UFR: Underground Film Revolution

2004-05-29T15:43:00.000-07:00

The Milky Way and the underground film revolution present
F*CK THE COPYRIGHT!
films that defy the copyright confines and attack american pop culture
MONDAY JUNE 7, 2004 AT 9.30PM - THE MILKY WAY LOUNGE

Do you like to watch stuff you're not supposed to???

Don't be ashamed, everybody has a bit of a naughty side...and this month, the underground film revolution (UFR) is doing it's own little part to facilitate the process.

UFR is proud (and not the least bit scared) to present several ILLEGAL and CONTRABAND films that you just can't see at your local multiplex. All of the filmmakers represented at the screening use their camera to satirize popular culture at its commercial core: THE ACTION FIGURE.

Back for a second screening (work was previously presented at last year's UFR Women's Director Spotlight) is local filmmaker Michelle Barczykowski. Barczykowski's short videos manipulate GI JOE action dolls into all sorts of sexual and power scenarios (including a fabulous take on the TV show COPS and a provocative strip tease topped of astroglide).

Headlining the evening is a certain infamous film that we're technically not allowed to mention...BUT, let's just say that it's a senior thesis film made by a now famous Hollywood film director while he was studying at Brown University. Its subjects are a famous brother and sister 1970s singing duo known for their happy tunes and not so happy personal lives...the female member in question had a quite publicized issue with eating disorders. The film, animated by Barbie and Ken dolls, has grown into a cult classic as the family of said musicians sued the filmmaker for libel.

To conclude the evening, a similar group of short videos featuring a Farrah Faucet action figure and parodies of scifi favorite ALIEN will also screen. Plus the Joe Gibbons pixelvision short, Barbie's Audition--a quite humorously uncomfortable look at the infamously sleazy casting couch.

The UFR program is currently an extension of THE VIDEO UNDERGROUND, an independent video rental store located at 389 Centre Street in Hyde Square, Jamaica Plain (617-522-4949) that seeks to support and promote independent filmmakers and create a diverse film/video selection for its customers. This month's UFR screening is co-curated by Coolidge Theatre's Clinton McClung (guru of the sadly defunct Allston Underground).

The Milky Way is located at 403-405 Centre Street in Jamaica Plain, downstairs from Bella Luna. It is accessible via public transportation (Perkins Street stop on the #39 Bus/Jackson Square stop on the Orange Line T). Screenings begin at 9:30pm on the first Monday of every month; admission for is $5 per person and the events are 21-plus unless otherwise noted. Please call 617.524.3740 for EVENT INFO, more detailed directions or other club info.
__________________
Evonne Hyla Wetzner
The Video Underground, Inc.
389 Centre Street, Jamaica Plain, MA. 02130
PH.617.522.4949/FX.617.522.5925
www.thevideounderground.com

Supporting independent filmmakers and offering Jamaica Plain a diverse selection of Videos and DVDs.

2003-08-22T16:08:00.000-07:00

Truth Serum and the underground film revolution jointly present
OFF THE CHARTS: THE SONG-POEM STORY
plus a live musical performance featuring songs from the film!
THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 4th, 2003 at THE MILKY WAY LOUNGE
9pm / $5 / 21+

Have you ever dreamed of writing a hit song? Ever belted out your very own heartfelt lyrics just a little too loudly in the shower, knowing deep down that YOU could be the next superstar?

Jamie Meltzer’s debut film, OFF THE CHARTS: The Song-Poem Story, recognizes and explores the strange underworld of the “song-poem” industry–a subculture in which “ordinary people” respond to ads in the back pages of magazines (”Send in Your Lyrics and Make $50,000 in royalties”), mail in their often bizarre poems to “music industry” execs who, for a fee, turn those poems into real recordings.

Like a warped fun-house mirror, the song-poem industry has run parallel to the mainstream business for close to a century. It is estimated that over 200,000 song-poems have been recorded since 1900! The genre’s durability is due to three core American desires: to get rich quick, to become famous, and to express our deepest feelings creatively. OFF THE CHARTS shares interviews with several song-poem writers (whose song subjects range from Jesus to genitalia, from politics to Elvis), jaded producers (also known as “song-sharks”), the musicians who set the words to music, and even a few of the growing number of zealous song-poem connoisseurs.

As filmmaker Meltzer says: “The beauty of song-poems is that they are a result of the intersection, or collision, of ordinary people’s expressions and the desires of musicians/businesses to make a quick buck, making the music as fast as they can, usually in one take. When those two forces combine, they create strangely compelling songs that are unlike anything you’ve ever heard.” Shocking, funny and heart-wrenching all at the same time, OFF THE CHARTS is a fascinating look at one of the strangest subcultures in our American landscape.

OFF THE CHARTS: The Song-Poem Story has previously aired on the PBS series, Independent Lens in February 2003. Visit www.pbs.org/independentlens/offthecharts/ for more film info.

Following the screening, two bands will perform some of the songs from the film, and then work with audience members to create new "song-poems" on the spot! So, bring your dreams of super-stardom and come prepared to make your lyrics into a real-live song...

Snoozer (Susie Ghahremani) is a one-woman-band from Providence, RI with a penchant for sleeping things off and writing pop songs about them later. On her records (self-released solo "Songs" CD of 4-track demos, her band Snuggletooth's "Slot Machine EP" and forthcoming solo record "Winter Stops All Sound" (on Happy Happy Birthday to Me Records) she plays the part of many: organist, bassist, guitarist, 8-part vocalist; Live, she will perform the feat of putting an army of Susies back into just one. For more info visit www.boygirlparty.com

The Weisstronauts are a twangy/surfy/psychedelic guitar-driven band from Boston. They're fronted by cult record producer Pete Weiss (Willard Grant Conspiracy, Charlie Chesterman, Two Dollar Pistols, Boris McCutcheon, Chris Brokaw, Don Lennon etc). The band has released two eclectic all-instrumental CD's (most recently "Featuring Spritely" on Stereorrific/Dren Records). The Weisstronauts play regularly in and around Boston and have completed several small tours up and down the East Coast.

For this show, The Weisstronauts are happy to have special guest George Hall (Seks Bomba, Dogzilla) joining them on guitar in lieu of usual guitarists Ken Lafler and Aaron Tap who are both on their respective summer vacations.

This month's film program will be on the first Thursday night of the month (not the usual Monday), September 4th at 9pm. The screening is presented jointly by Truth Serum and the underground film revolution (UFR). Truth Serum Productions prides itself on bringing Boston edgy entertainment and building community. More Truth Serum events can be found at www.truthserum.org.

The UFR program is currently an extension of THE VIDEO UNDERGROUND, an independent video rental store located at 389 Centre Street in Hyde Square, Jamaica Plain (617-522-4949) that seeks to support and promote independent filmmakers and create a diverse film/video selection for its customers. Please visit www.thevideounderground.com for info.

The Milky Way Lounge is located at 403-405 Centre Street in Jamaica Plain, downstairs from Bella Luna. It is accessible via public transportation (Perkins Street stop on the #39 Bus/Jackson Square stop on the Orange Line T). Please call 617.524.3740 for directions or other club information.

2003-08-03T15:18:00.000-07:00

The Milky Way and the underground film revolution present: HORNS AND HALOS.

A DOCUMENTARY FILM BY SUKI HAWLEY AND MICHAEL GALINSKY about the publishing of FORTUNATE SON, JAMES HATFIELD'S controversial autobiography about George W. Bush.

MONDAY, AUGUST 4TH AT 9PM
THE MILKY WAY LOUNGE / 403-405 CENTRE ST. JP/ 617.524.3740 FOR CLUB INFO

After being suddenly pulled from the shelves and literally burned by original publisher, St. Martin's Press, just weeks after it came out, HORNS AND HALOS tells the story of the two year battle by SANDER HICKS and SOFT SKULL PRESS to re-release this important book to American readers.

The film is an example of DIY politics and media activism; it is about freedom of speech and literature; it is the powerful and tragic story of three very different men connected by one book: James Hatfield, Sander Hicks, and George W. Bush.

Don't miss the exciting return of HORNS AND HALOS to the Boston area for this one night only screening!

-Best Documentary Winner of the 2002 New York Underground and the Chicago Underground Film Festivals!

-Official Selection at the 2002 Toronto International and Rotterdam International Film Festival!

"Tragic" - Roger Ebert
"Dark surprises...emotionally complex" - David Ansen, Newsweek
"What a story" - Brian De Palma
"Funny, maddening and ultimately shocking" - Ben Kaplan, New York Magazine

Visit http://www.hornsandhalos.com for more info on both the film and the book!

2003-03-19T14:55:00.000-08:00

The Milky Way and the underground film revolution present
BEST OF FLICKER NYC on tour from the KNITTING FACTORY on MONDAY APRIL 7th, 2003 at 9.00PM

The Milky Way presents the next installment of its monthly indie film/video series featuring Boston's own underground film revolution (UFR) on APRIL 7th. Screenings are scheduled on the FIRST MONDAY OF EVERY MONTH. Don't miss the opportunity to experience true underground filmmaking in Boston!

On Monday night, APRIL 7th, UFR is proud to present The Flicker NYC Touring Show is a program of some of the best Super 8 and 16mm films to play at New York City's Flicker Film Festival. Flicker is a bi-monthly showcase of new small gauge film work at The Knitting Factory, with an emphasis on projecting Super 8 prints.

Started in 2001, Flicker NYC has screened over 100 films and given away over $700 in Super 8 filmmaking grants. Founder and curator David Teague will be in attendance at the Boston show.

The program is currently an extension of THE VIDEO UNDERGROUND, an independent video rental store located at 389 Centre Street in Hyde Square, Jamaica Plain (617-522-4949).

The Milky Way is located at 403-405 Centre Street in Jamaica Plain, downstairs from Bella Luna. It is accessible via public transportation (Perkins Street stop on the #39 Bus/Jackson Square stop on the Orange Line T). Screenings begin at 9pm on the first Monday of every month; admission for is $5 per person and the events are 21-plus unless otherwise noted. Please call 617.524.3740 for EVENT INFO, more detailed directions or other club info.

The underground film revolution has been organizing screenings of both local and national independent film/video makers at alternative venues throughout the Boston area since 1997.

2003-01-22T13:16:00.000-08:00

The Milky Way and the underground film revolution present INDEPENDENT EXPOSURE: SELECT FAVORITES MONDAY FEBRUARY 3RD, 2003 at 9.00PM

The Milky Way presents the next installment of its monthly indie film/video series featuring Boston's own underground film revolution (UFR) on February 3rd. Screenings are scheduled on the FIRST MONDAY OF EVERY MONTH. Don't miss the opportunity to experience true underground filmmaking in Boston!

On Monday night, February 3rd, UFR is proud to bring MICROCINEMA.COM's travelling film program INDEPENDENT EXPOSURE back to Boston audiences.

INDEPENDENT EXPOSURE'S "SELECT FAVORITES" program features 16 film and video mixed-media shorts made by filmmakers around the world! Now based in San Francisco, INDEPENDENT EXPOSURE has been running worldwide indie film screenings for the last seven years, and has featured over 700 works by international independent video, film, and digital artists, presented hundreds of times in 32 countries and Antarctica.

Please visit www.microcinema.com for further info about this truly remarkable program.

The SELECT FAVORITES program includes the dark comedy Timmy's Wish, directed by Patrick Cannon (CA), which has played at several national film fests; the 16mm short film tells the story of a little boy who gets more than he bargains for from Santa...

Other shorts include Icarus of Pittsburgh, directed by Kirk Hostetter and Evan Mather (WA/CA) in which a Pittsburgh Steelers fan attempts to fly to heaven to visit his dead father during the 1979 AFC Champinship game and Wes Kim's (WA) Profiles in Science--a super-8 animation that satirically examines the work of Dr. Albert Chung, an unsung pioneer in time-lapse photography.

The underground film revolution has been organizing screenings of both local and national independent film/video makers at alternative venues throughout the Boston area since 1997. The program is currently an extension of THE VIDEO UNDERGROUND, an independent video rental store located at 389 Centre Street in Hyde Square, Jamaica Plain (617-522-4949).

The Milky Way is located at 403-405 Centre Street in Jamaica Plain, downstairs from Bella Luna. It is accessible via public transportation (Perkins Street stop on the #39 Bus/Jackson Square stop on the Orange Line T). Screenings begin at 9pm on the first Monday of every month; admission for is $5 per person and the events are 21-plus unless otherwise noted. Please call 617.524.3740 for EVENT INFO, more detailed directions or other club info.

2002-11-27T11:45:00.000-08:00

the underground film revolution presents:
UNSPEAKABLE: THE LIFE AND ART OF REVEREND STEVEN JOHNSON LEYBA

MONDAY, DECEMBER 2nd, 2002 at 9.00PM
The Milky Way Lounge & Lanes

Reverend Steven Johnson Leyba is the kind of man who will paint over the American flag then remind you that "flag etiquette" has been royally pissed on by most major designers without anyone raising an eyebrow. Reverend Leyba is a legally ordained Priest in the Church of Satan. He is known in the underground art world as the "Father of Sexpressionism". The man views every kind of bodily excretion as a viable medium with which to paint. He is deeply in touch with his Native American ancestry.

And his performances, well, they're not even legal in some places...

These juxtapositions may seem like a lot to ponder, but they represent just a scratch on the surface. For nearly two years, Reverend Leyba permitted the filmmaker's cameras to observe his life, his art, and his infamous personal rituals. Some of this extraordinarily unique footage charts a terrain of human behavior that has rarely, if ever, been explored within the documentary form.

The Reverend's prolific and varied artistic output reflects his unyielding political and religious opinions. UNSPEAKABLE captures the unusual behavior of this Satanic Priest and takes a firsthand look at the issues that propel his work. The film hops from one inimitable character to the next as they grapple with topics ranging from the denial of the "American Holocaust" to the discovery of new ways to make an explosively sexual/political statement with a whiskey bottle.

The resulting portrait is of an artist with a perversely brilliant vision and talent. He is both humor and fury. He is grotesque, yet possesses the UNSPEAKABLE beauty of a man free enough to confront and embrace his own humanity.

The film also represents some of the more offensive footage included in modern documentary film; it is not for the faint of heart, nor is it presented for mere shock value. UNSPEAKABLE is a film that boldly pushes the boundaries of documentary film-making; it forces its audience to confront the idea of WHAT IS OFFENSIVE and also, WHAT IS ART. A film experience not to be missed!

The Milky Way is located at 403-405 Centre Street in Jamaica Plain, downstairs from Bella Luna. It is accessible via public transportation (Perkins Street stop on the #39 Bus/Jackson Square stop on the Orange Line T). Screenings run from 9.00-midnight the first Monday of every month; admission for is $5 per person; events are 21-plus. Please call 617.524.3740 (x22) for EVENT INFO, more detailed directions or other club info.

A review.

2002-11-15T18:40:00.000-08:00

the berwick research institute and the underground film revolution present:
PIXEL THIS BABY!
A weekend celebrating the wonders of PIXELVISION technology
with
PXL This TEN: 22 PIXELVISION SHORTS
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 22nd, 2002 at 9PM
The Milky Way Lounge & Lanes

and

PIXELVISION LIVE WORKSHOP AND LECTURE
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 24th, 2002 from 2-6PM
The Berwick Research Institute

The Milky Way and The Underground Film Revolution are proud to present the national PIXELVISION FILM FESTIVAL: PXL THIS TEN on Friday night, November 22nd.

Pixelvision, a low-resolution digital video format briefly pitched to youngsters by toymaker Fisher-Price, and Polavision, Polaroid's instant developing 8mm stock, may have faded from commercial markets, but they continue to fascinate collectors, filmmakers, and archivists with a taste for the unusual.

Now in its 12th year, the PXL This film festival is curated around the country by PIXELVISION devotee Gerry Fialka. Fialka runs both Documental, a documentary/experimental indie series, and PXL This at independent book and video stores in his hometown of Los Angeles. In town for just a few days this winter, Boston film audiences are lucky to get a chance to see this unusual film festival!

PXL This Ten is a 90 minute program that includes PIXELVISION shorts by 22 filmmakers. After the screening, both Fialka and James Wickenstead--THE INVENTOR OF PIXELVISION TECHNOLOGY--will facilitate a Q & A about this unique medium. After the screenings, check out the innovative and experimental sounds of PLANETARIUM who will play a set after the films.

"The next medium, whatever it is--it may be the extension of consciousness--will include television as its content, not as its environment. and will transform television into an art form." -Marshall McLuhan, 1967

PXL This festival founder/curator Gerry Fialka and pixel film-maker Doug Ing (whose work has screened in film fests around the country) will provide us with insights on the paradigmatic relationship between pixelvision and the media theories of Marshall McLuhan on Sunday afternoon, November 24th at The Berwick Research Institute. Electronic projects night will follow, featuring video! demystified! and modified!

The Milky Way is located at 403-405 Centre Street in Jamaica Plain, downstairs from Bella Luna. It is accessible via public transportation (Perkins Street stop on the #39 Bus/Jackson Square stop on the Orange Line T). Admission for is $5 per person; events are 21-plus. Please call 617.524.3740 (x22) for EVENT INFO, more detailed directions or other club info.

The Berwick Research Institute is located at 14 Palmer Street, off Washington Street in Dudley Square, Roxbury. Please visit www.berwickresearch.org for more info or directions or call 617.442.4200.

2002-10-21T19:34:00.000-07:00

news from the underground film revolution and the video underground!

I. The video underground will be open for business as of friday, october 25th!
Please come by and check out our new video/dvd store, specializing in alternative/cult, indie and foreign films....We are located at 389 Centre Street, in Hyde Square, Jamaica Plain. Open 1-11pm, 7 days a week. Call 617.522.4949 for more info! AND, sign up for a new membership in November and enter to win a FREE DVD player!

II. Celebrate with THE VIDEO UNDERGROUND at our grand opening bash hosted by The Milky Way on Monday, October 28th! Doors at 9pm! Giveaways! Food! Movies! Live Musical Performances by The Fighting Idols and Car Crash Show!

III. underground film revolution presents CRITICAL POLITICS on Monday, Nov. 4th at 9pm at The Milky Way featuring Norman Cowie's WELCOME TO NEW YORK - a 25 minute film that takes a critical and often cynical look at Guliani's "Clean-Up New York Campaign", and Whispered Media Production's BOOM: THE SOUND OF EVICTION - a documentary film that explores the housing crisis in San Francisco and how it relates with the rise and sudden fall of the dot com economy. Directed and Edited by Francine Cavanaugh, A. Mark Liiv, and Adams Wood, the film examines the extreme housing crunch this city has experienced and the wide scope of people it has affected. Local housing advocates are expected to facilitate a discussion about local housing issues after the screening. Visit http://www.boomthemovie.org for film info. $5/21+. Call 617-524-3740 for info or directions.

IV. the berwick research institute and underground film revolution co-present PIXEL THIS BABY! A weekend celebrating the wonders of PIXELVISION technology with PXL This TEN: 22 PIXELVISION SHORTS on FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 22nd at 9PM at The Milky Way Lounge & Lanes and PIXELVISION LIVE WORKSHOP AND LECTURE on SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 24th from 2-6PM at The Berwick Research Institute. PXL This film fest founder Gerry Fialka will be in attendance at both events; he will be joined by James Wickstead, the inventor of PXL technology at The Milky Way and by Doug Ing, PXL filmmaker, at the Berwick. Visit http://www.berwickinstitute.org/ for more info.

2002-10-04T14:11:00.000-07:00

JP Flicks

When she got a tip that someone in Vermont might have what she needed, Evonne jumped in the car. By the time she arrived, the line was out the door. Too frazzled to deal with Evonne, the guy in charge told her to go for broke. They'd worry about money later. Evonne started gathering, slowly at first, then more quickly. Soon she had piles in the aisles growing higher by the minute. Other grabbers started stealing from her stash, so she marked each pile with her name. By the end of the afternoon, she had 1,700 videos. There was no turning back.

2002-09-22T07:29:00.000-07:00

DEMON OF THE DERBY: THE ANN CALVELLO STORY
Directed by Sharon Marie Rutter; Produced by Christine Murray and Elizabeth Pike
(Liz will be in attendance to facilitate a Q&A after the screening).

MONDAY, OCTOBER 7th, 2002 at 9.00PM
The Milky Way Lounge & Lanes

Long before the World Wrestling Federation overtook American subculture, there was Roller Derby: a spectacle of elbow-smashing, face-crashing, bloody-flipping psychopaths streaking around a rink on roller skates at breakneck speeds all in the name of entertainment. Significantly, women were included in the events at a time when most female role models more closely resembled June Cleaver than Xena Princess Warrior.

Demon of the Derby: The Ann Calvello Story is a feature-length documentary which tells the tale of America's Archvillainess of the Roller Derby, Ann Calvello--a woman who made a mark on the world by breaking out of traditional female roles and proving to be one of the toughest Roller Derby athletes involved in competition. Two years in the making, this is her inspiring documentary portrait.

Back 50 years ago, Roller Derby was “The People's Sport”--watched by 20 million viewers, boasting regular sell-out crowds at Madison Square Garden. Ann “Banana Nose" Calvello was always at the top, a punk rebel athletic icon long before Dennis Rodman was even born, let alone dyeing his hair. She was a demon on skates, killer-competitive, the legendary queen of the Derby.

Known as the "Meanest Mama on Skates" since 1948, Calvello is now in her early 70s, but continues to hang onto the limelight, pursuing her lust for head-smacking, bone-crunching Roller Derby action. Combining rare archival footage with present-day videographyof her daily life, Sharon Rutter depicts Ann in her glory days and in the present, creating an intimate portrayal of the Roller Derby Queen.

[Editor's Note: This film was edited in Final Cut Pro by Sharon Rutter, editor of Roger Avary's Rules of Attraction]

Demon of the Derby has already premiered to a sold-out crowd at the Castro Theatre in San Francisco in November 2001, wowed crowds at The 2002 Santa Barbara Film Festival, and sold-out shows in San Francisco again at the historic Roxie Theater this past April. It has played at the Dallas Video Festival, as well asThe Maine International Film Festival and recently sold-out The Columbus Theatre in Providence as part of PICTURESTART Film Festival this past August.

The Milky Way is located at 403-405 Centre Street in Jamaica Plain, downstairs from Bella Luna. It is accessible via public transportation (Perkins Street stop on the #39 Bus/Jackson Square stop on the Orange Line T). Screenings run from 9.00-midnight the first Monday of every month; admission for is just $5 per person; events are 21-plus. Please call 617.524.3740 (x22) for EVENT INFO, more detailed directions or other club info.

2002-09-03T15:29:00.000-07:00

OPENING IN MID-OCTOBER IN HYDE SQUARE, JP:
THE VIDEO UNDERGROUND!

An independent video/dvd store, owned and operated by Evonne Wetzner, UFR Founder.

THE VIDEO UNDERGROUND seeks to support independent filmmakers and provide the JP community with a diverse selection of indie, cult/alternative, hard-to-find, foreign, new releases and locally-made films/videos.

Opening mid-October at 389 Centre Street in JP, across from The Brendan Behan Pub and Fat Ram's Pumpkin Tattoo. Please email thevideounderground@yahoo.com for more info, programming ideas or questions!

2002-09-03T15:28:00.000-07:00

COMING OCT. 7th:
DEMON OF THE DERBY: The Ann Calvello Story, dir. by Sharon Marie Rutter
A feature-length documentary which tells the tale of America's Archvillainess of the Roller Derby, Ann Calvello--a woman who made a mark on the world by breaking out of traditional female roles and proving to be one of the toughest Roller Derby athletes involved in competition. Two years in the making, this is her inspiring documentary portrait.

2002-08-23T18:07:00.000-07:00

the underground film revolution presents:
"THE PERSONAL IS POLITICAL"

Films and Videos by Women Artists exploring issues of
sexual identity, gender roles, health, politics, and family.

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 9th, 2002 at 9.00PM
The Milky Way Lounge & Lanes

UFR proudly presents a new shorts program, THE PERSONAL IS POLITICAL on September 9th featuring ten films and videos by local and national women artists exploring issues of sexual identity, gender roles, health, politics, and family.

Featured in the program will be local videographer Lorna Lowe-Streeter's personal documentary "Shelter". The video, which documents the filmmaker's search for her birth mother and the conflicts that arise in the process with her adoptive parents, sold-out its screening at The Boston Women's International Film Festival this past spring and was recently screened at The Roxbury Film Festival.

Also included in the program are three video works by local artist Michelle Barczykowski who sexually-abuses a GI Joe action figure in very creative ways, satirizes the genre of COPS television docu-dramas, and offers the viewer a personal glimpse into the world of stripping in "It's the Small Things", "Caught" and "Peep Show-And-Tell", respectively.

Other shorts to be shown include: Kyra Garrigue's "Ashtray" (NYC); Sarina Khan Reddy's (MA) commentary on the blurred lines between news, entertainment and military policy, "With Us or Against Us"; Joanne Wallace's (UK) mixed-media, autobiographic video about immigration and same-sex partners, "Magical Cat"; two short experimental videos about household chores, "Sinking Feeling, Pressing Matter" by Sarah Klein (CA); Lucy Weismann's "In the Red" (NYC), a humorous tribute to menstruation mimicing the style of 1950s instructional films; and "Camouflage Pink", a film by Carolyn Caizzi and Laura Rodriguez (RI) that introduces the audience to a teenage lesbian girl named Rayna whose outward demeanor screams militant dyke, but inside, all she really wants is to go to the prom with the cheerleader she has a crush on in her math class.

The Milky Way is located at 403-405 Centre Street in Jamaica Plain, downstairs from Bella Luna. It is accessible via public transportation (Perkins Street stop on the #39 Bus/Jackson Square stop on the Orange Line T). Screenings run from 9.00-midnight the first Monday of every month (except for September--UFR will be on the second Monday due to Labor Day); admission for is $5 per person; events are 21-plus. Please call 617.524.3740 (x22) for EVENT INFO, more detailed directions or other club info.

2002-08-20T09:07:00.000-07:00

The underground film revolution proudly presents a screening as part of the 2002 PICTURESTART FILM FESTIVAL in Providence, Rhode Island.

Wednesday, August 28th at 8pm
The Columbus Theatre
270 Broadway, Providence RI* (see below for directions)
$4 tickets at the door
http://www.picturestart.org for more info about the festival!

DEMON OF THE DERBY: The Ann Calvello Story
U.S.A., 2001, color, DigiBeta, 74 min.
Director: Sharon Marie Rutter; Producer: Christine Murray; Co-Producer: Elizabeth Pike; Editor: Sharon Marie Rutter.

Long before the World Wrestling Federation overtook American subculture, there was Roller Derby: a spectacle of elbow-smashing, face-crashing, bloody-flipping psychopaths streaking around a rink on roller skates at breakneck speeds all in the name of entertainment. Significantly, women were included in the events at a time when most female role models more closely resembled June Cleaver than Xena Princess Warrior.

Demon of the Derby: The Ann Calvello Story is a feature-length documentary which tells the tale of America's Archvillainess of the Roller Derby, Ann Calvello--a woman who made a mark on the world by breaking out of traditional female roles and proving to be one of the toughest Roller Derby athletes involved in competition. Two years in the making, this is her inspiring documentary portrait.

Back 50 years ago, Roller Derby was “The Peoples’ Sport”--watched by 20 million viewers, boasting regular sell-out crowds at Madison Square Garden. Ann “Banana Nose" Calvello was always at the top, a punk rebel athletic icon long before Dennis Rodman was even born, let alone dyeing his hair. She was a demon on skates, killer-competitive, the legendary queen of the Derby.

Known as the "Meanest Mama on Skates" since 1948, Calvello is now in her early 70s, but continues to hang onto the limelight, pursuing her lust for head-smacking, bone-crunching Roller Derby action. Combining rare archival footage with present-day videographyof her daily life, Sharon Rutter depicts Ann in her glory days and in the present, creating an intimate portrayal of the Roller Derby Queen.

Demon of the Derby has already premiered to a sold-out crowd at the Castro Theatre in San Francisco in November 2001, wowed crowds at The 2002 Santa Barbara Film Festival, and sold-out shows in San Francisco again at the historic Roxie Theater this past April. It has played at the Dallas Video Festival, and will be made its East Coast Premiere at The Maine International Film Festival. UFR will present Demon of the Derby again on October 7th at The Milky Way Lounge & Lanes in Jamaica Plain, MA.

Sharon Rutter has written, edited and directed many documentaries, including recently SURFING FOR LIFE.

2002-08-20T09:06:00.000-07:00

THIS WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 21st

microcinema.com presents the All Women Edition (mini DV 90 min..)
The August edition of INDEPENDENT EXPOSURE, the monthly screening program of international independent short films and videos, will feature fifteen short works by female directors. This month's program featuring a female perspective via the independent short film and video medium will be the first time the seven-year old program will present a special edition devoted entirely to women directors.

The Columbus Theatre
270 Broadway, Providence RI*
8pm/$4

HATCHING BEAUTY (16mm, animation) by Amy Hicks - Oakland, CA;
RECORD PLAYER PARTY (DV, animation) by Divya Srinivasan - Austin, TX;
BATH (DV) by Eliza Gagnon – NY, NY;
5 TO 7 (DV) by Amelia Martin - Ann Arbor, MI;
BREATHE (DV, digital effects) by Hannah Gal - London, UK;
THIRST (16mm) by Jessica Joy Wise - Vancouver, BC, Canada;
TECHNICAL AIDS (DV, digital effects) by Kasumi - Cleveland, OH;
IN THE RED (16mm) by Lucy Weismann - NY, NY;
VERBS (AMBIVALENT) (DV) by Sara Pellegrini - Seattle, WA;
TRILEMMA (computer animation) by Ye Won Cho - LA;
THINGS I DON'T REMEMBER (16mm) by Yuri A. - Vancouver, BC Canada;
ANONDYNE (16mm) by Sheri Wills - Providence, RI;
MEN ARE FROM MOON (DV) by Elizabeth Sher - NY, NY;
LIFE, LIBERTY AND THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS (DV) by Tiffany Shlain - San Francisco;
TELEPHONE STORIES (DV) by J.D. Beltran - San Francisco.

Turnin' 31 by Kraig Jordan (Beta SP 3:52 min)
The story of a "businessman" and his afterwork adventures.

TunaNooda by David Kackin (Beta SP 7 min.)
A story of lifeguarding and lunchmaking.

Check out www.picturestart.org for information about upcoming shows!

*Traveling from Boston: Take 95 South to Exit 21 (Atwells Ave.). Follow Service Road No. 8, two sets of lights. Take a right onto Broadway. Theatre is on the left, roughly 5 blocks down. Call 401.621.9660 for further info about The Columbus.

2002-08-04T06:50:00.000-07:00

A Revolution finds its home in Jamaica Plain.
By Loren King, Globe Staff, 8/4/2002

On the first Monday of every month, the popular Milky Way Lounge and Lanes in Jamaica Plain turns into a lively nightspot for experimental film and video, much of it locally made. This venue for emerging filmmakers to show their work is the brainchild of Evonne Hyla Wetzner, who founded the Underground Film Revolution five years ago. The program has bounced around among several locations since 1997, but settled comfortably into the Milky Way in October.

Wetzner bills tomorrow night's eclectic mix of narrative shorts as ''East Coast vs. West Coast: An Indie Rumble''; it features nine short films and videos made by artists from Massachusetts and California. Included is the premiere of local filmmaker and musician Steven Lawrence, whose ''Ted and Sage'' was shot in JP.

Other locally made shorts include Marc Landers 's ''One Eye Closed''; Chris Bentley 's ''Sonny''; Kevin Anderton 's commentary on the local housing crunch, ''First, Last and Security''; Mikki Krimmel 's ''Mason Dixon''; and ''Hairdo,'' a documentary by Cambridge residents John Capron, Jonathan Sahula, and Caroline Toth that follows students at a local beauty school to New York City for a hairstyling competition (the film screened at the Coolidge Corner Theatre's Director's Cut Series early last year). Wetzner has high praise for Californian Anna Biller 's 16mm horror/Western/musical ''A Visit From the Incubus,'' Ted Mills 's short comedy ''Walk Cycle,'' and Ken Brisbois 's ''The Van Nuys Project,'' about three men and their search to discover where porn stars hang out when they're not working.

The Milky Way is at 403-405 Centre St. in JP, downstairs from Bella Luna restaurant. Screenings run from 9 p.m. to midnight the first Monday of every month (though because of Labor Day, the UFR's September screening will be held on the 9th.) Admission is $5; events are 21-plus. Call 617-524-3740, ext. 22.