Arts & Entertainment
Cinemas Palme d’Or Offers Two ‘Meet the Filmmaker’ Events
Director/writer of 'Empire of Silver' and director of 'Beautiful Boy' will participate in live Q&A events following special screenings of their respective films.
continues its popular ‘Meet the Filmmaker’ series Saturday with back-to-back live question and answer sessions in conjunction with special screenings of two films premiering this weekend.
The first of these will be “Empire of Silver” at 4 p.m. Saturday, which Palme d’Or co-owner Steve Mason characterized as “an epic film set in China around the turn of the (20th) century” adapted from the Valley of Silver trilogy by novelist Chen Yi. He also spoke highly of director Christina Yao, who will discuss the film with the audience following the screening.
“After executive producing last year’s Charles Darwin bio ‘Creation,’ this is Christina’s first film as a director,” he said, adding that she also wrote the screenplay. “It’s a hugely ambitious movie, and she really delivers with a lush production design, beautiful attention to period detail and a truly thrilling story.”
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Mason – who normally emcees the theater’s Q&A sessions – said actor and producer Wesley Eure will moderate both of this weekend’s events, the second of which follows a 7:15 screening of director Shawn Ku’s drama, “Beautiful Boy.”
He described the film as one that will stay with the audience for a long time.
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“Whenever there is a mass shooting – whether it’s Columbine or Virginia Tech or the Jared Lee Loughner shootings in Tucson – we always wonder about the family of the shooter,” he said. “This tragic and heartfelt film traces the journey of a couple who struggle to come to terms with what their son has done.”
Mason spoke highly of the director, who will be on hand for a Q&A session immediately following the screening.
“I started hearing about ‘Beautiful Boy’ after it premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival, where it debuted to much acclaim,” he said. “Shawn Ku is a brilliant young filmmaker, and we’re lucky to have him coming to the Coachella Valley to talk about this film.”
Advance tickets for Saturday’s limited-seating events are available on a first-come-first-served basis at the theater box office or by phone (with no service charge) at (760) 779-0430.
Cinemas Palme d’Or is located in Westfield Mall at 72840 Highway 111 in Palm Desert.
