Win Win – Spinning Platters

Reading my Weekly Guide to Bay Area contest can be very beneficial… You always know what great shows are coming to town, and every great once in a while, we get you into one of those shows. This week, we will get one loyal reader into see Montreal-born DJ & producer A-Trak playing with one of the finest MC’s to come out of Chicago, Kid Sister rocking the Mezzanine stage this Monday Night, May 16th! All you need to do is email us at promo@spinningplatters.com before Monday, May 16th at noon! Just leave your full name and phone number so we can let you know you won, and remember that this show is 21+, so we can’t get you in if you are under age. And if you don’t like taking risks, you can always buy tickets here.

Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 5/12/11 – 5/18/11”

Tom McCarthy directing Paul Giamatti on the set of WIN WIN. © 2011 - Fox Searchlight

As an actor, Tom McCarthy is that guy you know you’ve seen somewhere. You can’t quite put your finger on it, but he was definitely a cop/lawyer/scientist/reporter in something. And in his 20 years as a screen actor, McCarthy has indeed worked with an impressive roster of directors, including George Clooney (Good Night and Good Luck), Peter Jackson (The Lovely Bones), and Clint Eastwood (Flags of Our Fathers). He also had key arcs on acclaimed TV series Boston Public and, perhaps most notably, the final season of The Wire. But it is McCarthy’s work as a writer and director which has earned him the greatest praise.

After breaking out with the 2003 Sundance favorite The Station Agent, in which Michelle Williams took one of her first major steps toward becoming the indie queen she is today, McCarthy directed the celebrated drama The Visitor, which scored an Oscar nomination for lead actor Richard Jenkins. And now, after receiving his own Oscar nomination for co-writing Up, McCarthy is back with the highly anticipated Win Win, the crowd-pleasing tale of a down-on-his-luck high school wrestling coach (Paul Giamatti) who unwittingly discovers a talented young wrestler (newcomer Alex Shaffer) while engaged in some shady business dealings. McCarthy recently sat down with Spinning Platters to discuss the plight of wrestling in New Jersey, how he nearly turned down The Wire, and the creative liberation of costarring in 2012.

Continue reading “Spinning Platters Interview: Tom McCarthy on “Win Win””