Angry Film—Self-proclaimed “angry filmmaker” Kelley Baker will be at the Guild Cinema on Thursday, Feb. 17, to screen his latest DV feature Kicking Bird. Baker has toured the country for the last two years conducting filmmaking workshops, screening his films, giving guest lectures and otherwise preaching the gospel of nonHollywood cinema. In addition to his own work, he's served as a sound designer on films like Good Will Hunting, To Die For, Far from Heaven and more. Kicking Bird tells the story of a 17-year-old white trash kid who finds his only escape in running and the manipulative high school track coach who sees a use for our foot-pounding protagonist. The screening starts at 9 p.m. Tickets are $6 for everyone.
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Alamogordo Goes Hollywood—The First Annual White Sands Film Festival kicks off Feb. 17-20 in Alamogordo. The festival is designed as a family event and will feature award-winning independent films and filmmaking seminars. Producer Dave Gibbons will be there on Saturday for the premiere of his documentary Fourteen Days in America. Actor-turned-director Rick Schroder will also be on hand, screening his recent Native American boxing drama Black Cloud. Other films on display include: First of May, Touching Wild Horses and Elizabeth: The Royal Diaries. Workshops will cover such things as screenwriting and film financing. For a complete list of films, workshops and ticket prices, log on to www.whitesandsfilmfestival.com.
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More Demanding—The Santa Fe Film Festival's “By Popular Demand” series returns this Saturday, Feb. 19, to the CinemaCafé in Santa Fe. Chris Sourligas' quirky romantic comedy Elephant Shoes, winner of the SFFF's Audience Choice Award will screen at 1:30 and 7 p.m. The Creative Spirit Award winner, Bill Rose's documentary about fallen/resurrected playwright Oakley Hall III titled Loss of Nameless Things, is at 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. Tickets are $8 at the door. CinemaCafé is located at 1616 St. Michael's Drive.
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Women One—Madrid Women Filmmakers will present a screening on Sunday, Feb. 20, starting at 7 p.m. at The Talking Bridge Gallery and Old Soda Fountain in downtown Madrid, N.M. First up is Renea Robert's “Gifting It: A Burning Embrace of Gift Economy,” which examines the unique barter system of the Burning Man Festival. Following that is Betsy Burke's Digifest Southwest award-winning film “Cowboys.” Rounding out the night is Sheilah Wilson's “My Darling,” an investigation of “the absurd undermining of the system by personally generated hierarchies and economies.” Tickets are a mere $5.
