like a little [sundance]

well, i've lived in the downtown area of wichita for well over a year now, and i'm finding that i'm starting to look forward to certain events. this past weekend was one of them.

the annual tallgrass film festival.


i attended last year and loved it! i was amazed that wichita, a city that isn't exactly topping any cultural center lists, put on a film festival showcasing independent films, shorts, documentaries, and foreign films. i know i wasn't the only one to enjoy it, as the festival grows every year, quenching the people of wichita, thirsty for a little something different in the theaters.

needless to say i was excited to attend again this year. not only for the films, but i thought it would be good professional move on my part to be seen hobnobbing with some indie directors, trying to boost my totally imaginable and made-up career as a film actor.

the films were at a number of locations around town, i however stuck to the old town theater, where most of the films were playing. this year i attended a documentary called "twisted" which follows eight people and records how becoming a balloon artists has changed their lives. next was a series of shorts all falling under the theme "truth and fiction", films that blur the lines between reality and imagination. "i met the walrus" was amazing. Finally a documentary called "blood on the flat track". a documentary about the sport of women's roller derby and the rise of the rat city league in seattle. more interesting then the movie however, was the fact the audience was filled with girls from wichita's own roller derby leauge. something i had know idea even existed.

all the films were interesting, i'm not sure i'll be standing in line when the dvd's are released, but i still enjoyed them all. what i love more then the films, is the event itself. it's a little jewel that almost disappears in the small shadows of our downtown, but once you find it, it's wonderful. to those of you that say there's nothing to do in wichita, i say nay! it may be harder then other cities where culture almost bursts at the seems, but here in the ict, you have to look and pursue interesting things to do, but once you do, it's worth it.

...and hey if indie films aren't your thing, there's always roller derby!