Program Guide - Cleveland International Film Festival

72 FILMS A – Z [E–F] The 37th Cleveland International Film Festival
AMERICAN INDEPENDENTS
GREG GUND MEMORIAL
STANDING UP FILM COMPETITION
PACIFIC PEARLS
The Exquisite Corpse Project
Directed by Ben Popik
USA 2012
84 minutes
Friday, April 12 Saturday, April 13
2:20 PM I Code CORP12 9:30 PM I Code CORP13
Sunday, April 14
7:00 PM I Code CORP14
This is not a zombie film, so get that thought out of your head.
THE EXQUISITE CORPSE PROJECT is a brilliantly comedic
and original film about five comedy writers brought together
to write a script. However, each writer can only write 15 pages
of said script and each writer can only read the previous five
pages before they start their own 15. The six gentlemen
(including director Ben Popik) were internet phenoms with a
large following as the sketch comedy troupe Olde English, but
their crossover limitations led to in-fighting and the eventual
break-up of the group. Now, years later, their reunion leads to
what can only end up as an ingenious project or a complete
disaster. The documentary side of this film is a tour-de-force of
hand-wringing, head-banging brilliance mixed with side-splitting
comedy. Combining footage of the behind-the-scenes process
with footage of the actual film these men wrote and produced,
THE EXQUISITE CORPSE PROJECT is a fascinating look at
how comedy can lead to tragedy then romance then crime
caper then supernatural thriller and back to comedy. —T.W.
Producers~Ben Popik, Joanna Popik, Margaret Laney, Marshall Rimmer
Screenwriting~Chioke Nassor, Joel Clark, Adam Conover, Dave Segal, Raphael
Bob-Waksberg Cinematography~Marshall Rimmer Editing~Ben Popik, Raphael
Bob-Waksberg Principal Cast~Caleb Bark, Megan Raye Manzi, Julia Frey, Trevor
Williams
Print Source~Ben Popik / benpopik@gmail.com /
www.theexquisitecorpseproject.com
Fallen City
Directed by Zhao Qi
CHINA 2012
90 minutes
Monday, April 8 Tuesday, April 9
2:25 PM I Code FALL08 8:45 PM I Code FALL09
In May 2008 a devastating earthquake hit China, killing over
20,000 people. This powerful documentary spans the three
years between the total destruction of the city of Beichuan
and the building of a new one. It focuses on three families,
all of whom lost relatives. As we follow their struggles to move
onwards, the film artfully juggles many elements. We see beautifully
elegiac footage of the devastated city, to which survivors
are sometimes permitted to return to honor the dead. There
is disturbing footage of the quake itself. We see the survivors
as they share their thoughts and pain and ponder what sort
of future they may have. Finally, we see the government’s
response: the building of the new Beichuan, the organization
of this new city, and the slow and controlled effort to resettle
a huge displaced population. By using this intimate approach
to a tragedy of such monumental scope, FALLEN CITY never
allows the human element to be overlooked. It is not just a
document of loss, but one of courage and hope. (In Mandarin
and Sichuan with subtitles) —C.R.
Producer~Zhao Qi Cinematography~Sun Shaoguang, Niu Xiaoyu Editing~
Matthieu Laclau, Meng Peicong, Niu Xiaoyu
Print Source~CAT & Docs / maelle@catndocs.com / www.catndocs.com
About the Director~Zhao Qi is a writer, producer, and director of television and
feature documentaries. He was nominated for this year’s Grand Jury Prize in
World Cinema-Documentary at the Sundance Film Festival. Filmography~FALLEN
CITY (2012)
Community Partner:
About the Director~Ben Popik was a founding member of Olde English, which was
formed at Bard College. As a member of Olde English, Popik was a part of over
200 short films produced with the sketch group. Filmography~THE EXQUISITE
CORPSE PROJECT (2012)
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Media Partner: