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Fest focuses on local filmmakers For more than 20 years, Salem-based TV journalist Eric Mason has been the voice of ABC and CBS network radio and television affilates. But under the surface of the investigative journalist who chronicles Capitol Building hi-jinks and local-color stories has been a budding Mike Rich. That Mason might have the talent to rival Rich -- a Portland-area resident whose scripts include "The Rookie" and "Finding Forrester" -- is suggested by "The Question," a short film entered in Saturday's Elsinore's Independent Film & Video Festival. The films entered by amateurs and professionals run the gamut from the comic misadventures of a janitor having a really bad day ("Super Day") to a day in the life of a kind and loving spaceman ("Spaceboy Butterfly") and music videos ("Stolen Truck Blues"). Even among 33 entries, some more than an hour long and one as short as four minutes, "The Question"stands out at 17 minutes. |
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Even among 33 entries, some more than an hour long and one as short as four minutes, "The Question"stands out at 17 minutes. Shot on video in August 2003 in Woodburn and other Marion County locations, the film has a beguiling simplicity and immediacy and a pleasant, almost-otherworldly rural setting. It's the story of a young gas station attendant, Wayne (Austin Work), who struggles with stuttering and searches for the courage to ask a beautiful customer "the question": will she go out with him. Angie (Sherry Andrus), the object of Wayne's interest, proves to have a secret of her own. Overseeing it all is Rudy (Jason Frohnmayer), Wayne's curmudgeonly boss, who discourages and encourages the relationship. "We've had some pretty good success, and people have liked it," Mason said. The film has been entered in four film festivals so far. Mason described the theme of his short film as "Sometimes our biggest fears never come to pass if we only embrace them and do what is in our hearts." "I just want to make beautiful pictures that people connect with." Mason, who also directed the film, said it was shot at an abandoned gas station in Woodburn and at a rural farm near Salem over three days and one afternoon with a cast of both professionals (Work) and nonprofessionals (Andrus, who works as an interpreter). "I like the way 'The Question' turns out and has a nice story and a payoff," executive producer Carolyn Morgan said. Morgan, a former KATU producer, is new to filmmaking but used her knack for organization. At one point, she found the only name tags she could get for the gas station characters were for Rudy and Wayne; as a result, the names in the script were changed. No one was paid for their role in the film. If Mason has his way, his future will be in feature films "I'm working on a couple of full-length screenplays," he said. One is "The Messiah," the story of how 56-year-old Handel wrote his epic musical masterpiece in 24 hours. The other is a science fiction thriller, "Radar Hill," in which a Cold War project that experiments on the human brain produces something and someone truly frightening. "My problem is this: I have too many thoughts and not enough time," Mason said. "The film thing is what I call the second shift; I come home at 10 p.m. and write until 2 a.m." Mason has written and produced three award-winning documentaries, including "Firestorm -- Fire in the Dying Forest." The University of Oregon journalism graduate also has written magazines and articles for magazines and newspapers, hinting at his future direction. "I just want to inspire these days," he said of his film writing. "I'm getting pretty tired of the daily grind of journalism." Among the other entries in the festival is "Spaceboy Butterfly," the work of 20-year-old Aumsville filmmaker Sean Farris. "It is a really strange little movie," Farris said. "I made it a little over a month ago. It was bare bones, no budget." The movie started as a music video but turned into a narrative film. "I was actually happy," he said. "It was the first time I actually made a film. It was kind of arty." Currently unemployed, Farris aspires to be a filmmaker and also writes and plays music. Kirk Kindle, who organized the festival last year and this year, said it started out with a couple of entries but mushroomed at the last minute. "Actually, I was overwhelmed," he said. "All of a sudden, everyone dropped something off." The judges will pick eight winners, professional and amateur, in the categories of documentary, music video, narrative and animation, with $50 cash or equivalent value merchandise or services being the top prize. The public will pick a people's choice award among the winning films. Jurors this year are Angela Yeager of the Statesman Journal, Jeff Hart of Allied Video and Nancy Webber, a Eugene woman who won last year's contest. Last year, 900 people attended the festival, and Marilyn Herb, interim executive director of the Elsinore, is hoping for more this year. "Next year the Elsinore is looking at sponsoring a three-day film festival as more of a statewide venue," she said. "We're in the organizational phase right now. "We'll be able to expand the opportunities for people entering it." The Elsinore has obtained a $9,000 grant from the city's hotel-motel tax money to organize the festival. She suggests playing off the Sundance Film Festival, calling this the Raindance Film Festival. "We're toying with a lot of fun ideas and new approaches to bring people people into the theater to enjoy our beautiful facility," she said. rcowan@StatesmanJournal. com or (503) 399-6728 |
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