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Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Film / Genius The Genius Award for Film Goes to Robinson Devor and Charles Mudede

Posted by Lindy West on Wed, Aug 4, 2010 at 5:10 PM

Kelly O

After watching 14 minutes of footage from Rob Devor and Charles Mudede's next experimental documentary—about Sarah Jane Moore, the first woman to fire a loaded gun at a U.S. president—the Genius Awards committee came to an awkward realization: We couldn't keep ignoring Devor and Mudede's films. Together, they have completed two feature films, Police Beat and Zoo, both of which premiered at Sundance. The third, currently titled Unnamed Sarah Jane Moore Project, is a Sundance 2011 hopeful. After months of deliberations and watching many other films, and then seeing Devor and Mudede's new work in progress, we simply couldn't justify not giving them the award, even though Mudede also obviously has a day job here at The Stranger.

A still from Unnamed Sarah Jane Moore Project (click to enlarge)

A still from Unnamed Sarah Jane Moore Project (click to enlarge)

New York Times critic Manohla Dargis called Police Beat one of the highlights of Sundance in 2006 and described it as "a delicately funny tale about everyday surrealism." And of Zoo, she said: "Characters don’t just walk in this film; they float across the frame, pouring like liquid toward their inexorable destinies." Unnamed Sarah Jane Moore Project chronicles the very weird existence of Moore, the seemingly innocuous wife/mother/accountant who tried to assassinate President Ford in 1975 and was released from prison in 2007 at age 77. It shares the previous two films' uncanny atmospherics, blending of reality and fiction, and hyper-choreographed visuals. This is major, genius-level filmmaking coming out of Seattle.

Rob Devor is in New York working an another film project, but we reached him in our offices via Skype. A technical snag kept us from hearing what he said, but he appeared bewildered and happy. They will split the $5,000 award; Mudede is donating his half of the award to local film nonprofit Northwest Film Forum.

Congratulations, Rob and Charles!

More information about this year's Genius Awards available HERE. The awards will be presented at a great, big, fun, bonkers party at the Moore Theater, September 17th. BE THERE.

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Comments (33) RSS

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Incredibly awkward but tough to find fault with, especially if Mudede gives his share to NWFF. Congrats!

Posted by clint on August 4, 2010 at 5:17 PM

Congratulations!

Posted by Morgan on August 4, 2010 at 5:24 PM

Congrats!

Shirtless oil wrestling is called for!

Posted by Will in Seattle

on August 4, 2010 at 5:26 PM

Yay :)

Posted by care bear on August 4, 2010 at 5:31 PM

I dunno about Zoo but they deserve it for Police Beat! :)

Posted by SeattleSeven on August 4, 2010 at 5:36 PM

Congratulazioni!

Posted by kim in portland

on August 4, 2010 at 5:53 PM

Excellent!

Posted by m@tt on August 4, 2010 at 5:57 PM

This makes me very, very happy. Congratulations to both.

Posted by gloomy gus on August 4, 2010 at 6:00 PM

Nice on all counts.

Posted by DOUG.

on August 4, 2010 at 6:16 PM

Lindy, YOU are the genius!

Posted by seandr on August 4, 2010 at 6:40 PM

Well done! Congrats, Rob and Charles.

Posted by emma's bee on August 4, 2010 at 7:13 PM

Wow, seriously? You guys give your award to your staffer? And based on a 14 min work in progress? And because someone somewhere actually liked Police Beat and Zoo? (Maybe you could give Sean Porter a genius award for his camera work on those two but they simply stalled as narrative pieces.). Epic fail.

Posted by LiberatusQuirkus on August 4, 2010 at 7:14 PM

Congrats!!! (seriously!)

Posted by Cato the Younger Younger on August 4, 2010 at 7:17 PM

FUCK YEAH CHARLES!!!

Posted by scratchmaster joe on August 4, 2010 at 7:29 PM

@12: you're probably thinking Sean Kirby, though Sean Porter also rules. If memory serves, Porter worked on Zoo as well, but whatevs.

Posted by Farts Weird on August 4, 2010 at 9:23 PM

Zoo didn't interest me. I saw Police Beat at the library and, recognizing Devor's name from work, decided to check it out. It had its moments -- "delicately funny" is a perfect description -- and was certainly more interesting and stylish than a lot of films, but was a bit too surreal for me. But genius-level filmmaking? I dunno. To me, genius-level filmmaking would be Kate Beckinsale and Jessica Biel battling a horde of Islamic extremist drug-cartel vampire banker zombies, followed by an hour-long love scene between them and Penelope Cruz.

Posted by Roma on August 4, 2010 at 9:53 PM

Great news for Charles, but it doesn't make Rob any less of an abusive asshole. Did anyone on the committee think to ask why Rob can't find another crew in Seattle who would be willing to work for his $100/day bullshit?

Posted by Local Crew on August 4, 2010 at 10:33 PM

Does this mean Charles can quit his day job? Please?

Posted by TVDinner

on August 4, 2010 at 10:58 PM

Congrats! I was going to download the movies and watch them, but only Police Beat was on The Pirate Bay and it doesn't have any active seeders...

Posted by PaulBarwick on August 4, 2010 at 11:24 PM

proud.

Posted by reverend dr dj riz on August 4, 2010 at 11:39 PM

The conflict of interest could have been eliminated if you had just fired Charles from his job writing credibility-straining/aneurysm-inspiring Slog posts, given him another $5000 (on top the $5000 awesomely donated to NWFF), and forced him to spend 100% of his time making Police Beat-level-of-genius films!!

Posted by d.p. on August 5, 2010 at 12:03 AM

Dear Slog-- Please allow this genius to focus on making great films. Specifically, please make him stop posting senseless crap to slog.

Posted by eclexia on August 5, 2010 at 12:56 AM

let's hope charles can use this award to quit his day job and start showering us with awesome surrealist films instead of boring pseudo-intellectual blog posts!

Posted by planned barrenhood on August 5, 2010 at 6:50 AM

I love how awkward the word awkward is.

Posted by avatar on August 5, 2010 at 8:57 AM

@24 - Best comment.

Posted by Asa on August 5, 2010 at 11:19 AM

A cake is a cake. guys--but if there's $$$ involved, Charles should've been ineligible. What's next--you going to give a journalism award to Dan?

Posted by Timmytee on August 5, 2010 at 11:23 AM

congratulations, Charles, you & Mr Devor both deserve this award!

Posted by Josh Bomb

on August 5, 2010 at 11:37 AM

I hope this and the future work to a quality DVD release of Devore's The Woman Chaser.

Posted by McGee on August 5, 2010 at 11:43 AM

Somewhere in the film on Sara Jane, one hopes that Oliver Sipple is given due credit for saving Ford's life.

http://www.glreview.com/article.php?arti…

Posted by Rhett Oracle on August 5, 2010 at 1:39 PM

@29, he is: "The bitch has got a gun."

Posted by Charles Mudede on August 5, 2010 at 5:16 PM

I know Mudede-bashing is a traditional Slog pastime, but I want to take the opportunity to say how much I enjoy his posts (okay, most of the time).

xoxo,
YFISF

Posted by Your friend in SF on August 7, 2010 at 7:13 AM

I personally liked Zoo. If not them, then what other local feature length film makers were deserving? I'd like to check them out.

Posted by Rick Deckard on September 18, 2010 at 8:31 PM

I personally liked Zoo. If not them, then what other local feature length film makers were deserving? I'd like to check them out.

Posted by Rick Deckard on September 18, 2010 at 8:34 PM