BEAR DANCE
BEAR DANCE, shot in Portugal during the 2002 Figueira da Foz International Film Festival, discusses the sanity and insanity of daily life, cultures colliding, young and old meshing in a common stew of modern humanity in new-millennium turmoil. We are introduced to a cast of interesting characters who entertain us with various real-life stories of surfing accidents, knife threats, chocolate addition, bricks being thrown at babies, confessing Catholic sins, safaris with blue people, a past life as a castrated eunuch, etc. In the end, it hopefully becomes clear that we need to express tolerance for differing views of existence.
BEAR DANCE (72 minutes ©2004 Feature Workshops, Color). A Film by Rick Schmidt and Willie Boy Walker. Directed, shot, and edited by Rick Schmidt. Scripted and produced by Rick Schmidt and Willie Boy Walker. With Willie Boy Walker, Alfons Engelen, Charles Hedges, Diana Tavares, Yves Andre Delubac, Rosa Margarida Balreira Prazeres, Andreia De Jesus Alves, Sandra Isabel De Jesus Oliveira, Ana Isabel Da Silva Pereira, Sandra Maria Perestrelo Olim, Joao Abrunhosa Moreira, Aida Silva, and Pedro Miguel Condeios.
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THE HIGDEN MAN
THE HIGDEN MAN is a story about two small-town grifters trying to convince Heber Springs, Arkansas landowners to sell their lakefront property, running the story that the local dam will soon raise the water level and flood surrounding property. Starring John Barnum (RELEASE THE HEAD) and Stephen W. Gillard (also lead actor in 'HEAD,' as well as CHETZEMOKA'S CURSE-DOGME #10), with Music by Charlotte Taylor & Gypsy Rain and Paul Baker; directed, shot & edited by Rick Schmidt, the movie is instructive about how easily people can be duped by a loquacious lawyer. Life stories about old boyfriends, odd accidents, cancer-causing smoking, motel living, etc., paint a picture of rural Arkansas as it moves quietly into the 21st century.
THE HIGDEN MAN – Produced/directed/shot/edited by Rick Schmidt; Written by John Barnum, Stephen W. Gillard, and Rick Schmidt; Starring John Barnum, Stephen W. Gillard; Music from Charlotte Taylor & Gypsy Rain and Paul Baker
Charlotte Taylor, drama, grifters, Gypsy Rain, John Barnum, Paul Baker, Rick Schmidt, Stephen Gillard
The feature was conceived & shot with a one-chip Sony TRV10 camera, videotaped in just 1 1/4 days, while the two main actors/co-directors and I attended the Ozarks Foothills Film Festival in Arkansas for the screening of our previous feature together, RELEASE THE HEAD. So, a totally improv feature delivered for $39 dollars––three DV hour-long cassettes and $7 for the mumu dress that "Sis" is wearing. PS. See page 95 in my book Extreme DV (©2004, Penguin/Random House Books) which shows the small and compact TRV10 camera I used, and talks about how to get good CD-quality sound with a relatively cheap $60 EMC-HS1 Sony mike while doing improv!
Indie Film Review: THE HIGDEN MAN (2004)
Producer & director Rick Schmidt has made a career out of producing unusual indie films with unusual characters in unusual situations. From his early films such as 1988: The Remake (1977) to Morgan’s Cake (1989) to his more recent Tears of Bankers (2012) and Sticky Wicket, which is currently in production, Schmidt is the poster child for the indie film-maker making feature films about whatever crosses his mind at the moment. His films mix non-fiction with fiction (sometimes with only an outline in hand) and actors with non-actors to create a film that defies easy classification. With The Higden Man (2004) Schmidt develops his strange aesthetic to deliver a film that may not hit all the right marks but does leave the viewer coming away with an unusual outlook on what is real and what is fiction.
The film centers on two conmen Marion Edwards & Charlie Parker (John Barnum and Stephen W. Gillard, respectfully) who are small time grifters trying to convince the residents of Heber Springs, Arkansas to sale their lakefront property before the government comes in to build a dam that will render the land into a small swamp. Neither one is particularly very smart but they believe that they will be successful, which is what every good conman believes. Between day to day conversations with land owners and personal lives which boarder on the pathetic audiences will find some sort of sympathy for the fools.
Like many of Schmidt’s films, real life confessions are sprinkled throughout from some of the actors and non-actors giving the film a very realistic look into the lives of the supporting (and sometimes walk on) characters. Some of these contribute to the overall film while others seem like simple filler for time but what these little vignettes into the real life of the actors does is to ground the whole film in a pseudo-real world in that all the characters inhabit. This style of film-making gives Schmidt’s films a feel and style not seen in other film-makers.
What will deter many viewers is the Dogma ‘99 style of film-making from the cinematography to the art design and everything else. The film was shot on digital video so the quality is not up to the standards of some bigger indie films as little care was taken into consideration in terms of scenes which only use available lighting and using both actors and non-actors always yields mixed results. What does carry the film is the music provided by Charlotte Taylor & Gypsy Rain and Paul Baker. The Higden Man may not be a polished film but for those looking small time Americana this may be right up your alley.
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BEAR DANCE (72 min.) + THE HIGDEN MAN (70 min.)–– 2 movies ©2004, shot at film festivals; Figueira da Foz intl., Portugal, & Ozarks Foothills FF, Arkansas.