t Blue you're Ise.” to serting esture. which at the iginally y when Carlos et Paul ey lost eets of Banks picked Banks rpol. He the m_ fin- Ibum a Britt JICEF n CD. b For FEBRUARY 2 Documentary Screening Shows Rare, Unfiltered Glimpse of Iraq Press Release NEW WESTMINSTER—Kurdish- Canadian filmmaker Jiyar Gol will be screening the documentary Liberation or Occupation? A Passage. Through Iraq at Douglas College on February 24. The film explores the current political and social conditions inside Iraq and offers a - rare glimpse on life for its citizens. Mr. Gol was not embedded as other foreign journalists are, and, as a result, was able to captute images and dialogue rarely seen in Western media. “This film shows the ethnic com- plexities of life inside Iraq,” says Jiyar Gol, who wrote, directed, and produced the documentary. “As a journalist and filmmaker, I’m committed to uncover- ing truths in an unbiased manner. So, I Fy Bae q ae if as. rai TIGL a p| j V a) K ee ’ A , ART yy PRU! talked to Kurds in the north and Arabs in the south to get their opinion of the American presence in Iraq. The result is honest dialogue that is neither anti- nor pro-American. It is what it is.” The film concludes dramatically as American soldiers, annoyed at his pres- ence in a Baghdad neighbourhood after a large explosion tore. apart several buildings, confront the filmmaker and confiscate his camera. After the screen- ing, Mr. Gol will host a question-and-answer session. Occupation? A Passage Through Iraq will be screened on Feb 24 at the New Westminster campus of Douglas College, Room 2201. Showtime, 12—2pm. Elizabeth Vail, The Gateway (University of Alberta) Ww ™ bt CS ~~ So a EDMONTON (CUP)—Neil Grahn had a dream. “I woke up one night and went, ‘You know .what'd be a great show? If Wes (Borg) had this thing at his house where he showed really funny websites!” Maybe it doesn’t sound like much, but from this dream, The Geek Show was born—a weekly half-hour semi-impro vised show about what geeks like best, the Internet. The show’s been airing on Saturday and Tuesday evenings on Access and Canadian Learning Television since the fall, and, like most late-night public pro- gramming, it has a certain DIY quality. But Grahn doesn’t mind. “We wouldn’t spend any more money on it, because part of the fun is that it’s just at Wes’s place and it’s us hanging out with a small group of peo- ple,’ he explains. “A lot of money wouldn’t help the show; it wouldn’t make it any funnier.” During an intense seven days, all 13 episodes of the first season were shot in Borg’s living room, complete with a keyboard, a “applause” sign that doesn’t always musician on flashy work, and the biggest studio audience they could’ fit onto the living room sofa www.theotherpress.ca 13 ri l { ( &. € (which is to say, four people). Oh, and of course, a computer. Hach episode, Wes the host displays websites, flash animations, and funny have (featured sites clips included HomestarRunner.com and Chickenhead.com). Grahn says the show’s humour is influenced by Waynes World (except “We’re fer real,’ Grahn jokes), Monty Python, and Sting (“Sting is very, very funny. I’m not sure if Sting does know he’s that funny, but if you used to be a teacher and now you're in your 40s and you're still going by the name Sting, that’s funny,” says Grahn). Given their late-night timeslot, Wes and Neil, who met while performing in the comedy troupe Three Dead Trolls in a Baggie, are counting on positive word of mouth to increase The Geek Shon’s ratings. With a budget described by Neil as “being out of out own pock- et,” the two are more focused on working to achieve a fan base and sec- ond season than achieving fabulous wealth. “’m trying personally to be broke. If I can get up to zero, where I don’t owe anybody and I’m just broke, that would be sweet; that would be the Zen state of financial nothingness,” jokes Borg.