Local Indies

AFF and Blanton Host 'New Directions' Series

in

Blanton Museum of Art by David A.G. WilsonAustin Film Festival and the Blanton Museum of Art have teamed up to bring us more good movies over the next couple of months. The New Directions Summer Film Series will focus on "the exceptional work of emerging independent filmmakers," and several of the films in the series were shot locally.

The series kicks off on Thursday, June 18 with one of my favorite Austin-shot films that hasn't had a theatrical release: Gretchen, directed by Steve Collins and photographed by P.J. Raval. Watchmaker Films may be releasing it on DVD soon, but in the meantime, this is a chance to see this oddly sweet movie in a theater. I reviewed the film when it played SXSW in 2006.

Another Austin-connected feature ends the series: Shotgun Stories, written and directed by Austin filmmaker Jeff Nichols. The drama, which stars Michael Shannon, won a Best Narrative Feature award from AFF in 2007 and was also nominated for an Independent Spirit award.

You can catch the series at the Blanton's new auditorium on the University of Texas campus, on the Sundays and Thursdays listed below. Admission is $5 -- or $3 if you're an AFF member, a Blanton Museum member, or UT Austin faculty/staff/student.

Full schedule after the jump:

Slackery News Tidbits: From TXMPA to Trinidad

Here's a roundup of recent Austin film news:

  • The Central Region of TXMPA is holding a meeting Monday, June 8, at 6:30 pm at Mother Egan's. If you are a member, you can participate in the election for Central Region board representative and alternate.
  • If you haven't seen P.J. Raval and Jay Hodges's film Trinidad, check it out on Showtime this month (or if you're me, find a friend with Showtime). The documentary about a Colorado town known as "the sex-change capital of the world" will screen on Showtime channels this week and then be available on Showtime On Demand until the end of June.

(Free) Austin Student Digital Film Festival Saturday

in

Austin Student Digital Film FestivalWhen I first moved to Austin last millennium, I learned how deeply Austinites and Texans love film. People I worked with talked about going to high school football games because they liked playing "fantasy scout" and predicting which players would become star players in college, and potentially move on the the NFL. Film geeks get to do a variation on that theme with the Oscars, as well as the student filmmaker and shorts categories at film festivals, something that many of the Austin film festivals do.

Austin is a town proud to celebrate film, and Austinites are starting young. AISD is hosting the Austin Student Digital Film Festival, and this year it's on Saturday, May 30 (tomorrow!) at Reagan High School, from 5:30 to 6:30 pm. The showcased films by students from elementary, middle, and high schools around Austin include the following titles:

Lost, The Halls, The Facts on Paper, The Attack of Fire Breathing Lizard, Gone Fishin', Keeping It Real, Ha Ha, The Adventures of Traveling Allie, Brotherly Love, Cubical Cowboys, Frenemies, Rain, Playing Around the Soccer Field, Beauty is Bravery

You can find a map and directions to the theater on the Austin Student Digital Film Festival website. The screenings aren't expected to take longer than 90 minutes, and the event is free. Support Austin's youngest filmmakers, and start deciding which ones are going to the be the next Zombie Girl or Robert Rodriguez, and who is most likely to thank the Academy in the future.

Slackery News Tidbits: DVD Gossip, a New Fest and Shaky Seats

Check out the latest movie news from Austin and Central Texas:

  • Kelly Williams at Austin Film Festival has written a lovely remembrance of Bud Shrake that also contains an exciting piece of news: Before he died, Shrake had recorded a commentary track for an upcoming DVD release of Kid Blue. You know we'll keep you posted when more info becomes available.
  • More on Shrake: the Austin Chronicle has republished Louis Black's excellent interview from 1985 with the Texas author and screenwriter.
  • Galaxy Highland is installing "motion-enhanced seats" -- about 20 in one theater -- in time for Terminator Salvation to open this weekend. Austin Movie Blog tells us that tickets for these seats will cost about $8 more. My first thought was that such seating will make it even harder to get through a long movie without a bathroom break; a colleague of mine noted that vibrating seats might be more appropriate to certain other genres of film.

News Flash: Fantastic Fest Alum Shooting Next Film Here

in

Fantastic Fest 2006

Simon Rumley, director of the surreal and memorable The Living and the Dead, as well as the sublimely succinct short Handyman, is returning to Austin this summer to make his next film.

Red, White and Blue, a revenge flick, will be shot in and around town. Rumley is currently looking for extras and locations. Visit the original Alamo blog for details.

The above photo is from Fantastic Fest 2006, when The Living and the Dead won Best Film. Rumley is on the right, about to chug his award in traditional Fantastic Fest fashion.

HB873 Passed: Texas Continues Support of Moving Image Industry

in

Larry Hagman

The Texas Motion Picture Alliance (TXMPA) has reported that House Bill 873 has passed not only the House but the Senate, and will be on Governor Rick Perry's desk for signing on April 23. It's celebration time.

Why? A little perspective is in order. In the 1990s, Texas -- in particular, Austin -- was becoming a film production alternative to Los Angeles, New York and Vancouver.

In 1991, under Governor Ann Richards, Texas began drawing more and more productions, and El Mariachi put Austin and Texas on the map. By 1995, the mission of Austin Film Society (AFS) evolved into an educational and support organization, providing education and funding for film-related projects.

Quick Snaps and News: 'Santos' is Back in Town

Santos at FF 08

I don't know how I missed this earlier, but the Cine Las Americas lineup this year includes a popular film from Fantastic Fest, Santos. The Chilean movie is about a comic-book artist who suddenly discovers that the fantasy superhero world he's been writing about may actually be real. It's very silly and full of dorky jokes, and I got a kick out of it. I wasn't the only one -- Santos won a Special Jury Award for originality and vision at Fantastic Fest.

The above photo is from the Q&A after the film, in which writer-director Nicolas Lopez chatted with Alamo Drafthouse co-founder Karrie League. I don't have any notes from that Q&A, but check out Kevin Kelly's interview with Lopez from SpoutBlog.

Elizabeth Avellan was one of the film's producers -- I believe Troublemaker Studios helped out with some of the special effects. You might remember that Avellan was at the Fantastic Fest awards ceremony and even chugged a beer.

Santos will play Cine Las Americas on Tuesday, April 28 at 7 pm at Alamo Ritz. You can buy tickets or a fest pass from the Cine Las Americas website.

Turk Pipkin's Latest Film to Premiere in Austin

in

In 2006, local actor/author/interesting person Turk Pipkin released his first feature-length film, the documentary Nobelity. You can read my Cinematical review here. In the film, Pipkin interviewed Nobel Prize winners about how we can make the world a better place. Turk and Christy Pipkin then established The Nobelity Project, a non-profit organization, to promote ideas from the film about working to solve global problems. They worked with schools and community groups to host do-it-yourself Nobelity screenings around the country, with proceeds funding The Nobelity Project.

Three years later, Turk Pipkin is premiering a follow-up film to Nobelity, One Peace at a Time. As in the previous documentary, Pipkin travels around the world ... this time, he talks with various people who are helping to ensure basic human rights for children, and promotes their efforts. The film also includes Willie Nelson, which should automatically be a draw for many Austinites. As with the first film, this is part of The Nobelity Project and will probably be distributed in the same way.

One Peace at a Time will premiere in Austin on Tuesday, April 14 at the Paramount. You can buy tickets to just the film, or get special tickets that also include a reception beforehand for some of the activists in the film.

You can watch the first 10 minutes of One Peace at a Time on The Nobelity Blog.

Salvage Vanguard Theater's Micro-Cinema

Salvage VanguardSalvage Vanguard Theater (2803 E. Manor Rd) is hosting screenings of local films over the next three nights, including work from Kat Candler and P.J. Raval.

Each night will have two screenings, with Jumping Off Bridges (which played SXSW 2006) at 7 pm, screening with Candler's short, Quarter to Noon. The 9 pm show will be "Fusion Shorts", including Polar Ops, and "a cinematic carousel of entertainment brought to you by the collaborative efforts of filmmaker P.J. Raval and artistic terrorist Paul Soileau."

Soileau will perform live with the films on Sunday night, with Candler doing live commentary on Monday. Tickets for one screening are only $5, and $8 for both bills.

Check the Salvage Vanguard Theater site for more information.

SXSW Review: Artois the Goat

in

Artois the Goat

Here at Slackerwood, the focus is on Austin-related film, and Artois the Goat is about as local as it gets. Directors Cliff and Kyle Bogart are graduates of UT Austin, found their cast at University of Texas MFA acting program, and shot on location around central Texas‎. If you want to see just how local it is, you can go to the Artois the Goat website.

The story is simple. Virgil (Mark Scheibmeir) and Angie (Sydney Andrews) are in love, and like to picnic with exotic cheeses. When Angie takes a job out of state, Virgil's thrown into a tailspin. With a vintage cheesemaker's book to guide him, he's off on a quest to make the winning cheese at a competition to win her back.

Syndicate content