You have to admit that this fake trailer is right on the money about certain British film tropes. “Is this film going to batter audiences over the head with a message of social injustice?” Meanwhile I’m waiting with bated breath for the results of Lord Smith’s review of UK government film policy on Monday. I do hope it is more nuanced than Cameron’s simplistic demand that the film industry should support “commercially successful pictures.” As Ben Blaine pointed out, this…

I love this Jeremy Deller poster of a William Morris quote. It’s part of a campaign to protect arts funding in the UK.

The test is quite simple. Take any movie and ask 3 questions: 1. Does the film have two women with names in it? 2. Do these two women talk to each other? 3. Do they talk to each other about something other than a man? Hat Tip: Ted Hope

These are two organizations that I support anyway and trust to use my money wisely. Doctors Without Borders/MSF Follow on Twitter: twitter.com/MSF_USA Partners in Health have been on the ground in Haiti for over 20 years so I think it’s definitely worth getting involved with their Stand With Haiti campaign – give money and spread the word! Follow on Twitter: twitter.com/PIH_org I’m also really happy to see people using technology for good and sending so much money via cell phones.…

There is something called the Great Pacific Garbage Patch in the Pacific Ocean, an island of rubbish roughly the size of Texas. This is the stuff that keeps me awake at night and turns me into a self-righteous pain in the ass during the day. I’ve started to pay more attention to the crap I throw away and it’s a lot. I feel like I live fairly lightly but I’m also a New Yorker. I like my coffee to go…

This is doing the rounds at the moment and it’s bloody great. Watch it and spread the love (not hate!). See more Jack Black videos at Funny or Die

Today, December 1st, is World Aids Day. I’ve been watching lots of films about HIV/AIDS recently and reading a lot on the subject too. As a result I’ve been pressing copies of Stephanie Nolan’s 28 Stories About AIDS in Africa and Elisabeth Pisani’s The Wisdom of Whores into the palms of my friends who are probably thinking “Oh piss off you sanctimonious bore” but I promise you these books are anything but. SnagFilms are marking the day with two films…

Thanks to Agnes Varnum at Doc It Out for the heads up about this. Frontline’s The Choice 2008 is available to watch free online in its entirety. I’ve only watched part of it so far but it’s definitely vital viewing on the political and personal histories of Obama and McCain and I’m looking forward to watching the rest when I can give it my full attention (although giving ANYTHING my full attention at the moment is proving tricky). Also, women…

Demos, the “think tank for everyday democracy” in the UK, has recently published a report on the Video Republic which I recommend reading. The report, which focuses on young video creators in Europe, is primarily concerned with online video and it makes some strong arguments about the power of the Video Republic in the digital age: “Music, television and film companies no longer hold a monopoly on the way content moves between people.” It also outlines why this must be…

Message from Andrew Berends via D-Word sent on Wednesday this week: As you may know, I’m back in the U.S. after ten days being detained by the State Security Services in Nigeria. I’d been in Nigeria for six months filming DELTA BOYS (http://deltaboys.com/) about the oil conflict in the Niger Delta. I was picked up while filming at the Nembe Waterside in Port Harcourt. Nembe Waterside is a bustling port through which all kinds of traffic flows. It’s a point…