April 10, 2010
Dead Worry About Plague in Festival Kick Off Production
N.C. Filmmakers Attend First Public Screening
By Tony Rutherford
Huntingtonnews.net Entertainment Editor
Launching with a darkly morbid take on death, “Ed the Undertaker” exhibited the epitome of independent film mantra --- the unexpected. The film contains conversations between corpses about life after death, including one that has fallen in love. One worries about catching a plague. The undertaker, who acts like a combination counselor and referee, utters a memorable lines: “You’re already dead” and (related to possible violence) “not in my cemetery.”
“Undertaker” was among the shorts and features having their first showings at Marshall University as part of the Appalachian Film Festival.
The ten-minute film features J. Neil Bloomer as “Ed.” He is the nephew of an Oscar and Tony award winning set designer Jo Mielziner and actress Jeanne Macintyre.
Young filmmaker Steven Hendricks and his family drove from North Carolina for the first public viewing of his short film, “Closed Doors.” The production tells of a sexually abused teen who returns to earth as an angel with an assignment.
After the showing, Steve’s dad said his son has his eyes set on a combination of gaming and film school for college.
Bob Jarvis, Huntington Regional Film Commission, said the film treated a “sensitive subject” well. Mrs. Hendricks indicated the titled originated from their grandfather who had stressed that in life (as in film) you do not have to put everything on the screen.
This was the first public screening for “Closed Doors.”
Wrapping the evening, “Maxwell Stein,” combines a Boris Karloff “Thriller” with a lot of “Twilight Zone” and “Outer Limits” for a terrifying drama about a washed up movie director completing his final picture using a possessed camera. Audience members raved about the decision to film the “Mummy” themed horror film in black and white and the strong acting, professionalism, and intensity of the story.
Free films began at 5:30 p.m. and continued until after 11 p.m.
The next phase of the festival occurs Friday, April 16 at the Huntington Museum of Art followed the next weekend by the finals, banquet and guest artist at the Keith Albee Performing Arts Center.
Visit, http://www.appyfilmfest.com for schedules.
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Dead Worry About Plague in Festival Kick Off Production
N.C. Filmmakers Attend First Public Screening
By Tony Rutherford
Huntingtonnews.net Entertainment Editor
Launching with a darkly morbid take on death, “Ed the Undertaker” exhibited the epitome of independent film mantra --- the unexpected. The film contains conversations between corpses about life after death, including one that has fallen in love. One worries about catching a plague. The undertaker, who acts like a combination counselor and referee, utters a memorable lines: “You’re already dead” and (related to possible violence) “not in my cemetery.”
“Undertaker” was among the shorts and features having their first showings at Marshall University as part of the Appalachian Film Festival.
The ten-minute film features J. Neil Bloomer as “Ed.” He is the nephew of an Oscar and Tony award winning set designer Jo Mielziner and actress Jeanne Macintyre.
Young filmmaker Steven Hendricks and his family drove from North Carolina for the first public viewing of his short film, “Closed Doors.” The production tells of a sexually abused teen who returns to earth as an angel with an assignment.
After the showing, Steve’s dad said his son has his eyes set on a combination of gaming and film school for college.
Bob Jarvis, Huntington Regional Film Commission, said the film treated a “sensitive subject” well. Mrs. Hendricks indicated the titled originated from their grandfather who had stressed that in life (as in film) you do not have to put everything on the screen.
This was the first public screening for “Closed Doors.”
Wrapping the evening, “Maxwell Stein,” combines a Boris Karloff “Thriller” with a lot of “Twilight Zone” and “Outer Limits” for a terrifying drama about a washed up movie director completing his final picture using a possessed camera. Audience members raved about the decision to film the “Mummy” themed horror film in black and white and the strong acting, professionalism, and intensity of the story.
Free films began at 5:30 p.m. and continued until after 11 p.m.
The next phase of the festival occurs Friday, April 16 at the Huntington Museum of Art followed the next weekend by the finals, banquet and guest artist at the Keith Albee Performing Arts Center.
Visit, http://www.appyfilmfest.com for schedules.
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