UCLA may be a new producer of foreign language filmmakers. Of the seven films honored in this year’s Spotlight Awards for directing, two are in foreign languages and were shot in foreign countries. Read more...

Westwood Village is currently experiencing a restaurant boom, with at least six opening (or already open). The Daily Bruin’s Daniel Miller gives us a taste of what three of them are like. Read more...

It was a good day for the underground. After saving the world from an Inner Circle plot involving the conclusion of the latest “American Idol,” the Matrix and an asteroid named Mister Rogers, I felt that it was time for a vacation. Read more...

Director Chen Kaige is known for making films from the safe vantage point of history, but he’s ready for a change. “I used to believe there was no culture in China because the old traditional cultural values were being destroyed by the last 15 years under communism,” Chen said. Read more...

From Bob Marley look-alikes to the distinct aroma of pot, this week’s blind date offered a peek into a different world ““ the mysterious world of reggae music showcased at the UCLA reggae festival this weekend. Read more...

Fine cheese usually tastes better the older it gets. Cheesy jokes, as the latest in a series of one-person shows at the Ahmanson confirms, do not benefit from the same maturation process. Read more...

Grandaddy “Sumday” V2 The universe according to Grandaddy is a strange one, to say that least. Part retro nostalgia, part po-mo irony, the band aims high, even though they think small. Read more...