Ohio filmmakers celebrate at Columbus Festival

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Cinema Columbus Film Festival Presented by CAPA Third year Announcement of independent film lineup and screening schedule.

This year, nearly 50 feature and short films will be screened at seven locations from April 24 to April 28, according to a news release from the organization. The 22 screenings will be hosted by Drexel Theatre, Gateway Film Center, Studio 35 Cinema & Drafthouse, Grandview Theater & Drafthouse, McConnell Arts Center, Wexner Center for the Arts, and Southern Theater.

“This year's festival selections provide cinematic proof that the world is full of uniquely talented filmmakers, both in and outside of Columbus,” said festival director Brett Reiter. . “The city has increasingly expanded its commitment to film in recent years, and we are honored to shine a spotlight on these new cinematic voices for the benefit of our emerging community of film fans.”

The festival will focus on Ohio-based filmmakers and include several from the Columbus area.

“False Positive,” the film about Ohio State University and Olympic sprinter Butch Reynolds, will open the festival on Wednesday, April 24 at the Southern Theater. The Unreleased ESPN Movie 30 for 30 Documentary by Akron-based filmmaker Ismail Al Amin tells “the untold story of the world's fastest man… whose legendary career was derailed by flaws.” The drug test has been described as one of the biggest frauds in American sports history. ”

Ohio filmmaker Peyton Barkhamer, also from the Akron area, will return this year with the short film “The Back of Your Eyelids.” Her previous short subject “You’ll Never Be My First Kiss” was screened during the 2023 festival.

“Festivals play a vital role in every filmmaker's journey, and Cinema Columbus is committed to not only celebrating great films, but championing their creative teams.” Berkhammer he said. “We're thrilled to be back with fresh production this year. The vibrant Columbus community always supports the wide range of films we screen, and we're thrilled to be back with such a loyal audience. We are really happy to be able to share our film.”

Tickets are on sale now. Private screenings are $10. Festival passes, which include admission to all festival screenings and a gift bag, can be purchased for $200. Cinema Columbus will host a re-screening of the award-winning feature film on Sunday, April 28th at the Gateway Film Center. This screening of his three films is part of an awards bundle, offering three films for $25.

Tickets can be purchased in person at the CBUSArts Ticket Center (39 E. State St.) or online. www.cinemacolumbus.com, or call (614) 469-0939. Advance purchase is recommended, but remaining tickets can also be purchased on the day.

Cinema Columbus Film Festival Schedule

Wednesday, April 24th
7pm – “false positive”
Southern Theater (21 E. State St.)
Genre: Documentary
The untold story of Butch Reynolds, the world's fastest man. His legendary career was derailed by a flawed drug test, one of the biggest frauds in American sports history. Monte Carlo, 1990. Butch Reynolds, the 400-meter world record holder, underwent a routine drug test and tested positive for the anabolic steroid nandrolone. After Butch disputed the results, the International Amateur Athletics Federation (IAAF) publicly acknowledged that laboratory technicians had confused Reynold's urine samples with those of other athletes, causing a “false positive.” Ta. In an outrageous U-turn that would lead to one of the greatest injustices in American sports, the IAAF refused to conduct new tests, claiming the laboratory had “corrected the mistake.” Instead, they labeled Reynolds a “dirty athlete” and kicked him out of competition at the most critical point in his career.
Post-screening event: Moviegoers can stay after the screening to enjoy a Q&A with Al-Amin and Reynolds, moderated by Columbus Dispatch sports columnist Rob Oller.

Thursday, April 25th
7pm – “Family White Elephant” – World Premiere
Wexner Center for the Arts (1871 N High St.)
Director: Mary Jo Ball
Genre: Documentary
The Family White Elephants explores two sides of the director's family tree, his treasure trove of inherited wealth and his fascination with death. All this influences her artistic practice. Ball has a historian's interest in her family's storied pedigree, which includes industrial giants like Carnegie and Rockefeller on the one hand and immigrants from Eastern Europe on the other.

7pm – “Breaking News”
McConnell Arts Center (777 Evening St.)
Director: Chelsea Hernandez, Heather Courtney, Princess A. Hairston
Genre: Documentary
Frustrated by the lack of women and people of color in the media, Emily Ramshaw wanted to do something radical against the dominance of white men in newsrooms. So in 2020, she and her group of aspiring female journalists banded together to disrupt the status quo and launch The 19th*News, a digital she-news startup based in Austin, Texas. This film documents the candid discussions at the 19th* on race and gender equality, making it clear that change is not easy, and how one newsroom is tackling these challenges both in the workplace and in journalism. It shows you how to deal with it.

7pm – “Lost Souls”
Gateway Film Center (1550 N High St.)
Director: Catherine Propper
Genre: Story
A young rapper leaves everything behind and embarks on a journey of self-discovery, music, and friendship in the heart of Texas.

7pm – Local short block 1
Drexel Theater (2254 E Main St.)
• “Spencer + Penny Forever” (Eric M. Bosso)
• “Aiu Demon” (Ali Rose Bianco)
• “Samhain” (Alexis Schuknecht)
• “listener” (Max Fogle)
• “All the ways to say I love you” (Maya Wanner)
• “The house my mother left behind” (Kaelynn Oldshouse)

Friday, April 26th
1pm – shorts block 1
Gateway Film Center (1550 N High St.)
• “There's a song deep in my heart” (Jonathan Pickett)
•“You can go home anytime.” (Matthew Everitt)
• “So that's what happened.” (Neha Aziz)
• “Beech” (Selit Kashay Furuf)
• “Mermaid, bitch.” (Victoria Negri)
• “Unfinished business” (Jacqueline Rosenthal)

1pm – “Coming Around”
Drexel Theater (2254 E Main St.)
Director: Sandra Itainen
Genre: Documentary
A young queer Muslim woman struggles with her decision to come out to her devout mother and ends up marrying a male partner to escape the silent opposition.

4pm – “Chase Chase Amy”
Gateway Film Center (1550 N High St.)
Director: Sav Rogers
Genre: Documentary
This fascinating and earnest meta-documentary examines the transformative impact of '90s romantic comedies on a 12-year-old queer kid growing up in Kansas. For young Sav Rogers, Kevin Smith's cult classic Chasing Amy became a lifesaver for his queer identity. Digging deeper into this film as a cornerstone of LGBTQ+ cinema, we find the director at many unexpected emotional crossroads.

4pm – “Artist unknown”
Drexel Theater (2254 E Main St.)
Director: Cinder Chou
Genre: Story
Juniper, an insecure martial artist, must discover the origins of a painting after two thieves try to steal it.

7pm – “Drifting Fields” – World Premiere
Drexel Theater (2254 E Main St.)
Director: Tysen Destone
Genre: Story
A man with terminal brain cancer is forced to live with his parents for the rest of his life and embarks on a spiritual journey with psilocybin.

7pm – “The sofa is nice.”
Studio 35 Cinema and Drafthouse (3055 Indianola Ave.)
Director: Cole, Eli, Kyle Thiele
Genre: Story
Two cousins ​​moved a couch in Dayton, Ohio without using a car.

11pm – “Judgment”
Studio 35 Cinema and Drafthouse (3055 Indianola Ave.)
Director: Marwan Mokbel
Genre: Story
A unique queer horror film set in Egypt by an Egyptian director and a Middle Eastern cast and crew, The Judgment follows a gay couple who return to Egypt from the United States due to a family emergency, only to be forced back into the closet. It depicts a person trying to live a life of justice. friend. As pervasive tensions of dangerous homophobia mount around them, they begin to fear that they have fallen prey to witchcraft as punishment for the “sin of homosexuality” and, as a result, one of them falls into religious fear, and his unhealed past is exposed.

Saturday, April 27th
Noon – “Bad press”
Grandview Theater & Drafthouse (1247 Grandview Ave.)
Director: Rebecca Lansbury & Joe Peeler
Genre: Documentary
When the Muscogee Nation suddenly begins censoring its free press, a rogue reporter struggles to expose government corruption in a historic battle that affects all Indians.

1pm – “Legend of Mexman”
Drexel Theater (2254 E Main St.)
Director: Josh Polon
Genre: Documentary
Despite conflicts with producers, unrequited love, and tensions with his documentary crew, Germain Alonso struggles to make his first feature film, the fantastical sci-fi epic MexMan. .

1pm – Local short block 2
Gateway Film Center (1550 N High St.)
• “Meatwork” (Lydia Cornett)
• “Behind the eyelids” (Peyton Barkhamer)
• “First Look” (Jordan Summerrad)
• “It won’t work any other way.” (Zhou Hao)
• “Before I let go.” (Cameron Granger)
• “river” (Rafal Sokolovsky & Kanat Omurbekov)

3 pm – “Still a small voice”
Grandview Theater & Drafthouse (1247 Grandview Ave.)
Director: Luke Lorenzen
Genre: Documentary
A woman aspiring to become a hospital chaplain begins a year-long training in spiritual care and realizes she needs to look deep within herself to successfully care for patients.

4pm – “Universal Theory”
Drexel Theater (2254 E Main St.)
Director: Tim Kreger
Genre: Story
1962. Physics conference held in the Alps. Iranian guest. A mysterious pianist. Strange clouds form in the sky, and mysterious thumping sounds occur beneath the mountains. A black and white quantum mechanical thriller.

4pm – shorts block 2
Gateway Film Center (1550 N High St.)
• “In our own way” (Jason Headley)
• “Ho hao wan wan” (M Yue)
• “Fragments of Harem” (Cameron Tyler Carr)
• “Mama mama” (Majidi El Omari)
• “Place of Worship” (Bridget Frances Harris)
• “Plastico” (Bello Comparic)

7pm – Award announcement
Gateway Film Center (1550 N High St.)

11pm – late night shorts
Studio 35 Cinema and Drafthouse (3055 Indianola Ave.)
•“White Gaze” (ETA)
• “The Lost Borscht of Trundle and Atlantis” (Laura Lee)
• “Peephole” (Brendan Butler)
• “heap” (Kyle Marchen)
• “Dream Creep” (Carlos AF Lopez)
•“Stan's actions (Tyler C. Peterson)

Sunday, April 28th
1pm – Documentary Feature Award Winner
Gateway Film Center (1550 N High St.)

4pm – Narrative Feature Award Winner
Gateway Film Center (1550 N High St.)

7pm – Award-winning feature film selected by viewers
Gateway Film Center (1550 N High St.)

https://www.nbc4i.com/news/local-news/central-ohio-news/ohio-filmmakers-celebrated-in-columbus-festival/ Ohio filmmakers celebrate at Columbus Festival