Julio Vincent Gambuto’s TEAM MARCO at Oxford Film Festival emphasizes family with OFF to the DRIVE IN and the 8th Weekly Virtual Film Fest heads back to Mississippi with NOTHIN’ NO BETTER
Oxford Film Festival offers another robust lineup of films for the summer, with two family films at OFF to the DRIVE IN with Julio Vincent Gambuto’s TEAM MARCO, and Jim Henson’s beloved classic LABYRINTH on June 18 and 19.
Presenting Sponsor Cannon Motors will host the screenings at the Cannon Lot (100 Thacker Loop).
Julio Vincent Gambuto’s TEAM MARCO and more programming at Oxford Film Festival emphasizes family
Also just announced for the Drive-In is the Sundance hit MISS JUNETEENTH on June 21 along with a free pizza party from Dodo Pizza.
LABYRINTH
TEAM MARCO
MISS JUNETEENTH
This week’s Virtual Art House offerings are highlighted by Tom Bean, and Luke Poling’s documentary focusing on the one-of-a-kind participatory journalist, George Plimpton in PLIMPTON! STARRING GEORGE PLIMPTON AS HIMSELF, Daniel Karslake’s documentary on families struggling with the new world outlook on LGBTQ issues, FOR THEY KNOW NOT WHAT THEY DO, and Menelek Lumumba animated drama, 1 ANGRY BLACK MAN.
Julio Vincent Gambuto’s TEAM MARCO , Ben and Bo Powell’s film NOTHIN’ NO BETTER at Oxford Film Festival emphasizes family
Oxford FF’s 8th Weekly Virtual Film Fest puts local filmmaking front and center with Ben and Bo Powell’s film NOTHIN’ NO BETTER which looks at the town of Rosedale, Mississippi. Two shorts programs include Project(ions), an experimental film program, as well as a Student Shorts program.
PLIMPTON! STARRING GEORGE PLIMPTON AS HIMSELF
NOTHIN’ NO BETTER
MARONA’S FANTASTIC TALE
Executive Director Melanie Addington said. “From alumni films like PLIMPTON! STARRING GEORGE PLIMPTON AS HIMSELF that we can support with our Virtual Art House model, to one of my favorite films, LABYRINTH, from Mississippian’s own Jim Henson, at OFF to the DRIVE-IN and hosting MISS JUNETEENTH as well as providing free pizza from Dodo Pizza to create some sort of Juneteenth celebration for Oxford, to our Weekly Virtual Film Festival supporting artists from around the world, we are busy over at Oxford Film Festival shining a light on what makes our town truly special: the love of the arts.”
Julio Vincent Gambuto’s TEAM MARCO, Virtual Arthouse Rental at Oxford Film Festival emphasizes family
VIRTUAL ART HOUSE RENTAL TICKETS:
1 ANGRY BLACK MAN
FOR THEY KNOW NOT WHAT THEY DO
MARONA’S FANTASTIC TALE
PLIMPTON! STARRING GEORGE PLIMPTON AS HIMSELF
THE SURROGATE
THIS IS NOT A MOVIE
WEEKLY VIRTUAL FILM FEST TICKETS:
NOTHIN’ NO BETTER
Live Q&A set for June 12 at 1:00PM central time
Table read of “Phelandra” – Oxford FF 2020 Screenplay Winner
Live reading set for June 13 at 4:00PM central time
Project(ions) Shorts
Live Q&A set for June 14 at 3:00PM central time
Student Shorts Block
Live Q&A set for June 14 at 4:30PM central time
OFF to the DRIVE-IN TICKETS
TEAM MARCO
June 18 at 8:00PM at Cannon Lot (100 Thacker Loop)
Pre-purchases only
LABYRINTH
June 19 at 8:00PM at Cannon Lot (100 Thacker Loop)
Pre-purchases only
MISS JUNETEENTH
June 21 at 8:00PM at Cannon Lot (100 Thacker loop)
Pre-purchases only
BETWEEN THE EYES 2
GOTCHA!
THE 11TH ORDER
OXFORD FILM FESTIVAL 2020 8th WEEKLY VIRTUAL FILM FEST
Films, events and descriptions
OFF to the DRIVE IN
LABYRINTH (1986)
Director: Jim Henson
Country: USA, Running Time: 101 min
Sixteen-year-old Sarah is given thirteen hours to solve a labyrinth and rescue her baby brother Toby when her wish for him to be taken away is granted by the Goblin King Jareth.
MISS JUNETEENTH
Director: Channing Godfrey Peoples
Country: USA, Running Time: 103 min
A former beauty queen and single mom prepares her rebellious teenage daughter for the “Miss Juneteenth” pageant.
TEAM MARCO
Director: Julio Vincent Gambuto
Country: USA, Running Time: 92 min
Marco, 11, is obsessed with his electronics and hardly leaves the house. But when his grandmother dies and his grandfather moves in, Marco’s life is turned upside-down and he’s forced…to go play outside. “Nonno” (Grandpa) introduces him to bocce — the world’s oldest game — and to the neighborhood crew of old Italian men who play daily at the local court. With sport, laughter and love, “Marcolino,” as his grandfather calls him, finds connection to other people “in real life” and rounds up a team of neighborhood kids to take on his grandfather and his pals.
OXFORD FILM FESTIVAL TABLE READ
“Phelandra” – Oxford FF 2020 Screenplay Winner
A comedic thriller about an SAT tutor who’s hired by a wealthy woman to murder her husband’s houseplant. It’s about how we choose to spend our time, how possessive we are of other people’s time, and how dangerous and seductive the phenomenon of “novelty” can be. More information on the film project’s progress can be found on Instagram (@jonnymarblesfilms) or at www.jonnymarblesfilms.com.
The reading includes:
Madeline Wise (HBO’s “Crashing”), Jonathan Marballi (“House of Cards”, “Broad City”) Robert Picardo (“Star Trek Voyager”), and other special guests.
MISSISSIPPI FILM PRESENTATION
NOTHIN’ NO BETTER
Directors: Ben & Bo Powell
Country: USA, Running Time: 70 min
Come meet the people of Rosedale, Mississippi, in this gently composed peek at life in a fading but beloved Delta town. All sorts of people make their homes in this quintessential and iconic American community. Despite a painful past and an uncertain future, Rosedale is still hanging on.
SHORT FILM PROGRAMS
Project(ions)
TRT: 57:33 min
BETWEEN THE EYES 2
Director: Heehyun Choi
Country: USA, Running Time: 2:48 min
A mass of space continuously emerges between the squared gazes. The gazes around a camera, each pointing at different directions, instantly create worlds of various dimensions. This video attempts to twist the linear connection between those worlds.
CAMERA SICK
Director: Jeremy Moss
Country: Morocco, Running Time: 13:16 min
The earth spins while bodies and cameras wind and rotate on its surface. Sand particles infest recording devices scratching unravelling celluloid. The camera and its operator transform from seers to ecstatic performers.
CORNERED
Director: Raquel Salvatella de Prada
Country: USA, Running Time: 8:21 min
Part sculpture, part light installation and video animation, Cornered is an immersive visual experience that represents the motivation and struggles of migrants making an attempt to cross the border from Morocco to the Spanish cities of Melilla and Ceuta situated on Africa’s mainland.
DREAMS & NIGHTMARES
Director: John Alston
Country: USA, Running Time: 3:20 min
A juxtaposition of horror and beauty, using a classic animation method.
DREAMSCAPE #1 – LOVERS
Director: Nataša Prosenc Stearns
Countries: Slovenia/USA, Running Time: 7:03 min
Inspired by Fragments of Lover’s Discourse by French philosopher Roland Barthes, the film plows into elusive substance of fantasies and dreams of lovers. DREAMSCAPE #1 – LOVERS is a moving collage, which integrates human body with organic world. The process of layering connects visual elements and leads to fragments of narration. The film explores the themes of connectedness, oneness and identity.
ETUDE 2A: OVERTONES
Directors: Laura Ivins, Benjamin J. Penwell
Country: USA, Running Time: 5:25 min
Exploring the musical concept of “overtones,” this film is a playful, feminist study in the plurality of visual and auditory meanings of the term.
MEMORY IX UTOPOS/DYSTOPOS
Director: Gloria Chung
Country: USA, Running Time: 7:30 min
Hello. This is the visual log from one of the first voyages to the outlands. Video clips taken during trips have been reimagined into a science fiction narrative, pondering utopias/dystopias, climate change, and “Star Trek” planetary locations.
ORIGAMI TUTORIAL
Director: Heehyun Choi
Country: USA, Running Time: 5:51 min
While repeatedly folding a piece of paper, you will be introduced to somewhere you’ve never expected. What is an image? What is a reality? What is a film?
Student Shorts
TRT: 52:45 min
THE 11TH ORDER
Director: Joshua DeFour
Country: USA, Running Time: 25 min
The true story of two U.S. Marines who, in a span of six seconds, must stand their ground to stop a suicide truck bomb and protect the lives of the 150 Marines and Iraqi Police behind them.
A GIRL CALLED TUESDAY
Director: Tony King
Country: USA, Running Time: 10 min
Daryl wakes up in a mysterious white cave. There are clues to a murder. Who was killed? Who committed the crime? Is he alone in the cave? Is he out of his mind?
GOTCHA!
Director: Deborah Pinkney
Country: USA, Running Time: 3 min
Bonnie, a toddler, travels through numerous places looking for what was taken from her. She proceeds to encounter a variety of characters to take back what was stolen from her. Busting into a saloon she come face to face with the answers she seeks.
SHE WHO WASN’T TAMED
Director: Saleh Kashefi
Country: Iran, Running Time: 16 min
Hanie, a highschool girl tries her best to not to disappoint her parents and her teacher at the poetry competition.
THEY WON’T LAST
Director: Portlynn Tagavi
Country: USA, Running Time: 16 min
After attending their friends’ perfect wedding, Christine is forced to consider the future of her own relationship when her hopeless romantic boyfriend Alex proposes. When Christine is unable to say yes, Alex makes it worse by giving her an ultimatum: either get engaged or break up right now.
VIRTUAL ART HOUSE
1 ANGRY BLACK MAN
Director: Menelek Lumumba
Country: USA, Running Time: 92 minutes
Mike Anderson is a senior at the quintessential New-England liberal arts school, Frost College. And Mike is eight weeks away from graduation. On this particular day he has his African-American Literature class with his favorite professor. But today, Mike is feeling sadness. He’s feeling isolated. He’s feeling Angry.
FOR THEY KNOW NOT WHAT THEY DO
Director: Daniel Karslake
Country: USA, Running Time: 92 min
From the director of FOR THE BIBLE TELLS ME SO, Daniel Karslake’s new film explores the intersection of religion, sexual orientation, and gender identity in current-day America. The arrival of marriage equality was seen by many as the pinnacle achievement of the march toward full equality for LGBTQ people. But for many on the Right, it was the last straw, and their public backlash has been swift, severe, and successful. By telling the stories of four families struggling with these issues, the film offers healing and understanding to those caught in the crosshairs of scripture, sexuality, and identity.
MARONA’S FANTASTIC TALE
Director: Anca Damian
Country: Russia, Running Time: 92 min
After an accident, a little dog remembers all the different masters she’s had successively and loved unconditionally.
PLIMPTON! STARRING GEORGE PLIMPTON AS HIMSELF (2012)
Directors: Tom Bean, Luke Poling
Country: USA, Running Time: 89 min
He pitched to Willie Mays, suited up for the Celtics, stepped into the ring with Archie Moore, and even took a few snaps as quarterback for the Detroit Lions. But George Plimpton was no athlete. With wit, charm, and a skillful pen, this participatory journalist created a life that many athletes could only dream of. His sensational career is captured here in heartwarming footage and intimate personal interviews.
THE SURROGATE
Director: Jeremy Hersh
Country: USA, Running Time: 93 min
Jess is thrilled to be the surrogate for her best friend and his husband, but when a prenatal test comes back positive, it creates a moral dilemma that threatens their friendship.
THIS IS NOT A MOVIE
Director: Yung Chang
Country: USA, Running Time: 106 min
The groundbreaking and often game-changing reporting of legendary foreign correspondent and author Robert Fisk is profiled in the latest from acclaimed documentarian Yung Chang (UP THE YANGTZE).
Julio Vincent Gambuto’s TEAM MARCO at Oxford Film Festival emphasizes family with OFF to the DRIVE IN and the 8th Weekly Virtual Film Fest heads back to Mississippi with NOTHIN’ NO BETTER