How crime films try to keep up with real drama

TV

Maria Elena Fernandez TODAY

14 hours ago

The day before Lifetime began filming "Jodi Arias: Dirty Little Secret," its true crime movie about the Jodi Arias case, the now-convicted murderer shocked everyone by taking the stand at her trial. As Arias regaled the jury and public for 18 days with the minute details of her life and intimate relationship with Travis Alexander, the ex-boyfriend she killed, the movie's writers realized they could no longer end their story as they'd planned -- in a police interrogation room with Arias denying she'd even been at the scene.

As real life played out in a Mesa, Ariz., courtroom, it "was just too dramatic," to gloss over, said Arturo Interian, vice president of original movies for Lifetime Networks and A&E Networks. "To have [prosecutor] Juan Martinez suddenly becoming a hero in the public's eyes. And Jodi, now the villain of villains, going at it with Juan on the stand for multiple days?she was lying; he didn?t believe a word. He's nailing her and confronting her on her contradictions. You could not stop watching that. There's no way we could leave it out."

What to include and exclude in a true crime movie can be tricky business, especially when the case is not over. Legally, writers, producers and executives are bound by some of the facts as they reveal themselves in court but that doesn't mean that a movie has to wait to be made until all is said and done or that writers can't fill in the blanks. It depends on the point of the view the film is taking.

Lifetime's Arias film premieres Saturday at 8 p.m. -- the network began developing the movie 15 months ago, when no one expected the trial to last as long as it did or for the defendant to spend as much time trying to sell her self-defense claims. It put Jace Alexander, who was directing his first true crime movie, in the position of balancing artistic license with a story that was playing out in front of the world and simultaneously impacting real people. Her conviction meant that legally, producers could show her killing Alexander; without it, they would have had to focus on their rocky relationship and leave the conclusions to the audience.

"We are taking moments where no one knows or had access to the private closed-door moments of these people and imagining ourselves what happened," said Alexander who is not related to the victim. ?The minute that happens, we can't be held accountable for what other people think might be the truth. But there were a lot of facts we were privy to and we were faithful to those facts. Although I have nothing but the most respect for these people who have been living through this horrible tragedy, at the same time, we had to construct a narrative that may or may not sit well with them."

It was a first for Alexander but not for a network that built its brand when it seized on a gap left by the broadcast networks when they stopped making made-for-TV movies. Writer Teena Booth, who has written about 30 non-fiction movies, including Lifetime?s second biggest true crime hit, ?Drew Peterson: Untouchable,? says real life can get in the way of telling the story?even when the case is long over.

When she was writing a Lifetime movie that aired in 2008 about the murder of Las Vegas casino magnate Ted Binion, the court overturned the conviction of his girlfriend, Sandra Murphy, sending Booth into frantic re-write mode because she could no longer show Murphy killing Binion. Last year, as she wrote ?Fatal Honeymoon,? about Tina Watson, the newlywed wife who died while diving on her Australian honeymoon, the case against her husband was dismissed, though he had pleaded guilty to manslaughter in Australia.

?Those are real hair pullers,? Booth said. ?You can lose sleep. I am very committed to telling the truth as I understand it and what my research is showing. About 95% of the stories are pretty clear?you?re pretty sure that Jodi Arias did that. With Drew Peterson, I never had a doubt in my mind even though we were making the movie before he was convicted. But something like the Watson case is very ambiguous and there are many passionate conversations along the way with the network, producers and directors. Everyone wants to do the right thing and we also want to make a good movie.?

As a true crime writer, Booth researches her cases and follows a storytelling formula but her job is to dig beyond the facts and address a question that often is left answered in court?why? Trial watchers can surmise, for example, that Arias acted out in a jealous rage or that Peterson felt he owned his wife, but no one will ever know unless the murderers decide to reveal it. When preparing for a script, Booth reads whatever material she can find, but she also travels to where the crime occurred and interviews people who know the major players.

?My job is to understand the emotional content,? she said. ?I want to know who this person was. I feel a huge sense of responsibility toward the people I talk to because they?re sitting there telling me some of the most awful moments of their life, some of the most terrible things that have ever happened to them.?

Booth said she?s relieved not to have been charged with writing the Jodi Arias story because some stories ?are too upsetting too tackle.? When she wrote ?Amish Grace? for Lifetime about the 2006 Amish school shooting in Pennyslvania, Booth said she was on ?an emotional tear? for two months because it involved small children.

Michael Yarish / Lifetime

Rob Lowe starred in Lifetime's "Drew Peterson: Untouched," the network's second biggest true crime drama.

?Drew Peterson was a larger-than-life figure,? she said. ?You could keep a certain emotional distance from him because he?s like a clown. But Jodi Arias, there?s something more disturbing about her. She has this really dark side. It gives you a little bit of the creeps.?

At times, the horror of Arias' actions also got to Alexander who knew nothing about the case when he decided to direct his first Lifetime movie. The director opted to show the extreme violent nature of Arias? actions in spite of how difficult they are to even fathom because of what the horror reveals about the woman behind it.

?This man was brutally murdered and he shouldn?t have been and there are some deep emotions because of that,? Alexander said. ?There were 29 stab wounds and a gunshot and I felt it would be dishonest for me to just clip that and move forward. I want to show that it?s not OK. It?s hard for me to watch. I want people to watch this movie but you may need to cover your eyes a little bit.?

Those who followed the trial won?t be surprised by the gruesomeness of the murder, but critics have questioned whether Lifetime should be airing the movie so soon after the trial ended, especially because the sentencing portion has to be redone and the victim?s family will have to live through it again.

?When a story is as exposed in the public as this one, I feel like it?s open for people to interpret an artistic approach to these people because they are now in the public eye,? Alexander said. ?Whether that is fair or not, I?m still wrestling with. And believe me, I feel it. I?m not entirely comfortable with it at all.?

Booth said she?s never received a single complaint; in fact, often the families of the victims thank her for telling their story. ?I?ve never had a family come at me and say that it was horrible and they feel exploited,? she said. ?If that did happen, it would hurt. I would feel terrible.?

Source: http://www.today.com/entertainment/filmmakers-scramble-make-made-tv-films-accurate-6C10374594

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US government files criminal charges against Edward Snowden over PRISM leaks

The Washington Post reports tonight that, as expected, the US Government has filed criminal charges against Edward Snowden for leaking information about NSA surveillance programs to the Post and Guardian. The charges listed include Theft of Government Property, Unauthorized Communications on National Defense Information and "Willful Communication of Classified Information to an Unauthorized Person." The charges are filed in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, where the headquarters of Snowden's employer, Booz Allen Hamilton, are located. So what's next? According to the paper, the government has asked Hong Kong to detain Snowden on a provisional warrant, however if a fight over extradition or request for asylum could delay the process.

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Source: Washington Post, Official Complaint

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/06/21/us-government-files-criminal-charges-against-edward-snowden-over/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget

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Floods kill 3, 75,000 forced from Calgary homes

CALGARY, Alberta (AP) ? At least three people were killed by floodwaters that devastated much of southern Alberta, leading authorities to evacuate the western Canadian city of Calgary's entire downtown. Inside the city's hockey arena, the waters reached as high as the 10th row.

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Friday called the level of flooding "stunning" and said officials don't know yet if it will get worse, but said the water has peaked and stabilized and noted that the weather has gotten better.

Overflowing rivers washed out roads and bridges, soaked homes and turned streets into dirt-brown waterways around southern Alberta. Royal Canadian Mounted Police Sgt. Patricia Neely told reporters three were dead and two bodies were recovered. The two bodies recovered are the two men who had been seen floating lifeless in the Highwood River near High River on Thursday, she said.

Harper, a Calgary resident, said he never imagined there would be a flood of this magnitude in this part of Canada.

"This is incredible. I've seen a little bit of flooding in Calgary before. I don't think any of us have seen anything like this before. The magnitude is just extraordinary," he said.

"We're all very concerned that if gets much more than this it could have real impact on infrastructure and other services longer term, so we're hoping things will subside a bit."

Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi said the water levels have reached a peak, but have not declined.

"We've sat at the same level for many, many hours now," Nenshi said. "There is one scenario that would it go even higher than this, so you'll either see the Bow river continue at this level for many hours or you will see it grow even higher and we're prepared for that eventuality."

Twenty-five neighborhoods in the city, with an estimated 75,000 people, have already been evacuated due to floodwaters in Calgary, a city of more than a million people that hosted the 1988 Winter Olympics and serves as the center of Canada's oil industry.

Alberta Premier Alison Redford said Medicine Hat, east of Calgary, was under a mandatory evacuation order affecting 10,000 residents. The premier warned that communities downstream of Calgary had not yet felt the full force of the floodwaters.

About 350,000 people work in downtown Calgary on a typical day. However, officials said very few people need to be moved out, since many heeded warnings and did not go to work Friday.

A spokesman for Canada's defense minister said 1,300 soldiers from a base in Edmonton were being deployed to the flood zone.

Police were asking residents who were forced to leave the nearby High River area to register at evacuation shelter. The Town of High River remained under a mandatory evacuation order.

In downtown Calgary, water was inundating homes and businesses in the shadow of skyscrapers. Water has swamped cars and train tracks.

The city said the home rink of the National Hockey League's Calgary Flames flooded and the water inside was 10 rows deep. That would mean the dressing rooms are likely submerged as well.

"I think that really paints a very clear picture of what kinds of volumes of water we are dealing with," said Trevor Daroux, the city's deputy police chief.

At the grounds for the world-famous Calgary Stampede fair, water reached up to the roofs of the chuck wagon barns. The popular rodeo and festival is the city's signature event. Mayor Nenshi said it will occur no matter what.

About 1,500 have gone to emergency shelters while the rest have found shelter with family or friends, Nenshi said.

The flood was forcing emergency plans at the Calgary Zoo, which is situated on an island near where the Elbow and Bow rivers meet. Lions and tigers were being prepared for transfer, if necessary, to prisoner holding cells at the courthouse.

Schools and court trials were canceled Friday and residents urged to avoid downtown. Transit service in the core was shut down.

Residents were left to wander and wade through streets waist-deep in water.

Newlyweds Scott and Marilyn Crowson were ordered out of their central Calgary condominium late Friday as rising waters filled their parking garage and ruptured a nearby gas line. "That's just one building but every building is like this," he said. "For the most part, people are taking it in stride."

Crowson, a kayaker, estimated the Bow River, usually about four feet deep, is running at a depth of 15 feet (4.57 meters).

"It's moving very, very fast," he said of the normally placid stream spanned by now-closed bridges. "I've never seen it so big and so high."

It had been a rainy week throughout much of Alberta, but on Thursday the Bow River Basin was battered with up to four inches (100 millimeters) of rain. Environment Canada's forecast called for more rain in the area, but in much smaller amounts.

Calgary was not alone in its weather-related woes. Flashpoints of chaos spread from towns in the Rockies south to Lethbridge.

___

Associated Press writer Rob Gillies contributed from Toronto and AP writer Jeremy Hainsworth contributed from Vancouver, British Columbia.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/floods-kill-3-75-000-forced-calgary-homes-045622175.html

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AnyPresence Launches A Meta-API Platform To Help Companies Build Developer Communities

AnyPresence, a mobile backend-as-a-service, is launching a platform that tailors front-end branding and functionality with a backend server that the company calls a ?meta API.?

Richard Mendis, chief marketing officer and co-founder of AnyPresence, calls its ?Meta- Platform? an evolution of API management. He said the first-generation of API management companies helped customers develop APIs. Today?s developers need the API but also the software developer kit (SDK) and a starter user interface. The AnyPresence Meta-Platform pre-integrates a company?s product or services and out-of-the-box branding to create a mobile template that developers can then use to build their apps.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/oQxlhQYjf1w/

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More homes evacuated in Western wildfires

EVERGREEN, Colo. (AP) ? Firefighters attacked dozens of blazes in Western states where hot and windy conditions persisted Thursday, including two blazes that forced hundreds of people out of their homes in Colorado.

Air and ground crews resumed work against a 500-acre fire in the Rocky Mountain foothills about 30 miles southwest of Denver that impacted more than 100 people. The Lime Gulch Fire, possibly triggered by lightning, threatened no structures in Pike National Forest.

In southern Colorado, a 300-acre fire in Huerfano County forced at least 175 people to stay at a Red Cross shelter at a high school.

In Arizona, firefighters braced for more hot, windy weather Thursday as they battled a wildfire in Prescott National Forest that scorched nearly 12 square miles. The blaze erupted Tuesday afternoon and led to the evacuation of 460 homes.

To the north, smoke from another fire that broke out Wednesday was visible from Grand Canyon National Park. No structures were immediately threatened.

A blaze in southern New Mexico's Gila National Forest grew to 47 square miles.

In Northern California, hundreds of residents returned home as crews aided by lower temperatures and higher humidity extended their lines around a wildfire near a main route into Yosemite National Park. Only about 50 homes on two mountain roads remained under evacuation orders, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said. The fire, sparked Sunday by a campfire that wasn't fully put out, led to the evacuation of about 800 homes at its peak.

In Southern California, a nearly 6-square-mile fire in the San Bernardino National Forest was 83 percent contained.

The fire near Denver was burning in steep, heavily forested mountain terrain, south of where last year's Lower North Fork Fire damaged and destroyed 23 homes and killed three people. That fire was triggered by a prescribed burn that escaped containment lines.

Some residents said they were ready to leave in minutes, having practiced fire evacuations after the Lower North Fork Fire.

Karalyn Pytel was at home vacuuming when her husband called, saying he had received an alert on his cellphone telling the family to leave. She quickly grabbed her 6-year-old daughter's favorite blanket, a laptop computer, a jewelry box and some family heirlooms before fleeing.

"I grabbed a laundry basket and just threw stuff in it. I don't even know what clothes they are," Pytel said as she arrived at an evacuation center.

Firefighters were aided by two U.S. Air Force Reserve C-130s.

The planes also were used at a 22-square-mile wildfire near Colorado Springs that has destroyed 509 homes and killed two people since it started June 11.

In northwest Colorado, an 850-acre wildfire in Rio Blanco County forced Encana Corp. to shut down oil and gas facilities, the Bureau of Land Management said. Firefighters protecting buildings at an Encana station spotted embers up to a half-mile away from the blaze.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/more-homes-evacuated-western-wildfires-151727990.html

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Stop hyperventilating, say energy efficiency researchers

A single advanced building control now in development could slash 18 percent ? tens of thousands of dollars ? off the overall annual energy bill of the average large office building, with no loss of comfort, according to a report by researchers at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.

"An 18-percent boost in building energy efficiency by modifying a single factor is very, very good," said team leader Michael Brambley. "The savings were much greater than we expected."

The report is based on extensive simulations of the impact of one type of advanced building control now in the offing in the building industry. The device is capable of customizing the level of ventilation by sensing the number of people in different areas or zones of a building and then adjusting fan speed and air movement accordingly.

That's a big change from the way most sensor-based ventilation systems operate now: Currently, if there is even a single person in a room, ventilation runs full blast, as if the room is full.

But a room with just a few people doesn't need nearly as much ventilation as a crowded room. Why have a fan pushing around air for ventilation for 100 people if there's only one individual in the room? It's like airing out your house completely because there's one small whiff of bacon still in the kitchen.

"This is the reason you often feel cold when you're in a big space like a conference room or cafeteria without a lot of people," said engineer Guopeng Liu, the lead author of the report. "Technology available today doesn't detect how many people are in a room, and so air flow is at maximum capacity nearly constantly. That creates a big demand to re-heat the air before it enters the rooms. It takes a lot of energy to keep you comfortable under those circumstances."

Current occupancy sensors have helped the nation save significant amounts of energy by automatically turning off lights when they're not needed. But the team estimates that the more advanced versions still to come ? which count the number of people in rooms ? will save approximately 28 times as much energy, when used both for lighting and ventilation, compared to current sensors.

The project began three years ago when Liu began exploring the idea of adjusting air flow to different zones of a building based on the precise number of people in a room. That "decision" of how much air to move takes place in a piece of equipment known as a variable air volume terminal box. The new sensors that count people are likely to become available within the next few years. While they are currently very expensive, the technology is improving rapidly and the cost is expected to come down, Brambley noted.

"We undertook this study to try to determine if this is a technology worth pursuing vigorously. The answer, clearly, is yes. Using the number of people in a room as a factor in determining the level of air flow offers great promise for saving energy and money," said Brambley.

To do its study, the team focused on a prototypical large commercial office building whose footprint is 160 feet by 240 feet ? about 80 percent the size of a football field. The model building is 12 stories and also has a basement, giving it a total of about 500,000 square feet. Such buildings in the United States take up more than 4.4 billion square feet. To visualize the size, think of the land area covered by Seattle ? and a little bit of its suburbs ? as a giant one-story building.

Brambley's team programmed the simulation to heat a building if temperatures dipped below 70 degrees Fahrenheit and to provide cooling at temperatures beginning at 75 degrees. Numbers were set back 10 degrees on the evenings and weekends. Occupancy patterns were estimated based on past studies.

In 13 of the nation's 15 climate regions, the PNNL team estimates that the advanced controls would save at least $40,000 annually for each building similar in size to the one modeled in the study. In two cities, Duluth and Fairbanks, the savings stretch to more than $100,000 each year, because of the greatly reduced need to heat new air being pumped in from the cold outdoors. Even in the two cities where the savings would be the least, El Paso and Miami, estimated savings come to $33,400 and $23,500, respectively.

"While buildings have gotten much more efficient in the last two decades, there are still huge gains to be had," noted Brambley.

Since just a small percentage of office buildings in any given year are newly built, Brambley and Liu say a prime target for these advanced controls is retrofitting existing buildings. Liu notes that technology has leaped forward since 1989 ? the year the average large office building was built ? offering huge energy gains even with the expense of retrofitting.

Since heating and cooling and related equipment usually draw much more energy than lighting, those systems offer a greater opportunity for savings. The team found that advanced controls for ventilation offer about eight times as much savings as advanced controls for lighting, where lights are turned off more quickly than is now common after everyone leaves a room. When the HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) system alone is considered, the advanced controls cut energy usage by nearly 40 percent.

A stumbling block to the new technology is that certain advanced controls might require modification to some building codes. For instance, current codes require some ventilation at all times no matter how many people are present. Brambley thinks the options are worth considering, given the energy savings at stake.

In addition to Brambley and Liu, mechanical engineer Jian Zhang and engineer Robert Lutes contributed to the project. The work was support by DOE's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.

Explore further: A layer of cool, healthy air

Source: http://phys.org/news/2013-06-hyperventilating-energy-efficiency.html

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