Tag Archives: CALS

Tonight (5/28) at CALS Ron Robinson Theater – MASH

Posted on by

MASH PosterAs the Vietnam War raged on, Robert Altman looked at another recent undeclared war, the Korean War. His 1970 film MASH is part of the CALS Ron Robinson Historic Cinema series.

This irreverent black comedy follows the exploits of a host of offbeat characters at a medical unit during the Korean War, including surgeons Hawkeye Pierce and Trapper John McIntyre who create havoc with their martini parties and practical jokes while the war rages around them. The film won an Oscar for best screenplay (for Ring Lardner, Jr.) and spawned the successful television series M*A*S*H, which ran for 11 seasons.

The movie stars Donald Sutherland, Elliot Gould, Robert Duvall, Sally Kellerman, Tom Skerritt, Rene Auberjonois, Roger Bowen, Fred Williamson, and Michael Murphy (an Altman fixture). Gary Burghoff would be the only person to play the same role in the film and in the TV series.

Celebrate Memorial Day with Historic Cinema: MASH! Military members, veterans, and their families receive FREE admission. Cost for others is $5.  The screening starts at 7pm.

JAWS on the big screen tonight at CALS Ron Robinson Theater

Posted on by

Jaws

duunnn dunnn… duuuunnnn duun… duuunnnnnnnn dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dunnnnnnnnnnn dunnnn

The terrifying motion picture from the terrifying No. 1 best seller – Steven Spielberg’s breakout movie Jaws will be shown at the CALS Ron Robinson Theater tonight as part of their “Movies Meant for the Big Screen” series.

Based on Peter Benchley’s bestselling book, the film starts Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss.  It is, in many ways, the ultimate Summer movie — beach, action, special effects, and a hearkening back to simpler times.

The cast also includes Lorraine Gray and Murray Hamilton as well as Bruce the Shark. Spielberg’s dog at the time also made an appearance.  It also features the iconic score by John Williams. Nominated for four Academy Awards, it won three: Score, Sound and Film Editing. The only Oscar it lost was Best Picture.

Originally slated for Christmas 1974 release, the movie was so far behind schedule the release did not happen until June 20, 1975. At the time, summer was the dumping ground for movies. But based on the success of Jaws, the concept of the Summer Blockbuster was born.

Tonight’s screening starts at 7pm.  Admission is $5.

Kari Faux at CALS Ron Robinson Theater tonight presented by Arkansas Sounds

Posted on by

Tonight (May 22), CALS Arkansas Sounds presents Kari Faux

Arkansas’s biggest hip-hop artist returns to her hometown of Little Rock for a special performance, making a stop on her Help Wanted tour to celebrate the release of her new EP Cry 4 Help. The tour takes her from coast to coast.

Since 2011, the rapper, singer, and record producer has released her debut album, four mixtapes, and two EPs, working with artists such as Donald Glover (Childish Gambino), bLAck pARty, the Internet, Chloe x Halle, and Issa Rae and being featured on NPR and in Spin, Vogue, The Fader, XXL, Vibe, and Rolling Stone. 

THIS EVENT IS ADULTS ONLY: AGES 18 & UP  Tickets are $15 day of show, all general admission seating. The doors open at 7:00 pm, and the concert starts at 8:00 pm.

Presented by CALS Arkansas Sounds.

Sponsored by Friends of the Central Arkansas Library System (FOCAL), Acansa Arts Festival, FM 89.1 KUAR, Dr. Elizabeth Fletcher Dishongh Charitable Trust and David Austin at The Charlotte John Company.

Redford, Newman and Ross light up CALS Ron Robinson Theater screen tonight with BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID

Posted on by

Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid

As part of the CALS Ron Robinson Theater’s series of films that turn 50 in 2019, tonight (May 21) they are showing Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

Nominated for seven Oscars (and winner of four), this is the true story of fast-draws and wild rides, battles with posses, train and bank robberies, a torrid love affair and a new lease on outlaw life in far away Bolivia. It is also a character study of a remarkable friendship between Butch – possibly the most likable outlaw in frontier history – and his closest associate, the fabled, ever-dangerous Sundance Kid.

Directed by George Roy Hill, it paired Paul Newman and Robert Redford as the title characters.  Katharine Ross also starred in a cast that included Strother Martin, Henry Jones, Cloris Leachman, George Furth, Jeff Corey, and Kenneth Mars.  The screenplay was written by William Goldman.

The four Academy Awards were for Goldman’s Screenplay, Cinematography by Conrad L. Hall, Musical Score by Burt Bacharach, and Best Song by Bacharach and Hal David. The song was “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head.”

The movie starts tonight at the CALS Ron Robinson Theater at 7pm.  Admission is $5.

(In 1969, the cost to see it was probably $1.50. With inflation, that would be close to $10 today. So a $5 movie ticket is like seeing it for half price in 1969.)

Inaugural Made in Arkansas Film Festival runs May 16 to 18 at CALS Ron Robinson Theater

Posted on by

Made in Arkansas Film Festival

The inaugural Made in Arkansas Film Festival will be held May 16-18 at CALS Ron Robinson Theater and is devoted to showcasing films made in The Natural State from a wide variety of filmmakers from all corners of the state. The festival gives local filmmakers the opportunity to have their films shown at a state-of-the-art theater, as well as the chance to network with others in the industry and fans alike.

THURSDAY, MAY 16  •  ALL DAY ACCESS: $5

7:00–8:00 p.m.: Arkansas Shorts 1
•  My Name is Zula, directed by David Bogard
•  A Bar Fight Kind of Night, directed by Travis Olson
•  Surrounded by Love, directed by Tanner Smith
•  The Dixie Kings, directed by Jimmy Westmoreland

8:00–10:00 p.m.: Feature Film
The Boo, directed by Scott McEntire
(Filmmaker Q&A will follow)

 

FRIDAY, MAY 17  •  ALL DAY ACCESS: $5

7:00–8:00 p.m.: Comedy Shorts
•  Matriarchs, directed by Rachel Asherman
•  Gift Horse, directed by Amy Hale
•  Frank, directed by James Basham
•  Expired, directed by Tanesa Kassa
•  Local Hero, directed by Payton Perkins
•  Pop, directed by Scott McEntire
(Filmmaker Q&A will follow)

8:00–9:00 p.m.: Horror/Sci Fi/Thriller Shorts
•  Now You See Me, directed by Kelly Griffin
•  As Sisters, As One, directed by Whitney Butler
•  Boxed In, directed by Patrick Hicks
•  Little Brother, directed by Eric White
•  Deer in Headlights, directed by Austin McEuen
•  Last Call, directed by Blake Elder
(Filmmaker Q&A will follow)

9:00–10:00 p.m.: Experimental/”WTF???” Shorts
•  My Better Nature, directed by Al Topich & Michael Carpenter
•  Bees, directed by Donavon Thompson
•  Father, directed by Sophie Barnes
•  Sonhood, directed by Terrell Case & Eric White
•  Heaven Days V, directed by Terrell Case
•  Arkansas, You’re All Up in Me, directed by Joe Keith Noble
(Filmmaker Q&A will follow)

 

SATURDAY, MAY 18

12:00–2:00 p.m.: Documentary Shorts  •  $5
•  Homeless in Boomtown, directed by Denzel Jenkins
•  Unedited, directed by Rosa Brazeal
•  A Shelter First, directed by Bryan Pollard
•  Come One Come All, directed by Laura Craig
•  Mike the Birdman, directed by John Burcham Erwin
(Filmmaker Q&A will follow)

2:00–4:00 p.m.: Made in Arkansas Feature  •  $5
It’s Called Life, directed by Dedric Jones
(Filmmaker Q&A will follow)

4:00–5:00 p.m.: Arkansas Shorts 2  •  $5
•  Avaline, directed by Hannah Roebuck
•  El Muppet Song, directed by Eric White
•  Milk Aisle, directed by Jordan Hunt
•  A Split Moment, directed by Candace Seward
•  Bingo Night, directed by Brooklyn Alexander
(Filmmaker Q&A will follow)

5:00–6:00 p.m.: Arkansas Shorts 3  •  $5
•  I Can’t Draw, directed by Sydney Botter
•  Chronic, directed by Blake Elder
•  Sister, directed by Stephanie Salyer
•  Grandchildren “Okay, I’m Waiting,” directed by Jennifer Gerber
•  Last Stop, directed by Prentice Dupins
(Filmmaker Q&A will follow)

6:00–8:00 p.m.:  Made in Arkansas Feature  •  $5
Poor Mama’s Boy, directed by Dalton Coffey
(Filmmaker Q&A will follow)

8:00 p.m.:  Awards Ceremony  •  FREE!

Rosebud revealed as CITIZEN KANE is shown at CALS Ron Robinson tonight

Posted on by

“Rosebud.”

With that mysterious (and now iconic) word, Orson Welles’s acclaimed CITIZEN KANE opens and the rest of the movie is a quest for the characters and viewers to determine the significance.

Often hailed as the best movie ever made, this 1941 classic is part of the “Cinema Essentials” film series at the CALS Ron Robinson Theater.  The screening starts tonight at 7:00pm.

Viewed at the time as a Roman à clef of sorts of the life of William Randolph Hearst (who did everything he could to keep it from being released or viewed by people after it was released), the movie was directed, produced, and starred Welles, who also co-wrote the script with Herman J. Mankiewicz.

Joining Welles in the cast were Joseph Cotten, Dorothy Comingore, Everett Sloane, Ray Collins, George Coulouris, Agnes Moorehead, Paul Stewart, Ruth Warrick, Erskine Sanford, and William Alland.

The film was nominated for nine Academy Awards and was a favorite to win several. However, block voting from some branches apparently stymied that. It only won the Original Screenplay Oscar for Mankiewicz and Welles.  The other nominations were for Best Picture, Director, Actor, Art Direction, Cinematography, Film Editing, Score, and Sound.

Tonight (5/11) – Arkansas Sounds presents Grammy winner Jim Lauderdale at the CALS Ron Robinson Theater

Posted on by

Tonight (May 11) at the CALS Ron Robinson Theater, Arkansas Sounds presents Jim Lauderdale

“He’s a man of great style, an exceptional songwriter and tremendous singer” – Elvis Costello

Jim Lauderdale is a two-time Grammy-winning Americana icon and A-list Nashville singer-songwriter whose unmistakable rhinestone-encrusted silhouette has been a symbol for creative integrity for thirty-one albums over decades of recording.

He’s written number-one songs for George Strait, Patty Loveless, George Jones, Mark Chesnutt, and the Dixie Chicks as well as recording albums with Elvis Costello, Dr. Ralph Stanley, the North Mississippi Allstars, Donna the Buffalo, Elvis Presley’s band, Buddy Miller, and longtime Grateful Dead collaborator Robert Hunter. His prolific streak of releases continues in 2019 with his new album From Another World.

This is a solo concert with no opening act.

Tickets are $20 for general admission seating. The doors open at 7:00 pm and the concert starts at 8:00 pm.

Presented by Arkansas Sounds. Sponsored by Friends of the Central Arkansas Library System (FOCAL), Acansa Arts Festival, FM 89.1 KUAR, Dr. Elizabeth Fletcher Dishongh Charitable Trust and David Austin at The Charlotte John Company.