Monthly Archives: November 2017

The roads are open, neighborhoods are repopulated, the air is breathable; burnt out structures have been inventoried and the death count no longer rises.  As we return to normal, or what passes for it, only now do we have the luxury of looking back at stories of courage, skill and the communities remarkable grace under pressure.  

Disasters always bring character into bold relief.  They are the moments that tell us who we really are.  Over the next couple of weeks we are going to be telling you those stories and introducing you, up close and personal, to people you need to hear from.  Not about road closures, or FEMA registration, or how to get rid of debris, but about the amazing human spirit. 

Congratulations to Marc & Brenda Lhormer, the entire festival staff, the volunteers, the sponsors and all of the filmmakers that made the 2017 Napa Valley Film Festival the best yet.

Thanks to all of the filmmakers that participated in our interviews and we look forward to seeing you all next year at NVFF2018, November 7 – November 11, 2018

NAPA VALLEY FILM FESTIVAL 

Year Seven

Conversations with the Filmmakers:

LA 92 – The film takes its audience on a riveting and comprehensive tour of the events that led up to the 1992 uprising in Los Angeles following the Rodney King beating by the police.

After the screening of the film, there will be a special Town Hall conversation with the Oscar-winning director T.J. Martin, current film critic Claudia Puig — who was a staff reporter on the Pulitzer Prize winning team for the LA Times who covered the riots — Michele Wells who is a Richmond-based theater director who touches on race in her performances.

For non-passholders, there will be a limited number of tickets available for the Saturday, November  11 screening of LA 92 at the Lincoln Theater. The screening will take place at 8:30pm.  Individual tickets for this screening are on sale for $20 per person. Click here to purchase: https://goo.gl/ZCAz4h

THE GATEWAY BUG –  Director/Writer Johanna Kelly and Writer/Producer Cameron Marshad talk about how the Gateway Bug follows the rise and fall of edible insect startups in America, exploring cultural taboos in diet and agriculture, and exposing America’s disconnect with the idea of our food system courting climate catastrophe 

QUEST – Director/Writer Santiago Rizzo tells the story a twelve year-old graffiti addict who is quickly losing faith in human integrity. His life on the streets has become his only escape from an abusive household headed by the devilish Gus (Lou Diamond Phillips).

THE SOUNDING – Director Catherine Eaton tells the story of a young woman raised on a remote island off the coast of Maine, has never spoken a word. After her guardian Lionel discovers that he is in poor health, he calls upon a colleague to oversee her behavior and continue his work. One night, as Lionel reads to Liv, she begins to speak in a language of her own design. She crafts sentences and phrases by weaving together pieces of Shakespeare’s works.

IZZY GETS THE FUCK ACCROSS TOWN – Writer, Producer, Director Christian Papierniakke  tells the story of Izzy. Between jobs, indie musician Izzy (Mackenzie Davis) discovers that her ex-boyfriend, her supposed soul mate, is now engaged to her ex-best friend. Worse yet, she’s gone on a bender and woken up in a strange guy’s bed all the way across town.  

A FINE LINE – Director Joanna James looks at why only six percent of head chefs and restaurant owners are women, when historically and traditionally women have always held the central role in the kitchen. She presents perspectives and experiences from world-renowned chefs,

TOP ROW –  First time director Karin Argoud looks at Travis Rogers, who has taught the Napa High School men’s choir for 37 years, creating an artistic community as well as a team atmosphere as tight-knit and rigorous as with any physical sport.

More information for this year’s Festival is available at NVFF.org