The Filmcake

6:00PM | Opening Night Party on the Rooftop at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art

Photo by tannerherriott used under CC-by-2.5 License

For unknown reasons, the Opening Night reception was held on the 1st floor of the Museum. I missed the rooftop view and all the seating. But, I certainly didn’t miss the sun or the wind. Plus, the location inside allowed for more mingling than the rooftop probably would have provided. Like last night, there was plenty of Stella Artois to be had. For snacks, they had a sort of bruschetta spread with tomatoes & mozarella but also some pesto, hummus, and tapenade. I have no reason to worry about what comes out of the Museum Cafe kitchen, but it’s still a little strange to find yourself second guessing the tomatoes that you eat.

Anyways, we hung out for a while. Sadly, we’re not really the mingling type. But we still talked for a moment with one of the guys with A Beautiful Day. We met the filmmakers behind S&M Queen for a Day as well as the director of disFIGURED. As always, it was a bunch of fun. While we’d been to two parties already, we hadn’t seen any films yet. Now, on to the films…

7:30PM | Whimsical Shorts

Damn The Past! | Juli Kang

This one started out the program. And, what a delight. Very nicely shot. The choreography and music were very good. It was quite humorous while still retaining an emotional connection. It was funny and sweet. (MySpace page)

The Vaudevillian | Bryan Nest

I liked this one a lot too. I don’t know if I’d call it “whimsical,” because it was actually a bit dark, but it was still a very welcome addition. Sometimes you just have to quit listening to that nagging voice in your head and go on with your life and take care of yourself.

Life In Transition | John R. Dilworth

This one was very beautifully animated. For me, it summed up several of the movies I saw Thursday night. Life is a challenging process with a clear and definitive end…so start living it. You can watch this film online on the Stretch Films website through the link above.

Gustav Braustache and The Auto-Debilitator | Rob Cunningham & Tony Mullen

This was our favorite short of the night. It was basically a silent film comedy. Very classic, I thought. It was shot great. The comedic timing was impeccable. And, Gustav Braustache’s gadgets and machines were all so delightful. Later on, Sarah mentioned how they all even seemed to have a sort of personality to them. And, the Auto-Debilitator is perhaps the greatest invention of all time. My love and devotion for Nikola Tesla have suddenly shifted towards the brilliant Mr. Braustache.

A Faery’s Tale | Sylvia Apostol

An uncoventional take on the classic Tooth Fairy tale. Again, very nicely animated. I don’t have a full appreciation of the art of animation. It’s certainly something I’m gonna have to examine further. But, this one was quite nice. You can watch this film on Sylvia Apostol’s website at the link above.

Where Did the Time Go? | Eric Kim & Mary Fecteau

This was what I have to assume was a mockumentary. If that’s the case, I think they could and should have taken it just a little bit further. It was somewhere between a slightly strange (or whimsical) documentary and an almost really funny mockumentary.

9:30PM | disFIGURED | Glenn Gers @ Harkins

L to R: Staci Lawrence as Darcy and Deidra Edwards as Lydia, in Disfigured,
dir. Glenn Gers. Photo by John Stewart Muller, courtesy of Dialogue Heavy Pictures.

Sarah and I were both looking forward to this one, albeit with a little bit of trepidation. The fat girl isn’t usually given a lead role and her weight is usually only used to mock her. But this movie by director/writer Glenn Gers, who previously wrote the screenplay for Mad Money starring Diane Keaton, Queen Latifah, and Katie Holmes, did not disappoint. For a quick DV shoot, it was very well acted and directed. I have to give serious credit to the director who was able to balance the complexities of body image, from a fat perspective as well as an anorexic one, in a way that was fair and compassionate but never coddling either. The sex scene was very competently handled–never taking its self too seriously nor devolving into playing it for laughs.

And, as Sarah said, the friendship between Darcy and Lydia was excellently captured by the actors and director alike. Of course, a movie like this that tackles subject matter like this will have its limitations. It’s not going to appeal to everyone everywhere all the time and it’s not going to please everyone everywhere all the time. It’s a niche movie, in a way. But, I’m so glad it was made. Maybe a studio someday will step up to the plate and make a real movie about real people even if their bodies don’t quite conform to the Hollywood ideal. We look forward to purchasing this one when it is released next month on DVD.

11:00PM | Opening Night After Party at Maker’s Cigar Bar

So after a nice first night of films, we headed on over to Makers. After just over five months as non-smokers, it was our first time in a smoking bar. But, it went okay. I even smoked about half of my complimentary cigar. And that will be that. Over some red wine and Guinness, we talked about the films. Which ones we liked, which ones we didn’t like so much. We talked about what our favorite ones got exactly right. Does life get any better than talking about movies over good wine and beer with your best friend? In my book, that is heaven.

Kathryn Jenson White of the Oklahoma Film Critics Circle prays, wills, begs the mysterious unknown to send some of the love Oklahoma’s way:

Please, uncaring universe, send us some good films.

And on the eleventh day, it answered. In the form of the 8th Annual deadCENTER Film Festival.

It’s nice of the Oklahoma Gazette to give the deadCENTER Film Festival several pages in their latest issue. There’s an overview article, a couple of spotlight reviews, and a slew of mini-reviews. Plus, there’s a festival schedule included as well. Unfortunately, the schedule is incomplete and contains errors in the showtimes. So while you may want to use the Gazette to figure out what movies look interesting, you’ll want to check the deadCENTER website for a full list of films with accurate showtimes.

A couple of photos of last night’s deadCENTER Kick Off Party on Film Row courtesy of the wimgo blog’s tannerherriot (cc-by-2.5):

So we return relatively early from the Wednesday night Kick Off. As planned, Sarah and I first had dinner at Trattorio Il Centro. The bad news was that the arugula pizza had been removed from the menu. The good news was that they still made it for us anyway. After dinner and a couple of drinks, we headed on over to Film Row. We picked up our passes and “swag” and hung out waiting for the Kick Off Party to get underway. Inside the party, they had wine and plenty of Stella Artois. There was food from Gaijin Sushi, Paseo Grill, and the Prairie Gypsies. The food would have been wonderful if we weren’t already stuffed from dinner. We hung out for a bit–had a few drinks, had a few snacks–and then headed on home to let in the dogs and get some rest for the remainder of the weekend (after all, we still have to go into work tomorrow–thankfully, we both took off all day on Friday). Those who stuck around were treated with an outdoor screening of Rainbow Around the Sun (which we’re going to catch later at the Museum).

Thursday looks like it’s going to be a lot of fun as well:

6:00PM | Opening Night Party on the Rooftop at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art

7:30PM | Whimsical Shorts

A Faery’s Tale | Sylvia Apostol
The Vaudevillian | Bryan Nest
Damn The Past! | Juli Kang
Life In Transition | John R. Dilworth
Where Did the Time Go? | Eric Kim & Mary Fecteau
Gustav Braustache and The Auto-Debilitator | Rob Cunningham & Tony Mullen

9:30PM | disFIGURED | Glenn Gers @ Harkins

This is Sarah’s most anticipated film.

The story of an unexpected friendship between two women – one obese, the other anorexic.

Like Sarah, I was initially reserved upon hearing about the film because of the mention of anorexia. We’re conditioned to think of the fat (especially) female friend as the butt of a joke. In this case, I thought maybe it might be the fat girl who gets “cured” through anorexia. Luckily, that doesn’t seem to be the case. Reading the Director’s Statement as well as a comment the director Glenn Gers left on The F-Word blog (where similar reservations were mentioned), it appears that this film will neither be quite so brash nor so simple. Body image, like real life, is complicated. The movie is “full of mixed feelings and unexpected emotional logic” very much like real life. I, too, very much look forward to checking this one out.

11:00PM | Opening Night After Party at Maker’s Cigar Bar

Film Threat’s Don Lewis won’t make it to this year’s deadCENTER, but his documentary short film will when it airs with the Midnight Shorts on Friday night:

“Drag King” is about this group of people in Northern California who get together every summer and hold “The Fiberglass 500.” What these crazy-ass people do is, they get old cars (as well as some souped up ones) and attach old, beat-up boats to them. They then race around the track trying to destroy each others boats. It’s pretty awesome and really appeals to your inner redneck. If you’re outwardly a redneck, then you’ll automatically like it. By the way, nice tooth.

By the way, it looks like Pete Vonder Haar who blogged about last year’s festival on Film Threat will return to OKC. Hopefully, Pete will offer up his opinions on this year’s festival here and/or here.

The 8th Annual deadCENTER Film Festival kicks off tonight at historic Film Row. According to Downtown OKC:

Built in 1930 and set with a keystone engraved with “Film Exchange”, 700-708 West Sheridan was the epicenter of Oklahoma City’s “Film Row” from 1930 through the 1960’s. This area, located at the intersection of West Sheridan and Lee, was one of 30-40 regional distribution centers for Hollywood. Theater owners from around the state would come here to screen new releases, sign contracts, trade movies, and gather lobby cards, posters and other necessities. Columbia Pictures, RKO, Paramount, Universal, MGM, Warner Brothers, 20th Century-Fox, United Artists and others all had offices located in buildings in this area of Oklahoma City.

The Festival begins at 7:30pm with a Kick Off Party for All-Access Pass holders at this wonderful location. Then at 9:30pm, Rainbow Around the Sun will screen for FREE just outside at N Lee & Sheridan Ave. Matt Brown (The Fellowship Students) stars as Zachary Blasto in:

The musical journey of a hard drinking musician who creates madcap musical fantasies to help him face personal loss and become a better person. Kind of.

Sarah and I are going to grab dinner at Trattoria Il Centro after work and then head over to the party. As for Rainbow Around the Sun, we’re going to hold off and catch that at the OKC Museum of Art on Friday. After all, we still have to make it into work tomorrow morning.

June 2nd – June 8th

Sex and the City- If you watched the entire series on HBO like me, then maybe this movie is for you. Otherwise, probably not. For fans of the show, it was like 5 bonus episodes. It is what it is. I enjoyed the movie, but there wasn’t anything in it that’s going to really stick with me. Sarah and I watched it at the Warren in one of the balcony seats. We each grabbed a big beer beforehand at the bar to take in with us. As we settled into our big & comfortable seats (replete with heaters), we ordered some mozzarella cheesesticks to enjoy with the movie. The balcony was quite nice. A very good theater experience. I can’t wait to go again with a movie I love…and get sloppy drunk up in the balcony. Fun, fun, fun.

The Andromeda Strain – This was the 1971 version. Very science-y. Most of the movie is just a group of four scientists performing tests to determine what the mysterious life form is and why the two survivors haven’t been killed. Perhaps that makes the pacing a bit slow to some, but for me it was very much welcomed. I like that the saviors were scientists for once instead of the same old sinewy action heroes. Also, the nature of the “alien” (lacking any amino acids) might fit in with what one may describe as a “believable” alien.

The Omega Man- Speaking of sinewy action heroes, we continued our 70′s Sci-Fi marathon with The Omega Man starring Charlton Heston. Heston is just great in the role of Robert Neville. Because, well, he’s Charlton Heston. He embodies God and insanity all at once. He’s “genuine 160-proof old Anglo-Saxon, baby.” I haven’t seen The Last Man on Earth (1964) or I Am Legend(2007), nor have I read the Richard Matheson novel, so I’m not sure how the different versions match up against each other.

For the Bible Tells Me So- This was a nice documentary about the intersection of homosexuality and religion. Sometimes it ends up okay, sometimes it ends up horribly wrong. It featured stories from several families, including Bishop Gene Robinson and Chrissy Gephardt (daughter of former Senator Dick Gephardt). While perhaps it shouldn’t be surprising, it is still shocking to see somebody reject their own child first before rejecting supposed Biblical teachings.

Buried in the Backyard- This was a short, mostly non-judgemental look at a group of people who take bomb shelters very seriously. It’s one thing to be prepared. It’s another thing to think that you can prepare for ALL contingencies. What’s the use in surviving if you’re not really living in the first place? Still, there’s something sort of clubhouse-y about bomb shelters that make them a fun escape (a sort of grown up treehouse).

At the Death House Door- I heard about this after hearing Reverend Carroll Pickett’s story on NPR’s Fresh Air. He was the chaplain who administered to the death row inmates when Texas reinstated the death penalty. After each execution, he decompressed by recording his thoughts onto cassette tapes. I would have liked to have heard more of these tapes…to have seen how Pickett’s thoughts changed as he witnessed more and more executions and ultimately came to be against the death penalty. Regardless, the parallel story of the innocence of inmate Carlos De Luna certainly played an effective role in damaging the credibility of the death penalty itself.

Breakfast on Pluto- This was a fun but scattershot movie. Cillian Murphy was quite good as Patrick “Kitten” Braden. The character was quite annoying, not because of his transgendered nature but because of his real lack of being grounded in reality.  It’s one thing for a man to dress like or “be” a woman; it’s another thing to continuously play a fantasy game of dress-up.

The Seventh Seal- Bergman. Playing chess with death. Enough said. I don’t know about this one. I’m gonna have to watch it again. Actually, I’m gonna have to read up on Bergman and then have a Bergman marathon of my own. I think it’s the sort of film that you have to watch a couple of times in order for it to really soak in. Plus, the subtitles seemed out of whack at times (DVR’ed from IFC). Still, the image of lingering death and the suggestion that God is created out of our own fear are certainly intriguing. But like I said, I’ll have to return to it at a later time.

The Andromeda Strain (A&E)- Well, we bookmarked our weekend with The Andromeda Strain. This made-for-TV miniseries version was just awful. It was way too convoluted and full of unnecessary filler (presumably to stretch it to miniseries length). It lacked the deliberate science style of the original while favoring a busier 24style. It started off entertaining enough, but by the end there were so many twists and turns and conflicting explanations that I didn’t really care in the end.

Yesteday, Sarah wrote movingly about her feelings on watching Stanley Kramer’s On The Beach and what it had to say about life and mortality:

I strongly believe that it is death that gives life meaning. Without the gnawing, ever-present knowledge that one day it will all end, I find it a little harder to truly enjoy life, and a lot easier to take it for granted. I think this is why I like the Impending End of the World scenario so much. It puts everything into perspective. It reminds me to feel everything more deeply. I appreciate Dwight more, and savor the little moments. Same thing with my family. My friends. My dogs. The thought of death forces me to focus on what I love, and to avoid getting worked up about the things that in, the end, really don’t matter all that much. I don’t want to waste a single minute. I want to live my life so that when the end finally comes, I have as few regrets as possible. I want to do, and see, and experience, as much as I can.

I feel the exact same way. Precisely because life has such a finality to it is what makes it so precious and wonderful. So with that floating around in my mind, I read this afternoon in The Oklahoman something that seemed to strangely echo that sentiment. Wayne Coyne described the “Flaming Lips philosophy”:

Maybe it’s proclaiming that there is a kind of cosmic mercy that happens when we feel like, despite our best efforts, we really are defeated. … Happiness can await us despite our worst failures. But it’s a happiness we must create. And since everything we believed in is destroyed, we have to create this happiness out of nothing.

I like that. It’s a psychedelic echo of what Sarah had to say, I think. And consider me a follower of Coyne’s philosophy. There’s a decent playlist of FLips songs that plays in my head whenever I need guidance or inspiration or comfort or any of these.

With that, I can’t wait to finally check out Coyne’s labor of love, Christmas on Mars. It screens at deadCENTER 11:55pm Friday night and 2:00am Saturday morning at the Rocktown Gym. This will mark the third Flaming Lips film I’ve seen first at deadCENTER (The Fearless Freaks & U.F.O.’s at the Zoo, previously).

We already know that Oklahoma City University will represent at the deadCENTER Film Festival with the feature Unsolved. It looks like the University of Oklahoma will have representation at the festival as well.

Two films from OU graduate Royce Sharp will be shown, The Breakup of a Happy Marriage and Deus Ex Machina (w/ Walker Robins). In an article in the Norman Transcript, Sharp describes the former as a “funeral for my right testicle. The latter is described as a “comedy about a guy and his moustache.” Okay. Testicles don’t often play a huge role in the films that I like…but if it’s personal and/or honest, then why not. Now, the moustache movie…I don’t know about. Last year there was a funny Okie short that screened called Man With a Moustache. Hopefully, Sharp and Robins’ film brings some originality to the facial hair genre.

OU art professor Robert Dohrmann will show his Rebus Riot! which he describes in the Transcript article as “not really a story like most of the other films at deadCENTER. It’s really more concept-based.” While just about anybody is likely to be confounded by some of the shorts that get screened at deadCENTER, I honestly think that having read Film Art will give me a newfound perspective with which to appreciate what some of the more “experimental” films are trying to do.

The Breakup of a Happy Marriage will be shown as part of the Okie Shorts program at 7:00pm, Friday the 13th, at Kerr Auditorium.

Deus Ex Machina and Rebus Riot! will be shown as part of the Midnight Shorts program at 11:55pm, Friday the 13th, at the IAO Gallery.