Scallops and grits, graveside

Friday found me on the circuit with a day off, so my mother-in-law Daisy and I stopped off at her house in Marietta and then headed down to the Grant Park neighborhood in Atlanta, where we caught up with family -- my cousin-in-law Chris and his boys, plus their Grandmama Mozelle.

We had an excellent dinner at Six Feet Under, next to the cemetery -- scallops and grits were heavenly AND hellishly hot. I'll miss the seasoning down here.

On Saturday I saw old friends and then headed to Hapeville for the screening. The City of Hapeville puts on quite an event -- and uses the screenings to draw attention to their cool little town. A historic church is the event site; a beautiful little building that had to be moved away from the railroad tracks, its last location, as it couldn't quite take the shaking. It now sits on a quaint park -- Hapeville has free food and music for these events and it's a great setting.

Hapeville was my last screening before I hand the baton to co-director Lisa Robinson. It was a great one -- one woman asked if our lead and her on-screen partner were actually together. They're not, but I'm grateful their on-screen chemistry convinces.

Thanks to everyone -- and Teresa from South Arts -- great to meet you! (Pictured below)

Signing off. I'm on my way back to daily life. So long, road.

SMALL, BEAUTIFULLY MOVING PARTS hits Gainesville, GA

I've finished day 3 of our tour ---- one could get used to the road. It's a pretty nice life.

My traveling-mother-in-law and I drove to Gainesville this morning, the poultry capital of Georgia. It's a quaint town with some good food and friendly people. Our first stop was lunch at 2 Dog, where a woman sitting next to us said she'd once owned a "dog bar" in New Orleans, catering to "doctors, lawyers, and gold diggers." We then had dessert at Inman's, where I had the spiciest Mexican Chocolate ice cream in the entire South (I'm sure of it).

The screening at the Gainesville Arts Council was really the best treat of all. Close to one hundred people were there for dinner outside, then our movie. It's been a while since I've seen it with such a big crowd (and this one was very engaged), so I stayed in the screening to watch.

Afterwards, Dr. Jeff Marker from Gainesville State interviewed me on stage, which was fun, and people had interesting questions and comments. A woman named Rosemary with a pink streak in her hair stuck around post-Q&A to ask my mother-in-law Daisy how she thought a friend of hers should approach telling her family about her interracial relationship. Daisy said to avoid the "GUESS WHO'S COMING TO DINNER approach" and tell them before first introductions. We are in the South where everyone's direct! The crowd was lovely and thanks to Gladys at The Arts Council and the Gainesville State crew who were really on. We had a great night.

SMALL, BEAUTIFULLY MOVING PARTS does Clemson right

Day Two report: Daisy and I had breakfast in Augusta and then hit the road for Clemson. We knew not that our road was so lean --- 28 West is a solitary place, spotted only by a derelict barn here and a Subway sandwich outlet there. I saw a sign pointing toward the grave site for the "Long Cane Massacre," which I learned later was a Cherokee uprising in the late 1700s against British settlers in South Carolina. A Calhoun daughter, age 5, was kidnapped and lived with the tribe for twelve years. Calhoun is a prominent name in town, a famous son turned Vice President and Secretary of War; one who defended slavery.

We dined tonight at the Taco Titan (I could have this wrong, but it's right in spirit) -- good Mexican food for such a small town -- and headed with host Amy Monaghan of the English Dept to the Hendrix Student Center. "Jimi?" I asked. "No. We wish."

Amy had corralled an impressive number of students to the screening, and it was refreshing to have a young audience in their 20s. As our film features a pregnant woman, we sometimes don't see that younger demographic, and tonight many undergraduate men had excellent questions about the themes of our film. This crowd was not nearly as interested in how we made it but in what it all meant. I tried to nudge them toward answering for themselves.

After the screening we had a beer at Nick's in Clemson with Amy and her very funny husband / English Dept Professor Jonathan Field, plus Suzanne and Daniel, their recently-graduated local pals. The photo of the entire group is on my dying-now-dead iPhone, whose beloved charger is still in Augusta. Argh! I'll have to post that one later. 

Tomorrow we head to Gainesville, GA. More soon.

SBMP tour has begun!

It's Annie Howell here, half of the writing/directing team behind SMALL, BEAUTIFULLY MOVING PARTS, and I'm off and running on circuits Southern. My journey began yesterday morning at 5 am -- a drive from my home in Athens Ohio to Columbus for the short flight to Atlanta. I knew I wasn't in Ohio anymore when Sean John welcomed me at ATL Hartsfield airport.

Ohioans just stick to the basics -- you know, football sweatshirts. Also there to meet me? My mother-in-law, Daisy Gillespie. When she found out I was going to be on the road BY MYSELF, well, she just cleared her calendar and let me know she was coming along! So far, so good. :)
What cracks me up is that our film is about a pregnant woman alone on the road ... which I thought I would be replicating (er, without the pregnancy) -- but not if Daisy has anything to do with it!

We drove to Augusta Georgia, through sheets of rain, and landed here at The Partridge Inn, which is certainly not your typical hotel: historic, balconied, grand, sitting perched on a hill above town. The setting and staff feel truly Southern -- I overheard my waiter this morning tell his colleague she was lookin' good today -- "like new money."

Last night had a great screening at the Morris Museum of Art -- thank you Michelle and Kevin! We met with some amazing people from Augusta State Film Department after and were treated to tequila guacamole and sweet potato fries, along with local beer, at The Bee's Knees. But the best meal so far has been at Beamie's on the river ------ you can't get this where I live, unless my husband makes it.

Daisy and Annie hit the road here soon to Clemson, South Carolina. More as this unfolds.

Meet Annie Howell and Lisa Robinson

Welcome Annie Howell and Lisa Robinson to the Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers! Their film, Small, Beautifully Moving Parts will begin their Circuit in Augusta, Georgia at the the Morris Museum of Fine Art. The screening and Q&A with the filmmaker are free admission, so don't miss a moment of this beautiful film. To view the trailer, learn more about the film, or see if Small, Beautifully Moving Parts is touring near you, visit the film's page on the Southern Circuit website.

More about Annie:

Annie J. Howell (Co-Writer/Co-Director) recently co-wrote and co-directed her first feature,Small, Beautifully Moving Parts. The film opened theatrically in 2012 to favorable reviews from NPR and Roger Ebert, and received the 2011 Sloan Foundation Feature Film Prize. Her short films have aired on the Sundance Channel, PBS, and the Independent Film Channel, and as part of the ITVS web series, FutureStates. She lives in Athens, Ohio, with her husband and two sons.

More about Lisa:

Lisa Robinson (Co-Writer/Co-Director) works as a screenwriter and director. Small, Beautifully Moving Parts, her first feature, premiered at SXSW and has screened at over 20 festivals, winning the Audience Award at RiverRun and opening theatrically in over 15 cities. She has written and directed other shorts that have screened at festivals including Cannes - Directors' Fortnight, Telluride and Edinburgh. She lives with her husband and daughter in New York.

A Small, Beautifully Moving Movie

In September, filmmakers Annie Howell and Lisa Robinson will be going on the Circuit with their film, Small, Beautifully Moving Parts. But you won't have to wait until then to hear from the filmmakers. In this interview from SXSW the filmmakers, as well as the film star, talk about the film and filmmaking experience. To see the full movie and meet the filmmakers, check the Southern Circuit website for screening locations and schedule. Enjoy!

SXSW 2011: "Small, Beautifully Moving Parts"... by IFC-Official

Recent Accolades for Upcoming Circuit Films:

A Matter of Taste is nominated for an Emmy in Outstanding Arts and Culture Programming. The News and Documentary Emmy Awards will be presented Monday, October 1, 2012. Best of luck to Sally Rowe and her team!

Girl Model filmmakers, Ashley Sabin and David Redmon, successfully raised funds via their Kickstarter campaign to begin a national educational tour with their film. See all the details here.

Eating Alabama won Top Grit Award at Indie Grits 2012. Congrats to filmmaker, Andrew Grace!

The Entertainers won the Audience Award at the Wisconsin Film Festival. Congrats to filmmaker, Michael Zimmer!

Small, Beautifully Moving Parts won an Audience Award for Best American Independent Film at the River Run Film Festival 2012. Congrats to filmmakers, Lisa Robinson and Annie Howell!

See all of these films and more on the Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers this season 2012/2013 in different locations around the southeast. To see all the films and where they are screening go to the Southern Circuit webpages.