UMFF 2011 Opening Night Event - Reception, Reading & Films

Opening Night Event - Reception, Script Scene Read, and Film Screenings
Join us as we kick-off the evening with a reception, appetizers, drinks. We will then announce the top ten scripts in competition, and reveal the top three scripts through a scene read. Next we will view independent films that represent the diverse films that will be screened during the 10th Urban Mediamakers Film Festival.

The films that will be screening are:

• 5 Minutes Each directed by Vojin Vasovic (Toronto, ON, Canada) – Animation
A metaphorical story about the constant struggle of the artist to reach those five minutes of limelight. A tale about an upswing and downfall, with the climax appearing concurrently and unexpectedly. The hermetical life of artists, who are enclosed into their own world of ideas, striving to create the epochal masterpiece. Even if they succeed, the image they create is the reflection of themselves. And with the same fervor, they repeat the process in endless cycles.


• The Great Incarcerator: Dark Little Secret directed by D. Jones (Bowling Green, OH) - Short Documentary
Great Incarcerator, Part 1: Dark Little Secret examines the United States prison system and its unprecedented explosion in population and the exploitation of dark, poor faces, intentionally relegated to second-class citizenship otherwise known as continued, legal slavery.

Slavery; It is the economic foundation of the United States of America. History tells us that slavery in the U.S. was a brutal system of dehumanization, abolished by the 13th Amendment. History also tells us of a period where the U.S. openly, legally and illegally, kept former slaves and their descendants locked into a second-class citizenship under the guise of “all men are created equal.”

This conflicted past is often presented as what the United States used to be, an example of where we came from but never evidence of where we are today. This is further complicated by the reality of our nation’s first black president standing before us as “proof” that we have not only overcome racial divisions, but also eradicated the oppression against people of color that has marked our past.

Dark Little Secret confronts the present from a different perspective, suggesting slavery, this country’s “original sin,” still exists legally, as clear as the 13th Amendment itself: “Neither slavery, nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime, whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction…”


• Lunch In Lima directed by Gail Gilbert (Chicago, IL) - Short
Five women enjoy an elegant lunch in the home of a prominent Peruvian family in 1952. One of the guests is an American who has just arrived in Lima. Amid sparkling conversation and good cheer, the hostess makes a statement that stuns the American in its harsh view of class and position. None of the other guests acknowledge the brutality of her comment and continue with the lunch. The American is frozen in disbelief and remains haunted by the comment for the rest of her life.


• Their Eyes Were Watching Gummy Bears directed by Raafi Rivero (Brooklyn, NY) – Short
Their Eyes Were Watching Gummy Bears - A coming of age comedy about a young African-American student, Del, on the eve of his graduation from Princeton University. He is at a cross road in his life; he doesn't know if he wants a career in acting, his passion, or go to law school to fulfill his parent's wishes. Del is also trying to win back the love of his life, Laura, who breaks up with Del at the beginning of the story. Laura is fed up with Del's childish antics and indecision about his life and wants to leave him behind to pursue her medical career Del spends the rest of the film overcoming numerous obstacles to try and win Laura's heart. Del and Laura 's friends, Sean aka 'Big Country and Bridgette help guide them in their journey to find love and happiness.

It's a smart, irreverent comedy that depicts young people of color in a light and setting not often seen.


Rated G