Documentary Production
Fri, 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM
Documentary film has been experiencing a sort of Golden Age the past few years, including politically-oriented advocacy films that have essentially carved out a new genre in the popular release landscape. Rob Van Alkemade has made short and long-form documentaries of this and other sorts for the past several years — on topics ranging from from autistic children and schools, Kosovar refugee teens, Tibetan monks in India, Black Panthers in Cuba, UN weapons inspections in Iraq, Special Forces imprisoned in Afghanistan, and Reverend Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping. Rob will share about his experiences in capturing this kind of art from real life, what's involved in documentary-making, what motivates him, and what he's learned along the way.
Rob Van Alkemade worked as an interviewer/videographer for Steven Spielberg's Visual History Foundation while earning an MA in media studies from the New School for Social Research. He's worked since as a director, producer, cinematographer, sound recordist and/or editor on a variety of broadcast and independent documentary productions.

Towards a First Feature
Sat, 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM
Okay, you've made a few short films and you're ready to dare to start to think bigger — but once you do, you're immediately overwhelmed. Winnipeg filmmaker Bevan Klassen knows how you feel, but he'd like to encourage you as you baby step toward a feature, by discussing his own determined steps. Material covered ranges from finding stories, working with writers, story editors, and co-producers, seeking out funding, and answering the voices that keep saying "THIS IS CRAZY..."
Bevan Klassen has helped lead Flickerings from the start by example, putting together a solid resume of short films and daring to think bigger as he is currently in preproduction for more than one feature.

Introduction to Otaku Culture: J-Pop for Beginners
Wed., 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM
Flickerings' "J-Pop" program offers but a glimpse of the noisy, sprawling, neon-flashing postapocalyptic landscape that is contemporary Japanese popular culture. If you don't know the territory, you'll definately need an experienced guide, and so Jason Morehead will be here to map things out in this Wednesday afternoon introductory session. Jason will also be introducing films and leading discussions for several of our featured films and anime over the week.
Jason Morehead is a web designer and online film writer (opuszine.com, twitchfilm.net). He prefers not to describe himself as an otaku, but if you saw his DVD collection you might think otherwise.

Hikikomori
Thur, 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM
Paul Nethercott was one of the producers of the short film Mujo No Kaze (The Wind of Impermanence) in conjunction with the Biola University Film Department. The film (a "work-in-progress" screening in our 2007 Showcase) touches on the problem of group suicides and on the problem of hikikomori, young Japanese who have withdrawn from the world, often for years at a time. As both a missionary in Japan and director of "Christians in the Arts Network," (CAN) Paul has a unique perspective to speak about that culture, and what it means to create art that aspires to be both truly missional, and truly art. This session is in conjunction with Paul's seminar on Japanese culture at the Imaginarium, and will include discussion of making Mujo No Kaze, and the underlying social problems the film sought to address.
Paul Nethercott has lived in Japan for twenty years, is fluent in Japanese, and lives in Tokyo. He directs Christians in the Arts Network (CAN), exploring "missional art" as a way of connecting with the Japanese people.

Fantasy Role Playing
Thur., 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Fantasy Role Playing games are a form of collaborative and interactive storytelling, wherein participants assume the roles of fictional characters and within a system rules enjoy a certain creative freedom to shape how the game goes and ends. Like anything connected with the imagination, FRPG has stirred certain controversy in certain circles, though these are really less interesting than more philosophical conversation about border disputes between fantasy and "real life" — especially in these postmodern times when such borders are more in dispute than ever. The documentary film Darkon features a FRPG in which combat is simulated using padded weaponry. This postfilm discussion will use the documentary as a springboard to consider matters arising from issues of fantasy, imagination, real life, and whether gamers or their critics need to get a life.
John Morehead is a research, writer and speaker on intercultural studies and new religious movements. He also likes monster movies, and has been known to sport the occasional neck-bolts and forehead scars when the opportunity arises.

The Making of What Would Jesus Buy?
Fri, 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Fresh from premiering What Would Jesus Buy? to rave reviews at the 2007 South by Southwest Festival, Rob Van Alkemade will introduce his new documentary at Flickerings. Rob will share war stories about filming the anti-corporate antics of renowned culture-jammer Reverend Billy (about whom Rob has made an award-winning short and this new feature). Rob also has plenty of stories about working on this project with producer Morgan Spurlock, director and star of the documentary Supersize Me. (Sitting in on the post-screening discussion will be Aiden Enns, a former Adbusters editor who is no stranger to anti-corporate hijinks himself, having participated in his share and invented the highly-acclaimed — if rarely observed — "Buy Nothing Day".)
Rob Van Alkemade was working on a short political documentary in the summer of 2004 when he regularly came across Reverend Billy and his Church, singing and protesting and officiating forbidden weddings in Central Park. He produced and directed a short film on the reverend Preacher With an Unknown God, which received a 2006 Jury Award at Sundance and also played at Flickerings. This project led to a feature documentary on the Reverend a year later, produced by Morgan Spurlock.

Culture Jamming Further Considered
Sat, 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM
The anti-corporate publication Adbusters popularized creative civil disobedience and protests known as "culture jamming," efforts to wake consumer zombies from their mindless feeding and consider the implications of their consumption, both for themselves and the rest of the world. One-time Adbusters editor Aiden Enns will be on hand to help us process the culture-busting recorded in a pair of featured screenings this year, What Would Jesus Buy? and another documentary on how globalized consumption has already consumed the former Communist nations, Czech Dream. (He'll also be leading two seminar series at Cornerstone this year, "Make Affluence History" as a part of our cstoneXchange program and "The Seduction of Cool" at the Imaginarium.
Aiden Enns is a former managing editor for the anti-corporate Adbusters, who left that magazine to start his own version, Geez. Aiden is a Mennonite who calls himself "a missionary to the Christians with the social gospel." He grew up in Vancouver, Canada, and holds two master's degrees. He is the founder of "Buy Nothing Christmas."

Deep Focus: Filmmakers Only
Wed, Thur, Fri, 9:00 PM, in the Speaker Hospitality Trailer
Key to maintaining the conversation and community that is Flickerings is the participation of filmmakers at many levels. We've been encouraged to see a growing number of regular attendees and submitters to the Film Showcase carry on the conversation year to year. Each evening during the event, an informal filmmakers' forum convenes to share with peers works-in-progress and feedback on these, along with the common struggles of making films.
Wednesday night at 9:00 PM will be a reception for filmmaker participants in the 2007 Film Showcase. Other filmmakers are welcome to join us this and each night of Deep Focus, hosted by Bevan Klassen.