All posts filed under “video

The Last Reel


My latest documentary, The Last Reel, is now available to watch online (below).

The film documents the Plaza Maplewood Theater’s final days prior to handing its keys over to a neighboring megachurch. It’s at times a sad film; it’s Minnesotan; it’s an ode; it’s got some 35mm, an old projection booth, some animation, some religion, some Sam Raimi and Evil Dead — it’s about community. It feels like it could be any town with a small movie theater going through change.

Before editing, I sat on the footage for a few years (it was filmed in 2013), because I was freelancing on other projects, but the distance provided some perspective in regards to our current place of digital cinema, streaming, and the plethora of screens available, etc. This documentary is special to me, too, because it’s about a theater I went to as a kid. Theaters and movies have been a part of my life (leisure, work, and creative); they’re very important to me. The movie theater, a communal experience of the darkened room and light on the screen and the act of watching cinema, have also had a profound influence on my current project, Goblin (which I’m currently trying to crowdfund).

Today is the first day that The Last Reel is available publicly. I hope you enjoy it! And please remember our crowdfunding campaign; we need your support –> Visit the Goblin Kickstarter .

 

ORACLE

Oracle (2015) had a great festival run this past year, and now it’s available to watch on vimeo (below). The film is part of a trilogy of shorts that began with Home Near Water (2013); the films are linked through their connection to animal magic. Oracle builds upon themes and ideas from Home Near Water by exploring the emotional disconnection in its main character, which leads to a spiritual, fantastical, and dream-like transformation.

Official Selection: Minneapolis St. Paul International, Miami Independent, Sydney World, Charlotte, Buffalo Niagara, Chennai International, Motor City Nightmares, Blackbird, Blow-up International Arthouse, Verona International, Lilliputian, Amarcord Arthouse, Great Lakes International, Square Lake, and Athens International Film Festivals

Awards: Cinematography certificate at Rochester International; Semi-finalist at Polish International and Miami Short Film Fests; Honorable mention at Yosemite International; Creative Vision Award nominee at Altered Esthetics Film Fest; Best Cinematography and Best Visual Effects at Wild Rose Independent Film Festival

Press:  Filmmaker interview for the Altered Aesthetics Film Festival Blog

Short SynopsisHaunted by visions of a past tangled in dream, a young woman must reckon with questions of love, death, and animal magic.

Writer/Director/DP: Christopher Lange
Actors: Emaline Williams, Christopher Young
Assistant Director: Neha Belvalkar
Producer: Shay Willard
Art Director: Gavin Farnsworth

You can watch it here:

Home Near Water

Home Near Water (2013) had some excellent screenings during 2014-2015.  The film was officially selected and screened at the Chicago Underground Film Festival (longest running underground film festival in the world), Maryland Film Festival, Minneapolis Underground Film Festival, and MNTV on TPT (Twin Cities Public Television).  Highlights were taking a road trip and attending the Maryland film festival, the MNTV screening at the Walker Art Center, and receiving an award at the Chicago Underground Film Festival.

The film includes the acting talents of Joel Stigliano and Larissa Fedoryka, musical score from Aaron Butler, and makeup FX from Scott Sliger.

It can be viewed here:

For an award, I got this from the Chicago Underground Film Fest (a hand-made puppet!):

Puppet Award, Chicago Underground Film Festival