Carrie Villeneuve
Present: Terry Miles, director, writer, and cameraman, all of the cast and the rest of the crew (5 and 1, respectively)
Five minutes into the movie, I realized that the movie was more about the director and how smart and artistic he thinks he is, than about any kind of story, or character, worth watching. Artistic camera angles, check; plank stares meant to convey personal depth; non sequitur, banal dialogue mistaken for meaningful interaction, check:
Allie: So, the New Yorker, huh? How’s all that going for ya?
Terrence: I’ll give you a thousand dollars if she (motions to a girl at another table) has heard of the Velvet Underground.
My judgement lessened somewhat during the Q & A when it became obvious Miles is only listening to his internal dialogue which he hasn’t yet figured out that no one else can hear:
Q: In the scene where Terrence and Allie are lying on the bed, and she suddenly snorts, then looks over at Terrence and says, That’s not what I meant, what does she mean? (This is a good question; I had no idea what she didn’t mean either.)
A: Ya, it looks like that scene was cut, or edited a lot, but that was really how I envisioned it, in it’s entirety, I had that scene in my head right from the beginning, I even saw it in the trailer, the movie trailer for the movie, I saw it as the trailer for the movie, so ya that scene is exactly how I wrote it, in its entirety.
Punching the Clown
Present: Gregori Viens, director and co-writer, and Henry Phillips, co-writer and central actor/character
It's never clear whether this film is documentary, mockumentary, or complete fiction with Henry Phillips just playing himself. It could be that Phillips goes about his unassuming existence and weird and funny things, like an anti-semitic smear campaign against him, or over-excited fans at a Q-and-A, just, well, happen.
Q (to Phillips): Where’s your guitar?
A: I thought of that, of bringing it, but then I remembered, I get paid hundreds of dollars a year for playing in public, so it’s not something for me to give away. But I’ve never been to Vancouver before, I like the vibe, so I was thinking of going down to Yuk Yuk’s down the street there and see if they’ll, uh, take me.
Q (to Phillips): Have you ever been to Vancouver before?
A: Ah, no, but I like the vibe, I was thinking of going over to Yuk Yuk’s and see if I can get a gig.
Love Song Punching The Clown | MySpace Videos One of the funniest movies at VIFF.
At Home Alone By Myself...With You
Present: Kris Booth, director and co-writer, via brother Brian’s cell phone
A story of yearning, whimsy, and immobilizing fear, Kristin Booth is charming as Romy, an agoraphobic as a result of the deaths of her father, mother, first boyfriend, and dog. As with most Canadian independent films, the list of funding credits is long, but in this case, is nearly as long as the movie.
Q: Can you explain the number of funding credits?
A: We (co-writer, Ramona Barckert) had finished this script, and I was worried about finding the money to shoot. My wife said, "You know, I bet if you saved all your pocket change, you could save enough money." So then I put a jar on my desk, and people started throwing their money in. By the end of the first week, I had $300. It took us about a year, and we shot for $4000. But we're still collecting, the movie stuff's not over yet!
Here's what the director looks like, present with some cast and crew members at their first screening. The first VIFF screening was Tuesday, October 6; they finished the film the previous Thursday.
