"DUAL" DIRECTED BY ALIA RAZA FOR ODILON

We screened the short film "Dual" by Alia Raza during Odilon's autum/winter 2010 presentation @ the Eighth Veil gallery in Hollywood last Wednesday to a fantastic crowd of editors, stylists, artists, and the like. We were very pleased with this review of the fall collection by Booth Moore and Adam Tschorn of the LA Times. (check some of the collection and what they had to say here). More to come this week from other esteemed press...

Direction Alia Raza / Featuring Alli Cripe & Annakim Violette / Production Stacey Clark & Jessica Trent / Editing Maximilla Lukacs / Original Score Street Tribes / Creative Direction Jessica Trent / Direction of Photography Shaheen Seth / Makeup William Lemon III / Wardrobe Harold Kuhn / Clothing and bags ODILON

The piece was a collaborative effort of artists, and despite the short turn-around time and the pelting rays of the desert sun, it was one of those experiences where things just flowed well with the group both on site and back here in LA for all of the editing and coordination of the presentation. Of course we wish we could have had more time, done more, shot more, and the ideas keep coming. We ran out to the desert just hours after the 4.8 earthquake where we shot our post-apocalyptic short right on the San Andreas fault by the Salton Sea (about 45 minutes past the ideallic town of Palm Springs). Those shots of dead fish are what line the immense shoreline of what was once a booming resort. I stumbled upon this place 3 or 4 years ago while on a solo soul-searching mission. Not the place to find the meaning of life, but a cool place to shoot.

We made the very dog and vegetarian friendly Ace hotel our headquarters for this trp. (I LOVE the ACE!!) Vita Coco water kept us all hydrated, thankfully!

Click here for more on Odilon and Stacey Clark.

"Dual," a film by Alia Raza, comments on destructive competition with primal, animal-like intimidation as well as cooperative competition for mutual survival in a post-apocalyptic world. Filmed on the San Andreas Fault surrounded by the biological decay of the Salton Sea, artist Annakim Violette plays a character that is the creation of synthetic biology seeking to transinfect and overtake a human played by Alli Cripe. The two battle against and with one another in Odilon's taupe-hued nylon-coated jersey skin suits and stiff hooded shells of translucent nylon-coated spider web organza. The nuclear orange undercoat of a rabbit fur and washed leather jacket grounds the primal human aspect while Odilon's signature ball-bag becomes a weapon. Artist William Lemon III painted the faces of the film's characters to punctuate the cooperation of a new nomadic tribe.

Alia Raza
Alia Raza is a filmmaker and artist based in New York and Los Angeles. Raza's work blends cinema and time-based video, dealing with themes that include self-presentation and its related anxieties, and the influence of contemporary culture and consumerism on self-identity. Her work (which has featured performances by Sebastien Andrieu, Devendra Banhart, Christopher Bollen, Jorge Elbrecht, Karen Elson, Patrik Ervell, Sarah Sophie Flicker, Tavi Gevinson, Liz Goldwyn, Kim Gordon, Elizabeth Hart, Damian Kulash, Lykke Li, JenaMalone, Margherita Missoni, Julia Restoin Roitfeld, Chloe Sevigny, Becky Stark, Arden Wohl) has been shown in screenings and events at the Palais de Tokyo in Paris, Greene Naftali, Moeller Snow, Renwick Gallery, Scope Art Fair, Kreilling & Dodd, LA> www.aliaraza.com

DESIGNER NEEDS AN INTERN

http://losangeles.craigslist.org/lac/med/991978753.html

Whirlwind. Wild is the Wind.

Some pics from the whirlwind trip to Virginia.

January 2007 to January 2009. Thinking of the past two years. How they flew right by in the constant and crazy pace of this life. Of all that has changed. New city, new place, new things, new job, new pet. Ex love, malicious soul suckers, ex job, the devastating loss of dear family. New travels, new adventures, new people, new car, new likes, new ideas, new places, new haircuts, new outlook, new person? And the essentials that have thankfully remained the same. Dear friends, loving family, the core of my being, not jaded.
Spending time with family during the holidays can really make you hit your "reset" button and put so much into perspective if you allow it. Or I suppose quiet time alone can do that to a degree as well. The pause as things slow down now before the new year approaches. Have we been more patient, kind and fair than not? Have we also taken time to tend to the flowers of our own garden as much as we have tended to others? What has been learned from the good and the bad? The joy and the pain?
So very looking forward to the coming week. To bringing together those who have stood the test of time with those who are newly essential and dear. I am blessed and so very fortunate. Rich in love as the saying goes.

David in Feathers

It doesn't get much better than this...... Part of why I love David. He had an earthy side mixed in with his glamness....

My First Oscar's Week As An Official LA Resident

Oscar winner Diablo Cody in our Loree Rodkin jewelry! ...(Available at Maxfield & Neiman Marcus Precious Gems, go and get them.)

There are a plethora of diamond and watch brands hustling to get their designs on the celebs. We do it for Loree Rodkin. The really big Italian ones pull out no stops. From suites and parties at the Beverly Wilshire (Damiani), to an all-out domino-themed 1940's gambling experience at the Beverly Hills Hotel (de Grisogono) with a $50,000 prize donated to charity. And well, I was at both with friends :)

There's a lot to tell. Its been very Sex & the City lately? Some hilarious tales and conversations that will not be posted here.....

Not sure if I'm gonna make it to one of those fancy Oscar viewing parties tonight, like the one our friends @ Mercedes are doing at the Four Seasons. I suppose its lame if I don't go, but I am just not "feeling" it tonight. Having my social gameface on. Its that or dinner @ the Chateau with friends, or in my sleep attire with the doggie watching the glam on TV. Meanwhile, the Oscars are literally walking distance from my place.....which is also a reason I may not venture out. The traffic coming home will be a nightmare......

We finally know Brangelina are preggers. Angie looks amazing with child. Younger and more loving with more meat on those frail bones. I knew just from the body language weeks ago. Before we saw the big dress @ the SAG awards. The way she was gazing and touching Brad, you could tell they were so happy and had a secret :)

Not sure of his getup at the Indie Spirit Awards. Its Hard Out Here for a Pimp must have been on his mind when he got ready. Or maybe he was just rifling through, mixing leftovers from Fight Club and Mr. Evan's Whats Happening closet.I'll be truthful. I didn't used to be a Clooney fan, but good god almighty the man is like a fine damned wine and just gets more and more caliente with age! Seriously! Its not just his looks, its that he puts himself together like a gentleman for the red carpet, he's intelligent, and charismatic. Thats whats really sexy--the brain and the confidence.

Now I do think his girlfriend is "pretty enough," and I say this without jealousy....she looks like she should be his niece, or like she was "cast" as his love interest in a James Bond film. Not sure they seem like they "fit." There isn't any **spark** when you see them together.

Me, Eva & Julia travel in style from the Beverly Wilshire to the Beverly Hills Hotel. Our driver had some amazing stories.....(Laura Kranitz feathers, Mara Hoffman dress, Rebecca Norman bracelet and Wolford stockings--I had a 1940's wing theme going.....)

Now, back to moi. THIS WEEK: Anxiety, art, pitches, diamonds, ostrich feathers, Bentleys, limos, champagne, jet beads, silk charmeuse, red lips, dandy actors, Oscar-nominated directors, darkly dressed art boys, walking in the rain, walking in LA! Sunset Marquis, Gagosian, Beverly Hills Hotel, Beverly Wilshire, the Chateau, Italians, Russians, Germans, Virginians, the British are taking over Los Angeles! Oh my. And then there's the hills.......


Italians throwing a party for the Russian Oscar-nominated director @ the Sunset Marquis hotel. A lot of incredibly tall Russian model-wannabe girls. A lot of shorter actor types. And some legends. Italians. Germans. Russians. Champagne. Red carpet. A good crowd who smelled even better somehow... A lovely atmosphere in Bar 1200. Jesse is a sweetheart.

The fabulous Roberto Cavalli @ the Julian Schnabel opening.

The Julian Schnabel opening @ the Gagosian Gallery absolutely made my week. Though it was incredibly crowded, like a rock concert, seeing that many people there for the art as well as the scene of course was an experience. John Waters hasn't aged in 20 years, nor has Dennis Hopper. And the throngs of good-looking and stylishly dressed art enthusiasts was so refreshing. It felt like a good New York night, even though we were in Beverly Hills. Yes, I really did like a couple of the paintings. Yes, he's probably just capitalizing on all of it to fund his films. Who could blame him?


Beverly Hills Hotel. So beautiful. Love the chandeliers. More red carpet. And our bartender putting a bit of cassis in my champagne since they were out of rose. Ashton Kutcher is really quite handsome and charming as all get out in person. A tall drink of water.... Very dapper. Olivier Martinez. He's good-looking, but hmmm, maybe hotter on film? Demi & Charlize gambled the night away and looked amazing doing so. Honestly, Demi just glows. And have to say, Rumer is much prettier in person. She looked quite statuesque and is a real sweetheart. So, I do like their little modern family. Dawson was off the creek and his wife was really pretty.
Charlize was the big winner. Gambling... and in her Dior. Check the guy checking Eva's backside!

My darling Brit Julia Clancey is already ruling this town, less than 2 weeks here. Talented and so amazing. Her show will be so beautiful and sexy!

Fashion guru Steve Cojo told me something I cannot repeat here about my job...... wow. He sure wishes me luck ;) Ha.
Whats a party without dancing?Breaking it down Cubano style with Kendrick. Ha! 4th and final party before hopping into a limo that wasn't mine and getting a ride home ;) The world is your oyster. Own it.

Mad TV Project Runway Spoof

Prepare to laugh! Seriously good.

first time

so the moon was right for this. i had been saying for 2 weeks i was going to start a blog or website about my dog and her adventures. but i decided to do this instead. she'll have a starring role, of course.

i went with this name incorporating "steel magnolia" because my aunt has often referred to me as such the (the urban dictionary defines the term as, " A southern woman who is strong and independent yet very feminine.") i think all of the women in my family are steel magnolias for the most part. some are a bit more steel, others way more magnolia. i've learned so much from all of them.

rick levine @ tarot.com has amazing horoscopes. sometimes eerily spot on. i used to enjoy the ones from the ny post a few years ago, but then they changed astrologers. not that i live by these things by any means, but i do believe there is something significant, our scientific/magnetic connection to the universe. where the earth was was lined up in relation to the sun, the moon, and the other planets when we were born, and where the planets are lined up each day.

(yes, i am wearing a dashiki right now. but i was wearing my purple marc jacobs rainboots and a proper trench coat earlier. i'm not "just" a hippie, mind you.)

i do feel i've always been particularly tied to the moon. i really take it in visually every night. i love to see the moonrise, the different phases, and of course the full moon makes me a bit crazy and keeps me awake.

suffering from insomnia as i often do, i was sick of tossing and turning so i left the warmth of my cozy bed around 5 AM today and read the "daily horoscope overview" for all signs. it seemed to work with what i had been aiming to do. and this is much more fun than the menial tasks i really should be doing.

"The Moon enters intelligent Aquarius at 4:17 am EDT, highlighting our connection with information technology. We are more attached now to data than to our feelings. Even if we ponder our relationship to the community, it is less personal as we reach out beyond our individual perspectives and seek a broader, more universal view of the world. Staying in touch with our emotions can be a struggle as we stretch into a more mental posture."

ok, i feel a bit doogie howser right now....... they were so ahead of the trend ;)