Amy Warren, LMHC / WQ Mag Columnist's Blog (229)

 “Nag, nag, nag, that’s all she does.” This statement is a resounding quote made distinctly by men about women. The verb is even definitively used as a noun to describe a complaining woman. When I see couples in my office, the woman typically comes in with a list of valid ways that the man is not showing up in the relationship. When I ask the man what he would like to change in the…

Tino Wallenda and the Flying Wallenda family will attend the World Premiere screening of THE SHOW MUST GO ON

on Friday, April 20th at 5:30 PM, Sarasota Opera House.

THE SHOW MUST GO ON explores the unique familial bond that exists within the high flying Wallenda clan…

Penelope Ann Miller, Oscar nominee and star of this year’s Oscar winning Best Picture, The Artist, will attend The Sarasota Film Festival. Ms. Miller receives the 2012 Career Tribute on April 20^th at the Sarasota Film Festival Filmmaker’s Luncheon hosted at the Sarasota Yacht Club. Her film Think of Me will play at this year’s festival. This will be Ms. Miller’s second visit to the Festival, having previously been a guest during the first year of…

The first round of announcements have been made about the Sarasota Film Festival (SFF), and, no, the rumors that John Hamm will be in attendance were not confirmed. However, the implication at the SFF kick-off party was that more big announcements are yet to be made, contingent on confirmation from the stars. Hope is not lost; handsome Hamm could still make the list! But no matter who comes to town, the SFF, scheduled for April 13-22, is sure to be a good time!…

The Sarasota Film Festival has announced NYU@SFF, our inaugural program presented in association with NYU Tisch School of the Arts. Working with student filmmakers, producers, curators, professors and alumni to create a program of films and events at this year’s festival, The SFF will provide a showcase for NYU Tisch filmmakers to share their work, ideas and vision in our community. The 14^th Annual Sarasota Film…

The Sarasota Film Festival is proud to announce that Jake Schreier's ROBOT & FRANK will open the 2012 Festival with a screening at the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall on Friday, April 13^th. Frank Langella and Mr. Schreieattend the festival’s Opening Night festivities.

Set in the near future, ROBOT & FRANK is the story of Frank (Frank Langella), a retired thief living alone and resigned to longing for the local librarian (Susan Sarandon).…

 Inspirations Day Spa is now open in downtown Sarasota. The day spa extends the quality personal-care services clients have been enjoying for years at Inspirations Salon.  As a special introduction to the spa, massages and facials may be enjoyed for only $49.  A wide range of services are offered by the spa’s highly trained staff:  Massage (Swedish,…

The mark of a stellar chef is when you notice that his name no longer leave its mark on a restaurant menu. That’s what happened on a visit to Michael’s on East when I noticed James Plocharsky was no longer named as Pastry Chef. After years of enjoying Plocharsky’s desserts, creations that were worth a trip to Michael’s in itself, discovering his whereabouts…

The excitement of the Sarasota Open continued throughout the weekend.  In Saturday’s semi-final match between James Blake (11^th seed) and Ryan Sweeting (1^st seed), crowds were on the edge of their seats throughout the match that ended with a recurring tie-breaker. In the neck-in-neck match, Blake ousted Sweeting 17/15.

Saturday was also a good day for Alex Bogomolov (USA). Immediately after winning his semi-final match against Dancevic, Bogomolov and…

Photo 2010 Sarasota Open by WQmag.com

Once again, world class tennis returns to Sarasota with the Sarasota Open, a USTA/ATP professional tournament. Qualifying rounds will be played April 23rd through April 25th when the main draw begins. The main draw continues throughout the week until the semi-finals begin on…

Photo by K.Conner WQmag.com

With 10.45 hours of each day influenced by media, females are influenced by stereotypes and hypersexualization. Fewer than one in three characters in movies with speaking parts are female. G-rated films depict females in  provocative attire, much like  R-rated films.  For girls, the number…

Photo by K.Conner Wqmag.com

After ten days of non-stop action, the Sarasota Film Festival came to a screeching halt. As life returns to normal, there is a quiet void for those of us who voraciously partook of the festival and it seems as if an important part of life in Sarasota has come to an end for an entire year.…

Sarasota Film Festival's Cinema Tropicale Celebration at the Sarasota Yacht Club was quite the celebration, giving  filmmakers a perfect introduction to our beautiful community. Film-lovers enjoyed spectacular views and food while mingling and dancing the night away. Now this event was the kind of party for which the Sarasota Film Festival is known! The parties continue this weekend with Friday's Night Under a Thousand Stars -  Beach Edition at the Ritz-Carlton Member Beach Club and…

Re-visit local history with Thursday’s screening of “Through the Tunnel.”  The film tells the story of the Lincoln High Trojans, the football team of the former Manatee County School for African American students prior to desegregation in 1969. When the young men of Lincoln High were integrated into Manatee High to form a single, powerhouse program, head Coach Eddie Shannon was their guide, leading his team beyond the ignominy thrust upon the team by the challenges of…

I remember the early years of the film festival when seats were empty and directors solicited people to fill the theatre for their film. But times have changed.  These days, virtually every theatre is filled to capacity. The full theatres mean good news for more than just the filmmakers. Popular demand is resulting in additional screenings being added for some of the sold-out films. So if there is a “sold out” film you’d like to see or a film just doesn’t meet your schedule, check again.…

Narrative Feature Competition: Kinyarwanda

“Kinyarwanda” gets my vote as one of the top contenders in Sarasota Film Festival’s narrative feature competition. Inspired by true stories, “Kinyarwanda” entwines six different stories within one film, giving a face to those affected by the Rwanda genocide. Over a million men, women and…

War is hard, and sometimes coming home is even harder. K. Lorrel Manning’s film, “Happy New Year,” is the fictionalized story of Sgt. Cole Lewis, a marine who returns from Iraq paralyzed. Without available beds in the Veteran’s Hospital, Lewis is assigned to the Post Traumatic Stress Disorder wing of the under-staffed, rundown hospital.  After initial anger…

If you’ve ever thought that anything “green” is environmentally friendly, think again. Laura Israel’s documentary “Windfall” tackles the subject of wind energy from the personal viewpoints of residents affected by it. The prospect of leasing land to developers for the erection of wind turbines, an energy-efficient alternative to electricity, initially seemed…

Documentary Feature Competition:  Better This World

sarasota film festival

Justice and injustice, loyalty and disloyalty, power and the abuse of power, manipulation, right and wrong, ethics and integrity…these are the topics that viewers are likely to ponder long…