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Inaugural Modern Film Festival debuts this weekend
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Published: September 23, 2009
Organizers of a film festival that debuts at the Gem Theatre in Kannapolis this weekend say the city is evolving and is ready for an event like the Modern Film Festival.
"Our community is changing," said Steve Morris, general manager of the Gem Theatre. "We are having a diverse group of people moving in. This is a way to offer something to the community we've never offered before."
Kannapolis has transformed its image in recent years, turning the loss of textile giant Pillowtex into an opportunity and bringing the North Carolina Research Campus, a biotechnology research hub, to fruition.
The Modern Film Fest builds on that success, organizers say. The festival will feature 15 screenings from Friday through Sunday, including documentaries, narratives and the classic 1968 film, "Night of the Living Dead."
"The goal is to have something for everybody," said Michael Knox, 35, former recruiter for the Asheville Film Festival and the artistic director for the Modern Film Fest. "The main thing was looking for good stories that weren't offensive."
The goal also was to find movies the community would not usually see in movie theatres.
"There are five I really want to see, five I'd like to see, and five I wouldn't walk across the street to see," Morris said. "I think everybody's five are different."
While most of the films are independent, they are still entertaining, organizers said.
"You may find art house films somewhere else," said Ben McNeely, 27, the operations director for the festival and the Web content coordinator for the Independent Tribune, one of the sponsors. "You won't find that here."
Some of the movies Morris, Knox and McNeely are already predicting will be popular among audiences are "Gigantic," a comedy starring John Goodman, Zooey Deschanel and Ed Asner, and "Garrison Keillor: The Man on the Radio in the Red Shoes," a documentary about the creator and host of the radio show, "A Prairie Home Companion."
Following the Keillor screening on Saturday night, there will be a gala reception at Restaurant Forty Six in Kannapolis.
On Friday, the festival will feature "Zombie's Night Out," for the 11 p.m. showing of "Night of the Living Dead." Audience members are invited to dress like zombies for a chance to win free passes for the rest of the weekend.
The film festival also will feature a panel discussion with local filmmakers who will discuss the industry in North Carolina with local filmmakers at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday.
This weekend also marks the first time "Tearing Down the Tent," a documentary about the Cole Bros. Circus that Knox produced and directed, will be watched by a paying audience.
"As a filmmaker, it will feel more real," Knox said.
After five months of planning, Knox and McNeely are looking forward to seeing people watch films and have a discussion about them, something they know the community is ready for.
"There are more movie nerds in this area than people realize," Knox said.
For more information, visit www.modernfilmfest.net
• Contact reporter Jessica Groover: 704-789-9152
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