Santa Cruz Film Festival
www.santacruzfilmfestival.com

Sunday, May 8
www.santacruzfilmfestival.com/html/program.html

Sunday, May 8

WORKSHOPS
NOTICE: It is our intention to provide each attendee with the most valuable experience. Please take the time to inform our panelists of your specific needs and requests: Let Us Know! >>

10:00 AM
11:00 AM
(Two Sessions)

The 3 Golden Rules of Compositing Special Effects
Digital Media Factory

[MAP]
2809 Mission St.
Free to festival pass holders
To the general public $10

Let Us Know! >>

Please join us for this live studio demonstration of the compositing process. To demystify this critical procedure of filmmaking, we have created a practical introductory guide for independent storytellers. Attendees will see actual scenes composited in REAL TIME, which will detail the image capture process. This will be followed by an open Q + A forum with our experts.

Experienced filmmakers and editors will detail the 3 golden rules of red/green/blue screen photography. Just as important, this demonstration will show how to avoid the most common and expensive mistakes in the shooting process.

Marty Collins
Marty Collins, founder, brings over 37 years of experience in management, creative development, and production in television and motion pictures to the Digital Media Factory. A former Vice President of Broadcast Operations at Silicon Valley's KTEH Ch54 Public Television, Marty also served as President/CEO/General Manager of Starlite Studios, Inc., President/CEO of Darnell/Collins Productions, Inc., Co-founder and Partner of Mitchell/Collins Productions (an Investor/Partner in the Digital Media Factory) and Television Broadcast Operations Manager for Hewlett Packard Television Network.

Paul Stapleton-Smith
Mr. Stapleton-Smith has written, produced and directed film, video and print and event presentations for film, television and industry across the U.S., Canada, Europe and South America. Spanning a period of 23 years, he has also written, prepared and acted as press spokesman for a variety of sales, advertising and public relations accounts.
His work includes multi-camera remote, live call-in shows, feature films, concerts, stage and location red/green/blue screen, web-casting and electronic curriculum; production services for many diverse clients such as: ABC, CBS, CNN, ESPN, Warner Brothers, Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard, NASA, Sun Microsystems, FMC, Cisco Systems, Goodwill, MTV, Lucent, Intel, Philips, Concord-New Horizons.

John Carney
John Carney has worked continuously in the film and television industry since graduating from the San Francisco Art Institute with a Master of Fine Arts degree in film. His work experience includes dramatic feature films and smaller personal films and documentaries. Throughout his career, he has worked alongside some of the most talented and creative directors and cinematographers in the industry. Caney was the Lighting Director of "The Perfect Storm", one of the most challenging visual effects projects of the day. Carney continues to write and develop his own inspired work, shoot independent projects, and light features and commercials.

2:00 PM - 4:00 PM

Independent Director’s and Producer’s Panel
(The Attic)
Moderator Bob Seidman

The Attic
841 Pacific Ave.
Free to festival pass holders
To the general public $10

Let Us Know! >>

New York screenwriter and novelist Robert Seidman will be moderating this 'not to be missed' educational panel. Robert Seidman is co-author, with Don Gifford, of Ulysses Annotated, the definitive annotation of James Joyce's great novel. He is working on an opera of Ulysses. He has written or co-written a range of feature films and documentaries, including In Black and White: The Choices of Gordon Parks; A Life Apart: Hasidism in America; Margaret Mead: An Observer Observed; Wallace Stevens: Man Made Out of Words. His novels include One Smart Indian and Bucks County Idyll.
He also teaches documentary film making at NYU and SUNY

The Panel
Teri Lang Producer- The Real Dirt on Farmer John
Taggart Siegel Director-The Real Dirt on Farmer John
Curt Dowdy Director- High Ambitions
James Marlow Director-Graves End
Jonathan Berman Director Commune
Jack Walsh Director Lost Generation
Carlos DeMenezes Director-Trespassing
David Holbrooke director Freaks Like Me

These directors will speak to you on the art + business of independent film making-how they did it and how you can move your next project forward.

FILMS
Riverfront Theater

1:00 PM - IDENTITY IN THE WORLD (Riverfront Theater)

THE ART AND LIFE OF PETER SELLERS: FINDING THE THREAD Marina Goldovskaya 58 min
Finding the Thread is an intimate portrait of renowned avant-garde artist, provocateur, and opera and theater director Peter Sellers. Shot over the course of six years, the film chronicles the colorful life of Sellers as he orchestrates several innovative projects, including a 25 year retrospective of the work of video artist Bill Viola, a production of Jean Genet's rarely performed play "The Screens," adapted to fit the politically charged climate of East Los Angeles, and a faux military press conference in response to the Iraq War. When not directing epic theatrical productions overseas, Sellers is a popular professor at UCLA, where he strives to awaken the consciousness of his students with politically inflected lectures and a variety of provocative encounters with art, music, and intercultural rituals. In the classroom, in conversation, and in action, Sellers is a passionate advocate for art as moral action, and the film makes clear that this artist’s integrity is inexorably tied to the passion with which he operates on a daily basis.

THE LOST GENERATION - Jack Walsh 64 min
This film, by noted gay experimental filmmaker Jack Walsh, is a richly complex personal essay on life as middle passage. Once a lusted-after 20-something bohemian filmmaker living through some of our most recognizable cultural milestones (Kent State, the East Village performance art scene, gay liberation in San Francisco, the AIDS crisis), Walsh—now 50 and teetering on the brink of early Alzheimer’s—searingly observes his own age-induced invisibility. Melancholy, funny, poignant, and wholly revealing, Walsh mixes dynamic landscape imagery, still photographs, archival footage, and Super-8mm home movies to explore questions that arise from having more of one’s life behind than ahead, with no guideposts to lead the way forward. As he surveys the landscape of his own choices, his personal story reflects the larger social, cultural and political issues of his generation. What does it mean to remember? And what does it mean to live a life without regret?

3:00 PM - NOT A WORLD APART-YOUTH IN THE WORLD (Riverfront Theater)

THE TRAVELLER William Olsen 62 min Sweden/Germany
Albin, a young, ambitious MBA student abandoned by his girlfriend, is unable to take his final exam and travels to Berlin to write the novel of his dream and to get a taste of real life.
The film is what one could describe as “reality-fiction�. The only actors in the film are the main character, Albin, and his former girlfriend Lisa. All the characters in the film are real human beings convinced, at the time of shooting, that they are in a documentary.

HIKIKOMORI - Kal Karman 22min Japan
Otaku: 1) nerd, obsessed, enthusiast. 2) at home, inside
Hikikomori: 1) to shut out. 2) people who withdraw from society.
The film explores some aspects of currently being young in Japan. Feelings of unease or an inability to communicate lead to various reactions (skaters, harajuku kids), non-action (Otaku, Hikikomori) or self-destruction (‘suicide pacts’). Hikikomori, the central theme of the film, is a voluntary retreat from society and a continued pursuit for isolation. Hikikomori are, for the most part, adolescents or young adults up to 30 years of age, and often well educated. Most do not leave their home, or even their bedroom. This behavior may last for months, or years. Often refuge is found within elements from one’s childhood: video games or comics. Hikikomori live a nocturnal life in a deep depressive state, far from social activities and responsibilities (school, work, family). Even sexuality is often lived virtually (through sexy ‘manga’ characters). Hikikomori was filmed in Tokyo between the 3rd and 8th of November 2004.

5:00 PM (Riverfront Theater)

STAR Andrew Moore 73 min
STAR is a movie about dreams. STAR is a movie about failure. STAR is a movie about obsession and about the choices one makes on their journey through life. STAR is a movie about self-discovery and humility. STAR is a comedic documentary with a Rock and Roll soundtrack about Marcia Kimpton who, while battling for her lifelong dream of fame and recognition, finds herself continuously confronted by dilemmas both moral and psychological. She learns the meaning of humility and is forced into the ordeal of painful self discovery.
Director Andrew Moore follows Marcia, who has changed her name to Star, for three years and documents her as she tries desperately to fulfill her dreams of stardom once and for all. Woven into Star’s quest are various interviews with family and friends such as her mother, brother, minister, investor, and even Star herself, who reflect on Star’s drive, motivation, talent, and unresolved psychological issues.


7:00 PM - WORKING IN THE WORLD (Riverfront Theater)

WAGING A LIVING - Roger Weisberg 85 min
The term 'working poor' should be an oxymoron. If you work full time, you should not be poor, but more than 30 million Americans—one in four workers—are stuck in jobs that pay less than the federal poverty level for a family of four. WAGING A LIVING chronicles the day-to-day battles of four low-wage earners fighting to make work pay. Shot over a three-year period in the northeast and California, this observational documentary captures the dreams, frustrations, and accomplishments of a diverse group of people who struggle to live from paycheck to paycheck. By presenting an unvarnished look at the barriers that these workers must overcome to lift their families out of poverty, WAGING A LIVING offers a sobering view of the elusive American Dream.
WAGING A LIVING is produced and directed by Roger Weisberg, whose twenty-five previous documentaries have won over a hundred awards including Emmy, Peabody, and duPont-Columbia awards. He received an Academy Award® nomination in 2001 for SOUND AND FURY and in 2003 for WHY CAN’T WE BE A FAMILY AGAIN? WCWBFA also screened at SCFF in 2003.

VICTORIA PARA CHINO - Cary Joji Fukunaga MEXICO 14 min
One of the most amazing short narratives ever made. In May 2003 a refrigerated truck carrying more than 80 undocumented immigrants from the Mexican border drove into the heartland of Texas. A deadly combination of heat and overcrowding led to tragedy. This is a story of that journey and this is why we hold the festival.

JORNALERO (Day Laborer) - Sara MacPherson, 8 min
Work is scarce, and Jose Echevarria misses his family in Mexico. He has spent the last 14 years working as a day laborer—'jornalero'—in San Francisco. This portrait of one of the thousands of jornaleros working to get by and provide for their families follows Echevarria through his last days in the U.S. before returning home to see his family and the grandchildren he has yet to meet.

9:00 pm - VIVA LA LAUGH Comedy Night (Riverfront Theater)

DARCY’S OFF WHITE WEDDING Kristin Holloway 10 min
Free spirited Darcy finally decides to marry. On her big day, she’s not really given the support she needs by her relatives or stoner friends, which is surprising considering her true love is perfectly compatible with her. Will Darcy find post-nuptial happiness, or will objections prevent the marriage?

DUCK, DUCK GOOSE! D.C. Douglas 21 min
C.B. is a hopeless romantic who decides to pursue Lizzie, a beautiful woman with a chronic case of the burps. Despite being equally romantic—dreaming of a new love that will whisk her away to Paris—Lizzie can’t quite sever the ties with her ex-husband, now her housemate, so the three end up on a dinner date together. D.C. Douglas (ER, JAG, NYPD Blue) directs and stars in this perfect blend of romantic comedy and modern day cynicism.

STOP THIEF Soseh Kevorkian 10 min
Sophie, a 23 year-old professional shoplifter, is pressured by her mom to go straight. Why does she resist? Because her parents taught her everything she knows. Besides, there’s something romantic about a life of thievery. Within a hilarious “do as I say, not as I do� motif, Lizzie has to decide the right thing for herself.

WEST BANK STORY Ari Sandel 21 min
Song and dance provide counterpoint to the threat of Middle Eastern violence as two competing West Bank chick pea franchises, the Hummus Hut and Kosher King, begin to feud over their close proximity with one another. Can the budding romance between the beautiful Palestinian cashier, Fatima, and the dashing Israeli soldier, David, prevent the two restaurants from destroying each other? This Official Selection at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival is parody at its finest!

INTERVENTION Jeff Wager 12 min
Last year’s Cinemar screenwriting winner…
Joe’s wife has had it with her husband’s twisted addiction, so she organizes an intervention. Unfortunately, she doesn’t do the best job of explaining to the other participants exactly what it is that Joe’s addicted to, leading to false assumptions and an awkward, but funny, confrontation.

HOW TO ACE AN INTERVENTION Ned Farr 11 min
Afraid your friends might get between you and your bottle? Just follow these eight easy steps, and you too can undermine the power of an intervention. A woman who really enjoys her drinking illustrates each hilarious step, but the lessons are not without their serious undertones; lots of laughs lead to a sobering conclusion.

THE BREAKS Richard Sears 10 min
A million-dollar-prize-winning bottlecap keeps changing owners as one unscrupulous person after another tries to steal it.

THE FAX Ben Bary 13 min
Two slackers, Ernie and Whitley, are receiving phone calls, but when they answer, all they hear is the squeal of a fax transmission. Annoyed, they decide to hook up a fax machine so they can find out what’s being sent. If it’s valuable, maybe they can ransom it! But what if they’re risking their lives by intercepting nefarious info sent by bad guys? Then again, it’s probably some poor old man’s prescription meant for the local pharmacy. Their second-guessing leads to a comedic battle of wills.

RINGO Conall Jones + Alfred Seccombe 5 min
A simple-minded young man sits on a bridge with a buddy and fantasizes about getting a car, or maybe a horse, in this whimsical and charming comedy about friendship.

MR. DRAMATIC John Stalberg, Jr. 12 min
A young woman waits in a Hollywood bar for her blind date, which turns out to be none other than the notorious “Mr. Dramatic.� Before he can walk across the room to meet her, the drama hits the fan. This clever comedy gets its laughs by playing it straight and from its talented cast, including Oliver Hudson (Dawson's Creek) and Amy Acker (Angel).

AUTOMATED ASSETS James Dastoli 3 min
Two robots tell it like it is.

I’D LIKE TO KNOW ABOUT LOVE
(Volevo Sapere Sull'Amore)
Max Croci 2003 Italy 11 min Italy
A whimsical gem from Italy, winner of the Nastro D'Argento award for Best Actress and first prize at Berlin's Interfest, this short film chronicles the adventures of Maga, a fortune-teller on the call-in TV program "I'd Like to Know About Love." Sometimes even soothsayers can be surprised.

KILLING KEVIN Jeanne Kopeck 16 min
Members of an anti-Kevin Costner support group, all of which have suffered professional setbacks after working on Costner bombs, grapple with their “soul-sucking, career-ending rationalization for murder.� For those that still feel resentment over wasting three non-refundable hours of life on The Postman, this short is for you!

Director’s Dinner Sponsored by The Attic
931 Pacific Ave
460.1800

9:45-12PM
SENEGAL IN THE HOUSE
at The Attic 852 Pacific Ave.
5.00 general public
free to pass holders free BYOB

DJ Ousmane hailing from Senegal, DJ Ousmane graced us with his spinning beats at The SCFF Kick-off Party last April. He is back and will be rocking some world beats to twinkle your toes.