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Let's see…where to begin? After weeks and weeks of plotting, scheming and finagling, Hi Mom! #5 was finally upon us. Events kicked off Thursday evening at the Student Union Film Auditorium on the campus of UNC. Three great entries were screened, including Jim Haverkamp and Brett Ingram's 'Armor of God', the eventual Grand Prize winner of a $1000 film grant from Kodak. After the screenings, legendary documentarian Albert Maysles took the floor and stunned everyone present with his brutally honest critique of the preceeding films.
Albert's not a big fan of the voice-over or direct interview techniques, and he made his opinions on the matter clear during the course of his two-hour talk, cheerfully fielding question after question from interested audience members. In addition to the Q&A, two classic Maysles short films were screened, giving a glimpse into a film aesthetic that's refreshingly devoid of the rapid-fire, MTV-style editing histrionics found in most everything these days.
Friday afternoon found team Hi Mom! scurrying to set up for our 1st-ever outdoor screening atop the Rosemary St. Parking deck. Dark clouds drifted by ominously as we positioned the screen, hooked up the P.A. and got the projectors ready, wondering all the while if the sky was going to co-operate. While this was happening, other staff members were overseeing proceedings at the filmmaker reception being held at Orange County Social Club in Carrboro. Luckily for us, the heavy rains never came. We put out the chairs and waited for dark. The turnout was excellent. About a dozen films were screened as the distant sounds of traffic and the occasional passing airplane blended into the soundtrack. There's just something about watching a large projected image outside- being able to casually lift your gaze from the screen to the stars- Maybe it has to do with the combining of two primal urges: communication and communion. Whatever it is, Mikey likes it.
Buoyed from a successful outdoor screening, we broke down the gear and headed down the street to the Varsity Theater to get ready for the next film block. The 35mm midnight screening has traditionally been one of our most popular and this year was no exception. The Varsity was packed and the crowd was pumped. The films served up many laughs and even some tears (seriously). From the hilariously zany animated shorts of Don Hertzfeldt to the solemn sadness of Aaron Sharp's "That's That", the midnight line-up took us there and back. The beautifully crafted "1000 Marys" eventually claimed Second Prize in the Jury Awards. Afterwards, we broke down our equipment once again and wearily made our way home to get some much needed sleep.
Saturday's day-time screening at the Cat's Cradle was well attended for an early block. The free pancakes that Khang was dishing out were dee-licious and the films were damn good as well. Among the highlights were Brad Boll's gritty 'Down Here Drinking' and Jack Wenberg's hyperkinetic claymation pals, 'The Grubbie Wubbies'. Also memorable was the quirky 'Ian's Collections', Ellen Lake's portrait of a man consumed by his ever-growing collection of exotic things like sand and mac & cheese boxes.
People arriving at the final screening later that night were treated to the fine sounds of Trailer Bride sound-checking. Then we got down to business and commenced with the projectin'. Wes Kim explained how the mysterious "Chungian Effect" operates in his stop-action classic, 'Profiles in Science', while Amie Robinson's 'Canine' demonstrated some remarkable animation skills. Michael Ball's humorous 'Legalized America' pondered what life might be like if all drugs were legal and David Palmer's 'Unsomniac', shot on one roll of Super 8, finished up the screening with an climactic jolt of energy. Afterwards, I overheard many people raving about their personal favorite and was glad to hear that so many different films made an impact.
Votes for favorites were cast by audience members to determine the coveted "Audience Award" winner. As an extra incentive, each $1 vote was entered into a drawing for exciting raffle prizes. The race was real close, but after tallying up the votes, the Australian film "Vitalogy" came out on top. After a brief intermission, we were back to announce the award winners and to present the trademark flaming trophies. Trailer Bride then came on stage and rocked the crowd, while the Hi Mom! staff let out a collective sigh of relief that things were finally over- until next year, that is…. -Tom Laney
2002 WINNERS
GRAND PRIZE ($1000 Kodak film grant):
Jim Haverkamp & Brett Ingram (Armor of God)
JURY AWARDS:
1st place: Chris Jones - $300.00 (Heisenberg Principle)
2nd place: Christina Gruppuso - $200.00 (1000 Marys)
3rd place: Rusty Nails - $100.00 (Grethel and Hansel)
Best Cinematography: Tom Gleason - $150.00 (That's That - Director: Aaron Sharp)
Best Film by a female Filmmaker: Kara Herald - $150.00 (Grrly Show)
Best Animated short: Aime Robinson - $150.00 (Canine)
Best Film by a North Carolina Filmmaker: Brad Boll - $150.00 (Down Here Drinking)
AUDIENCE AWARD: Greg Williams - $200+ (Vitalogy)
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