MicroCineFest 2006 wraps, award winners announced, ten-year run comes to an end.
click
here for the complete
MCF
2006 LINE-UP OF FILMS
The tenth annual and final MicroCineFest wrapped on Sunday, November 12, 2006 in Baltimore, Maryland. Each fall since 1997, MicroCineFest has turned audiences on to off-beat, D.I.Y., psychotronic, substream films and videos from all over the world.
From Thursday, November 9 to Sunday, November 12, festivities took place at The G-Spot AVP (www.gspotavp.com), an "audio-visual playground" in Baltimore's Hampden neighborhood, with special off-hours events for pass holders taking place at the American Visionary Art Museum, Seidel's Bowling Center, and Cinema Sundays at the Charles Theater.
The event was run "business-as-usual" without special attention being paid to the tenth anniversary or final year. News of MicroCineFest 2006 being the final festival took attendees by surprise despite recent press coverage and an explanation in the festival program book (read the announcement from festival director, Skizz Cyzyk, here).
During the festival, the G-Spot AVP, which doubles as an art gallery, hosted a show of art work by Stephen Blickenstaff. While many may recognize Blickenstaff's artwork on the album covers, t-shirts, and posters for bands such as The Cramps, They Might Be Giants, and Thin White Rope, he is also responsible for MicroCineFest's projectorhead mascot/logo, and several festival program book covers and posters.
A highlight of the festival was a program titled "You Shall Not Authority Me!" comprised of 9 rarely-seen shorts by MCF alum Matthew Silver. Silver was on hand, garbed in a gladiator costume, to answer questions and meet fans. During his post-screening Q&A, he announced that MicroCineFest has now shown everything he has made. He ended up winning two awards on Closing Night.
Closing Night consisted of a Documentary Shorts program and a Narrative Shorts program, followed by the Closing Night Feature, Stomp! Shout! Scream!, directed by MCF award-winning alum and frequent juror, Jay Wade Edwards. During his post-screening Q&A, Edwards asked the audience to give MicroCineFest a standing ovation, explaining that the festival's support of his earlier works is what made it possible for him to make his debut feature. Following Stomp! Shout! Scream! was an impromptu screening of MCF-alum Scott Calonico's recent appearance on the Judge Joe Brown show, and a screening of Bill DeWald's Wanted Man, the First Place Audience Choice Award Winner at the 2006 CAmm Slamm, a 48 hour filmmaking competition which MicroCineFest sponsors.
Festivities concluded with an informal awards ceremony. Festival director, Skizz Cyzyk, announced the Audience Choice Awards. The rest of the awards were announced by this year's jury, consisting of: CAmm Coordinator Kristen Anchor; MCF award-winning filmmaker Jay Edwards; Go Metric! editor/Dizzy Records president Mike Faloon; MCF alum and Substream Films president Georg Koszulinski, writer and film buff Nick Kujawa; anarchist/stone mason/film buff Jed Orndorff; and Cashiers Du Cinemart editor Mike White. The jury was given free reign to award any film, filmmaker or category they deemed worthy. The awards are as follows:
Audience Choice Awards:
Audience Choice Best Feature: My Life As An Underdog (Boris Gavrilovic
& Leon Martin)
Audience Choice Best Short: Irritable Bowel Syndrome (Bogdan Szabo &
Matthew Silver)
The Grand Jury Awards:
Best Feature: My Life As An Underdog (Boris Gavrilovic & Leon Martin)
Best Short: Cox & Combes' Washington (Brad Neely)
Best Comedy Short: The Illusionators (Jason Woliner/Human Giant)
Best Documentary Short: Scenic Highway (Evan Mather)
Best Experimental Short: All That Remains (Stephanie Maxwell & Michaela
Eremiasova)
Best Music Video: Team Queen (XXXXXXXXXXXXXX)
Best Animation: Birdstate (Geoff Adams)
Special Category Awards:
Low-Budget Video Award (given to the coolest video made for less than $100):
The Struggle (Luku Trembath)
Low-Budget Film Award (given to the coolest film made for less than $1,000):
Carniceria (Jon Nunan)
Small Gauge Award (given to the coolest film originating on Super8 or regular
8mm film): Snoozer (Jason Affolder)
Judges Special Recognition Way-Cool Awards:
MicroCineFest Stalwart Award: Matthew Silver
Way Cool Narrative Short: Something Awful (Clifton Childree)
Way Cool Comedy Short: Look Out, It's Going To Blow! (Mike & Patrick
Malloy)
Way Cool Documentary Short: Shittiest Mixtape Boombox Blast (Jason Woliner/Human
Giant)
Way Cool Film Geek Award: Let's Get Out Of Here (Rahne Alexander)
Grand Jury Special Recognition of a Way Cool Festival: MicroCineFest
Over four days, 75 films screened, with more then a third represented in person by their respective filmmakers, including John Standiford (Fading Star), Freddy Maskeroni (Argus), Brian Lonano (Casket Climber Insect God), Kathleen Quillian (Celestial Broadcast for Mrs. Jones), Michael Robinson (Oomper Oomper), Rahne Alexander (Let's Get Out Of Here), David Wanger (Nebulous 1), John Rouse (Tempera), Nikc Miller (Fuck Pillows), Bardot (Idiot Bush Press Conference), Patrick Malloy (Look Out! It's Going To Blow!), Matthew Silver ("You Shall Not Authority Me" shorts collection), Geoff Adams (Birdstate and Shadow Of Liberty), Sheila Wells (Geophoria), Jon Nunan (Carniceria), Jason Affolder (Snoozer), Jay Wade Edwards (Stomp! Shout! Scream!), and Bill DeWald (Wanted Man).
Also seen in attendance were Don Ramirez (Trailer Trash), Craig Smith (Psychedelic Glue Sniffin' Hillbillies), Scott Huffines & Tom Warner (Atomic TV), Sir Alvin D. Ecarma (Lethal Force), Alex Roper (Anarchy Monkey), Neil Eber & Chris Iseli (Chester Stacey), Eric Dyer (Kinetic Sandwich), Spoon Popkin, Jeff Krulik (Heavy Metal Parking Lot), Josh Slates (Ponkutsu Park), and many others.
More pictures coming soon. If you took any good ones, please share.
Matthew Silver answering questions at the G-Spot AVP.
Outside the American Visionary Art Museum, left to right, Jon
Nunan (Carniceria), MCF Housing Coordinator Katie Brennan, juror Jay
Edwards (Stomp! Shout! Scream!), MCF festival director Skizz Cyzyk, juror
Mike White, MCF Volunteer Coordinator Scott Wallace Brown, and juror Jed Orndorff.
The Jury: left to right, Jed Orndorff, Georg Koszulinski, Nick
Kujawa, Kristen Anchor, Jay Edwards, and Mike White. (not pictured: Mike Faloon)
|
Karen Yasinsky, John Standiford (Fading Star), and Kristen Anchor after the Bygone Shorts program. |
|
  The Experimiscellaneous Shorts Q&A: Rahne Alexander (Let's Get Out Of Here), John Rouse (Tempera), and David Wanger (Nebulous 1). |
  |
ABOVE: Matthew Silver. RIGHT: MCF staffer Katie Brennan, Gilbert Guerrero and
Kathleen Quillian (Celestial Broadcast for Mrs. Jones). |
  |
 Juror Mike White and Bardot (Idiot Bush Press Conference) |
 Jurors Jed Orndorff and Georg Koszulinski. |
 Jay Edwards (insert balls joke here). |
 John Rouse (Tempera) and Jon Nunan (Carniceria). |
 Mike Faloon, Jay Edwards, Matthew Silver and Patrick Malloy (Look Out! It's Going To Blow!). |
 MCF staffers Scott Wallace Brown and Adele Marley. |
 Patrick Malloy (Look Out! It's Going To Blow!) and Dava Muserallo. |
 Jurors Mike Faloon and Jay Edwards. |
 Gia Parkes and Jason Affolder (Snoozer). |
  Comedy Shorts Q&A: Bardot (Idiot Bush Press Conference), Michael Bennett (Fuck Pillows), and Patrick Malloy (Look Out! It's Going To Blow!). |
 |
 LEFT and ABOVE: Matthew Silver, in gladiator garb, answers questions after You Shall Not Authority Me!, a 90-minute collection of 9 of his short films. |
 Matthew Silver keeping the lobby safe for MCF staffer Leanne Curtin. |
 MCF's Assistant Festival Director, Jen Talbert, keeping the lobby safe for Mathew Silver. |
 Larry Silver (Matthew's Dad & cast member), Jeff Krulik (Heavy Metal Parking Lot), and Matthew Silver. |
|
Geoff Adams (Birdstate and Shadow of Liberty)
and Sheila Wells (Geophoria) after the Documentary Shorts program. |
 The Narrative Shorts Q&A: Jason Affolder (Snoozer) and Jon Nunan (Carniceria). |
 Jay Edwards answers questions during the closing credits to Stomp! Shout! Scream! |
 CAmm's Kristen Anchor introduces CAmm Slamm winner, Bill DeWald. |
 Bill DeWald (Wanted Man). |
 Stephen Blickenstaff with his art. |
 MCF festival director Skizz Cyzyk with the Maryland Film Festival's Taryn Gentry. |
 MCF staffer Fritz Flad. |
 Jay Edwards and Leanne Curtin. |
 Jurors Mike Faloon, Mike White, and Nick Kujawa. |
 Jurors Georg Koszulinski and Jed Orndorff. |
Freddy Maskeroni (Argus) and Bardot
(Idiot Bush Press Conference). |
 Leanne Curtin, Jay Edwards, and Katie Brennan. |
 Kathleen Quillian (Celestial Broadcast for Mrs. Jones) Gilbert Guerrero and juror Georg Koszulinski. |
 Alex Roper, Jay Edwards, Jen Talbert and Adele Marley. |
 5/7 of the jury: Mike Faloon, Jay Edwards, Mike White, Georg Koszulinski and Jed Orndorff. |
MCF's Assistant Festival Director, Jen Talbert. |
 Cory Birdsell - the youngest MCF volunteer in the history of the festival. |
 Craig Smith, Scott "Unpainted" Huffines, and Tom Warner after the screening of My Life As An Underdog. |
 MCF Volunteer Coordinator Scott Wallace Brown displaying a complete collection of staff badges from all ten years of MicroCineFest. |
The Jury: Jed Orndorff, Georg Koszulinski, Nick Kujawa, Kristen
Anchor, Jay Edwards, and Mike White. (not pictured: Mike Faloon)
