WFF, Images To Present Romantic Comedy "Blue State"

Print Story | Email Story
"Blue State," a contemporary romantic comedy with a very political twist, will be co-presented by Williamstown Film Festival and Images Cinema on Monday, June 9th. Its director Marshall Lewy will be in attendance for a Q-&-A after the film, which will screen at Images, 50 Spring Street, Williamstown.

Featuring Academy Award-winner Anna Paquin and rising actor Breckin Meyer, "Blue State" is a wry and provocative comedy about politics, romance, and the paradoxes of being American today. Set in 2004, the film revolves around John Logue - an eager young campaign volunteer who in a drunken moment vows to move to Canada if George Bush wins re-election. When John's pledge gets televised and the results come in, he's left without job, girlfriend, or country. Once he meets a mysterious young woman, Chloe, the two set off on a road trip from California to Winnipeg. In the course of John's and Chloe's travels, many secrets are revealed and many differences between the U.S. and Canada come hilariously to life.

"Blue State" premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival and has wonderful resonance for this big election year. It's the latest collaboration between WFF and Images, which have previously teamed up on "Rocket Science," "God Grew Tired of Us," "The Last Kiss," and "The Illusionist" during the WFF off-season.

Tickets are $15 (Images members $12), and may be purchased in advance at (413) 458- 1039 or at the door.
If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Williamstown Planning Board Narrowing in on Subdivision Bylaw Changes

By Stephen DravisiBerkshires Staff
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The Planning Board late last month discussed specific features of what it plans to pass as a new subdivision control bylaw this year.
 
The board long has discussed the complex set of regulations as being out of date and cumbersome to both potential developers and the board itself, which has needed to hear requests for waivers of outdated rules for the handful of residential subdivisions that have been proposed in town in recent years.
 
This spring, the town engaged consultants from Northampton's Dodson and Flinker Landscape Architecture and Planning to go through the existing bylaw, compare it to more contemporary regulations in other communities and help craft a revised bylaw.
 
Unlike the zoning bylaw, where amendments require approval of town meeting, the subdivision control bylaw is a creation of the Planning Board, which can make changes on its own after a public hearing process it hopes to complete this year.
 
At a special Planning Board meeting on May 26, Dillon Sussman of Dodson and Flinker and his colleagues walked the board through a dozen different decision points that the board must resolve — either by leaving the bylaw as is or making a change — and offered suggestions based on best practices.
 
All of the issues are technical and ranged from the fundamental, like how the bylaw will define types of subdivisions, to the highly specific, like what turning radii will be required in new streets that are constructed to serve planned developments.
 
One example of a topic that came up in the recent approval of a four-home subdivision off Summer Street is stormwater management.
 
View Full Story

More Williamstown Stories