1 down, 2 to Go!

Sorry for the delay in posting a review of the Winnipeg show, but festivals and flights have a way of exhausting people.

Where to start. Well, the first thing to say is that a combination of winter come early, and Russell Peters' sold out shows, still can't keep people away from the One Take Super 8 Event. Winnipeg showed up en masse (and early!) to witness the premiere of 34 new films at the Gas Station Theatre. It's our 4th year in Winnipeg, with 4 different venues, and this may have been the best yet. Big screen, great seats, full audio system, and a lobby with beer.

The projector held up yet again! I consider this the major achievement of every show, as I still haven't purchased back up belts, which seems to be the biggest risk at this point for projector failure. But the films played very smoothly and brightly.

With 34 films, there's too many to mention them all, but the night got off to a great start with Mathue Plouffe's Lumberjack: A Love story (which was an ironic follow up to Heidi Phillips beautifully rendered ektachrome film of a bonfire). Plouffe's humourous environmental tale created tree lovers of the bunch of us. Hard to top that film, but Curtis Weibe brought down the house with this B&W throwback ROCKET JOHN. This is a super hero we hope will make return trips to WNDX, and anyone who hooks up fireworks to someone's back for a One Take, surely deserves respect for that level of commitment. It was a flawless in camera edit, and a film worth seeing repeatedly. The narrative films are getting more sophisticated every year, from genre homages, to quirky 'only in Winnipeg' films. Hats off to Leslie Supnet for her animation which continues to experiment with the form, creating visual patterns that thrive on illusion.

A documentary that stood out in the evening came courtesy of Sunny Sidhu. A simple, yet very effective portrait of his father's daily rituals. It added depth to the evening's program that showed how much is possible in only 3 short minutes.
Another doc, which makes WHIP IT! seem like a hack effort was Kristin Andrews '$0 per Gallon'. This is the first roller skating super 8 film i think I've seen as a One Take, and it just showed how some things never go out of style (I'm talking super 8 and roller skates!) Melanie Safka's 'Brand New Key', was the perfect soundtrack, and I won't be surprised if this starts a roller revolution in the 'peg.

It's no stretch to say that Jaimz and Karen Asmundson created a super 8 film for the ages with their newest work 'GOTHS! ON THE BUS!'. People were doubling over at the visuals alone, but when you add their original soundtrack (which I've been singing to myself for days), it was clear that with a good idea, a few friends, a couple bus tokens and a super 8 camera, nothing is impossible.
I'm keenly awaiting the chance to see this film again, or for the soundtrack to be released ASAP.

So many more films to highlight, but sadly, unless you were there, any review won't do them justice. It was a fantastic evening and a perfect ending to arguably the best WNDX so far. No blizzard was going to hold down this festival, and there's no doubt anticipation is already building for next year.

But no time for looking back now, we're on the cusp of 2 more great OTS8's this fall. Regina is just around the corner. Later today we should be getting our poster proof (another Stacey Case collectible screenprint), and then the campaign begins to let the Queen City know it's about to be overtaken by super 8 madness. Films and soundtracks are pouring in, so now's the time to get the word out about seeing these great films.

Check back soon to see our spiffy new poster, I'll post a pic here.