The Greenwich International Film Festival wrapped Sunday, and while we didn’t have a chance to see any films – nearly half of which were written or directed by women – we enjoyed listening to people in the business talk about film and philanthropy.
Ashley Judd – actor, a leader of the #MeToo movement, a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Population Fund and an honoree at GIFF’s Changemaker Gala Thursday – charmed on the red carpet with exquisite manners. It was heartening to hear her say that not only will #MeToo bring about change in the way we treat women; it already has. More about Judd in our July issue.
Tony Goldwyn – actor (“Scandal”), producer, director, scion of the Goldwyn family (as in Metro Goldwyn Mayer) and ambassador for Stamford-based Americares – couldn’t have been more, well, normal, for which he credits his family. Since it’s close to Father’s Day (June 17), we’ll share what this father of two grown daughters had to say about being a dad:
“Ninety percent is showing up, but 90 percent of anything is showing up. Listen to your kids. And love them for who they are.”
Finally, James Ivory, Oscar-winning screenwriter and director of such tony “Masterpiece”-style fare as “The Remains of the Day,” “Howard’s End,” “A Room With a View” and “Call Me By Your Name,” revealed a continuing love affair with disaster movies. His favorite? “San Francisco” (1936), in which Clark Gable faces off against Spencer Tracy and Jeanette MacDonald brings down the house with her rendition of the title song (no, she literally brings down the house. It’s the 1906 earthquake.)
Ivory also gave a shout-out to the Bedford Playhouse where he saw a 70-milimeter restoration of his “The Remains of the Day” and proclaimed it excellent.
Look for more on Ivory and Goldwyn in upcoming issues of WAG. For more on GIFF, visit greenwichfilm.org.
– Georgette Gouveia
