Elegy To Connie screens Saturday, Nov 15 at 6:30pm at St. Louis University as part of The St. Louis International Film Festival. It is a Free event.
Elegy To Connie is a touching and unique documentary by local artist and filmmaker Sarah Paulsen that employs stop-motion animation to address the events leading up to and following the 2008 Kirkwood City Council shooting. The troubling incident is retold in interviews with a group of unintentional women activists who are bound together by their friendship with slain Councilwoman Connie Karr, and the animation amplifies their voices through striking visuals that sometimes illustrate their comments directly but frequently offer metaphoric counterpoint. Made in collaboration with these women, the film addresses the complicated issues surrounding the shooting – citizen representation, disenfranchisement, white privilege and black alienation, post-tragedy healing – and celebrates Connie’s legacy as a leader.
Sarah Paulsen took the time to talk to We Are Movie Geeks about her film.
Elegy To Connie is a touching and unique documentary by local artist and filmmaker Sarah Paulsen that employs stop-motion animation to address the events leading up to and following the 2008 Kirkwood City Council shooting. The troubling incident is retold in interviews with a group of unintentional women activists who are bound together by their friendship with slain Councilwoman Connie Karr, and the animation amplifies their voices through striking visuals that sometimes illustrate their comments directly but frequently offer metaphoric counterpoint. Made in collaboration with these women, the film addresses the complicated issues surrounding the shooting – citizen representation, disenfranchisement, white privilege and black alienation, post-tragedy healing – and celebrates Connie’s legacy as a leader.
Sarah Paulsen took the time to talk to We Are Movie Geeks about her film.
- 11/13/2014
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
It’s lucky 13 — as in 13th annual edition — for Switzerland’s Lausanne Underground Film Festival, an epic celebration of cinematic weirdness, violence, filth and everything else that makes life worth living. The wild debauchery runs October 15-19.
The fest opens on Oct. 15 with the feature film debut by Leah Meyerhoff, I Believe in Unicorns, which tells the story of a troubled teenage girl who runs away with an aggressive older boy.
Other new films include the misanthropic comedy Buzzard by Joel Potrykus; the deep woods psychological thriller Mother Nature by Johan Liedgren; the complex Japanese drama Kept by Maki Mizui; and more.
Luff this year is really stuffed with great retrospectives beginning with a tribute to Beth B, who has been churning out controversial, thought-provoking flicks since the New York No Wave era to know. There will be screenings of her classic films, such as The Offenders and Salvation!, and her latest documentary,...
The fest opens on Oct. 15 with the feature film debut by Leah Meyerhoff, I Believe in Unicorns, which tells the story of a troubled teenage girl who runs away with an aggressive older boy.
Other new films include the misanthropic comedy Buzzard by Joel Potrykus; the deep woods psychological thriller Mother Nature by Johan Liedgren; the complex Japanese drama Kept by Maki Mizui; and more.
Luff this year is really stuffed with great retrospectives beginning with a tribute to Beth B, who has been churning out controversial, thought-provoking flicks since the New York No Wave era to know. There will be screenings of her classic films, such as The Offenders and Salvation!, and her latest documentary,...
- 10/10/2014
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
The 52nd annual Ann Arbor Film Festival will be a jam-packed experimental feature and short film screening event running for six days and nights, this time on March 25-30.
Opening Night will feature a reception and an after-party, and stuffed between those will be a block of nine short films, including new ones by Bryan Boyce, Michael Robinson, Jennifer Reeder and Martha Colburn, as well as a never-before-released work by the legendary Bruce Baillie called Little Girl in which Baillie captured scenes of natural beauty.
Special Events scattered throughout the festival include a retrospective of indie filmmaker Penelope Spheeris that will feature her rock ‘n’ roll-based work, including the original The Decline of Western Civilization, plus The Decline of Western Civilization Part III, her influential punk film Suburbia (screening twice) and a collection of short films.
There will also be several films and presentations by filmmaking scholar Thom Andersen, such...
Opening Night will feature a reception and an after-party, and stuffed between those will be a block of nine short films, including new ones by Bryan Boyce, Michael Robinson, Jennifer Reeder and Martha Colburn, as well as a never-before-released work by the legendary Bruce Baillie called Little Girl in which Baillie captured scenes of natural beauty.
Special Events scattered throughout the festival include a retrospective of indie filmmaker Penelope Spheeris that will feature her rock ‘n’ roll-based work, including the original The Decline of Western Civilization, plus The Decline of Western Civilization Part III, her influential punk film Suburbia (screening twice) and a collection of short films.
There will also be several films and presentations by filmmaking scholar Thom Andersen, such...
- 3/18/2014
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
The 7th annual Sydney Underground Film Festival, which runs this year on September 5-8 at the Factory Theatre, opens with a real bang when they will screen cult filmmaker Alejandro Jodorowsky’s latest cinematic odyssey, The Dance of Reality. This is Jodorowsky’s first film in over twenty years and is an imaginative and playful quasi-autobiography.
The rest of the four-day celebration is packed with more film oddities and excursions into surreal and transgressive territory. One particular highlight that is not to be missed is Don Swaynos’ incredibly crowd-pleasing comedy Pictures of Superheroes, about a slacker cleaning woman’s descent into an absurd world she can’t escape. Read the Underground Film Journal’s review of Pictures of Superheroes here.
Other twisted fiction films screening include Drew Tobias’s sick and twisted See You Next Tuesday, Cody Calahan’s apocalyptic Antisocial and Lloyd Kaufman’s highly-anticipated sequel Return to Nuke ‘Em High: Vol.
The rest of the four-day celebration is packed with more film oddities and excursions into surreal and transgressive territory. One particular highlight that is not to be missed is Don Swaynos’ incredibly crowd-pleasing comedy Pictures of Superheroes, about a slacker cleaning woman’s descent into an absurd world she can’t escape. Read the Underground Film Journal’s review of Pictures of Superheroes here.
Other twisted fiction films screening include Drew Tobias’s sick and twisted See You Next Tuesday, Cody Calahan’s apocalyptic Antisocial and Lloyd Kaufman’s highly-anticipated sequel Return to Nuke ‘Em High: Vol.
- 8/15/2013
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
This Week’s Must Look At: The artist book Don’t Kill the Weatherman by Martha Colburn has an online photograph preview and it looks stunning! I love Martha’s animation, but it always moves so quickly that it’s tough to savor the actual art. But, now I can! The above borrowed image is from frames from the film Spiders in Love: An Arachnogasmic Musical, the first Colburn film I ever saw way back in 2000. (If you go to the photo set, you can find details on how to purchase this limited edition.)Craig Baldwin has published issue #22 of Otherzine. You can read the whole thing here. But, two highlights are: An interview with Dominic Gagnon, who is seeking to save “censored” online videos; and curator Brenda Contreras reviews Sylvia Schedelbauer’s found footage film, Sounding Glass.This one’s for Canyon Cinema members only: But if you are one,...
- 3/4/2012
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
Feb. 11
5:00 p.m.
Microscope Gallery
4 Charles Place
Brooklyn, NY 11221
Hosted by: Microscope Gallery
Throughout the month of February, Brooklyn’s Microscope Gallery will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of NYC’s Film-makers’ Cooperative, the oldest and largest artist-run coop in the world. While the opening reception for this special exhibit will be at 7:00 p.m. on Feb. 11, at 5:00 p.m. will be a special screening of rare 16mm films by the legendary Jack Smith.
Ironically, Smith would probably be furious about this special event if he were still alive, thanks to his severe falling out with the Coop’s founder Jonas Mekas. But, with several new 16mm prints of many of his “lost” films, this event promises to be one of the premiere avant-garde screenings of 2012. So, screw Jack. The films that will be screening are: Respectable Creatures, Song for Rent, Hot Air Specialists, Overstimulated, Scotch Tape,...
5:00 p.m.
Microscope Gallery
4 Charles Place
Brooklyn, NY 11221
Hosted by: Microscope Gallery
Throughout the month of February, Brooklyn’s Microscope Gallery will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of NYC’s Film-makers’ Cooperative, the oldest and largest artist-run coop in the world. While the opening reception for this special exhibit will be at 7:00 p.m. on Feb. 11, at 5:00 p.m. will be a special screening of rare 16mm films by the legendary Jack Smith.
Ironically, Smith would probably be furious about this special event if he were still alive, thanks to his severe falling out with the Coop’s founder Jonas Mekas. But, with several new 16mm prints of many of his “lost” films, this event promises to be one of the premiere avant-garde screenings of 2012. So, screw Jack. The films that will be screening are: Respectable Creatures, Song for Rent, Hot Air Specialists, Overstimulated, Scotch Tape,...
- 2/7/2012
- by screenings
- Underground Film Journal
While Occupy Wall Street goes global, Martha Colburn has made two short films documenting the movement and Cinefoundation launches #OccupyCinema. One of the more popular recent Ows speakers has, of course, been Slavoj Žižek, and Anne Thompson reports that he and Sophie Fiennes have just completed shooting on their followup to The Pervert's Guide to Cinema, the timely Pervert's Guide to Ideology.
Even as This Is Not a Film runs a sort of victory lap through the festival circuit since its triumphant premiere in Cannes, an appeals court in Tehran has upheld the sentence against Jafar Panahi many of those same festivals have been protesting for practically a year now. Laurent Maillard, reporting for the Afp, turns to a government-run newspaper in Iran for confirmation: "The charges he was sentenced for are acting against national security and propaganda against the regime." Maillard: "Panahi was convicted in December last year over...
Even as This Is Not a Film runs a sort of victory lap through the festival circuit since its triumphant premiere in Cannes, an appeals court in Tehran has upheld the sentence against Jafar Panahi many of those same festivals have been protesting for practically a year now. Laurent Maillard, reporting for the Afp, turns to a government-run newspaper in Iran for confirmation: "The charges he was sentenced for are acting against national security and propaganda against the regime." Maillard: "Panahi was convicted in December last year over...
- 10/16/2011
- MUBI
Mostly known for her animated films, Martha Colburn returns to live action with a short experimental documentary on the Occupy Wall Street protests that have been going on since mid-September. The above embedded video is actually two short films that should play one right after another. Rather than get into the goals and message of the protestors, Colburn simply documents the scene, displaying the same kind of frenetic montage that her animated films have.
What’s particularly appealing about this short doc is that it also displays a heavy ’60s underground film vibe. While Colburn leaves her shots a little longer than the then-popular “single-frame” shooting technique, the effect is essentially the same, creating a disorienting, kaleidoscope documentary vision. The film is not unlike classic undergrounds like Marie Menken’s Go! Go! Go! and Shirley Clarke’s Bridges-Go-Round.
Also, the “single-frame” technique is particularly appropriate here, centering the action right...
What’s particularly appealing about this short doc is that it also displays a heavy ’60s underground film vibe. While Colburn leaves her shots a little longer than the then-popular “single-frame” shooting technique, the effect is essentially the same, creating a disorienting, kaleidoscope documentary vision. The film is not unlike classic undergrounds like Marie Menken’s Go! Go! Go! and Shirley Clarke’s Bridges-Go-Round.
Also, the “single-frame” technique is particularly appropriate here, centering the action right...
- 10/14/2011
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
Big announcement from the Zurich Film Festival yesterday: "Director Roman Polanski will attend the upcoming 7th Zurich Film Festival to accept the lifetime achievement award that was intended for him two years ago, to honor his outstanding career achievements as a filmmaker. The World Premiere of a full-length nonfiction film will follow the tribute ceremony. Details regarding the film and the world premiere will not be released before the official screening on Sept 27."
You have to wonder what subject that nonfiction film will be addressing. Meantime, MoMA's Polanski retrospective reels on through September 30 and I've been posting updates on it in the entry for Carnage. Earlier: "Polanski Season," now updated with Criterion's "Three Reasons" for Cul-de-sac (1966).
On view at Microscope Gallery in New York through October 2: Independence Returns, with work by Peggy Ahwesh, Michel Auder, Agnes Bolt, Martha Colburn, Raul Vincent Enriquez, Bradley Eros, James Fotopoulos, Su Friedrich, Andrew Lampert,...
You have to wonder what subject that nonfiction film will be addressing. Meantime, MoMA's Polanski retrospective reels on through September 30 and I've been posting updates on it in the entry for Carnage. Earlier: "Polanski Season," now updated with Criterion's "Three Reasons" for Cul-de-sac (1966).
On view at Microscope Gallery in New York through October 2: Independence Returns, with work by Peggy Ahwesh, Michel Auder, Agnes Bolt, Martha Colburn, Raul Vincent Enriquez, Bradley Eros, James Fotopoulos, Su Friedrich, Andrew Lampert,...
- 9/16/2011
- MUBI
For their 5th annual event, which is set to run Sept. 8-11, the Sydney Underground Film Festival is looking a little more demented than ever. And that’s saying a lot for this scrappy, still relatively young fest, which typically offers ample twisted cinematic offerings.
The fun kicks off with the Opening Night film, the demented superhero comedy Super, written and directed by former Troma go-to screenwriter James Gunn (Tromeo & Juliet); then ends with the Closing Night wallowing in Sydney’s seedy underbelly, X, by homegrown filmmaker Jon Hewitt.
Crammed between these two excursions into violence and depravity is a lineup filled with perverse visions, scandalous public figures, sickening horror, experimental pop culture remixes and more.
For Bad Lit: The Journal of Underground Film, the highlight of the fest is Usama Alshaibi‘s Profane, a complex psychological, psychosexual, spiritual morality play about a Muslim sex worker who endures a “reverse...
The fun kicks off with the Opening Night film, the demented superhero comedy Super, written and directed by former Troma go-to screenwriter James Gunn (Tromeo & Juliet); then ends with the Closing Night wallowing in Sydney’s seedy underbelly, X, by homegrown filmmaker Jon Hewitt.
Crammed between these two excursions into violence and depravity is a lineup filled with perverse visions, scandalous public figures, sickening horror, experimental pop culture remixes and more.
For Bad Lit: The Journal of Underground Film, the highlight of the fest is Usama Alshaibi‘s Profane, a complex psychological, psychosexual, spiritual morality play about a Muslim sex worker who endures a “reverse...
- 8/9/2011
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
May 22
7:30 p.m.
Egyptian Theater
6712 Hollywood Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90028
Hosted by: L.A. Filmforum
For “Triumph of the Wild: New Experimental Animation,” filmmaker Eric Leiser has curated a selection of 10 short animated films from around the world, including his own film, Forest. At the screening, Leiser and filmmakers Alice Cohen and Gina Marie Napolitan will be in attendance.
Included in the lineup are films from the U.S., Ireland, the Netherlands and Germany. Cohen will be screening her 13-minute film Mirror Moves for Private Eyes, which “explores the idea of The Mirror as a psychic receptor; a magical portal to visionary and ecstatic states, through self-reflection and visualization. Napolitan will screen her 5-minute film Demons and Cathedrals, which features “amnesia and childhood, spooky synthesizers, pod people.”
Also in the lineup are Martha Colburn‘s Triumph of the Wild, an ecstatic, animated examination of the U.S.’ history of...
7:30 p.m.
Egyptian Theater
6712 Hollywood Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90028
Hosted by: L.A. Filmforum
For “Triumph of the Wild: New Experimental Animation,” filmmaker Eric Leiser has curated a selection of 10 short animated films from around the world, including his own film, Forest. At the screening, Leiser and filmmakers Alice Cohen and Gina Marie Napolitan will be in attendance.
Included in the lineup are films from the U.S., Ireland, the Netherlands and Germany. Cohen will be screening her 13-minute film Mirror Moves for Private Eyes, which “explores the idea of The Mirror as a psychic receptor; a magical portal to visionary and ecstatic states, through self-reflection and visualization. Napolitan will screen her 5-minute film Demons and Cathedrals, which features “amnesia and childhood, spooky synthesizers, pod people.”
Also in the lineup are Martha Colburn‘s Triumph of the Wild, an ecstatic, animated examination of the U.S.’ history of...
- 5/19/2011
- by screenings
- Underground Film Journal
Big batch of festivals open for submissions:
Lausanne Underground Film Festival
The Lausanne Underground Film Festival is one of the most epic underground fests on the planet, taking place every year in Switzerland and featuring an enormous mix of avant-garde, experimental and outlandish films from all over the world.
This year mark’s Luff’s 10th anniversary and promises to be a real doozy. It will take place on Oct. 15-23 and, as always, it’s completely free for filmmakers to enter. They’re looking for short films and features in the categories of documentary, animation and experimental and a brief explanation of what they’re actually looking for is as follows:
Luff focuses on all independent film or video creations, on innovative small budgets, on offbeat, daring, surprising and shocking visions. We look for films that have something to show and to say.There is no constraint, no censorship,...
Lausanne Underground Film Festival
The Lausanne Underground Film Festival is one of the most epic underground fests on the planet, taking place every year in Switzerland and featuring an enormous mix of avant-garde, experimental and outlandish films from all over the world.
This year mark’s Luff’s 10th anniversary and promises to be a real doozy. It will take place on Oct. 15-23 and, as always, it’s completely free for filmmakers to enter. They’re looking for short films and features in the categories of documentary, animation and experimental and a brief explanation of what they’re actually looking for is as follows:
Luff focuses on all independent film or video creations, on innovative small budgets, on offbeat, daring, surprising and shocking visions. We look for films that have something to show and to say.There is no constraint, no censorship,...
- 4/27/2011
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
On April 19 at the Roxie Theater in San Francisco, the Ata Film & Video Festival will be hosting a special springtime retrospective screening celebrating their 5th anniversary, pulling together films from each year they’ve been in operation. The festivities start at 7:30 p.m.
As a program of the Artists’ Television Access non-profit center, which began in the early ’80s, the Film & Video Festival was founded in 2006 and has always been run by co-directors and programmers Isabel Fondevila and Shae Green. In it’s brief history, the fest has quickly become one of the most significant experimental media events in the world. Each year, they screen a diverse range of cutting edge, avant-garde, playful and artistic short films and videos from an international pool of filmmakers.
In addition to the annual festival in San Francisco, held in October of every year, Fondevila and Green have also toured the world with...
As a program of the Artists’ Television Access non-profit center, which began in the early ’80s, the Film & Video Festival was founded in 2006 and has always been run by co-directors and programmers Isabel Fondevila and Shae Green. In it’s brief history, the fest has quickly become one of the most significant experimental media events in the world. Each year, they screen a diverse range of cutting edge, avant-garde, playful and artistic short films and videos from an international pool of filmmakers.
In addition to the annual festival in San Francisco, held in October of every year, Fondevila and Green have also toured the world with...
- 4/15/2011
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
Artists' Television Access (Ata) celebrates the first five years of the Ata Annual Film & Video Festival with a retrospective screening at the Roxie, Playback: 2006-2010, April 19th, 2011, a selection of local and international works, celebrating unconventional films that entertain and provoke audiences worldwide; what BadLit describes as "a real powerhouse of experimental media exhibition." The program includes works by Tommy Becker, Ariel Diaz, Paul Clipson, Zachary Epcar, Sam Barnett, Jibz Cameron & Hedia Maron, John Palmer, Rachel Manera, Carl Diehl, Martha Colburn, Guy Maddin, Clare Samuel & Candice Purwin, Olga Chernysheva, and Federico Campanale. I stopped by Ata to visit with festival directors Isabel Fondevila and Shae Green to talk about the upcoming retrospective screening and their collaboration with the Roxie....
- 4/11/2011
- Screen Anarchy
The Boston Underground Film Festival wrapped up just a couple of days ago, so reports and reviews from the fest have been pouring in. Our first couple of links take us deep into the world of Buff madness:
First up, The Horror Digest reviews Lucky McKee’s The Woman.The Whore Church has lots of photos from Buff parties. I can name most of the peeps in the last photo, in case somebody needs to be blackmailed, or something.The Geekery checked out the films in Buff’s Future Imperfect short film lineup and was partial to a trio of them: Get With the Program, Spark and The Third Letter.Screw Films was excited that their Change to Me screened at Buff.Buff juror Tim Jackson, who sounds perplexed to have been asked to serve, writes up some of the films he screened, including Profane and The Beast Pageant.Jason Seaver has several Buff reviews,...
First up, The Horror Digest reviews Lucky McKee’s The Woman.The Whore Church has lots of photos from Buff parties. I can name most of the peeps in the last photo, in case somebody needs to be blackmailed, or something.The Geekery checked out the films in Buff’s Future Imperfect short film lineup and was partial to a trio of them: Get With the Program, Spark and The Third Letter.Screw Films was excited that their Change to Me screened at Buff.Buff juror Tim Jackson, who sounds perplexed to have been asked to serve, writes up some of the films he screened, including Profane and The Beast Pageant.Jason Seaver has several Buff reviews,...
- 4/3/2011
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
This news is being posted a bit late as the 7th annual Florida Experimental Film/Video Festival was held a month back on Feb. 17-20. But, below you’ll find the full list of films that won prizes.
There were four different categories: Two for films and videos over ten minutes long, plus two for films and videos under ten minutes. Then, there was also a special Film Stock Prize sponsored by Kodak. The jurors who picked the winning films were film preservationist Mark Toscano and Portland-based filmmaker Vanessa Renwick.
Out of all the winners, I’ve only personally seen one film in full: Penny Lane‘s The Voyagers, a lovely documentary about the love affair between astronomer Carl Sagan and his third wife Ann Druyan while they worked on the Voyager space probe mission in the ’70s.
However, a few other Bad Lit favorites either received an award or a mention,...
There were four different categories: Two for films and videos over ten minutes long, plus two for films and videos under ten minutes. Then, there was also a special Film Stock Prize sponsored by Kodak. The jurors who picked the winning films were film preservationist Mark Toscano and Portland-based filmmaker Vanessa Renwick.
Out of all the winners, I’ve only personally seen one film in full: Penny Lane‘s The Voyagers, a lovely documentary about the love affair between astronomer Carl Sagan and his third wife Ann Druyan while they worked on the Voyager space probe mission in the ’70s.
However, a few other Bad Lit favorites either received an award or a mention,...
- 3/21/2011
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
It’s four days of experimental media madness in the Sunshine State when the 7th annual Florida Experimental Film/Video Festival — also known as Flex Fest — runs in Gainesville on Feb. 17-20. The majority of the festival will take place at the Top Secret Space, with the exception of a Saturday afternoon screening of all 35mm films at the Hippodrome State Theater.
This year’s judges for the festival are film preservationist Mark Toscano and filmmaker Vanessa Renwick, both of whom will open the fest with two curated programs. First, Toscano will be screening several rare underground films from the late ’50s to the early ’70s, from filmmakers such as Fred Worden, David Bienstock, Chris Langdon and more. Then, Renwick will screen several of her own short documentaries, including the wonderfully eerie Britton, South Dakota and the touching 9 is a secret. These are two events that really are not to be missed.
This year’s judges for the festival are film preservationist Mark Toscano and filmmaker Vanessa Renwick, both of whom will open the fest with two curated programs. First, Toscano will be screening several rare underground films from the late ’50s to the early ’70s, from filmmakers such as Fred Worden, David Bienstock, Chris Langdon and more. Then, Renwick will screen several of her own short documentaries, including the wonderfully eerie Britton, South Dakota and the touching 9 is a secret. These are two events that really are not to be missed.
- 2/11/2011
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
Both the Sundance and the Slamdance Film Festivals begin in Park City, Utah this week. While I previously posted up the full Slamdance lineup and some underground highlights at Sundance, I thought I’d round them up again for those attending the festivals who might be reading this and looking for the quirkier, out-of-the-hype screenings.
Sundance:
The first movie you don’t want to miss at is After You Left, directed by Jef Taylor, which was recently reviewed on Bad Lit. This easygoing, but emotionally complicated tale about a semi-immature dude in his mid-thirties dealing with a serious broken heart has a minimalist charm to it that makes it instantly likable. It’s the kind of film that at first it may not seem like much is going on, but actually has a lot to say. Lead actor Michael Tisdale is really good in it, too. Exact screening info is on this page.
Sundance:
The first movie you don’t want to miss at is After You Left, directed by Jef Taylor, which was recently reviewed on Bad Lit. This easygoing, but emotionally complicated tale about a semi-immature dude in his mid-thirties dealing with a serious broken heart has a minimalist charm to it that makes it instantly likable. It’s the kind of film that at first it may not seem like much is going on, but actually has a lot to say. Lead actor Michael Tisdale is really good in it, too. Exact screening info is on this page.
- 1/20/2011
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
Out of 6,467 short film submissions — a record for the fest — the Sundance Film Festival has selected to screen 81 of them during its 2011 edition, which will run on Jan. 20-30. Out of those 81 short films, a handful have ties to the underground film world.
First, I want to offer special Bad Lit congratulations to filmmaker Jef Taylor, whose film After You Left — written by Taylor and Michael Tisdale — was one of those short films chosen.
Earlier this year, I reviewed Taylor’s phenomenal, award-winning short film Coverage, so I was thrilled to hear another one of his more recent films got into Sundance. (I also hope to have a review of After You Left up around the time of the fest.)
Some other recognizable names from the underground film world include:
Martha Colburn: Legendary underground animator Martha Colburn is no stranger to Sundance and she has another film in the...
First, I want to offer special Bad Lit congratulations to filmmaker Jef Taylor, whose film After You Left — written by Taylor and Michael Tisdale — was one of those short films chosen.
Earlier this year, I reviewed Taylor’s phenomenal, award-winning short film Coverage, so I was thrilled to hear another one of his more recent films got into Sundance. (I also hope to have a review of After You Left up around the time of the fest.)
Some other recognizable names from the underground film world include:
Martha Colburn: Legendary underground animator Martha Colburn is no stranger to Sundance and she has another film in the...
- 12/10/2010
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
These first two links to the website Cineflyer I had on the site earlier in the week, but I want to make sure they get read. One is an interview with film curator Brett Cashmere about his new series investigating Canada’s little-known Escarpment School movement. And the other is an interview with Escarpment School member Philip Hoffman. And, by the way, Bad Lit’s Screening section has all kinds of interesting information, so please check out those posts even if you don’t live in the city in which those Screenings take place. Searching for “underground film” articles every week sometimes brings up interesting results in ways I don’t typically think of the term. Anyway, doing so this week led me to this piece on Donna Magazine about the “green movement of Iran” being celebrated at the 10th International Diaspora Film Festival. Jack Sargeant reprints his nifty profile...
- 11/7/2010
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
It’s lucky 13 for the Antimatter Film Festival in Victoria, BC. That is, their 13th annual fest is all set to run on Oct 8-16. That’s nine mind-blowing nights of experimental short films, live film performances and culture-shattering documentaries.
The fest kicks off on the 8th with a 16mm screening of Sergei Eisenstein’s classic silent film Battleship Potemkin that will be accompanied by a live soundtrack by DJ-son Bitter Herbs [Jason Flower]. The people’s revolution never sounded so funky! Then, the fest concludes on the 16th with the event “Uzos [Underwater Zombies from Outer Space]” and will feature performances by Ryan Beattie, Atomic Vaudeville, Slut Revolver, Wes Borg and more.
Smooshed between those two events will be the debut feature film by acclaimed ethnographic filmmaker Ben Russell, Let Each One Go Where They May, which documents the amazing recreation of a bold escape made by slaves. Other feature length documentaries screening are: Teen Routines,...
The fest kicks off on the 8th with a 16mm screening of Sergei Eisenstein’s classic silent film Battleship Potemkin that will be accompanied by a live soundtrack by DJ-son Bitter Herbs [Jason Flower]. The people’s revolution never sounded so funky! Then, the fest concludes on the 16th with the event “Uzos [Underwater Zombies from Outer Space]” and will feature performances by Ryan Beattie, Atomic Vaudeville, Slut Revolver, Wes Borg and more.
Smooshed between those two events will be the debut feature film by acclaimed ethnographic filmmaker Ben Russell, Let Each One Go Where They May, which documents the amazing recreation of a bold escape made by slaves. Other feature length documentaries screening are: Teen Routines,...
- 10/4/2010
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
I’m working on another big, site-wide project that I haven’t come up with a snappy name for yet, but it’s another type of project I can work on in mini-chunks that will eventually add up to a major positive development for the site. (Knock on wood.)
The project involves making Bad Lit’s archives more accessible and search friendly, as well as better spotlighting more filmmakers. This doesn’t involve creating new pages. Instead it’s making the filmmaker index pages more useful with more detailed information.
For any filmmaker that’s covered in-depth on Bad Lit, I create a “tag page” for them, which is a handy index linking to every article that mentions that filmmaker’s name, including film reviews, embedded videos, film festival lineups and more. An example of this would be for James Fotopoulos, which if you click his name there you’ll...
The project involves making Bad Lit’s archives more accessible and search friendly, as well as better spotlighting more filmmakers. This doesn’t involve creating new pages. Instead it’s making the filmmaker index pages more useful with more detailed information.
For any filmmaker that’s covered in-depth on Bad Lit, I create a “tag page” for them, which is a handy index linking to every article that mentions that filmmaker’s name, including film reviews, embedded videos, film festival lineups and more. An example of this would be for James Fotopoulos, which if you click his name there you’ll...
- 9/4/2010
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
Sort of a truncated link list this week. That’s because a) well, that’s just all the links I could find; and b) I had to compile this a few days early since I went to Comic Con on Saturday. Still much to enjoy, though:
Jeff Krulik is the world’s greatest documentary filmmaker and slowly but surely the world is starting to catch up. The Washington City Paper has a wonderful profile/interview with Krulik about his latest project, Heavy Metal Picnic. Plus, read about his recent screening adventures in Texas, where he and Chuck Statler were guests of the Alamo Draft House. Engadget reports that the Museum of the Moving Image in Queens is getting a $67 million makeover, but even more exciting is that in the new facility they will screen a specially commissioned animated video by Martha Colburn called Dolls vs. Dictators based on her photos...
Jeff Krulik is the world’s greatest documentary filmmaker and slowly but surely the world is starting to catch up. The Washington City Paper has a wonderful profile/interview with Krulik about his latest project, Heavy Metal Picnic. Plus, read about his recent screening adventures in Texas, where he and Chuck Statler were guests of the Alamo Draft House. Engadget reports that the Museum of the Moving Image in Queens is getting a $67 million makeover, but even more exciting is that in the new facility they will screen a specially commissioned animated video by Martha Colburn called Dolls vs. Dictators based on her photos...
- 7/25/2010
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
May 15
8:00 p.m.
Millennium Film Workshop
66 East 4th St.
New York, New York 10003
Hosted by: Millennium Film Journal
To celebrate the publication of the 52nd issue of the Millenium Film Journal, which has the theme “presence,” there will be a screening of classic and modern underground films that have been curated by Jessica Ruffin & Grahame Weinbren. The full lineup of films is below.
From the Journal’s Introduction: “Presence emphasizes the primacy of experience over analysis.” Articles in this issue are by Cathy Caplan, Roberta Friedman, Terry Flaxton, A. L. Rees, Jeremy Menzies; and a tribute to Chick Strand written by Pat O’Neill.
Suitably, there will be two films by Chick Strand, as well as Peggy Ahwesh’s classic porno-manipulation The Color of Love, Martha Colburn’s latest animated whirlwind Myth Labs; and work by Abigail Child, Phil Solomon and more:
Angel Blue Sweet Wings (1966), dir. Chick Strand
Anselmo (1967), dir.
8:00 p.m.
Millennium Film Workshop
66 East 4th St.
New York, New York 10003
Hosted by: Millennium Film Journal
To celebrate the publication of the 52nd issue of the Millenium Film Journal, which has the theme “presence,” there will be a screening of classic and modern underground films that have been curated by Jessica Ruffin & Grahame Weinbren. The full lineup of films is below.
From the Journal’s Introduction: “Presence emphasizes the primacy of experience over analysis.” Articles in this issue are by Cathy Caplan, Roberta Friedman, Terry Flaxton, A. L. Rees, Jeremy Menzies; and a tribute to Chick Strand written by Pat O’Neill.
Suitably, there will be two films by Chick Strand, as well as Peggy Ahwesh’s classic porno-manipulation The Color of Love, Martha Colburn’s latest animated whirlwind Myth Labs; and work by Abigail Child, Phil Solomon and more:
Angel Blue Sweet Wings (1966), dir. Chick Strand
Anselmo (1967), dir.
- 5/11/2010
- by screenings
- Underground Film Journal
The 48th annual Ann Arbor Film Festival is another exciting celebration of underground film past and present, featuring two retrospectives of two master filmmakers and dozens of short films and features from some of the most gifted talents working today.
For the retrospectives, first, Kenneth Anger will be in attendance at the festival for two programs of his classic work, including Fireworks and Scorpio Rising. Plus, for the first Anger screening, the filmmaker will be joined on-stage by film critic Dennis Lim for a discussion of his work and career. The second retrospective is of the work of the late Chick Strand, who sadly passed away in 2009. Strand’s Angel Blue Sweet Wings (1966) will actually open the entire festival, then there will be two retrospective screenings of her work, the first of which will be presented by film scholar Irina Leimbacher.
The rest of the Aaff lineup reads like a...
For the retrospectives, first, Kenneth Anger will be in attendance at the festival for two programs of his classic work, including Fireworks and Scorpio Rising. Plus, for the first Anger screening, the filmmaker will be joined on-stage by film critic Dennis Lim for a discussion of his work and career. The second retrospective is of the work of the late Chick Strand, who sadly passed away in 2009. Strand’s Angel Blue Sweet Wings (1966) will actually open the entire festival, then there will be two retrospective screenings of her work, the first of which will be presented by film scholar Irina Leimbacher.
The rest of the Aaff lineup reads like a...
- 3/8/2010
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
Jan. 15
8:00 p.m.
Chicago Filmmakers
5243 N. Clark
Chicago, Il
Hosted by: The Film Culture
The Windy City is in for a real tasty treat when Mike Plante’s legendary Lunchfilm short film series screens at Chicago Filmmakers. For those of you who aren’t familiar with the concept, the recap:
Writer/curator/festival programmer Plante buys a filmmaker lunch. The filmmaker must then make a short film that costs the same amount of the lunch and include a few topics discussed during the meal. Plante has curated around 50 short films, but this screening will only include a selection of them.
Personally, I’ve seen two separate Lunchfilm screenings — one at the Echo Park Film Center and one at the AFI Film Festival — and I can say this is an event not to be missed. Below is the list of filmmakers whose work will be included at this particular screening,...
8:00 p.m.
Chicago Filmmakers
5243 N. Clark
Chicago, Il
Hosted by: The Film Culture
The Windy City is in for a real tasty treat when Mike Plante’s legendary Lunchfilm short film series screens at Chicago Filmmakers. For those of you who aren’t familiar with the concept, the recap:
Writer/curator/festival programmer Plante buys a filmmaker lunch. The filmmaker must then make a short film that costs the same amount of the lunch and include a few topics discussed during the meal. Plante has curated around 50 short films, but this screening will only include a selection of them.
Personally, I’ve seen two separate Lunchfilm screenings — one at the Echo Park Film Center and one at the AFI Film Festival — and I can say this is an event not to be missed. Below is the list of filmmakers whose work will be included at this particular screening,...
- 1/13/2010
- by screenings
- Underground Film Journal
For the 1st day of the 1st month of the new decade, I thought it appropriate to post Martha Colburn’s First Film in X-tro, which was made way back in 1994. On Colburn’s filmography on her official site, she has it listed as her second film ever made, but it’s called “1st,” today’s the 1st, so there. (And it’s listed as 1stFILM on YouTube.)
For those familiar with Colburn’s modern animated films may be surprised — I was — to see her working with just found footage here. However, her trademark wild, chaotic, fast pacing is still on display here. The music is by Eye Yamatsuka, who goes by the name Yamantaka Eye now; plus Martha and Jason Willett’s experimental music band the Dramatics.
In other news: 2009 was a mixed year for me personally, but as far as Bad Lit goes, it was a great year...
For those familiar with Colburn’s modern animated films may be surprised — I was — to see her working with just found footage here. However, her trademark wild, chaotic, fast pacing is still on display here. The music is by Eye Yamatsuka, who goes by the name Yamantaka Eye now; plus Martha and Jason Willett’s experimental music band the Dramatics.
In other news: 2009 was a mixed year for me personally, but as far as Bad Lit goes, it was a great year...
- 1/1/2010
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
All Tomorrow’s Parties is a multi-day music festival originating in England, held annually since 1999. For the past two years, there's been a U.S. branch of the festival at Kutsher’s Country Club in Monticello, New York. This year, Day One -- Don’t Look Back/Comedy -- featured Panda Bear, Iron and Wine, Dirty Three, and a comedy stage curated by David Cross. Day Two was music curated by All Tomorrow’s Parties. Day Three was curated by underground mainstays the Flaming Lips and featured No Age and Bob Mould performing Husker Du, Menomena, Deerhoof with Martha Colburn, and many more. I attended Day Two.
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- 10/3/2009
- by AdamKritzer
- www.culturecatch.com
James Cameron in Los Angeles with 70Mm prints of "Aliens" and "The Abyss"?!?! The Dardenne brothers in New York for a career retrospective?!?! The instant cult classic "The Room" with Tommy Wiseau live in Austin?!?! Be still my heart. There's something for all tastes this summer on the West Coast, the East Coast and as you'll notice, the Third Coast on our calendar of the must-see events on the repertory theater circuit in May, June and July. And don't miss our look at the indie films that are hitting theaters or headed to online, VOD or DVD premiere this summer.
Anthology Film Archives
With the New York Polish Film Festival (May 6-10) and first-runs of the docs "Ice People" (May 1-7) and "Audience of One" (May 8-14) and Ken Jacobs' reinvention of his 1969 work "Tom, Tom, The Piper's Son" with the 3D "Anaglyph Tom" (May 15-21) taking up the Anthology's screens,...
Anthology Film Archives
With the New York Polish Film Festival (May 6-10) and first-runs of the docs "Ice People" (May 1-7) and "Audience of One" (May 8-14) and Ken Jacobs' reinvention of his 1969 work "Tom, Tom, The Piper's Son" with the 3D "Anaglyph Tom" (May 15-21) taking up the Anthology's screens,...
- 5/5/2009
- by Stephen Saito
- ifc.com
Art Radio International renegotiated the terms of its lease of the Clocktower Gallery with MoMA recently, consequently serving subleasers The Film-Maker’s Co-op (Fmc) with an eviction notice. Founded nearly 50 years ago, Fmc is one of the longest-running distributors of experimental and independent film in the world, its offices operating in the same building since 2000. The organization houses thousands of 16mm prints, many of them unique and irreplaceable including those by Stan Brakhage, Paul Sharits, Carolee Schneeman, Tony Conrad, Hollis Frampton, Jennifer Reeves, Jack Smith, Ken Jacobs, Peggy Ahwesh, Joyce Wieland, Michael Snow, Maya Deren, Marie Menken, Jonas Mekas, Shirley Clarke, Martha Colburn, Leslie Thornton, and literally hundreds of other artists, as well as an invaluable paper archive of letters, program notes and other materials. According ...
- 2/5/2009
- by Karina Longworth
- Spout
Art Radio International renegotiated the terms of its lease of the Clocktower Gallery with MoMA recently, consequently serving subleasers The Film-Maker’s Co-op (Fmc) with an eviction notice. Founded nearly 50 years ago, Fmc is one of the longest-running distributors of experimental and independent film in the world, its offices operating in the same building since 2000. The organization houses thousands of 16mm prints, many of them unique and irreplaceable including those by Stan Brakhage, Paul Sharits, Carolee Schneeman, Tony Conrad, Hollis Frampton, Jennifer Reeves, Jack Smith, Ken Jacobs, Peggy Ahwesh, Joyce Wieland, Michael Snow, Maya Deren, Marie Menken, Jonas Mekas, Shirley Clarke, Martha Colburn, Leslie Thornton, and literally hundreds of other artists, as well as an invaluable paper archive of letters, program notes and other materials. According ...
- 2/5/2009
- by Karina Longworth
- Spout
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