Father Geek here with another report from our lovely Moon Yun and the sandy shores of the 2003 Hawaii International Film Festival...
Aloha, Moon Yun signing in from Hawaii…
As I look out my window from my high rise apartment, the sky is overcast and it’s raining a bit.
If my meager knowledge of Hawaiiana serves me correctly, rain before (or maybe even after) an event is usually a sign of good luck...
As I look out my window from my high rise apartment, the sky is overcast and it’s raining a bit. If my meager knowledge of Hawaiiana serves me correctly, rain before (or maybe even after) an event is usually a sign of good luck...
On Nov. 1, the Hawaii-produced film THE RIDE premiered at the 2003 Hawaii International Film Festival at Sunset on the Beach, a great outdoor theater event. There was a record crowd of about 10,000 to 15,000 people all strewn along Waikiki beach for this under the stars affair. Perhaps the Hawaiian gods have answered and said, “Hey, cool movie.”
I had to dig out before the 90-minute feature started because I wanted to go to the Cinema No Ka Oi: Digital Da Kine section of the festival. Cinema No Ka Oi section features “home grown” films and videos by filmmakers based in Hawaii.
As I mentioned in one of my previous reports on Ain’t It Cool News, I had already seen THE RIDE at an earlier press screening. THE RIDE is about two time periods, the present and the past. It’s a love story between haole (white) contemporary world surf champ David (Scot Davis) and Hawaii beauty Lehua (Mary Paalani). It’s also a story of friendship and self-discovery. David, who travels back in time to Hawaii of 1911 via a surfing accident, befriends his surfing idol, the great Duke Kahanamoku (Sean Kaawa) before he had become famous. And it’s a story about the Waikiki beachboys, best friends of Duke: Blackie (Weldon Kekauoha) and Caps (Johann Bouit).
Written and directed by award-winning independent filmmaker Nathan Kurosawa, THE RIDE is his first feature. Wesley Nakamoto is the Executive Producer; Laurie Foi the Co-Producer. While THE RIDE, intended for the cable TV market, is a fun cute movie, one that people will like, I think KAMEHAMEHA (his docu-feature short) is his calling card.
Here are some production still photos of THE RIDE: Just Click Here to See Them
Check out the photos of the Sunset On the Beach film event: By Going Here
Cinema No Ka Oi: Digital Da Kine
I went to the Digital Da Kine at the Doris Duke Theater at the Art Academy to check out local filmmakers. Going back to my plant metaphor…if the ones I saw yesterday were like seedlings waiting to become big Koa trees, then this set—made mostly by kids—was like a plumeria flower tree ripe for the plucking for a Hawaiian lei. The standout out of this group was THE MAKING OF THE KARAOKE VIDEO, directed and starring Gerard Elmore, who’s also producer and co-cinematographer. Catherine Tanaka plays opposite Elmore and was also co-cinematographer. If acting and directing yourself and the film is not easy, then Elmore certainly made it look fun. Elmore plays a director from my alma mater – USC. I was a French major. In this hilarious spoof, Elmore plays USC film school grad director who admits he’s such a good direct! or he doesn’t even need a crew. He directs Tanaka in a Fellinisque manner – like that beautiful blond at the water fountain, only for his take at a public park he asks his actress/muse to blend with the tree. Tanaka tries harder. It’s a Karaoke Video.
SUGAR RAID, a 7-minute animation short about mutated candies that battle each other over sugar after a nuclear holocaust, was one I really wanted to see. I had missed the Ohina Short Film Fest, where it had first screened, because of prior commitments. Wow, kids these days are really advancing in digital animation. The creatures are real cute and the plot is kid-appropriate: the fight for the ultimate M & M’s…but a nuclear holocaust sometime in the future…gee, what ever happened to the Leave It To Beaver days. There was a bunch of directors but the principal one is Violet Murakami.
Another animation short that was well-made was FUEL INJEXION, directed, produced, and written by Stephen Perringer. He was also the cinematographer. A CG short, the 2-minute animation, chronicles the antics of a robotic Martian mosquito.
Now this was heavy stuff. INVERSE REASONING. An upper class guy taunts a homeless beggar and says to his friend that if he was dead no one would even care or notice. To prove it, he gets out a gun and shoots the beggar dead, only to become the beggar. The guy who was homeless is now the upper class guy. He has a decision to make. He can either throw some coins in his cup or walk away. Instead, he fills his cup with dollar bills. This movie was amazing in its sensitivity and concept. Oh wow, this 3-minute short was directed by the same guy who did the crazy Karaoke Video—Gerard Elmore. He is also the producer, writer and one of the casts. The cinematographer is Joseph Pa’ahana. Matthew Malliski and Tri Le were principal cast.
During the audience’s Q & A, filmmaker Sherrie Robertson announced that she was selected to participate in the Sundance Filmmaker Lab. I’m really looking forward to what she produces at the prestigious Lab. I must admit I wouldn’t have guessed it from her 8-minute short SYMPHONY FOR ONE. But, hey, I’d like to see her come back with an award. SYMPHONY FOR ONE is about a blind man who boards a bus filled with passengers that look like…well, people I saw when I use to ride The Bus. Except they didn’t have classical musical instruments and started to play them and then the passengers would dance to the melodic sound. Only when I rode The Bus, it would be too bumpy to smoothly glide down the aisle. Robertson also wrote and produced it. The cinematographer was Vince Lucero. Principal cast included Terrance Knapp, Gene DeFrancis and Laine Yoshioka.
A day in the life of downtown Honolulu. What is it like? EBB & FLOW director Michael Ogasawa gives his unique perspective on this urban city. He also produced and was the cinematographer on this 3-minute short.
FASHION PLATE, directed, produced, and lensed by Jennifer Goya, is a rather artsy fair. The 3-minute short displays synthetic projections and replications of fashion styles from the 1900. Fashion pictures, laid out like cards, are presented in still and still images.
Todd Lacey, co-director of CELEBRATION, admitted during the Q & A that when he and his classmates from the Kamehameha Schools Hawaiian Ensemble went to Alaska, he was having so much fun that he brought back so many video footages and didn’t know where to start. Filmmaking should be that much fun that you completely lose yourself. Karie Costa, co-director, said she would like to teach filmmaking. The two alumni of Kamehameha Schools took their video camera with them when the Ensemble went to Juneau, Alaska to participate in the Sealaska Celebration 2002. Costa and Lacey also produced CELEBRATION with their film teacher Patricia Gillespie.
