Chris Eska - Lafayette

The latest update from filmmaker Chris Eska, touring his film The Retrieval on the Southern Circuit:

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Lafayette, Louisiana
Storm clouds erupted across Louisiana as I drove to Lafayette for a screening at Vermilionville Living History Museum. During the screening, the rain pounded the roof and the wind threatened to pry off the walls of the performance hall, but sometimes watching a movie during a thunderstorm can add to the experience and mystery of what’s unfolding on screen. The audience was small, but the discussion afterward was intimate, and they even answered some of my questions about life and Cajun culture in Acadiana.

Jan Krawitz - Lafayette and Alexandria

The latest updates from filmmaker Jan Krawitz, who recently completed touring her film Perfect Strangers on the Southern Circuit.

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March 24, Lafayette, LA

Today's screening was held at The Vermilionville Living History & Folk Life Park. Erin Stickney first took me to the local NPR station situated at the University of Louisiana for an interview on a local talk show. The host, Judith Meriwether, asked provocative questions about the film and my approach to documentary in general. The setting for the screening that evening was in a lovely museum where a number of historical buildings had been restored in a plein air setting. The screening was in a performance space and jambalaya had been prepared by the chef from the on-site café. Although the audience had only six people, we had a substantive conversation following the screening. There were two nurses in attendance who had a lot to offer and one woman talked about her husband who had donated his organs posthumously. As always, I took away more insights about the issues following as well as suggestions about outreach to “health ministries” within Southern churches.

March 25, Alexandria, LA
It was lovely to be off the interstate and invited by a local couple, Nicole and David Holcombe, to stay in their home. They have hosted filmmakers on the Southern Circuit for about five years and I truly enjoyed meeting them, seeing their wonderful house filled with eclectic art, and having an incredible home-cooked meal!  We rushed off to the local performing arts center – a grand, 10-year old building. Matt Henry introduced the film to a very small crowd.  But again, the conversation afterwards had its own rewards. Present in the audience was a nephrologist who has worked with kidney patients for years and sits on the board of LOPA (Louisiana Organ Procurement Agency) so he proffered some interesting opinions. His wife and I chatted before the screening and, based on the film's description, she shared her incredulity about that someone would voluntary choose to donate a kidney to a perfect stranger. After the screening, she had moderated her skepticism and appreciated how Ellie's (my subject) actions were consistent with her worldview and approach to life. I had a wonderful night in the restful environment of the Holcombe's home before flying back to San Francisco the following day. So the whirlwind tour has come to a close and I truly appreciated the opportunity to be present with the film in such diverse locations. I often think of putting a film out in the world as akin to a “tree falling in the forest." Most of the time, I don't really know if it is heard – but the Southern Circuit allowed me to engage with audiences who approached the film with an open mind and generously shared their responses with me.

John Beck - Vermilionville, Lafayette, and Alexandria

The latest update from John Beck, currently touring his film Harvest:

If you've never been, you gotta check out Vermilionville, the historical treasure in Lafayette that spotlights Acadian, Creole and Native American cultures in a hands on living historical museum (that's a photo of a hollowed out pirogue above).

On Monday night, only a few people came out for the screening of "Harvest" (Mondays are tough in any town and it turns out they'd just had a film festival over the weekend). But I was buoyed by a father who brought his two 4-year-old boys eager to see their first documentary.
I was so amazed they made it through the 70-min film that I started the Q&A by saying, "Everybody, I want you to give these little guys a hand. I didn't see a documentary until I was probably four times their age. You're looking at future filmmakers in the making."

Big thanks to Jesse Guidry and the staff at Vermilionville and Judith Meriwether at KRVS, who interviewed me before the screening. You can check out the KRVS interview here: http://krvs.org/post/apres-midi-november-18-john-becks-film-harvest

On Tuesday, I drove up to Alexandria for the final screening of "Harvest."

Instead of holing up in a chain hotel, I had the privilege of staying with local arts benefactors David and Nicole Holcombe who live in a beautiful house that has more art per square inch than any house I've ever entered. Check out a few of my favorite pieces, including an artist's portrait tying in Nicole's Belgian waffle heritage:

Big thanks to Matt Henry, Anna Brooks, Lod Hayes and the staff at the Coughlin Performing Arts Center who went all out for the event, even scoring a bottle of Foppiano petit syrah to raffle off after the film. Here are some great photos that Anna took:

Now that my Southern Circuit Tour has come to an end, I must confess that I have traveled with feature films all over this country (and one even played in France), but this is by far the most rewarding trip I've ever taken with a film. Hands down. No comparison.

To all the people I met in unique venues along the way - consider yourselves friends for life and thank you for coming out to see "Harvest." In the life of the low-budget documentary filmmaker, these journeys don't happen often and I will treasure every moment. Thank you!

And now I will leave you with my favorite photo from the tour (the photographer told us to make a "crazy face"):

John Beck - Hapeville and Lake Charles

The latest update from John Beck, currently touring his film Harvest:

 I went from one 1895 architectural treasure to another, going from the Madison Morgan Cultural Center to Hapeville's restored 19th century Christ Church Building.

Amid the hustle and bustle of Atlanta, with trains running through town, bordering highways and planes flying in and out of the airport only 5 min away, Hapeville is a tiny, easily overlooked treasure.

Big thanks to Allie O'Brien and the gang with the City of Hapeville who choreographed every detail from the top-hatted piano player to the wine and Volare appetizers reception.

My favorite comment came from Mayor Allan Hallman who described the tourist grape camp shown in the film as "It sounds like something a redneck would do, convincing those people to pay $2000 to pick grapes!"

I also enjoyed talking to a woman who had picked peaches in Georgia and perfectly related to the grape pickers in the film.

The next night, at McNeese State in Lake Charles. La, we were up against a football game the same night, but a devoted following still came out to see the film at the beautiful Shearman Arts Center - offering what was by far best projection & sound on this trip so far. It probably helps that Bill, the projectionist makes his own wine and beer (and even ferments satsumas & grapefruit!).

Banners series organizers Patricia Prudhomme and LaDonna McKnight ordered a case of the prize-winning Foppiano petite syrah for the reception.

I've been doing trivia wine giveaways during the Q&A's. One of the questions involves the burly black-bearded winemaker Paul Foppiano and his resemblance to former Giants pitcher Brian Wilson. The McNeese St. history professor who got it right let me on a little trivia of his own - Wilson played college ball nearby at LSU.

Tonight I'm screening in the living history museum at Vermilionville in Lafayette. Come on out ya'll!

'Bending Sticks' in Louisiana

From Penelope Maunsell:

Last week I found myself deep in Cajun country with my great friend Linda Usdin taking Bending Sticks:  the Sculpture of Patrick Dougherty to three screening venues in central Louisiana.  It was the second half of our Southern Circuit tour – Kenny (co-director of the film) had completed the first half in Georgia the week before. Our first stop was at Banners of McNeese State University in Lake Charles.  It was a Saturday night and pouring down rain. Buckets of it.  We had a small, damp, but very interested audience full of good questions, and we had a lively discussion about impermanent art afterwards.

Sunday, our day off, we drove to Lafayette, where we found to our delight the Festival Acadiens et Creoles on the grounds of Louisiana State University. Two or three stages with musicians all day long, thirty booths selling different wonderful food, and a terrific craft fair. Thankfully the predicted rain held off.  We had a couple of Bloody Mary’s, shared crawfish étoufée, wonderful fried shrimp and a Boudin Ball (a kind of delicious sausage) beneath a live oak covered in Spanish moss. After our meal we wandered from stage to stage listening to music, and watching people dancing. I really enjoyed the impossibly young Babineaux Sisters who moved easily between fiddle, guitar, and accordion and sang in marvelous lilting Cajun French. In the evening we found a local family attraction, Randol’s Cajun restaurant and dance hall, complete with a Zydeco band. We had a couple of beers, the most delicious crawfish bisque and watched people of all ages and skills dancing the two step and twirling to the music. Linda and I even got up and had a go.

Our second screening was in Vermilionville - a living history museum and folklife park on the banks of bayou Vermilion with its original homes dating back to 1765. We walked around the village and explored the beautifully restored houses and workshops that once belonged to Acadian, Native American and Creole peoples and saw an alligator in the lake.  The screening was in their big dance hall and the BluRay of Bending Sticks looked and sounded its very best through their excellent projector and sound system. We had a good discussion after the screening with a small but enthusiastic audience and ate the delicious jambalaya provided by our hosts. The next morning we returned to Vermilionville for a brisk walk in an effort to work off some of the calories we‘d accumulated.

On the way to Alexandria, our last stop, we managed a visit to the beautiful Shadows-on the Teche Plantation in New Iberia and had an oyster Po’ Boy in St. Martinville on the Bayou Teche.

In Alexandria we stayed in the home of an extraordinary couple – Nicole and David Holcome, who are avid supporters of the arts and whose house is chock full of their amazing art collection. I mean every square inch covered in art – even the laundry room. Wonderful, funny and beautiful stuff. Lovely to stay in a home after a few nights in hotels. The screening was in the theatre at the Coughlin-Sanders Performance Arts Center where they had laid out hors d’oeuvres with a stick theme – and attempted small Patrick Dougherty creations. Patrick would have thoroughly enjoyed this. Quite funny.  Again a small but very interested and appreciative audience and a conversation that continued into the night about art and impermanence. We left the next morning each with a beautifully hand painted egg from Nicole and a book of plays from David. Now a week later I find myself reliving every moment of this memorable trip.

Coughlin-Sanders Performing Arts Center (Alexandria, LA) with Nicole & David Holcomb in the foreground. I'm in the back!

Yours truely answering audience questions.