The surreal nightmare of internationally-acclaimed artist and professor Steve Kurtz began when his wife Hope died in her sleep of heart failure. Medics arrived, became suspicious of Kurtz’s art, and called the FBI. Within hours the artist was detained as a suspected "bioterrorist" as dozens of agents in hazmat suits sifted through his work and impounded his computers, manuscripts, books, his cat, and even his wife’s body. Today Kurtz and his long-time collaborator Dr. Robert Ferrell, former Chair of the Genetics Department at the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health, await a trial date.

For more information and articles about the case: http://www.caedefensefund.org

Strange Culture screenings in Second Life and at Sundance

On Monday 22 January and Wednesday 24 January our experimental facility in the online world Second Life hosted the première of Lynn Hershman's new movie "Strange Culture" as part of the Sundance Film Festival. We have chosen to screen the movie on our island in Second Life because SHL is committed to exploring the intersections of the arts, humanities, science and technology, reaching out beyond the academy to address such matters of common concern.

http://festival.sundance.org/filmguide/popup.aspx?film=7546
http://lynnhershman.com/newprojects.htm

But wait, there's more: Following its presentation at Sundance, Strange Culture was screened at the 57th Berlin Film Festival, Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin, in February 2007.

The Scrapbook, Berlin:

• Festival Press Release: Panorama announces opening films and Panorama Dokumente
• Reuters: Paranoia in the picture with series of new films

The Scrapbook, Sundance:

• Flickr Photo set
• Sundance 22 January 2007 Screening of Strange Culture
• Sundance 24 January 2007 Screening of Strange Culture
• news.com: Sundance holds screening in 'Second Life' for first time [link]
• WIRED Blogs: Table of Malcontents [link]
• IndieWIRE: Park City '07 New Frontier Notebook [link]
• SF360: Features: A New Frontier [link]
• Red Herring: At this year’s Sundance Film Festival, online and mobile video runs rampant. [link]
• Netscape Blog: The Work of Art in the Age of Post-9/11 Paranoia: Lynn Hershman Leeson's Strange Culture [link]
• "Sundance in Second Life" on SL web pages
• Time: 7 Surprises from Sundance [link]
• Wired Blogs, Table of Malcontents—Sundance 2007: Is It Live, or Second Life? [link]
• Film premieres in RL, SL
• STRANGE CULTURE gets a SECOND LIFE
• Scenes from Lynn Hershman Leeson's Second Life STRANGE CULTURE Screening
• Second Front's HAZARDOUS - Double Bill at screenings of Lynn Hershman Leeson''s "Strange Culture"
• Hazardous: Second Front watches "Strange Culture"
• "WACKY" WIRXLI STRIKES AGAIN!
• Sundance premier
• A spectators-eye view of Sundance: Interview with blogger/artist Evelyn Rodriguez
• Sundance 2007: Party's Over, More Or Less
• Online Video Distribution Transforms the Sundance Film Festival
• Movie: Strange Culture
• SL avatars get seen at Sundance Film Festival
• The Virtual World Has Two Faces

Reviews of Strange Culture:

• New York Times
• Variety
• Hollywood Reporter
• Film Threat
• HP Blogs: Backstage at Sundance 2007
• Rotten Tomatoes

Screening in Second Life:

• Download
  ViewHow-to for attendees.pdf (access restricted during event)
• Monday January 22nd at 3pm SLT/PST
• Wednesday January 24th at 3pm SLT/PST

Avatar guest list for Monday screening:

• Lys Ware
• Motorato Ware
• Seifert Surface
• Archaeolog Ware
• Liebenwalde Ware
• Gene Ware
• Ssofft Ware
• Bob Ware (camera)
• Mika Jya
• Howard Rheingold
• Tom Bukowski
• Vance Quatro
• Susan Lightfoot
• Gabissa Sun
• Lewis Nerd
• Master Penguin
• Nice Losangeles
• Marvel Ousley
• NeoConD Apparatchik
• Wirxli Flimflam
• mediachef Jervil
• Untameable Wildcat
• Ciara Jae

Avatar guest list for Wednesday screening:

• Lys Ware
• Motorato Ware
• Seifert Surface
• Archaeolog Ware
• Liebenwalde Ware
• Gene Ware
• Ssofft Ware
• Bob Ware (camera)
• Mika Jya
• Ouida Ware
• Keystone Bouchard
• Tab Scott
• Julian Dibbell
• Vettore Veloce
• Jeska Linden
• Jade Lily
• Khondra Nadir
• Tim Lenoir (avatar name to follow)
• Robin Linden
• Man Michinaga
• Tao Takashi
• Gwyneth Llewelyn
• AliseIborg Zhaoying
• Enyl Lyne
• Elsa Cloetens
• Garret Bakalava
• Skybar Kuramoto
• Wojciech Acronym
• Osprey Therian