This article by Jim Finn discusses the state of some of America's underground film festivals, particularly the ones that are/were open to films of all lengths, subject matter, and skill. Finn focuses on three small festivals that he had attended and have now been shut down; the New York Underground Film Festival, Cinematexas, and Iowa City's Thaw. He discusses how revolutionary these festivals were in accepting works of all sorts and how the audiences were successful in interacting with the works and the filmmakers and helping to propel careers. Finn explains that "all three festivals celebrated work that really got at what's going on beneath he headlines both in this country and on our planet as a whole, without playing by the rules set out by us by the folks that are running the show." But now, unfortunately, these festivals have failed financially due to insufficient funding since not many wealthy people or companies want to support independent artists that don't live up to their superficial ideals of what makes a great film.
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)