You Have Q's, We Have A's
Q: How'd hi/lo begin?
A: From humble beginnings at a sofa-saturated screening room in the
city's North Beach District in 1997 to the posh theater at the San
Francisco Art Institute, the hi/lo film festival has evolved into a
major West Coast showcase for independent low-budget film makers.
In the fall of 1997 Lobsters Paul Charney, Brian L. Perkins and Marc Vogl produced a short film called Space Chocolate
and presented it at the group's first hi/lo film festival in
conjunction with the works of other Bay Area and West Coast filmmakers
who all had more ideas than they did money. The film was a success and
has gone onto screenings around the world, and the festival sold out
five times as well.
Each year hundreds attend the festival, which receives press coverage
from numerous local and national magazines and newspapers. hi/lo film
founders Brian L. Perkins and Marc Vogl have appeared on local
television and radio shows to talk about the festival and have
explained to a very nice talk-show host in Australia why, when it comes
to making movies, $40 million dollars can kill a good idea.
Q: What sort of films do you screen?
A: We don't screen any
"sort" of film in particular, other than a work that is high in concept
and low in budget.
We've shown abstract, narrative, documentary and crochet-based
animation films shot in a variety of formats including DV,
Pixelvision, Super8, hi-8, 16mm, and 35mm. What matters most is a
coveted filmic notion and a lot of gumption. We maintain
that a borrowed camera and a good idea can combine to make a film that
beats the tar out of the latest million-dollar debacle now playing down
at the multiplex. If we've said it once, we've said it a thousand
fucking times: $40 million can kill a good idea. Not only that,
it can torture a good idea's family and key its car.
Q: Why don't you accept films over 30 minutes?
A: We
accepted films of any length for the first 8 years of hi/lo and this
year we've decided to change it up. We know there are a lot of killer
features, hour-long docs and 30min+ films out in the world and we wish
we
could properly review, and program, all of them. Our jury's time is
limited, however, and our festival is focused on showing short films.
So, for 2006 we are not accepting any films longer than 30 minutes.
Q: What exactly does 'low budget' mean?
A: There is no
specific dollar value that says 'low budget' to us. We understand that
shooting on 35mm inherently means spending more on film than shooting
on hi-8, that making a 90 minute feature will likely cost more than a
90 second short and that buying a cup of coffee for the friend of a
friend who is up till four in the morning again mixing your sound track
can jack up production costs, so even if your short film costs
thousands of dollars it can still be 'low budget.' That said, use
common sense: does your film embody a high concept/low budget spirit
--- that's what we're really after.
Q: What is the hi/lo film festival's relation to Killing My Lobster?
A:
Killing My Lobster, the San Francisco theater and film company and
sketch comedy troupe has produced the hi/lo film festival since 1997.
Though KML's focus is comedy, this is not the focus of the hi/lo film
festival. For more info on Killing My Lobster, check out www.killingmylobster.com
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