4:00 PM - Saturday, Sept 26th, 2015
France
Mei Mei, A Daughter’s Song,
the first Taiwanese-American radio documentary on public radio. Mixing live action, animation effects and archival footage, Mei Mei
focuses on Dmae and her mother as they travel to Taiwan after a long absence. Her mom reveals the abuse she experienced when she was sold into servitude, her hardship growing up during WWII and the female Buddha who saved her life.
After the filmmaker’s mother dies he explores the role of humor in the mourning and recovery process, learning from a lifesaving oncologist, an improv comedy teacher, and a class clown. Together they personify the relationship between cancer and comedy.
Forced to leave his mother’s house and get a job, 35 year old Labyrinth, along with his best friend Eric, embark on a quest to find Bigfoot and claim a $1M prize.
It’s been a while for Dave and Hunter, old friends who haven’t kept in touch. Hunter wants to reconnect. Dave just wants tacos. While dropping in on an impromptu house party, the duo encounter a drinking game with Robert and Sahara, a combative couple on the brink of separation.
Frank has ridden out to find peace from the pain of loosing his only love. Luckily for frank his only companion Horse
has a special gift, the gift of speech. This fast-talking Horse consoles and tries to reason with Frank. But after deciding there is nothing to live for Frank descends into a dark place in the desert where he finds the answers he’s been looking for. Based on the stories of crazed cowboys lost in the desert of North America.
Get your tickets soon as this event often sells out! Come and cheer on your favorite filmmakers and maybe run into a festival star or two at the big celebration that closes our multi-venue, multi-city festival celebration of the venues and cities of Oregon, as well as the best in local and international independent cinema!
Carl, a boy in his early twenties with agoraphobia, is forced to face his fears of the outside world when he runs out of his medication. On his walk home from the drug store, Carl finds an old 16mm camera. Looking through the lens allows Carl to look around at the outside world and appreciate it for the first time.
33 is the story of a woman in her thirties and nearing rock bottom, as she struggles to find strength in dealing with the personal choices she has made for her life. While seeing friends who seemingly have it all
and feeling pressure from her family to conform to the idea of what her life should look like, she contemplates the decisions which have brought her to this dark, painful, and lonely place — one which she’s kept a secret.
Two men are making a trip to visit a university campus. After spending what seems like an eternity driving through the punishing desert heat, they spy an opportunity for levity. A strange man stands alone on the side of the road with a sign promising any passersby the opportunity to see a Mystery Spot.
Bryant, the more adventurous of the two wants to go. Greg, sort of a homebody, is hesitant. Nevertheless, he ends up joining him for what will be a very meaningful journey.
Ethan, a young father, is on the verge of hitting bottom and has a sobering realization at a seven-year-old’s birthday party.
In one afternoon, human companionship is pushed to its furthest test. Devout government worker, Brogan Duley, must make the decision to protect the security of his country or to destroy the life of his childhood friend. Through twisted discoveries, we are unsure where our final alliances should rest. Swimming in the mind of Duley, we follow the transformation from a once collected professional to the strained and desperate body he has become.
In Hiding Blame, a couple struggles to make sense of their son’s death after an unexplained shooting by a classmate. As the two become more estranged, it is clear one of them knows more than he or she has let on about the night their son died. Hiding Blame is a prequel set ten years prior to the events in Blood Relations, a planned feature by Lori Morgan. Shot in moody black and white, this short suspense teaser features a haunting score by Nick Jaina.
Cedar Street is a film about childhood and the suffering some kids sadly endure. Neglected Jeremiah, is currently the outcast of the Cedar Street neighborhood kids. The Peterson and Sellar girls have a new club on the abandoned tracks nearby that Jeremiah wants more than anything to be a part of. He won’t give up his attempts to get in until he is accepted, but what happens in turn unveils a shocking truth to the neighborhood kids, ending their club forming days for good.
On the worst day of Gene’s pathetic life he is thrust into an unlikely adventure after pulling a young woman from the river… in a wedding dress. Misfortune inspires their unlikely friendship until Gene realizes perhaps it is he who needs the rescuing. Set in the enchanting greenery of the Pacific Northwest, The River Bride is a whimsical story about how we hold ourselves back, and the choices we make that set us free.