15th Annual Ozark Foothills FilmFest Line-Up Announced – The 15th annual Ozark Foothills FilmFest has released the schedule of screenings and ancillary activities slated for this year’s festival. The festival is scheduled for April 1, 2, 8, and 9. All screenings take place in Independence Hall on the campus of the University of Arkansas Community College at Batesville. Other activities will take place at Lyon College, MorningSide Coffee House, and Fox Creek Barbeque, all in Batesville.
The FilmFest will screen 38 films during the four day event, 28 of which are Arkansas premieres. At last count, 16 of the filmmakers whose work is screening will attend and conduct post-screening Q&As.
Some of the Arkansas premiere narrative features to screen are: FRANK VS. GOD, about a man who, when told the death of his dog in a tornado is “an act of God,” decides to sue God; DEATH ON A ROCK, an introspective and bittersweet film about a young woman coming to terms with a trying event in her life; and BROKE, about a disgraced sports star and gambling addict who attempts to turn his life around.
Noteworthy documentary features include: WATER LIKE STONE, a story about the people who live in Louisiana’s vanishing wetlands; THE MYSTERY OF PICASSO, a 1956 film by Henri-Georges Clouzot considered by many to be the greatest documentary about an artist ever made; and 120 DAYS, a moving account of an undocumented immigrant given 120 days to put his affairs in order before being deported.
In celebration of the 15th anniversary of the FilmFest, the festival has prepared a gift to the community in the form of an opening night program titled “Early Cinema on the Vaudeville Stage.” The program is a re-creation of a vaudeville variety show from the brief historical period when motion pictures were first being introduced to Americans via the vaudeville variety show circuit. A grant award from the Arkansas Humanities Council has made it possible to present this truly unique high energy event AT NO COST TO THE PUBLIC. It takes place on Friday, April 1 at 6:30 PM.
For the complete festival schedule, as well as information about venues, tickets, and lodging, visit www.ozarkfoothillsfilmfest.org.
The 2016 Ozark Foothills FilmFest is sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Arkansas Humanities Council, the Independence County Recreation Fund, First Community Bank, FutureFuel Chemical Company, Citizens Bank, White River Distributors, Bad Boy Mowers, Kent’s Firestone, Bryant’s Pharmacy, Entergy, and numerous other Batesville businesses.
