PAGE 18 THE RETRIEVER WEEKLY FOCUS APRIL 4, 2000

Baltimore's Diverse push some boundaries artisti­ memory lane. Remember cally; they aren't films manipu­ when you were a child and you lated by major motion picture Contribution to Cinema watched the Pee Wee Herman companies, and they're usual­ LEANNE CURTIN AND NICK BECKER naming February 7, 1985 Day. show, when you adored Pee ly created by unknowns. Retriever Weekly Staff , one of the regulars in Wee before he got caught These days, unknowns are Waters' early films, best know as the Egg playing with his pee wee? He being pushed to the forefront What do transvestites, UMBC, spiders Lady, owned a thrift store in Fells Point. ran a segment with a Word of of pop culture and becoming and Dom Delouise have in common? No, It's still open, now called Flashback, at 728 the Day theme. Well, today's "somebodys." This is valuable they're not from the lyrics of an Eddie S. Broadway, run by Bob Adams (Ernie word, kiddies, is "indie." lndie because it gives society Money song; they are all related to famous from ). John Waters still seems to be the new catch access to new, creative ideas and not-so-famous local filmmakers. lives in to this day; you can spot phrase to describe under­ and scripts. A lot of indie films First and most important of all, John him at local haunts such as the Ottobar and ground, edgy and cool. It's a out there are really horrid, but Waters hails from Baltimore, delights even attending UMBC drama productions. catch phrase for independent, there's a whole crop that are many and insults more with his controver­ Dubbed by William S. Burroughs as "the as in produced without the really touching, really valuable. sial cinema. Influenced by Russ Meyer, pope of trash," he put Baltimore on the financial backing of a major .Even here in Baltimore, there Andy Warhol and George and Mike map, and his new film Cecil B. DeMented production company. exists a fairly significant indie Kuchar, his claim to fame is Pink is scheduled for release in August. Go see Focus takes on indie film film scene. So take a seat and Flamingos and trash is the name of his it. this week. Usually these films The other celebrated director from Baltimore is award-winning filmmaker . He directed such critical­ ly-acclaimed films as Good Morning, Vietnam, , and . Early in his career he worked. Look Around Because I I with comedy legend Mel Brooks on anum­ j i ber of films including Silent Movie and I High Anxiety. Diner was his well-received Fine Film Abou-nds ! debut film about growing up Jewish in the I 1950s Baltimore. Levinson's latest film is LEANNE CURTIN University has a film festival coming up Liberty Heights, featuring his recurring Retriever Weekly Editorial Staff April 13-16. It's $3 a person and will themes of family ties, ethnic tension, Cold screen Sundance and Slamdance winners, War anxiety and dilemmas facing a chang­ If you are. tired of going to the same along with local and student films. The ing society. While he will never be as light­ club, seeing the same people, and having Microcinefest Film Festival of Baltimore hearted - or gross - as John Waters, the same jerk throw up on your shoes, con­ runs in October and November and fea­ obviously he has a lot of talent and univer­ sider altering your activities and participat­ tures low-budget, underground films from http://www.northcoast.com/ sal appeal and some statuettes to back that ing in something rewarding, like viewing a around the world. It's a large festival, -shojo/Waters/waters.html up. John Waters: Give him a camera, and film. Independent, local, underground - spanning about five days and has a screen­ A newly-famous director we should all he'll make you sick. no matter what you call it, it certainly ing average of well over a hundred films. · be proud of is William A. Whiteford, a won't make you throw up. Then again, For more information, the Web site is UMBC alum. He and his colleague Susan maybe it will. The Baltimore area is filled www.bcpl.lib.md.usl~bfinklmicrocinefest. Hannah Hadary won the Academy Award with places to go and events to attend, all In DC, the American Film Institute game. He shoots all his films in Baltimore; for best documentary short. King Gimp, in the name of film and art. (AFI) shows the nominees for the Rosebud originally with his Dreamlander cast of otherwise known as Dan Keplinger, is a Start off right here. The Underground Film Festival every year. The Rosebud is rapscallions. , the most prominent of talented artist from Towson who paints Film Coalition offers free screenings of comprised of filmmakers from , this group, was a full-figured transvestite with a brush attached to a helmet because high-quality independent films regularly. DC and Virginia and the types of film who specialized in hideous makeup and of his crippling cerebral palsy. Whitford They show films that aren't well represent­ range from claymation to documentary. would do anything for her devotion to and Hadary spent 14 years watching him ed and don't get the viewing they deserve. This year offered eight hours of film for Waters' films - even when it required grow into a man and captured his young In fact, the next screening is Aprill3, right eight bucks. Not bad for a whole day's consuming animal feces. life and varying emotions in 39 minutes. here on campus. Filmmakers Anonymous worth of activities. Earlier works included such exercises in This certainly deserves an Oscar. is another group comprised of film majors Obviously the is one of debauchery as , which While shooting footage for King Gimp and film enthusiasts on campus who offer the main places to find some new main­ features Divine being raped by a giant lob­ and building a close relationship with free screenings to students. Just look stream releases, as well as independently ster, and the silent picture . Keplinger, the duo made health and med­ around for the flyers for details about distributed and created films. The Charles Later, he cleaned up his act a bit and ical video's for distribution. King Gimp upcoming events. will also resurrect the old Hitchcock films appealed to a more mainstream audience will be shown at the Charles theatre during Festivals are great if you want to watch every once in a while or show many films with Cry Baby, , and the , April 28-29. films all day. And if that's not your thing, of a certain artist all at the same time. It Peeker. He is known for using ballyhoo The pair also has two films in the works: many film fests are set up differently; some has variety like that, so che~k it out at 1711 like Odorama, the feature of Polyester, one about schizophrenia, the other about you can pay for the showiqgs you want, N. Charles St. It still offers double features where audience members are given death and dying. Keep an eye out for these some you pay for the festival and watch for every Thursday night, which should be scratch-n-sniff cards and prompted by on­ promising documentary filmmakers in the hours on end. attractive to college students with a lack of screen instruction to participate and smell near future. Last year, Baltimore held a gay and les­ the love. Baltimore adores its resident bian film fe_stival. Johns Hopkins see UNDERGROUND page 20 celebrity filmmaker, even to the extent of see BALTIMORE, page 20