Bulletin E-Edition:
more photosThe North Face of Mt. Everest looms overhead in “Everest: A Climb for Peace.”
The Associated Press
Synopses
By Breanna Hostbjor / The Bulletin
Published: October 10. 2008 4:00AM PSTDocumentaries
‘Ask Not’
Directed by Johnny Symons
A rare and compelling exploration of the effects of the U.S. military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, revealing the personal stories of Americans willing to risk their lives for a country that criminalizes the act of coming out. Current and veteran gay soldiers reveal how “don’t ask, don’t tell” affects them during their tours of duty, as they struggle to maintain a double life. (72 min./color) Screens with “The Winged Man.”
Saturday, 1:30 p.m., McMenamins 1
‘DOWN DAYS’
Directed by Sky Pinnick
This documentary follows the lifestyle, thoughts and emotions of the big mountain extreme skier. Set in a monthlong film shoot in Haines, Alaska, it shows what it takes to be a professional skier battling increasing risks to satisfy sponsors and progress the sport. Experience this emotional roller coaster through the perspective of the people involved in making it all happen. (57 min./color) Screens with “Looking Up Dresses” and “person, place or thing.”
Friday, 8:30 p.m., Tower Theatre
‘Everest: A Climb for Peace’
Directed by Lance Trumbull
A socially relevant documentary about peace, war, and the human spirit. An inspirational film with some of the most incredible Everest footage ever shot, including a dramatic rescue near the summit. The film chronicles the spectacular journey of nine “peace climbers” from different faiths and cultures as they climb to the summit of Mount Everest. Climbers come together and set aside their differences while attempting to summit the world’s highest peak. (90 min./color) Screens with “Al’s Beef.”
Saturday, 8:30 p.m., McMenamins 2
‘THE FAIR TRADE’
Directed by Lauralee Farrer
Tamara Johnston McMahon is devastated by the tragic death of her fiance and makes a bargain with God to postpone suicide in exchange for a meaningful life. She quits her job at Dreamworks, her twin sister Shelby quits her job teaching art history, and they join forces with brother-in-law Steven to spend their days making soap for their startup fair trade skin care company, Anti-Body. As she nears the deadline of her bargain, a trip to Africa shows her a surprising answer to what is required of her in exchange for a sustainable life. (57 min./color) Screens with “Keys.”
Saturday, 10 a.m., McMenamins 2
‘GARRISON KEILLOR: THE MAN ON THE RADIO IN THE RED SHOES’
Directed by Peter Rosen
Written by Sara Lukinson and based on the monologues of humorist and commentator Garrison Keillor, this free-form, intimate look at the private man in the public spotlight goes behind the scenes of America’s most popular radio show, “A Prairie Home Companion,” and inside the imagination of the man who created it. (86 min./color) Screens with “Looking Up Dresses.”
Friday, 11 a.m., Tower Theatre
Sunday, 4:30 p.m., McMenamins 1
‘Gates of the Arctic’
Directed by Rory Banyard
Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve lies completely above the Arctic Circle and protects the central Brooks Range, the northernmost extension of the Rocky Mountains. The park and preserve is the subject of this documentary. (60 min./color) Screens with “A Drop of Life” and “Plain and Simple.”
Saturday, 5 p.m., McMenamins 2
‘HATS OFF’
Directed by Jyll Johnstone
A late-in-life profile of Mimi Weddell, a 92-year-old woman whose daily routine mocks the traditional American image of old age and instead flaunts a “can-do, will-do” attitude. From her daily trips to the auditions and cattle calls for small roles in television, movies and print campaigns to her weekly gym and dance workouts, Mimi Weddell rises above the mundane. (84 min./color) Screens with “Undone.”
Friday, 6:30 p.m., McMenamins 2
‘I LOVE TRASH’
Directed by David Brown
A documentary about the art of dumpster diving. In this social experiment, starting with an empty apartment, the clothes they were wearing and a flashlight, David Brown and Greg Mann find, in trash cans and dumpsters, everything they might otherwise buy. David and Greg explore dumpster diving as a way of not only cutting back on consumption but of finding worth in all the materials around them. (77 min./color) Screens with “The Key.”
Saturday, 11 a.m., McMenamins 1
Sunday, 1:45 p.m., McMenamins 2
‘IN A DREAM’
Directed by Jeremiah Zagar
Over the past four decades, Isaiah Zagar has covered more than 50,000 square feet of Philadelphia with stunning mosaic murals. This documentary chronicles his work and his tumultuous relationship with his wife, Julie, exploring the joys as well as the pitfalls of a life lived in pursuit of artistic discovery. Some nudity; parental guidance recommended. (78 min./color) Screens with “Harvest.”
Friday, 3:30 p.m., McMenamins 2
‘KAREAREA: THE PINE FALCON’
Directed by Sandy Crichton
Tells the story of a remarkable population of wild New Zealand falcons that has adapted to live in commercial pine plantations. (49 min./color) Screens with “Zoologic” and “In the Wake”
Friday, 10:30 a.m., McMenamins 2
Saturday, 7:30 p.m., Regal Old Mill 1
‘Life. Support. Music.’
Directed by Eric Daniel Metzgar
In August 2004, Jason Crigler, one of New York City’s most sought-after guitarists, suffered a brain hemorrhage during a concert in Manhattan. Faced with a bleak prognosis, Jason’s family refused to accept the dark future described by doubtful doctors. In the face of despair and horrifying odds, the Criglers made a resolution — Jason will make a full recovery. And thus began their long, grueling, implausible and mystifying journey. (79 min./color) Screens with “The Miracle.”
Friday, 11 a.m., Regal Old Mill 5
‘Looking for Ms. Locklear’
Directed by Rhett McLaughlin
Using word of mouth, two lifelong best friends and Web comedians, Rhett and Link, embark on a search for their long-lost first grade teacher. Their journey leads them deep into the heart of an obscure tribe of Native Americans, the Lumbee of North Carolina. A reminder that people have more to say than an e-mail or text message can communicate. (57 min./color) Screens with “Capture the Bunny” and “Collinwood Campaign.”
Friday, 8:30 p.m., McMenamins 1
Saturday, 10 p.m., McMenamins 1
‘The Lord God Bird’
Directed by George Butler
In April 2005, an announcement of the rediscovery of a supposedly extinct bird, the ivory-billed woodpecker, made front-page news. This documentary tells a story of faith, doubt, despair and hope regarding our relationship with nature. (90 min./color) Screens with “Undone.”
Saturday, 5 p.m., Regal Old Mill 1
‘OKIE NOODLING 2’
Directed by Bradley Beesley
Bradley Beesley brought the strange subculture of bare-handed catfish fishing to the screen in 2001’s “Okie Noodling.” Now he returns to Oklahoma to see how the sport has evolved over the past decade. The film explores the legalization issues and commercialization of this once backwood practice. (69 min./color) Screens with “Irish Twins.”
Saturday, 1 p.m., Regal Old Mill 5
‘ORPHANS OF APOLLO: The Battle of the Mir & the New Space Revolution’
Directed by Michael Potter
The story of a small group of entrepreneurs who leased the Russian Mir space station and helped launch the New Space Revolution. The film chronicles the adventure of the boldest business plan the Earth has ever seen: a space station intended to be the first phase of a trillion dollar business that would have included mining asteroids. Five brothers in arms struggle with issues of branding, finance and technology, engaging in the ultimate slugfest with the most powerful governments in the world. (52 min./color) Screens with “Moonboy” and “Zoologic.”
Saturday, 2 p.m., Regal Old Mill 1
‘PASSION AND POWER (The Technology of Orgasm)’
Directed by Emiko Omori and Wendy Slick
The story of one simple invention, the vibrator, and its relationship to one complex human experience, the misunderstood female orgasm. Tracing the history of the vibrator reveals a secret sexual history of denial, doctors and deceit. Discover the checkered history of a simple household appliance and a sordid, secret history of female sexuality. (74 min./color) Screens with “Model Rules” and “Rope.”
Saturday, 10 a.m., Regal Old Mill 5
‘Run for Your Life’
Directed by Judd Ehrlich
Unlikely American icon Fred Lebow fled his Orthodox Jewish home in war-torn Europe and found his calling bringing together a ragtag group of runners for the first NYC Marathon in Central Park. The story of the father of the big-city marathon and how he ran for his life and inspired millions to do the same. (96 min./color) Screens with “The Saga of Stanley Ketchel.”
Friday, 8 p.m., Regal Old Mill 5
‘SOLDIERS OF CONSCIENCE’
Directed by Catherine Ryan and Gary Weimberg
Eight soldiers reveal their inner moral dilemma over killing in combat. This film transcends the usual rhetoric of politics to reveal the human truth that all of our soldiers are soldiers of conscience, wrestling with the demands of duty. Contains some graphic images; parental guidance recommended. (86 min./color) Screens with “In the Name of the Son.”
Friday, 1 p.m., McMenamins 1
‘THEY TURNED OUR DESERT INTO FIRE’
Directed by Mark Brecke
The story of the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Darfur, told through the perspectives of Amtrak passengers during a cross-country train trip. Contrasting the benign American landscape outside the train, photographic images of death and suffering in the destroyed villages of Darfur and refugee camps of Chad confront the train passengers. For the 12 passengers, a cross-country train trip becomes an enlightening and emotional journey into the heart of the Darfur tragedy. (88 min./color) Screens with “Asi Es.”
Saturday, 4:30 p.m., McMenamins 1
‘THIS DUST OF WORDS’
Directed by Bill Rose
With an IQ of 200, Elizabeth Wiltsee taught herself to read by age 4 and was reading classical Greek by the time she was 10. Two decades after graduating from Stanford University, parishioners in a small farming community on the central California coast would find her sleeping in the doorway of their church, apparently mute, adverse to all offers of help. She became part of their town, spending afternoons in the public library, honing her own translations of ancient Chinese and Greek poetry. And then she disappeared. Before she left town she told a friend, “I’m going home.” (60 min./color) Screens with “The Journal” and “In the Wake.”
Friday, 2 p.m., Regal Old Mill 1
‘TRACES OF THE TRADE: A Story from the Deep North’
Directed by Katrina Browne
Katrina Browne makes a troubling discovery — her New England ancestors were the largest slave-trading family in U.S. history. She and nine fellow descendants set off to retrace the Triangle Trade. Step by step, they uncover the vast extent of Northern complicity in slavery while stumbling through the minefield of contemporary race relations. With former Deschutes County Commissioner Tom DeWolf. (86 min./color) Screens with “Victoria.”
Saturday, 8 p.m., McMenamins 1
Features
‘THE 27 CLUB’
Directed by Erica Denton
Tom Wallace and Eliot Kerrgian grew up making music, eventually performing the popular duo Finn. At the height of their fame, 27-year-old Tom commits suicide, leaving his shattered partner to head east, through his home state of Missouri, and on to New York, where Tom’s funeral awaits. As flashbacks fill in Eliot’s relationship with his best friend, he and his chauffeur develop an intriguing partnership. By the end of the trip they have added a hitchhiker to the mix and all three find themselves in a better place than the one they left behind. (94 min./color) Screens with “Sugar.”
Friday, 6 p.m., Tower Theatre
Saturday, 12:30 p.m., Tower Theatre
‘ABANUNULE’
Directed by Alex Fournier
The film tracks the lives of a collection of former street boys who live together in a safe home in Kampala, Uganda. The movie follows Freddy, one of the home’s key soccer players, as he leaves the home and turns back to drugs and violence. While the rest of the boys learn to live without Freddy and struggle to guide their fragile soccer team to the finals, one, Patrick, never gives up hope. He sets out on his own, traveling into the roughest parts of the city to find Freddy and bring him back. (100 min./color) Screens with “We Are All Rwandans.”
Friday, 6 p.m., McMenamins 1
Saturday, 1 p.m., McMenamins 2
‘THE BLUE TOOTH VIRGIN’
Directed by Russell Brown
David is a Los Angeles magazine editor whose troubles begin when his TV writer friend, Sam, lets him read the script for “Bluetooth Virgin,” a “character-driven thriller.” To David, Sam’s script makes no sense. Sam remains convinced that his screenplay has promise, so he visits script consultant Zena, while David seeks advice from his plainspoken therapist. (80 minutes/Color) Screens with “The Windfisherman.”
Saturday, 10 a.m., Tower Theatre
‘THE DARK HORSE’
Directed by Cornelia Duryee Moore
Hearing the news that her father is suffering with dementia, Dana, a Seattle ballet teacher, reluctantly returns to her childhood home on Orcas Island to discover that it is threatened with foreclosure. To save the farm and the family, she must tame her mother’s dangerous Friesian horse and ride him to victory in the year’s biggest dressage competition. She must also reconcile her warring brothers and heal a broken heart. (110 min./color) Screens with “The Winged Man.”
Friday, 10:30 a.m., Regal Old Mill 1
‘THE FLYBOYS’
Directed by Rocco DeVilliers
Jason and Kyle become embroiled in the adventure of their lives when they discover a mysterious airplane at the local airport. The boys then find themselves airborne over the Arizona desert. After uncovering a bomb in the luggage compartment, they find that everyone on board has bailed out. But their troubles are only beginning, as Jason and Kyle realize that they’ve foiled a heist to steal millions of dollars from the mob. (118 min./color) Screens with “The Life and Death of Wriggly Chew” and “Beetle Blasphemy.”
Saturday, 10:30 a.m., Regal Old Mill 1
Sunday, 1:30 p.m., McMenamins 1
‘THE LAST NEW YORKER’
Directed by Danny Vinik
Lifelong friends Lenny and Ruben are both in their 70s and dyed-in-the-wool New Yorkers. The places they’ve frequented for years give them a refuge from the changes they see around them. When Lenny’s luck finally runs out, Ruben hatches a plan to get them both out of town. But Lenny’s not going anywhere. He’s got two last rolls of the dice: one for the money and one for the love of a beautiful mystery woman that he’s fallen head over heels for at the corner of 38th and Lexington. (90 min./color) Screens with “Victoria.”
Friday, 2 p.m., Tower Theatre
‘MONKEY PUZZLE’
Directed by Mark Forstmann
Dylan takes his best friend Carl and three others on a trip to find the world’s rarest tree. As they descend into the harsh ravines and canyons, the wilderness closes in on them. They come face to face with haunted pasts, unrequited love and fear of intimacy. They learn hard truths of friendship, and find that letting go of the past can have devastating — and liberating — consequences. (90 min./color) Screens with “You Better Watch Out.”
Friday, 8:45 p.m., Regal Old Mill 1
Saturday, 9:30 p.m., Regal Old Mill 5
‘THE NEW YEAR PARADE’
Directed by Tom Quinn
When Mike and Lisa separate, their children suffer quietly. Sixteen-year-old Kat believes they will reconcile and keeps the situation secret and becomes isolated. Jack is forced to mediate between parents and carry the family finances. While his mom avoids confrontation, their dad works to lead his string band to victory in Philadelphia’s annual Mummer’s Parade. Actors and non-actors, documentary footage and fiction are mixed to take a closer look at how divorce can affect young people. (83 min./color) Screens with “I F**king Hate You.”
Friday, 6 p.m., Regal Old Mill 1
Sunday, 4 p.m., McMenamins 2
‘PRETTY UGLY PEOPLE’
Directed by Tate Taylor
Lucy gets gastric-bypass surgery and loses all her excess weight. She tricks her college friends into gathering together again, so she can finally “feel like one of them.” Lucy soon realizes her friends are now a far cry from whom she remembers and that her wish wasn’t the best idea after all. The group soon finds themselves on an arduous four-day hike in the wilds of Montana, with each member of the group taking something away from the adventure they could never have imagined. (88 min./color) Screens with “Sugar.”
Friday, 2:30 p.m., Regal Old Mill 5
Saturday, 10 p.m., Regal Old Mill 1
‘SELFLESS’
Directed by Jacob Pander
Dylan Gray, a rising young star in the trendy “green” architecture movement, is flying high from winning a prized high-rise commission when he has a chance encounter with a deadly stranger. While waiting to board his plane home to Portland, Dylan sketches an unflattering caricature of a fellow passenger to impress an attractive flight attendant. But the stranger he ridiculed is a master at stealing identities. And Dylan Gray is his next target. (83 min./color) Screens with “person, place or thing.”
Saturday, 4 p.m., Tower Theatre
‘SITA SINGS THE BLUES’
Directed by Nina Paley
Sita is a goddess separated from her beloved lord and husband, Rama. Nina is an animator whose husband moves to India, then dumps her by e-mail. Three hilarious shadow puppets narrate both ancient tragedy and modern comedy in this beautifully animated interpretation of the Indian epic Ramayana. (82 min./color/animation) Screens with “Bookie.”
Friday, 9 p.m., McMenamins 2
‘WAR EAGLE, ARKANSAS’
Directed by Robert Milazzo
Enoch Cass is a baseball player with a debilitating stutter. Wheels is Enoch’s best friend and has cerebral palsy. The two have relied on one another to make themselves one completely functional human being … though without each other, they are nothing. Now Enoch has to decide if he will put away the things of his youth to pursue his own interests or remain shackled to his hometown and its people. (94 min./color) Screens with “Memphis Calling.”
Friday, 12:30 p.m., McMenamins 2
Student Shorts
‘BEETLE BLASPHEMY’
Directed by Ferris Webby
Bob the Beetle stumbles upon his calling: “To bring the light to all” who are in need of it. Bob’s friend Sid is not accepting of Bob’s new role, but Bob vows to change Sid’s perspective. (11 min./color/animated) Screens with “The Life and Death of Wriggly Chew” and “The Flyboys.”
Saturday, 10:30 a.m., Regal Old Mill 1
‘HARVEST’
Directed by Ashley Michael Karitis
A man must cope with the devastation of Alzheimer’s disease while moving his sick mother into an assisted living facility. (8 min./color) Screens with “In a Dream.”
Friday, 3:30 p.m., McMenamins 2
‘IN THE NAME OF THE SON’
Directed by Harun Mehmedinovic
After escaping execution, Tarik, a Bosnian prisoner of war, immigrates to the United States looking to leave his past behind. Years later, the man who spared his life shows up on Tarik’s doorstep asking for a favor. (25 min./color) Screens with “Soldiers of Conscience.”
Friday, 1 p.m., McMenamins 1
‘KEYS’
Directed by Christopher Babers
The story of a broken family that discovers healing within the broken keys of an old piano. (23 min./color) Screens with “The Fair Trade.”
Saturday, 10 a.m., McMenamins 2
‘THE LIFE AND DEATH OF WRIGGLY CHEW’
Directed by Jacqueline Koehler
A piece of bubble gum breaks out his very best bubble-goo moves on the supple, titillating dance floor. All seems lost when his groove is cut short by a teacher’s stern look, but thanks to a child’s indifference toward social etiquette, the gum is given a second chance. (2 min./color/animated) Screens with “Beetle Blasphemy” and “The Flyboys.”
Saturday, 10:30 a.m., Regal Old Mill 1
‘THE MIRACLE’
Directed by Jeffrey Jon Smith
In a confession to her priest, Tekki Lomnicki, a little person, reveals that she has dishonored her mother. Her confession spins out in a series of stories: her dramatic birth, her difficult childhood and painful relationship with her mother and, finally, the fateful trip they made to the holy shrine at Lourdes. Tekki will have to face the truth of what happened at Lourdes if she is to win a chance at redemption. (29 min./color) Screens with “Life. Support. Music.”
Friday, 11 a.m., Regal Old Mill 5
‘MOONBOY’
Directed by Adam Calfee
A neglected boy who is distressed about the state of the world wants something better. Gazing at the full moon, he finds it. (4 min./color/animated) Screens with “Orphans of Apollo: The Battle of the Mir & the New Space Revolution” and “Zoologic.”
Saturday, 2 p.m., Regal Old Mill 1
‘PLAIN AND SIMPLE’
Directed by Merrin Marra
Threatened with removal from the birdhouse of a zoo run by money-grubbing capitalists because he does not generate enough profits, a plain little penguin named Pauly struggles to belong, and along the way, learns the true value of inner beauty. (30 min./color/animated) Screens with “A Drop of Life” and “Gates of the Arctic.”
Saturday, 5 p.m., McMenamins 2
‘THE SAGA OF STANLEY KETCHEL’
Directed by Sydney Hoffner
A documentary about 1907-1910 middleweight boxing champion Stanley Ketchel. A train hobo at age 12, he was 16 at the time of his first professional fight. He blazed through professional fights in Montana before moving west to California, where he continued to win in the ring, winning the vacant middleweight title at age 21. (5 min./color) Screens with “Run for Your Life.”
Friday, 8 p.m., Regal Old Mill 5
‘UNDONE’
Directed by Hayley Morris
An old man floats in the sea of his diminishing mind. He fishes for objects from his past memories and slowly reverts back to a childlike state. (6 min./color/animated) Screens with “Bennet’s Urn,” “In the Wake,” “Karearea: The Pine Falcon,” “Hats Off” and “The Lord God Bird.”
Friday, 6:30 p.m., McMenamins 2
Saturday, 5 p.m., Regal Old Mill 1
Saturday, 7:30 p.m., Regal Old Mill 1
‘ZOOLOGIC’
Directed by Nicole Mitchell
A fussy zookeeper maintains strict order in his zoo by arranging the animals to his liking. His absolute rule begins to falter, though, when he encounters a fat little penguin, a resident who refuses to be shaped to fit. (4 min./color/animated) Screens with “In the Wake,” “Karearea: The Pine Falcon,” “Orphans of Apollo: The Battle of the Mir & the New Space Revolution” and “Moonboy.”
Friday, 10:30 a.m., McMenamins 2
Saturday, 2 p.m., Regal Old Mill 1
Shorts
‘A DROP OF LIFE’
Directed by Shalini Kantayya
Mirabai has left her urban lifestyle to teach in Kutch, Gujurat. When Mira witnesses growing illness among the village children after a pre-paid water meter is installed, she is compelled to take action. Nia, a representative of Hydron, a Manhattan-based water corporation, goes to this Indian village to demonstrate Hydron’s new pilot project water pump that dispenses water with a swipe from a pre-paid credit card. (16 min./color) Screens with “Plain and Simple” and “Gates of the Arctic.”
Saturday, 5 p.m., McMenamins 2
‘AL’s BEEF’
Directed by Dennis Hauck
Barefoot, exhausted, and covered head to toe in blood, a mysterious woman wanders into a desolate frontier town, causing a stir with town folk and the local sheriff. When the woman takes off her hat to reveal a man’s name branded into her forehead, it becomes clear that she’s got revenge on her mind. (35 min./color) Screens with “Everest: A Climb for Peace.”
Saturday, 8:30 p.m., McMenamins 2
‘ASI ES’
Directed by Risa Mara Machuca
Leaving his love, a young man joins others on mysterious trip that will change their lives forever. A surf board, a pair of shorts and a backpack are all they carry as the journey ahead leads them off the main roads to the open ocean. (15 min./color) Screens with “They Turned Our Desert Into Fire.”
Saturday, 4:30 p.m., McMenamins 1
‘BENNET’S URN’
Directed by Michael Gordon
Bennet is an 8-year-old boy with a terminal condition and one request for his quirky parents before he dies. (7 min./color) Screens with “Undone,” “In the Wake” and “Karearea: The Pine Falcon.”
Saturday, 7:30 p.m., Regal Old Mill 1
‘BOOKIE’
Directed by Bao Tran
At a raucous R&B nightclub in 1963 Seattle, crowds from all over town gather for a chance at alcohol, wild music, and easy money. Amidst it all, a gambling bookie risks everything for a waitress down on her luck. (18 min./color) Screens with “Sita Sings the Blues.”
Friday, 9 p.m., McMenamins 2
‘CAPTURE THE BUNNY’
Directed by Chris Kas
A man with an obsession for power gets a taste of his own medicine in this seductive game of cat and mouse. (7 min./color) Screens with “The Collinwood Campaign” and “Looking for Ms. Locklear.”
Friday, 8:30 p.m., McMenamins 1
Saturday, 10 p.m., McMenamins 1
‘THE COLLINWOOD CAMPAIGN’
Directed by Ryan Mains
When Trevor and Kyle, two bumbling junior advertising executives, are unexpectedly given the coveted Collinwood Watch Campaign, they find themselves at a crossroads: deliver the pitch of a lifetime, or be tossed to the side, a victim of their own … shortcomings. (15 min./color) Screens with “Capture the Bunny” and “Looking for Ms. Locklear.”
Friday, 8:30 p.m., McMenamins 1
Saturday, 10 p.m., McMenamins 1
‘I F**KING HATE YOU’
Directed by Zak Forsman
Ron lures his ex-girlfriend, Carol, back to his apartment under the pretense that he is going to return her favorite mug. When it seems this will be their last moment together, Ron desperately maneuvers to strike a chord with her in his own uniquely heartfelt way. (9 min./color) Screens with “The New Year Parade.”
Friday, 6 p.m., Regal Old Mill 1
Sunday, 4 p.m., McMenamins 2
‘IN THE WAKE’
Directed by Craig Strong
Noe Hebert is a Hurricane Katrina survivor from New Orleans who is relocated to Albuquerque, N.M. He has lost everything. Disconnected and isolated in a dry and rugged land, Noe struggles to reconnect to a world that no longer exists. (17 min./color) Screens with “Zoologic” and “Karearea: The Pine Falcon,” “The Journal” and “This Dust of Words,” and “Undone” and “Bennet’s Urn.”
Friday, 10:30 a.m., McMenamins 2
Friday, 2 p.m., Regal Old Mill 1
Saturday, 7:30 p.m., Regal Old Mill 1
‘IRISH TWINS’
Directed by Rider Strong
On the eve of their father’s funeral, Seamus drags Michael to the local pub in their small logging community in northern California. He attempts to convince his brother that they must take their father’s ashes to Ireland in tribute. It isn’t long before Seamus’ true intentions are revealed, and Michael must decide how much he is willing to sacrifice for his Irish twin. (9 min./color) Screens with “Okie Noodling 2.”
Saturday, 1 p.m., Regal Old Mill 5
‘THE JOURNAL’
Directed by Sam Wasserman
The loss of his mother at an early age has haunted Alex his entire life. As a young adult in the midst of a downward spiral, he discovers the gift that could set him free. Alex must face the issue that has defined him: getting to know the mother he never had. (18 min./color) Screens with “In the Wake” and “This Dust of Words.”
Friday, 2 p.m., Regal Old Mill 1
‘THE KEY’
Directed by Paul Street
A love story set in a timeless society where water is a premium and people grow their own hydroponic food. (13 min./color) Screens with “I Love Trash.”
Saturday, 11 a.m., McMenamins 1
Sunday, 1:45 p.m., McMenamins 2
‘LOOKING UP DRESSES’
Directed by Jared Ingram
After getting dumped for being “too nice,” Jade Williams has until the end of a church service to convince his girlfriend he’s actually a “wild” man. Jade is the perfect boyfriend hell-bent on showing the girl of his dreams he’s more complex than she’s ever realized. (12 min./color) Screens with “Garrison Keillor: The Man on the Radio in the Red Shoes,” “person, place or thing” and “Down Days.”
Friday, 11 a.m., Tower Theatre
Friday, 8:30 p.m., Tower Theatre
‘MEMPHIS CALLING’
Directed by Colin Mitchell
A woman stuck in traffic in Los Angeles gets a computerized collect call from the Huntsville, Texas, Department of Corrections from somebody named Memphis. She accepts the call. Now her life will never be the same. And neither will his. (11 min./color) Screens with “War Eagle, Arkansas.”
Friday, 12:30 p.m., McMenamins 2
‘MODEL RULES’
Directed by Ray Robison
Gabby is approaching 70 and lives alone. She works as an artist’s model posing nude for a classroom full of men. During a session she begins to fantasize about one of the artists as he draws her. (10 min./color) Screens with “Rope” and “Passion and Power (The Technology of Orgasm).”
Saturday, 10 a.m., Regal Old Mill 5
‘Person, place or thing’
Directed by Elle Martini
Alexis is a drifter who finds comfort in invisibility while living in her car on the streets of Portland. When the routine of her solitary life is interrupted by an unexpected encounter, Alexis must choose between preserving her anonymity or reconnecting with the world around her. (17 min./color) Screens with “Down Days,” “Looking Up Dresses” and “Selfless.”
Friday, 8:30 p.m., Tower Theatre
Saturday, 4 p.m., Tower Theatre
‘ROPE’
Directed by Theodore Gersten
A middle-aged woman suffering from “empty nest” syndrome finds unexpected companionship from a large, blonde rope she finds in the northeast corner of her neighbor’s yard. We follow her as she spends a series of exuberating and meaningful moments with the rope, all the while forgetting about her husband, who is busy clearing land mines from the Laos/Cambodia border. Things take a drastic turn when a young girl falls down a nearby ravine and Rope is forced to spring into action. (12 min./color) Screens with “Model Rules” and “Passion and Power (The Technology of Orgasm).”
Saturday, 10 a.m., Regal Old Mill 5
‘SUGAR’
Directed by Alex Beh
Joe, a waiter, can’t believe his eyes when he sees Jane sitting at a table across the diner. He approaches her table, pours her coffee and walks away. Before he can leave her, she has one more question: “Can I have some sugar?” With that they are swept away into a cab, an engagement, dancers, marriage. Life is amazing … or is it? (7 min./color) Screens with “The 27 Club” and “Pretty Ugly People.”
Friday, 2:30 p.m., Regal Old Mill 5
Friday, 6 p.m., Tower Theatre
Saturday, 12:30 p.m., Tower Theatre
Saturday, 10 p.m., Regal Old Mill 1
‘VICTORIA’
Directed by Charles Sommer
A documentary about an old piano, Victoria, and the people who play her. Located in the St. Anthony Dining Room in San Francisco, Victoria is visited and played daily by many of San Francisco’s homeless and low-income population. An upright grand that has seen better days and has a mostly unknown history, Victoria, it could be argued, has never sounded so good. (11 min./color) Screens with “The Last New Yorker” and “Traces of the Trade: A Story from the Deep North.”
Friday, 2 p.m., Tower Theatre
Saturday, 8 p.m., McMenamins 1
‘WE ARE ALL RWANDANS’
Directed by Debs Gardner-Paterson
The true story of the Nyange students attacked by rebels in the aftermath of the Rwandan genocide — whose refusal to betray each other cost some of them everything but gave hope to a nation. On March 18, 1997, rebels attack the school, bent on massacre and destabilizing Rwanda’s fragile peace. Friends find themselves alone and defenseless, faced with the decision of their lives: separate and betray their Tutsi friends — or risk everything to stand together. (25 min./color) Screens with “Abananule.”
Friday, 6 p.m., McMenamins 1
Saturday, 1 p.m., McMenamins 2
‘THE WINDFISHERMAN’
Directed by Anna McRoberts
The Windfisherman lives in Gust Town, the windiest town in the world, where he “fishes” for things that have blown away and returns them to their rightful owners. Being a Windfisherman is in his blood, but it is not in his heart. The Windfisherman leaves for Stillsville in search of a vacation. In the town of complete calm he discovers pleasures he’s never known before. However, he has a nagging feeling this really isn’t what he was born to do. (12 min./color) Screens with “The Blue Tooth Virgin.”
Saturday, 10 a.m., Tower Theatre
‘THE WINGED MAN’
Directed by Marya Mazor
Daysi, a beautiful Latina high school girl, is pregnant. Is she just another teen statistic — or is this conception something quite different? Daysi’s sharp-tongued mother claims the child is the result of a one-night stand and her best friend, Allysha, ridicules her story. Yet Daysi insists that hers is no ordinary baby, but the product of an encounter with a mystical winged man that she discovered, wounded, in a cave. (15 min./color) Screens with “The Dark Horse” and “Ask Not.”
Friday, 10:30 a.m., Regal Old Mill 1
Saturday, 1:30 p.m., McMenamins 1
‘YOU BETTER WATCH OUT’
Directed by Steve Callen
A dark comedy about two disgruntled brothers who kidnap a department store Santa Claus because they want to know why they never got the presents they wanted when they were kids. Now, they want Santa to pay for all those disappointing Christmas mornings. (22 min./color) Screens with “Monkey Puzzle.”
Friday, 8:45 p.m., Regal Old Mill 1
Saturday, 9:30 p.m., Regal Old Mill 5
Local Highlights
‘HYBRID PEDAL’
Directed by Dan Austin
A 1,000-mile bike ride from Portland to Salt Lake City to draw attention to endangered wildlands in the Western United States. Along the way, riders rode through seven threatened areas and discussed the issues of each place with representatives from grassroots groups seeking to keep them wild. (27 min./color) Screens with “Man of Motion” and “Man Maid.”
Saturday, 3:30 p.m. Regal Old Mill 5
‘MAN MAID’
Directed by Chris Lusvardi
Vincent Van Metcalf has an odd passion for cleaning rooms and a knack for making a mess of relationships. When a hostile developer threatens to knock down his beloved hotel in favor of a “mixed-use-space,” Vincent is forced to take action. If he can rally his friends and save the hotel, he might even salvage his crippled courtship with the hotel’s charming manager. The film tracks the misadventures of a second-generation cleaning man at a historic hotel in Redmond. (86 min./color) Screens with “Man of Motion” and “Hybrid Pedal.”
Saturday, 3:30 p.m., Regal Old Mill 5
‘MAN OF MOTION’
Directed by Teafly
John Flannery is his own boss. Yet he is driven by the work he does for others in his community. Can one live life in a way that brings joy not only to oneself, but to everyone around you? According to John, a bike cab owner and shuttle pilot in Bend, the answer is yes. (9 min./color) Screens with “Hybrid Pedal” and “Man Maid.”
Saturday, 3:30 p.m., Regal Old Mill 5
Best of Student Shorts
‘DERAILED’
Directed by W. Scott Calvert
In preparation for his expected child, Joe must convert his beloved model train room into a nursery. As the due date approaches, Joe’s anxiety begins to overwhelm him, and he faces his fear of fatherhood. (18 min./color) Screens with “Best of Student Shorts.”
Friday, 5:45 p.m., Regal Old Mill 5
Sunday, 11 a.m., Regal Old Mill 5
‘HEATHER: A FAIRY TALE’
Directed by Vincent J. Raisa
Henry Troy wakes to discover a letter on his bed. On the label is the name “Heather.” Speaking this name aloud, Henry hears a whimper from the darkness of his room and discovers a tearful angel huddled in a corner. (6 min./color) Screens with “Best of Student Shorts.”
Friday, 5:45 p.m., Regal Old Mill 5
Sunday, 11 a.m., Regal Old Mill 5
‘MAN’
Directed by Myna Joseph
Maggie is young, but not too young to know her teenage sister is pursuing a risky tryst through an Internet chat. Maggie trails her into the woods, where an attempt to protect her older sister leads to an unusual and poignant bond. (14 min./color) Screens with “Best of Student Shorts.”
Friday, 5:45 p.m., Regal Old Mill 5
Sunday, 11 a.m., Regal Old Mill 5
‘SEBASTIAN’S VOODOO’
Directed by Joaquin Baldwin
A voodoo doll must find the courage to save his friends from being pinned to death. (4 min./color/animated) Screens with “Best of Student Shorts.”
Friday, 5:45 p.m., Regal Old Mill 5
Sunday, 11 a.m., Regal Old Mill 5
Reel Kids
‘LOON’
Directed by Sabi Lofgren
Carson Lind is a boy forced to move to Florida when his parents establish a wacky, stereotypical Mexican restaurant in an old historic home: “The Casa Minnehaha!” When strange events begin to unfold in the creepy old manor, Carson befriends the daughter of their new chef and his eyes are opened to new cultures, new feelings, and to the mystery that has befallen the old Spanish casa. (28 min./color) Screens with “Reel Kids.”
Sunday, 10:30 a.m., McMenamins 1
Best of Shorts
‘THE CIRCUIT’
Directed by Caitlin Moon
A mock-umentary chronicling a week in the life of working actor Chris, who struggles to “make it” as he auditions in New York City. Based on true stories, it satirizes the plight of auditioning actors and illustrates some of the bizarre situations they encounter and provoke. (18 min./color) Screens with “Best of Shorts.”
Friday, 10 a.m., McMenamins 1
Saturday, 7 p.m., Regal Old Mill 5
Sunday, 1:30 p.m., Regal Old Mill 1
‘THE COMPANY MAN’
Directed by Andrew Zappin
Guy works for a monolithic corporation called “The Company” and spends his days engaged in grueling labor at a demolition site sorting red and blue rocks according to color. Unfulfilled, Guy makes an appointment with “The Company” doctor. (14 min./color) Screens with “Best of Shorts.”
Friday, 10 a.m., McMenamins 1
Saturday, 7 p.m., Regal Old Mill 5
Sunday, 1:30 p.m., Regal Old Mill 1
Compiled by Breanna Hostbjor
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