#MarkRaafatKammel

[doomonfilm]

Festivals : Indie Grits 2019 - Southern Scenes Block (2019)

As a cast member of I AM TX, it’s a good feeling to know that your film has been accepted into multiple festivals.  Your friends and collaborators will more than likely always have something positive to say about your work, but getting an impartial and honest opinion from those without personal investment is always a bonus.  I AM TX found itself in the Indie Grits Fest block dedicated to short films made by directors based in the south, and I could not have been happier to be grouped with such high quality work.

The Derby, directed by Remington Smith, focuses on the 2017 Kentucky Derby and its impact on both attendees and locals.  The behind the scenes look is one that Churchill Downs does not normally share, as we get the chance to talk to vendors, those who care for the grounds and animals, attendees who spend their time in the infield, and the crowd that hangs out in Millionaire’s Row on the 6th floor.  The film ultimately serves as a brief microcosm of America itself, with the distinction between the haves and the have-nots being painfully clear.  The documentary is wonderfully shot, with a handful of memorable moments that will stick with you long after your viewing is complete.

Shannon Silva’s Shoot The Duck is a lighthearted short film focused on a skating competition where competitors see who can ‘shoot the duck’ the longest.  The cast is almost entirely made up of children and young teenagers, the skating rink location lends itself to colorful backgrounds and expressive lighting, and the anticipation of taking part in a competition is captured without being overly dramatic.  While not a piece that could be extrapolated into feature length, Shoot The Duck is perfectly fine being what it is as a short narrative, and could easily find itself placed on television or in tandem with a major network that makes content for young people.

Of all the shorts in this block, Street Flame really and truly spoke to me.  Austin-based director Katherine Propper took a group of young Austin skaters and graffiti writers, gave them a platform to be themselves, and added a story about loss and dealing with the grieving process that accompanies losing someone close to you.  The film felt incredibly natural, the story hit me right in the feels, and at the conclusion of the short, I felt like wanting to watch it again.  Definitely one I’ll be keeping tabs on well after I leave the Indie Grits Fest. 

Will Berry’s Nashedonia, at just four short minutes, was a pure rush of blood to the head.  The humor of the film was incredibly sharp, the non-native perspective of a place as cherished as Nashville, Tennessee was refreshing, and the compisition of the film being shot in frame with an innovate captioning style all stood out amongst the rest of the films in the block.  This is the kind of short that would make Jim Jarmusch jealous. 

To West End, With Love is director/writer Melissa Alexander’s love letter to the West End of Atlanta, Georgia, done in a style that, while echoing films like Slacker, manages to have its own unique flare and energy.  Told in three parts with minimal spoken dialogue, the film stands as a line in the sand against the practice of gentrification that is erasing similar neighborhoods nationwide.  The visual diary presentation puts you square in the passenger seat with the subjects of the film, and the three stories are all unique enough to show the range and diversity that exists in the West End, while being connected enough to stand together as parts of a greater whole.  Black and white was also a great choice, as it gives the film a timeless feel.

As In Death, a documentary by Mark Raafat Kammel, focuses on former 911 operator Sidney Brodie and the Durham Homicide & Memorial Quilt, a project he started in 1996 that (sadly) continues to this day.  Whenever a homicide occurs in the Durham area, Brodie sews a new piece onto the quilt with the victim’s name, and the quilt is often presented at funerals and community gatherings to put a visual representation to the senseless violence that plagues not only Durham, but the nation at large.  The true heartbreak of the story, outside of the violence, is what the quilt did to Brodie’s marriage, and how his commitment to bettering life for everyone has locked in his commitment to the quilt.  Quite the compelling and thought-provoking documentary, if I do say so myself.

Whistle Down Wind, a collaborative effort between Julia Christgau and Andie Morgenlander, is a love story about being unafraid to untether yourself from the things that hold you back from following your passions.  The story is an extremely personal one, told mostly in close-ups and intimate moments between the two principal actors, with a narrative arc that finds itself to be uplifting, heartbreaking, uplifting again, and heartbreaking again all in the span of a few minutes.  The love story between the two women is a painful one, as they are forced to hide their love, only for the moment they can embrace to be subverted by the status quo.  The final shot and its subtlety will stick with me for a long, long time.  

Charlotte Taylor was handed the extremely tough task of rounding out the Southern Scenes block, but she more than stood up to the task with The Fields Lay Fallow, a music video in the form of a short film for artist Nomadic War Machine.  The piece focuses on a group of mysterious women performing a set of rituals deep in the woods, capped off by a celebration of wildness when a stranger unfortunately stumbles into their midst.  The music is strong, the visuals are stark, and the impression the piece leaves on you was pitch perfect as a way to end out a round of incredibly strong material.

If the Southern Scenes block is any indication of what I am in for in terms of overall quality, then I cannot put the excitement of anticipation I feel into words.  There is quite a bit on my schedule for the next few days, so stay tuned for my thoughts on all that I have the pleasure to view while at Indie Grits Fest 2019.