Carlsbad students up for $50,000 film prize

By PAM KRAGEN - Staff Writer | Wednesday, June 4, 2008 10:41 AM PDT ∞

Student filmmakers at La Costa Canyon High School in Carlsbad are among the top three finalists in a national contest that promises a $50,000 prize to its winner.

The "Be the Change! Share the Story" contest, sponsored by www.QuantumShift.TV, encourages students to make videos about positive changes that students have made in their communities. The Social Justice class at La Costa Canyon submitted a two-minute, 19-second video titled "Break-Up with Bottled Water," chronicling the school's efforts to reduce the use of plastic water bottles. Their video is one of 174 that were submitted. Entries were judged on the project's environment and social impact, community and student involvement and video storytelling.

The La Costa Canyon video finished in the top three, behind Mctavish Elementary School in Victoria, B.C., which created a food composting program on-campus, and Global Ambassadors, a student group in White Plains, N.Y., which held a fashion show to raise money for U.N. programs.

The winner was to be chosen by viewer votes last weekend, but allegations of electronic ballot box-stuffing threw the results into question, according to the Web site. The final winner will be announced this week.

Denyce Graves, the world-famous mezzo-soprano who wowed audiences last year in San Diego Opera's "Samson and Delilah," will return to San Diego next February to play the role of Dulcinea in Massenet's "Don Quixote."

San Diego Opera hired Graves to replace Marina Domashenko, the Siberian mezzo last seen in San Diego in 2006 playing the title role in Bizet's "Carmen." San Diego Opera officials said Domashenko asked to be released from her contract because she has decided not to add the role of Dulcinea to her repertoire right now.

"Although sorry to lose Marina, I am excited to add Denyce to a splendid cast," adds San Diego Opera General and Artistic Director Ian Campbell, who will also direct this production starring Italian bass-baritone Ferruccio Furlanetto as the questing knight.

The San Diego Performing Arts League, an organization that's been on the financial ropes for the past two years, reorganized last month with a plan to ensure the agency's long-term survival and focus its energies almost exclusively on its popular ArtsTix program.

At an annual meeting in San Diego last month attended by 55 members and chaired by Shirley Fishman (director of new play development at La Jolla Playhouse), the board voted to revitalize the league, pare its expenses and refocus its efforts exclusively on audience development for its member organizations, according to a league statement.

The league voted to close the league's office to reduce overhead expenses and cut the staff to just three employees ---- one staffer to work with member organizations and two to administer the ArtsTix half-price ticket service.

After a three-year peripatetic existence, Street Scene may be on its way back to downtown San Diego.

The 24-year-old festival's organizer, Rob Hagey, is negotiating with San Diego city officials to bring the two-day urban music festival back its roots in the Gaslamp Quarter.

Downtown development forced Street Scene out of the city center three years ago and ticket sales have declined since. For 2005 and 2006, the festival took place in the Qualcomm Stadium parking lot and last year, it moved to the Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre (then called Coors Amphitheatre) in Chula Vista after an abortive attempt to stage it at the Del Mar Fairgrounds.

Hagey said in March that he hoped to return to San Diego's Tailgate Park, a fenced-in parking lot near Petco Park, and the festival's Web site now posts concert dates for the festival ---- Sept. 19 and 20 --- but no location or lineup yet.

Pam Kragen is the arts and features editor of the North County Times.

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