13th Tallgrass Film Festival heads into the long stretch (+trailer)

The 13th annual Tallgrass Film Festival kicked off earlier this week and continues through Sunday with screenings, events, panels and more. Find a complete schedule and ticket information at www.tallgrassfilmfest.com.

As part of my coverage of the festival, I posted on Kansas.com 18 questionnaires that visiting filmmakers answered by e-mail. It was a great way to include more people and more films in our coverage.

Here is the questionnaire from filmmaker brothers Eshom Nelms and Ian Nelms of the closing night film:

Eshom Nelms and Ian Nelms, writer-directors of ‘Waffle Street’

Currently residing in: Los Angeles

Film genre(s): Comedy/drama

When is it screening? 6:30 p.m. Sunday at the Orpheum Theatre, 200 N. Broadway

Tell us about your film in 10 words or less: An ousted financier redeems his soul working at a diner.

Why were you drawn to tell this story? Our motivation came from James Adams’ memoir of the same name. In his tale, we saw a wonderful opportunity to translate this heartfelt Pinocchio story to the screen.

How long did you work on the film? From nose to tail, this film’s journey to the screen has taken five years. The first four years were towed by the producers, Autumn McAlpin, Brad Johnson, and John Kelly. We joined forces in January of 2014. We re-wrote the script with co-writer Autumn McAlpin and six months later we were shooting. For us, “Waffle Street” came together very fast. Especially considering our previous film “Lost on Purpose” took four years.

Who are directors you look up to/are inspired by: We have long admired filmmakers Paul Thomas Anderson, Wes Anderson, Alexander Payne, David Fincher, Quentin Tarantino and Joel and Ethan Coen.

What’s your favorite film? “The Big Lebowski” is a stand-out for us. It just gets better every time you watch it, whether it’s your second or hundredth time, the film gets richer with every viewing.

Do you prefer jumping off a cliff or taking the long, winding way down? Both. Ian jumps off the cliffs. Eshom takes the long and winding road. This complementary approach is the only way we know how to make movies. As we’ve gone along, our roles have become clearer and more defined. Every film makes us more dysfunctionally co-dependent.

Been to Wichita before? We had the pleasure of attending and screening our film “Lost on Purpose” in 2013. Tallgrass was a superb experience for us and we recommend it to all our fellow filmmakers. Great staff, stellar venues and real a genuine appreciation for cinema and its creators are just a few of the reasons we are very pleased to be back in Wichita.

Be honest. Ever mutter the phrase, “Toto, I don’t think we’re in Kansas anymore?” Not recently, but on our plane flight over we used these:

ESHOM: “Give me your hat.”

IAN: “Why?” (without missing a beat)

ESHOM: “Because I’m going to puke it.”

— “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom,” dinner scene.

And one of our favorites is:

“You can change your underwear for all I care, pal.” — Burt Reynolds, “Heat”

Any advice for aspiring filmmakers? Make all the cinema you can with whatever you have.

Anything else you’d like to add? When we dove headfirst into the all-consuming world of cinema we thought it was going to be a red hot burn to the multiplexes. After 13 years in the trenches, we’ve learned this is a long game. Stay true to your passion and deny the hype.

This story was originally published October 15, 2015 at 11:47 PM with the headline "13th Tallgrass Film Festival heads into the long stretch (+trailer)."