Southern Circuit - Tour of Independent Filmmakers

Introducing Ellen Bar

2012-01-30T12:03:00.000-05:00

Welcome Ellen Bar and her film, NY Export: Opus Jazz, to the Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers. Ellen's first screening is Wednesday, February 1, in Cullowhee, NC at Western Carolina University. The show starts at 7:30 pm and you won't want to miss a moment of this beautiful film.

Also showing in the following communities:

Charleston, SC

Montgomery, AL

Winder, GA

Savannah, GA

Tupelo, MS

Clemson, SC

Alexandria, LA

Thomasville, GA

Johnson City, TN

About Ellen Bar: Ellen Bar attended the School of American Ballet from the age of eight and was asked to join the New York City Ballet as a corps member in 1998. She danced featured roles in classic works by George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, Peter Martins and Christopher Wheeldon, and was promoted to soloist in 2006. She appeared in the feature film Center Stage directed by Nicholas Hytner, created an animated character in Barbie of Swan Lake, and earned an Associate’s Degree (Business) from Penn State University while dancing full-time. She is pursuing a Bachelor’s Degree (English) at Columbia University. Ellen was part of the original ensemble cast of the NYCB revival of NY Export: Opus Jazz when fellow NYCB soloist Sean Suozzi conceived of a film adaptation of the ballet. Ellen and Sean developed, produced and creatively helmed the project from inception to completion. In May of 2011, Ellen retired from her 13-year career as a professional ballerina and is now Director of Media Projects at New York City Ballet.

Early Bird Deadline tomorrow!

2012-01-30T11:48:00.001-05:00

SUBMIT YOUR FILM TODAY FOR SOUTHERN CIRCUIT

There is only one more day before the Early Bird Deadline to submit films for consideration in the 2012/2013 seasons of Southern Circuit! Don't miss this chance to save a little money on your submission fees. The next deadline is the regular deadline on February 15.

Early Bird Deadline is JANUARY 31.

Louder Than a Bomb on OWN and Indiewire!

2012-01-05T16:30:00.000-05:00

We scooped Oprah!

We are so happy to let all of our Southern Circuit fans know that one of our alums, Louder Than a Bomb, will be broadcast by OWN (Oprah Winfrey Network) tonight at 9/8 c.
Hope everyone tunes in to watch this excellent documentary. If you would like to read more about Greg Jacobs and Jon Siskel's tour through the southeast back in October than check out the blog posts here.

In further Louder Than a Bomb news, Indiewire online has written up a really great review of the film. You can read the review here.

Congratulations again to Greg Jacobs and Jon Siskel and the whole Louder Than a Bomb team! So glad that you were able to share your work with all of our Southern Circuit audiences!

The End Of The Line For (Another) World’s Largest

2011-12-07T23:00:00.005-05:00

Shortly after arriving home from my final leg of the tour, I heard the news that the end had come for another “world’s largest”.

You may have read in a past Southern Circuit blog post about the giant popcorn box that the folks at the Lucas Theater in Savannah constructed for our screening. Or maybe you heard about it somewhere else - the local press or facebook, where a noted travel blogger commented on it. That’s because it did exactly what a good attraction is supposed to do – created buzz for the film, the Lucas, and by extension the city itself.

The popcorn box also made sense, symbolically. Much of World’s Largest focused on what object people memorialize with their town statues and as such, what they choose to celebrate about their communities. What better thing to represent a classic theater than an oversized tribute to the quintessential movie snack.

Sadly, the saga of the popcorn box paralleled the narrative of the film on another level as well. Big ideas often prove divisive. And sometimes the naysayers have valid points – if too much public money is spent on the project, there’s no unified vision, maybe it’s simply too garish. None of these arguments seem to apply to popcorn box, so this handmade labor of love arguably delivered all the benefits of a “world’s largest” with none of the drawbacks. Yet it still triggered complaints, which prompted a citation from the city and its ultimate demise.

Weighing in as a visiting filmmaker, I can honestly say the popcorn box enhanced my time in Savannah. Its construction and presence transformed the screening of my film into a participatory event. If it still existed, I’d tell people to go visit it. RIP popcorn box, I hardly knew ye.

Our condolences to the Lucas Theatre

2011-11-29T11:58:00.001-05:00

On November 18th the Lucas Theatre, one of our Southern Circuit partner venues, said goodbye to a new but never-the-less dear friend- their world's largest popcorn box.

"We are deeply saddened to inform the community of Savannah about the passing of a dear friend. The Giant Popcorn Box was born on November 10 and was disassembled just 8 days later when he succumbed to a short battle with small-minded forces with a skewed view of historical references. He is survived by five grieving staff members, and countless visitors and tourists. In lieu of flowers, please send letters to City officials who can affect the ordinances that killed the Giant Popcorn Box."

- from Lucas Theatre Facebook page

Letter from concerned citizens of Savannah

So sorry to see the popcorn box go and we look forward to what the Lucas will come up with in the future. If you think the popcorn box should have stayed then go to the Lucas Theatre's Facebook page and let them know! Best of luck to our friends at the Lucas as they search for the next project to incite reprimand from city counsel people. After all, film is all about pushing boundaries.

It's That Time Again . . .!

2011-11-28T14:17:00.001-05:00

Call for New Indie Films!

Are you a filmmaker ready to screen your work in front of new audiences? If so, apply today to be a part of the 2012-2013 Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers.

Southern Circuit is the nation's first regional tour of independent filmmakers, providing communities in a nine-state region in the South with an interactive way to experience independent film and engage with indie filmmakers. The tour utilizes an intimate context to connect audiences with filmmakers and connect with films they might not otherwise have the opportunity to see. Films, including animation, documentaries, experimental and narrative work, are submitted for consideration for the Circuit through an annual nationwide open call for submissions.

Southern Circuit is open to any filmmaker living in the United States with a valid driver's license. Filmmakers may submit a feature-length work or a group of short films whose combined time reaches feature length - at least 45 minutes with a maximum of 120 minutes.

Apply for Southern Circuit! The application deadline is Wednesday February 15, 2012. Early Bird Registration ends Tuesday January 31, 2012.

For more information about Southern Circuit, visit the Southern Circuit website or contact Teresa Hollingsworth at thollingsworth(at)southarts.org.

Many Thanks to our Fall Season Filmmakers!

2011-11-28T14:06:00.001-05:00

We have now concluded all of our fall season tours of Southern Circuit for 2011. Hopefully all of our filmmakers enjoyed their tour as much as we have enjoyed reading their posts and viewing their films. We can't wait to begin our spring tour in February! If you want to know which films will be travelling on the Southern Circuit Tour in the spring then click the link for the Current Filmmaker Roster at the top of the page.

Thanks again to all of our awesome filmmakers and to all of our wonderful partner venues!

We have posted many pictures from this season on the South Arts Facebook page so don't forget to check those out and tag yourself!

Further On Up The Road with World’s Largest

2011-11-17T12:25:00.002-05:00

Another storied Carolina University, Hank Williams’ hometown and a quintessential small southern city were the next stops on World’s Largest’s Southern Circuit journey. The trek to Clemson took one canceled flight, four airports and eleven hours, but I was able to squeak in under the wire for the Q&A. The students’ thoughtful, production-related questions made me glad that I did. Add a visit to a real neighborhood bar with faculty Amy Monaghan and Jonathan Beecher Field, and all road weariness was vanquished.

I got to Montgomery, AL right on schedule and in plenty of time for Capri Theatre director Martin McCaffery to take me sightseeing. And to exactly my kind of sights – offbeat attractions like the aforementioned Williams’ grave and a proud civic monument to the “father of modern gynecology”. But the highlight of the tour for me was actually the Capri itself. The classic mid-century American cinema is a gem of a venue - where true film buffs want to go and filmmakers want to screen.

I went from a big city to a small one with a Sunday matinee in Winder, GA. Downtown Main Street looked like a shot from World’s Largest – sleepy historic buildings, chain store sprawl still held at bay by the railroad tracks running through town. It also belied the modernity of the Winder Cultural Arts Center. The state-of-the-art facilities were an impressive reminder of how harnessing technology is one way rural communities can remain relevant. The importance of that continuing relevance was a constant of the discussions both on stage (expertly moderated by WTV21 producer Christopher Childs) and at the post-event reception.

Ahead of Time hits Gainesville, GA and Hapeville, GA

2011-11-14T12:10:00.001-05:00

We went on to Gainesville, GA on Nov. 10th for our screening at the Smithgall Arts Council. The building was a beautifully restored historic train depot, actually once the "end of the line" for the trains transporting chickens from Gainesville throughout the U.S.

Gainesville was known as the "Poultry Capital of the World"!

Gladys Wyant is Executive Director and arranged a great screening.

Prof. Jeff Marker interviewed me after the film and his questions were insightful and thorough.

The next day we had time to explore Atlanta and we went to the botanical gardens, on a bike tour of historic Atlanta, saw the Martin Luther King, Jr. memorial and exhibits, ate at Fox's Barbeque and enjoyed the beautiful weather.

Hapeville, GA was our last screening and our hosts, Charlotte Rentz and Allie O'Brien were lovely. Our screening was sponsored by the Hapeville Historical Society and took place in historic Christ Church, a beautiful old church. The screening was well-attended and there was an animated Q&A after the film!

- Zeva Oelbaum

Welcome to Shelbyville

2011-11-12T10:33:00.004-05:00

Does crawfish ever belong in a Louisiana gumbo? Sure, I would have said. I wouldn't have thought twice about it, before my visit to Lafayette this past week. But a testy debate took place at the bar I sat at just before the screening of my film at the Acadiana Center for the Arts. "You can be creative, but there are still some rules," the guy sitting next to me says. His friend seems to disagree but also seems a little intimidated, so he lets it go. Identifying himself as a young oil trader living between Lafayette and Houston, he also tells me first hand that well over double the amount of oil being reported during the spill had been pouring into the Gulf daily. "But the environment is incredibly resilient." Back to the oysters.

I'd always wanted to come here but this was a first. I consider myself a foodie and I'm still hoping for the perfect po' boy I've been dreaming about here in New Orleans before heading out to Clarkston Georgia tomorrow. Working backwards, the Southern Circuit tour I'm on began with what my friends would call a typical "Kim" story...arriving in Atlanta with my anal files in hand that mapquested me on to my first stop in Northern Alabama, within an hour I was lost in a desolate Georgian county on a road that took me a little too long to realize wasn't the interstate. It was when I had to find just the right country radio station that I probably missed that. Or could have been the gorgeous foliage I felt blessed to be getting for the third time this Fall. (In my defense, still jetlagged from having returned from Japan last week). I daydream about Japan. Flashing lights in the rear view mirror. Buzzkill. I have the worst cop karma on the planet. Yup - clocked 64 in a 55 zone. The big hat and shades and fears of a bad Harvey Keitel ending. Chalk it off to Southern hospitality, plain pity, or my own sincerity? - I got off with a verbal warning and detailed directions back to the interstate. I was so so grateful for the gracious welcome. Lesson learned - speed limit no joke here.

Auburn Alabama. I've tried to read up on Section 28 of the recent Alabama immigration law requiring schools to look into birth certificates of its students causing hundreds of immigrants to flee the borders overnight, and about the state challenge to the Justice Department...I wondered about university students here and if there was a sense of activism. One group walking in say the film was assigned to them in their sexuality class...interesting? I ask what students are thinking about it all after the screening at the campus art museum. Pretty much awkward silence. One young woman timidly says they've been discussing it in her political science class. Another man stands up and says as an Alabamian he feels shame. More awkward silence. Turns out he was a transplant professor from up North. Afterwards, over coffee, he, a German professor and another guy tell me they just don't talk about these things here.

Back to Lafayette and land of gumbo. I intro'd the film with how pleased I was to finally be in "Cajun country". Insensitive to some I later learn. I take this opportunity to listen and learn...about the places I am visiting and how the film and what it brings up for people is contextualized in each of these places. So in Lafayette LA, here's what I observed and learned. Much as I, as a northerner, have been seduced by fantasies of endless plates of crawfish, steaming gumbo, melodic Cajun jam sessions, and swamp alligators (all of which delivered without disappointment), a polite, yet firm conversation took place following the screening. Mainly between an older African American woman who identified as Creole, and a french-speaking Cajun woman of same generation. The black woman, who appreciated the film, was prompted to ask why the Lafayette football team's name had been changed to the "cajuns" and how it represented, in her mind, a more recent overreaction to past oppression and reclaiming of that cultural history in LA to the extent of negating Creole and African American contributions and even existence in the region's rich history. The Cajun woman went on to say that it is the "outsiders" who in fact come in and accentuate these labels and identities. My own associations with the region validated this I acknowledge. My takeaway from this was that one of the things I loved most about some of the subjects in my film was in fact their lack of PC consciousness. They say what's on their minds and fess up to what they don't know about the other. People need to risk sounding ignorant in order to simply talk about these issues. And that's what happened in Lafayette Wednesday night. A 30+ minute dialogue between locals about race, "cajun" and "creole" identities, and insensitivities they experience in local settings. This segued into a more universal consensus disproving recent immigration laws passed in neighboring Alabama and an explanation by one man about the local crawfish industry that similarly employs foreign newcomers and the fact that no locals still want to do that work, despite heightened unemployment. In the end it all circles back to my beloved topics - food and music and I ask about fusion? That solicited the best lecture ever on the roots of zydeco music from a resident master along with renewed debate over gumbo (oil trader guy from earlier bar has migrated here). Ice broken, I'm escorted over to Wednesday night jam session at the Blue Moon for a whiskey where local fiddlers and accordions serenade and I take a stab at the two step with a wannabe Cajun fiddler from Alaska.

Lucas Theatre Constructs Surprise for World's Largest Screening

2011-11-09T16:51:00.000-05:00

Can you guess what is is?

Any ideas yet?

Okay, you should have it now. Its a giant popcorn box!

Makes me want some delicious movie theater popcorn.

Job well done to our friends at the Lucas Theatre for the great promotion idea. Hope your screening is a big hit! I know Amy will be excited to see the giant popcorn box.

Ahead of Time in Manteo, NC

2011-11-08T16:23:00.000-05:00

Laura Martier, Director of the Dare County Arts Council was lovely enough to invite me to an art opening the evening before my screening and it was a wonderful opportunity to meet the wonderful community of Kitty Hawk, NC. I met so many people who were talented, warm and inclusive.

The day of my screening was cold, windy and overcast so I wasn't able to enjoy the beach, unfortunately. Instead, I headed to Manteo, and went to the Elizabethan Gardens. These gardens were built in the 1950s to commemorate the first colony in the New World, which arrived in the 1500's from England. I don't remember ever learning about The Lost Colony of Roanoke, as it is called, and I enjoyed the short film. The expedition was organized and financed by Sir Walter Raleigh.

Fascinating story!

The screening was packed and everyone stayed for the Q&A. The questions were great and it was a stimulating evening!

-Zeva Oelbaum

Hello (Again) To The South from World’s Largest

2011-11-07T23:09:00.010-05:00

We spent a lot of time shooting down south for World’s Largest – it’s great to be hitting the road this time to screen! The tour kicked off in the mountains of Cullowhee, NC at Western Carolina University. Felt right at home as I pulled into campus and was greeted by WCU’s very own “world’s largest” – the big catamount statue guarding the entrance. In fact, everything about the inaugural stop put me at ease – from unflappable event facilitator Lori Davis to the well-attended screening in a first-rate space.

Next up was the Center for the Arts in Thomasville, GA. Thomasville reminded me a lot of places we filmed in its charm and hospitality but a big difference was the vitality I felt in its thriving downtown. I enjoyed terrific meals in bustling restaurants and coffee shops with superstar host Bonnie Hayes and other locals and spoke to three high school media classes (with some production facilities to envy!). The themes in World’s Largest also really seemed to resonate – much of the Q&A after the show focused on how Thomasville related to the sites featured in the film and the need to ensure a vibrant future for their own small city.

The week wrapped up back in the Carolinas at the Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art in Charleston. Another good turnout from a truly engaged crowd – the post-screening discussions lasted over an hour. And that’s been the big takeaway for me so far – after all, for a filmmaker, not much beats getting the chance to connect with your audience face to face.

Meet Kim Snyder

2011-11-07T16:09:00.001-05:00

Welcome Kim Snyder to the Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers! Her first screening on the tour of her film, Welcome to Shelbyville, is tomorrow night in Auburn, AL at the Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art. The screening starts at 6:00 pm and be sure not to miss the Q&A afterwards.

Welcome to Shelbyville will also screen in the following cities:
Birmingham, AL
Augusta, GA
Clarkston, GA
Lafayette, LA
Greenville, NC
Chattanooga, TN

About Kim Snyder:
With over a dozen award-winning shorts and two feature documentaries, Kim Snyder's most recent film, “Welcome To Shelbyville,” won a Gucci-Tribeca Documentary Fund grant, was an official selection of the US State Department's American Documentary Showcase, and aired on PBS's Independent Lens. Kim co-founded the BeCause Foundation to create a series of socially conscious documentaries, directed the documentary feature “I Remember Me,” distributed theatrically by Zeitgeist Films, and associate produced the Academy Award-winning short film “Trevor.”

View the trailer for her film, Welcome to Shelbyville:

Welcome to Shelbyville - Trailer from Smartley-Dunn on Vimeo.

Ahead of Time shows in Orangeburg, SC

2011-11-04T10:46:00.001-04:00

Today we screened "Ahead of Time" at the Museum and Planetarium at South Carolina State Unversity, home of the Bulldogs!

The museum is currently showing a fascinating exhibition on Lorenzo Dow Turner, the first African American linguist, and his discovery of the language of the Gullah people of South Carolina and Georgia. He discovered that they spoke a Creole language, with African ancestry.

We visited the Edista Memorial Gardens and their noted rose gardens and huge live oaks with Spanish moss.

I enjoyed the hospitality of Museum and Planetarium director, Ellen Zisholtz, in her beautiful home. She was very generous with her time and her friends!

-Zeva Oelbaum

Ahead of Time shows in Madison, GA

2011-11-03T11:17:00.000-04:00

It was a picture perfect day in historic Madison GA yesterday. I enjoyed walking around the charming town and stopped into Tequila Express for an early dinner of Mexican food. Great, fresh ingredients!

The screening was held in the beautiful vintage auditorium of the cultural center. The tongue-in-groove original wooden ceiling and carved wooden columns provided spectacular acoustics. The sound and picture of my film was excellent.

I enjoyed the lively Q&A after the film. Especially lively was the conversation which continued in the reception. One small section of my film deals with democrats and republicans in the 1940s and that prompted an animated political discussion between a few members of the audience. Our group was composed of 5 Democrats and one good natured Republican! I was very interested to find out more about how the traditionally Democratic South changed over time.
Many thanks to Dina Glardon for her wonderful work in promoting the screening and the lovely reception after the film.

This was on the road from Madison GA to Orangeburg, SC. Cotton fields, which I had never seen before!

-Zeva Oelbaum

The Arts Council posts on LTAB

2011-11-01T13:53:00.001-04:00

Check out this great post on The Arts Council (Gainesville, GA) blog about their screening of Louder Than A Bomb:

From the post "Film Review" - See the whole post here

Last night’s film LOUDER THAN A BOMB was a huge success! Thank you to everyone that came and enjoyed the film! There were tears and chuckles as we embraced the characters and embarked on their personal journeys of creativity.

As promised, one of the film’s directors, Greg Jacobs, was in attendance and stayed after the movie to answer everyone’s questions!

Read the rest on The Arts Council Inc.'s Blog

Meet Zeva Oelbaum

2011-10-31T10:28:00.000-04:00

Welcome Zeva Oelbaum to the Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers! Zeva's first screening of her film, Ahead of Time, will be tomorrow, Tuesday, November 1 at the Madison-Morgan Cultural Center in Madison, GA. The film starts at 7:00 pm so don't miss a moment.

Ahead of Time is also screening in the following cities: To see when check the screenings calendar.

Gainesville, GA

Hapeville, GA

Manteo, NC

Orangeburg, SC

Zeva Oelbaum is an award winning producer and the founder of Reel Inheritance Films, a documentary film production company. She directed and produced a short film on Ruth Gruber, before producing the feature-length film. She was executive producer of Rene and I, a feature length documentary on twins Irene Hizme and Rene Slotkin who were six years old when they survived Josef Mengele at Auschwitz.

Meet Amy Elliott

2011-10-31T10:20:00.001-04:00

Welcome Amy Elliott to the Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers! Amy's first screening of her film, World's Largest is tomorrow, Tuesday, November 1 at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, North Carolina. The show starts at 7:30 PM. Don't forget your popcorn!

World's Largest is also screening in the following cities: To see when check the screenings calendar.

Montgomery, AL

Alexandria, LA

Savannah, GA

Tupelo, MS

Thomasville, GA

Charleston, SC

Winder, GA

Clemson, SC

Johnson City, TN

Amy Elliott is a photographer and documentary filmmaker based in New York City. She co-directed, shot and edited the feature documentary “World’s Largest.” Her photography has appeared in countless national publications including The New York Times and The Washington Post. She is a graduate of Princeton University.

LTAB takes a day off...kinda.

2011-10-26T23:58:00.007-04:00

Madison Georgia is smack dab in between Milledgeville, home of Flannery O'Connor, and Athens, home of REM. So I headed south to Milledgeville for a morning visit to Andalusia, the home of one of America's greatest writers... thanks to Craig Amason for the tour!

On my way back thru Madison I was able to squeeze in a midday screening for the students

at the Morgan County Crossroads School...a very special thanks to Bobby Mackey for all your hard work, we look forward to future collaborations with you and the Boys and Girls Clubs.

Heading north out of Madison on my way to Athens, I stopped for a taste of Plains Georgia's finest...they taste like potatoes, tiny potatoes. No REM sightings in Athens, but I did stumble upon Weaver D's...delicious fried chicken and inspiration for a REM album title.

Next stop... South Carolina!

LTAB continues on the Southern Circuit in Madison, GA

2011-10-25T22:47:00.004-04:00

Thanks to everyone at the Madison Morgan Cultural Center (especially Dina) for putting together such a great screening...the old school house was rocking with poetry and applause. And a special shout out to the boys (and girl!!), from the Boys and Girls Club of Madison...it was great to see the youths reprezent off-screen too!

Greg Jacobs and LTAB in Manteo, NC - Part 2.

2011-10-23T00:34:00.001-04:00

Day four of LTAB's Southern Circuit tour could pretty much be described as, well, perfect. It started with a warm, fresh-baked donut from Duck's - probably the best donut I've ever had in my life. Remarkably, the rest of the day didn't get worse from there: a visit to the Wright Brothers national memorial; dune climbing at Jockey's Ridge State Park in Nag's Head; wandering around Manteo; and geekiest of all, a trip to the Fort Raleigh historic site on Roanoke Island (as a kid, the story of the Lost Colony of Roanoke was always one of my favorites...I still can't believe there are no heavy metal bands named "Croatoan" - the word carved into a tree that remains the only clue to the colonists' fate.)

The screening took place in the beautiful theater at the Roanoke Island Festival Park. Very special thanks to Laura Martier and Lindsay Nielson of the Dare County Arts Council for inviting the film to screen, and for providing the ideal ending to a perfect day.

Greg Jacobs and LTAB go to Manteo, NC

2011-10-22T01:08:00.004-04:00

Day 3 of Louder Than a Bomb's Southern Circuit Tour - flew from Atlanta to Norfolk this afternoon, then drove down to Kitty Hawk, NC. Definitely not complaining about the beautiful weather and the spectacular beachfront, especially with fourteen months of Chicago winter just around the corner. Tonight was a preview screening of sorts, for students who won't be able to make the main screening tomorrow. While LTAB has been shown in countries as far-flung as Portugal, Jordan, and Zambia, it had never, until tonight, been screened in a Surf Shop, so this was a world premiere of sorts. I'm just glad that the lesson from Spinal Tap ("how many times to I have to tell you - it's Spinal Tap first, then puppet show") was taken to heart, and that we got top billing above the dollar tacos.

Looking forward to a day of sun, sand, and historical nerdiness tomorrow (the Wright Brothers memorial + Roanoke Island). And that's all before the screening...

Greg Jacobs and LTAB goes to Gainesville, GA

2011-10-22T00:36:00.006-04:00

Day 2 of Louder Than a Bomb's Southern Circuit Tour was in Gainesville, Georgia, a town of about 35,000 an hour northeast of Atlanta that is apparently known as "the poultry capital of the world".

The screening was held at Gainesville State College, in an academic building so new that it hadn't even been dedicated yet. Thanks to the work of the Arts Council of Gainesville, along with the school's media studies department, it was a nearly full house. After the movie, Gainesville State film studies prof Jeff Marker led a great conversation/Q&A, which touched on everything from the perils of having high schoolers as your subjects to the nature of truth in documentaries. I also got a behind-the-scenes tour of the school's fancy new media facilities, which only confirmed my sense that the average college sophomore can do my job better than I can.

Thanks to Gladys Wyant and everyone at The Arts Council, along with Jeff, David Smith, and all of their Gainesville film studies students, for a memorable evening! On to NC...

That's all folks

2011-10-21T01:03:00.001-04:00

I am packing up tonight getting ready to head back to Austin in the morning. It has been a great tour.
Thanks to everyone who came out for mars and the q and a's. Thanks to everyone at the receptions. Thanks to all the hosts who showed me around the wonderful towns. Thanks to the cinema grad student who served me fish and chips tonight. Thanks to south arts.
I hope everyone enjoyed mars.