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2008 Festival Summary
The second annual Iowa Independent Film Festival proved to be as interesting and entertaining as the first. Because footage for a sequel to Hollywood Dreams was being shot during the festival, some old friends returned from Los Angeles.
These included actors Tanna Frederick, Karen Black, and David Proval, actor/director Kelly DeSarla, and director Ron Vignone, all of whom kept busy filming scenes at Music Man Square, which is the festival’s main venue, as well as elsewhere in Mason City and around north Iowa.
Unfortunately, indie director Henry Jaglom was unable to attend because of illness, but his friend Andre Gregory, perhaps best known for his role in My Dinner With Andre, came from New York with his wife, documentary filmmaker Cindy Kleine. On Friday afternoon Mr. Gregory conducted an acting workshop at the Mason City Community Theatre in which some 40 adults and children participated along with Frederick, Black, and Proval. It made for an unforgettable afternoon on the MCCT stage.
On Friday evening, two rough-cut versions were shown of films still in progress: Ron Vignone’s “Always…but not forever” and Mr. Jaglom’s “Irene in Time.” Afterwards, the audience participated in a discussion with the two directors about what did and did not seem to be working. Jaglom conducted his discussion via telephone from Los Angeles.
On Saturday morning documentary filmmakers Lucille Carra and Garry McGee (The Last Wright), Cindy Kleine (Phyllis and Harold), Carolyn Stanek (Found In China), Tammy and Kelly Rundle (Lost Nation: The Ioway), and Dan Kremer (Tales To Be Told On The Way To The Happy Home) gathered together in the MacNider Museum to discuss the problems and processes of making their films.
On Saturday night the Awards Gala took place with music provided by Public Property from Iowa City. Seven awards were presented:
Best Full-Length Feature: “Haunting Villisca” which was accepted by producer Kimberly Busbee.
Best Short Feature: “Wedding Jimmy” which was accepted by producer Lisa Pescia.
Best Feature-Length Documentary: “Lost Nation: The Ioway” which was accepted by director Kelly Rundle and producer Tammy Rundle.
Best Short Documentary: “Tales To Be Told On The Way To The Happy Home” which was accepted by its director, Dan Kremer.
Best Student Film: “The Final Hour”.
The Orson Wells Award for innovative filmmaking went to “Phyllis and Harold” and was accepted by its director, Cindy Kleine.
The Karen Black Award for excellence in independent film was presented to Tanna Frederick by Karen Black.
This year’s festival attracted a number of unusually strong documentaries which also included “King Corn”, “Fridays At The Farm”, and “The Real Dirt on Farmer John”, all of which address the issue of healthful, safe food and the damaging effects on the land wrought by industrial farming.
Despite the rain, cold and even a dash of snow, the visitors from New York, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, and Chicago expressed their enjoyment of the festival, of Mason City, and of the friendliness of Iowans.
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Contact IIFF
Email:
info@iowaindie.org
Phone:
641-424-2852
Postal Mail:
Iowa Independent Film Festival
308 S. Pennsylvania Ave.
Mason City, IA 50401
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