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F
ilm in Eugene is a different animal from the sleek, ultra-refi ned cinematic
beast of Hollywood. What reigns supreme in this dank, rugged environment is
something truly unique and truly Cascadian. Let’s face it; in Oregon things are
just a little different — a little more grimy, a little more earthbound and a little
more badass. This weekend at the Eugene Celebration, the award-winning
work of local fi lmmakers will be screened for all to see, acquainting Eugene with varied
and eccentrically diverse hometown cinema talent. Here are a few choice picks for fi lm
fanatics to groove on.
THE SHAGGY DOG PROJECT : Like many people that come to Eugene, seven years ago
Tom Blank was looking for a way to plug into the community. Freshly retired from working at
the Directors Guild of America and with over 40 years of Hollywood production experience,
Blank thought he might be able to contribute to the fi lm scene around Eugene, so he walked
downtown and on into DIVA. Since then, Blank has helped create projects like “Behind the
Lens,” a weekly screening and discussion of fi lm at DIVA, and his Shaggy Dog Project.
Blank says that the Shaggy Dog Project came out of the DIVA screenwriters’ workshop
he was running several years ago.
It then morphed into what is now a community fi lmmakers’ resource that has produced
a number of short fi lms, one of which will be screened at this weekend’s festival. Since
retiring, Blank has focused on sharing his skills with the Eugene community and the
aspiring fi lmmakers here.
“The project is really a community organization that provides a service for people who
want to learn to make fi lm,” Blank says. “I’m dedicated to the idea of serving a community.”
Information on the The Shaggy Dog Project will be available after the screening of the
short fi lm Enforcers, and Blank along with other members of the screening panel will be
on hand to chat and answer questions.
HEALING STORIES : Differing slightly in content and style, but similarly in line with
the Eugene ethos is the Trauma Healing Project’s presentation of “Healing Stories: A
Digital Storytelling Festival.”
“We’re using [digital storytelling] to provide an opportunity for people to share and
process stories that mean something more personal to them,” Elaine Walters, executive
director of the Trauma Healing Project, says. “The only requirement is that it be a story
that involves them.”
This vision took shape nine years ago in Eugene and the project has been supporting
itself as a nonprofi t, while also acting as a multidisciplinary effort to eliminate violence
and heal trauma.
“It’s about a 25 to 30 hour process — it’s intensive, it’s bonding, it’s healing,” Walters
says, adding that the storytellers “sometimes share stories that they’ve never shared before
and the process of taking a story that’s been haunting you and then turning it into a work of
art is really powerful and is really empowering for people.”
Walters invites the Eugene audience to witness transformation and power reclaimed by
the storytellers as they unearth their physical and emotional selves.
CINEMA PACIFIC WINNERS : Screenings of three of Cinema Pacifi c’s Adrenaline
Film Project (AFP) winners will be coming courtesy of the UO. The university’s annual
fi lm competition gives participants 72 hours to brainstorm ideas, write, fi lm, edit and
master a fi ve-minute short, which is then judged by a panel of industry pros.
“It really comes down to who can use their time, prop and line of dialogue in the best
way,” director and grand-prize winner Justin Crowe says. “In the end it is all about the
story. Storytelling is the heart of fi lmmaking and that is really what AFP tests you on.”
Crowe and his production crew won with their short fi lm Revelation, a post-apocalyptic
zombie fi lm with a twisted Christopher Nolan-esque ending.
“I end the fi lm on a question and allow the audience to draw their own conclusion,”
Crowe says.
Though the Eugene Celebration’s range of music, contests and chaos are all well-
worth enjoying, carve some time out of your partying schedule to sit down and appreciate
Eugene’s local fi lmmaking talent.
ew
For a full listing of fi lms and screening times go to www.Eugenecelebration.com/fi lm_festival.html
Catch the Ems before they’re gone.
The last home series is Aug. 27 - 31.
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(541) 342-5367
12 AUGUST 23, 2012
EUGENE WEEKLY
WWW.EUGENEWEEKLY.COM