Runtime: 107 minutes
Rated R for strong bloody violence throughout and language
Action icon Arnold Schwarzenegger makes his much-anticipated return to the big screen in Korean director KIM Jee-Woon’s hard-hitting U.S. directorial debut, THE LAST STAND.
After leaving his LAPD narcotics post following a bungled operation that left him wracked with remorse and regret, Sheriff Ray Owens (Schwarzenegger) moved out of Los Angeles and settled into a life fighting what little crime takes place in sleepy border town Sommerton Junction. But that peaceful existence is shattered when Gabriel Cortez (Eduardo Noriega), the most notorious, wanted drug kingpin in the western hemisphere, makes a deadly yet spectacular escape from an FBI prisoner convoy.
With the help of a fierce band of lawless mercenaries led by the icy Burrell (Peter Stormare), Cortez begins racing towards the US-Mexico border at 250 mph in a specially-outfitted Corvette ZR1 with a hostage in tow. Cortez’ path: straight through Summerton Junction, where the whole of the U.S. law enforcement, including Agent John Bannister (Forest Whitaker) will have their final opportunity to intercept him before the violent fugitive slips across the border forever.
At first reluctant to become involved, and then counted out because of the perceived ineptitude of his small town force, Owens ultimately rallies his team and takes the matter into his own hands, setting the stage for a classic showdown.
Arnold Schwarzenegger stars in THE LAST STAND. Directed by KIM Jee-Woon and written by Andrew Knauer, THE LAST STAND also stars Forest Whitaker, Johnny Knoxville, Rodrigo Santoro, Jaimie Alexander, Luis Guzmán, Eduardo Noriega, Peter Stormare, Zach Gilford and Genesis Rodriguez. The film is produced by Lorenzo di Bonaventura [the TRANSFORMERS series, RED, GI JOE, SALT]. Lionsgate Presents, A Lionsgate/di Bonaventura Pictures Production.

AUSTIN, Texas, April 5, 2011 – Nightmare and the Cat and one of the leaders of the Los Angeles underground art movement, Gary Baseman, performed together for SXSW on Sunday, March 13th at HP Mobile Park, a temporary live in community of 15 custom-designed trailers inspired by a combination of Austin’s funky culture and vintage Route 66 themes, for artists bloggers and trendsetters from the fields of technology, music, film and pop culture.

Formed by Dave Stewart’s (Eurythmics) sons Django and Sam,, Nightmare and the Cat is less than a year old and garnering critical acclaim with their artistic, eclectic approach to music. Gary Baseman painted on a canvas while the band played at Hewlett Packard’s “Pop Up Park”, inspiring each other to artistic heights of SXSWism. This is the second band to be brought to our attention at SXSW 2011 by a major corporation, and we hope this is a new trend for industry supporting the arts. Quick, someone form a brain trust to feed big business some more good ideas like this.

“The HP Mobile Park is a content incubator where people are sharing and creating new ideas in real time and across multiple platforms,”said Tariq Hassan, vice president, Worldwide and Regional Marketingand Communications, Imaging and Printing Group, HP. “At HP we are focusing on innovation, and through platforms like HP ePrint we are making printing accessible, relevant and simple for the digital generation.”

Rock on Hewlett Packard, we are all about innovation and providing new models for our brilliant artists. See more about Nightmare and the Cat at their website and Gary Baseman at his official site.

TRON: Legacy from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Kat Edmonson from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Alvaro Rodriguez from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Angelos Angelou, Austin Economist from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Fabrizio Poggi and Chicken Mambo from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Greig McRitchie of Dogs and Bones from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Mandy Lauderdale from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Shawn Pander from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

LaTasha Marzolla from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Here’s Tasha fighting:

Total Badass interview from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Untitled from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Say what? “Man ay ha bay toe.” Or just pronounce it “Indie Rock in Espanol.” Better catch these guys at the Mohawk July 31st if you want to get one of their new CDs. Limited edition CDs will be available at this show only until the wide release November 10th.

Austin Daze samples “The Shed” from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

CHRIS SIMMONS from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Christine asks Chris Simmons for his opinion on the “state of the blues,” and what it’s like to play and compose with Leon Russell. For more info on Chris’s new CD “Old News To Me”, including the song “Hallelujah Man” he co-wrote with Leon, please go to www.getchrissimmons.com.

Bomba Estereo from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Sandra interview Colombian sensations “Bomba Estereo.” The band explains their pathway since their formation in 2005.

Honey Island Swamp Band from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

We catch up with Honey Island Swamp Band munching out at Ruby’s BBQ. Their infectious brand of swamp groove earned them “Best Emerging Artist 2009″ by New Orlean’s OffBeat Magazine. Their new CD “Good To You” is available on their website

Band of Heathens from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Sandra Dahdah interviews the band before their show at Antone’s. The band, who soared to number one on the Americana airplay charts, will be playing again May 28 in New Braunfels at the Whitewater Amphitheater. More information at their website

Untitled from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Carlos Sosa, the steam engine behind the wildly successful Grooveline Horns, an in-demand horn section who play with top names such as Jason Mraz, Kelly Clarkson, Willie Nelson, Blues Traveler and many others, talks to Fabrizio of Austin Daze about behind the scenes work with the National Recording Academy and advocacy work for musicians on the local and national level. This is an eye-opening interview, and Austin Daze wants to be part of getting the word out to our state representatives and you too. Austin Daze loves our musicians, and the more people who know about this, the faster the resolution. Get educated. Go to Grammy.com for more information.

Austin School of Music from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Richard Linklater has been a regular client of the Austin School of Music, now in it’s 15th year. Let’s see, Austin School of Music…School of Rock (directed by Linklater)…you make the connection. Owners Dave Sebree, a renowned guitarist and Chet Himes, studio engineer show Reno Perez around.

Kevin Kettler, CEO METV from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Kevin Kettler talks to Nuno Vasconcellos Jr, (manager of Nuno’s on 6th) about embracing more of the Austin creative community, including filmmakers. He also gives us a tour of the METV headquarters.

SuperLiteBike from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

SuperLiteBike debuted their new Cd “Away We Go” at the Parish to an enthusiastic crowd. When you see this band you might be thinking, whoa…that’s actually Pocketful of Deng, and a new guy. You’re right. It’s Pocketful of Deng with a new attitude and new sound, thanks to the addition of Chris Heckendorn. These guys have some very funny video “flyers” like this. More information on SuperLite Bike at their official website

Del Castillo talks about “Machete” from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

A NEW CD FOR GRUPO FANTASMA – EL EXISTENTIAL

Grupo Fantasma, Brownout from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Untitled from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Mercury Charlie and Sweet Nadine from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Ruby James and Mercury Charlie from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Inteview for “World’s Largest”. from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Texas Tornados from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Ain’t In It For My Health: A Film About Levon Helm from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Fun Fun Fun Fest 2009 from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Mike Judge talks about “Extract” from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Austin’s mayoral elections are heating up and the Daze sat down with candidate Brewster McCracken to get to know more about his plans for Austin. Get out and vote Saturday, May 9th.

AUSTIN DAZE: Brewster McCracken is…

BREWSTER MCCRACKEN:…a father of a 5-year-old boy who loves music, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good Very Bad Day, and playing Chutes and Ladders with his dad…

…a novelist, guitarist, surfer, technophile and avid reader…

…an admirer of Pike Powers, Michelle Greer, Steve Jobs, Elizabeth Avellan, Barack Obama, Sara Hickman and his great grandmother Maude McFadyen…

…a husband who feels incredibly blessed by his wife’s love…

AD: For the people that don’t know, you’ve been a big supporter of the film and mixed media community. Can you tell us a little bit about your experience and role in helping those sectors?

BM: When Austin Studios’ development was sidetracked due to the federal government re-directing funds after Hurricane Katrina, I brought together Austin film leaders to craft a studio upgrade proposal. I persuaded my colleagues to include the upgrades in the 2006 bond election, and then I succeeded in accelerating the bond funding.

Robert Walker wrote this great testimonial [link: http://www.brewstermccracken.com/2009/02/04/robert-walker/] about my work with the film and digital media community.

Austin’s creative community is important to our city’s economy and national brand. Even more than that, our creativity is our community’s soul. If creative opportunities dry up, we’ll lose our creative community. We lose our creative community and we risk losing… well, you get it.

AD: You are also a big supporter of musicians and are concerned about their leaving the city. One of the things that has been happening recently are the increased noise ordinances and increased decibel restrictions. What are your feelings on this?

BM: There’s a 70-decibel restriction for restaurants that dates back to the 1970’s. It’s lower than the 80-decibel standard for live music venues. Clearly the 70-decibel standard is out of date and needs to be changed to 80 decibels.

Here’s why this matters. The reason why Austin has such a strong music community is because we have an incredible number of working musicians. For working musicians to thrive, they need to have work, and that means we need venues where Austin musicians can be paid to perform. The decibel restriction threatens to reduce the number of venues that offer live music, and thereby reduce the amount of available opportunities for working musicians to earn a living and be heard.

AD: You want to “make Austin a national leader in the creative economy sectors of film, digital media and music.” How?

BM: Just this week, an economic study was released [link: http://www.brewstermccracken.com/2009/05/01/study-emphasizes-importance-of-creative-sector-to-texas-economy/] showing that Texas’ creative sector is growing faster and paying higher wages than jobs in other arenas and that leading in the creative economy will be important to our state’s future.

I have worked with music, film, video game, digital media and creative arts leaders on strategies to protect jobs and create new opportunities for our creative community. In one of my Crow’s Nest blog posts, “The Creative Economy,” [link: http://www.brewstermccracken.com/2009/02/04/the-creative-economy/] I describe why the creative economy matters to Austin and how we can expand opportunities. And in my most recent Crow’s Nest post, “How to grow Austin’s economy during this economic downturn,” [link:http://www.brewstermccracken.com/2009/05/06/how-to-grow-austin’s-economy-during-this-economic-downturn/ ]I identify the specific steps specific steps that I will pursue to protect jobs and create new clean energy, biotech and creative economy jobs.

AD: In addition to film and digital media you are very passionate about clean energy, biotech, and healthcare. Can you tell us a little bit about their significance to you and Austin as a community? And their role in our economic future?

BM: For a generation, the semiconductor industry has been the foundation of our economy. And now, these jobs are moving overseas.

How Austin responds to this challenge is the central issue in this mayoral election.

The focus of my campaign’s economic strategy – and the core challenging facing Austin’s economy – is protecting jobs and pursuing opportunities in the emerging job sectors of the 21st Century Economy: clean energy, biotech and creative media.

Just this week, the New York Times reported [link: http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/04/can-clean-energy-revive-manufacturing/] that Oregon is successfully repurposing semiconductor fabs for solar manufacturing, and that this approach is creating new opportunities for people who have worked in the semiconductor industry. This story demonstrates the value of moving now into these new economic sectors.

Attempting simply to ride out the current storm will not address the fundamental challenge to our economic future. In fact, a hunker down approach would cost us valuable time while other regions work to establish leadership in the emerging job sectors of the 21st Century Economy.

I believe Austin leaders – including the mayor – need to begin work NOW on new opportunities in clean energy (particularly solar, energy storage and smart grid software systems), biotech (including nanomedicine, microfluidics and medical devices) and creative media (film, digital media, wireless, music and video games).

How we respond to this global economic challenge will determine our region’s economic future.

AD: Is the city prepared to become a national leader in all of these?

BM: Yes, but only if we choose to. This will not happen for us by accident or through luck.

AD: How can the Austin Model be applied to our current economic situation?

BM: Austin faces real economic challenges from the erosion of our economy’s foundation in the semiconductor industry. And as I point out in my video post on The Austin Model [link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3fUkvuvFHg&feature=channel_page], the risk of inaction is that Austin could face decline and loss of opportunity. That video is now the most watched YouTube video in Austin election history.

Decline isn’t inevitable. We can control our future. I have written and spoken a lot about The Austin Model [link: http://www.brewstermccracken.com/about/austinmodel/] because this is the proven approach for how a city can become a leader in emerging economic sectors.

In my post, “The Seven Steps to Securing Austin’s Economic Future,” [link: http://www.brewstermccracken.com/about/seven-steps-to-securing-austin-economic-future/] I have laid out the steps that Austin can use to lead in clean energy, biotech and the creative economy – just as we did in the 1980’s when Dr. George Kozmetsky, Pike Powers, Dr. Ben Streetman and other visionary leaders reinvented Austin’s economy in a 5-year period into a global leader in semiconductors and information technology.

We can do it again. After all, we’ve done it before. And we invented the model.

AD: Let’s talk about fear. People are feeling pretty anxious these days. What can you tell Austinites about their future? What can we expect? What’s realistic? Where does Austin stand in comparison to the rest of the country?

BM: Our community has the talent, ambition, creativity and values to lead in tomorrow’s economy – if we choose to get to work. The global economy is undergoing a significant transformation, and the scary thing is how fast this is happening. But that is also the good news. If we act now to lead in tomorrow’s economy, a better future will come faster than many expect.

AD: Day to day hot topic we hear a lot about: “Traffic is getting worse and worse in this city.” Thoughts on that and plans for public transportation?

BM: Austin’s vision should be to create a world class transportation system. That means great highways, local roads, rail systems, bicycle facilities and bus networks. The challenge is funding these – particularly with the global financial crisis that erupted last fall. But road and rail systems require a lot of engineering work in advance, so now is a good time to do the engineering and planning so that we can pursue federal funding for these improvements.

AD: Biggest lesson you learned at City Council.

BM: I learned to listen more and talk less.

AD: Why Mayor?

BM: It’s a job where you can really make a difference in the community where you live. And the work is very meaningful.

***

Lady Sovereign at SXSW from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Margaret Cho and Girl In A Coma collaborate. Now that’s girl power.

Margaret Cho from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Austin Daze Interviews Choo Choo from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.