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2010 Indianapolis International Film Festival |
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Since 2004, the Indy Film Fest has quickly grown into one of the Midwest’s fastest-growing and most-watched film festivals — and one of the most valued annual cultural events in the city. With attendance growing every year, we continue to deepen our impact on the city and the film community worldwide. Featuring the best in independent and innovative film from both award-winning professionals and emerging filmmakers, we’ve exhibited films from nearly every state in the country and more than 50 countries around the globe.
- 2010 FESTIVAL DATES: July 15-25, 2010 at the Indianapolis Museum of Art, 4000 Michigan Road, Indpls. IN 46208
- OPENING NIGHT FILM: Barry Munday
- CLOSING NIGHT FILM: Skateland
- AWARDS INCLUDED:
- Black Expressions Award- When I Rise
- Eric Parker Social Justice Award: Born Sweet
- Hoosier Lens Award (Short): Dynamic Tom
- Hoosier Lens Award (Feature): Laporte, IN
- Best World Cinema Short: Encuentro
- Best World Cinema Feature: Twisted Roots
- Best Documentary Short: Poodle Trainer
- Best Documentary Feature: Ballhawks
- Best American Spectrum Short: God of Love
- Best American Spectrum Feature: A Little Help
- Grand Jury Award ($1,000 Prize): A Little Help
- Audience Award (Short): Diplomacy
- Audience Award (Feature): When I Rise
FESTIVAL WEBSITE/SCREENING SCHEDULE: http://indyfilmfest.org
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| Skateland is the closing night film for the 2010 Indy Film Fest | Comic legend Bill Hicks is captured in this experimental Indy Film Fest doc | The amusing & curious doc "World's Largest" is an official selection of the 2010 Indy Film Fest |
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2010 Indy Film Fest Reviews (CLICK ON TITLE BELOW)
American: The Bill Hicks Story Review
It isn't surprising that co-directors Matt Harlock and Paul Thomas are having a hard time finding a U.S. distributor for their new doc American: The Bill Hicks Story, a photo-animated feature length documentary vibrantly narrated by the 10 people who knew the legendary comic the best.
"Legendary" is such a funny word isn't it? After all, Bill Hicks was a widely respected comic from Texas who never quite acquired a popularity in America equivalent to the amount of respect he received from other comics. It was only in the U.K. that Hicks achieved what some might consider to be "rock star" status, an overwhelming popularity that allowed him to fill auditoriums rather than the small, dingy clubs that were his regular stomping grounds here in the U.S.
Hicks can be most easily associated with Lenny Bruce, another American comic whose notoriety and popularity who grew after his death in 1966 at the age of 40. Like Bruce, Hicks preferred to avoid lazy, gross-out or overly raunchy comedy in favor of a style of comedy that challenged societal values, addressed social justice issues and just plain pissed people off.
Considering the average attention span of an American audience is about 13 seconds, Hicks's style of thought-provoking comedy sometimes lost audiences and led to popularity never really achieving more than cult status in this country.
American: The Bill Hicks Story is refreshing in that the film follows the entire life of Hicks from his childhood in Texas being raised in a Southern Baptist family to his open mic debut at the age of 14 and his unpopular decision to skip college in favor of going for comedy success in Los Angeles, a decision he would abandon later after several fruitful but frustrating years in California. Hicks returned to Texas and established himself as a regional comedy kingpin before a spiraling addiction problem would lead him into rehab and off to the East Coast in an effort to leave drugs and those who reinforced his drug habit behind.
Largely utilizing archival footage, voice narration and stage appearances interwoven with cutting edge stop-motion animation techniques, American: The Bill Hicks Story is as blunt and honest about Hicks's successes and failures as were Hicks's own comedy routines that confronted organized religion, politics, rampant consumerism and, in general, an America that had seemingly turned away from a land of love and compassion.
Just as is true for many of the routines of the oft-censored Lenny Bruce, there are moments when listening to Hicks that it becomes apparent that he was a comic for the times and, at times, the comedy routines play out as a touch dated. Yet the overriding themes of a Bill Hicks stage show are the same types of themes that permeated the routines of Lenny Bruce and virtually every other social justice/activist oriented comedian throughout history. It was only after Hicks's 1994 death at the age of 32 due to pancreatic cancer that Hicks began to explode in popularity around the world, though still to a lesser degree in the United States. Hicks had gone on a recording and performing marathon in the months prior to his death, recording enough material to release both CD's and DVD's of his material that have allowed his legacy to blossom in the 15+ years since his death.
As a film, American: The Bill Hicks Story starts off slow and nearly becomes overwhelmed by the "cutting edge" animation that at times appears more amateurish than cutting edge. Apparently not possessing much in the way of family video and photo archives, despite family involvement in the film, the filmmakers abundantly use what could best be described as an animated "talking head" style of filmmaking that at times distracts from the emotional force of the narration. About 1/3 of the way through, however, the stage footage becomes more prevalent and the animation gives way to a stronger emphasis on narration and Hicks himself. It is during these segments and through the end of the film that the film truly soars and becomes a an unforgettable legacy for a comic who was often seen as before his time and before America was ready for his style of comedy. Hicks, whose routines regularly ripped apart the first Gulf war and the Waco massacre, would have likely experienced a tremendous resurgence by the time George W. Bush hit office and Americans were starting to edge out of a state of complacency.
A wildly popular film in the U.K., American: The Bill Hicks Story is currently on the film festival circuit in the United States including a current run at the Indianapolis International Film Festival from July 15-25,2010 while the filmmakers seek distribution here in the U.S.
For more information on American: The Bill Hicks Story, visit the film's website.
© Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic
Ballhawks Review
What is ballhawking, you ask?
For decades, on Sheffield and Wakeland outside Chicago's famed Wrigley Stadium, a group of loyal, quirky and some might gather modestly insane men have gathered in hopes of tracking down batting practice and home run balls in a pursuit that for some might seem incredibly trivial and yet in Mike Diedrich's affectionate doc Ballhawks the practice, hobby or whatever you want to call it is filled with nostalgia, passion and an abundance of heart for the group of men involved.
There's the group's elder statesman, Moe, who had 4,444 catches in his illustrious ballhawking career, a career that companioned his adult life with all its ups and downs including caring for a sick father, applying for firefighter training and, of course, endless inner debating about this often time-consuming and difficult to explain activity.
Dave, on the other hand, possesses over 3,000 caught balls and doesn't care quite as much what anyone thinks about a hobby that seemingly makes him endlessly happy.
Think about it.
4,444.
3,000.
How many home runs occur in a game? A couple? If you're lucky?
Practices?
Foul balls?
Sure, they exist. But, seriously, can YOU imagine committing yourself so fully that you'd have such an outstanding ballhawking career over the course of your adult life?
Ballhawks takes place in what may very well be the final year of ballhawking outside Wrigley Field, a practice that made sense with Wrigley's limited bleacher seating and wider streets outside the stadium. Yet, in 2005, the beloved Cubs were on long awaited winning streak and Wrigley Field was due for a bleacher expansion that could very well render ballhawking obsolete as balls would become increasingly unlikely to exit the stadium.
In other words, this could very well be the final year.
A simple and straightforward 74-minute doc currently an official selection at the Indianapolis International Film Festival, Ballhawks works wonderfully because rather than regarding these men as unusual or quirky it simply has a rather sweet affection for them. This affection is never more evident than in the "final game," a game in which ballhawker Rich manages to achieve a final sense of satisfaction and, in turn, the audience watching the film can't help but share in his joy.
Ballhawks is comfortably narrated by Bill Murray, who gives the film the appropriate blend of respect and affection to make the entire experience a genuinely entertaining view.
© Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic
Barry Munday Review
It's hard not to assume that Patrick Wilson has unresolved penis issues. How else to explain that his lates film Barry Munday is his third film in which his "manhood" is either injured or comes into question?
In Barry Munday, the opening night film of the 2010 Indianapolis International Film Festival, Wilson plays the title character, a man who could best be described as a "horn dog" who ogles the women in the office where he works as an insurance agent along with those in the suburban neighborhood where he lives. If you could sprinkle in bits of Office Space, Knocked Up and any number of other sexed up man-child flicks we've seen over the last 10 years, then you have a bit of an idea of what to expect from Barry Munday.
Well, except for the fact that director Chris D'Arienzo ups the ante a bit because that which means the most to Barry, his family jewels, are abruptly out of the picture in a tragic trumpet meets testicle accident that would be right at home in an American Pie flick. To make matters worse, Barry is abruptly slapped with a paternity lawsuit by a woman he can't even remember having sex with, Ginger (a frizzy Judy Greer).
D'oh.
What follows, on a certain level, has the heart and humor of Craig Gillespie's Lars and the Real Girl, a unique and quirky film in its own right. In this case, it may truly have taken Barry losing his manhood to finally make him a man.
While Barry Munday quite often has an approach that feels like Apatow Jr., D'Arienzo has a decidedly more relaxed, naturalistic approach when it comes to dealing with his relationship and, despite the oddball (pun intended) circumstances, the relationship between the 70's style man-whore Barry and the ever so off-kilter Ginger is surprisingly touching and endearing.
Much of the credit for the film's success goes to the stellar pairing of Wilson and Greer, who not only tap into their characters beautifully but have a funny yet sincere chemistry that seems to evade most comedies of this type. It's easy to see Barry and Ginger together, it's easy to see them fall apart and, as well, it's easy as heck to want to root for them to make it all work out. Despite the sheer lunacy of much of what goes on here, Wilson and Greer and their supporting cast make it all feel oh so right.
Barry Munday has an abundance of delightful quirks, ranging from Billy Dee Williams as a DeLorean driving insurance exec to yet another priceless turn by Malcolm McDowell, who gets to relax and be funny for a change. One of the film's true highlights is a hilarious scene involving Tenacious D's Kyle Gass and Christopher McDonald as equally testically challenged men.
Is "testically" even a word?
While Barry Munday occasionally falters and drags in a few spots and, at times, the dialogue itself rings a bit hollow, this indie cred comedy should do ample arthouse biz distributed by Magnolia Pictures following its festival run.
© Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic
Everyone Says I Look Just Like Her
It will come as no surprise to writer/director Ryan Andrew Balas that I have a strong preference for his last indie film, Carter, an adventurous film that I considered one of my favorite low-budget indies of 2009, over his most recent film, Everyone Says I Look Just Like Her, which had its world premiere right here in my hometown at the Indianapolis International Film Festival this week.
Balas, in fact, made sure to warn me that his latest film was considerably different from Carter with a stronger streak of adult themes including quite a bit of nudity and sexuality.
It's not, however, that I hated Everyone Says I Look Just Like Her or, for that matter, that I found myself bothered by its rampant sexuality. While bits and pieces of Balas's latest film resonated deeply and the four-person cast seemed to be having a good time (Of course, they are all attractive and there are worse things to do than have sex, right?), Everyone Says I Look Just Like Her lacks the focus of Carter and, for the most part, it's difficult to determine just what the audience is supposed to take away from a film that contains abundant sexuality, family conflicts, unresolved grief and dark humor all rolled into one.
Could this film have worked really well? Indeed. Everyone Says I Look Just Like Her feels like its right on the edge of being a really fine film that just narrowly misses due to a lack of focus and cohesion that makes it incredibly difficult to invest oneself fully into the lives of these characters and their stories.
It's a shame, really. These are inviting characters, including Emmie (Deirdre Herlihy), her adopted sister Kaya, Kaya's boyfriend Rowan (Balas) and Brandon (Joe Swanberg), a guy Emmie meets on the bus ride up to the Michigan home shared by Kaya and Rowan who quickly becomes her lover and boyfriend. Together, the sisters prepare for the weekend's anniversary of their mother's death while awaiting the arrival of their father.
Unfortunately, every dramatic arc is met by another interlude of sex to the point where it begins to feel like gratuitous, intentionally "edgy" filmmaking that has very little purpose within the context of the film unless one wants to stretch for a "creating life" in the midst of grieving death storyline.
I don't really care to stretch.
In Carter, the entire ensemble cast seemed to carry the film's rather unusual vibe. With this film, however, the film's intention gets lost in the often random transitions between intimate conversations, sex, meandering humor and serious family issues. Had Balas chosen to focus the film either as an intimate relationship dramedy or a serious family drama it's entirely likely that Everyone Says I Look Just Like Her would have been a more cohesive, satisfying film. Instead, it feels like we're getting multiple films here and none of them have been truly fleshed out.
Fortunately, despite the film's structural issues, Balas is blessed with a strong ensemble cast led by Deirdre Herlihy who manages to be convicting and convincing by offering a natural, authentic performance that vividly brings to life the very real tensions that can exist between two siblings, especially when one is adopted. Both Balas and Swanberg shine, as well, though one gets the sense both would have been stronger had the film emphasized its comic edge.
Tech credits are solid for a low-budget indie, though the film features quite a few indoor shots that got lost in darkness in the Indianapolis Museum of Art's rather cavernous Tobey Theatre. Richard Buonagurio's camera work is stellar when the film is outdoors, though there are, again, indoor scenes where the film's modest budget is evident. Nathan Sandberg's original score plays mostly for drama, feeling a tad out of balance during the film's lighter moments.
While Everyone Says I Look Just Like Her lacks the cohesiveness and clarity of Carter, the film further reveals Balas's gift for creating interesting, well-developed characters and natural dialogue. This being the film's world premiere weekend, it should be interesting to see where the film ends up by the end of its festival run.
© Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic
LaPorte, Indiana
Winner of the Hoosier Lens Award during the 2010 Indianapolis International Film Festival, Joe Beshenkovsky's LaPorte, Indiana chronicles a rather unique and fascinating discovery in B & J's American Cafe, a true archive of the town's history in the form of over 18,000 studio portraits taken by recently deceased local photographer Frank Pease.
These portraits could be just "pictures," but in Beshenkovsky's doc they become a surprisingly touching, nostalgic and entertaining account of the town's history, the history of its people and, in turn, how the turn is shaped by the people and the people by their town.
Beshenkovsky, who was nominated for a 2008 Emmy Award for Nonfiction Editing for his work on This American Life, wonderfully and honestly captures the stories of those whose pictures Pease left behind. Some of these people would spend their entire lives in LaPorte, Indiana, a small town founded in 1832 with a population just over 21,000 in the 2000 U.S. Census. Others, of course, would leave such a small town as soon as humanly possible. Fortunately, LaPorte, Indiana is a nice blend of small town affection and cultural revelation.
It's not surprising, really, that Beshenkovsky's background is so strong in editing. LaPorte, Indiana features a myriad of stories beautifully woven together often, it would seem, having past and present become literal mirrors for one another. Beshenkovsky, along with producer Jason Bitner, have captured an important piece of American history and, maybe even more importantly, made sure that it remains incredibly relevant even today. It isn't necessarily the individual photos that are so fascinating, but the way they weave together to reveal personal lives, testimonies, a town's history and the ways in which our lives tangibly and intangibly connect.
© Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic
Movers & Stakers
Commissioned by Thomas Jefferson in 1806 as the first "national road," most Hoosiers take for granted our statewide stretch of a road that is alternately known as U.S. 40, National Road and, in Indianapolis, Washington Street. The nation's first federally funded interstate highway, National Road makes for a beautiful 156-mile trek through the state of Indiana essentially from Terre Haute to Richmond, Indiana.
Movers & Stakers, directed by Ball State University Professor Nancy Carlson, follows Indiana's stretch of National Road and, in the course of the film's 57-minute run time, tells the story of 13 people and places that one might discover along the road.
Movers & Stakers has the look and feel of a public television documentary, not necessarily a concern because it IS a public television documentary that happens to have been co-sponsored by the Scenic Byways Program of the Federal Highway Administration. A recent official selection of the Indianapolis International Film Festival, the film is now headed for the Louisville International Film Festival.
While Movers & Stakers certainly isn't life changing or a groundbreaking documentary, it is a well made and interesting film that gives further credibility to Ball State University's burgeoning film department and will prove popular among those who wax nostalgic about Indiana history or simply have a fascination with Hoosier history and hotspots.
© Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic
My Year Without Sex Review
Without question, Australian director Sarah Watt's My Year Without Sex is my favorite narrative feature coming out of the 2010 Indianapolis International Film Festival. Watt, whose first film Look Both Ways I also fancied immensely, tackles substantially meatier material this time around without quite so many flights of fancy as we encountered in her marvelous yet occasionally gratuitous debut film.
Nowhere near as quirky as the title might imply, My Year Without Sex chronicles the experiences of one family dealing with the sudden and life-changing illness of the mother.
Natalie (Sacha Horler) collapses one August day and undergoes emergency surgery for an aneurysm. As a result, the doctor tells her that she must undergo all forms of excitement or overstimulation.
Get it?
Well, actually, she and her husband, Ross (Matt Day), don't get any over the course of the year as the family, including the couple's two children (wonderfully played by Jonathan Segat and Portia Bradley) deal with the ins and outs of chronic illness, daily living, learning to cope with life's unpredictability and much, much more.
This is not to say that My Year Without Sex is a weepy drama, because it is not. It's difficult to imagine Watt allowing her film to become submerged in melodrama, as we experienced with Look Both Ways. While the subject matter is decidedly serious, Watt's script is overwhelmingly and richly human and ripe with the kinds of humor that those of us who've experienced chronic illness, including this critic, learn to celebrate. For Natalie and Ross, this is most vividly brought to life through the loss of their sex life, their expressed realizations that everyone around them is "getting it" and their increasing awareness that virtually everything in their culture seems to remind them of sex.
Watt still, on occasion, dips into her gratuitous tendencies as is noted with her somewhat forced transition scenes that are oft-marked by such banners as "going down," "foreplay" and "doggy style," yet where Watt grows as a director is in the way she uses these transitions to disarm the audience into playfulness before being hit with reality once again. There are scenes that are immensely touching, such as when Portia's loss of teeth is virtually ignored by the family and the "tooth fairy," a clear sign that the family has become overwhelmed and distracted and not just by a lack of sex.
While Look Both Ways occasionally used humor while avoiding the big issues, here Watt is almost tenderly weaving her character's experiences in a way that makes the humor feel more natural, healthy and beneficial. What felt like a cinematic gimmick in her first film feels more naturally flowing here and, in turn, it becomes infinitely easier to become invested in the lives of these four people.
It's difficult to use the word joy in describing the performance of a young actress portraying a chronically ill woman, but Sacha Horler embodies Natalie with such an earthy and wondrous humanity that one becomes completely captivated by her. Similarly, Matt Day gives a grounded, believable performance as the husband who is trying to hold the entire family and his libido in check.
Both Jonathan Segat and Portia Bradley excel as the siblings who must suddenly deal with their mom's illness, family stress, financial issues and, yes, a very different Christmas experience because of illness.
Each cast member is as adept at Watt's trademark gentle humor as they are in the film's more serious moments, but it is Watt's incredible ability to blend humor, heart and honesty that turns My Year Without Sex into one of the highlights of the 2010 Indy Film Fest. Watch for the film to be playing on the arthouse circuit courtesy of the folks at Strand Releasing. If it makes it to a theatre near you, be sure to catch it.
My Year Without Sex also features a stellar soundtrack that includes Uncle Bill and The Renovators among others. For more information on the film, visit the My Year Without Sex website.
© Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic
NoNAMES
Having played at several film festivals throughout the country, writer/director Kathy Lindboe's NoNAMES is currently an official selection of the 2010 Indianapolis Film Festival as its festival run continues.
The film centers around Kevin (James Badge Dale) and his small group of friends in a Wisconsin town whose entire existence seems to revolve around alcohol, drugs and partying. When Kevin's girlfriend, CJ (Gillian Jacobs), is raped at one of these parties but refuses to press charges, it seems as if life around him begins to collapse.
It's sad to think that NoNAMES is inspired by a true story, given how utterly depressing this entire affair is over the course of the film's nearly two-hour run time. To describe Kevin as down on his luck would be an understatement, he could easily be described as the unluckiest man in Wisconsin and beyond.
After this tragic event, Kevin makes attempts to improve his life but it seems like his attempts are met with repeated failure even as the never charged rapist is allowed to continue disrupting the lives of those in the small community. Haunted by unsettled scores, it becomes clear that if Kevin is to ever move forward in life it may very well involve a bus ride away.
While NoNAMES nearly collapses under the weight of its overwhelmingly somber tone and far too laid back pacing, kudos to Lindboe for assembling a fine cast that manages to shine in the midst of it all, most notably co-leads Dale and Jacobs along with supporting player Barry Corbin, the film's only real Hollywood name though Dale certainly possesses a Hollywood lineage.
The film features a strong companioning soundtrack, though even the soundtrack drives home the film's intensity and generally depressing tone.
Of course, there's nothing particularly wrong about creating a serious film that seriously addresses its subject matter, but Lindboe keeps the film so relentlessly overwrought that it's difficult to sympathize with any of the characters and, even more troubling, difficult for the film itself to sustain its emotional impact.
The film brings to mind Bill Sebastian's superior Midlothia, a similarly themed film that managed to nail the pacing, vary the subject matter and delve deeper inside the characters to create an unforgettable cinematic experience.
It's easy to admire Lindboe's efforts here, but NoNAMES simply misses the mark.
© Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic
Only When I Dance
Labeled by Heat Magazine as "the Brazilian Billy Elliott," Only When I Dance follows the lives of two young Brazilians, Irlan and Isabela, as they attempt to use dancing to lift themselves and their families out of poverty while also, quite simply, pursuing their life's passions.
Virtually anyone would realize that dancing and Brazil go practically hand in hand, a fact confirmed by one mother in the film who points out that "All Brazilians know how to dance." Indeed, while this may be true, even in Brazil dance is seldom seen as a way of achieving success. This is especially true, it would appear, when you are attempting to rise out of poverty conditions in an art that often requires expensive, classes, uniforms and travel if one hopes to compete on an international level and achieve the desired success.
Irlan, a confident and focused young man, would appear on a certain level to be the most promising of the two actors with a finely tuned physique and a fiercely devoted, if low-income, family. At first, Irlan's father verbalizes that he was rather horrified by his son's rather unusual interest in a country that carries with it an undeniable machismo that permeates the entire culture. Yet, before long and upon realizing his son's true gift, this wary father has become his son's most diehard advocate to the point of tattooing his name on his forearm.
Isabela, on the other hand, may very well be as gifted as Irlan but is deemed less likely to succeed with her darker skin and less than finely tuned body that challenges the dancer's physique stereotypes and expectations that exist throughout the dance culture internationally. There is nothing, per se, wrong with the way that she dances, but Isabela's best may not be quite good enough.
British director Beadie Finzi (co-director of Unknown White Male) infuses Only When I Dance with a wonderful blend of emotional resonance with the vibrancy and electricity that one expects to find in dance-themed films. While both Irlan and Isabela are from what Americans would call "the wrong side of the tracks," they've both immersed themselves in dance with what could only be described as a will to survive neighborhoods where drugs are often seen as the only real way out.
Their instructor, Mariza, serves as both teacher and inspiration as she actually lives in one of Rio's wealthier neighborhoods but has committed herself to this dance school that provides at least modest hope to those across the tracks. Even still, the school certainly cannot and does not fund everything for even the most promising students and many will give up rather than persevere through the physical, financial and cultural challenges that exist if one is to have even of hope of becoming a professional dancer.
Where Only When I Dance falls a touch short is in its lack of addressing, at least in any thorough way, the variety of issues it raises including that of Irlan's masculinity issues, Isabela's body image issues and, of course, the overwhelming impact of the poverty and crime surrounding the dancers. While these issues are discussed briefly, it occasionally feels like Finzi wants to keep the film as light and inspirational, an understandable choice that still leaves the film feeling a bit less satisfying.
The ending of Only When I Dance, as well, feels a bit too cleanly resolved as if Finzi had decided herself to ensure closure that doesn't feel quite so natural.
The film's lensing is beautiful, combining the majesty and wonder of dance with the stark, desperate conditions of the culture in which both dancers are living out their dreams. Alan Levy's editing helps to give the film an immediacy that works wonders throughout the competitions and the varying routines.
An official selection of the 2010 Indianapolis International Film Festival, Only When I Dance is currently finishing up its festival run and is available on DVD through the Film Movement. For more information on the film, visit the film's website.
© Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic
When I Rise
I will confess that it is challenging being disabled, even in the relative prosperity and opportunity offered by living in America.
Yet, despite the challenges of growing up with a disability, the lack of access, the shut doors, the denial of rights and the inability to support even the most basic of needs in daily living, it is difficult for me to fathom what it would be like to grow up intensely and fervently hated.
Sure, I have it hard. But, I've never been threatened solely on the basis of my physical appearance. I've never been physically attacked or verbally abused solely because of the color of my skin.
I've never been able to fathom the existence of hatred based upon such things as race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, economics or any other such "labels" that we use to divide ourselves from one another. It amazes me that racism still exists in our country, and I do, at times, look at those who survive it with dignity, love and tenderness intact with an undeniable respect.
Enter Barbara Smith Conrad.
Do you know the name? Probably not, unless you're familiar with opera.
Barbara Smith Conrad is a Black woman, a highly acclaimed mezzo soprano whose childhood love of music led her to study music in the late 1950's at the University of Texas and has allowed her an incredible career that has included performing with Harry Belafonte, performing numerous operas, performing for the Pope, performing at the White House and being named a Distinguished Alumnus of the University of Texas with a scholarship in her name.
If this would be all you'd know about Barbara Smith Conrad, it would be enough. These are the experiences that have defined her, not the firestorm of protests that met her being cast alongside a white University of Texas classmate in October 1956 in a production of Dido and Aeneas. It goes without saying that such a decision was not popular, not in Texas and not in 1957. Before long, outside influences began to weigh in on the decision including from the Texas state legislature. Finally, she was expelled from the cast by a relenting academic dean and UT's President, a weak-willed (Yes, that was editorialized) man named Logan Wilson who never did have the courage to even meet with the student.
Fortunately, the firestorm didn't end with the university giving in. The school's newspaper printed a story about the issue and, before long, the young woman had attracted nationwide attention and support that would lead to threatening letters, having to leave school temporarily and, on the flip side, strong statements of support from such performers as Belafonte and Sammy Davis, Jr.
This event could have, some say should have, defined the rest of Barbara Smith Conrad's life. Yet, to look at the woman is to see a woman of class, dignity and transcendence. She practically defines grace, a grace beautifully captured in Mat Hames' doc based upon her experiences at UT and in the years that have followed.
When I Rise recently received the Black Expressions Award and was named the Audience Award winner for Best Feature during the Indianapolis International Film Festival, recognition that was consistent with the film's nationwide praise for a Hames' beautifully assembled, subtle direction that allows the light to shine where it should - solely on Barbara Smith Conrad.
There are scenes that follow, scenes that we've grown accustomed to seeing when a person, a legislature or a community realizes their wrongs and attempts to make amends such as when the Texas legislature issued a proclamation for Smith Conrad in 2009. Again, Smith Conrad rises even above the legislature with her trademark with and gracious personality.
In documentaries, it is often popular to "sell the drama" of a person's life. It helps to sell the story and, if we're being honest, can make for better cinema. Kudos to Hames for transcending the drama of Smith Conrad's college experiences and focusing on the woman that she has become and the example that she gives everyone that even when faced with hatred we have the power to choose that love define us.
© Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic
Wo Ai Ni Mommy
I would defy anyone who works with or on behalf of children to watch Stephanie Wang-Breal's touching documentary Wo Ai Ni Mommy (I Love You Mommy) without shedding a few tears. While the ability to elicit tears may not make a documentary great, especially given the inherent sympathetic material here, such a response is certainly affirmation that Wang-Breal has managed to tap into the heart and soul of the people involved in the film, which centers around the Sadowsky family's adoption of Chinese born Fang, an 8-year-old girl who will become part of the Long Island family with the Americanized name Faith.
Wo Ai Ni Mommy has been on the film festival circuit throughout 2010, including being a recent selection of the 2010 Indianapolis International Film Festival and a win for Best US Feature at Silverdocs. The good news? The film is scheduled for a showing on P.O.V., PBS's award-winning non-fiction showcase on most stations on August 31, 2010.
While it is always tempting in these types of films to become mesmerized by and grateful for the family's who travel abroad, endure arduous application processes and spend thousands of dollars to bring children to the U.S., in the case of Wo Ai Ni Mommy it is the young Faith who is simply, utterly and astoundingly mesmerized. Wang-Breal followed this adoption journey for 1 1/2 years and, over the course of this time, Faith's transformation from a timid, scared child to a wondrously alive and vibrant child is nothing short of amazing.
This is not to say that there aren't moments that fit that American stereotype, where it feels like the Sadowsky's are literally force-feeding the young girl a sort of baptism by fire of American culture complete. Yet, it would be difficult to deny after watching the film that the Sadowsky's are quite matter-of-factly passionate about the young girl being their daughter and in helping her adjust.
Wo Ai Ni Mommy points out that since 1992 over 70,000 Chinese children have been adopted by American families, most of them infants or young children. Faith is an exception, an 8-year-old with a clubbed foot as a disability. She's also different in that at the time of the adoption she was living with a stable foster family and, as well, a foster sibling with whom she'd bonded quite deeply. In other words, her adoption was traumatic and, initially, her adjustment to the idea of adoption at least moderately resistant.
While the majority of Wo Ai Ni Mommy plays out with tremendous authenticity and naturalism, it likely goes without saying that in the film's rather slight 77-minute run time there will be at least a couple moments that ring a bit melodramatic or having been picked out of the 18 months worth of filming for their dramatic impact. It's an incredibly slight fault, but definitely worth noting.
In the end, however, you would be mistaken to consider Wo Ai Ni Mommy a film about adoption. This is a film about family and about the myriad of ways in which love can heal us and empower us to blossom.
It's a rarity that one is able to view such a fine documentary usually only seen on the festival circuit or in other select settings. Do yourself a favor and turn into P.O.V. on August 31st to catch this film for yourself.
© Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic
World's Largest Review
Have you ever gone Geocaching? Have you ever been around those who are crazy about the global GPS treasure hunting experience?
If so, then there's a good chance that World's Largest, an official selection of the 2010 Indianapolis International Film Festival in the feature-length doc category, will bring you to orgasm.
Okay, perhaps "orgasm" is a bit strong. However, World's Largest is a true cinematic delight featuring many of the feelings, thoughts and ideas that drive those who participate in geocaching...the opportunity to travel, to experience off the beaten path America and, on a really good day, to find some amazingly cool things that you may not have even known existed.
Virtually everyone has heard about such novelties as "The World's Largest Ball of Twine" or the Minnesota Paul Bunyan statue that found itself featured in the Coen Brothers' Fargo, but World's Largest and co-directors Amy C. Elliott and Elizabeth Donius go much further in their quest to document the sometimes amazing, sometimes sad and frequently Americana act of building smalltown America around something that is the biggest, most, widest, first, last, etc.
This is smalltown America at its quirkiest and most charming.
In a mere 75 minutes, Elliott and Donius document their several year adventure in traveling across America and documenting these roadside attractions that dot the United States landscape. While the filmmakers keep World's Largest light and energetic and filled with a wide assortment of delightful characters, there are moments in World's Largest that are stunningly touching and even rather indirect indictments of the U.S.'s current economic state and the sheer desperation that many small towns are experiencing in simply trying to survive.
With very few exceptions, the people, places and things featured in World's Largest are only temporary distractions for travelers and not, as many small towns had hoped, economic solutions and true tourist attractions. Travelers, whether they be geocachers or simply your ordinary traveler, pull alongside the road, take a photo and then move along to the next quickie distraction and temporary smile.
Yet, Elliott and Donius don't let World's Largest ever become a downer and, in fact, even during its more poignant moments it's impossible to not admire the spirit, optimism and drive of smalltown America.
A natural fit for any number of cable channels, most obviously Discovery, History or Travel, World's Largest is a delightfully entertaining, feel good and well constructed feature documentary that has also played at SXSW, the Philadelphia Underground Film Forum, Chicago Underground Film Festival and is currently continuing its film festival run.
For more information on World's Largest, visit the film's website.
© Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic
2010 Indy Film Fest "Shorts" Reviews
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