The Oxford Film Festival’s 4th Weekly Virtual Film Fest showcases include Christopher Wesley Moore’s Mississippi-shot film with malevolent ghosts, “A Stranger Among the Living”, and the return of Mark Potts’ gonzo superhero film, “Spaghettiman”, which made its world premiere at the Oxford FF in 2015.
Three shorts programs include a collection of LGBTQIA+ films, stories looked at through the American Lens, and the second edition of Fest Forward animated and experimental shorts. Oxford Film Festival will also co-present two back-to-back panel conversations/presentations with Seed&Spark, as well as host a helpful look at the measures being put in place and suggested for those wanting to start the cameras rolling in Mississippi once again.
“Ghostly scares, silly superheroes, LGBTQIA+ stories, Americana, animation and experimental cinema is all on tap this week,” Executive Director Melanie Addington said. “This week will be a fun, adventurous slate of programming for our audiences, as well as having a great pair of panels and presentations courtesy of Seed&Spark for truly valuable information on crowdfunding and distribution for filmmakers to soak up, and then a chance to seriously look at the reality of getting our filmmakers back on the set here in Mississippi the following day.”
Films, events and descriptions:
A STRANGER AMONG THE LIVING
Director: Christopher Wesley Moore
Country: USA, Running Time: 101 min
Henry Lyle, a young teacher, avoids a school shooting due to a terrifying premonition. Soon, he discovers his nightmare has just begun as strange phantoms stalk him, trying to complete the job that death started.
SPAGHETTIMAN (2015)
Director: Mark Potts
Country: USA, Running Time: 88 min
Clark doesn’t care about you. He doesn’t care about the world. He barely cares about himself. But after an incident with an old bowl of spaghetti and a malfunctioning microwave, he becomes a superhero that can fight crime with the power of spaghetti. However, you have to pay him.
SHORT FILM PROGRAMS
American Lens Shorts
TRT: 60 min
COFFEE SHOP NAMES
Director: Seepak Sethi
Country: USA, Running Time: 8 min
Three Indian people imagine their personas as their “coffee shop names,” the names they give baristas because their real names are hard to pronounce.
DICK PICS! (A DOCUMENTARY)
Directors: Hannah McSwiggen, Russell Shaeffer
Country: USA, Running Time: 12:18 min
DICK PICS! is a short, stop-motion animated documentary that gathers men from all walks of life and asks them one of the most important questions of the modern era: ”What in God’s name compels you to send pictures of your penis to non-consenting others?”
I’M NOT SPOCK
Director: Clem McIntosh
Country: USA, Running Time: 9 min
Struggling to embrace stardom and his newfound identity as Spock, Leonard Nimoy explores alternative artistic outlets, much to his agent’s chagrin.
NOWHERE ARKANSAS
Director: Robert Linsley
Country: USA, Running Time: 10:51 min
A Confederate veteran, haunted by his past, hunts redemption in the form of a famous eagle that belongs to the Union Army.
REHEARSAL
Director: Courtney Hope Thérond
Country: USA, Running Time: 8 min
A film crew for an upcoming feature film pushes the boundaries of consent during a courtesy rehearsal for its female lead.
SHADOW IN THE ROOM
Director: Christian Walker
Country: USA, Running Time: 8 min
A woman is haunted by the memory of an ex-lover.
Fest Forward Shorts #2
TRT: 57 min
FOREIGN EXCHANGE
Director: Corrie Francis Parks
Country: USA, Running Time: 6 min
In this tiny world build with money and sand, what you observe, and the meaning you derive from that observation, depends on where you start your journey. Look closely, it’s all in the details.
THE SPIRIT SEAM
Director: Ashley Gerst
Country: USA, Running Time: 15 min
THE SPIRIT SEAM is a short animated film about a little girl, Pollywog, and her Pap-Paw.
SYNCHRONICITY
Director: Michelle Brand
Country: UK, Running Time: 4 min
People come, people go – yet everyone is moving in the same direction. We are all sharing something that we are unaware of, creating one big picture we are unable to see.
TIDES
Director: André Silva
Country: USA, Running Time: 8 min
Filmed at Masonboro Island, an undeveloped barrier Island in southeastern North Carolina, TIDES contemplates the limited space between the modern technological world and that more ecological dimension we label as “nature” or “the environment.”
LGBTQIA+ Shorts
TRT: 56 min
A NORMAL GIRL
Director: Aubree Bernier-Clarke
Country: USA, Running Time: 14 min
1.5% of people are born with anatomy that doesn’t fit typical definitions of female or male. It is common practice for doctors to perform genital surgeries on intersex infants—often with disastrous results. A NORMAL GIRL brings the widely unknown struggles of intersex people to light, through the story of intersex activist Pidgeon Pagonis.
BELLE
Director: Eduardo Cintron
Country: USA, Running Time: 20 min
In order to find a place to stay overnight, Belle meets Karina through a dating app, but instead of a night fling, they find support and acceptance to overcome difficult moments in their lives.
HOME GIRL
Director: Poonam Brah
Country: UK, Running Time: 12 min
Roya is a British Muslim woman whose mother has just died. After the funeral she returns to a home much altered – one without her mother. Roya discovers her relationship with another woman was in fact known about all along.
THE WOODPECKER
Directors: Courtney Bush, Will Carington, Jake Goicoechea
Country: USA, Running Time: 7:13 min
On his way to Brad’s animal-themed housewarming party, Richard stops at CVS and calls a close friend for advice about his costume.
FILM AND FILMMAKING PANELS AND CONVERSATIONS
Filming Safely in Mississippi
Members from the Mississippi Film Office, Film Natchez, and Mississippi Film Alliance discuss the next steps for film production to resume in Mississippi.
Seed&Spark Crowdfunding to Build Independence
Seed&Spark’s “Crowdfunding to Build Independence” workshop is dedicated to connecting creators with their audiences. It lays out the steps toward a successful crowdfunding campaign, as well as a career-long action plan to create a lasting, flourishing, direct relationship with your audience. You’ll learn how to find and activate that audience, structure your crowdfunding campaign and pitch video. Pick the right goal and incentives, and much mire beyond marketing the campaign itself. Moderated by filmmaker Bri Casrellini (“Rosalie”, “Better With You”)
Seed&Spark Presents The Distribution Down Low
Distribution is one of the most mysterious and misunderstood topics for independent creators. Join us as we break down the current landscape of distribution for independent film and TV, including the economics of different avenues to take, the right questions to ask potential partners, and what needs to be done from pre-production through post-production to set yourself up for success. Moderated by filmmaker Christian Raia (ABOUT A DONKEY, SUMMIT)
TICKETS:
LGBTQIA+ Shorts
https://watch.eventive.org/2020oxff/play/5e949b88aa146700317be49a/5e18124e16bf4e003789569d
Live Q&A set for May 15 at 8 p.m. central time
Fest Forward Shorts #2
https://watch.eventive.org/2020oxff/play/5e95426b109cec0031cdb4fe
Live Q&A set for May 16 at 3 p.m.
A STRANGER AMONG THE LIVING
https://watch.eventive.org/2020oxff/play/5e8fcb91773343002a2dbc1b
Live Q&A set for May 16 at 8:00PM central time
Seed&Spark Crowdfunding to Build Independence
https://watch.eventive.org/2020oxff/play/5ea72de0d0082e0035c2d644
Live Panel Conversation set for May 18 at 11 a.m. central time
Seed&Spark Presents The Distribution Down Low
https://watch.eventive.org/2020oxff/play/5ea738bfbb2eb30038c12616
Live Panel Conversation set for May 18 at 2 p.m. central time
Filming Safely in Mississippi
https://watch.eventive.org/2020oxff/play/5eb06ff812cfb1007a4e5466
Live panel Conversation set for May 19 at 12 p.m. central time
American Lens Shorts
https://watch.eventive.org/2020oxff/play/5e949b88aa146700317be49a/5e18124e16bf4e003789569d
Live Q&A set for May 21 at 8 p.m.
Special Heroic Oxford FF Alumni Presentation: SPAGHETTIMAN
https://watch.eventive.org/2020oxff/play/5ebad408929bef0062f13eb9/5ebad4a4f31aaa0060db7fd3
Live Q&A set for May 21 at 9:30 p.m.
Release Courtesy of the Oxford Film Festival
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