San Antonio senior film and digital media student Breanna Villani practices her steadicam operation on Henderson sophomore Teila Washington. (Jackie Fernandez | Contributor)

Every story has a beginning, and for many aspiring students of film and digital media, the journey starts when they enter the classrooms of the Castellaw Communications Center.

Each professor has his specialty; for senior lecturer Brian Elliott, it is television and screenwriting. Elliott said his desire is to guide those who are trying to achieve their dreams of making it in the entertainment industry.

“My greatest joy is to sit down with people who kind of go, ‘I think I want to do this but that seems kind of crazy. Who does this?’ and I go, ‘There is sort of a path. It’s not necessarily an easy path, but there’s a path and I can help you think it through,’” Elliott said.

Elliott, who has been teaching at Baylor for 22 years, said he loves to watch students thrive in the classroom through collaborative work and projects.

“I enjoy being in creative environments with students who have some creative ideas and trying to help them figure out how to shape those ideas into something that actually tells a story,” Elliott said.

One way some of the professors in the film and digital media department relate to students is that their own journeys also began at Baylor. Dr. Jim Kendrick, associate professor, started off his freshman year at Baylor as an English major but soon realized he had a passion for something more.

“I started doing film criticism for The Lariat when I was an undergrad, and I really enjoyed doing it,” Kendrick said. “I did a master’s degree here in journalism, but literally every paper that I wrote, I wrote about film somehow or another.”

As a film critic, Kendrick appreciates the intimate settings of his classes because not only do the students get to learn from him, but he also gets to have different outlooks on films he may have seen multiple times before.

“The classes I enjoy teaching the most are my smaller, seminar-style classes where there is a lot of back and forth between me and the students, where it’s not so much as me lecturing but us discussing the films,” Kendrick said. “I learn amazing things from them because they always come at it with a different perspective than I do.”

The experiences of the professors go beyond teaching within the classroom. Chris Hansen, associate professor and director of film and digital media, is not only a professor but also a filmmaker.

“I love the fact that I get to do what I am passionate about and that is make films and write films, while also working with students to improve their ability to do what they want to do,” Hansen said.

Hansen began his journey at Baylor after receiving his Masters of Fine Arts in Script and Screenwriting at Regent University. With three independent feature films to his credit as writer and as producer, Hansen can relate to student experiences in the process of making films.

“I have the same successes and failures that our students have creatively as I’m trying to get my work out there,” Hansen said. “I know they appreciated knowing that I have those moments, too, where it is just so hard and you want to give up.”

It is these experiences that professors have gone through that help encourage students in knowing they are not alone. Although they are still learning, students may find assurance in knowing they do not have to know everything because they are still honing their skills.

“I have so much respect for my professors because they didn’t just read a book and then come and teach it. They went out in the real world and did it,” Farmers Branch junior Brittney DeVine said. “They know what they are talking about and they know how to get you ready to go out into the real world.”

The film and digital media program offers a variety of classes such as television writing, HD studio, field production and media and society. By having a variety of choices, students can choose which classes best suit their interest in the field of television or film.

“Whatever you want to do in the film world, Baylor gives you the options to get there,” St. Louis, Mo., senior Jake Brown said. “They cover everything you need to know, at least the basics.”

The film and digital media department has produced well-known alumni such as John Lee Hancock, director of “The Blind Side”, and Derek Haas and Michael Brandt, creators of NBC’s hit show “Chicago Fire.” Haas and Brandt have also written screenplays for several hit movies, including “Wanted” and “3:10 to Yuma.” Although some names are not as recognizable as others, it does not mean their work goes unnoticed. Success is defined by hard work.

“Being a working filmmaker who is certainly not a Steven Spielberg or not somebody who is a household name makes me connected to the students and connected to the industry,” Hansen said. “I’m doing this work that I want to do, but it also helps me to better understand and relate to the students who are having the same challenges and frustrations.”

In order to train students to achieve their end goal of creating what they love, they need some support along the way. Elliott relates being a professor to being a hitting coach of a baseball team as an encourager — and to leading the students on the course to where they desire to go.

“I know one of my strengths is being the hitting coach, knowing that I can hopefully hear what you want to do, listen to your questions, listen to your fears, listen to your concerns and try to help you see a little farther down the road,” Elliott said. “I get equal pleasure out of doing that as I do finishing a project because that investment is going to have a life after me sitting in a room with that person.”

One piece of advice Kendrick said he feels is most important for students is that they should be passionate about what they are doing and going into.

“They have to be willing to dive in completely and swim against the tide,” Kendrick said. “Do what you love. It’s much better to get a small paycheck and doing what you love than to make bank but hate going to work every day.”

Through the courses students are taking and the guidance of their professors, students feel prepared for any adventure or opportunity that may come their way, including the connections they make at Baylor.

“The most exciting opportunity is the Baylor in New York program, which I will be participating in this fall,” Seattle junior Nina Cates said. “I will be living in New York from August to December, working at an internship and being a full time student. It is going to be the experience of a lifetime and it would not be possible if I wasn’t at Baylor.”

Students say they understand that their journey is only beginning once they graduate from Baylor. None of what they have done means anything unless they are willing to take what they learn from class and take that beyond the Baylor community.

“Nobody wants a 22-year-old to come on set and think that they know everything.” DeVine said. “They want somebody that is eager to learn, wants to learn and is ready to learn. Baylor teaches the film students to just thrive and be ready to take opportunities as they come and always be purposeful with what you do.”

Dr. Corey Carbonara, a professor in the film and digital media department, has been a professor at Baylor for 30 years. He has contributed much to Baylor’s film department along with other film professors.
Carbonara sat down in an interview to talk about his time here, some of the research he has worked with and what he talks with his students about in the classroom.

Q: At one of the basketball games this season you, Dr. Michael Korpi, professor of film and digital media, and some FDM students were researching with new live-action technology. Can you explain exactly what that was?
A: It’s called the Mobile DTV project. What it refers to is the fact that when television moved from analog to digital television there was spectrum that was given to each of the broadcasters to make that transition.
During the time that was moving that way, the thought was that the U.S. should be thinking about a more mobile reception of high-definition signals rather than just looking at them being sent to a dwelling place or to an office.
What about how people are moving. What that does is it opens up opportunities for broadcasters to be looking at other types of arrangements or venues.
One of the venues that came to our mind and to the industry’s mind was we were looking at spectator sports. With the spring timeframe, it was determined that Baylor would be chosen by an industry group to really test out an in-venue opportunity to be able to broadcast multiple cameras to audiences that would have the receptor attached to their mobile phone or to an iPad and be able to receive those images.

Q: What were some of the student opinions of the experiment?
A: Generally, the opinions were very favorable. They thought it was phenomenal because you could choose between four different views. One of the views was a view of all four cameras and three of the other cameras were on the different channels. One of them was switched as an output feed that would have gone to the actual image magnification screens inside of the Ferrell Center.
The fact that you could do that was one they were very interested in. The second one was that there was a little bit of a delay. People are used to live transmission and the fact that there was a delay meant that if they looked away or got up and came back, they could actually see the play.”

Q: What is SMPTE Fellows?
A: Dr. Korpi and I have the distinction of both being fellows of the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers. That’s an agency or a group of professionals that really started from the very first time film began, so Thomas Alva Edison was a fellow which puts us in really great company.
The fellow’s distinction is done by peers. They select you. It’s nothing you apply for; they recognize your work. What’s neat about Baylor is we have one of the longest standing and running student chapters of SMPTE. We actually started it back in 1984. We applied and got status to start our SMPTE chapter and we have been a SMPTE chapter ever since.

Q: What are some other contributions you have made to Baylor?
A: A lot of this has been done with other colleagues. With Dr. Korpi, we had accomplished a resurge in a number of really interesting areas when HDTV was in its infancy. We wound up doing some important tests that show the difference between film and HDTV.
We had a series of road racing documentary shorts that we did; one was called “Fast Cars 1” and the other was called “Fast Cars 2.”
“It was a way for us to show a lot of the engineering community and a lot of the artists and directors that were out there.
“Fast Cars 2” was interesting because that one was actually comparison of 35 mm film with super 16 mm film intercut together and had the distinction of being the very first transfer to HD of film that was done using a new recording process. Because of the amount of HD material we have shot since 1986 to the present, we have been approached by the industry to do other things, including researching for an international standards body.
Q: What are some other groups you have been a part of?
A: We’ve been involved with Steadicam and we’ve been involved with SONY.
When I left SONY I had a really good relationship with them personally and they began their relationship with Baylor by providing equipment as early as 1989. We were the very first university in the world to have access to HDTV equipment.
When people were just trying to figure out what it stood for, we already were producing programs out of Baylor with students having those types of skills.

Q: In the classroom, what are some ideals you teach your students?
A: For me, I think it’s the mixture of theory and practice. I think it’s so important for students to understand, especially in the arts, that there’s an industry behind all of this. There’s really this mix of understanding how theory is important in terms of visual theory or in terms of audio.
I always like to make sure that they are combined with very practical applications. I really believe firmly that one of the most beautiful things about being able to teach here at Baylor is the fact that we can bring ethics and we can talk about integrity and we can bring our faith.

Q: How do you feel about Baylor’s film department and the direction it is heading? How has it improved ever since you came here?
A: It has changed a lot. By 1982-83 I think there were about 80 majors total. The major emphasis at that time was training people to be anchors on the news. We certainly saw the scope change from Dr. Korpi’s leadership.
Both he and I felt we needed to expand the social impact side and the criticism of film and television. We have seen the quality of film making grow.
We’re much more rounded now and I just think the contributions of my colleagues are phenomenal. I love being in an environment where I like everybody I work with.

This is a screencap from Mount Pleasant graduate student Maverick Moore’s film “Friday, October 21.” This is one of three films Moore will showcase at the Black Glasses Film Festival on Friday. (Courtesy Photo)

Each spring semester, selected students spend countless days creating films of all types that are shown at The Black Glasses Film Festival.

While film and digital media majors primarily enter in this festival, all students are allowed to submit their own films.

This year, the event will be held at 7 p.m. Friday in the Jones Theatre of the Hooper-Schaefer Fine Arts Center.

Tickets are $3 for students, seniors and military, and are $5 for adults. They can be bought in 150 Castellaw Communications Center from Melanie Ferguson or they can be bought at the door.

Some of the films may include violence, adult themes and profanity, so parents attending the festival should expect PG-13 levels throughout the films.

Students whose films were selected for the festival are: Stilwell Kans., graduate student Phillip Heinrich, Fort Worth graduate student Aaron Youngblood, Burleson senior Mikey Newton, Siloam Springs, Ark., senior Alec Weaver, Mount Pleasant graduate student Maverick Moore, Roseville Calif., senior Nick Mater, Dallas senior Stephen Bell, New Braunfels senior Liz Kensing, Waco graduate student Ruth Sabin, Fair Oaks Ranch junior Luke Rodgers, graduate student Bob Oei and Hewitt senior Zachary Korpi.

Students submitted films of various genres, which range from one minute to 30 minutes long. There are four awards given out at the conclusion of the festival: Best Film, Best Editing, Best Cinematography, which are voted by judges, and Audience Choice, which is voted on by the audience.

There is also a separate contest called “The Best Ten Pages Screenwriting Competition” where students submit the first 10 pages of their screenplay to Dr. James Kendrick, associate professor of communication or Brian Elliott senior lecturer of communication studies.

There will be a first, second and third prize awarded for this. The competition is based on Hollywood insiders who say a script can be found successful within the first 10 pages.

This will be Moore’s first time in the Black Glasses Film Festival. Three of his films were selected: “Friday, October 21”, “Something Mental” and “Where We Started.” He said he is excited that his films were selected.

“Three of my films made it into the festival, and I consider these three my best work,” he said. “On one hand, my top three films get into a festival and on the other hand, the well has run dry. It’s time to get back to work again.”

Moore said his first film, “Friday, October 21”, was a project for his directing class and is a narrative short, a short story that presents connected events, centered on true events.

“Basically, the story is about a guy who is physically and mentally tormented by those around him,” he said. “For mysterious reasons, he is also obsessed with a self-proclaimed prophet, Harold Camping, stating that the world will end on Friday, October 21.”

For his other two films, “Something Mental” and “Where We Started”, he said one was an award winner while the other was a trailer for a film made by a Baylor professor.

“Something Mental won the Fan Favorite Award in the Transworld Skateboarding’s Cinematographer Contest,” he said. “It’s a skateboard montage with no actors, scripts or rehearsals. The other film is a trailer I made for Chris Hansen’s “Where We Started.” It’s about two strangers who have reached the age where life’s disappointments start to add up.”

Moore said he would like to work in Los Angeles or Nashville as a film director.

“That’s my dream,” he said. “Working as an editor would be fantastic as well. If I could pick any business to work for, it would be for The Criterion Collection.”

The Criterion Collection is a company that distributes important and classic films to film-lovers.

Youngblood will be at the festival for the first time as well. He will be displaying three films: “The Slide.” “Voices Wake Us,” which is a 20-minute short, and a two-minute teaser for an upcoming feature named “In Paradise.”

He said he is co-directing the two-minute teaser with fellow student Philip Heinrich.

“We will be shooting the film in August,” he said. “The film that is showing at Black Glasses is a short teaser that introduces the audience to the main character.”

Youngblood also co-directed “Voices Wake Us” with Heinrich. He said the film was a main project for his film production class that he worked on all semester.

“It is a sci-fi story that involves a single character that crashes on an alien planet and is only able to communicate with her ship’s computer, AI,” he said.

The other film Youngblood made, “The Slide,” was a class project, which was shot on a playground.

“We had to choose one location from a list of options and one plot item from a list of choices and make that plot item take place in the location we chose,” he said. “The premise I chose was getting lost in a playground.”

The winners will be announced the same night, shortly after the conclusion of the festival.

Mariah Carey arrives at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Calif. on March 7, 2010. (Michael Goulding/Orange County Register/MCT)

LOS ANGELES – Fox is denying a report that “American Idol” considered coaxing “Jenny From the Block” to make a U-turn on the “American Idol” judging street.

A story from The Hollywood Reporter said a dip in ratings had producers scrambling to find a solution to bail out the long-running singing competition series: swapping Mariah Carey for former “Idol” judge Jennifer Lopez came to mind. A scheme that apparently was halted when Mariah Carey threatened legal action.

A Fox spokesperson denied the conspiracy, while hinting that Lopez could return for the show’s upcoming finale.

“This is just another ridiculous ‘Idol’ judge rumor, likely started by talks of Jennifer performing on the finale,” the spokesperson said.

Fremantle North America, which produces the show, did not immediately return requests for comment.

“American Idol” had a seemingly solid start with the launch of its 12th season, which featured yet another new set of faces: Nicki Minaj, Keith Urban and Carey joined longtime judge Randy Jackson. The show’s premiere brought in nearly 18 million viewers and a not-too-shabby 6.0 rating in the advertiser-favorite 18-49 demo. While still hefty, the long-running show has seen its double-digit dip in ratings for a second year in a row.

And the 12th season would get wobbly from there, while genre competitor “The Voice” gained traction and Thursday time slot competitor “The Big Bang Theory” closing in with total viewers.

Of the new judges, Minaj has stood out with her flamboyant personality, while Carey has failed to excite viewers. Though the network is denying any current changes to the lineup, let’s not be surprised if changes come once the season is over.

Plano senior Taylor Roth competed on the game show Jeopardy for its college championship. Roth competed against 15 other students from universities across the country.
(Courtesy Photo)

Clue: A Baylor student flew to Los Angeles for a game show. Answer: What is “Jeopardy’s” College Championship?

Plano senior Taylor Roth appeared on the game show “Jeopardy” Monday and Tuesday, competing against 15 students from different universities across the country for the grand prize of $100,000 and a spot on “Jeopardy’s “Tournament of Champions show.

The two-week event will air starting May 6. Jeopardy is available in Waco at 2:30 p.m. on KCEN-TV.

Roth, a University Scholars student, said getting on “Jeopardy,” — one of the largest trivia game shows, with 25 million viewers each week — didn’t require a lot of studying.

“I didn’t study that much because I knew they could talk about just about anything, but I studied up a little on presidents, Shakespeare and world capitals,” Roth said.

Roth was chosen for the show after passing an online test and a personal audition that included a 50-question test and mock version of the game show. She had a personal interview with producers, narrowing her down to one of the 15 students to appear on the program.

Contestant producer Maggie Speak said Roth’s charisma played a big role in her acceptance on the show.

“She is a lovely girl,” Speak said. “Her personality is just terrific and she plays very well. That’s what made her stand out more than anything; she had the whole package.”

Roth said her enthusiasm for the show started when she was in middle school. She began watching the show for its speed and variety.

“I really like the fast pace,” Roth said. “There’s never a dull moment. You don’t have a lot of time to think and there is a wide range of categories. If there’s not something that appeals to you, then something else will.”

“Jeopardy” started back in 1984 as a quiz show to test people on their skills in history, language arts, literature, art, sciences, geography, popular culture and wordplay. The questions are sorted into categories from which contestants can choose the level of difficulty they want.

Speak said the college segment caters to students not only with references to popular culture but also subjects they are studying. She said successful college contestants don’t just understand their major but have a “wide range of knowledge.”

“You want to have a combination going,” Speak said. “They need to be well read and they should understand a wide variety of subjects.”

As a University Scholar, Roth said she studies a combination of materials based on her academic interests. The University Scholars program allows its students to explore their interests as part of their degree plans, forgoing the traditional majors path to graduation.

Roth’s knowledge base and the support she received from friends and family helped get her behind a “Jeopardy” lectern in California. By the time the show was over, Roth was glad to have accomplished one of her life goals.

“I didn’t go in with any expectations because I knew I would have fun. Being able to cross this off my bucket list is a big thing. It’s not about how well I do on the show because it’s about the experience,” Roth said.

An Elmo character, left, uses a woman’s camera to photographer her with a Cookie Monster character, in New York’s Times Square, Tuesday, April 9, 2013. A string of arrests in the last few months has brought unwelcome attention to the growing number of people, mostly poor immigrants, who make a living by donning character outfits, roaming Times Square and charging tourists a few dollars to pose with them in photos. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

NEW YORK — Cookie Monster stands accused of shoving a 2-year-old. Super Mario was charged with groping a woman. And Elmo was booked for berating tourists with anti-Semitic slurs.

Times Square is crawling with entrepreneurs who dress up as pop-culture characters and try to make a few bucks posing for photos with visitors to the big city. But some of these characters are unlike anything you’ve seen on “Sesame Street” or at Disney World.

They smoke, they use foul language, and they can be aggressive. At least three of them have been arrested in the past seven months.

“He was using words that were really bad,” said Parmita Kurada of Stamford, Conn., who told police she got into a dispute this week with a man in a Cookie Monster costume who demanded $2 for posing with her 2-year-old son, Samay.

Kurada said that when she told the Cookie Monster that her husband needed to get cash, the shaggy blue creature pushed the boy and began calling her and the child obscene names.

“It was very scary for us, and I was crying. I didn’t want to provoke him, so I said, ‘We’ll give you the money, but stop yelling!’” she said.

Osvaldo Quiroz-Lopez, 33, was charged with assault, child endangerment and aggressive begging. His lawyer did not immediately return a call for comment.

Asked by a WNBC-TV reporter why he no longer likes the character he sees on “Sesame Street,” little Samay said: “Because Cookie Monster give me boo-boo.”

In the wake of the latest arrest, the bustling “Crossroads of the World” was filled Tuesday with performers, including multiple versions of Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Hello Kitty, a Transformer robot, Lady Liberty, Super Mario and Elmo.

Many of them are immigrants trying to eke out a living in what appear to be knockoff costumes.

As street performers protected by the First Amendment, they are free to roam Times Square and work for tips that average between $2 and $5 a photo as long as they don’t block traffic, sell merchandise or demand payment, police say. That’s a ticketable offense that can cost about $60.

“I don’t think they should charge, but if they’re unemployed or homeless, and this is the only way they can make money, it’s OK,” said Lauren Larcara of Oakland, N.J., who posed with a torch-carrying Statue of Liberty.

Laura Vanegas, a 45-year-old native of Ecuador, changes into her Liberty robes and applies copper-green face paint behind the Times Square military recruiting station. She said she picks up $30 to $50 on her eight-hour shift.

Steve Crass, dressed as a robot in fluorescent red and white plastic panels, said he has made as much as $280 during his six-hour stint in front of Toys R Us. He acknowledged: “Some of the characters are a little too aggressive.”

Police spokesman Paul Browne said in an email that the department has had “occasional issues with the ‘faux paws’ in Times Square, but they’re nominal.”

The case against the Super Mario charged with groping is still pending. The Elmo accused of an anti-Semitic rant pleaded guilty in September to disorderly conduct and was sentenced to two days of community service.

City Council Speaker Christine Quinn called the Cookie Monster case “just horrible” and said lawmakers have been looking into how to regulate the characters. But she noted the issue is, well, fuzzy.

“It’s very challenging legally because dressing up in a costume and walking around Times Square is, we believe, a First Amendment-protected activity,” said Quinn, a candidate to be New York’s next mayor.

Similar cases of misbehavior by costumed performers have been reported in Hollywood.

Disney did not respond to a request for comment, while the Sesame Workshop, the organization behind “Sesame Street,” said it has not authorized such uses of any its characters in any city and is looking into what actions it can take.

Anthony Elia, a New York lawyer in the intellectual-property field, said the entertainment groups probably have a case for trademark infringement, but “the challenge probably would be getting a bunch of self-employed entrepreneurial individuals to stop.”

It’s not the easiest way to make a living. On a day when temperatures pushed 80, they sweated in their outfits, coming out from under their oversized costume heads only to grab a hot dog or a smoke. When one posed for a photo, two or three others dashed over and joined in.

“Want to take a picture?” a furry red Elmo asked a tourist. Moments later, he declined to speak to a reporter, saying through his costume, “I no speak English.”

A Minnie Mouse offered a toddler in a stroller her hand and positioned herself at the handlebar. A Super Mario rushed over to join her.

“She said, ‘Can you give us money?’” said the child’s mother, Melanie Somogyi of Hamilton, Ontario. “And they grabbed the stroller!”

THE VOICE — “Blind Auditions” Episode 403 — Pictured: Holly Tucker — (Photo by: Trae Patton/NBC)

Baylor has another claim to fame after Monday night’s blind audition episode of “The Voice.”

Lorena sophomore Holly Tucker has come a long way from performing at such venues as the local farmer’s market to wowing the thousands that tuned in to watch NBC’s “The Voice” with her performance. Tucker is currently in Los Angeles, Calif., preparing for the next stage of the competition.

“The Voice” is a competition where coaches Adam Levine, Blake Shelton, Shakira and Usher mentor singers and viewers vote for contestants to continue on. “The Voice” is currently airing its blind auditions where singers or singing duos perform for the judges with their chairs and backs turned. The judges press a button to turn their chair around when they decide they want the singer or duo on their team.

Tucker said she started her professional singing career at the age of 12 and traveled to various locales in and out of Texas to perform with the support of her parents, John and Cheryl Tucker. In the eight years since then, Tucker has gone on to win numerous awards such as Female Vocalist of the Year in 2011 by the Music Association of Central Texas and Central Texas Idol in 2012. It was obvious that Tucker was going places, and after hearing about “The Voice” she knew exactly where she was going.

“I thought the premise of the show, that the coaches wouldn’t be able to see you and only judge you on your voice alone, your talent, that just really, really appealed to me,” Tucker said. “It’s unlike any other show. I was just thinking about how surreal this whole experience is, just to be here, to have come this far already. I couldn’t have asked for a better experience. It was incredible, I’ve never felt better in my entire life.”

Tucker sang “To Make You Feel My Love” by Bob Dylan, a song with multiple covers by various artists such as Adele and Garth Brooks.

“You ain’t seen nothing like me yet” were words that rang Monday night when, within the first 30 seconds of her song, all four judges had turned their chairs for Tucker.

Melody Padilla, a Baylor sophomore from El Paso, tuned into “The Voice” for the first time yesterday to see Tucker’s performance.

“I didn’t really know how good she was until I saw it”, said Padilla, who had never heard Tucker perform before. “But once she started singing it was crazy.”

“Whenever the song ended and I saw that all four chairs had turned around I was just in utter disbelief,” Tucker said.

Tucker’s performance sparked a particularly heated battle between judges Levine and Shelton who both wanted Tucker for their team. After talking with all the judges, Tucker finally chose Blake’s team and is looking forward to working with the famous country singer.

“Even though Blake has more experience in the country world, and that is my genre, I’m most excited about how he is going to challenge me,” Tucker said.

Tucker is also a former Uproar artist and has opened for bands at local venues such as Melody Ranch and Whiskey River.

“We have always loved Holly’s music,” said Uproar publicist Zane Harrington. “We’re so excited for her success on “The Voice” Monday and we wish her the very best luck in the episodes to come.”

The next phase will be the battle phase where singers will work with their coaches and then battle against one other teammate. Their coach will then decide which singer will advance to the final stage.

The final stage will be the live performances where the singers will compete live vying for viewer votes.

“The Voice” airs at 7 p.m. Central Time on Mondays and Tuesdays on NBC.

Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II is shown round the carriage of a parked train at Baker Street underground station in London, for a visit to mark the 150th anniversary of the London Underground, Wednesday, March 20, 2013. The Queen made her first public engagement in more than a week Wednesday after cancellations following her hospitalization for a stomach bug. The British head of state joined her husband Prince Philip and their granddaughter-in-law, Kate, for the event marking the 150th anniversary of London’s sprawling subway system, affectionately known as the Tube. (AP Photo/Chris Radburn, Pool)

Staff Writer
Associated Press

LONDON — Queen Elizabeth II needed no convincing to appear in a James Bond-themed skit during the opening ceremony of the London Olympics — in fact, she volunteered, according to the show’s director.

Director Danny Boyle says he had initially thought a lookalike — possibly actress Helen Mirren — would play the role of Elizabeth alongside Bond actor Daniel Craig.

He tells ITV’s Jonathan Ross in an interview to air Saturday night that when he sought permission from officials to film the skit he heard back that not only was the video a go, but the monarch herself wanted to be in it.

Boyle says that when filming began, the queen asked him if he thought she should have a line, to which he replied “O.K., what do you suggest?”

“She said ‘I’ll do something’ and we started shooting and she turned round and she said her lines beautifully,” he said, according to excerpts of the interview released in advance.

The queen’s star turn in the skit was considered one of the highlights of the opening ceremony last year.

In the skit, a tuxedo-clad 007 strides into Buckingham Palace to escort his VIP guest to the Olympic ceremony. In her acting debut, Elizabeth swivels around in her desk chair to face the legendary spy and declares: “Good evening, Mr. Bond.”

Two of the queen’s corgi dogs also appeared in the clip.

Actress Lindsay Lohan, left, and her attorney Mark Heller appear at a hearing in Los Angeles Superior Court, Monday, March 18, 2013. Lohan accepted a plea deal on Monday in a misdemeanor car crash case that includes 90 days in a rehabilitation facility. The actress, who has struggled for years with legal problems, pleaded no contest to reckless driving, lying to police and obstructing officers who were investigating the accident involving the actress in June. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon, Pool)

By Derrik Lang
Associated Press Entertainment Writer

LOS ANGELES — Lindsay Lohan isn’t headed back to jail — but she won’t be free to party for a while either.

The troubled 26-year-old actress accepted a plea deal on Monday in a misdemeanor car crash case that includes 90 days in a locked-down rehabilitation facility that she won’t be able to leave.

Lohan, who has struggled for years with legal problems and been briefly jailed five times, pleaded no contest to reckless driving and lying to police who were investigating the accident involving the actress in June along Pacific Coast Highway.

A charge of obstructing an officer was dropped.

Lohan also was found in violation of her probation in a 2011 necklace theft and sentenced to 180 days in jail.

However, she can avoid jail time if she complies with the conditions of her plea deal, which also includes 30 days of community labor, 18 months of psychological therapy and an unspecified fine and restitution.

Lohan spoke little to Superior Court Judge James R. Dabney in court and said “yes” when asked if she accepted the plea deal. Before the “Mean Girls” actress left the courtroom, Dabney offered her a suggestion.

“Don’t drive,” he said.

Dabney did not set a date for Lohan to begin rehab. Instead he set another hearing for May 2, when the court must be given proof of enrollment in a treatment program.

The sentence extends Lohan’s probation for another two years. Dabney warned her that there won’t be any discussion about putting her back on probation if she doesn’t meet the conditions of the latest sentence.

Lohan arrived nearly an hour late for Monday’s proceedings and was showered with confetti as she passed through a barrage of media to enter the courthouse.

The “Freaky Friday” star reportedly missed her original Sunday night flight from New York to Los Angeles, instead traveling on a private plane provided by a Los Angeles-based energy drink company for which she has made promotional appearances.

“Thanks Mr. Pink for the private jet see you all in a few hours in LA,” she tweeted early Monday.

After entering the courtroom, Lohan sat for more than two hours as her New York-based attorney, Mark Jay Heller, and prosecutors ironed out a plea deal.

After a pair of arrests for driving under the influence in 2007, Lohan has resolved her numerous legal issues without going to trial.

Instead she has faced judges who have sentenced her to rehab and counseling, which even her current attorney acknowledges have not completely helped the troubled actress.

Lohan entered Monday’s hearing with a lawyer whose competence has been questioned by a judge. At one point during the proceedings, she told an incessant Heller not to “say anything else.” Lohan and Heller were joined by Long Beach-based attorney Anthony J. Falangetti.

Lohan’s longtime advocate, Shawn Holley, left the case earlier this year after keeping the actress out of jail for significant periods of time on probation violations and the allegation in 2011 that she took a $2,500 necklace without permission from an upscale jeweler.

After Lohan left the courthouse, her father, Michael Lohan, who brought his own legal team to the proceedings, confronted Heller and Falangetti.

Michael Lohan told reporters that Heller was being investigated for witness tampering in the case and was not being paid by his daughter. Instead, Lohan said the attorney took the case to gain media attention. Heller did not respond to the claim by Lohan at the courthouse. A call to his New York office was not immediately returned.

“Go home,” Michael Lohan called out to him. “You have done enough damage. Leave my daughter alone and stay out of the press. You’re a parasite.”

Lohan, who’s had a strained relationship with his daughter over the years, was restrained by his attorney and separated from Heller and Falangetti by a sheriff’s deputy.

Heller “is her official representative,” Falangetti told Lohan. “You are not.”

Lindsay Lohan has been a courthouse mainstay since 2010 when she failed to appear for a probation hearing because she claimed she lost her passport in France.

By that point, she had already been on probation for nearly three years on the pair of driving under the influence cases that took the former Disney star five years to resolve.

Lohan has been under some form of probation since her 2007 convictions and has been repeatedly sent to jail and rehab for violations ranging from failing to perform her community service to skipping counseling sessions.

All her jail stints have been short because she has only been convicted of misdemeanors and because of jail overcrowding.

Out of court, Lohan has struggled to regain her stature in Hollywood. She missed the premiere of “Machete” in 2010 because of her court troubles, and her acting return in 2012’s “Liz & Dick” was widely panned by critics and viewers.

Lohan relocated to New York after work on the movie was complete, but her return to her childhood home has had its share of drama. She has been arrested twice, though not charged, for late-night incidents in which she has been accused of hitting a man with her car and striking a woman at a Manhattan nightclub.

Prosecutors decided last year that Lohan would not face criminal charges and wouldn’t elaborate on their decision about the Sept. 21 episode involving Jose Rodriguez, 34, of Jersey City, N.J.

Police also had to be called to Lohan’s childhood home on Long Island after a report of a fight between her and her mother. An investigation revealed what authorities called “no criminality.”

Ben Affleck and the team behind “Argo” during the show at the 85th annual Academy Awards at the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center in Los Angeles, California, Sunday, February 24, 2013. (Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times/MCT)

At the 85th Oscar Academy Awards last week, there were a number of movies nominated for Best Picture. Some of these movies however, had much more in common than a nomination for Best Picture.

Dr. Greg Garrett, professor of English, pointed out that the nominees, Lincoln, Silver Linings Playbook, Argo, Zero Dark Thirty, Les Miserables and Life of Pi, all have a common message: perseverance in the everyday life.

“In each of the films, as in our lives, characters are presented with tasks to be performed, often over the long haul, but they have to be performed moment by moment,” Garrett said.

These nominees have similar themes of getting up in the morning and doing the work. Garrett uses the films Les Miserables and Zero Dark Thirty as prime examples for this message.

“One doesn’t jump, for example, from the hell of prison, at the beginning of Les Miserables, to Heaven at the end,” he said. “Jean Valjean (Hugh Jackman) has to make the journey in small, faithful steps. Same with Jessica Chastain’s character in Zero Dark Thirty. As she pursues her goal of bringing Osama bin Laden to justice, she has to get up every morning and do the work.”

Olathe, Kan., senior Kendall Kaut saw most of the movies, but there was one movie that he felt portrayed the theme especially well.

“Les Miserables,” he said. “Anne Hathaway’s decision to keep going in a life full of struggle as she faced continuous violence and sexual assault until she knew her daughter would be cared for. That was an excellent example of perseverance.”

Argo ended up winning the Oscar for Best Picture and Garrett said he had predicted it to win because it was well made and thoughtful. Although Garrett predicted Argo to win Best Picture, he said there was another movie which appealed to him the most and carried out the theme of perseverance the best.

“Silver Linings Playbook was the most powerful and entertaining of all the films for me,” he said. “I resonated with the message of perseverance through mental illness and depression that Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence embodied because of my own history of depression. I think the film could be a powerful example of hope to those in pain.”

Garrett said that Life of Pi and Les Miserables focus more on the spiritual and religious aspect of perseverance while some of the other films don’t necessarily do the same.

“In movies like Argo, Silver Linings Playbook, and Zero Dark Thirty, the spirituality element isn’t explicit, although that doesn’t mean we can’t draw spiritual wisdom from it. As my friend and Baylor colleague Ralph Wood says, the job of a story is not to sermonize; it is to tell a story.”

Garrett teaches his students in his English courses how characters work their way through stories just like those among the Oscar nominees.

“In my writing classes we talk about ‘character arc’, how a character goes from point A to point Z during the course of a story,” he said. “That happens in bits and chunks. People don’t move from A to Z, but from A to B and B to C. Most great stories are told bit by bit.”

Garrett said people around Baylor can apply the message of perseverance to their daily lives. He said with Baylor being a Christian school, students and faculty should focus on the religion aspect of it.

“I’d draw their attention to the elements in the Christian tradition about living faithfully in Christian community and works day by day,” he said. “When I’m being conscious of the message, it’s because I’m reminding myself about how tradition teaches us how to live. Christianity is not a once-a-week attendance, but a 24/7 journey.”

Garrett has written other articles on the Oscar‘s including one that was published online in the religion section of the Huffington Post. Aside from his work on the Oscar’s, Garrett has written three critically-acclaimed novels and his work on culture, religion, and politics is known internationally.

He is currently working on a book for Oxford University Press on how depictions of the afterlife in literature and culture have shaped out belief and daily life.