A staple of the D.C.-area film community is celebrating a quarter-century in the nation’s capital.
The 25th annual D.C. Independent Film Forum returns this Wednesday through Sunday.
“We’ve hit the great 2-5,” Executive Director Deirdre Evans-Pritchard told WTOP.
“We’ve been around for 25 years and we’re really proud of the fact that we are still here serving filmmakers in Washington, D.C. and giving audiences something cool to think about and some entertainment as well. … We are still a place for local filmmakers to be heard, but we are also a much more competitive film festival as well.”
The festival kicks off Wednesday with “Meeting Zelensky” at Landmark E Street Cinema in Northwest D.C.
“It is, of course, very timely,” Evans-Pritchard said.
“President Zelensky of the Ukraine is very much in the news, needless to say. This is a film about his history … A large section of it is an interview by Liev Schreiber talking about his experiences in life. President Zelensky started as a comedian on TV. It’s an amazing story. He happens to be Jewish as well, so there’s lots of interesting background to think about.”
Thursday brings a documentary about the famed D.C-area radio station WHFS, called “Feast Your Ears,” at The Avalon Theatre in Chevy Chase, D.C.
“The way that Jay Schlossberg, the director, talks about it, he says, ‘When Bethesda was cool,’ which is not to suggest Bethesda is not cool nowadays, but it was a time when there was a radio station in a little apartment pumping out music that people hadn’t heard before,” Evans-Pritchard said.
“It was a time when you could actually call in and say, ‘Would you play me this song?’ People are going to love it. It has interviews with a lot of musicians.”
Once your workweek ends, check out some Friday night frights at Regal Gallery Place in Chinatown.
“We have a film from France called ‘Wolfpack’ … a very fascinating film by a young, energetic filmmaker that posits the idea that the young blame the older people for everything that went wrong and turn on them,” Evans-Pritchard said.
“At the same time, you have to pick one or the other, we have what we call our ‘Creepy Late-Night Shorts.’ This is for people who like a little bit of a thrill and a little uncertainty. The filmmakers are coming in both cases.”
Saturday brings an animation showcase to the Angelika Pop-Up at Union Market in Northeast D.C., then you can return to Regal Gallery Place in Chinatown for the documentary “An Open Door” about Dr. Temple Grandin.
“She is well-known as being one of the first people to draw attention to the good treatment, or at least better treatment, of animals destined for our table,” Evans-Pritchard said.
“She had a huge impact on that and became quite famous. She’s a very colorful person, and in the process learned a lot about herself and realized she was autistic and became a champion of education and understanding that not everybody sees the world the same way.”
It all culminates Sunday at Regal Gallery Place with “The Way It Was: Paris Restaurants in the 1970s,” produced by James Ivory of Merchant-Ivory Productions like “A Room with a View,” “Howard’s End” and “Remains of the Day.”
“This film, believe it or not, is just footage of Paris restaurants,” Evans-Pritchard said. The film features chefs and restaurant owners from the 1970s. “It’s fascinating,” she said. “We have paired this with bringing in local, well-known chefs and a wine tasting, so you see the film then get a taste of what it might have been like. Everybody pleasantly tipsy with delicious French wine.”
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