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'99 Geiger Road' by Donna Schatz
'Season of the Clown' by Brian Wimer
'Reverie' by Paula Wood
Director Sarah Knight (right) speaks with members of Saffire.
'Keith' by Evan Stroum
'Mango Lesson' by Stephanie Edelman |
BY BEN SELLERS
Six college friends reunite in Montana at the behest of a dying woman.
A gang of Dutch kids teams up to reclaim a playground from drunkards.
A group of Holocaust survivors in New York's Catskill Mountains debates whether to sell their home.
And three middle-age ladies from the Fredericksburg area strive to dispel preconceived notions in the music industry.
Each of these scenarios finds people coming together--whether through joy or adversity--in the most unusual of circumstances. Yet not only do
Next week, these four tales--and 26 others like them--will take the spotlight at the inaugural Rappahannock Independent Film Festival, presented by the Fredericksburg Athenaeum.
THE SCENE IS SET
For RIFF creative director Ryan Poe, the vision of bringing Fredericksburg its own film festival became a reality early this year.
"The scope of the festival changed as we were planning it," Poe said. "Initially, we thought maybe it would just be a small gathering of friends, and it kind of grew from there."
Once Poe and his fellow organizers--including Athenaeum executive director Paul Lewis--decided to
In April, Lewis headed to Rhode Island to meet with the director of the Newport International Film Festival, one of about half a dozen festivals RIFF modeled their approach after.
Lewis brought back with him a new philosophy to "let the films take the lead," Poe said.
"[H]e was optimistic that, if we promoted the films and took care of the filmmakers, the rest would fall into place."
Another important consideration was when to hold the festival, which will take place next Thursday through Sunday.
Poe said he didn't want to compete with similar area events like the D.C. Shorts Film Festival, which runs today through next Thursday, or the Virginia Film Festival, which kicks off in late October in Charlottesville.
"The timing was one of the big things--and our requirements for the films," he said.
"We tried to keep those fairly loose, to allow as many people to enter as possible--and so, that way, we weren't pulling from the exact same pool of filmmakers."
POOLING RESOURCES
Though RIFF's six core organizers and roughly 25 volunteers had their work cut out for them, their efforts got a major boost from an unlikely benefactor.
In January, the Silver Cos., developers of Celebrate Virginia, announced that they would give a $500,000 artistic endowment to the Athenae-um.
"We were able to get a number of sponsors this year to help cover the costs, which was great," Poe said.
"But what the Silver money allowed us to do was to go out and find those sponsors--to basically free us up to do that. I think that was essential, and that's probably what allowed us to increase the scope [of the festival] during the planning process."
The Celebrate Virginia grant--which came amid heated City Council deliberations over the proposed development of Kalahari Resorts near Central Park--was earmarked for projects that would help promote downtown culture.
To that end, Poe said, the festival has already succeeded somewhat. Though the film submissions come from all over--including Canada, South Korea and The Netherlands--RIFF has encouraged local involvement in many of the other aspects.
"We're trying to focus on Fredericksburg," Poe said. "Not just the filmmakers, but the volunteers and the sponsors. We're just trying to support the community and really make it something that includes everyone."
ACTION!
The main goal for the festival next week will be bringing together artists and patrons of the arts.
"One of the things that I like about filmmaking is that it's a collaborative process," Poe said. "Film can engage everyone, whether it's the audience or the filmmakers."
The festival's theme this year is "Portraits in 24 Frames," a reference to the number of shots needed to produce one second of action on film.
The centerpiece of the festival is a film-short competition, with entries ranging from three minutes to just under an hour.
Most of the 30-plus entries will be screened during the festival, although judges have already selected three finalists in each of the competition's three categories: best student film, best use of theme and best of show. (For more on the judging process and the finalists, check out next Thursday's it! section.)
Workshops, guest speakers and other special events will also be scattered throughout the four-day affair.
On Friday night, author Rivka Galchen will read from and discuss her critically acclaimed psychological thriller, "Atmospheric Disturbances."
And on Saturday, "Angry Filmmaker" Kelly Baker--a sound designer on six Gus Van Sant films and a writer-director of three feature-length indie films of his own--will give a workshop on "Making the Extremely Low Budget Film."
TO BE CONTINUED
Poe, himself, is most looking forward to meeting the many filmmakers he's been communicating with while organizing the festival.
"So far it's just been e-mail or on the phone, and so it'll be fun for me to get to meet some of these people that I sort of developed long-distance relationships with," he said.
But for the 25-year-old Poe, who got his start making movies with his brothers at an early age and now runs the Athenaeum's youth-oriented Panta Rhei Project, it will be just as important seeing student faces in the audience.
"If we can do what we can to cultivate [creativity] rather than kill it, that's one of our goals."
Ben Sellers: 540/374-5423
Email: bsellers@freelancestar.com
| New York-based filmmaker Sarah Knight is a finalist in RIFF's best-of-show competition with her 40-minute documentary on a subject close to the hearts of many in Fredericksburg: the ladies of Saffire--The Uppity Blues Women.
Knight spoke with Weekender about the film, "Hot Flash," and her journey to becoming a filmmaker. The abridged transcript follows. When did you decide to become a filmmaker?I had studied dance very seriously for many years when I was younger--but I always knew that, even though I had a talent for that, it wasn't really my passion. I always wanted to skip class and go to the movies. So, I quit dance when I was about 17, and studied film and broadcasting where I'm from, which is Lincoln, Neb. And then I just moved to Los Angeles after I graduated and was lucky enough to get a production-assistant job on a studio film. Were you working in the traditional film industry then? Yes. My first job on a film called "Diggstown," and from there, I went on When I was working in film production in early '90s, that was when they were at the height of their press, and I must have heard about them from 'Entertainment Tonight' or People magazine or one of those articles, and followed them consistently since then. But at the time, their life-rights had been optioned by another film company. They just became available again probably 2, three years ago--that's when I re-approached them. And I just fell in love with their music, but also their story--what originally caught my eye is how unusual that these women started out when most people wouldn't think that you could do that, in their mid-40s. As an artist yourself, did you relate to the struggles that you documented in "Hot Flash"?Certainly financially--there is a section near the end of the film where [Saffire co-founder] Gaye Adegbalola breaks down how much money they actually make from a concert. I don't think people understand how little most people make working in the arts--if they can even support themselves in the arts. As Saffire said in an interview, the Top 40 is just that--it's 40 songs, 40 artists at a time. Some people make a lot of money, of course--but most people struggle. And On a personal level, no, because I have two parents who are actually gonna come out from Lincoln to be with me at the festival. My father's a pharmacist, my mom works on the election board--but they are huge supporters of the arts. They couldn't think of a more noble way to spend your life than pursuing artistic endeavors, and that's very helpful. And --Ben Sellers |
| What: The Rappahannock Independent Film Festival features screenings, guest speakers, workshops and more Where: Downtown Fredericksburg locations including The Third Floor, 810 Caroline St. When: Thursday, Sept. 18, through Sunday, Sept. 21 Cost: Single-day tickets are $10 to $20; full festival and all-access rates available. Info: 540/373-1311 Web: For complete schedule, film and ticket information, visit rifilmfestival.com. |
