About the Festival

In the Press

See you in the movies

By:DONNA KENNY KIRWAN
Pawtucket Times, 8/24/2007

PAWTUCKET - Not many movie theaters can offer a triple billing of food, music and flicks (with a souvenir T-shirt thrown in) for a $10 admission.But that's just what's being offered for six nights as part of the Mirror Image Film Festival.
As part of the ninth annual Pawtucket Arts Festival, the Mirror Image Film Festival showcases critically acclaimed independent films and documentaries produced by both local and national directors.

One of the highlights of this year's festival should be "Buddy," a documentary profiling "the rise and fall of America's most notorious mayor," Vincent A. Cianci.

The films are shown in the theater at the Blackstone Valley Visitor Center, 175 Main St., Pawtucket.

On each of the six dates, Aug. 25-27 and Sept. 14-16, the events begin at 6:30 p.m. There are typically two to three short films shown, along with a live musical performance. Food and beverages, including beer, are also available.

Rick Roth, a film buff who owns the Mirror Image, Inc. screenprinting business, has been a sponsor of the film festival since its inception. Anthony Amrosino, of the Rhode Island Film Collaborative and Sleather Studios, is also involved in the event.

Roth said he has long had an interest in filmmaking, having worked on several documentaries. He also has many friends who are filmmakers.

Roth thinks it's important to showcase the efforts of independent filmmakers, especially as part of Pawtucket's effort to be an artist-friendly community.

"The film festival demonstrates, in terms of supporting the arts, that Pawtucket 'walks the walk' and doesn't just talk about it," Roth said. We have an incredible reputation for being pro-film and pro-artist in this city,"
Roth said the film festival has attracted some well-known names in the industry over the years, including director Michael Corrente, a Pawtucket native.

He tells an amusing story of Corrente being at an event with the likes of Robert Altman and Martin Scorcese, and telling them he had to leave early "because he had to get to Pawtucket" for the film festival. "That's how important it was to him," said Roth.

Among the highlights at this year's festival is director Marlo Poras' "Run Granny Run," a look at the feisty political campaign crafted by 94-year-old Doris "Granny D" Haddock, which is playing on Saturday.

Also noteworthy is Monday night's "War Tapes," a first-hand account of Operation Iraqi Freedom as filmed by the soldiers themselves, and "Buddy," the documentary that paints a portrait of the complex former Providence mayor, which runs on Friday, Sept. 14.

According to Roth, the musical performers selected to accompany the films are also top-notch, representing genres ranging from gospel and rock to thought-provoking ballads.

Saturday night's musical performance is by Preacher Jack, described as a brilliant "boogie-woogie" style piano player from the Boston area known for his unique diatribes on life and love.

Sunday's schedule includes:

• "Writer's Block," a film about a man whose sense of reality starts to spiral out of control thanks to an ominous radio broadcast;
• "An Execution Night in North Carolina," a documentary narrated by a prison warden about the final hours before an execution; and
• "What's Going On Up There?," which examines the sacrifices that must be made in order to revitalize the space industry.
  The musical performer on Sunday night is Jeremy Lyons, a New Orleans transplant who is know for his rocking "Delta-billy" style.

On Monday night, Christian McNeill is the scheduled musical guest

More information about the upcoming films and performers featured in the film festival can be accessed at www.pawtucketarts.com [www.pawtucketartsfestival.org - Ed.].

back