Tallahassee’s annual Film Festival is this upcoming weekend, April 5-7, and the lineup is here for featured film and guests. Past festivals have showcased films from pre-Oscar-winning directors and it is a way for filmmakers to network and show off their works to others in their field and movie-lovers alike. The film festival will open at the CMX Fallschase Cinema and then branch out to different theaters and venues all over the city including All Saints Cinema, Mickee Faust Club, the ASLC and the Palaver Tree Theater. General admission to most showings are around $10 and an all-access pass is $35.
Courtesy: Volunteer Leon
There is a wide variety of genres and unique storylines to these films. The opening film, Bernadette, directed by John Psathas, will be presented after five short-films directed by Florida high school students. The closing film, Black Mother, is a documentary focusing on women living in Jamaica directed by Khalik Allah, who has roots in the Caribbean. Body at Brighton Rock by Roxanne Benjamin is another film to add to the list. The ASLC will be showing Black Mother at 7:15 P.M. on April 7 and Body at Brighton Rock at 9:45 P.M. on April 6. The films range from documentaries, horror indie-films, romantic comedies, foreign films, experimental works and thrillers, so there is something for everyone. Many of the films’ directors and cast will be available for questions and discussions after the showings as well.
A few of the other movies featured include Starfish, a thriller that mixes cinema storytelling and music, which is essential to the narrative; The Commons, a documentary following different protests on racial issues across 30 years of filming; The Great Pretender, a drama-filled roundelay that is centered around characters living in the New York theater world; and many more.
There is a special pre-festival event that is free to the public at Midtown Reader on April 3 at 6:00-7:30 P.M. Mallory O’Meara, a young filmmaker and writer is reading from her book, The Lady from the Black Lagoon: Hollywood Monsters and the Lost Legacy of Milicent Patrick. The book details the life and legacy of animator Milicent Patrick, the only woman animator to create one of Hollywood’s classic movie monsters. After the reading, there is a showing of The Creature from the Black Lagoon playing next door at Waterworks’ patio.
Courtesy: Tallahassee Film Festival
Not only are the films something to look forward to, but there will also be a party on Saturday at The Wilbury with Dan Deacon headlining as DJ. Singer-songwriter Peg Simone in collaboration with artist Linda Hall will be presenting a “Southern Gothic Pocket Opera” in addition to a screening of Night of the Hunter classic film at All Saints Cinema.
For more information on additional films’ and short films’ showtimes and locations head to the Tallahassee Film Festival official website to check them out.