Just out., October 03, 2003, Page 30, Image 30

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65 films, 11 d ays
Continued from Page 29
Debut fondue
elcome to Sensory Percep­
tions’ 2003 New Directors
Showcase— a melange of fea­
ture and short films by first -
or second-time filmmakers
that will be judged and rated by a wise and
capable jury of movie aficionados who will pro­
nounce winners and make awards of $500 (fea­
ture) and $250 (short).
“This is one of the aspects where Sensory
Perceptions is performing a ‘public gixxJ,’ so to
speak," says Gabriel Mendoza, artistic director
W
Film festival's New Directors Showcase
pumps up the quality
by Usa Bradshaw
of the seventh annual Portland Lesbian & Gay j accidental murder, Merci Docteur Rey is a
French American dark comedy of family errors,
Film Festival. “The winner is not only recog­
9 Dead Gay Guys is a John Waters-ish farce of
nized hut gets a little publicity and cash, which
offensive characters, and Suddenly finds two
can really help someone starting out."
A testament to the future of queer filmmak­ dykes and a kidnapped straight girl traversing
the wilds of Argentina.
ing, the six feature selections display not only a
If you see only the films of the New Direc-
diverse set of themes and characters hut a
!
tors
Showcase in the festival, you’ll he seeing a
diverse sensibility to the making of screen art.
heck of a cross section of queer life, plus gen­
A .K .A . is an experiment in multiple frames of
uinely gixxl programming. "We don’t include
images, Blue Gate Crossing is an affecting com-
films just because they are first-timers," notes
ing-of-age film from China, Gasoline follows
Mendoza. “We look tor a quality of craftsman­
two petrol-pumping dykes on the run after an
ship that might give an indication that this
person is a natural, talented filmmaker.”
Jurors include Portlanders Jim Radosta, News
Editor and film critic at Just Out, and Jamie
June, studio manager for Conduit Dance and
former director of the Olympia Film Festival and
the University of Oregon Queer Film Festival.
She holds a master’s degree in media arts. O ther
jurors will he announced during the festival.
A m and Culture Editor LlSA BRADSHAW can be
reached at lisa®jusiout.com.
REVIEWS
A.K.A.
ou know how in
ice skating com ­
petitions skaters
are often rated according
to the difficulty of the
moves they attem pt and
not necessarily if they’re A K A offers a unique cinem atic three-w ay to tell the story of disaffected youth, identity lost and found, and the search for love
perfectly executed? I
Consider: Cameras on a set sh(x>t one scene
between frames, you can really just concentrate
various angles all up on the big screen at once.
have no doubt Duncan Roy would have made
at a time, then cut and move to the next
on the middle one, although you won’t want to
A method employed to great effect in the
one ballsy ice skater.
scene. W hen you’re watching three angles of
do this much. Not only would you miss alter­
recent queer movies O nJLine and Group, Roy is
The gay British filmmaker wrote and direct­
the same scene, cither those scenes have to he
native “frames” of reference, you will not he
the first to use it throughout an entire picture.
ed A .K .A ., which recounts his own difficult
filmed multiple times or the three cameras
suitably amazed at the technical difficulty of
It only sounds impossible to watch. In fact,
past— times three. T he film employs a triptych
have to he positioned just so to make sure you
what
is
before
you.
if
you
get
tired
of
glancing
hack
and
forth
of side-by-side frames of the same scene from
Y
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