Battle Of LA, 14min., USA
Directed by Patrick Pizzolorusso
During one of Los Angeles’ most bizarre evenings in 1942, a ‘something’ was spotted over the skies. A ‘something’ that the anti-aircraft batteries opened fire on. A ‘something’ that a young scientist finds at a small crash site and brings back to her home.Throughout the evening her colleague and her do their best to figure out what it is and what they need to do.

https://tinyrocketfilms.com/
https://www.instagram.com/pactorpizz/

Get to know the filmmaker:

1. What motivated you to make this film?
The need to make my own work. Hollywood isn’t calling, unfortunately. I know I am surrounded by an incredibly talented circle of friends and felt the time was right for us to all come together and create something we could all be proud of. Something that could showcase all our talents. From my incredibly gifted cinematographer, to my editor, sound designers, colorist, and of course, we actors in it.

2. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to make this film?
14 years! Some of my original brain storming notes were from 14 years ago. Over the years I’ve added to them or adjusted the arc of the story. Once I decided to really go for it, it took about a year and a half. From the moment I dusted off the script and finished it to the moment we rendered our final edt.

3. How would you describe your film in two words!?
Fantastical hope

4. What was the biggest obstacle you faced in completing this film?
Patience. Seriously. Patience. Post-production takes time. Especially when you’re waiting on creatives’ schedules to open up because you absolutely want to work with them. This whole project has been a lesson in patience and staying true to your vision. Not sacrificing anything just for the sake of finishing. But being patient enough for it to be done correctly.

5. What were your initial reactions when watching the audience talking about your film in the feedback video?
I had such a feeling of relief and validation. Relief that people liked something that I’ve put out there into the world. And validation that the ideas we had going into this and the vision I had for this film were clear and viewers picked up on everything. I finished watching it with a big sigh and just said out loud to nobody, “they got it!”

6. When did you realize that you wanted to make films?
I’ve always wanted to tell stories. As an actor in NYC I was mostly working on the stage because it’s just so readily accessible there. Filmmaking is just another path for storytelling. Once I moved out here I realized what a talented circle of friends I had that we should make our own work. Tell our own stories.

7. What film have you seen the most in your life?
Raiders of the Lost Ark. It’s hands down my favorite. It’s one of those perfect films that captures an era in time and embodies the genre it’s emulating flawlessly.

8. What other elements of the festival experience can we and other festivals implement to satisfy you and help you further your filmmaking career?
I love a good workshop. Or even a Q&A with industry professionals. Being able to get insight from someone working in the field is invaluable. Being able to ask a question or two of industry professionals who want to be there and want to help new and up and coming filmmakers is incredibly beneficial at this stage in a lot of our careers.

9. You submitted to the festival via FilmFreeway. How has your experiences been working on the festival platform site?
Hoenstly I love it. It’s incredibly easy to navigate and the information provided by each festival is in an incredibly easy to read format.

10. What is your favorite meal?
My grandfather would probably curse me, In Italian, if I didn’t say Lasagna.

11. What is next for you? A new film?
I am in the midst of writing my next film and working on some practical effects for it. Battle of LA was full of practical effects and real working props. It’s something I am a big fan of in movie-making. So my next writing project is going to be another fantastical piece just possibly a different genre. Something older. And Westerner. But that’s all I can say for now.

ARTHUR AVE., 9min., USA
Directed by Joey Medina
In a Bronx bar, a clash between traditional Italian-American “wiseguys” and the LGBTQ+ community leads to a confrontation that challenges the characters’ preconceptions and the dynamics of power.

Get to know the filmmaker:

1. What motivated you to make this film?

I wanted to spread a message of kindness and I thought the contrast between the mobsters and gay couple would help do that.

2. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to make this film?

Took me about two days to write the script, a month to prepare and 9 hours to shoot. And probably 3 weeks for editing.

3. How would you describe your film in two words!?

Beautifully done.

4. What was the biggest obstacle you faced in completing this film?

Casting the right actors was harder than I thought. An actor pulled out the day of the shoot and I had too give their lines to an other actor and reblock the entire film.

5. What were your initial reactions when watching the audience talking about your film in the feedback video?

I enjoyed it and felt that they understood the film.

6. When did you realize that you wanted to make films?

When I was in fifth grade and I watched a super 8 movie my teacher made with his class the year before. That’s why his name is in my end credits of all my films, Morris Chairnow.

7. What film have you seen the most in your life?

Rocky, it’s my favorite film.

8. What other elements of the festival experience can we and other festivals implement to satisfy you and help you further your filmmaking career?

I think what you are doing is great. Feedback is always welcome even when it’s negative, because you learn from that. I submitted the script of Arthur Ave first. It was not selected, and the feed back I recieved from you was it needed at leaset one more page. So the scene in the beginning with the dog was added because of the feedback I received from the festival.

9. You submitted to the festival via FilmFreeway. How has your experiences been working on the festival platform site?

I love FilmFreeway, It makes it easy to submit.

10. What is your favorite meal?

I love seafood.

11. What is next for you? A new film?

I’m in preproduction on a short film called, Buddy & the Man. About a Vietnam Vet who has cancel and adopts an old dog no one wants.

Slaughterhouse 2 Death Metal, 93min., USA
Directed by Rick Roessler
The story of the Cleavon and Remdog Bacon (last survivors of the infamous Bacon family of Lakeside, California of Slaughterhouse 1) are continuously being harassed by developer Mel Webber, wanting to snatch-up their property for a golf course/senior development. If that weren’t enough, a drug cartel is using the property as a drop-off point, millennial Pacific Crest Trail hikers think they have a right to it, and death metal fans regularly take it over for their out-of-control raves. All this unwanted activity severely disrupts the bacons “Wonder Jerky” business, and they have no choice but to declare war on everyone in order to, once and for all, put an end to it… Let the games begin!

https://www.instagram.com/slaughterhouse2themovie/

Get to know producer Jerry Encoe:

What motivated you to make this film?

Slaughterhouse 2 is a sequel to the original Slaughterhouse produced in 1986. As the original Slaughterhouse gained cult status, we toyed with the idea of a sequel. Of course, we encountered several problems planning the sequel. Number one, the first film was shot in San Diego down by the border. All of those locations are gone now. Three years ago while we were watching a show called “About San Diego,” an episode highlighted the Motor Transport Museum in Campo, California. At once we realize the potential of that location for the sequel. Campo is about 60 miles east of San Diego. It’s a small town with a population of 3000 people. Rick Roessler and I drove to Campo and visited the Motor Transport Museum. Seeing it in person, the location was far better than we had imagined. We met the docent of the museum, Brian Butler, and inquired about using the museum as our main location. As luck would have it, Bryan secured a role as one of the main actors in the film. We wrote the screenplay with Campo and the Motor Transport Museum in mind as the main locations in the film.

2. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to make this film?

It took approximately three years to produce this film from start to finish. That includes forming an LLC corporation, raising funds for the production of the film, editing and searching for a distributor for our film.

3. How would you describe your film in two words!?

Horror Comedy!

4. What was the biggest obstacle you faced in completing this film?

I would say there were two major obstacles that we faced in completing this film. First, it’s always very difficult to raise money for a feature film–especially for an independent horror feature. Slaughterhouse 2 is financed primarily through family and friends. Goal number one is to return to our investors 100% of their investment. Of course, when that happens, we are in the black and hope to do so soon.

Second, the most difficult obstacle was that we overestimated that we could shoot Slaughterhouse 2 in four weeks. We wound up going to Campo and shooting pick up shots with a small crew at least 10 times before completing the principal photography.

5. What were your initial reactions when watching the audience talking about your film in the feedback video?

Our initial reaction when watching the audience talking about our film we were pleased that they recognized the horror comedy aspect of the genre. Also, several of the audience members talked about the original Slaughterhouse film produced in 1986. They said that the sequel held true to the original film.

6. When did you realize that you wanted to make films?

When I was 12 years old, my parents got me an old used 8 mm film camera with a photo flood light bar. I filmed a lot of family events with that camera. That’s when I first became interested in becoming a filmmaker. I used to work at a film laboratory, Calvin Film Productions. The director, Robert Altman, got his start at Calvin film productions in the 1950s .I used to think that it was magic to process film and create images from it. With experience I realized it’s not magic, it’s a collaboration by very talented hard-working people.

7. What film have you seen the most in your life?

Quentin Tarantino’s,” Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.”

8. What other elements of the festival experience can we and other festivals implement to satisfy you and help you further your filmmaking career?

I would say the best thing that you could do to satisfy me and others is expediting the process of selection and notification to the festivals.

9. You submitted to the festival via Film Freeway. How has your experiences been working on the festival platform site?

This is my first experience with Film Freeway. I appreciate that it allows us to easily submit our film to multiple festivals. The cost is reasonable and hopefully, we will benefit from the recognition of our film from these festivals.

10. What is your favorite meal?

My favorite meal is fish tacos, rice and beans and a Margarita.

11. What is next for you? A new film?

Well, we are certainly not going to wait 36 years to make another sequel to Slaughterhouse.

We are busy marketing “Wonder Jerky,” a product mentioned in the film. We have trademarked the name of “Wonder Jerky” and are working on a trademark of the name “Slaughterhouse.”

CRAWL SPACE, 4min., USA
Directed by Randy Scott Slavin
After his daughter wakes up terrified by sounds from the crawl space, a father ventures into the dark to prove there s nothing to fear but some things that go bump in the night are better left unexplored.

https://instagram.com/randyscottslavin