Hollywood prestige pictures are competing in the Oscar race, while “The Batman” is about to become a blockbuster this weekend, but what if you want something under the radar?
The D.C. Independent Film Forum returns this week to screen 43 short and feature films.
“It came into being in 1999 to fill what was thought of as a need at the time for films that were not already mainstream to have a chance to be out there,” Executive Director Deirdre Evans-Pritchard told WTOP. “That was really the original idea and its job was also to help local filmmakers start having a chance to have their work seen.”
This year’s event will be held Wednesday through Sunday at Landmark E Street Cinema.
“Last year, we did try the hybrid version and it was extremely difficult,” Evans-Pritchard said. “This year, things have opened up and the Landmark E Street Cinema [has] given us the space for the entire festival, which is ideal. … Many of our filmmakers will be able to meet and greet each other and be there for conversations with the audience.”
Opening night is “My Childhood, My Country” by Phil Grabsky and Shoaib Sharifi.
“The film is very powerful because it covers 20 whole years of somebody’s life [in Afghanistan],” Evans-Pritchard said. “You see him as Russian tanks come through, you see him as American tanks come through, you see him living for a while in a cave next to the famous Bamiyan Buddhist statue that was blown up by the Taliban.”
Thursday offers something much lighter with “Bootyology” starring Brian Austin Green.
“That’s just a laugh a minute … to make us feel like we’re moving into a space where there are no more problems, except for the fact that we can’t find The Booty Boys!” Evans-Pritchard said. “[They] are a rap group who … in the film, they are a lost cause. … We call it a mock-umentary made in a documentary style if you remember ‘This is Spinal Tap!'”
Friday brings “Living in Delusionville” directed by Constant van Hoeven.
“Ron English is quite a well-known muralist across the country, famous for his slightly iconic style; he plays in emojis and smiley faces and does a lot of commentary about society and culture,” Evans-Pritchard said. “This is the first major documentary about his life. … Ron English is coming to town to paint a mural [at the 14th Street Graffiti Museum].”
Saturday brings the short program “Amazing Animation” filled with animated shorts.
“It’s easy to see animation as … designed for your children, but it’s not always easy to see these short, really creative, challenging [animated films],” Evans-Pritchard said. “We have a collection from across the world of really interesting formats. Some are made with tiny little models, some are made with stop-animation, some are drawn, some are computer.”
Sunday delivers “Soul of a Beast” by Swiss director Lorenz Merz.
“He’s one of those ‘filmmakers to watch,’ as they say,” Evans-Pritchard said. “The way it was made, it’s a very fast-moving, young, energetic, quirky, slightly spiritual love story that doesn’t quite work out. He is being noted in Europe as an up-and-coming director, so we’re excited that we’re only his second screening in the United States.”
It all wraps Sunday with the romantic comedy “Americanish” directed by Iman Zawahry.
“It’s a Muslim woman’s version of ‘Coming to America,'” Evans-Pritchard said. “They arrive in New York and they deal with the same issues. It’s a love story, it’s a rom-com, it’s delightful and it’s made entirely by a team of Muslim-American women filmmakers.”
In the end, it’s all about the festival experience of gathering in person.
“What is different from sitting at home and watching something on Netflix … is that we bring the filmmakers to the events,” Evans-Pritchard said. “You have an opportunity to not just watch the films, but to understand how they got made, what made the filmmaker tick, how their career is going, who they know in Hollywood.”
Listen to our full conversation here.
