From The Director Of The Festival Himself!
PTFF NEWSLETTER
OCTOBER 2009
Strange that the festival has been over for more than a week. Warm weather, great films and wonderful audiences, filling the streets and theatres with a particular “buzz” that was infectious. Thanks to all who have made calls, sent mail or stopped me on the street to tell me how much they enjoyed the festival. I am humbled to be the front-man for so many wonderful, hard-working volunteers who put this show on.
Cloris had a great time here in PT. She and her son George, played music, visited the schools and generally held court in a way that only a “star” can, to the delight of many. While we didn’t break any records, the venues were more consistent and the outdoor and drop-in theatres well both very well attended.
I’ve already been getting call and mails about the balloting, so I guess it is time to reveal the winners.
AUDIENCE FAVORITE
PADDLE TO SEATTLE
Directed by JJ Kelly and Josh Thomas, the documentary is about their travels along the 1300 mile inside passage in Pygmy kayaks!
This film was followed closely by Oscar Busher’s
Waiting For A Train, the true tail of native Japanese Toshio Hirano, whose life has been transformed by a love of country music.
Each year the films are reviewed by a select jury, whose task is to make a choice as to the “best” of a given category. Never an easy thing to do.
Feature Length Narrative
LOVERS IN A DANGEROUS TIME
Produced and Directed by Mark Hug & May Charters.
Lovers in a Dangerous Time sneaks in powerful human themes. This unassuming film shows epic scope as love and sibling rivalry evolve against every known form of activity in Creston, Canada. Believable sequencing, dialogue and acting contrast beautifully the pull of plain living with the need to escape from it.
Documentary Feature
MARCH POINT
Produced and Directed by Annie Silverstein & Tracy Rector
With a strong sense of place and community, small scope on big issues, and direct, poignant honesty tempered with humor, March Point is one tough little film. “We told this story for us and our tribe.” Balancing between loss and hope, March Point tells their story in ways we cannot forget.
Short Narrative
ANIMATED AMERICAN
Directed by James Baker & Joe Haidar
This is a darkly comic, refreshingly adult combination live action / animation short film with an original story, well conceived. Great acting and directing combines with effective filming and skilled animation work plus nice use of black and white photography. The final scene is hilarious.
Short Documentary
WAITING FOR A TRAIN
Produced and Directed by Oscar Busher
Toshio Hirano found his passion in his music and caught the train!
Toshio left Tokyo a teenager with a passionate for American Bluegrass Music.
Lonesome train whistles and dusty back roads boogie drew him out of Japan on a 15 year bicycle guitar trek through rural American.
He found flat picking banjos, fiddlers and guitar players in Minnesota, Appalachia, Texarkana, and California.
Hirano’s inner musical spirit goes beyond words. He comes alive on camera excitement and joy on his life time musical journey.
His musical transition and brand of western music culture is an inspiring view into the real heart of country acoustic string music. It drew him here and gave him to us.
Animated Short
SEBASTIAN’S VOODOO
Produced and Directed by Joaquin Baldwin
Sebastian’s Voodoo was an enthralling, strange world for an animated short, but I believe accurate. It was difficult to determine which was more pleasing; the animation or the story. It possesses a wonderful rhythm and great meld of image to narrative.
These films, in addition to most of the other films in this year’s festival, will be in the PTFF library in about a month! One of the benefits of membership!
GLOBAL LENS RETURNS!
The popular international films from San Francisco’s Global Film Initiative returns to The Rosebud Cinema on October 17th!
Presented in association with The Rose Theatre and Peninsula College, the critically acclaimed series is free to students and only $5 for others. All screenings are at 10 am on Saturdays. Tickets available both at the Rose box office and at the door.
We will begin our Fall schedule with the reprise screening of GETTING HOME, recently seen at this year’s film festival. In this soulful and humane comedy from China, Zhao, a middle-aged construction worker, struggles to fulfil a dying co-worker’s last wish.
Other films and dates for this series are:
OCTOBER 31
SONG FROM THE SOUTHERN SEAS
MARAT SARULU, KAZAKHSTAN, 2008
NOVEMBER 14
THOSE THREE
NAGHI NEMATI, IRAN, 2007
NOVEMBER 21
WHAT A WONDERFUL WORLD
FAOUZI BENSAIDI, MOROCCO, 2006
DECEMBER 5
MY TIME WILL COME
VICTOR ARREGUI, ECUADOR, 2009
…Were these your fav?
Are you of a different opinion?
With joy from Huber’s INN Port Townsend…www.StayInHubersINN.com
