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April 11-15, 2012 Presented by the Kansas City Filmmakers Jubilee www.kcfilmfest.org B

Design Driven Storytelling.

t2.tv Festival Information 1 Design Driven Storytelling.

FilmFest Competition ® AMC Theatres Of the 119 films being shown during the AMC Theatres® Kansas City FilmFest, two-thirds are Kansas City FilmFest participating in our competition. In addition to April 11-15, 2012 | 816-286-4777 | www.kcfilmfest.org our competition films, we’ve scoured the globe to find other great new films that haven’t yet made it AMC Mainstreet 6 to Kansas City. We call these “curated” films and they are not competing for awards at FilmFest. 1400 Main Street including the Marquee Lounge The competition is the oldest part of the Kansas City Filmmakers Jubilee, the nonprofit organiza- AMC Ward Parkway 14 tion that presents FilmFest each year. In 1996, 8600 Ward Parkway in the Ward Parkway Jubilee founder Fred Andrews learned that Shopping Center Kansas City had an active and growing filmmaking community but there were few venues for film- Contents makers to show their work. As a result, Andrews launched the Kansas City Filmmakers Jubilee Festival Information...... 1 which held its first festival in 1997.

Tickets...... 2 Since then, the all-volunteer Kansas City Filmmak- Film Index...... 3 ers Jubilee has grown steadily, guided by the con- tinuing leadership of its founder, a large number Guest Artists...... 5 of filmmakers, and the Jubilee’s volunteer Board Short Film Programs ...... 14 of Directors. The Jubilee received its 501(c)(3) designation in June of 1998. More than $200,000 Shorts Films with Features...... 21 in cash and prizes have been awarded. More than Schedule: AMC Mainstreet 6. . . . 22 200 visiting film professionals have come to Kan- sas City to share their work and experiences. Schedule: AMC Ward Parkway 14. . 23 The competition begun by the Jubilee remains Reel Spirit Showcase...... 24 intact even though the festival was expanded and renamed in 2009. Workshops and Receptions. . . . . 23 Feature Film Descriptions...... 25 Award Categories Credits ...... 42 Filmmakers can submit narrative, experimental, ani- mation, and documentary films in four competition divisions. Awards are presented in each category: US/International Short and feature-length films. Heartland Short and feature-length films by Missouri and Kansas residents. Heartland Student Short and feature-length films by Missouri and Kansas City Filmmakers Kansas students. t2.tv CinemaJAZZ JUBILEE Short and feature-length films relating to jazz. 2 Tickets

Tickets and Protocol

pass. Badges can be picked up only at AMC Mainstreet 6. Ticket Prices If you have been given or won a complimentary ticket $5 Individual seminars, panels or workshops voucher, the complimentary ticket voucher does not guar- antee you a seat. Complimentary ticket vouchers must be $10 Individual movie tickets redeemed for an actual ticket at the box office. $20 Seminar/Panel/Workshop Pass Permits the pass holder a single ticket for each seminar, A ticket for a specific show does not guarantee the ticket panel or workshop. Please go to kea.nu/hoffman to register holder a seat for that show. Each ticket holder must be in for the BlueCat Screenplay Workshop with Gordy Hoffman. their seat no fewer than 10 minutes before the scheduled start time of the specific show for which the ticket was $80 Silver Badge 10-10-80 Movies Only Pass purchased. Unoccupied seats will be released for immediate Ten $10 movies for $80 and permits the pass holder a sale. Ticket holders arriving fewer than 10 minutes before maximum of one single ticket for each movie show time up the scheduled start time will not be guaranteed a seat. to a maximum of ten $10 movies. This pass is not valid for the Opening Night Special Event, the CinemaJAZZ Special The Kansas City Filmmakers Jubilee and AMC Theatres Kan- Event or the Closing Night Special Event. sas City FilmFest cannot be held responsible for last minute $120 Gold Badge All Access FilmFest Pass schedule changes and/or cancellations. Should a scheduled Permits the pass holder a single ticket for each movie show film be canceled, festival staff will substitute a film of their time and any panel or workshop. choice. Every effort will be made to hold to the published schedule. However, due to shipping, distribution, customs A festival pass does not guarantee seating. Festival pass issues and any other unforeseen circumstance, changes may holders must obtain tickets from the box office in advance occur, though they are very rare. of each screening they plan to attend. Each Pass Holder must present a valid photo I.D. to obtain his/her festival All sales are final. Film Index 3

Short Film Index Feature Film Index 10,000 Trees...... 17 The Little Things...... 17 Andrew Bird: Fever Year . . . 25 Among Giants...... 17 Live Outside the Box...... 21 Bucksville...... 25 Another Dress, Another Button. .15 Love and Buns: The Hot Dog Il Cacciatore di Antare The Arm...... 19 House...... 17 (The Duck Hunter)...... 27 The Audition...... 14 Low m ...... 15 Corporate FM...... 27 Bears...... 19 Maddoggin’...... 15 Country Story...... 27 Between Blood and Sand. . . . .14 Le Maillot de Cristiano...... 21 Bip Bip (Beep Beep)...... 15 Master of the Universe...... 21 Darling Companion...... 27 Bipolar: A Narration of Manic Max Berry...... 21 Dear Chelsey...... 29 Depression...... 21 Mayhem ...... 15 Dirty Energy...... 29 Blessed...... 14 Meaning of Robots...... 19 Ex Infernis...... 29 Bright...... 21 Mijo ...... 21 Busted Walk...... 15 The Missing Man...... 17 The First Season...... 29 Child of the Desert ...... 15 Mojado ...... 15 The Flowers of War...... 31 Choke...... 17 My Night With Andrew Cuanan. .14 The Gray Seasons...... 31 Clocked In...... 21 Nanny Goat...... 14 Imagens de Uma Ciadade Collaborating With the Past . . . 21 Once in a Lifetime...... 21 Perdida...... 31 The Collegians...... 21 ORA...... 17 Jazz Under the Lens . . . . . 31 The Curse of Yig...... 14 The Orphan...... 14 Kelly...... 33 Darkness of Improvisation. . . . 15 Pensou - Do the Good...... 15 Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Predaturs...... 14 The Last Frontier...... 33 Friend...... 17 Randy Parsons: American Luthier. 21 Love Stalker...... 33 Domestic...... 15 Red Velvet...... 21 La Mitad Del Mundo Don’t Hug Me I’m Scared. . . . .19 The Return...... 19 (Half of the World). . . . .33 Doubles with Slight Pepper. . . .17 La Rhonde ...... 17 The Mongolian Dream. . . . .35 Elliot Spark...... 21 Robots of Brixton...... 19 Nailbiter...... 35 Equity ...... 15 Rook...... 14 Open Minds...... 35 The Etiquette of Impotence...... 17 A Senior Moment...... 15 A Finger, Two Dots Then Me. . . 14 Shoot the Moon...... 15 Opération Casablanca. . . . 35 First Birthday...... 19 Slasher Kings: First Gig...... 14 Piran-Pirano...... 37 Fishing Without Nets...... 19 Slash-in-the-Box...... 14 QWERTY...... 37 Florence, Kansas...... 17 Slip Cue ...... 14 Saving America’s Horses. . . .37 Found...... 15 Song of the Spindle...... 19 Signing On...... 37 Freak...... 21 Stan Herd: Man of the Land . . . 17 Fungus...... 19 Static...... 14 A Simple Life...... 39 A Good War...... 14 Sterling Hallard Bright Drake. . . 21 Small, Beautifully Moving Grenouille D’Hiver...... 21 Suburban Shopping Trends. . . .17 Parts...... 39 Habitual Aggression...... 15 Switch...... 14 Small Pond...... 39 Hell Week...... 17 Tiny Miny Magic...... 21 Sweet Old World...... 39 Homecoming...... 21 Trotteur...... 17 Swimming in Nebraska . . . . 41 Hope...... 17 Two Sisters...... 17 What’s on Your Plate?. . . . .41 Hush...... 21 Wana Dubie’s War ...... 15 Incest! the Musical...... 15 Who is Wright?...... 14 Das Wunder von Leipzig Knuckleball...... 21 A Wild Idea ...... 17 (The Miracle of Leipzig). . .41 Life is Beautiful...... 15 .

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Lathrop & Gage is proud to support the spirit of independent filmmaking at AMC Theatres Kansas City FilmFest.

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Gregory Carroll Lee Daniel Carroll is currently the CEO for the American Jazz Mu- Daniel is a cinematographer of many award winning fea- seum. As an educator and performer, Carroll has earned tures and documentaries. He is best known for shooting many awards and honors. He was recently named among films like Slacker, Dazed and Confused, Before Sunrise, the 100 most Influential African-Americans in Kansas Before Sunset, and Fast Food Nation. He has worked City. Carroll currently holds a special faculty appoint- with Academy Award winning director Davis Guggenheim ment to the UMKC Jazz Studies Department and holds on several documentaries including A Mother’s Promise: an appointment as an Arts Commissioner for the City The Barack Obama Biography. Daniel co-founded the of Kansas City, Missouri. He is highly active as an educa- Austin Film Society with director Richard Linklater as tion consultant globally and has performed with many well as shot many of his feature films. He is a graduate celebrated jazz artists including George Benson, Dave of the University of Texas. He worked with his brother Grusin, Chico Freeman, Phil Wilson, Don Menza, Diana Bill Daniel on the underground hobo culture film Who is Reeves, Louie Bellson and others. Bozo Texino?

Michelle Davidson Debra DiBlasi Davidson is president of Kansas City Women in Film & DiBlasi is founding publisher of Jaded Ibis Productions TV and on the board of the Film Commission of Greater and prose editor of the imprint, Jaded Ibis Press. She Kansas City. As a member of the Screen Actors Guild, is a multi-genre, multimedia writer whose books include Davidson has acted in the feature films Lucky, Nailbiter, The Jirí Chronicles & Other Fictions; Say What You Like; Last Will and Last Ounce of Courage. She is the writer/ Prayers of an Accidental Nature; Skin of the Sun; and director of the short film A Senior Moment and writer of What the Body Requires. The short film based on her Patrick Rea’s Hell Week, which are screening at KC Film- novella, Drought, directed by Lisa Moncure, won a host of Fest. Davidson is a host and executive producer of the national and international awards, and was one of only six weekly television show CinemaKC on KSMO-TV. Taking US films invited to the Universe Elle section of the 2000 on advanced media, Davidson won an Emmy Award as Cannes International Film Festival. She taught experimen- writer/producer of the web series The Unreal Housewives tal narrative forms for eight years at Kansas City Art Insti- of Kansas City. Before making Kansas City her home, Da- tute, including hyperfiction, mixed media and multimedia vidson was an anchor/reporter at KOMU-TV in Columbia fiction, experimental writing, and the new memoir. Debra and KY3 in Springfield, Mo. now resides in Seattle, Washington. 6

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Ken DuBow Chad Godfrey DuBow is president of Opus Distribution which is Godfrey is a video producer, director, and owner of producing its first film with Ex Inferis (Free Me From Hell). Home Video Studio of Lee’s Summit. He is a 45-time Ken has over 30 years of distribution experience at major Hanley Award winner for Excellence in Video Production. studios, multinational corporations and as an indepen- Competing with industry professionals including national dent. Prior to Opus Distribution, DuBow was president of TV and movie producers in Hollywood, Godfrey’s work worldwide distribution at PorchLight Entertainment, ex- was won awards for Best Documentary, Best Editing, Best ecutive vice president of First Look Studios, and CEO of Music, Best Video Production, and Best Motion Graphics. Modern Entertainment. In 2005, DuBow successfully sold Godfrey and his wife, Suzie, have three children and are Modern Entertainment’s 324 title library to LionsGate residents of Lee’s Summit, Mo. Entertainment which included Dirty Dancing and the Hal- loween films. He has also held executive positions with MGM/UA in syndication, and as head of US cable sales, the Walt Disney Company in syndication, and Pandora Films in international film and TV program sales.

Laura Good Joe Heyen Good is the programming coordinator for Film Circuit, Heyen is the producer, director, and writer of the ac- the programming outreach division of the Toronto claimed documentary Cowtown Ballroom… Sweet Jesus, International Film Festival that serves as a domestic one of the most successful films made in Kansas City. grass-roots network, bringing Canadian and international Formerly he taught film for 17 years at the college level. independent films and artists to over 160 communities He has produced over 300 films and multimedia projects, across Canada. Through Film Circuit, Laura has facilitated and has been president of the Independent Filmmakers short film programming for several festivals such as the Coalition of Kansas City. He is currently president of the Ottawa International Film Festival in Ontario, the Maple Missouri Motion Media Association in charge of lobbying Movies Festival des kanadischen Films throughout for the film industry for the state of Missouri. Germany, and the Temecula Valley International Film & Music Festival in California. Good has also acted as a programming associate for the Toronto International Film Festival since 2010, screening submissions on behalf of Festival Programmers and contributing notes.

Guest Artists 9

Gordy Hoffman Jon Jost Hoffman founded the BlueCat Screenplay Competi- Jost has made some 20 shorts and 14 feature length films. tion in 1998. In 2001, he was chosen for Fox Searchlab, a He made his first feature-length film in 1974, and his work director development program at Fox Searchlight, where has shown widely in museums, film archives, and festivals he wrote and directed three shorts: The Woman Who since 1975. The Museum of Modern Art presented a com- Stopped Seeing Movies, Jack Signs, and Untitled. His plete retrospective of Jost’s work in January 1991. This screenplay, Love Liza, starring his brother, Philip Seymour show subsequently traveled to the J.F. Kennedy Center, Hoffman, won the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award at the the Harvard Film Archive, the UCLA Film Archive, the Sundance Film Festival. He made his feature directo- Film Arts Foundation of San Francisco, the Bergamo rial debut with his script, A Coat of Snow. Hoffman has Film Meeting, the Viennale Festival, and the Bologna and taught screenwriting at the USC School of Cinematic Torino Film Archives. Mr. Jost presently is living in Seoul, Arts and led workshops all over North America, Poland Korea, having spent four years teaching in the Graduate and the UK. A proud Jayhawk, he sits on the Professional Dept of Communications and Arts at Yonsei University. Advisory Board of the Film and Media Studies Dept. at He retired as Distinguished Professor in July 2011. his alma mater, the University of Kansas.

Randy Mason Carol Mayes Since arriving at KCPT in 1984, Mason has worked as Carol Mayes is a producer, writer, director with years of a reporter, producer, writer and host of such series as industry experience. She has worked on a diverse array Kansas City Illustrated, KCPT Marquee and The Local of projects for network television, as well as indepen- Show. He’s been involved in numerous documentaries dently produced shorts, features, and animation. Her with writer C.W. Gusewelle, including This Place Called films as writer/director, Commitments and Rituals were Home and Water & Fire: A Story of the Ozarks. In 2000, produced for BET Pictures and Lifetime Television, he produced the area’s first long-form HD series Uniquely respectively. As a winner of the Disney/ABC Writing Kansas City. In 2002, he received a regional Emmy for Fellowship, she has written features & television scripts Tapping Kansas City and as co-producer of the offbeat for Disney Studios and ABC Television. Other credits art and travel series Rare Visions & Roadside Revelations, include, writer, “East St.” pilot episode for TeenNick/Nick- he’s been recognized with ten regional Emmy Awards. In elodeon, and producer for segments on PBS’ “Sesame 2004, he received a National Emmy for their work on the Street”. Mayes is an Assistant Professor of Screenwriting documentary Be Good, Smile Pretty, a co-production of & Media Arts at the City University of New York (CUNY). KCPT and the Orphans of War Foundation. 10

STAGEPORT.TV Guest Artists 11

Christine Elise McCarthy Ronald McFadden Originally from Boston, McCarthy has been acting pro- Ronald McFadden and his brother, Lonnie McFadden, fessionally for 25 years. She has appeared in Beverly Hills are the sons of Kansas City hoofer and entertainer Smilin’ 90210, ER, HBO’s Tell Me You Love Me, Law & Order: Jimmy McFadden. Together, they have been entertain- SVU, China Beach and In the Heat of the Night. Her film ing since they were in elementary school, learning their credits include many indie projects (Route 30 and Mojave licks from their father, Ronald honing his skills on alto Phone Booth) as well as Child’s Play 2, Boiling Point and saxophone and as a choreographer. As “The McFadden Vanishing Point (both with Viggo Mortenson), Defenseless Brothers,” they have shared the stage with some of the and Abel Ferrara’s Bodysnatchers. As a writer, she has biggest names in show business such as Wayne Newton, three episodes of Beverly Hills 90210 to her credit and a Sammy Davis, Jr. and The Count Basie Orchestra. In pilot optioned by Aaron Spelling. She has been on the se- 2009, The McFadden Brothers were the topic of a docu- lection committee of Michigan’s Waterfront Film Festival mentary movie entitled Sons of a Hoofer, and recently for 14 years. 2011 saw her directorial debut, Bathing & the Ronald played Wining Boy in The Piano Lesson at the Single Girl, get accepted into almost 80 film festivals. Metropolitan Ensemble Theatre.

Meagan Flynn Lisa Ogdie Flynn was raised on a cattle ranch in Montana. She can Ogdie has been part of the Sundance shorts program- be seen questioning George Clooney as a flight attendant ming team since 2009. In addition to her duties as a in Jason Reitman’s Oscar-nominated Up in the Air. She shorts programmer, she assists Sundance Film Festival di- has appeared in independent films including Ty Jones’s rector John Cooper and coordinates public programming Last Breath, Patrick Rea’s Now That You’re Dead and for the Sundance Institute. Originally from Seattle and television shows such as The Playbook. She co-produced now based in Los Angeles, Lisa first came to Sundance the web series, The Unreal Housewives of Kansas City as a volunteer in 2006 and served as guest services and found Smart Mouth Productions, which created the manager for the CineVegas Film Festival in 2007 and comedic web series The Wingman. Flynn produced and 2008. Ogdie’s extensive festival experience has taught starred in the short, Adrift, and collaborated with Jennifer her many things. Need to bring a monkey into a casino? Plas to create the short film, The Playdate. She wrote No problem, as long as he’s wearing clothes and you keep and directed the shorts Always Come Home and The him away from the gaming tables and food court. They’ve Etiquette of Impotence. Flynn serves on the board for run into problems with that in the past. KC’s Women In Film and Cinema KC. 12 AMC THEATRES

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[email protected] 1.323.592.9140 @sokap1 Guest Artists 13

Rudd Simmons Edward Stencel As a producer, Simmons has worked with directors Jim Stencel has worked as a producer, director, cinematogra- Jarmusch, Tim Robbins, Stephen Frears, Wes Anderson, pher, festival programmer, and executive over the past 20 Julie Taymore, and John Hillcoat. Simmons produced years. His fiction and non-fiction films have won awards Dead Man Walking and High Fidelity, as well as the first at major film festivals worldwide. Most recently he has season of the TV series Boardwalk Empire. He served launched Royale Greenstone Entertainment, a consulting as the executive producer on The Road, Across the Uni- and international sales representation company. As a verse, The Life Aquatic, The Royal Tenebaums, and The panelist Edward has spoken at many film festivals and Hi-Lo Country. The First Season is his premiere directorial universities around the world. He earned his Masters in effort. Film and Television Production from the University of Bristol, England after receiving his BA (Economics) in 1988 from the University of Michigan.

James Stenson Jörn Threlfall Photographer and filmmaker James Stenson’s work Threlfall is from London. He studied film and theatre has appeared internationally in Marie Claire, GQ, Elle, in Berlin and Bristol UK and went on to work for The Cosmopolitan, FHM, The Times, The Telegraph, Entertain- Discovery Channel and Channel 4. His widely-known ment Weekly, Variety and Time, and for media groups commercial work has garnered top honours worldwide, such as Warner Bros, BBC, HBO, and Sky Media. He including a prestigious Black Pencil at D&AD. Mojado, currently has several documentary features in develop- shot in the desert region of Tehuacan, was shot over 6 ment under the production company he founded, Good frenzied days in Mexico. Trick Productions. Kelly marks his feature-directorial film debut. 14 Short Film Programs

After Dark All the Darkness Left Beats and Off-Beats

Blessed 5m Switch 8m The Audition 3m When Ted Goodis arrives home Two years after a traumatic car ac- To wow the judges of a dance early to celebrate his recent elec- cident left a young girl in a catatonic audition, a young ballerina magically tion to City Council, he discovers vegetative state, the man who put does what she knows best. Directed that his wife’s black magic is re- her there seeks out her mother to by Jeannette Godoy. sponsible for his good luck and that atone for his crimes. Directed by 8m certain sacrifices will be necessary. Thomas Hefferon. A Finger, Two Dots Then Me This spoken-word piece written and Directed by Tim Friend. Between Blood and Sand 20m performed by Derrick Brown has Nanny Goat 7m A bio-tech scientist in Afghanistan been seen around the world in tiny One Halloween night, a young mourns the loss of his son to a backroom stages and massive rock baby-sitter has been left in charge land mine. Through an unexpected and roll arenas. Directed by David of a pair of rather odd sisters who friendship with an Afghan father and Daniel Holechek. offer far-fetched explanations of the and son, he finds purpose amidst 25m eerie events that have taken place his grief and originates an idea with Who is Wright? Step into the daily struggle of a over the course of the evening. Di- the potential to save thousands of young beat and rap artist from rected by Erin Darley, Kai Winikka. lives. Directed by Mark Apicella. South Philadelphia, who fights to Predaturs 35m The Orphan 7m keep his dream alive in spite of fam- To be accepted by an agency called After the murder-suicide of her ily dilemmas. Directed by Mike Mo, HURT (Humans Under Righteous parents, a little girl discovers the Kevin D’Angelo. Torture), a woman must defeat the childhood she was never allowed 20m inner demons that have corrupted to have, then does what she feels A Good War Experimental documentary features her mind. This intense and emotional she must to protect it. Directed by long-time activist/musician Danny story is a mind-bending reality check Teresa Sutherland. Cox and street poet Sister Karen that no one is safe from the harm and Mohammed exploring art and destruction that they cause onto oth- My Night With the role of artists in times of war. ers. Directed by Cameron Haines. Andrew Cuanan 11m Inspired by real life events in 1997, Directed by Bill Pryor. Slash-in-the-Box 5m the film questions whether a young, Static 11m When Adam brings home a creepy gay drunken man’s decisions during Sia has returned home in an old antique jack-in-the-box for his a San Francisco encounter with emotional twilight, paralyzed by wife, all hell breaks loose. Pop goes future serial killer Andrew Cunanan the tragic loss of her lover and a the evil! Directed by Nick Everhart. could have saved the lives of five secret she can’t confront. Through men, including fashion icon Gianni Slasher Kings: First Gig 8m reconnection with an old friend, she Versace. Directed by Devin Kordt- In the bowels of an asylum, four of is able to find solace and to elicit a Thomas. the world’s most famous serial killers much needed change. Directed by come together for a music therapy Rook 39m Mel Miskell. session that gives birth to the rock A grieving detective bent on Slip Cue 25m and roll phenomenon “The Slasher revenge must break all the rules to An engaging glimpse into the elec- Kings.” Directed by Mitch Brian. make an elusive serial killer a victim tronic music industry and scene, of his own sadistic game. At what The Curse of Yig 32m serving as a catalyst for aspiring cost will he have revenge? Directed In an adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft’s DJs and producers to transform by Brian L. Reece. story, a young academic searches a passion into a career — but is it for the legendary snake god, Yig, about the people or the process of but finds a more disturbing true what they do and how they do it? story. Directed by Paul von Stoetzel. Directed by Robin Kupferman. Short Film Programs 15

Boundaries Easy Life Family Crime?

Life is Beautiful 4m Habitual Aggression 7m A sequel to the popular shorts Boy A physically abusive father learns Meets Girl Stories. Combining a a dire lesson about the negative documentary-style approach with impact his aggression has on his fictional elements, it reflects time- daughters. Directed by Terri Ojo. less truths and every day wisdom. 10m Directed by Jeroen Berkvens and Low m Following a guilt-ridden visit with Mark De Cloe. The Netherlands. Child of the Desert 20m his overbearing mother, David On a journey across the southwest A Senior Moment 6m consumes a deadly cocktail of bour- to visit the grave of her military son, A older woman texts for the first time bon and pills, only to find a total fearless and free-spirited Elia meets and learns you’re never too old to lol. absence of the kind of peace and Jorge, an undocumented immigrant, Directed by Michelle Davidson. comfort he had hoped to experi- and befriends him despite the fact ence. Directed by David Hamilton. that she does not speak Spanish. Pensou - Do the Good 10m Directed by Iliana Sosa. One day Pensou takes mischief too Found 18m far and ruins Rubby’s peace of mind. Alex has always known he was Maddoggin’ 24m Instead of reacting with anger, Rubby adopted and was proud of it, but When two teens in East L.A. are takes a Gandhian approach and re- now an unexpected discovery stirs pressured to join the local gang, the minds Pensou of his responsibilities. his desire to uncover his past and choices they make over a single day Directed by Milind Kuri. India. find the most important woman will alter their lives forever. Directed he’s never met... his birthmother. by Terence Heuston. Another Dress, Directed by Anthony Bushman. Another Button 2m Domestic 20m The spare buttons in their little Equity 15m When a young veteran returning plastic bags are forever waiting for The stories two people facing home from Afghanistan is confronted someone to use them... time to go for economic turmoil intertwine and with the loss of both his girl and a little spin. Directed by Lyn Elliot. collide in a heartbreaking depiction his job, his anger allows him to drift of middle class parents at the mercy into a subversive group that fuels Wana Dubie’s War 35m of forces beyond their control. his anti-American positions. The Documentary based on the life Directed by Chance Mullen. realization that the group intends to of Joseph Bickle, now known as kill a local politician forces him into Chief Wana Dubie, and his fight to Shoot the Moon 24m action and makes him question his legalize marijuana. Filmed during A down-on-her-luck woman facing newly radicalized ideology. Directed the 2008 campaign for Missouri a failed marriage, a huge stack of by Chris Bryant. governor, Wana Dubie explains how bills, and home foreclosure turns to he seceded his property from the a once-in-a-lifetime chance to win it Mojado 30m United States, grows his own field all. Directed by Alexander Gaeta. Leaving his young family behind in of marijuana in his back yard and Bip Bip (Beep Beep) 5m rural mexico, and crossing through refuses conformity from, “the man”. brutal desert to the US in search of Francis wants to fall asleep beside work, this mojado’s journey takes a Busted Walk 13m the woman he loves, but Caroline’s very unexpected turn. Directed by Based on the director’s experience watch goes ‘beep beep.’ Directed Jorn Threlfall. Mexico. growing up with a severe form of by Philippe Grégoire. arthritis, this is the story of an angry Darkness of Improvisation 8m young man who is forced to work A man is questioned by two detec- for his father as punishment for a tives about a gruesome murder drug-related school suspension. scene. Directed by Steven D. Snyder. Directed by Steven Tanenbaum. Mayhem 23m Incest! the Musical 24m On his last night working security for Alex is class president. Katie is vale- an extremely wealthy and powerful dictorian. They’re perfect for each family, a former special forces officer other. They are also twin brother must make the decision to save his and sister. This year’s prom is going fiancé or his employers from a group to be interesting. Think Glee with a of armed vigilante killers. Directed twist. Directed by Grant Reed. by Richard Blake and A.I. Moore. 16

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Outdoors! People Like Us TIFF Film Circuit

Diamonds Are a Girl’s Suburban Shopping Trends 4m AMC Theatre KC FilmFest 2012 Best Friend 25m Upscale shoppers invade a yard gratefully acknowledges our part- A portrait of Nicole Sherry, head sale. Directed by James Schweers. nership with Film Circuit, presented groundskeeper for the Baltimore by TIFF, and its sponsors and sup- The Etiquette of Impotence 4m Orioles at Camden Yards - one of porters. For more information about Miss Manners never wrote about only two women in that position in Film Circuit and to view a full list this one! Directed by Meagan Flynn. Major League Baseball. Directed by of their sponsors and supporters, Sarah Knight. Stan Herd: Man of the Land 7m please visit www.tiff.net/filmcircuit A brief look into the life of Among Giants 14m Trotteur 15m earthwork artist Stan Herd, as he As clearcutting ravages California’s Fantastic visual effects add to this works on projects in Kansas, Texas coastal redwood region, an environ- powerful tale of a young outcast in and across the world. Directed by mental activist decides to tree-sit to a race against a raging locomotive. Christopher Blunk. defend the McKay Tract. A hundred Directed by Arnaud Brisebois and feet up in the ancient redwood Love and Buns: Francis Leclerc. canopy, he must battle the elements The Hot Dog House 10m Choke 6m as he fights for a sustainable future. A documentary about college A moving visual poem about a young Directed by Sam Price-Waldman, students at the University of Kansas man’s trip to the city after leaving his Ben Mullinkosson, and Chris Cresci. who are working hard to change ste- First Nations reserve, and the thread reotypes about Christians through Florence, Kansas 22m that ties us to our origins. Directed the simple act of handing out free The growth, decline, struggles and by Michelle Latimer. hot dogs. Directed by Jason Badgett. dreams of a small Kansas town, told ORA 15m entirely in the voices of people who The Little Things 19m This unprecedented 3D visual trip grew up there; including never be- It’s not the big things, it’s the little uses thermal imaging technology fore seen footage of the great flood things that can drive someone to the to capture contemporary dance. of 1951. Directed by Steve Lerner. brink. Directed by Nathan Mennel. Directed by Philippe Baylaucq. 10,000 Trees 21m Hell Week 11m La Rhonde 23m To some, age is only a number; A frat pledge finds himself at the Twins deal with their father’s im- 85-year-old Victor Kaufmann mercy of three sorority girls, who minent death: Alexandre feels the embraces this philosophy as he plan to get back at him for a mean- need to stay; Ariane has an uncon- reaches the milestone of planting spirited prank he pulled on them. trollable urge to leave. Directed by his 10,000th tree. Directed by Sarah Directed by Patrick Rea. Sophie Goyette. French. Ginsburg and Sarah Berkovich. The Missing Man 25m Doubles with Slight Pepper 16m A Wild Idea 27m The Run For the Wall is a motor- A father’s request of the son he left The Yasuní-ITT Initiative, Ecuador’s cycle trip across the country from in Trinidad reveals deep wounds in unprecedented proposal for fighting California to D.C., a journey started this heartfelt immigrant story. Win- global climate change, entails the by a couple of Vietnam Veterans. ner of Best Canadian Short Film at world community compensating Directed by Debbie Tola. TIFF2011. Directed by Ian Harnarine. them for not drilling for the huge oil reserves beneath the Amazon. Two Sisters 15m Hope 10m If accepted, this proposal would A wandering minstrel stumbles A dying general’s final moments on contribute to preserving biodi- upon the body of a murdered wom- the battlefield lead to a visceral and versity, avoiding carbon dioxide an. Through communion with the stunningly visual journey into death emissions, and respecting the rights dead, he reveals the brutal injustice in Pedro Pires’ phenomenal follow of indigenous peoples. Directed by inflicted upon this innocent victim. up to his award-winning Danse Ma- Veronica Moscoso. Directed by Anthony Ladesich. cabre. Directed by Pedro Pires. 18

WE COULD USE THIS TIME TO TALK ABOUT OURSELVES OR WE COULD SHOW YOU SOME WORK WE CREATED FOR KC FILMFEST.

How about we show you some work. www.youtube.com/user/MeersAdvertising Short Film Programs 19

Sundance Film Festival Showcase

Robots of Brixton 6m Don’t Hug Me I’m Scared 3m Meaning of Robots 4m When the police invade the one A short film about teaching creativity Mike Sullivan has been shooting a space that the robots can call their by This Is It Collective. Directed by stop-motion robot sex film in his own, the fierce and strained relation- Joseph Pelling and Rebecca Sloan. apartment for the past 10 years. Now ship between the two sides explodes United Kingdom. his miniature robot porn stars are into violence. Directed by Kibwe threatening to squeeze him out of 12m Tavares. United Kingdom. First Birthday the space he needs to shoot his epic. A gay Korean American man yearns Directed by Matt Lenski. Fishing Without Nets 17m for a family life that is just out of A story of pirates in Somalia told reach. Directed by Andrew Ahn. Bears 10m from the perspective of the pirates. Jack means well, but sometimes good 4m Directed by Cutter Hodierne. Song of the Spindle intentions have horrible conse- In this animated, humorous and quences. Directed by Nash Edgerton. 21m informative conversation between a The Return Australia. Everyone thought he died during the sperm whale and a man, each tries to war. Their family has grown by one convince the other that his brain is child. Explaining is not easy. Directed bigger. Directed by Drew Christie. by Blerta Zeqiri. Kosovo..

The Arm 9m Fungus 9m To keep up with social pressure, Katrin sits apathetically in her dumpy Chance starts a texting relationship apartment after being left by her boy- with Genevieve — a girl he meets at friend as an old lady whose husband a yogurt shop — but tragedy forces just died is wreaking havoc outside. Chance to realize that he was never in Directed by Charlotta Miller. Sweden. a relationship at all. Directed by Brie Larson, Sarah Ramos, and Jessie Ennis. 20 Short Films 21

Shorts Showing Before Feature Films

Bipolar: A Narration drag queen persona, while pursuing the Master of the Universe 5m of Manic Depression 35m dream of a lifetime. Directed by Eric Alluding to the financial whiz kids whose This experimental short film follows Casaccio. Showing with Kelly. complex derivatives had disastrous glob- manic-depressive author Andrew Gony al spillover effects, this stop action film Grenouille D’Hiver 18m through his phases of mania and depres- traces the origin of call options to the When a winemaker’s wife dies in his sion, using a split-screen to visualize both tulip bulb market of the 1700s. Directed arms following a long illness, the only mental stages at the same time. Directed by Crisanta Deguzman. Showing with way for him is death, but a young Japa- by Daniel Ruczko and Florian Kelm. Sweet Old World. nese woman gently brings him back to Showing with Country Story. life. Directed by Jean Maurice Belayche. Mijo 10m Bright 40m Showing with a French feature TBA. An evocative and immensely personal A surprisingly contemplative drama documentary about the relationship Homecoming 26m centered on a blind man who must between a young professional dancer When Nina Patel’s strict Indian father guide a quirky young man through a and her 6-year-old son, as she un- refuses to let her attend the eighth- desperate fear. It is a truly artful experi- dergoes treatment for breast cancer. grade homecoming dance, she is ence. Directed by Benjamin Busch. Directed by Chithra Jeyaram. Showing crushed. Then, when she discovers her Showing with Kelly. with The Gray Seasons. father in a compromising position with Clocked In 9m his secretary, she resorts to blackmail Once in a Lifetime 16m The battle to remain conscious and to get her way. Directed by Gursimran Jamie, an up-and-coming actor, may find humanity in an otherwise hostile Sandhu. Showing with Small Pond. have just found his big break, but when work setting reaches a destructive and he stops into Gil’s office to finalize the Hush 5m hopeful climax. Directed by Ike Ahloe. paperwork, he realizes that he may Panic ensues when history profes- Showing with Corporate FM. have made a fatal mistake. Directed by sor Riley Tompkins discovers he has Bret Palmer. United States. Showing suddenly become deaf, while all the Collaborating With the Past 10m with The Last Frontier. Artist Rita Blitt created this multi- technology around him appears to be media work in homage to the Jewish “upgrading.” Directed by Michael Ring. Randy Parsons: artists whose works were silenced by Showing with Nailbiter. American Luthier 9m Hitler. www.ritablitt.com. Showing with This short biographical film inspires Knuckleball 7m Andrew Bird: Fever Year. viewers to do what they love in life and Despite his father’s discouragement, a work, even if means reevaluating your 18m boy makes a pro baseball tryout video The Collegians dreams and finding a different way A swinging drama based on the story to prevent his families’ move. Directed to be a rock star. Directed by David of trumpet legend Erskine Hawkins by Jordan Kerfeld. Showing with Sign- Aldrich. Showing with Country Story. during his Depression era college days. ing On. As a young trumpet sensation with a 2m Live Outside the Box 5m Red Velvet big ego, he learns the hard way what A man and a woman rendezvous Simon is a workaholic without any it means to be a member of the Bama after a heist and narrowly escape the social contact. Gradually there is noth- State college band, The Collegians. “coppers.” Directed by Jason Tyler. ing left in his world but only his work. Directed by Bryan Lewis. Showing with Showing with Open Minds: Chris Potter This severe impact finally wakes him up Open Minds: Chris Potter Underground. Underground. and pushes him to do some changes... Elliot Spark 16m Directed by Shu-Hsuan Lin. Showing Sterling Hallard Bright Drake 15m When a no nonsense prison warden with The Last Frontier Solving the mysteries surrounding one receives terrible news from her doctor, of the world’s most notorious tomb- Le Maillot de Cristiano 17m the last thing she wants is a new in- stones. Directed by Robert Sickels. In an economic crisis they don’t really mate, but as she listens to the fantastic Showing with The Last Frontier. understand, two young boys scheme to tales of how he ended up in jail, she raise the money to buy the uniform of 9m wonders if it’s more than just silly Tiny Miny Magic their hero, soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo. When Sam Cabbage shows her ap- stories. Directed by Daniel Berezowsky. Directed by Vincent Bruno. French. preciation for her mailman by leaving a Canadian. Showing with Small, Beauti- Showing with a French feature TBA. present in the mailbox, she is delighted ful Moving Parts. when he leaves her a present back. Max Berry 14m 18m Directed by Danielle Lurie. Showing Freak Max Berry jazz doc. Directed by David Randall, a hard working yet fragile soul, with Small, Beautiful Moving Parts. Berry. Showing with Open Minds: Chris faces his inner demons buried behind a Potter Underground. 22 Schedule Mainstreet 1 Mainstreet 2 Mainstreet 3

TIME TITLE PAGE TIME TITLE PAGE TIME TITLE PAGE Wednesday 4:30 Shorts: People Like Us 17 4:45 Piran - Pirano 37 5:00 Andrew Bird: Fever Year 25

7:00 Nailbiter (Special Event) 35 Thursday 4:45 The Gray Seasons 31 4:15 French Feature TBA 4:30 QWERTY 37

7:00 Jazz Under the Lens 31 6:30 Darling Companion 27 6:45 Love Stalker 33 (Special Event)

9:30 Shorts: After Dark 14 9:00 Kelly 33 9:10 Shorts: Easy Life 15 Friday 3:15 Country Story 27 3:30 La Mitad del Mundo 33 3:00 Imagens de Uma 31 (Half of the World) Cidade Perdida

5:30 The Flowers of War 31 5:45 Small, Beautifully 39 5:15 Shorts: Beats 14 Moving Parts and Off-Beats

8:30 Corporate FM 27 8:00 Das Wunder von Leipzig 41 7:30 Open Minds: Chris 35 (The Miracle of Leipzig) Potter Underground

10:30 Ex Inferis 29 9:30 Shorts: All the 14 Darkness Left Saturday 9:00a Reel Spirit 24 9:00a Reel Spirit 24 9:00a Reel Spirit 24

2:00 What’s On Your Plate? 41 1:15 French Feature TBA 1:00 Shorts: Boundaries 15

4:00 Bucksville 25 3:30 Shorts: Outdoors! 17 3:15 Shorts: Sundance Film 19 Festival Showcase

6:45 The First Season 29 6:00 Shorts: TIFF Film Circuit 17 5:30 A Simple Life 39

9:00 Signing On 37 8:15 Dirty Energy 29 8:05 Sweet Old World 39

10:10 Shorts: Family Crime? 15 Sunday 12:00 Small Pond 39 12:15 Opération Casablanca 35 12:30 Swimming in Nebraska 41

2:30 The Mongolian Dream 35 2:30 Il Cacciatore di Anatre 27 2:45 Dear Chelsey 29 (The Duck Hunter)

4:45 The Last Frontier 33 4:35 Shorts: Easy Life 15 5:00 Shorts: All the 14 Darkness Left

7:00-11:00 Awards Ceremony and Reception Awards ceremony in Mainstreet 1 with reception immediately following in the Marquee Lounge featuring the Vi Tran Band. Free. Schedule 23 Ward Parkway 1 Ward Parkway 2 Ward Parkway 3

TIME TITLE PAGE TIME TITLE PAGE TIME TITLE PAGE Friday 3:45 Sweet Old World 39 4:00 Shorts: Outdoors! 17

6:00 Kelly 33 6:30 Shorts: Boundaries 15 5:30 A Simple Life 20

8:30 Small Pond 39 8:45 Bucksville 35 Saturday 11:00a The Last Frontier 31 11:15a Shorts: People Like Us 17

1:15 Open Minds: Chris 31 1:30 Shorts: Beats 14 Potter Underground and Off-Beats

3:15 Small, Beautifully 31 3:45 Corporate FM 27 Moving Parts

5:30 Dear Chelsey 31 6:00 The Mongolian Dream 41 6:15 Darling Companion 27

8:00 QWERTY 31 8:15 Andrew Bird: Fever Year 25 Sunday 12:30 Love Stalker 33 12:15 Nailbiter 35

2:45 The Gray Seasons 31 2:30 Shorts: Family Crime? 15 3:00 The Flowers of War 31

4:45 Shorts: After Dark 14

Receptions, Seminars, Panels and Workshops

Wednesday Friday Sunday VIP Filmmaker Cocktail Hour Outpost Worldwide Reception Short Screenplay Readings 6:00-7:00pm AMC Mainstreet 9:00pm-Midnight 1919 Baltimore. Free. 12:00pm Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, $20 includes admission to Nailbiter. 4525 Oak Streeet Local actors will perform a script-in- Opening Night Reception Saturday hand performance of the finalists from 9:00-11:00pm AMC Mainstreet Scriptathon with Gordy Hoffman the KC Women in Film and TV and KC Cash bar and local band, Making Mov- 9:00am-8:00pm Innovation Café, FilmFest Short Screenplay Contest. ies, in the Marquee Lounge. Free. 2029 Wyandotte, Suite 101 Women Making Movies Thursday Filmmaker Panels 1:30pm Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, 9:30am-5:00pm Stageport, 208 W 19th 4525 Oak Streeet BlueCat Screenplay Workshop Street Hosted by Debra DiBlasi with Christine 8:00pm T2, 1906 Wyandotte See page 24 for panel schedule. Elise McCarthy, Katia Louise, Michelle First ten pages workshop with Gordy Mutual Musicians Foundation Davidson and Meagan Flynn. Hoffman. To register or audit please Reception visit kea.nu/hoffman Saving America’s Horses 9:00-11:00pm 1823 Highland. Free. 2:45pm Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Jazz Under the Lens Reception 4525 Oak Street 9:30-11:30pm, American Jazz Museum, See film synopsis on page 37. 1616 E 18th Street Live music, cash bar and food donated VIP Filmmaker Cocktail Hour by Jazz, A Louisiana Kitchen. 6:00-7:00pm AMC Mainstreet $20. 24 Schedule

Filmmaker Panels

Stageport 12:30p Surviving Independent 208 W 19th Street Filmmaking Studio B. Ken DuBow, Carol Mayes, 9:30a Digital Dancing 1: Creative Christine Elise McCarthy and Jörn Steps with Jon Jost Threlfall. Studio A. From the camera to the computer: How digital media 2:00p Digital Dancing 2: Nutz ‘n changes everything, creatively and Bolts with Jon Jost everything else too. Studio A. From the camera to the computer: How digital media 9:30a Navagating Film Festivals changes everything, creatively and Studio B. Laura Good, Lisa Ogdie, everything else too. Edward Stencel and Christine Elise McCarthy. 2:00p Finding Documentaries Studio B. Ken DuBow, Edward 11:00a Cinematography Master Stencel, Lee Daniel and Laura Class with Lee Daniel Good. Studio A. 3:30p Finding Distribution or Not? 11:00a Moving from Commercials Studio A. Ken DuBow, Rudd to Narratives Simmons, Dennis Fallon and Lisa Studio B. Jörn Threlfall and Rich Ogdie. Ambler 3:30p Visual Narrative in the 21st 12:30p Case Study: “The First Century Season” with Rudd Simmons Studio B. Carol Mayes, Christine Studio A. Going from producer to Elise McCarthy and Jörn Threlfall. director.

Reel Spirit Showcase at AMC Mainstreet 6 8:15-9:00 Registration/Showcase 1 Producing Awesome Videos Red Carpet Learn Hollywood secrets of pre-pro- duction, camera operation and location 9:00-11:00 Film Showcase 1 in sound in this fun and interactive Theatre 1 workshop. Designed for all novice film- 10:00-11:00 “Lighting a Movie makers on a budget (young filmmakers, Without Breaking the Piggy Bank” teachers, and parents). Chad Godfrey workshop in Theatre 2 is the owner of Home Video Studio in Lee’s Summit. Reel Spirit Showcase provides an 10:00-11:00 “Producing Awesome Lighting a Movie Without authentic competitive opportunity for Videos” workshop in Theater 3 young filmmakers to create, write, act, Breaking the Piggy Bank direct, film, edit and produce video 10:30-11:30 Registration/Showcase Your videos will be so much more inter- productions. Winning nominees and 2 Red Carpet esting if you use some simple lighting. their guests, will attend a screening of We will show you how to set up a basic 11:30-1:30 Film Showcase 2 in interview scene with lighting you can their films on the big screen, Saturday Theatre 1 morning, April 14th at the AMC Main- buy at any hardware store. Joe Heyen street 6 in the Power & Light District. 11:30-12:30 “Lighting a Movie is the producer, director, and writer of Film workshops offered by industry Without Breaking the Piggy Bank” the acclaimed documentary Cowtown professionals, Joe Heyen and Chad workshop in Theatre 2 Ballroom… Sweet Jesus, one of the most Godfrey are being offered for free and successful films made in Kansas City. are open to the public during Reel 11:30-12:30 “Producing Awesome Spirit. Videos” workshop in Theater 3 Feature Films 25

US/International Documentary US/International Narrative

Andrew Bird: Fever Year Bucksville Filmed during the final months of the acclaimed With an eerily beautiful tone, Bucksville touches on singer-songwriter’s most rigorous year of touring, the timely topics of ethics and the militia move- Fever Year captures Bird crossing the December fin- ment within the context of family conflict. It is also ish line in his hometown of Chicago, feverish and on a film about love, loyalty, and the loss of innocence. crutches from an onstage injury. The film is the first Directed by Chel White. 104m. to showcase his precarious multi-instrumental loop- ing technique and features live performances with collaborators Martin Dosh, Jeremy Ylvisaker, Michael Lewis, and Annie Clark of St. Vincent. Directed by Xan Aranda. 81m. Includes the short Collaborating With the Past. www.chelwhite.com 26

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NAMA_WorldsFairs_KCFilmFestivalAd_8.5x5.5.indd 1 3/21/12 9:43 AM Feature Films 27

Foreign Showcase Narrative Heartland Documentary

Il Cacciatore di Anatre Corporate FM (The Duck Hunter) Unlike Facebook or Twitter, locally owned radio It’s 1940 in the Modena countryside. The stories of reaches thousands of people across many incomes four friends are intertwined, each of them chas- and ages, in a single area, at the same time, with a ing their own dreams, but everyone’s hopes will be message unique to that area. That ability is what shattered against life’s struggles during war time. once moved entire cities to unite around local bands, The story takes place at the beginning of World War local charities, local businesses, and even new ideas. II and the tragic events of this period will end by What’s lost in the current conglomerate ownership sweeping away everyone and everything. Directed of local radio and how can we make radio relevant by Egidio Veronesi. Italian. to our lives again? Directed by Kevin McKinney. 74m. Includes the shorts Clocked In and Randy Parsons: American Luthier.

US/International Feature AMC Theatres Showcase Narrative

Country Story Darling Companion A small-town slacker lives at home with his mom, Beth and Joseph Winter (Diane Keaton and Kevin spending his time navigating joblessness, sipping Kline) are a long-married couple living comfortably in on tall boys, and shooting the breeze with two pals. the suburbs who have grown apart. On the side of a When his overwhelming apathy eventually causes busy freeway one day, Beth finds the love, devotion him to make a grave mistake, he sets off with his pals and commitment she needs – all wrapped up in a into the deep backwoods. At once poetically sublime bloodied stray dog who becomes her “darling com- and playfully comedic, lyrical and sardonic, Country panion.” Then Joseph loses the beloved new family Story is a tender and loving homage to small-towns member. A shaggy-dog search adventure plays out, and quieter landscapes. Directed by Ian Clark. 64m. drawing together friends and family and rekindling a Includes the short Bipolar: A Narration of Manic lifelong love. This all-star cast includes Dianne Wiest, Depression. Richard Jenkins, and Sam Shepard. Directed by Lawrence Kasdan. 28

The Collaboration proudly supports the AMC Theatres Kansas City FilmFest. To fi nd out how we proudly support our clients, visit the-collaboration.com.

ADVERTISING / DESIGN 816 474 3232 Feature Films 29

Heartland Documentary US/International Documentary

The Collaboration proudly supports the AMC Theatres Kansas City FilmFest. Dear Chelsey Dirty Energy To fi nd out how we proudly support our clients, visit the-collaboration.com. In this touching story, a young girl battling cancer On April 20th, 2010, the Deepwater Horizon drilling helps a selfish and materialistic man see beyond rig exploded off the Gulf of Mexico, taking the lives himself and become inspired to commit his life to of 11 workers and releasing millions of barrels of oil running marathons to remember, honor, and help into the ocean--creating one of the worst environ- kids facing the biggest challenge of their lives. Real- mental disasters in history. Today, the people of the izing that a marathon was not enough, he began a 13- Gulf are still fighting for their livelihoods, desperately day trek - Strides Across Texas – running 482 miles, struggling to preserve their endangered way of life. from the Cotton Bowl in Dallas to the doors of Texas This is their story. Directed by Bryan Hopkins. 95m Children’s Cancer Center in Houston. Directed by Everett Marshall. 110m.

Jubilee Showcase Feature (Late Night) Jubilee Showcase Documentary

Ex Inferis The First Season Six friends decide to spend the holidays together Paul and Phyllis van Amburg believe that a small, and rent a manor house in the countryside to escape family farm is the best place to raise their children, the madness of the city. After befriending the priest so they take their life savings and buy a defunct living in the adjoining church, the group moves in. dairy. With three children and a fourth on the way, The convivial mood deteriorates very soon, however, and armed only with their principles and determina- when strange phenomena begin to happen in the tion, they fight to defy the odds as they become house. Then one of the friends, Giorgio, begins to full-time farmers. Through an intimate, cinema verite show signs of diabolical behavior. Believing he is style, The First Season bears witness to their struggle possessed, the group seeks help from the priest. against relentless toil, financial ruin and the harsh ADVERTISING / DESIGN In the end, this may be more than the group can reality of dairy farming to achieve their version of the understand and - moreover - control. Directed by American dream. Directed by Rudd Simons. 816 474 3232 Leonardo Araneo. 30 Feature Films 31

AMC Theatres Showcase Narrative Heartland Documentary

The Flowers of War The Gray Seasons In 1937 China, during the second Sino-Japanese Saint Louis University women’s basketball was a long- war, a mortician, John (Christian Bale) arrives at a standing Division I program with a lack of tradition Catholic church in Nanjing to prepare a priest for and success. Despite the seemingly insurmountable burial. Upon arrival he discovers he is the lone adult odds of overcoming the losing culture of the program, among a group of convent girl students and prosti- Shimmy Gray-Miller, a young, dynamic coach with a tutes from a nearby brothel. He finds himself in the personal history of playing and coaching success, is unwanted position of protector of both groups from brought in to turn things around. Filmed over four the horrors of the invading Japanese army. Posing years, The Gray Seasons offers a frank look at the as a priest, he attempts to lead the women to safety serious emotional costs paid by both coach and play- and discovers the meaning of sacrifice and honor. ers, but also shows the remarkable grace that they The film was shot in 164 days on an 18 hour daily display when under pressure. Directed by Robert schedule. Directed by Yimou Zhang. Chinese. Herrera. 86m. Includes the short Mijo.

Jubilee Showcase CinemaJAZZ

Imagens de Uma Cidade Perdida Jazz Under the Lens The documentary Imagens De Uma Cidade Perdida A collection of rare short films from the American is a portrait of an old area of Lisbon, primarily the Jazz Museum’s John H. Baker Jazz Film Collection Alfama, but also other central areas - Castello Sao dating as far back as the 1930s, including perfor- Jorge, Graca, Bairro Alto, and elsewhere. It was mances by the Eubie Blake Orchestra, Mr. Bill shot in 1997-98, over the span of more than a year. “Bojangles” Robinson, Duke Ellington, Billie Holiday Like those places, its pace is languid and it wears with the Count Basie Sextet, Louis Armstrong, Vic the sense of nostalgia (or sau-dade), which defines Dickerson, Ella Fitzgerald and Whitey’s Lindy Hop- Lisboa and Portugal. Directed by John Jost. Portu- pers. Followed by a Q&A discussion with Randy guese. Mason, Gregory Carroll, and Ronald McFadden. Proceeds benefit the KC Filmmakers Jubilee and the American Jazz Museum. 90m $25 admission (includes reception after screening) 32

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US/International Documentary US/International Documentary

Kelly The Last Frontier A sixteen year old transgender adolescent and her In the thinly populated Mongolia steppes, wedged childhood friend leave their rural origins for the pos- between China and Russia an army of foreign spiritu- sibility of proverbial Hollywood fame and fortune. al do-gooders fight for the minds and souls of three Financial and personal frustrations eventually lead to million needy Mongolians. Directed by Floris-Jan van prostitution and drug abuse. Through their travails, Luyn. The Netherlands. 60m. Includes the shorts Live we see the tremendous, and at times tragically Outside the Box, Sterling Hallard Bright Drake, and misguided, lengths to which one will go in search Once in a Lifetime. of happiness, success, and love. Directed by James Stenson. 50m. Includes the shorts Freak and Bright.

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Heartland Feature Foreign Showcase Narrative

Love Stalker La Mitade del Mundo Things change for a 30-something bar-hopping (Half the World) player when he becomes romantically involved with Mingo is a shy and innocent young man who has a web-savvy relationship blogger. When she ends the some intellectual limitations. He has an unusual relationship, he is driven to stalker-like lengths to win sexual awakening and gets involved with an older her back. This unromantic comedy, a cross between woman. Mingo learns to excel socially after a bit of Swingers and Taxi Driver, is an unabashed account of “training” and is a bit of a romantic and poet. She today’s singles dating scene and the dual nature of makes a lover out of him and introduces him to some Iove and obsession. Direced by Matt Glasson, Bowls of her friends. He happily plays along but is secretly MacLean. 96m. in love with a girl who lives nearby. Soon his adven- tures become common knowledge throughout the town and that awakens his mother’s worry. Directed by Jaime Ruiz$20 Ibanez.includes Spanish. reception 92m. and film 34

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US/International Documentary Heartland Narrative

The Mongolian Dream Nailbiter Mongolia’s transition to a market economy in the When a mother and three daughters on their way 1990s ushered in rapid change to a culture long to the airport are caught up in tornado, they take defined by family, land, and traditions dating back shelter in the storm cellar of a cute Kansas home. to the era of Genghis Khan. The Mongolian Dream When they are trapped in the cellar by a falling tree, provides an intimate view into how these changes they soon discover that they are not alone. Directed are experienced in the lives of five very different by Patrick Rea. 87m. Includes the short Hush. individuals. Directed by Sven Lindahl. 97m

$20 admission$20 includes (includes reception 6pm VIP and Cocktail film Hour)

CinemaJAZZ Foreign Showcase Narrative

Open Minds: Opération Casablanca Chris Potter Underground Laurent Nègre’s film from Switzerland is the story of The film follows Chris Potter Underground from Saadi, a regular guy who is mistaken for a terror- the collaborative development of a new work to a ist. This satirical and thrilling comedy is about a live performance at New York’s 55 Bar. Directed by wrongly accused suspect who gets mixed up in a Jim McGorman. Includes the shorts Max Berry, Red worldwide terrorist plot. Leaving a rundown hotel in Velvet, and The Collegians. the outskirts of Geneva, Saadi becomes entangled in a terrorist group’s kidnapping attempt and is sur- rounded by a SWAT team that mistakes him for one of the criminals. With both the terrorists and the police gunning for him, Saadi has no choice but to play along with the fundamentalists. French. www.sbkpictures.com 36 Feature Films 37

Foreign Showcase Narrative US/International Narrative

Piran - Pirano QWERTY Piran - Pirano, from Slovenia, tells the story of three Before introverted word nerd Zoe gains the courage individuals and how their destinies are unusually in- to enter the National Scrabble Championship, she tertwined. Antonio (an Italian) and Veljko (a Bosnian) meets her emotional match in Marty, an irascible re- are two men who were once joined by the love of cluse. He takes her side against the opposing forces Anica (a Slovenian girl). Each face the terror of war in her life – the family, co-workers and other irksome as children and become the war’s victim in their own adversaries standing in the way of her dream to be- way. Half a century later Antonio and Veljko cross come the world’s second female National Scrabble paths when Antonio returns to Piran once again Champion. Directed by Bill Sebastian. 89m. before he dies. Piran - Pirano is named for the town with two names - one Slovenian, the other Italian. Directed by Goran Vojnovic. Slovenia. www.intentionalfilms.com

Jubilee Showcase Documentary US/International Documentary

Saving America’s Horses: Signing On A Nation Betrayed Signing On: Stories of Deaf Breast Cancer Survivors, This hard hitting exposé reveals how the public has Their Families and the Deaf Community. While breast been misled by government agencies and corporate cancer is the topic, it’s not the story. It is a story interests that use clever marketing campaigns to run about how this languacultural difference creates over the laws designed to protect horses and the en- a veil of fear, ignorance and unease between both vironment. Wild horses that once roamed America’s patient and provider. Through an unexpected turn of open rangelands are being eliminated by the Bureau events, the family of one deaf breast cancer survivor of Land Management, despite laws passed with over- faces the fact that the gene pool defect is not about whelming public support to protect them. The film deafness, but about the mutation of a gene that is a journey of courage, honor, and betrayal, while causes cancer. Directed by Barbara Allen. 84m. inspiring hope for the protection of all horses and Includes the short Knuckleball. burros. Followed by Q&A with director Katia Louise. 38 Feature Films 39

AMC Theatres Showcase Narrative US/International Narrative

A Simple Life Small, Beautifully Moving Parts After suffering a stroke, an altruistic maid announces When technophile Sarah Sparks becomes pregnant, that she wants to quit her job and move into an old her uncertainties about motherhood trigger an impul- people’s home. Directed by Tao Jie. Chinese. 118m. sive road trip to the source of her anxiety: her long- estranged mother. This comic coming-of-parenthood tale is one for the Internet age. Directed by Annie Howell, Lisa Robinson. 73m. Includes the short Tiny Miny Magic and Elliot Spark.

$20 includes reception and film

Heartland Narrative US/International Narrative

Small Pond Sweet Old World It’s summertime in Columbia, Missouri, and the The lives of a father and his teenage son were shat- college students have all gone home except for ne’er- tered eight years ago when the son’s ten-year-old do-well Kirsten, who reigns as the clown princess of brother was tragically killed while playing with a the downtown bar scene. Although her long-suffering friend on the railroad tracks. When the friend, who roommate despises her, and her best friend is tired disappeared with his family after the accident, moves of her drunken antics, it takes an ill-fated nitrous back to town, their carefully constructed protec- oxide bender to force Kristen to take the first baby tive shells begin to crumble. Told in the midst of the steps into adulthood. Directed by Josh Slates. 76m. South Pasadena High School Marching Band, Sweet Includes the short Homecoming. Old World is about a father’s grief and the son who frees him. Directed by David Zeiger. 85m. Includes the short Master of the Universe. www.displacedfilms.com 40 Feature Films 41

Jubilee Showcase Jubilee Showcase Documentary

Swimming in Nebraska What’s On Your Plate? An essay-documentary of what director John Jost What’s On Your Plate? is a witty and provocative doc- calls an “experimental kind.” It is intended as an umentary about kids and food politics. Filmed over oblique critique of the kind of provincialism where the course of one year, the film follows two eleven- New Yorkers or Parisians or Angelinos say things year-old African-American city kids as they explore like, “Nebraska, there’s nothing there” or refer to the their place in the food chain. Sadie and Safiyah take American Midwest as “fly-over country.” This film is a a close look at food systems in New York City and its celebration of the provincialism where there’s “noth- surrounding areas. They formulate sophisticated and ing.” The film is a rich tapestry of color, ideas, and compassionate opinions about urban sustainability, a kind of spirituality. Shot entirely in Lincoln from and by doing so inspire hope and active engagement 2006 to 2007. in others. Directed by Catherine Gund.

$20 includes reception and film

Foreign Showcase Narrative

Das Wunder von Leipzig (The Miracle of Leipzig) This German docudrama is about the events leading up to the Monday demonstrations in 1989 Leipzig and the ultimate fall of the Wall and the Soviet bloc. What begins as prayers for peace develops into powerful demonstrations with thousands of East Germans demanding more freedom, civil rights and democracy. Combining documentary interviews and reenactments, eyewitnesses from both sides of the conflict explain how they experienced these decisive weeks. Directed by Sebastian Dehnhardt and Mat- thias Schmidt. German. 42 Credits

Key Staff Heartland Advisory Board Jeph Scanlon, Executive Director, Lead Programmer, and Nar- Rich Ambler, Past Board Chair, Filmmaker, Ambler Films rative Shorts Mitch Brian, screenwriter, director Veronica Elliott Loncar, Festival Coordinator Patrick Clancy, Kansas City Art Institute, Chair of Photogra- Susan Francis, Volunteer Coordinator phy/New Media Dept. Chris Swartz, Technical Engineer Walter Coppage, actor Cathy Thompson-Counti, Communications Coordinator Nicholas Eliopoulos, producer, director, editor Sean Wheeler, Publicity Coordinator Jerry Harrington, Tivoli Cinemas John Niernberger, Webmaster Peter Jasso, Kansas Film Commission Nita Norris, Graphic Designer Jerry Jones, Missouri Film Office Bryan Colley, Program Book Graphic Design & Layout Jon McGraw, Sister Cities Association of Kansas City; Button- Larry Levenson, Photographer wood Financial Group, LLC; Buttonwood Art Space, LLC John Niernberger, director, screenwriter, author Programmers Dr. Tom Poe, Past Board Chair; UMKC, Communication Studies Edward Stencel, Programming Advisor (US/International Butch Rigby, Screenland Theaters Festivals) Teri Rogers, Film Commission of Greater Kansas City, T2 + Betsy Rate, Programming Advisor (US/International Festivals) Back Alley Films Tim DePaepe, Documentary Features John Shipp, Globe Cinemas Robert Hubbard, Narrative Features Geoffrey Westra, Screenland Theaters Bobby Thompson, Documentary Shorts, Heartland Student Kevin Willmott, screenwriter, director, actor, Kansas University Sandy Woodson, Animation Sean Holmes, Experimental National Advisory Board Eric Steck, CinemaJAZZ Andy Anderson, writer, producer, director; Anderson Films Janet Fisher, Foreign Language films Tony Bifano, CineFilm Lab (Atlanta) Dave Borthwick, director, editor, animator, BolexBrothers Additional Programmers (Bristol, England) Cathy Runyan-Svacina Meaghan Brander, Film Circuit, Toronto International Film Maggie Wood Festival (Ontario, Canada) Lee Knapp Julie Corman, producer (LA) Ron Zoglin James McKee, Earwax Sound Design (SF) Deborah Shouse Steve Montal, Festival Consultant; San Diego State University Rob Nilsson, director, screenwriter (SF) Board of Directors Esther Robinson, producer, director (NY) Chair, Dalene Bradford, DB Nonprofit Consulting Edward Stencel, Royale Greenstone Entertainment (Detroit) Vice Chair, Tim DePaepe, Filmmaker Mark Stolaroff, director, No Budget Film School (LA) Treasurer, Robert Pearson, Treasurer, (BKD Retired) Tara Veneruso, screenwriter, director, editor; Flaming Angel Secretary, Nadine Mummaw, Women of the Motion Picture Films (LA) Industry Lois Vossen, producer. Independent Lens, ITVS (SF) Fred Andrews, Founder Matt Antrim, Filmmaker, Producer, T2 Donors David R. Barnard, Attorney, Lathrop & Gage The Karen McCarthy Fund at the Greater Kansas City Com- Philip J. Botana, Filmmaker munity Foundation Dennis Fallon, Filmmaker, Waldo West Productions Dennis and Susan Lordi Marker, Abbe M. Feitelberg, Attorney, Jackson County Lordi Marker Family Foundation Janet Fisher, Alliance Française Ron Zoglin and Deborah Shouse, Andra Kolega, AMC Theatres Film & Product Marketing The Creativity Connection Manager Chipotle Ann McFerrin, KCMO Parks & Recreation Lathrop & Gage Kevin Mullin, UMKC, Communication Studies Dept David Barnard Barbara Noble, Reel Spirit Young Filmmakers Jeph Scanlon Nita Norris, KCP&L Jon McGraw Jerry Rapp, Filmmaker Dalene Bradford Cathy Runyan-Svacina, Community Volunteer Barbara Noble Bobby Thompson, Photographer, filmmaker Bob Pearson Cathy Thompson-Counti, Ask Cathy Real Estate Marketing Cathy Runyan-Svacina Group, LLC Maggie Wood Halli Vrooman, Science Applications Int’l Corp Janet Fisher Maggie Wood, Community Volunteer Barbara Noble Janet Fisher 43

Sponsors Alliance Francaise de Kansas City AMC Theatres® American Jazz Museum Andre’s Confiserie Suisse Bella Napoli Burns Printing Buttonwood Financial Group Chez Elle Creperie & Coffeehouse Chipotle CinemaKC The Collaboration Consulate General of Switzerland in Chicago Consulate of Mexico in Kansas City The Cordish Company, LLC Embrace the Grape Filling Station Film Commission of Greater Kansas City Grassmere Foundation The GYMKc H&R Block Hannover Committee Barbara Koval Nelson, Honorary Consul of the Republic of Slovenia Hotel Phillips Independent Filmmaker’s Coalition Innovation Café Jazz, A Louisiana Kitchen Kansas Film Commission Kansas City Fringe Festival Kansas City Power and Light District KC Stage Magazine KCPT, Kansas City Public Television 19 KCTV5 KSMO-TV La Causerie Francaise Lathrop & Gage Marquee Bar & Grill Meers Missouri Arts Council Missouri Film Commission MK12 Neighborhood Tourist Development Fund Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art Outpost Worldwide Reilly Hoffman SoKap Stageport Take Two Tall Grass Film Festival Theracane Time Warner two west UMKC Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures Westport Coffeehouse Yelp 44 Also getting rave reviews –

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