It's that time of year again. Spring in East Lansing means a lot of things to area residents. It's crunch time for students struggling to finish projects and prepare for exams, it's subleasing season, college basketball playoffs and the countdown until summer vacation. It's also film festival season — East Lansing is home to the largest film festival in Michigan.
The ninth annual East Lansing Film Festival, or ELFF, kicked off on Wednesday night and will run until March 30. The festival will screen more than 100 films from 18 countries including the United States.
The event is traditionally a venue for independent, low budget films that may never reach the public without the opportunity a film festival provides. Another part of the ELFF is the Lake Michigan Film Competition, which features films made in Michigan and the surrounding states.
Audiences at the festival can expect to see a wide variety of films. The festival will screen everything from student-made films to Hollywood productions. Festival attendees will have the chance to view film genres that are less common in theaters, such as documentaries and short films.
Another unique thing about film festivals is the opportunity for viewers and filmmakers to come together. A number of directors will be attending the screenings of their films at the ELFF. Viewers will have the chance to discuss the films with the people behind them during the course of the festival.
Jim Auker is a veteran to the film business. He started out editing films in 1967 when he was an apprentice to famed director John Cassavetes. Auker moved to Michigan in 1981 and continued working in the film business. He has added directing and screenwriting to his resume. His newest film, "I Love You … For Awhile" was mostly shot in the Detroit area.
Auker said his film mixes serious themes with humor.
"I think that issue-related films are important and entertainment is important, too. But they're not mutually exclusive," he said. "The topics that intrigue me are the things that happen in life."
Auker said, as a director he uses everyday things in his films to make an impact on viewers.
"After you finish watching a film like mine, I think there is a lot of room for people to talk about what it is saying, and I like that," he said.
Eventually, Auker said he would like to teach film. He knows exactly how he would do it.
"I'd like to say, 'Hey kids, take whatever film you like and just cut it to pieces.'" he said. "That is the best way to learn. When you separate the shots from the other shots you see the editing. You forget to watch the editing, even if you're in the business. That's how you can separate yourself from the story and actually see what they've done."
Auker will be attending the screening of "I Love You … For Awhile" at the festival.
Joel Engardio learned how to tell a story working in print journalism. The 1994 MSU journalism graduate said writing provided him with a great background for overcoming the challenges associated with making a documentary.
"It's very hard to get the funding and to find the untold story," he said. "It just takes a lot of digging and begging and borrowing."
For Engardio, the untold story was about Jehovah's Witnesses. He created a documentary called "Knocking," which explores the religion. The documentary will also be featured on the upcoming season of the PBS series, "Independent Lens," beginning in October.
"It's interesting; nobody wanted this film made," he said. "Jehovah's Witnesses were uncooperative. People who don't like the Jehovah's were on my case. Convincing PBS was hard. It made me feel like I was onto something."
Engardio said the first inspiration for the film was his own experience growing up.
"My mom was the only one in my large, Italian Catholic family to become a Jehovah's Witness, and she did that when I was very young," he said. "She took me door to door with her, so I experienced it as a kid."
He opted not to join the religion, but the untold story stuck in his head as he began to work on his journalism career. Engardio will attend the screening of "Knocking" at the film festival.
Director Stu Pollard will say he lives in Santa Monica, but his friendly Southern drawl gives his roots away. Pollard said he wants to take people to a place they haven't seen a lot of in his films. He grew up in Kentucky and went back to film "Keep Your Distance" in his hometown of Louisville.
Pollard said "Keep Your Distance" conveys a number of messages, and he loves to talk to viewers after the movie and see what they took away from it.
"There is nothing more gratifying to me than having someone say 'it made me think' or that it reminds them of a situation in their own life," he said. "That tells me I'm telling stories that are contemporary and meaningful and true."
Pollard said he tries to make the characters in his films believable.
"My characters come from three sources: imagination, real people and characters that have inspired me from other films," he said. "So, any particular character might be a combination from fiction or someone that crossed my path or somebody from a classic movie I might throw in. Nobody is ever just one of those."
If he could go back to school again, Pollard said he would not have majored in film — and that is his advice to aspiring filmmakers.
"Don't major in film. Major in something that is going to give you more insight into why people are the way they are or do the things they do," he said. "That will make you a more well-rounded individual."
Pollard added it's beneficial to get involved with other people and make movies while you are in school, but actually studying film too early might cause you to miss out on other things.
Pollard will attend the screening of "Keep Your Distance" at the festival.
Director Robert Prince is flying in from Fairbanks, Alabama to be at the screening of his documentary. The East Lansing native and 2004 MSU graduate said he's really excited to have his film, "Making Choices: The Dutch Resistance During World War II," showing in his hometown.
Prince said one of the most challenging aspects of creating a documentary is deciding what to include.
"I narrow it down by asking myself what stories I tell people when they ask me about this documentary," he said. "Those are the ones I should put in the documentary. You assemble it through those major stories."
Prince has watched a lot of documentaries about the Holocaust, but he said his film sheds new light on what might be a familiar topic.
"I try to tell some stories that are atypical of what you would expect to hear," he said. "I know its a grim topic, but there are some funny stories in it. There are points where I want people to sort of laugh."
Prince is now an assistant professor of journalism at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. He said his next few projects are Alaska-related.
For more information on the East Lansing Film Festival, visit www.elff.com.
THE NINTH ANNUAL EAST LANSING FILM FESTIVAL
What it is: The largest film festival in Michigan. This year's festival will feature 108 films from 18 different countries.
When: The festival began on Wednesday and will run until March 30.
Where: Screenings are held at Hannah Center, 819 Abbott Road, on campus at Wells Hall and at Celebration Cinema, 200 E. Edgewood Blvd. in Lansing.
Price: Tonight's screening of "American Dreamz" is $7 general admission and $5 for students and seniors. All other films in Wells Hall are $7 general admission and $5 for students and seniors. Evening films at Celebration Cinema are $7.50 general admission, $6.50 for students and $5.50 for children under 12 and seniors. Matinee screenings are $5.50 for everyone. Weekend-long and other types of passes are also available; visit www.elff.com for information.
Tickets: Tickets can be purchased tonight at the Hannah Center from 6:30 p.m. until 7:30 p.m; on Friday, at Wells Hall from 6 p.m. until 10 p.m.; on Saturday, at Wells Hall from 12:30 p.m. until 9:30 p.m.; and on Sunday, at Wells Hall from 11 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. Only checks and cash are accepted.
MEET THE DIRECTORS The East Lansing Film Festival provides audiences with the unique chance to meet the directors behind some of the films they are viewing. A number of directors plan to attend the screenings of their films at the festival, and some are participating in an additional roundtable discussion at 11 a.m. on Saturday.
Here's a sampling of who festival-goers can expect to meet:
Jim Auker
"I Love You … For Awhile"
Genre: Comedy/romance
Meet Auker and see the film on Sunday, March 26 at 11:30 a.m. in Wells Hall.
Stu Pollard
"Keep Your Distance"
Genre: Mystery/thriller
Meet Pollard and see the film on Saturday, March 25 at 9:30 p.m. in Wells Hall.
Robert Prince
"Making Choices: The Dutch Resistance During World War II"
Genre: Documentary
Meet Prince and see the film on Sunday, March 26 at 11:30 a.m. in Wells Hall.
Joel Engardio
"Knocking"
Genre: Documentary
Meet Engardio and see the film on Friday, March 24 at 7 p.m. in Wells Hall.
