Preview
CALGARY UNDERGROUND FILM FESTIVAL
April 15 to 17
The Venue (219 10th Avenue SW)
If you ever find yourself wishing you could see more romantic comedies, teenage gross-out movies or other films that generally offend intelligence, stop reading this article and don’t attend the first-ever Calgary Underground Film Festival (CUFF). However, if you have a hankering to see film and video of a thematically dissident or stylistically innovative nature, CUFF is promising to represent marginal work in this city.
Six industry people, who know the meaning of the word alternative, noticed a lot of solid work that didn’t fit the various screening mandates of Calgary’s current festival scene or artist-run centers such as the Calgary Society of Independent Filmmakers (CSIF) or EMMEDIA, or art house cinemas like The Plaza or The Uptown.
The idea came from Andy Eyck, programming director and co-founder of the Calgary International Film Festival, and Brian Batista, production co-ordinator at EMMEDIA. Shortly after they put their heads together, they joined forces with Brenda Lieberman, the current programming co-ordinator at Fairy Tales International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival.
Part of CUFF’s goal is to provide a forum for local media artists and filmmakers to show their work. "At EMMEDIA, we have a lot of members who are making things that are not getting shown, because it’s not appropriate for the CIFF, it doesn’t fit their mandate or what they want," says EMMEDIA’s programming co-ordinator Kari McQueen. "It doesn’t fit Fairy Tales because it’s not gay/lesbian, maybe it doesn’t fit Herland because it’s not feminist. Maybe it doesn’t fit the CSIF because it’s video, or EMMEDIA because it’s film," Her comments get you wondering why there can’t be one all-inclusive non-mainstream festival representing all of the above.
"These mini festivals are filling a niche," says Eyck, who has noticed a drop in variety at Calgary’s art house cinemas. "It’s a totally positive aim to provide Calgary with the greatest variety of film possible."
McQueen also mentions that CUFF is timed right after the $100 Film Festival, put on by the CSIF, which is strictly film-based.
"It’s a valuable festival, that’s why we picked our time slot after it," she says. "It’s really important to us to complement what’s going on in the city and not take away from existing things."
As for CUFF’s contribution to Calgary’s festival lineup, they looked for material that wouldn’t stand a chance of being shown anywhere else in the city, but that also met their standards for quality. "We all ask ourselves, ‘Would I want to pay money to go and see this?’ Is this going to keep an audience engaged? – because that’s really crucial. We’ll be showcasing a lot of local talent in the shorts package, and in shorts that precede the features," says McQueen, adding that many of the shorts are more experimental in nature. In keeping with their unconventional ethos, the screenings won’t be held at a movie theatre but at The Venue, a new bar that is hosting CUFF as its inaugural event. McQueen estimates they will have a capacity of 100 for the screenings.
"It’s something different, in that people will be able to watch films, have a drink and enjoy live music as a part of an evening’s entertainment," says Eyck.
While CUFF is committed to representing local talent, their programming also reflects a national awareness of alternative video and film. McQueen mentions how EMMEDIA members would come in and mention great films they’ve seen at festivals in other cities, and lament the fact that there’s no room for it in Calgary’s screening milieu. "It’s a common complaint we’re hearing – there’s just no venue for it," says McQueen. Prompted by these complaints, the group’s idea for a festival gelled and the planning began roughly one year ago. Luckily, securing sponsorship was not the Herculean task they expected.
"It was really refreshing how easily people have jumped on board to help us out and it’s been really rewarding that people in the community are liking the idea and wanting to support it," says McQueen, citing in particular the support from the Calgary Region Arts Foundation.
McQueen thinks now is a good time for an underground festival to emerge in Calgary.
"I think that people are starting to become more aware of media arts in Calgary and filmmaking in Calgary and related things. I think they want content, they want something unusual, they want something different."
Judging from the sense these six individuals have of Calgary’s film and media zeitgeist, the CUFF is on its way to an auspicious beginning.
Tickets are available from Sloth Records or at the door. For more info go to www.calgaryundergroundfilm.org. |
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