Facing debt and bills, newlywed Eli Gottfried is tasked with the graveyard shift at Stafford Stoneworks, The pressure of increasingly deteriorating machines, a crushing schedule, and a recurring nightmare may be too much for Eli to handle. When a suspicious co-worker is severely injured, Eli finds his only solace in the perspective of a stranded (and equally suspicious) stranger. Moody and textural, The Nocturnal Third is a slow-burn workplace thriller that begins with a seemingly domestic situation and meticulously transforms into a tense neo-noir. This gripping story of corporate espionage takes a young man through a single harrowing night as he faces the limits of the human body, his own future, and his role in a system that is beginning to break down.
Written, directed, and edited by Benjamin Stark, The Nocturnal Third was shot entirely in North Alabama.
Check out the trailer here: http://vimeo.com/17851998
Three filmmakers, Aleksei Fedorchenko, Harmony Korine and Jan Kwiecinski, were tasked with creating three unique stories that present their vision of the higher plane of existence, the fourth dimension. Each filmmaker takes his character on a journey that changes the way they see the world. And each filmmaker offers a different perspective on what the fourth dimension is.
All three directors works are presented separately in the film, with the only thread between them being a shared theme. Korine’s contribution is ‘The Lotus Community Workshop’ which features Val Kilmer as, well, Val Kilmer, a motivational speaker. Fedorchenko’s visually evocative, ‘Chronoeye’ presents a sensitive, philosophical perspective on the fourth dimension. In the brink-of-destruction, ‘Fawns’, Kwiecinski’s vision takes the fourth dimension concept another route all together.
Experimental, unpredictable, and diverse, the international anthology The Fourth Dimension takes a new stab at the traditional three-act formula.
In the Sundance Film Festival favorite, Ethel, Emmy Award-winning filmmaker Rory Kennedy examines the remarkable life of her mother, Ethel Kennedy. The documentary features candid interviews with Ethel and seven of her children and is a surprisingly personal portrait of Ethel’s political awakening, the life she shared with Robert F. Kennedy, and the years following his death when she raised their eleven children on her own. Documentarian, Rory, is the youngest of the siblings and was born shortly after her father’s death. The film is packed with incredible archival footage, including family home movies, and provides unique and personal, never before revealed insight into many historical events. Intimate, funny, and deeply moving, Ethel offers a rare look inside a political dynasty strengthened by family bonds, a compassion for others, and a wisdom forged from both hardship and triumph.
There's danger in meeting your hero... especially if your hero becomes your boss, and your boss is the King of Rock & Roll. Musician Duke Bardwell learned that the hard way. Part documentary and part concert film, Duke & The King tells the story of former TCB band member Bardwell, one of the great-unheralded talents in American music. Focusing in part on Duke's relationship with Elvis Presley, the film is a cautionary tale about hero worship and the trappings of fame. Bardwell's story also demonstrates what happens when the right words and music come together to alter destiny and, in doing so, offer a shot at redemption.
The film features appearances by Kenny Loggins, Casey Kelly, 'Big Luther' Kent, Dread Clampitt, Leon Medica, Franko 'Washboard' Jackson and more. Many of the performances that punctuate the documentary were recorded at Birmingham’s WorkPlay Theater.
Watch the trailer here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=te1KmLOw9i0
Films about dysfunctional families are nothing new and have been explored at SHOUT in each and every year of its existence, whether it was the housewife overcoming abuse in Drool or the father coming to terms with his son’s homosexuality in The Wise Kids. In Naked As We Came, writer and director Richard LeMay takes it to an absorbing new level. After a strange phone call, Laura and her brother Elliot rush to their family’s mesmerizing country home. Once there, they discover that their estranged mother is dying of cancer and being cared for by Ted, a gorgeous young groundskeeper. Finding themselves stuck together in the home, the family start bringing to light years-old secrets that have haunted them individually and forced a wedge between their familial bonds. And, when Elliot turns to Ted for emotional support, he discovers that the stranger might have ulterior motives. This well-paced and haunting exploration of regret is a welcomed addition to the SHOUT line-up. Starring Ryan Vigilant, Benjamin Weaver, Karmine Alers, and S. Lue McWilliams.
Imagine Hollywood decided to remake The Talented Mr. Ripley and gear it more towards a younger audience-base. Now, imagine that they found a ‘talented’ writer/director to put her own original twist on the subject matter. Then you get something like The Silent Thief. But, keep in mind – this film is no remake; it’s a wholly original take on familiar themes of family and belonging. Toby Hemingway, in a powerful performance, stars as Brennan, an unusual young photographer who ends up renting a room from a normal suburban family, the Hendersons (Frances Fisher & Kurt Fuller play the parents; Scout-Taylor Compton & Cody Longo the kids). Brennan is quiet, keeps to himself as much as possible and, somehow, manages to rub the Hendersons eldest son, Mike, the wrong way. But Mike is hiding a secret just like Brennan. Slowly, the Hendersons start to realize that the tenant in their home might be more than they ever bargained for. Filled with stellar performances and crisp, clear writing from co-writer/director Jennifer Clary, The Silent Thief is an intense psychological thriller that takes a number of unexpected twists and turns.
Watch the trailer here: http://vimeo.com/37077130
Screening with the short film "Troy: Naked Boys Behind Bars, Sing!"
Based on the popular, long-running, gay comic strip, “Troy”, this is a silly, sweet, slightly sarcastic, animated satire of cheesy, gaysploitation entertainment.
After culminating months of the acclaimed singer-songwriter’s most rigorous year of touring, Andrew Bird crosses the finish line in his hometown of Chicago – feverish and on crutches from an onstage injury. Andrew Bird: Fever Year wavers between the tour and footage of Bird working on material in his rural converted-barn studio. Not simply a performance film, the documentary also provides insight into Bird’s songwriting process, as well as the evolution of his craft. It is the first to capture his precarious multi-instrumental looping technique and features live collaborations with Martin Dosh, Jeremy Ylvisaker, Michael Lewis, and Annie Clark of St. Vincent. The documentary is a must-see for fans and is of interest to anyone captivated by intense artistic dedication, the songwriting process, and/or musical improvisation. Catch the documentary at Sidewalk—Bird owns the film and there are currently no plans for release.'
Check out the trailer here: http://vimeo.com/31079083
***
Screening with the short film "Londoners"
Directed by Joseph Ernst
DOC | UK | 11 min.
Londoners is a vintage film about modern day London. Shot entirely on a 100 year old wooden hand-cranked 35mm camera, Londoners documents modern day London as never seen before. It shows the city as a community: a piece of contemporary history about what it’s like to live in London today. In an era obsessed with digital technology, by an increasingly camera-sceptic public, Londoners features thousands of people interacting directly with the camera, as was always the case in times gone by.
In an apartment on 12th Street, a chatty old woman sits in a cluttered room of sheet music that very few people remember. She tinkles occasionally at the piano as she speaks - any interview with the eccentric Mimi Stern-Wolfe is always punctuated by music. The Benson salons, as Mimi calls them, were a regular meeting of artists and composers in a downtown Manhattan loft owned by Eric Benson, her dear friend and musical collaborator. At this loft, writers and composers showcased new classical and populist musical works and an artistic community thrived. Amongst them were Chris DeBlasio, Robert Chesley and Kevin Oldham. When the HIV/AIDS epidemic swept through New York, and indeed the world in the early 1980s, each were infected and the majority of people who attended the soirees, including the composers themselves, were dead by the early 1990s. After these deaths, Mimi devoted much of her life to The Benson AIDS Series, an annual concert of works by composers who were lost to HIV/AIDS, which she performs on World AIDS Day. Directed by Rohan Spong, All the Way Through Evening follows Mimi as she prepares for one such concert. Her interviews recount the glory days at the Benson Salons, the initial awareness of HIV/AIDS and provide a character portrait of some of the original composers. The film also includes touching interviews with some of the surviving family members and musical collaborators of these men.
***
Screening with the short film "Shopping."
A poetic journey of two women in search of love in an ever changing world.
Seeking escape from his stalled relationship and unhappy place in the world, James, a recently pink-slipped music teacher, sets out to hike Kentucky’s arduous Sheltowee Trace Trail. Ignoring his girlfriend Joan’s plea to stay in Louisville and look for work, James sets out on his two-month journey in hopes of discovering the source of his restless dissatisfaction. Among the verdant hills of Appalachia, he encounters various strange characters and becomes the reluctant companion of a gregarious father and son who ultimately help him rediscover what he's been missing.
With her second feature, Pilgrim Song, director Martha Stephens set out to make a film about eastern Kentucky that showcased the natural beauty of the area as opposed to the stereotypical way that the region is often portrayed. What Stephens has achieved is a beautiful, poetic, thoughtful Southern odyssey.
Check out the trailer here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFVfSFZ2xB8
In 1978, a mechanical engineer who had developed new skateboard products teamed up with one of the most popular skaters of the era. George Powell and Stacy Peralta created Powell Peralta and immediately began retooling how skateboard products were made and marketed. Stacy recruited the skaters and handled marketing along with his longtime creative cohort Craig Stecyk III. Unmotivated by fame they completely dedicated their lives to a disrespected art form. By 1984, Tony Hawk, Rodney Mullen, Steve Caballero, Lance Mountain, Tommy Guerrero and Mike McGill compiled the most competitively successful skateboard team in history. They dominated contests, made hundreds of thousands of dollars, created the modern skateboard video, reinvented endemic advertising, pushed skate progression into a new era and set the stage for a totally new form of skating called street style. Bones Brigade: An Autobiography is their story.
Check out the trailer here: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/video/bones-brigade-trailer-282955
Check out an encore screening at the Hill Arts Center! The selected film will be announced by 1 pm on Sunday, August 26th.
