In his directorial debut, "Chelsea Walls," novelist and Oscar-nominated actor Ethan Hawke achieves something special but less than industry-shaking. With familiar actors playing familiar characters and self-consciously making what Hawke has called a cinematic "collage" out of the creative denizens of Manhattan's Bohemian Notre Dame, the Lions Gate Films release premiered at the 2001 Festival de Cannes and should connect with movie literati in major markets on the strength of its cast. Plenty busy behind the digital camera coaching full-blooded performances from his laboring-for-love performers, Hawke does not have a major role in the film that dreamily zooms in on several artists living in the famed Chelsea Hotel, where many a struggling genius has found a haven.

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