Local Indies

Review: The Eyes of Me

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Chas of The Eyes of Me

The documentary The Eyes of Me, which screened at the Cinema Touching Disability Festival earlier this month, presents an extraordinary look at four blind teenagers living in Austin. Their stories unfold over the course of a year at the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired (TSBVI), a public residential high school. Nationally, over 9,000 students attend similar residential schools. Director Keith Maitland worked closely with the film’s subjects to produce sequences of stylized rotoscopic animation to complement the film’s observational aesthetic. Created from over 250 hours of footage, this documentary captures a visually engaging and textured portrait of its characters’ lives.

"How do you see yourself, when you can't see at all?" The stories of the film’s central characters offer a perspective on growing up, fitting in, and preparing for the future. Forced to confront the world without sight, the high-school students share their thoughts, perceptions and inner-visions of the outer world. 

The Eyes of Me follows their high-school experiences of dating, academic responsibilities, fitting in, family issues and preparing for college over the course of one dynamic year. High school senior Chas wants greater independence, and therefore he leaves the school’s dorms to live independently in his own apartment. His greatest passion is creating hip-hop music. When Chas drops out of school halfway through his senior year, his resolve to chart his own path is tested.

DVD Review: Gretchen

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Gretchen

After wishing for more than three years that Gretchen would become publicly available so I could persuade people to see it, I'm happy to report that the locally made feature is now available on DVD. Watchmaker Films, with its usual attention to detail, has given the film a very nice release with some meaningful extras.

Gretchen premiered in 2006 at SXSW, then won director Steve Collins the Best Dramatic Feature award at LAFF that summer. It's appeared on the Sundance Channel and was screened here as part of Austin Film Festival's "New Directions Summer Film Series" this year.

The title character (Coutrney Davis) is a tragically awkward high-school girl, out-of-step with the world in her turtlenecks and heavy sweaters and plastic hair ties. Gretchen likes Ricky Marichino (John Merriman), who envisions himself as a rebellious biker dude, but he treats her like dirt and eventually her temper flares in a destructive way. Further adventures land her with similar guys, and she eventually has to decide how she wants to deal with them and with herself.

AFF Review: Hockey Night in Texas

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Hockey Night in Texas

The documentary feature Hockey Night in Texas follows two Austin teams through an entire season as they compete for the championship. The 400 members of this recreational adult hockey league come from all walks of life, from artists to chefs to doctors to execs at major corporations. From all skill and experience levels, what they share in common is the desire to play hockey and drink beer.

The film features footage of the B-Division in action along with behind-the-scenes encounters with the team captains. Also mixed in is commentary from hockey professionals from the Dallas Stars, including assistant coach Mark Lamb and play-by-play announcer Ralph Strangis. Strangis talks about both the beauty and the violence of the game, comparing it to the gladiators of Rome.

AFF Review: Holy Hell

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What happens when a financially strapped Church can't afford to continue? They make a horror movie, of course.  At least, that's the premise of Holy Hell, a well-named Austin film by Rafael Antonio Ruiz and co-writer L.B. Bartholomee.

Reverend Lane (Ken Edwards) as a humble man who lives the Bible, instead of forcing it down other's throats.  But his flock is dwindling, and his church doesn't have the money to keep the doors open.  The decision to make a film stirs up more controversy than they'd ever expect, especially as word gets out it's a horror film.  Suddenly they find themselves at odds with a superchurch, which sends an army of protesters to shut them down.

Austin Represents at Lone Star Film Festival

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LSIFF 2009Love movies and want to make a short road trip this weekend? Head to Fort Worth for the Lone Star International Film Festival (LSIFF), which runs from Wednesday, November 11 through Sunday, November 14. LSIFF kicks off on Sunday night with The Scenesters, which played Austin Film Festival last month. The noir-ish comedy is about a group of mumblecore-ish filmmakers trying to find a serial killer who's been murdering L.A. hipsters. Writer/director Todd Berger and actor Kevin Brennan both attended UT in Austin.

Other films with an Austin connection scheduled for LSIFF include the quirky comedy Artois the Goat, which was shot in Austin and played SXSW this year (Jenn Brown's review); local filmmaker Kat Candler's short Love Bug, which won the Narrative Short Audience Award at AFF; and the Coen brothers' first feature, Blood Simple, which was shot in Austin, Hutto and Houston. LSIFF is also screening Tender Mercies, which was shot in Waxahachie.

In addition, musician/actor Kris Kristofferson will be on hand to receive the first Stephen Bruton Award on Friday night. The award will honor musicians who also have done work in film. LSIFF has named Horton Foote for its Lifetime Achievement Award; Horton Foote, Jr. will receive the award for his late father.

AFF Review: Harmony and Me

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Harmony and Me

It's a little strange that I'm writing a review for Harmony and Me immediately after reviewing (Untitled) -- both movies are about music, and use music to explain their characters' state of mind. Harmony and Me is more subtle and uses music in a more personal, straightforward way -- the characters are the focus.

Harmony and Me is the latest film from Austin writer/director Bob Byington (RSO [Registered Sex Offender]). Many of us in Austin have been waiting to see this locally shot film since its premiere at New Films/New Directors in New York last April. Byington was unhappy with the projection quality at AFF, and I hope to see it again someday in a setting that the director feels does justice to his film. However, I was still able to enjoy the film.

AFF Review: Todd P Goes to Austin

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Todd P Goes to AustinThe new Off the Record category at Austin Film Festival includes a documentary where the ultimate goal is to get to Austin for SXSW. Promoter Todd P set up a series of free, unofficial performances at SXSW, and eventually was invited to come back and put together an official showcase, as documented in Todd P Goes to Austin. When viewed as a performance documentary, Todd P Goes to Austin is a must-see for music fans.

Todd P Goes to Austin starts out with a mumble: director Jason Buim opens with a performance by Dan Deacon, and even when Todd P is talking, it's not clear what the focus of the film is really supposed to be.  The tagline touts it's a film about doing it yourself, but the focus is really on the performances and the travel to Austin from various locations by the highlighted bands, including Matt and Kim, Mika Miko, The Death Set, and Japanther. 

Todd Patrick, also known as Todd P, is a Brooklyn based DIY promoter who works with underground bands and performers. Little screen time is spent on the actual efforts required to set up the showcases and get the word out to  potential audiences. Instead, most of the movie is devoted to actual performances. It's hard to follow that two different SXSW festivals are covered. The film dwells significantly on the featured groups making their way to Austin, and shot by themselves, from car trouble to broken jacks, contributing to the DIY sensibilities.

Be An Extra, Have a Beer

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Fantastic Fest 2006

Last month, Jenn reported that Simon Rumley, whose film The Living and the Dead won an award at Fantastic Fest 2006 (which he's holding above), would be shooting his next film around Austin: Red, White and Blue.

The production is currently looking for extras to fill the Broken Spoke in a scene that will be shot on Tuesday, July 7. You have to show up in country-and-western clothing and it seems some beer drinking may be involved. For more information, check out the Alamo blog entry written by the film's executive producer, Tim League.

The Austin Chronicle published a story today with more details about Red, White and Blue and Rumley shooting in Austin. We're also planning more news about the production soon -- I heard a rumor that one of the shooting locations is also the home of a Slackerwood contributor (aside to husband: no, not our house, don't worry).

Bowling for Slackery News Tidbits

Austin StudiosIt's Monday morning and we've got your hot exciting local film-related news for you! It's also too damn early for exclamation points and excitement. But, you know, some of this news is almost as energizing as coffee.

  • Austin Chronicle writer Marc Savlov asked Tim League exactly what in the world is going on with Alamo Drafthouse these days, and got some happy news. The Leagues are turning the old Salvation Army space near Alamo South into a bowling alley/private karaoke/fun space where you can wait to see a movie at Alamo or chat about one afterwards. I admit I got a little misty when I read that the bowling lanes are from the old Rock'n'Bowl in New Orleans. I assume this space will be ready in time for Fantastic Fest. Yay!

Texandance: New Braunfels Starts a Film Fest

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Brauntex Theatre

Last Saturday, I headed over to New Braunfels -- not for tubing or Schlitterbahn, but to watch movies. The Texandance International Film Festival launched this year at the Brauntex Theatre, and I wanted to be there for even a little of the fun. Besides, Chris Holland is always telling me I should go to out-of-town festivals (although I think he meant slightly more out of town than an hour's drive).

Texandance ran from Friday through Sunday, with some Central Texas-shot films in the lineup as well as shorts and features from around the world. Saturday was an especially good day for Texas movies at the fest. We got to the Brauntex as Crawford was playing, a film I enjoyed at SXSW in 2008. The documentary about how the small Texas town was affected by George W. Bush has recently become available on DVD. But the Brauntex, in a historic part of a small Texas town, was an ideal venue for this movie.

I met the film festival's co-founders, Bryce Tumlinson and Vince Koegle, who were very friendly and enthusiastic about the festival and the films they selected to screen:

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