WASHINGTON 鈥� Who听can forget听Orson Welles’ sled buried听in “Citizen Kane” snow?
Well, a听different sort of “Rosebud” will help local moviegoers听dig out from the听Blizzard of 2016.
It’s the 25th听annual , which听screens at听D.C.’s听听from 2-8 p.m. Saturday听before handing out听awards at the听听from 7-10 p.m. Sunday.
“It’s been snowing, you’ve been inside the house, cabin fever, so now it’s time to get out and enjoy some great films from our area,”听Festival Director Kevin Sampson tells 草莓传媒.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1bNY5crpX4
While and the invite submissions from around the globe, the Rosebud听Film Festival separates itself by limiting submissions to strictly听DMV filmmakers.
“We’re open exclusively to D.C., Maryland and Virginia filmmakers. So this might be the guy that听sits in the cubicle next to you, and you听just never knew he was a filmmaker. So many of the filmmakers, that’s听actually their story. They got their regular 9-5, but filmmaking is what they want to do. So this is just a great time to be able to celebrate them and come see some great films,” Sampson says.
This year’s festival received more than听100 submissions 鈥� up from 80 last year 鈥� which were then cut to听the 听by a听panel of judges, including local filmmaker Mary Ratliff, local critics Michael Parsons and Jeffrey K. Lyles,听D.C. Web Fest Founder听Otessa Ghadar and C-SPAN’s Jonelle Henry.
“It’s a good eclectic mix of people. Those judges know films and they know good films when they see it. … When they were judging, they were sending me emails like, ‘I can’t believe you’re making me do this. This is so hard.’ We have a lot of talent in this area. So if you come out to the showcase on Saturday, you’re going to see some of the cream of the crop in terms of filmmaking in our area.”
The festival kicks off with writer/director听Harold Jackson III’s feature “Last Night,”听which won the Audience Award听at the . Similar to Richard Linklater’s “Before Sunrise” (1995), the film follows a woman’s (Judi Blair) last night in D.C. before moving to North Carolina with her boyfriend (Benton Greene). Along the way, they encounter a tempting stranger (Danny Gavigan).
“You’ve never seen D.C. so romantically shot. The different spots that you see, whether it’s the Portrait Gallery or just a club, you’re just like, ‘Oh my goodness. This is where I live!听Wow, where can I find that spot? What spot was that?’ It’s a pretty awesome film,” Sampson says.
The festival continues with a number of short films, including听“The Confidential Informant.” Written by George Pelecanos,听directed by Stephen Kinigopoulos听and produced by Kyle David Crosby, the film follows听young D.C. man who makes one last, desperate attempt to earn his father’s love and respect.
“Imagine that you’re a kid on the set of ‘The Wire,’ your mother is actually the hairdresser, so imagine all the things that you’re going to learn on the set of ‘The Wire.’ …听There’s a lot of snow and ice in the film, so it might look like he shot it last weekend, but he didn’t,” Sampson says, laughing.
If you’re more in the mood for a comedy, check out Charlie Puritano’s “Extreme Paleo: A Success Story” about an extreme diet regimine about hunting everything you eat, and听Linder Pak’s “Rendezvous” about a middle-aged man who goes on a dinner date with a woman half his age.
The festival wraps with听Betsy Cox’s听feature documentary听“Southeast 67.” Set in D.C.听during the crack cocaine epidemic of the 1980s 鈥� when Washington was dubbed the “Murder Capital” — the film follows听67 rising seventh graders who are听promised college scholarships by a wealthy businessman.
Out of the 20 films screening at the festival, the Top 5 finalists will each receive $1,000 on Sunday.
This year will also introduce Rosebud’s first-ever Audience Choice Award.
“Whoever wins that award will actually receive a great package from Arlington Independent Media with our cinema gear,听so they can keep making their films and we can assist them with听that.”
The festival is sponsored by听听a nonprofit public access station providing resources for local residents who want to create media听for听radio, television and听film.
“You can make a film with our cinema equipment. You can make a TV show. Anybody who wants to put their voice out there in the world, that’s what Arlington Independent Media is there to do.”
Tickets cost $15 for the five-and-a-half hour showcase at听 from 2-8 p.m. Saturday.听Sunday’s award ceremony is free to attend at听from 7-10 p.m.
Both locations are Metro accessible with the showcase听at the听Archives stop on the Green and Yellow lines听and the awards just off the听Clarendon stop on the Orange and Silver lines, respectively.
“We’re looking forward to it.听It’s going to be a great time.听You can be a star yourself. We’re gonna have the red carpet and step-and-repeat out there. You can take photos, Instagram, instant celebrity over the weekend. And you don’t even have to get out in the snow.”
Click for more information about the 25th annual Rosebud Film Festival.
