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DECEMBER 31, 2004: ARTS: THEATRE
SCREEN DOOR WELCOMES SHORT-FILM MAKERS
BY JAMES RENOVITCH
Once you get past the foreboding barbed-wire fence around
the parking lot of Arts on Real, you realize just how
inviting the theatre is. A wide, carpeted staircase
leads to a plush lobby with a bar where Ryan Long and
John Hewlett of Screen Door Film wait to elucidate the
ins and outs of the short-film world. Long tells it
like it is: "You find when you start off that there
is no database you can look up short films. They're
out in the ether. ... We're trying to let the people
of Austin know that we're here and we have this beautiful
facility and all we need are your freakin' films."
Desperate? Judging by the caliber of works to be offered
in their Screen Door Best of 2004 program, you wouldn't
think so. They accept submissions (for free!) and, after
disposing of the chaff, use the wheat to cook up a bimonthly
program of local, national, and international short-form
cinema. "We're always seeking films. ... [But]
we like to think of ourselves as a bit of a filter so
that you don't have to sit through Bobby's homemade
porn movie," Hewlett admits. The films range from
four to 25 minutes, from drama to comedy, and from 35mm
to DV, and the showcases offer works from Austin and
beyond. But here, we like things all Austin all the
time.
"If we could show nothing but Austin films we would
be ecstatic," Long says. "But, unfortunately
they're not as accessible to us." Luckily, what
little they might lack in local content, Long and Hewlett
certainly atone for in local spirit. Screen Door showcases
are as much about networking within the Austin film
scene as they are about the art of film. "That's
why we always do an intermission, so that people have
an opportunity to meet," Hewlett explains. Directors
meet actors. Editors meet camera operators. And you
might meet Blake Yelavich.
Yelavich, the manager of Arts on Real, turned out to
be an extension of his theatre's inviting ambience,
offering Screen Door access to his facilities for presenting
the films and later even buying a top-of-the-line projector
for their use. "Blake Yelavich is our benefactor
in a sense," Long says, "kind of our guru.
Always encouraging us."
Encouragement Screen Door is using to think big in 2005.
"Another one of our long-term goals is once we
have enough films under our belt and we feel like we
have a definitive best ... I think we can take it on
the road," Long says. "Instead of submitting
your film to 20 different festivals, submit it to Screen
Door and we'll take it on the road for you."
So, they have heart? Check. A theatre? Check. Know-how?
Check. Projector, future goals, supportive peers? Check.
Films? Uhhhhh. Long states the obvious: "People
should know that if you're thinking about making a film
and you don't know where it's gonna end up or where
it's gonna go, we have a facility that's dying to show
it. So, get off your ass and do it."
The
Arts on Real Theatre (2826 Real St.) presents Screen
Door Best of 2004 on Jan. 25. Doors opens at 7pm; films
start at 8pm. Admission is $5. For more information,
see www.screendoorfilm.com
