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director and documentary filmmaker
Emmy Award-winning documentary filmmaker of documentaries Art & Copy, Surfwise and Hype!, and Levitated Mass
PROFILE
Doug Pray
Guest
FROM Doug Pray
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
'TransFatty Lives' At age 30, Patrick O’Brien, better known as New York DJ “TransFatty,” was diagnosed with the debilitating neurological disease ALS — also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease. O’Brien decided to turn the camera on his experience. The result is the edgy new documentary TransFatty Lives.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
The Path of Levitated Mass The 340-ton boulder that is now an art object at LACMA called “Levitated Mass” first had to travel 106 miles, very slowly, to get to its final destination. The process involved getting permission from the two dozen localities the rock had to travel through. Along the route, the rock was greeted by enthusiastic bystanders who turned out to watch it pass through their communities. That journey is chronicled in a documentary we revisit.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Surfwise Dorian “Doc” Paskowitz abandoned a successful medical practice in the 1950s for a life devoted to surfing. He lived a nomadic life with his wife and nine children in a 24-foot RV, moving from beach to beach. Paskowitz died last week at the age of 93. We talk to a filmmaker who made a documentary about his life.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
The Path of Levitated Mass The 340-ton boulder that is now an art object at LACMA called “Levitated Mass” first had to travel 106 miles, very slowly, to get to its final destination. It took several years to get it there, and involved getting permission from the two dozen localities the rock had to travel through. Along the route, the rock was greeted by enthusiastic bystanders who turned out to watch it pass through their communities. That journey is chronicled in a new documentary.
Which Way, L.A.?
Levitating LACMA's Big Rock Levitated Mass is a major piece of outdoor art by sculptor Michael Heizer. It was supposed to be installed outside the Los Angeles County Museum of Art this past fall. But there's one very large problem: the 340-ton granite boulder that is the centerpiece of the artwork is stuck in a quarry 60 miles from LACMA. Doug Pray, the Emmy Award-winning director of documentaries Art & Copy, Surfwise and Hype!, is making a film about the transfer of the boulder. video platform video management video solutions video player Special thanks to Gideon Brower for production assistance.
Design and Architecture
Does Creative Architecture Inspire Creativity? Central Los Angeles High School #9 (High School for the Visual and Performing Arts) Interior view Instant Landmark If you've driven anywhere near downtown Los Angeles, you've certainly spotted Central Los Angeles Area New High School #9 , also known as the School of Visual and Performing Arts, reaching over the 101 freeway. Austrian architects at Coop Himmelblau designed the school, which opened to students this month. Frances speaks to Rex Patton, executive director of the school, as well as some students about some of its unique features. Two writers for the Los Angeles Times give background on the school's troubled path to completion. Mitchell Landsberg describes the exorbitant and controversial costs required to finish the building, which he contrasts to a new charter school in South L.A. renting space in a church, as he covered in a recent article . And architecture critic Christopher Hawthorne joins the conversation as well, after giving the school a "pass/fail" grade in a recent review . Architect Wolf Prix chimes in to explain the dramatic design and why it's important for the city. The school is located at 405 N. Grand near the Bunker Hill neighborhood and although it is not open to the public, the school plans to begin inviting small groups in for tours. The Real (M)ad Men Filmmaker Doug Pray is best known for turning his camera on subcultures like he did in Surfwise and Hype. But his new film, Art & Copy , focuses on a very mainstream world, the advertising industry. Legends of advertising like Dan Wieden, Hal Riney, George Lois, Mary Wells and local ad agency Chiat Day's Lee Clow are among the creatives profiled. Art & Copy is screening in several theaters in the Los Angeles area as well as in Orange County, check the site's screening calendar for more information. A Citywide Survey Ken Bernstein is the leader of architectural preservationist team sponsored by the Getty Foundation and the Office of Historic Resources at the Department of City Planning that hopes to record each of the 880,000 properties in the 466 square mile city of Los Angeles. He talks to Frances about exactly how they plan to do this, and how long he thinks it might take. A three-part film that launched the initiative recently won a local Emmy award (the first segment is above, the rest are viewable here ). You can learn more about the process, and see the group's findings at Survey LA .
Recommended
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Terrorism in London: Lessons for the US This weekend’s terrorist attack in London left seven people dead and almost 50 injured. London police fatally shot the attackers, and ISIS claimed responsibility.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Why is Trump so behind on filling staff jobs, establishing concrete policies? Yesterday Donald Trump signed a “decision memo” to revamp the air traffic control system. But there was little legislative detail in the plan. There’s not much to other splashy announcements from the White House, including tax cuts and the arms deal with Saudi Arabia. And hundreds of positions are unfilled in federal agencies.
The Business
In 'Speechless,' Scott Silveri combines comedy, family & disability Scott Silveri has written and produced sitcoms for more than 20 years. In all that time, he never encountered a TV family that looked anything like the one he grew up in -- with a mom, a dad...and a brother with cerebral palsy. He changed that with his show Speechless on ABC. Silveri tells us about looking to his own past for stories, and why he was determined to make a family comedy and not just a "disability show."