Now that the quarter is well under way, it’s incredible how quickly campus calendars start filling up with fun films and provocative performances. In fact, on-campus organizations like Arts & Lectures and Associated Students Program Board are creating a veritable winter wonderland of exciting events for your enjoyment this quarter. And, just in case all the options have you overwhelmed, we here at Artsweek have compiled our quarterly compendium of on-campus movies and music worth wiling away your winter hours with.

Movies

Between Arts & Lectures and Magic Lantern Films, fans of film will have a full plate of places to be this winter. As usual, Arts & Lectures has the thought-provoking side of cinema covered, with films about everything from health care to the Helvetica font on your favorite word processing program. Ang Lee’s “Lust, Caution” is an erotic thriller about espionage, based on the short story of the same name. It won the prestigious Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival and is definitely worth watching when it comes to Campbell Hall on Jan. 31. “Helvetica” is an independent film examining typography, graphic design and international culture through the context of the Helvetica font – which turns 50 this year. It’s playing on Feb. 6. “Salud,” which is on Feb. 25, showcases the movement to make health care an internationally recognized right via the example of Cuba. For more adrenaline-fueled filmmaking, check out the Banff Mountain Film Festival on Feb. 26 and 27. And, for music lovers, there is “The Miracle of Candeal,” about Afro-Brazilian music, playing on Feb. 28. All films are in Campbell Hall, and they all start at 7:30 p.m.

Worried about missing the major movies in theaters last fall? Don’t fear, Magic Lantern Films has you covered with first-rate programs of second-run films and some exciting exclusive screenings as well. This Friday, Magic Lantern will screen “The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford,” a Western thriller about the titular outlaw and his gang of mustached miscreants. In February, Magic Lantern plans to screen “American Gangster,” “Enchanted,” “I Am Legend” and a selection from the Santa Barbara International Film Festival. In March, the fine folks at Magic Lantern will show “No Country For Old Men” and “The Golden Compass.” All films screen in I.V. Theater, and show times and dates are available at www.magiclanternfilms.org. If all that isn’t enough to float your film buff boat, A.S. Program Board also has a series of films to screen this winter. Recent website updates have made their schedule of movies mysteriously disappear, but keep checking http://aspb.as.ucsb.edu/, and with any luck, you’ll be able to find some fun films from them as well.

Music

If music makes the world go ’round, then UCSB ought to be spinning pretty wildly this winter. A.S. Program Board has its annual Battle of the Bands, featuring local musicians, in the Hub on Feb. 1. On Feb. 8, hip hop heavyweights Living Legends will take that same Hub stage, and on Feb. 29, ASPB will host an MC Battle featuring Rahzel. More information as well as specific dates and times are available at http://aspb.as.ucsb.edu.

For something more worldly this winter, check out the offerings over at Arts & Lectures. Legendary jazz luminary Hugh Masekela is coming to Campbell Hall on Feb. 8 at 8 p.m., along with a group of musicians from his new label Chissa Records. Soulful singers Sweet Honey in the Rock will be bringing their brand of Grammy Award-winning gospel to campus on Feb. 21. Pianist and prolific composer Philip Glass will be playing Etudes and other solo piano work on Mar. 2, and the quarter rounds out with traditional Peruvian performer Peru Negro on Mar. 12, and America’s own pedigreed performing powerhouse, country music singer Roseanne Cash on Mar. 13.

This quarter, A&L will also bring you choreography from the likes of Vietnam’s Company Ea Sola doing world-renowned choreographer Ea Sola’s piece “Drought and Rain,” a combination of classic ballet and contemporary choreography, and The Acting Company’s rendition of Shakespeare’s “The Tempest.” More information about dates and times is available at https://artsandlectures.sa.ucsb.edu/performances.aspx.

While you’re on the Web, make sure you check out UCSB’s MultiCultural Center at mcc.sa.ucsb.edu and events.sa.ucsb.edu for even more movies and music playing on and around campus this quarter. And, for more detailed descriptions of all these events and more, keep checking Artsweek all quarter long.

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