The Death Of Dick Long
Always In Season
Safe Spaces
Three Documentary Selections Announced Today
Announcing the First Four Titles of the 21st Annual Sidewalk Film Festival
We’re excited to announce the first four films of the 21st Annual Sidewalk Film Festival sponsored by Regions Bank.
More titles will be released each week, until the full schedule announcement at the Festival Sneak Peek, Monday, July 22 at Saturn.
Director: Davy Rothbart
Documentary
In 1999, nine-year-old Emmanuel Durant and his family began filming their daily lives in America’s most dangerous neighborhood — just 17 blocks behind the U.S. Capitol. They’ve been filming ever since. Spanning two decades, 17 BLOCKS illuminates a nation’s ongoing crisis through one family’s raw, stirring, and deeply personal saga.
Director: Jeffrey McHale
Documentary
Released in 1995, Paul Verhoeven’s Showgirls was met by critics and audiences with near universal derision. You Don’t Nomi traces the film’s redemptive journey from notorious flop to cult classic, and maybe even masterpiece.
Director: Lynn Shelton
Narrative
Shot in Birmingham, Alabama, Cynthia and Mary show up to collect Cynthia’s inheritance from her deceased grandfather, but the only item she receives is an antique sword that was believed by her grandfather to be proof that the South won the Civil War.
Construction on the Sidewalk Cinema Has Begun!
We’ve been working so hard, for so long now, it’s hard to believe that this day has finally arrived – principal construction has begun on the Sidewalk Film Center + Cinema and we are BEYOND excited!
This week our partners at Stewart/Perry will be installing the ventilation partitions and beginning the saw work on the existing foundation.
Check out the gallery below for a few glimpses of the action, and be sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram for regular photo/video updates on the construction process.
If you’ve already contributed to the Make Movie Magic campaign to fund the Sidewalk Film Center + Cinema – THANK YOU!
If you have not yet made a contribution, it is not too late!
We’ve raised $3,994,000 towards our $4.9 million campaign goal and we could use your help to finish strong. Our campaign offers a wide range of giving levels (each with their own unique donor benefits) which you can learn more about at our campaign website.
One of the most popular opportunities this holiday season is the “Take a Seat” campaign – a perfect gift for a loved one who loves movies, or Sidewalk specifically, or who simply has everything!
Seats can be sponsored for only $1,000, with several affordable payment options available.
And there are several cool benefits:
- Your seat will be identified with an engraved plaque
- Your gift will be acknowledged on the Make Movie Magic Campaign Website and the Sidewalk Film Center + Cinema official website
- Your gift is tax deductible!
You can “Take a Seat” online in a few easy steps or you can contact us by emailing chloe@sidewalkfest.
Please note: We will honor all seat requests on a first-come, first-served basis. Seat sponsors must still purchase tickets for film screenings, special events etc.. at the Sidewalk Film Center + Cinema. Seat name recognition does not guarantee that particular seat for future performances.
Sidewalk XR is FREE this Sunday in the Lyric
Sidewalk XR is located in the lower level of the Lyric Theatre, which, as a historic building, does not have an elevator to this level. If you plan to attend but are unable to navigate stairs, please contact [email protected] after purchasing tickets and we will provide accommodation for your time slot.
Choose the time slot you’d like, then select the device associated with your preferred experience(s). Samsung Gear experiences are shorter, and should allow you time for 2-3 experiences per time slot.
Reserve your spot here
Dunkirk: Save Every Breath (Samsung Gear VR)
Directed by Matthew Lewis
Get swept away by this VR companion to the 2017 Christopher Nolan film.
5min
Authentically Us: Voices from the Transgender Community (Samsung Gear VR)
Directed by Jesse Ayala
Step into the lives of three transgender people in the American northwest who are living authentically and taking action to make communities safer and more prosperous for all.
Note: three experiences of 5min, 7min, 9 min
Race to Alaska (Samsung Gear VR)
Directed by Darren Vukasinovic
Roellen and Rohan Gillmore embark on an epic journey from their humble home in Australia to compete in one of the most challenging and dangerous sailing races in the world.
11.5min
Rise Above (Samsung Gear VR)
Directed by Benjamin Ross & Brittany Neff
A story about a teenage girl’s journey of empowerment as she confronts and overcomes her trauma after experiencing sexual violence.
7min
Submerged (Samsung Gear VR)
During monsoons, the rivers flowing through Bihar submerge over 60% of the state under water. In July 2016, panicking villagers cut away a portion of a mud dam, leading to a torrential burst of water that inundates hundreds of villages downstream.
8min
Dear Angelica (Oculus Rift only)
Directed by Saschka Unseld
A teenage girl looks back on the stories her mom told her as a child. As she recreates these vivid landscapes in her mind, you’re pulled into the magical, dreamlike worlds of her memories.
13min
Doctor X: Pale Dawn (HTC Vive or Samsung Gear VR)
Directed by Hyunsuk Lee
One of the world’s top geneticists is attacked by his own test subjects, but he must venture into the Labyrinth to discover who his true enemy is.
4min
Waltz of the Wizard (HTC Vive or Oculus Rift)
Unleash creative or destructive wizardry upon a fully interactive virtual world.
no set run time
Colosse (HTC Vive or Oculus Rift)
Directed by Nick Pittom
The story of the long lost Great Spirits known as the COLOSSE, exploring themes of fear, power and respect.
4.5min
La Camila (HTC Vive or Oculus Rift)
Directed by Jak Wilmot
This interactive virtual reality experience transports the viewer to a fantasy world where they must help Camila and her father create clouds from sheep wool to nurture the land below.
20 min
Manifest 99 (HTC Vive or Oculus Rift)
Directed by Adam Volker & Bohdon Sayre
Journey into the afterlife aboard a mysterious train inhabited by a murder of crows in this ominous and eerie virtual reality experience.
20 min
Tilt Brush (HTC Vive or Oculus Rift)
Unleash your creativity with three-dimensional brush strokes, stars, light, and even fire. Your room is your canvas. Your palette is your imagination. The possibilities are endless.
no set run time
Sidewalk 2018 VIP & Filmmaker Passes Are SOLD OUT
2018 Sidewalk Film Festival VIP and Filmmaker Passes are SOLD OUT. Weekend Passes, Day Passes and Premium Single Tickets are still available on our website or by calling the box office at 205-603-5661.
Please note: if you have already purchased a VIP/Filmmaker Pass and have not yet picked it up, it is waiting for you in the Central Box Office, which is located at the Pizitz Building, on the corner of 2nd Ave. N. and 19th St. (entrance on 19th St. N.).
20th Annual Sidewalk Film Festival Line-Up and Schedule Announced
We are so pleased to share that our 20th Annual Sidewalk Film Festival Line-Up and Schedule is now available on our website. We hope you are excited, cause we sure as hell are!
For Sidewalk 2018 you’ll see two opening night films (Sidewalk and SHOUT), 27 stellar documentary features, 27 incredible narrative features, 23 shorts blocks, six blocks of kids and family programming, four encore slots, two unique special events, two closing night films and one awards show. Not to mention several (8), still to be announced feature film titles, plus panels, workshops and VR programs that we’ll be announcing soon.
You can view the schedule in several ways, by opening the “schedule” drop down and making your selection. You can also sort the schedule by film type (narrative, documentary, shorts blocks special event etc..) and even better, you can create your own fully customized schedule that you can download to your phone via the mobile app or ical.
20th Annual Sidewalk Opening Night Announced + Three Additional Feature Film Titles Released
We’re proud to announce that White Tide: The Legend of Culebra, directed by Theo Love, will open our 20th Annual Festival, on Friday, August 24 at the beautiful Alabama Theatre. White Tide tells the larger-than-life story of a desperate Florida family man who goes on a wild treasure hunt for $2 million worth of cocaine. The fast-paced, stylish, fun, and poignant rollercoaster ride of a documentary is the perfect kickoff to Birmingham’s best weekend of the year. Director Theo Love is a Sidewalk Film Festival alum and Producer Bryan Storkel, a regular attendee since 2007, has screened 6 films at Sidewalk. The filmmakers and subjects are scheduled to attend.
Tickets for the Opening Night Film and After Party will be available for sale July 1, with a starting price of $30.
In addition to Opening Night, we are excited to announce the first feature film selections for our 20th Annual Sidewalk Film Festival. Screening dates, times and venues for these three films are not known at this time. That information, along with premium single tickets, will be available July 24th when we announce our full Festival schedule.
Support the Girls
Director: Andrew Bujalski
Narrative / Run Time: 90 Minutes / USA
Starring: Regina Hall, Haley Lu Richardson, Dylan Gelula, James Le Gros
The general manager at a highway-side ”sports bar with curves” has her incurable optimism and faith, in her girls, her customers, and herself, tested over the course of a long, strange day.
If I Leave Here Tomorrow:
A Film About Lynyrd Skynard
Director: Stephen Kijak
Documentary / Run Time: 95 Minutes / USA
The authorized documentary explores the music and backstory of the legendary American band.
Damsel
Directors: David Zellner, Nathan Zellner
Narrative / Run Time: 113 Minutes / USA
Starring: Robert Pattinson, Mia Wasikowska and David Zellner
It’s the Wild West, circa 1870. Samuel Alabaster, an affluent pioneer, ventures across the American frontier to marry the love of his life, Penelope. As his group traverses the west, the once-simple journey grows treacherous, blurring the lines between hero, villain and damsel.
Jefferson County Commission Supports Sidewalk Cinema
On Thursday, June 7th, The Jefferson County Commission approved a resolution to provide $200,000 of support to the Sidewalk Film Center & Cinema. Commissioner David Carrington, a long time supporter of the film industry in Jefferson County submitted the resolution for approval.
The Sidewalk Film Center & Cinema will not only serve the community as a movie theatre but also serve as a hub for filmmakers offering networking, training, and continuing education for Jefferson County filmmakers and aspiring filmmakers.
This pledge from The Jefferson County Commission brings the Make Movie Magic Capital Campaign to $3,573,000 against a $4,900,000 goal.
Sidewalk Film Center + Cinema in the News
Our friends at AL.com wrote a lovely piece about our Sidewalk Film Center and Cinema project and you can read the full story here.