the producers for creating the show aimed at doing just that.

“You don’t play a venue with 680 seats if it’s about making money,” says Evans. “There are venues here that you could fit several thousand in, but that defeats the purpose. The purpose is to keep it simple, create an intimate venue for the ticketholders, and to provide the celebrity with the opportunity to show their support for a state that has always been good to them,” says Evans. “Big stars performing in a small venue brings attention to the state, and that brings tourists.”

Evans, who is one of the “new crooners” in the swing music genre, has been opening for headliners since 1997. In fact, Evans and fellow crooner Michael Buble’ began their careers at the same nightclub in Vancouver. Evans also is the creator of “Horrorscope,” a new graphic novel that The Daily Variety reports will be made into a major motion picture, toys, and even video games. Evans co-wrote it with friend Ahmet Zappa, the son of the rock legend Frank Zappa. Evans is also recording his own major label debut which will feature a duet with Kelly Osbourne. His music is also heard on popular television programs such as “So You Think You Can Dance.”

“The CD has been taking a while to get done. I wrote eight of the songs, and it’s a huge big band and writing arrangements and charts for something like that is an unbelievable task but I really believe the genre needs original music, not just rehashing Sinatra tunes, which we’ve all done,” says Evans, who Grammy Magazine names as one of the most relevant new big band singers in the genre today.

The Maui Celebrity Series is held each month, once a month, in Lahaina, Hawaii. Evans maintains a home there, and in between mainland projects created the series.

“We launched this at The Hard Rock Cafe, and now we’re stepping it up to the theatre,” says Evans. Harrah’s Laughlin, where Evans headlines regularly, came on board as a sponsor.

“That’s changing everything, they’ve really given this credibility,” says Evans. “But so have the other sponsors. Enterprise Rent A Car, Royal Lahaina, T-Mobile, Maui Sunseeker Resort, Hawaiian Airlines, Longhi’s Restaurant, Rent-A-Center, Trilogy Ocean Adventures, I mean…we couldn’t get anyone to even pay attention when we started, but these sponsors really have come through in a big way. In a 680 seat venue, you can do the math, you need that support when seeking big stars,” says Evans. “We’re all in this together and the celebrities coming are really helping everyone, even if they don’t realize it.”

The next show is on March 21st, 2010, when Brian opens for comedian Paul Rodriguez.

“We’re also trying to get local Hawaiian talent involved. A comedian named Chino LaForge has also been performing as the opening act, and I think he’s a definite up and comer,” says Evans. “This is about everyone.”

Another comedian, King Martin, will also be opening for various concerts produced by The Maui Celebrity Series.

From USA Today to CNN, The Maui Celebrity Series is undoubtedly the most talked about concert series in the state of Hawaii.

“I want Paul McCartney,” says Evans. “I want him here. Hawaii would get some much-needed exposure from it, it wouldn’t even be able to compete with the state’s own tourism budget. It would just be incredible, the amount of exposure an appearance by the likes of him could bring.”

Originally opening to the public on February 29, 1960 in Chicago, the Playboy Clubs quickly became the embodiment of sexy sophistication and one of the world’s most successful night club chains. The famous venues, which were home to the iconic Playboy Bunnies, allowed key holders to enjoy performances by some of the era’s biggest names in entertainment. Each club featured cocktail Bunnies, a camera Bunny, a checkroom Bunny, a cabaret Bunny, a gift shop Bunny, a bumper pool Bunny, a customer service Bunny, and floor Bunnies. In 2006 the Bunnies returned, and Playboy reopened its famous Club at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, and plans to open two additional multi-faceted entertainment venues in 2010 in both Miami and Cancun.

Hugh M. Hefner, surrounded by a dozen Playboy Bunnies, at the original Chicago Playboy Club in 1960

In its June 2010 issue, Playboy magazine will celebrate the Playboy Clubs’ legacy while providing a sneak peek at the future of the famous nightclubs. Special features will also appear on Playboy.com and Playboy Radio. Additional anniversary celebrations will include:

On June 10, Playboy will be hosting a global celebration—50 Playboy Club parties in 50 cities, all held on the same night. Fifty select nightlife venues—in domestic and international cities including Las Vegas, Miami, Cancun, London, Hong Kong, San Diego, Chicago and Johannesburg—will open their doors as “Playboy Clubs” for one night only to celebrate the momentous occasion.

Direction of the star-studded PG-13 musical soared far above the wildest expectations of any cigarette marketer and totally beyond anything resembling historical context. There were so many smoking scenes packed into its nearly two-hour running time that reviewers had trouble keeping count.

The extremes undertaken to include smoking in nearly every scene earned Daniel Day Lewis the Thumbs Down! Actor Award for his portrayal of the nicotine-addicted Guido Contini.

The Hackademy Awards raise awareness of the impact of tobacco use in films on pre-teens and young adults. Studies have established a direct link between smoking depicted in films and an increased willingness by teens to try smoking, showing that 40 percent of the youth who try tobacco products do so because of exposure to smoking in movies, according to researchers at Dartmouth College.

The Hackademy Awards also gives an annual Thumbs Up! Award to a movie that either doesn’t include tobacco use, or even better, includes a realistic message about tobacco’s disastrous effect on health.

For the Thumbs Up! Award, youth reviewers picked “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen,” another PG-13 release. Transformers was totally tobacco free, a refreshing surprise in the action thriller genre, and more evidence that the smoke is finally clearing in at least one corner of the entertainment industry. “Transformers” was among 11 PG and PG-13 movies from Paramount in 2009, making it the first major studio to release 100 percent smoke-free youth rated movies.

Joining Day Lewis in the actor category was Sigourney Weaver, who won a Thumbs Down! Actress Award for her role in “Avatar.” As scientist Dr. Grace Augustine, she demands a cigarette after making the switch from avatar back to human.

On a more positive note, Hackademy Awards for Thumbs Up! actor and actress reflected a hopeful trend in two PG-13 movies. While unfortunately filled with plenty of smoking, the Black Lung-rated “I Can Do Bad All By Myself” also has Thumbs Up! Actress Hope Olaide Wilson’s teen character delivering anti-smoking messages in the movie.

This year’s Thumbs Up! Actor award went to Taylor Lautner, who delivered a smokeless performance in the tobacco-free vampire hit “New Moon.”

PARADE THEME AND 2010 GRAND MARSHALS:

The 2010 parade theme is “Famous Couples,” in keeping with our timing in 2010–Valentine’s weekend. In honor of this unique theme, we will have an equally unique “famous couple” as Grand Marshals of the River City Grand Parade: Big Red Coach Jim Hanifan and NFL Hall-of-Famer and Big Red legend Conrad Dobler!

Coach Hanifan had a celebrated career with the football Cardinals, serving as Head Coach from 1980-1985, and retired as an offensive line coach with the St. Louis Rams in 2003.

Conrad Dobler was named one of the NFL’s Top Ten All-Time Characters in 2009. He wore number 66 for the football Cardinals from 1972-1977 and made three Pro Bowl appearances during his time in St. Louis. Today, Conrad is an author, business owner and motivational speaker. He and his wife Joy are committed to raising awareness and funds for spinal cord research.

CORNBREAD’S BIG FAT WEDDING 2:

The Grand Parade staging area at 7th and Cerre Streets takes on a new role as marriage chapel for some 35 festive brides and grooms. This “en masse” wedding takes the 2010 Grand Parade theme, “Famous Couples” to a new level.

Billed as the first-ever “mass mobile marriage” in a parade, the event also creates what could be the world’s largest wedding reception, as the newest Famous Couples party with several hundred thousand “friends” at the River City Grand Parade, atop the 92.3 WIL “Big Fat Wedding” float.

Approximately 35 lucky couples will be wed in an official ceremony, with the “Reverend” Cornbread of WIL serving as the officiate. Besides the wedding vows and reception, the ceremony will include the cake, champagne toasts and an official first dance.

While flowers, chocolates and cards may never go out of style, one of the fastest and most fashionable ways to say “I love you” is sealed with a text like “143” – the number 143 because “I” has one letter, “love” has four letters and the “you” has three.

Samsung Flight™
The next generation messaging device from Samsung, the Flight has a vertical sliding form factor, with full keyboard underneath. A textured design and subtle ridge on the back make it easy to text or use the touch screen with one hand. The main display features a unique user interface which provides one-touch access to functions like shortcuts, favorites and messaging. The Flight is now available in red and silver color options.

Pantech Impact™
Bringing more color choices to the quick messaging portfolio, Impact features an OLED touch screen that lets users send text messages, make calls, and control their music library without having to open the phone. Impact’s screen features haptic controls which register each key-press with a soft, tactile buzz. A sideways flip of the phone reveals a full physical keyboard and a second display screen, allowing for a fuller experience when typing longer messages. Additionally, Impact’s bright screen and tri-band 3G functionality, lets users manage social networks and explore the Internet with quickness and ease. Available in two colors, pink and blue.

Additionally, AT&T customers can find a selection of apps that help them navigate the land of love this holiday in AT&T’s content and multimedia store, available directly AT&T handsets or from the PC at www.att.com/appcenter. A few examples include:

* Wine Spectator – Impress your Valentine with your knowledge of fine wines by quickly and easily tapping into Wine Spectator’s deep archive of trusted wine ratings and vintage charts. Perfect for connoisseurs and novices alike, the Wine Spectator Mobile Companion is like having access to your very own sommelier. Cheers! (Available for $3.99/month)
* ZAGAT TO GO – Find the perfect date night restaurant. ZAGAT TO GO includes ratings and reviews from over 45 Zagat Guides covering dining, nightlife, hotels, and even golf courses. Automated updates ensure you’ll receive fresh reviews and learn about new openings so you’ll always be in the know. (Available for $3.99/month)
* Date Doctor by AMA – Not everyone has the smooth moves to land a date. When feeling a little lovesick or unsure, the Date Doctor has some dating technique tips. How to make the first move, how to act on a date, and how to avoid embarrassing dating scenarios are just a few of the master moves you’ll learn. The app also features fun dating skill tests to help you assess your overall approach and find a formula that works for you. (Available for $2.99/month)
* AT&T Social Net – While love is a private thing for some, there are those who prefer to shout it from the mountaintops—or at least to their social communities. AT&T Social Net is a free mobile social networking application that combines access to Facebook®, MySpace, Twitter as well as customizable news feeds within a single application. Send a personal tweet or post to your sweetheart or let everyone know that you’re madly in love … or maybe desperately seeking love.
* AT&T U-verse Offers On Demand – Need a romantic flick to watch with your Valentine? U-verse TV customers can enter coupon code 10002 or 110002 (for HD) on channel 199 to redeem a coupon for $1 off their rental of “THE PROPOSAL” (rated PG-13) Feb. 8-14. You can also find other romantic films in the “Valentine’s Day Movies” category in the featured section of the U-verse On Demand library.
* MyLovesigns – Is love in the stars for you? Whether you’re single or already have a partner, MyLovesigns offers astrological love advice at every stage of your romantic life. Will you meet a sexy Scorpio today or should you beware of Libras bearing heart-shaped candies? The possibilities, like the stars, are endless. (Available for $2.99/month)

Another lovable app worth noting is Flirtomatic, a free and fun flirting service launching this week in the AT&T App Center. With Flirtomatic, you can make new friends by using virtual tools to help send messages. Join the flirting mayhem by purchasing Flirt Points to promote yourself, find out who has rated you, send virtual gifts and much more. Visit www.att.com/appcenter later this week to set up your profile, add your photo and get flirting!

New updates to FiOS TV’s Interactive Media Guide (IMG) include increased video-on-demand personalization; purchasing power via remote control for Showtime and ESPN programming; gaming widgets and new navigational shortcuts that make exploring the expansive world of FiOS TV faster and easier than ever before. FiOS TV customers now have immediate access to these enhancements.

“Because FiOS TV is such a content-rich service, we’re always finding new and better ways of making it quick and easy to find the entertainment you’re looking for and to discover new shows and features through our IMG,” said Mary Ellen Payne, Verizon’s senior vice president of marketing in the Potomac region. “Our latest enhancements put new tools in customers’ hands to help them better search and enjoy our industry-leading VOD service, evaluate and purchase premium channels, and more quickly access useful features like parental controls and in-depth show descriptions.

“FiOS TV subscribers know that we’ll keep taking their home entertainment where cable can’t go,” said Payne.

Among the new FiOS TV IMG features are:

* Recommendations For You — Subscribers can sign up to see personalized VOD recommendations that are based on movies they have viewed and ordered in the past from the FiOS TV VOD library.
* More Like This – Subscribers can click on a “More Like This” button when previewing a VOD title and see additional, similar titles based on actors and genres.
* On-Screen Premium Programming Purchasing –
o Using the FiOS TV remote, subscribers can quickly and easily purchase a weekly pass or full subscription to ESPN pay-per-view events, including ESPN College GameDay and NBA Full Court Pass.
* Quick Guide TV Options – A shortcut that makes it fast and easy to do the following:
o Set global parental controls or block specific channels.
o See a list of future times that a program will be shown again.
o Record a show.
o See recommendations for shows similar to the one that has been selected.
o Jump from a menu to live TV.
* Quick Guide DVR (Digital Video Recorder) Options – DVR shortcut providing subscribers with the following options: “play program from the beginning,” “select delete,” “save until I delete,” “initiate parental controls,” “select closed captions” and “help.”
* Full Screen Program Information – Provides customers a full-screen view of in- depth program descriptions, including cast, crew and plot synopses.
* Reversi Widget – One- or two-player game displayed on the TV. Using the arrow keys on the FiOS TV remote control, players move around the board to select an empty space to complete the move. The player who fills the Reversi board with the most pieces wins.
* Chinese Checkers Widget – Variation of traditional Chinese checkers, with the goal of having one marble left on the board. The player selects a marble using the arrow keys on the remote control and then jumps over another marble to an empty space, removing the jumped marble. A player’s score is calculated by the number of marbles left and total time spent playing the game.

FiOS TV offers a broad collection of programming, with more than 560 all-digital channels, up to 135 high-definition channels, as well as industry-leading VOD titles. FiOS provides next-generation interactive services including an advanced interactive media guide; social-networking, news and entertainment widgets; remote DVR management via broadband or cell phone; multi-room DVR; Internet videos on TV; streaming of personal videos, photos and music from home computers to the TV; and many others. The service now also offers a new Widget Bazaar applications marketplace that includes a selection of free interactive services, including widgets that let subscribers interact with Facebook and Twitter on their TVs.

Palm webOS smartphone owners now have the ability to enjoy the Slacker music experience, including custom music stations based on their favorite artist or mix of artists, over 120 expert-programmed Slacker genre, seasonal and spotlight stations and over 10,000 artist stations. Additional application features include an intuitive interface and the ability for listeners to personalize each station based on their music tastes.

With a music catalog that is nearly four times the leading competitor, Slacker gives listeners the ultimate music discovery resource by providing artist biographies, album reviews and “peek ahead” artist and album previews. In addition to marking songs as favorites, listeners can also ban songs and artists to create perfect custom radio stations on their phones.

“Slacker offers music lovers an effortless way to discover and enjoy music on their computers, smartphones or through their home entertainment devices,” said Jonathan Sasse, senior vice president of marketing at Slacker. “Our free app for Palm webOS enables music fans play their favorite Slacker Radio stations wherever they go.”

Slacker Radio for Palm webOS:

* Music library featuring millions of songs
* High-quality stereo playback from any available wireless connection
* Create custom artist stations based on artists or songs
* Over 120 professionally programmed and customizable genre stations
* View artist biographies and photos
* View album art and read reviews
* “Peek Ahead” artist and album preview
* Rate songs as favorites
* Ban songs and artists from stations

The free Slacker Radio application is available through the Palm webOS mobile platform App Catalog or by visiting www.slacker.com from the webOS browser.