First Person Arts

Amy Childs, Happiness Consultant, came to her first Story Slam and became a First Person Arts Member right off the bat!  She gave it to us short and sweet last week, wearing her “I Am Judging You” Story Slam t-shirt:

She fell just short of the Grand Slam, losing to Tree, but she’ll be at the Festival for sure.  Remember, the Grand Slam theme is Champs and Chumps!

Davy Rothbart, the…founder of Found Magazine, will perform at the First Person Festival on Friday November 14th from 7-8pm.  You can get tickets here.

If you’re a lover of Found items, we’ll have a box for you to share your stuff at the festival.  In the meantime, let us know what you’re finding.

Tracy chronicles her finds in a flickr set: shoes, hair, notes and a pretty nifty looking clock.

Here’s a collection of objects found in Malcolm X Park in West Philadelphia.

Katie’s a devotee of the blown out umbrella.

And here’s a shoe Vicki found on her way into work one day:

Affixed to the bottom was a note that read, in part, “Congratulations!  You picked up a piece of trash.  Clearly you are a person who cares about their world. [ed. note:  and pronoun-antecedent agreement!] You are 1/2 way there.  You have succeeded in cleaning.  Now succeed in beautifying.  Don’t just throw this shoe away.  Resurrect it….[something something something]…Your Brother in Resurrection.  T.O.R.R.”

Kind of snooty, right?

Whatever your motive for collecting Found items, it’s a habit common to many Philadelphians.  As part of Davy Rothbart’s appearance at the First Person Festival, we’ll have our very own Found Box to collect your stuff.  We’ll add them to our display and then submit them to Found Magazine for consideration.

Davy Rothbart and Found
Friday November 14th
Time:7-8pm
Cost: $10 (Buy Tix!)

Right after Kinky Gazpacho (Free!) and right before Swallow Your Pride ($10)

Who among us hasn’t dreamed of being the target of a Craigslist Missed Connection?  Well, here’s one from our very own StorySlam this week:

Bringing people together to share their stories, that’s what we’re all about at First Person Arts.  Perhaps we could devote an entire StorySlam in 2009 to “Missed Connections.”  Let’s hope, of course, that this isn’t fodder for a future “Worst Ever” story…We want a follow-up!

Here’s the trailer for a short documentary about urban fishing in Philadelphia that will screen for the first time at the First Person Salon at the Gershman Y on September 10th:

In addition, this final Salon before the 2008 Festival will feature poetry from Robert Wright, autobiographical comedy from Steve Gerben and Pat Barker, and a short memoir reading and documentary film from Angel Hogan about her life as an adoptee.

First Person Salon at the Gershman Y

401 S. Broad St (Broad and Pine)

September 10th, 7-9pm

Cost: $5-$10 sliding scale

Beer available by donation from our friends at Flying Dog!

At the June 24th StorySlam, Jamil told a story about a nice drive gone bad…

As often happens with the 5 minute limit on StorySlam stories, the teller runs out of time before delivering the coda. Jamil came back for last week’s StorySlam “Caught” and mentioned that the best part of the story went untold. As it turns out, his mother made it to the crash site before the police did, and, spotting some troubling contraband in Jamil’s car, quickly stashed it in her own trunk, making the best of a bad situation. Way to go, mom!

Of course, that may have meant that Jamil has to resort to something else for his “Worst Ever” story. That’s the next slam, August 26th at L’Etage as usual, and hosted by Beth Nixon!

What: StorySlam
When: August 26th. Doors at 7:30 and the slam begins at 8:30
Where: L’Etage @ 6th and Bainbridge above Beau Monde
Cost: $5-$10
Host: Beth Nixon
Info: email or call: 267.402.2057

Congratulations to our friends at Attie & Goldwater on receiving support from Sundance for their work-in-production Goundo’s Daughter:

GOUNDO’S DAUGHTER, a new documentary by Barbara Attie and Janet Goldwater, is one of 16 feature documentaries (selected from 325 applicants) to receive financial and creative support from the Sundance Documentary Fund. The Sundance Institute Documentary Film Program supports U.S. and
international documentary filmmakers who “explore the critical issues of our times with highly crafted storytelling and stylistic innovation.”

GOUNDO’S DAUGHTER explores issues of FGM/C and asylum

If Goundo is deported to Mali from Philadelphia, her two year-old daughter will almost certainly be forced to endure female genital mutilation/cutting—performed on 92% of the female population in Mali. GOUNDO’S DAUGHTER is the story of Goundo’s fight for political asylum in the U.S. and her determination to protect her daughter and stop the cycle of FGM/C.

Read more about the film here. I’ve seen a rough-cut of this gripping documentary, and it’s an extraordinary legal and personal drama set against the backdrop of an onerous and capricious asylum system, and Goundo’s story is not over yet! If you’re not familiar with the Attie & Goldwater oeuvre, get on it!

Docudelphia is an occasional feature on the First Person Arts Blog that showcases new and emerging documentary films under production in and around Philadelphia.

We told you about this Six-Word Memoir Contest a few weeks back.

Our friends over at SmithMag (and our mutual friends over at PhillyMag) picked the top three last week and revealed them at their reading on the 16th. Here are the winners of the “It all happened here in Philadelphia” six-word memoir contest:

Mom put Tastykakes in my lunchbag
.- Al Cummings, San Francisco

Because the fat elf deserved it.
— Tim Piroli, Philadelphia

(Ed. Note: In the off chance this one makes no sense to you: story here.)

I can’t leave for some reason.
— Dan McQuade, Philadelphia

(Yup, it’s THAT Dan McQuade…and it should be noted that this six word memoir is twice as long as the memoir he’s told for years: “Philadelphia will do”)

Next StorySlam is May 27th at L’Etage (6th and Bainbridge). Doors at 7:30 and the slam starts at 8:30. The theme is “Secrets,” so bring your best true story and prepare to slam. Katonya will be back and gunning for you.

Over at Smith Magazine, they’re running a Six-Word Memoir competition with Philadelphia Magazine in advance of their appearances in Philly to promote the book. The winner gets a one year subscription to Philly Mag, a copy of “Not Quite What I Was Planning,” and, of course, the glory. The theme, appropriately enough, is “It All Happened Here in Philadelphia.” Enter as often as you like!

Don’t steal mine:

Happy makes a rowhouse party wall

Anonymously mailed secrets scribbled on a homemade postcard may sound overly romantic and cliché, but one look at the PostSecret website is a sobering experience. From humorous messages to devastating confessions, Frank Warren’s experiment in community art provides an important insight into contemporary culture’s obsession with secrets while also telling compelling, interesting stories. Take a look at the PostSecret site and think about what secrets you yourself might have. Whether funny or serious, consider sharing your story about secrets at our next Story Slam—May 27 at 8:30 p.m. at L’etage (6th and Bainbridge Streets).