Waching daily Dec 13 2017

She's an Academy award-winning American film director and possibly one of the

coolest directors in this age of cinema.

So who is Sofia Coppola?

Coppola was born May 14th 1971 in New York. She unknowingly began her career within the

first year of life, when her father Francis Ford Coppola cast her as

Michael Corleone's nephew for the baptism scene in The Godfather.

By nineteen, she's acted in a handful of films such as The Godfather 2 and the outsiders.

In 1991 she concluded her appearances in The Godfather trilogy.

[Mary Corleone] Hey...

Coppola faced a wave of criticism and claims of nepotism,

with critics and general moviegoers

harshly laying into her performance.

Her third appearance in the films ultimately earned her a Razzie award.

Luckily, this didn't bring her down.

She knew acting was never her thing and quickly pivoted

following a new path as writer/director.

In 1998, she wrote and directed her first short film, Lick the Star.

This marked the turning point for Sofia's film career.

The following year she wrote and directed her first feature, The Virgin Suicides.

With an excellent soundtrack by French electronic duo Air.

[playing "Playground Love" by Air]

And this time she struck gold, with overwhelmingly positive reviews.

She followed up with her second feature Lost in Translation,

starring Scarlett Johansson and her personal favorite,

Bill Murray.

[Coppola] I can't believe he's really coming to do my movie.

It's my dream.

[narrator] The film earned her a Best Director nomination

and the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.

Since Lost in Translation, she has written and directed five more feature films

including the Netflix Christmas special, A Very Murray Christmas.

For someone who's very much criticized for having help in the business,

the work is very much her own.

Her approach to filmmaking is unique. She is open to taking risks, shooting

run and gun style on many of her films and she has laser focus.

"She has a sort of center you know.

She doesn't get flustered and she doesn't get angry

and she doesn't lose her cool at all which is terrific in a director."

[narrator] She writes what she knows and has experienced

while showcasing the sides of stories that haven't been told.

In her 2017 film, The Beguiled, she calls on Dunst once more to play the role of Edwina.

In an interview with Variety, Dunst discusses her long-term friendship with Sofia.

Stating "she was always a good influence on me..."

"...she gave me confidence in little things that I wouldn't necessarily have had."

While Dunst and Coppola have caught some flack for her adaptation,

Coppola continues to be an inspiration.

If you're wanting to learn more, check out my video essay

which features one of my favorite films

Lost in Translation.

What are your thoughts on Coppola?

Let us know what you think in the comments below!

For more infomation >> Who is Sofia Coppola? Cinema Bios in 3 Minutes or Less - Duration: 3:00.

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The Libet Experiment Is Free Will Just an Illusion - Duration: 1:56.

For more infomation >> The Libet Experiment Is Free Will Just an Illusion - Duration: 1:56.

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Feds Say Photographer Facing Felonies After Trump Inauguration Arrest Is 'Fake' News - Duration: 5:09.

Feds Say Photographer Facing Felonies After Trump Inauguration Arrest Is �Fake� News.

A Justice Department prosecutor alleged this week that a photographer currently facing

several felony charges in connection with his arrest during President Donald Trump�s

inauguration had a fake press pass under a false name.

Alexei Wood, a 37-year-old from San Antonio, is currently on trial alongside five others

in connection with his arrest on Jan. 20.

Police made more than 200 arrests that day after people smashed windows in downtown D.C.

as a large group mostly clad in black roamed the streets.

Prosecutors have conceded there�s no evidence that any of the six individuals currently

on trial actually caused any destruction, but say they are guilty of several felony

charges for enabling what prosecutors have called a riot.

There are 181 others facing felony trials over the next year, and this first trial could

determine how the office of the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, currently headed

by a Trump appointee, handles the remainder of the cases.

Wearing purple medical gloves, Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Kerkhoff on Wednesday dangled

a lanyard and a press pass ? labeled as government exhibit 48 ? before Metropolitan Police Department

Detective Gregg Pemberton, who has spent months poring over the extensive video footage that

captured the unrest in downtown D.C. on Jan. 20.

Pemberton said there was no evidence that Wood�s identification was a �legitimate

press badge.�

Earlier in the week, Kerkhoff suggested that Wood had �fake credentials� under the

false name of �John Osburn.� Pemberton said Wednesday that �John Osburn� was

not an alias for Woods, but that the press pass did feature Woods� image.

Wood and his attorney Brett Cohen declined on Wednesday to explain Wood�s apparent

use of another name, but Wood is expected to take the stand when the trial resumes next

week.

There are a variety of types of press passes, so it is difficult to label any single pass

as �fake.� While numerous government entities issue press passes that require some sort

of screening process, news organizations also issue their own press passes.

The pass Wood was apparently carrying was purportedly issued by �Indy Media� or

�Glass Bead Media Collective,� according to court testimony.

Wood livestreamed nearly the entire protest on Facebook, and the prosecution played the

whole video for jurors on Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning.

The video does not show Wood engaged in any violence or destruction, but does show him

making comments that could be seen as supportive of property destruction.

The video shows him getting into verbal confrontations with a man who apparently grabbed a demonstrator

as well as a �Biker for Trump� who tried to assist police officers in apprehending

one individual.

My professionalism is certainly up to be criticized, and I�m open to it and I�m welcoming of

it,� Wood told HuffPost in a prior interview.

�But I absolutely stand by that I did nothing illegal and I did nothing wrong.�

Kerkhoff had told jurors in her opening statement that they�d see Wood �cheering when the

destruction happens.� Wood�s attorney argued that his comments on the video, while

they may be �disagreeable,� were directed not at the people around him, but rather at

the audience watching his livestream.

Wood, who has worked as a wedding and commercial photographer, says he came to D.C. in hopes

of building his photojournalism resume.

Officers on the scene released many of the journalists they detained in the mass arrest.

But the decisions about who was allowed out of the police kettle seemed arbitrary.

The government has presented as evidence a video featuring Lauren Southern, the alt-right

YouTube commentator who was released without being arrested.

Southern�s team apparently had to mislead police to get out of the kettle.

�I had to pretend I was pregnant,� Southern said in another video.

�My security had to yell �she�s pregnant� to get me out of there.� In the full video

that was introduced at trial, a male voice says he�s �got a pregnant lady coming

out,� as they emerge from the kettle before Southern says, �We�re media, we�re media.�

Of the nine journalists who were arrested that day, only two are still facing charges.

Alex Rubinstein, who works with Russian-funded RT, wrote a lengthy post this week detailing

his experience and said a judge recently exonerated him of the charges the government previously

dropped.

So far, D.C.

Superior Court Judge Lynn Leibovitz has given prosecutors wide latitude, regularly overruling

objections from the six defendants� legal team, which outnumbers the jury.

Outside the presence of the jury on Tuesday, Leibovitz referred to one of Wood�s remarks

as �commentary in furtherance of the conspiracy.�

On trial alongside Wood are Jennifer Armento, Oliver Harris, Britt Lawson, Michelle Macchio

and Christina Simmons.

The trial will resume Monday, when the government is expected to wrap up its case.

If convicted of all charges, Wood and his co-defendants would face a maximum of more

than 60 years in prison, though such a lengthy sentence is highly unlikely.

The only defendant who has pleaded guilty to a felony so far, Dane Powell, was sentenced

to four months in prison for felony rioting and felony assault on a police officer.

He admitted to actually smashing store windows and throwing rocks at officers.

For more infomation >> Feds Say Photographer Facing Felonies After Trump Inauguration Arrest Is 'Fake' News - Duration: 5:09.

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How is the Community Investment Fund Impacting York Region Residents? - Duration: 2:26.

We do see these students develop themselves in many different ways

I know coming out of this program, I'm more confident

They all leave with something special and they are all better off

It's like starting a new life

It's a whole new demeanor when they leave the program.

We're building towards a better life for someone

I know that I'm a lot better off then where I was going

We really look at empowering the individual

Two or three weeks into the program, I was able to find an internship

We provide opportunities for students to go back into the industry and apply the skills that they have

In many cases, it's their very first work experience in Canada

They are exuding confidence that can then get them a job

They are leaving here with tangible certificates and experience and training

You're investing in an individual to help that person grow at different stages in their lives

The support is really important. We could not do our jobs without it

We won't do anything without them actually

A lot of times the funders actually hire back our students

You are facilitating an environment where people can save their own lives

With the Community Investment funding that we receive, we really can respond to the local needs

They are actually here to try to help you

to improve the community and improve the people around the community and to build a better future for everyone

It's so exciting to be in the York Region

and really work with York Region youth as well

They take control over their own lives.

That's the ultimate goal and that's what we achieve

My life is starting to take shape again

They leave here with skills, experience and the support where they can get the jobs but not only get jobs but keep the jobs

My future…I'm very very excited about

The gratitude that I have says it all