The Rain Falls Down on Portlandtown: POWFest

Showing posts with label POWFest. Show all posts

Thursday, May 3, 2012

A FORCE OF NATURE: A VERY INSPIRING WHIRLWIND

Vibrating like a raw nerve, Ellen Ratner makes for a fearsome presence at the fore of Academy award-winning director Barbara Kopple's biographical profile on the journalist/philanthropist, A Force of Nature. Ratner's staff appears half-inspired/half-frightened of the woman; one staffer takes most of a minute to verbally feel his way through a positive spin on his working relationship with her. And yet, everyone in the small office easily spills their assessment that Ellen is a good or kind woman; it's just the delivery of that kindness that can be a little rough around the edges at times.

The film's title comes from one of those staff interviews. It's a thoroughly appropriate label, as well as being a clue to Ratner's way of working, something which (at least in the film) she seems to always be doing. Kopple catches her at work, challenging both conservatives and liberals to engage in discourse; she tries to explain to a friend that despising Michele Bachmann's rhetoric doesn't preclude her from befriending the conservative politician.

While Ratner's repartee with pundits and players of the Washington D.C. political scene is highly entertaining, the film really blooms when it looks beyond the day job and to her work as an advocate for the oppressed and suffering. Kopple travels with her to south Sudan where she engages in work opposed to modern day slavery. The film also visits the Katrina-ravaged regions of Mississippi where Ratner began a recovery non-profit after a chance meeting with a woman on a plane.

Remarkably, I found my opinion of Ratner shifting during the course of the film. Her energy comes off as a little too overbearing at first but, by the end of the film, I found myself wanting to shake her hand for her tireless efforts. A Force of Nature reveals her as someone who never passes up an opportunity to advocate for positive change. A very inspiring whirlwind, indeed.

POWFest, NW Documentary and the Hollywood Theatre present "A Night with Barbara Kopple" on Friday, May 4th at the Hollywood Theatre.

A Force of Nature will screen at 7:30pm with Kopple and Ellen Ratner in attendance.

A POWFest Classic screening of Kopple's Academy award-winning documentary Harlan County U.S.A. will follow at 9:15pm.

More info about tickets and a pre-screening reception event can be found here.

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Friday, March 9, 2012

POWFest 2012: 10,000 TREES, AN ORDINARY LIFE & MARION STODDART: THE WORK OF 1000

Saturday afternoon's POWFest schedule brings a trio of thematically-connected documentaries about individuals whose lives are inextricably linked to their actions on behalf of the natural world. From tree-planting to chronicles of direct activism, the films take a complex view of three people who looked outside of themselves and chose to practice stewardship of the planet's resources.

A still from 10,000 Trees

10,000 Trees tells the story of Victor Kaufmann, a man whose wide-open plot of farmland inspired him to begin planting trees. Sarah Berkovich and Sarah Ginsburg's film catches up with Kaufmann as he is about to plant his 10,000th tree on the property; an accomplishment which Kaufmann's son describes as a "milestone," rather than the end of the journey.

A still from 10,000 Trees

For much of the film, Kaufmann comes off as simplistic in his world view; an assumption that is amply rebutted in a moment where he reads aloud from a letter written to his granddaughter. In the handwritten note, he offers up his understanding of the problems and meager solutions found in this world, showing both self-awareness and humility concerning his own role within that balance.

It's a beautiful moment in a film that already does so many things well; it's exceptionally well edited (note the moment when Kaufmann asks if he should begin describing the environment of his shed), gorgeously shot and contains more than enough air within the piece to really let the story breathe.

10,000 Trees: Teaser-ish from Sarah Ginsburg on Vimeo.

A still from An Ordinary Life

Patricia Somers' An Ordinary Life focuses on Dot Fisher-Smith an octogenarian activist whose consciousness became roused and redirected in the upheaval that was the 1960s protest scene, bringing her to spearhead actions against logging, war, etc. At the same time, Fisher-Smith is a practicing Buddhist whose life philosophy reflects her spiritual search. She's also one hell of a talker, something that becomes abundantly apparent only a few minutes into the film.

A still from An Ordinary Life

An Ordinary Life barely has a second that isn't pushed forward by Dot's scene-grabbing personality. What this delightful character study sometimes lacks in focus, it makes up for in charm, effectively mirroring the woman who is its subject.

An Ordinary Life - Trailer from Patricia Somers on Vimeo.

A still from Marion Stoddart: The Work of 1000

By far, the most inspiring of Saturday afternoon's documentary showcase is Marion Stoddart: The Work of 1000. Susan Edwards and Dorie Clark's impeccably constructed film highlights Marion Stoddart's trailblazing efforts in the mid-1960s to restore the Nashua River, after decades of neglect had left it filled with industrial waste and unusable by the communities through which it ran.

A still from Marion Stoddart: The Work of 1000

Stoddart spearheaded a campaign that began with gathering signatures, eventually forming the Nashua River Watershed Association, paving the way for a monumental reassessment of the manner in which communities, government and industry interacted with that body of water. For all that she accomplished, Stoddart comes across as someone who views herself as ordinary, stating as much for the cameras when discussing how she and her husband met.

A still from Marion Stoddart: The Work of 1000

The subtitle of the film springs from an inspirational quote that Stoddart stumbled upon in a magazine. Most people would have been satisfied enough with reading that "one person can do the work of 1000;" but then, Marion Stoddart is not most people.

Festival passes can be acquired at this link and tickets for individual screenings can be purchased here.

10,000 Trees, An Ordinary Life & Marion Stoddart: The Work of 1000 will screen together at POWFest on Sat., March 10th at 2:30pm at the Hollywood Theatre.

Wednesday, February 29, 2012

POWFest 2012 is nearly upon us!!!

POWFest (Portland Oregon Women's Film Festival) invades the historic Hollywood Theatre once again this year, showcasing the work of women directors ranging from the local to the global. Like the attractive graphic above states, the festival's 5th anniversary edition will run from Thursday, March 8th until Sunday, March 11th, packing a remarkable 80+ short and feature length films into the four-day schedule.

Things kick off on Thurs. 8th at 7pm with a series of locally-produced short films, "including Stella's Flight, a 'dramedy' about a woman trapped in a life that even her dog finds boring, written and directed by OPB Livewire host Courtenay Hameister."

From there, it's opening night parties, a two-day financing workshop for filmmakers (co-sponsored by the OMPA), favorite films from the past (Amy Heckerling's Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Nora Ephron's Sleepless in Seattle and Oscar-winner Barbara Kopple's Shut Up & Sing will all screen during the fest) and a large dose of new narrative and non-fiction content from both emerging and seasoned film directors.

The entire schedule is available for access here. Festival passes can be acquired at this link and tickets for individual shows can be purchased here.

Keep an eye on this blog for upcoming posts highlighting some of the films at POWFest 2012. In the meantime, here's a handful of trailers from the upcoming festival:

Saturday, March 12, 2011

The Rain Falls Down on Portlandtown: Now More Facebook-y Than Ever

Hey folks, we here at The Rain Falls Down on Portlandtown just figured out that a lot of people are excited about this thing called Facebook. We're not positive but we think it might be a bar located deep in cyberspace. At any rate, the blog now has its own Facebook page, located here. Drop on by anytime for updates on postings, ridiculous conversations, etc.

Here's a quick rundown of some film related events going down this weekend in PDX:

--day four of POWFest is happening right now at the Hollywood Theatre. Our brief coverage of the Portland Oregon Women's Film Festival can be accessed right here.

--the NW Film Center continues with its The Films of Charlie Chaplin and Classic French Crime Films series. This evening's features at the Whitsell Auditorium include Chaplin's City Lights (1931) at 7pm and The Sicilian Clan (1969) with Jean Gabin and Alain Delon.

--PSU's student run 5th Avenue Cinema is featuring the Czech New Wave classic Daisies (1966) for another two days.

--The Clinton Street Theater is hosting Orgasm Inc., a new documentary about the pharmaceutical companies' push to create a female-centric version of Viagra.

Those are but a few of the options available for adventurous cinema geeks in Portland this weekend. Remember to find us on Facebook and to keep a lookout for future updates. Bye for now...

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Tuesday, March 8, 2011

POWFest kicks off tomorrow!

The 2011 edition of the Portland Oregon Women's Film Festival begins its five-day run on the big screen at the historic Hollywood Theatre tomorrow night (3/9). At which time, things will get off to a fine start with the Portland debut of Rolla Selbak's new drama Three Veils. Selbak will be in attendance for the screening, which will be followed by a Q&A.

Thursday night's feature is the documentary Ed Hardy: Tattoo the World by Emiko Omori, best known for her 2007 work, Passion & Power: The Technology of Orgasm.

The biggest event of this year's fest occurs on Friday night when POWFest's "Guest of Honor" Gillian Armstrong rolls into town. The award-winning Australian director of My Brilliant Career and Oscar and Lucinda brings with her a new documentary, Love, Lust & Lies, the fifth film in a series chronologically observing the lives of three women. And, yes, Armstrong will be around to participate in a post-screening Q&A.

Saturday is by far the most packed day on the schedule, featuring three separate short film programs, a couple of short-form documentaries and Briar March's documentary about the effects of global warming on the Pacific island of Takuu, There Once Was an Island.

Everything wraps up on Sunday with an afternoon program of shorts, followed by Made in India, Rebecca Haimowitz and Vaishali Sinha's exploration of India's fast emerging surrogacy export market and, finally, another chance to catch Tonje Hessen Schei's locally produced doc, Play Again.

That's an awful lot of content to choose from over a relatively short period of time, so those looking to sort it out further should immediately take a dip into the official POWFest website for info on show times, ticket prices, workshops and more!

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