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DIY distribution —It's tough out there in the world of independent filmmaking.
The odds against getting a movie completed are through the roof. But the odds against it getting seen are even higher.
Even most of the films that get into high-profile festivals such as Sundance don't get distribution deals.
So you have to champion filmmakers that take matters into their own hands — and have a sense of humor about it, too. That's just what the guys behind " One Too Many Mornings" did.
The low-budget, black-and-white comedy just had its world premiere at Sundance last week, but the film is already available for purchase at the Web site www.onetoomanymornings.com.
The site even offers the option of purchasing the film's "domestic theatrical rights" for the low, low price of $100,000. Just click on the button and it adds the item to your "shopping cart." Pretty funny.
But if that's too pricey, there is the more realistic option of just buying the film in HD download or DVD format. There is also a deluxe package that includes the DVD, download, official poster, a "certificate of authenticity" and — get this — a piece of the set. Literally, you will get a scrap of upholstery from a couch seen in the film.
Makes me wonder what I can sell with my upcoming zombie movie. Severed head, anyone?
Kansan in Hollywood — Wamego filmmaker Steve Balderson was in California this week, where the prestigious American Cinematheque film society hosted the premiere of his latest feature, " Stuck!," at the historic Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood on Wednesday.
This follows successful screenings in Oslo, Norway, London and Seattle.
The film, an homage to women-in-prison sagas of the 1950s, stars Karen Black, who rose to fame in the '70s with such hits as "Five Easy Pieces" and "Airport 1975," Mink Stole and Jane Wiedlin of the '80s rock band the Go-Gos.
"Stuck!" will screen in Macon, Ga., and Boston later in the month. For more information, go to www.StuckNoir.com.
Special screenings — Director Kimberly Reed will present her documentary " Prodigal Sons" at 7 p.m. Monday at the Murdock Theatre in the 20th Century Center at 536 N. Broadway. Tickets are $9.
Reed documents her return home to Montana for a high school reunion, as she plans to reintroduce herself to the small town as a transgender woman. She also hopes for reconciliation with her long-estranged adopted brother Marc, but things get complicated by the revelation that he may be the grandson of Orson Welles and Rita Hayworth.
The film has won several awards and has had a successful festival run. For more information, go to www.prodigalsonsfilm.com.
The Tallgrass Film Festival's Third Thursday screening this month will be " C.S.A.: Confederate States of America," directed by Kevin Willmott, an associate professor of film at the University of Kansas.
The 2004 film is a "mockumentary"-style look at a revisionist history of the United States if the South had won the Civil War and slavery was never abolished. It premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and went on to a limited theatrical run.
Willmott will introduce the film and participate in a panel discussion after the screening, which starts at 6 p.m. Feb. 18 in the CAC Theater at Wichita State University's Rhatigan Student Center.
Admission is free. The event is part of the film series " Black Films That Challenge/Black Films That Matter," being curated by Willmott, which is in conjunction with the exhibit "Crossroads: The Art of Gordon Parks" at WSU.
Other films in the series include " The Spook Who Sat by the Door" at 6 p.m. Thursday and " Nothing But a Man" at 6 p.m. Feb. 25. Both screenings will be held in Room 210 at the McKnight Art Center in WSU's School of Art and Design.
For more information, go to www.tallgrassfilmfest.com.
