Wholphin

Great lost films are not from 1919, but from the last 20 years.

In the film CHAMELEON STREET, the enigmatic Doug Street puts on a series of cons, sometimes to make money, sometimes to prove he can do more than what the world expects of him. In short time he goes from a simple extortion plot to complex impersonations, including as a reporter from Time, a Yale student, a lawyer and even a surgeon. Yes, a surgeon.

Get the Flash Player to see this player.

The point of the film is not just to tell a story of a conman, but asks what a black man is expected to do to make a living in this modern world. Based mostly on the true story of super-con-man William Douglas Street Jr, the film is written and directed by Wendell B. Harris Jr, who also turns in an uncanny performance as the lead character. The film existed in the burgeoning indie cinema of the early 90s. Unlike most of the films around him though, Harris provided a complicated character and not a simple genre drama or comedy. The extremely intelligent Street has great ideas to fight the system, but is constantly stumped by tiny details he cannot control. It’s a drama and you root for Street to win but feel sorry for the people getting conned as well. And it’s bittersweet funny, as the sardonic humor in the film rings all too true. Above all, you feel the frustration that leads to fighting back against the grain.

Get the Flash Player to see this player.

Harris acted in his own super-8 film shorts growing up in Flint, Michigan. After reading an article on Street in 1983, he started researching and interviewing him in order to write the script, resulting in 36 versions of the script over 4 years.

The film won the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance in 1990. But that didn’t lead to distribution. Rather, the prize led to many meetings in Hollywood, the insult of a possible remake rather than a distribution deal, some deals for writing scripts, and a brutal joke.

Get the Flash Player to see this player.

CHAMELEON STREET did get a forgettable theatrical release and Wendell was able to write some scripts. Only now at the end of 2007 does the film finally get a DVD release. A new video transfer, loads of extras about the making of the film in luscious 1980s video, and the trailer for the film. Also two great short videos, You Know Leadbelly?, which is an entertaining short resulting from pre-production character studies, and the great Colette Vignette, a heavily edited short that shows the basis for some of the artistic ends Harris puts into the film.

The behind-the-scenes footage is appropriately called The Process. The mainstream process of the film industry did not work as well. One of his projects that didn’t take off was Negropolis, a sword-and-sandal satire that he hoped would star Howard Stern as Alexander the Great (remember its 1990), Oprah as Cleopatra with a consortion of Cleos around the world, and Harris himself as “Canigula.” But STREET remains Harris’ only film as director.

Get the Flash Player to see this player.

The long overdue DVD is great. The big extra is a layered, interesting group of scenes presented as a 30-minute trailer for his film-in-progress titled Arbiter Roswell. Entirely shot, Harris is currently editing what may be the definitive film document on UFOs.

In the end, Harris feels like there is only one way to look at filmmaking.

Get the Flash Player to see this player.

I recently interviewed Harris for my zine Cinemad, which is available right here.

DVD available now from Home Vision and Image Entertainment for $26.99.

Great lost films are not from 1919, but from the last 10 years.

If you hear about a great, unique independent film that premiered at Sundance, you assume it got to theaters, is out on DVD, is in the indie film world consciousness. Nope. There are hundreds of great films that premiere at the big fest that still disappear a year or two later. Theatrical and home video distribution is not guaranteed for anyone outside of celebrities it seems. Even films with style, distinctive settings and hot topic plots may not find a superhero to get them out to the public.

one of five posters made for the film

Around seven years ago, Shemie Reut was a cinematographer on music videos in New York when he decided he needed a break. Heading upstate, he ended up in a job as a camp counselor at Paradox Lake, specifically for autistic children. Blown away by the kids and environment, he wrote a script about a 20-something guy looking to get out of the city and taking the same job at the camp, and returned a year later to shoot it the film.

In the opening of the film, lead actor Matt Wolf encounters an autistic man on the subway that opens his eyes to that world.

The resulting film is PARADOX LAKE, a beautifully subtle drama, following Wolf as his life changes within the camp. Looking for a new world to escape to, he struggles with a tough counselor and tries to date another one, all while taking care of the autistic teens.

Some of the kids seem to have luck predicting events. This gets intense as Wolf befriends an autistic girl who is playing a hide-and-seek game of sorts. The new world Wolf is searching for finally shows up.

Reut does a wonderful job of mixing the narrative and the real world, balancing an interesting story with the deep, unique atmosphere of the camp. While the start of the film and overall plot is scripted, the film changed with the kids’ reactions and scenes and story elements were then improvised. Handheld cameras follow everyone, but the film is not messy. It actually flows quite smoothly in image and plot. Reut talks about how the style was affected by the situation.

Get the Flash Player to see this player.

The camp kids knew a film was shooting, and their families gave permission, but it didn’t really change the kids’ daily routines. Reut knew this was better than bringing in all actors. Using the real camp environment and kids lends an undeniable authenticity to the film.

Get the Flash Player to see this player.

The lead autistic girl who Wolf becomes intertwined with is a real camp kid, not an actor. After capturing some footage of her, Reut felt she could lend something special to the film and worked with her family on the scenes. This takes the film from a simple drama to a level of magical realism.

After a long editing process with all the raw footage, PARADOX LAKE premiered in competition at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival, and later won Best Film at the Los Angeles Film Festival. LAKE then enjoyed a long festival life around the world and played on the Sundance Channel. Unfortunately, no distributors took a chance on the small film with no stars, and still has not played the art house circuit or come out on DVD.

Get the Flash Player to see this player.

Great lost films are not from 1919, but from the last 10 years.

When you hear about “Great American Films” it’s usually something from the past. The acting is wonderful, you sink into the characters, luscious camera-work, interesting plot-lines that come together, great music, characters you wish you could hang out with, characters you wish would win in the end, characters you want to kiss…

As I think about those accolades for past films, I think about APART FROM THAT from just last year. I think about it as great American cinema, made by enthusiastic filmmakers and actors and crew. I think about how it looks and sounds great, not about how much it cost or what camera they must have used. I think about how great the quirky characters are, not about the actors who portray them. Because they aren’t famous. And since they aren’t famous, and since the filmmakers aren’t known, and since the film doesn’t fit into a marketable genre, I think about how you probably haven’t seen one of the great American films from last year.

Get the Flash Player to see this player.

Apart From That was written, directed and edited by Jennifer Shainin and Randy Walker.

When I called for the interview, an older woman answered and asked who I was. Then Jennifer got on the phone. “Mom, I got it!” I didn’t realize — the directors live at home with Jennifer’s parents. “Anything for film, man” Walker relates. Since they started the film five years ago they’ve saved money the old fashion way.

After playing tons of film festivals, from SXSW to CineVegas to Edinburgh, the film has reached the end of the usual fest run. No distributor has picked up the film, at least in part due to the fact that the entire ensemble cast, while great, are not recognizable. They preferred to have young actors, or unknowns, or non-actors:

Get the Flash Player to see this player.

This has all led to the tone of the film, with overlapping stories of everyday people that are unique in their own way, with a touch of Raymond Carver-knack writing:

Get the Flash Player to see this player.

The film will now be part of Indiewire’s 2007 Undiscovered Gems series. Audiences will select their favorite film to win the Sundance Channel Audience Award. The winning filmmaker will receive a cash award of $50,000, a theatrical release in New York, Los Angeles and at least five other U.S. cities during 2008, as well as an exclusive broadcast on Sundance Channel.

Shainin and Walker at CineVegas 06:

Please go see APART FROM THAT in the theater, where it will look beautiful.

In the next month, Shainin and Walker will sell out — they are moving out of the parent’s basement to a place across the street.