Nysselle D. Clark
August 22, 2006
As I begin my adventures into the world of film, I had the pleasure of attending my first film festival at Woods Hole Massachusetts. There, I was able to see diverse and creative works that inspired me and enriched my life.
I started with Rain in a Dry Land, a documentary created by filmmaker Anne Makepeace. The presentation of this film was located at the old Woods Hole Fire Station, which, on a 90+ degree day did not have the luxury of air conditioning. However, this film was so interesting that in the end I did not mind the sweat. The film begins at a refugee camp in Kenya where Somalia Bantu families attend classes that prepare them for the culture of the United States, as they were to be sent there to live a new life. However, these classes did not prepare them for the culture shock they experienced upon arriving in the United States (one family in Springfield, Massachusetts and one in Atlanta, Georgia). This documentary follows these families for a year and a half and documents the trials and tribulations of survival in their new surroundings. From shopping at the grocery store, paying rent and bills, obtaining employment, education, and learning to speak English, each day made for a new challenge, experience and adventure. Eventually, after experiencing poverty, racism, and through several obstacles these families begin to adapt to American culture and overall, seem to be happy and thriving. However, what really comes out of this documentary is the appreciation they have for even just the small things in life that we, as Americans born into this culture, tend to take advantage of. In conclusion, a woman was asked about how she liked the United States and she answered “it is like Rain in a Dry Land”.
Later in the evening, I previewed some comedy shorts that were also held in the old Woods Hole Fire Station. These shorts were fun and ranged from 5 minutes to 20 minutes long. My favorite was a 9 minute film, Certain Death created by filmmaker Don Casper. This film is about a husband who makes attempts to kill his wife only to have each attempt backfire on him. This was an extremely funny story that captured the dynamics of a married couple, by which many people could relate to and laugh about. Halfway through the presentation of these comedy shorts, I had to leave because the room was so packed with people, I was growing hotter by the minute, and the air was stifling and constricted. Needless to say, the very next day, I adjusted my agenda to ensure that I preview other films in comfort.
In the cool Redfield Auditorium, I had the pleasure of reviewing True Guts, a documentary created by Josh Golder about his own struggles and others who are faced with the illness of Crohn’s disease and Colitis. Because of this film, I have developed a better understanding of the disease and felt empathy for those who suffer from it. I found this documentary to be professional, informative, honest and important, just as I felt of the filmmaker himself.
As I previewed Last Thoughts created by filmmaker Kevin Henry, I put aside the fact that there were several technical difficulties with the equipment in the Lillie Auditorium and tried to concentrate on the film itself. This film is a story about Kevin Henry’s grandfather, who at his death bed, tells his grandson the story of the life he lived as a hobo from the mid 1920’s and his journeys thereafter. As the filmmaker uses creative and artsy visuals of his grandfather’s story, I was extremely disappointed by the fact that the story was told in the voice of the grandfather which was inaudible throughout the entire film. My recommendation for this film would be to include a reading translation at the bottom of the screen and quite possible to cut the length of this film.
Some of the best works I previewed came out of the Exhibition Shorts and the Cape Cod Shorts. In the exhibition shorts, many of these films were considered to be in the category of experimental and drama, but most importantly each were unique, unusual and interesting with some great story telling and play with visuals.
The Walking Ink by Thomas Bardnt is in black and white (gorgeous footage, shadows, etc.) and tells an 8 minute story of a woman who tries to cheat and kill an auto mechanic out of the money she owes him for fixing her car.
Louder Than Words by Glenn Ripps is a unique story of a man who poisons a rabbit for eating from his garden and kills several pests and insects only to get it back at him in spades as the insects (mainly flies) begin to retaliate and invade his life. Kuboa by filmmaker David Baeumler tells an interesting story of the life of a Norwegian Ghost. In this 7 minute short, Baeumler creates a dreamlike state and places the viewer in the perspective of the ghost.
Alone by Gregory Orr depicts an ordinary, boring, lonely man who evicts people from apartment buildings for a living who develops an obsession for a beautiful girl that becomes his fantasy giving him new meaning in his life, only to cycle back as he finds himself lonely once again.
The Cape Cod shorts featured filmmakers from the local area and divided into a youth section and adult documentaries. The best films I previewed were in the youth section because their creativity and their fresh perspective on life made their films the most enjoyable.
Ninja by filmmaker Wes Vose is a short comedy that tells the story of a police officer who chases after a killer on the loose. Although the quality and audio of the film was not up to perfect technical standards, the creative mind of the filmmaker had a lot of fun with his match on action shots, great old heavy metal songs, and storytelling to make a film that is both action-packed and extremely funny.
Beating around the Bush created by Nick Santos and Brendan Sawyer contains a story of the life of Brendan and his dreams and passion to play the drums. Sawyer delves into his subconscious and brings forward his fears as well as his infatuation with the instrument while creating a somewhat unique and artsy film.
How it Starts by Freddy Janney features a teenage boy’s perspective on the adolescent chase to meet and be with a girl. I particularly enjoyed this story because it touches upon the fears and uncertainties of teenagers everywhere, not only it this story humorous but it is fresh, fun and realistic.
Looking Skyward: A Passion for Hawk-watching produced by Shawn Carey and director/editor John Sutherland is a documentary that reveals people’s passion for hawk-watching as well as informative information of the Hawk itself. This film contains beautiful visual footage of the Hawk and interviews the community of people who follow this beautiful creature. It is a straight forward documentary and gives an appreciation for the great outdoors and for our co-existence with birds of such beauty.
Somewhere in the Vineyard by Frederico Muchnik gives visual and audio of the sights and sounds of Martha’s Vineyard. The music that accompanied this short documentary was calming, soothing which set the mood for the gorgeous shots of Martha’s Vineyard. This documentary would make for a great advertisement for tourism.
On Friday, August 4, I was back again at the Woods Hole Fire Station, only this time the temperature was much cooler and there were several fans blowing the air around. These documentary shorts were each unique and set apart from each other and enjoyable.
Diva Dog: Pit Bull on Wheels by Chris Cory touched and inspired the audience as he tells the story of his pit bull Coral who was hit by a car and became permanently paralyzed but had the strength and will to live with her doggie wheelchair. One could not help but fall in love with Coral because she revealed her zest and love for life and love for people. At times, throughout the showing of this film, I looked around the room and there were tears in people’s eyes. The filmmaker told a great story as well as gave to people a new perspective on life itself.
Muriel by filmmaker Kim Romano is a hysterically funny story of a Jewish New York housewife, Muriel (late 50’s), who deals with her cheating husband, a teenage boy from the affair, sexuality, and anything else one can imagine this woman goes through in her life. Muriel looks at life and makes it funny, this woman is a comedian and does not even realize it. In this documentary, there was not a dry eye in the place because this woman was so funny, she made people cry with her anecdotes and spin on life.
My Eyes Were Fresh: The Life and Photographs of John Cuttmann produced by Sandra S. Phillips and Director Jane Reed reveals the story of John Guttman, who left his career as an artist (painter) in Germany and started a career as a photographer in the United States. This documentary reveals some of the most beautiful works of this photographer throughout is life and of whom made an incredible contribution to the world of photography as a modern art form.
Project: B-Boy/Kujo created by Doug Shineman focuses on a partially deaf break dancer making it in the art world as a dancer B-Boy is truly an amazing, free-flowing and inspirational and truly talented dancer who lives his life for dancing. This documentary made me feel like dancing.
Remembering John Marshall directed by David Tames and Alice Apley focus on the life of John Marshall, a filmmaker and activist who spent 50 years documenting the lives of the Ju/’hoansi people of Namibia. John Marshall was an interesting man because he had such a strong passion for the people of Ju/’hoansi, as they had for him and his work revealed his personal relationship with these fascinating people. His work on the Ju/’hoansi people covers and extensive period of time and leaves a strong mark in the world of ethnographic filmmaking.
My experience of the film festival was educational, encouraging and motivating one. I am amazed on how each filmmaker uniquely expresses themselves to tell their story and all were truly an inspiration to me. I have now been left with a deeper respect and appreciation for all works of filmmaking, I was truly stimulated and most of all inspired by the hard work that was put into every detail of each film.
I would like to thank DER, most of all Cynthia Close, for my rich experience as an intern with them and for giving me the opportunity to attend the film festival, DER truly is an educational resource!
