The Dog Days of Summer Fest

THE JAMES RIVER FILM  SOCIETY 

presents:

"DOG DAYS FUNDRAISING FILM  FESTIVAL"

August 19, 7 pm-August 21, 11:59 pm

3 Nights Only!  Don't miss it!

Are the last humid days of your summer just dragging by?

Liven up your screen life with a blast from the past!

Stream short film selections from classic JRFS programs like:

Flicker, Filmmakers’ Forum & The James River Short Film Showcase*

(*our annual short film juried competition, VA's oldest, since 1994, co-sponsored by the VA Film Office)

Selections include…

Super-8 Mom -  Dave Ellsworth, 5 min., 2002

Another Dress, Another Button -  Lyn Elliot, 2:45 min., 2011

Wallpapers - Jennifer Scully-Thurston/ Jeff Roll, 9 min., 2014

Grandma's Biscuits - James Parrish 6.5 min., 2003

The New Friend -  Ted Salins, 11 min., 1983

Stamped for Failure -  Alex Germanotta, 5:50 min., 2006

Sapsucker -  Christopher Holmes, 12:20 min., 2007

Decay -  Raasa Leela de Montebello, 6:40 min., 2018

Albumleaf - Paul Turano, 7 min., 2010

Dead Friends (When Blue Turns Red) - Michael Jones, 12 min., 1984 (silent)

37-73 -  Richard Myers, 60 min., 1974** 

(** Mr. Myers, one of our last remaining great avant-garde filmmakers from the 50-60s-70s era, which was a Renaissance of American Underground film production, has graciously allowed us to include his film, 37-73, in this fundraising "retro" program.  Myers was a longtime film professor at Kent State University, and other titles include Allison, Akran, Monstershow.  He was a James River Film Festival guest in 2001 & 2013 and remains a favorite in our hearts.)

PROGRAM TRT: approx. 2 hr. 20  min.

You’ll be able to view the whole program here on our website starting August 19th @7PM Sharp!

As another struggling non-profit, we would appreciate any donation you're comfortable with--if you enjoyed this program (and the 100s of others we've presented since 1994),  please, please hit the donate button! 


Or:

send a check made/ addressed to: "James River Film Society"

c/o  P. O. Box 7469, Richmond VA, 23221. 

Your support can make a real difference, and thanks.  PS! We also want to thank all the filmmakers who generously co-operated in this venture! 

Now accepting entries!

Have a film you’d like to show off? Submit it to this year’s film showcase! For 28 years we’ve been running our annual film competition, and while formats have changed, the heart of the competition remains unchanged. $2,000 in prizes are up for grabs and a chance to have your film shown at the VMFA! More details can be found on our FilmFreeway page, right here!

A few notes on this year's James River Film Fest

28th James River Film Festival RVA

March 31-April 3, 2022

with special guests:


Ron Mann, Director

Grass/ Poetry in Motion @ Byrd Theater, Saturday April 2, 1 pm

Carmine St. Guitars @ Grace St.Theater, Saturday, April 2, 8 pm

Kevin Willmott, Director/Screenwriter

Confederate States of America @ Byrd Theater, Sunday April 3, 1:30 pm

BlacKKKlansman @ Byrd Theater, Sunday April 3, 4 pm

* Mr. Willmott won an Academy Award Co-Screenplay for BlacKKKlansman

Congratulations to this year's Short Film Showcase Winners!

1st Place $750 - Pottero - Lindsey Martin (Ohio)

2nd Place $450 - Peaches - Benjamin Hunt (Virginia/California)

3rd Place $350 - Snow Angel - Evie Metz (Virginia)

4th Place $250 - Gas Station - Olga Torrico (Italy)

Kathryn Stephens VA Filmmaker Award $200 - Peaches - Benjamin Hunt (Virginia/California)

Winners, you will be notified by email within the week about next steps.

Thank you, again, for all who submitted a film this year. Even if your film wasn’t selected we implore you to keep working and submit something next year. To the winners and finalists, once again, congratulations and we are honored to have shown your film. See you next year!

The 27th Annual James River Short Film Showcase

Tune in right here on Friday, January 28th at 7 PM for this year’s presentation!

Congratulations to this year’s finalists!
(In order of appearance)

Beyond the Shadows - Steven J. York & Jacob Dodd (New York) TRT: 12:33

Miles & Kilometers - Sonali Gulati (Virginia) TRT: 2:06

Rogue: The Western - Carly Miller (California) TRT: 17:50

Your Time is Up! - Leon Truong (Virginia) TRT: 2:30

Peaches - Benjamin Hunt (Virginia/California) TRT: 10:25

Pedigree - Brittney Harris & Russ Fulmore (Virginia) TRT: 8:46

Snow Angel - Evie Metz (Virginia) TRT: 3:30

Pottero - Lindsey Martin (Ohio) TRT: 10:00

Gas Station - Olga Torrico (Italy) TRT: 10:00

2021 JAMES RIVER SHORT FILM SHOWCASE JURORS:

CARYL BURTNER is an award-winning conceptual artist whose movie-loving mother took her to see her first movie, "The Snow Queen", at the age of two.  Thousands of films later, and despite a growing collection of ticket stubs, she still screens avidly.  She's proud to be a long-serving juror of the James River Showcase.

SHANE BROWN is a photography and film instructor at the Visual Arts Center of Richmond, and the recent programmer/director of operations for the Bijou Film Center. A collector of film prints in all genres and gauges,  he's happiest when projecting films in his backyard for friends and family.

TOM CAMPAGNOLI remembers watching Moby Dick and Hitchcock movies with his father as a youth and later worked as manager/projectionist at Richmond's repertory Biograph Theatre.  He starred as Kosmo in Steve Segal and Phil Trumbo's animated-indie epic, Futuropolis.  He is recently retired from the University of Richmond Libraries.

JERE KITTLE is an award-winning photographer, artist, and filmmaker based in Richmond, where she attended VCU's Mass Communications Dept. and School of the Arts. She was a finalist in the London International Super-8 Festival: Straight 8, and one of six finalists in the Phillips Collection juried show, "American Moments", in Washington DC in 2015.

RAASA LEELA DE MONTEBELLO is an award-winning filmmaker and actress who divides her time between NYC and Ashland, VA.  An NYU film grad, she currently freelance edits and directs, when she's not busy foraging or conducting retreats. Her films, including Decay, are past winners in Richmond's 48 Hour Film Projects.

TODD STARKWEATHER holds a Ph.D. in English from the University of Illinois-Chicago, where he studied film theory.  He has taught literature, writing, and film studies at various universities in the past twenty years, and currently teaches the English language at Manchester Middle School.  He is a supporting member and volunteer of the JRFS.

2021 AWARDS JUDGE: KEVIN DOWNS was educated at VCU's Dept. of English and NYU's graduate film program and has taught a variety of courses--film production, film history, screenwriting--at Georgetown, George Washington, and Virginia Common-wealth Universities, as well as Watkins College of Art &  Design and Randolph-Macon College.  As a producer/director/D.P./editor his clients have included Epic Records, Lost Highway Records, and WVA Public Television.  He has also optioned several original feature screenplays as well as developed treatments for numerous clients including several Oscar/Grammy/Emmy award-winning producers and directors.

SPECIAL THANKS to finalists judge Kevin Downs, the jurors, and the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts.  The event is co-sponsored annually by the Virginia Film Office and the James River Film Society, a non-profit organization for the independent moving image arts.   www.jamesriverfilm.org

Announcing our Judge for this year's JFSFS

Finalists Judge Kevin Downs was educated at VCU and NYU's graduate film program and has taught a variety of courses as adjunct/full-time professor--film production, film history, and screenwriting--at Georgetown University, George Washington University, Randolph-Macon College, Watkins College of Art and Design, and VCU. He's also a producer/director/director of photography/editor and has produced several award-winning films, music videos, and electronic press kits for clients like Epic Records, Lost Highway Records, and West Virginia Public Television.

As a screenwriter, he's optioned several scripts for feature films, as well as developed screenplays and treatments for a variety of clients, including several Oscar, Grammy, and Emmy award-winning/nominated directors and producers.