Film Festival Takes Aim at Metro
By Kimberly Hill, The Edmond Sun, Okla.
Jun. 13–EDMOND — Sit back, relax and grab some popcorn.
Oklahoma City’s deadCENTER film festival is making its name in the world of film as it enters its eighth year. With a projected attendance of 6,000, deadCENTER is determined to promote the art of independent film.
The nonstop event, which is located at eight different venues throughout the downtown area, kicked off Wednesday and continues through Sunday.
Over 400 films were submitted to the festival this year, but only around 90 were selected by the screening committee, said fifth-year program director Melissa Scaramucci.
The lineup includes several national and international award-winners and everything from documentary features to “Okie” short films. This film festival has it all — animation, comedy, drama and horror. deadCENTER also is taking over the streets of Oklahoma City this year to screen two films outside for free admission.
Scaramucci said film festivals are more in-depth than just going to the movies because after a screening you get insight into the filmmaking process from the filmmaker.
“You get involved in how someone takes an idea, a story, and translates it into something many people can connect with,” she said.
The festival was founded and continues to be run by filmmakers, said chief operating officer Kim Haywood in a press release.
“Being a filmmaker and running the festival are very similar,” Haywood said. “The deadlines are different, but the magic is the same.”
Scaramucci said deadCENTER has developed an unbeatable reputation for excellent hospitality. The multitude of parties throughout the five days gives filmmakers across the U.S. a rare networking opportunity.
Three Edmond familiars — Lance McDaniel, Pete Sleeper and Ben Steinbauer — took part in creating films for the event.
“Each year, people from all over the state, including Edmond, flex their filmmaking muscle at the festival,” Scaramucci said. “I’m proud to know that we have so many talented people in our state.”
Sleeper’s film “Home Invasion!” screens at 7 p.m. Friday at Kerr Auditorium. The animated comedy is about a burglar who invades the wrong home and messes with the wrong guy.
Sleeper has had several animations in deadCENTER since the festival’s debut in 2001. A “one-man show,” he does the animation, voices and sound effects for his films.
“deadCENTER is really great for local filmmakers,” he said. “It gives them an audience.”
Sleeper, 51, has lived in Edmond since attending college at the University of Central Oklahoma.
Steinbauer, 30, grew up in Edmond and attended Edmond Memorial High School. He currently resides in Austin, Texas, where he is making a living as a professional filmmaker and film professor at the University of Texas.
Steinbauer was involved with the film “Capture Claus,” which is scheduled for 8 p.m. Friday at the IAO Gallery, assisting director Chris McInroy.
“Capture Claus” is a story about a kid who desperately wants to believe in Santa, but his dad and brother tell him Santa is a myth, Steinbauer said. The kid continues to believe and fights to prove Santa exists.
“For some, it’s a hobby. For others, it’s a dream,” Scaramucci said. “Supporting our ‘Okla-homies’ by giving them a place to showcase their work, bragging about them to anyone who will listen and standing and cheering for their film at the festival hopefully encourages our neighbors to continue contributing to our artistic community.”
—–
To see more of The Edmond Sun or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.edmondsun.com/.
Copyright (c) 2008, The Edmond Sun, Okla.
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.