2006 Program

The following films have been accepted into the Utopia Film Festival:

• Ally’s Bunny Stu - This tricky comedy short features a battle of wits between a young woman and her pet rabbit. The crafty rabbit repeatedly tries to do its owner in as Ally prepares a delicious bunny stew.


• The Anacostia: Restoring the Peoples’ River - How a group of environmentalists are cleaning up the Anacostia River.


• Bone Mixers - Each Wednesday night, Ed’s cozy suburban home in Silver Spring becomes a raucous international dominoes club. Players from all parts of the globe show up to slap down a bone, forming an odd, yet unique, family portrait - amid thumping reggae beats, flowing wine and contagious laughter in this award-winning documentary.
  http://www.hoodooproductions.com/bonemixers/


• Burn These First! - Two offbeat original short features produced by Joseph P. Harris and L. Jason Colton for the 48 Hour Film Festival.


• The Cell Phone, <ESC>, Soap Opera - A trio of intriguing animations by Zachary Brewster-Geisz


• Charles Herbert Flowers: In His Own Words - David Ziegler’s portrait of the life and times of Prince George’s County resident and Tuskegee Airman Charles Herbert Flowers.


• Chris Haley Shorts - A delightful selection of short cinematic works by actor-director-singer Chris Haley.


• The District - An adults-only, feature-length Hungarian cartoon, subtitled and politically-charged.


• Eternal High - A young Michigan man’s award-winning short about his own suicidal depression.


• Greenbelt Documentary - The amazing history of a utopian town built by the idealistic FDR administration during the darkest years of the Great Depression.


• Hi, Jane! - Leaving his mother, Jane, in a Hyattsville nursing home, Greenbelt filmmaker Doug Love sets off for the wilds of Ohio and Indiana to record relatives’ greetings to take back to Jane.


• Homecoming…Sometimes I Am Haunted By Memories of Red Dirt & Clay - A film about the lives and work of some African-American farmers.


• Honey Child - A provocative short documentary by veteran Washington Post photographer and filmmaker Craig Herndon about skin color, explored through images of Herndon’s own family members.


• I Quit - A short film from Puerto Rico about the perils of kicking nicotine.


• Invisible Children - A gritty film which follows three Gen-Next kids who document the story of continued violence in Uganda and the practice of kidnapping orphaned children, brainwashing them, and forcing them to fight for the Rebel cause.
  http://www.invisiblechildren.com/


• Jessie Brown 3&4 - Alan Haley’s quirky animation series continues, featuring the antics of talk show hostess Jessie Brown and her weird guests.


• Keeper of the Kohn - The award-winning true story of a senior citizen mascot of a Vermont college lacrosse team who, facing retirement from the team he loves, must also deal with the serious illness of a dear friend.
  http://www.keeperofthekohn.com/


• Mary Surratt: Mystery Woman of the Lincoln Assassination Conspiracy - A cinematic investigation by Susan Gervasi, Malia Murray and Nick Gervasi of the Prince George’s County woman hanged for her alleged involvement in the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln.


• More Than Skin Deep - Being beautiful, inside and out, is what this glimpse of life inside a nursing home - mostly occupied by elderly Jewish women - is all about.


• THE PACT - A cinema verite glimpse into the lives of three African-American doctors who grew up in a rough Newark, New Jersey neighborhood, but vowed to overcome the odds and authored an inspiring best-seller about their challenges.


• The Pen - An historical portrait of the nineteenth century origins of the Maryland State Penitentiary in Baltimore.


• Plagues and Pleasures on the Salton Sea - An edgy documentary about the eccentric inhabitants of a failed resort town situated on the edge of an ecologically-devastated inland sea in southern California. Narrated by filmmaker John Waters.


• Stryker’s America - A poignant documentary about FDR’s revolutionary Depression-era photography program, led by Roy Emerson Stryker - a colleague of Rexford Tugwell, the visionary FDR planner who helped make Greenbelt a reality. The Works Progress Administration photography program inspired such brilliant artists as Gordon Parks, Dorothea Lange and Marion Post Wolcott to record one of our nation’s most difficult periods.


• Supercharge Me...30 Days Raw - With a tip of the headdress to Morgan Spurlock (Supersize Me), former Miss Greenbelt contestant Jenna Norwood takes us on a journey to see what happens when she eats nothing but raw food for 30 days in an effort to fit into a Las Vegas showgirl costume.
  http://www.superchargeme.com/


• Swimmers - Starring Frederick County-born Shawn Hatosy and directed by Maryland Eastern Shore native Doug Sadler, Swimmers tells of human frailty and individual strength in the face of a fracturing American dream - as seen through the eyes of the 11-year-old daughter of a Chesapeake Bay waterman.
  http://www.swimmersthemovie.com/


• Taking the High Road to Madrid USA - Explores how a group of hippies in the early 1970’s took over a New Mexico ghost town along the Turquoise Trail, stayed and grew old(er) there, creating a tourist mecca which now tests their hippie values.


• Three Brave Men - This 1956 Hollywood feature film starring Ray Milland and Ernest Borgnine is based on an actual incident which occurred during the McCarthy era and involved Greenbelt residents.


• Two Front Teeth - Not for the faint-hearted, this horror-comedy offering from Ellicott City is a great kickoff to the holiday season, featuring a grim showdown between the evil tooth fairy and heroic Santa Claus, as leering carnivorous zombie reindeer attempt to take over the world.


• Urban Reality - This documentary takes a hard look at the impact of gentrification on an low income neighborhood in Washington, D.C.


• Yokes and Chains - A gripping documentary preview trailer focused on racial tensions surrounding a controversial Annapolis street event in which the roles of slaves and slave-masters were reversed.

Plus a diverse selection of original short films, including:

• Accountable - A short created by young filmmakers Aaron Woodall and Nicholas Dobson tells the tale of a mob boss who's employee has failed him. Features a tour-de-force performace by local actor and director Micheal McMullin.


• Borbor Bele Music Videos


• Butter


• The Coward - The final Nicholas Dobson / Aaron Woodall film protrays a teen preparing to fight the most notorious bully in school.


• Imitation of Life


• See Me


• Seven Minutes


• Ten Paces


• Torn - A 48 Hour Film Project entry from young local filmmaker Nick Dobson tells the story of a girl torn between two guys, and the final decision is anything but easy.


• Urban/Rural Landscapes Explored in Video and Film - Assortment of mind absorbing experimental shorts compiled by Chris Lynn:
  
  
  • Boulder/Brooklyn (Nicole Koschmann)
    A correspondence through images from Brooklyn, NY to Boulder, Colorado.
  • Flow (Scott NYERGES)
    A meditation on the creeks and rivers of Austin, Texas during the spring and summer rendered in paint and pixels.
  • The Lights and Perfections (Paul Clipson)
    A bug's eye view of the world, mysterious and wonderful-plant studies and urban landscapes woven into soft focus home movies.
  • Clouds and the Docklands (Chris Lynn)
    Vignette 4 in the London series is an examination of the of the Docklands in London juxtaposed with rain and clouds.
  • Tidemills (Nick Collins)
    The poetry of the UK seacoast on any given day.
  • ROCK/HARD Place (Roger Beebe)
    A film that attempts to bring the Urban and rural landscape together in one frame, so the viewer can question the significance.Shot in Morro Bay, California
  • The Taste of the South (Mar Solis)
    Shot in Spain this is a vivid portrait of Easter week.
  • Translumination (Craig Herndon)
    An abstract journey in sound and colour.

Information on times of showings is available in the Schedule section of this site.