skirt! event

Woods Hole Film Fest

WOODS HOLE, MA–The Woods Hole Film Festival, which showcases and promotes the work of independent, emerging filmmakers from New England and beyond, celebrates its 17th year when it begins on Saturday, July 26, with the screening of the east coast premiere of Sizzle: A Global Warming Comedy, by scientist turned filmmaker Dr. Randy Olson (Flock of Dodos: the evolution-intelligent design circus), and ends on Saturday, August 2, with Crazy, a biopic about legendary Nashville guitarist Hank Garland who played with everyone from Roy Orbison and Patsy Cline to The Everly Brothers and Elvis.

In a departure from previous years, there will be three filmmakers-in-residence who will present master classes and moderate panels: producer Gill Holland (FLOW: For Love of Water, The Night Larry Kramer Kissed Me), multi-channel format expert Julie Talen (Harriet the Spy) and screenwriter Jim Uhls (Fight Club). There are 110 films in all: 36 feature length narrative films and documentaries and 7 short film programs, and several short films paired with feature length films. Besides the many New England filmmakers, this year’s festival also includes a large number of films by alumni filmmakers from previous years, as well as a robust environmental program. Attendees can again create a personalized schedule and comment on films through the B-Side online community.

Film highlights include:

Opening night East Coast premiere of Sizzle: A Global Warming Comedy by Harvard grad and former UNH biology professor Dr. Randy Olson (Flock of Dodos). An original mixture of mockumentary and documentary, the film depicts how scientist-turned-filmmaker Olson teams up with the only people who will fund his film—two gay Hollywood producers, who supply him with a crew that includes a global warming skeptic who keeps interrupting interviews with top climate scientists to argue that global warming is little more than a scam. Lacking enough material for a documentary, Olson journeys to New Orleans to put a human face on global warming. Olson and the film’s main subject,t UC San Diego History of Science Professor Naomi Oreske, will speak after the screening. (Saturday, July 26, 9 PM, Redfield Auditorium)

Opening night screening of indie favorite Greetings from the Shore directed by Greg Chwerchak (present at screening), who is returning to the festival with his first feature film. Shot on an island off the coast of New Jersey where the film’s events actually took place, this personal and unique coming-of-age story by writer and producer Gabrielle Berberich is ostensibly about a young girl who, after the death of her father, spends one last summer at the Jersey Shore before college. When her plans fall apart, she stumbles into a mysterious world of Russian sailors, high-stakes gambling, and unexpected love. An ensemble cast headed by Paul Sorvino brings the story’s vivid characters to life. (Saturday, July 26, 7 PM, Redfield Auditorium)