Category: Uncategorized

“Long live independent films!” – Anora director, Sean Baker

The 97th Academy Awards took place last night in Los Angeles and Sidewalk’s Hollywood Awards Show Watch Party took place in Birmingham. Several of the nominees played at the Sidewalk Cinema during the previous year and while we didn’t have any Festival alum to root for (such as 2023’s Daniel Scheinert for Everything Everywhere All At Once and 2024’s Greta Gerwig for Barbie), there were still plenty of favorites competing for the gold.

Brady Corbet’s “monumental” achievement The Brutalist played at the Cinema January – February and was nominated for ten awards, taking home three: Best Cinematography for Lol Crawley, Best Music (Original Score) for Daniel Blumberg, and Best Actor for Adrien Brody.

Coralie Fargeat’s feminist body horror The Substance played last September and was nominated for five awards, taking home Best Makeup and Hairstyling for Pierre-Olivier Persin, Stéphanie Guillon, and Marilyne Scarselli.

Gints Zilbalodis’ animated adventure featuring no dialogue, Flow, played in December and garnered two nominations, winning Best Animated Feature Film.

Jesse Eisenberg’s dramedy A Real Pain played November – December and received two nominations, taking home Best Supporting Actor for Kieran Culkin.

As for Oscar Nominated Shorts (which are playing at the Cinema until March 6), Molly O’Brien and Lisa Remington’s The Only Girl in the Orchestra won for Best Documentary Short Film, Victoria Warmerdam and Trent’s I’m Not A Robot won Best Live Action Short Film, and Shirin Sohani and Hossein Molayemi’s In the Shadow of the Cypress won Best Animated Short Film.

You can get tickets to see all of the Oscar-nominated short films at the Sidewalk Cinema here.

The true winner of the night was Sean Baker for Anora, which played in November. Nominated for six awards, it took home five: Best Actress for Mikey Madison and Best Film Editing, Best Writing (Original Screenplay), Best Director, and Best Picture (along with Alex Coco and Samantha Quan) for Baker. It proved an historical night for the filmmaker, making him the first person in Academy Awards history to win four awards for the same film.

Other films that played at the Cinema that received nominations but unfortunately left empty-handed were Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu, the much-anticipated remake of one of cinema’s most classic and adored films that played December – January, which received four nominations.

Dreamworks’ most recent animated hit, Chris Sanders’ The Wild Robot, played September – October, received three nominations.

Sidewalk alum RaMell Ross’ poignant drama Nickel Boys played in February and received two nominations.

Aaron Schimberg’s psychological dark comedy A Different Man played in November and received one nomination.

Overall, and namely with the wins for Anora, it was a huge night for low-budget independent cinema as well as a push for the return and growth of movie theaters – both from the respective award-winning filmmaker and from host Conan O’Brien. With the latter’s skit CinemaStreams, he makes light of the current tradition of streaming movies at home or on a cellphone and introduces a newer and better method – watching them in a theater (what will they think of next!) 

As for his multiple turns on the awards stage, Sean Baker took time to highlight the need for the theatergoing experience: “Watching a film in a theater with an audience…it’s a communal experience you simply don’t get at home. And right now, the theater-going experience is under threat.” He continued, “Movie theaters, especially independently-owned theaters, are struggling, and it’s up to us to support them.” 

Now is the best time for you to support the Sidewalk Film Center + Cinema as our annual Membership Drive kicks off and lasts the entirety of March. For more information, visit sidewalkfest.com/membership.

 

John Singleton’s Boyz N the Hood was met with significant critical acclaim immediately following its release, nearly 35 years ago. The film released in 1991, and in 1992, Singleton became the youngest director and the first African American in cinema history to receive nomination for Best Director at the Academy Awards. Of far greater significance than its commercial reception, however, is this film’s staying power and striking cultural relevance. A powerful source of contemporary commentary on race in America, Boyz N the Hood doesn’t “feel” 35 years old. Reinforced by a number of social justice principles, the film highlights the socioeconomic challenges that ravaged low-income, Black communities during the 80s and early 90s. And for John Singleton, the undertaking of telling such a story was deeply, necessarily personal.

When he sold the script for Boyz N the Hood, John Singleton had only recently graduated from film school at USC. Very protective of his story (one which was directly influenced by his own childhood), he was determined to direct the film himself so as to preserve his own singular point-of-view. More specifically, in navigating the white-dominant film industry, Singleton was certain that Black stories demanded Black storytellers. “I went into film school with a certain focus,” Singleton told Spin Magazine in 1991. “I was going to make films about my people in a way that was never done before. I was going to be like a filmic soldier. I was going to learn the importance of subtext, of character, and of plot… I said over and over, ‘This is what I want.’ And it happened that way.”

As its recipients, we can celebrate the film’s capacity to “hold up” over the decades since its release. However, we can also lament the societal conditions which have contributed to the issues explored on screen remaining as “felt” and “present” as ever.

For further exploration prior to Sidewalk’s two screenings on February 20th and 23rd, we invite you to read “Boyz N the Hood and the Marginalization of Black Adolescent Males,” an article by Le Shorn S. Benjamin of Central Michigan University. Here, Benjamin discusses the many implications of various social issues on the Black adolescent males featured in the film, “and closes with hypothetical solutions for minimizing their marginalized experiences.” We hope that this, and the other selected readings, will further enhance your experience and appreciation for Boyz N the Hood.

– Education and Outreach Coordinator Peyton Chandler

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Boyz N the Hood plays as a part of our Sidewalk Film 101 series February 20 at 7:00pm and February 23 at 1:00pm. You can get tickets here.

Select members of the Sidewalk Staff have picked some of their favorite romantic movies for our Valentine’s Staff Picks Weekend (Feb. 14 – 20)! Spend a date night with your partner or bring your closest friends to a weekend full of love, heartache, and…vampires? That’s just how Sidewalk rolls.

Roman Holiday (1953), selected by Projectionist Kate Burney

Overwhelmed by her suffocating schedule, touring European princess Ann (Audrey Hepburn) takes off for a night while in Rome. When a sedative she took from her doctor kicks in, however, she falls asleep on a park bench and is found by an American reporter, Joe Bradley (Gregory Peck), who takes her back to his apartment for safety. At work the next morning, Joe finds out Ann’s regal identity and bets his editor he can get an exclusive interview with her, but romance soon gets in the way.

“I grew up on a steady diet of Roman Holiday and other mythologies. As I’ve gotten older, the 72 year-old film has steadily rang truer to my experiences of love and loss, challenging or delighting me, depending on the day. Roman Holiday sparked several of my research interests as a film scholar, including film-induced tourism, geography in narrative film, and the romantic comedy genre. Ultimately, it’s one of my favorite stories for how it captures the bittersweet. That’s a hard note to hit right, but Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck make it sing. And yes, I cry every time!”

– Kate Burney

See Showtimes

 

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Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004), selected by Box Office Manager Jennifer Freehling, Senior Box Office Associate Richard O’Brien, and Front of House Associate Teresa Kelley

After a painful breakup, Clementine (Kate Winslet) undergoes a procedure to erase memories of her former boyfriend Joel (Jim Carrey) from her mind. When Joel discovers that Clementine is going to extremes to forget their relationship, he undergoes the same procedure and slowly begins to forget the woman that he loved.

“Like all of Charlie Kaufman’s work, Eternal Sunshine is ultimately a film about violently cracking yourself open to see who you really are, finding instead the people you’ve met and loved in your life. There’s a definite (and obvious) read that Joel and Clementine are doomed, trapped in an eternal recursion of the Aging Hipster Couple no one can stand, but there’s a less obvious read pointing to a state of grace: hell might be other people, but love can be a door to a place we can’t imagine going by ourselves. I watch this movie every Valentine’s Day.”

– Richard O’Brien

“This movie takes me through all the various emotions that come with love; it’s scary, sweet, exciting, stupid, and painful. It asks the old question, is it better to have never loved than to have loved and lost? As a bit of a realist, and as one who manages mental health issues, I can absolutely empathize with the desire to forget everything that ever hurt me, even if that means losing the good part too. It’s heartbreaking and comforting at the same time.”

– Teresa Kelley

See Showtimes

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Only Lovers Left Alive (2013), selected by Front of House Associate Violet Gein

Artistic, sophisticated and centuries old, two vampire lovers (Tilda Swinton, Tom Hiddleston) ponder their ultimate place in modern society.

“Only Lovers Left Alive is not your average vampire movie. It is an exploration of immortal love, life, and the human condition. The moody cinematography and dark humor represent my mind very well. I’ve always had this film in my yearly rotation and I hope to make this your next favorite vampire movie! I encourage guests to dress up in their finest Gothic attire when attending this showing.”

– Violet Gein

See Showtimes

February’s Book + Film Club selection features the novel and screen adaptation of James Baldwin’s If Beale Street Could Talk as a part of Sidewalk’s Black Lens celebration sponsored by Gilead Sciences.  Baldwin’s fifth novel, first published in 1974, is told primarily from the perspective of Tish, a young Black woman in New York City as she works to get her boyfriend, Fonny, out of jail before their baby is born. With themes of love and injustice, centering on the emotional bonds holding two African American families, If Beale Street Could Talk still resonates with readers over 50 years later. 

In 2018, Academy Award winning filmmaker Barry Jenkins brought the story to life on the big screen with an ensemble cast featuring KiKi Layne, Stephan James, Colman Domingo, and Regina King. Lead actress Kiki Lane says this about the story, “It’s such an unfortunate thing that so much of what is happening in the film and the book, those same circumstances people are still dealing with today. What’s so beautiful about this work from Baldwin is that it’s wrapped up in so much love. I feel that’s what he’s forcing you to look at and acknowledge. Those people who have been done wrong by the judicial system. These people who have experienced police brutality. They have loved ones. They love and they are loved. This film forces you to acknowledge that you have to look us in the eye and you have to witness the pain and the trauma that all of these characters are going through. I think that’s what makes this story so special. At the core, it’s about that love and fighting for that.”

Further Reading:

Color Theory: ‘If Beale Street Could Talk’ | Proof of Concept (No spoilers!)

Why don’t you see more James Baldwin works on the big screen? | NPR (No spoilers!)

Director Barry Jenkins Talks On Behalf Of ‘Beale Street’ | NPR (Light spoilers!)

Where To Start With James Baldwin Books | Penguin Random House (No spoilers!) 

Sidewalk’s Book + Film Club unites movie and book lovers for a monthly film screening and discussion about famous films and the people who make them. At the end of the month, we host a screening of a film related to the book and host a round-table discussion.

Seating is limited! Register today!

Registration Deadline to have books mailed to you: Friday February 7th. Books will be mailed within 72 hours of this date.

Registration Deadline to have books picked up: Monday, February 17. Books can be picked up from our Box Office during our regular operating hours Thursday & Friday from 2pm til Close and on Saturday & Sunday from 10:30am until close. You will receive an email when your book is ready to be picked up.

– Director of Education + Outreach, Jessica Chriesman

Welcome to another year of the monthly Sidewalk Film 101 series at the Sidewalk Film Center + Cinema. This year, we’ll be focusing on big-screen spectacles – movies that you must see on the big screen. Along with supplemental readings and resources to contextualize each featured film, Thursday evening screenings will include a special introduction.

Coming up for the rest of the year:

February: Boyz in the Hood (1991)

Tre is sent to live with his father, Furious Styles, in tough South Central Los Angeles. Although his hard-nosed father instills proper values and respect in him, and his devout girlfriend Brandi teaches him about faith, Tre’s friends Doughboy and Ricky don’t have the same kind of support and are drawn into the neighborhood’s booming drug and gang culture, with increasingly tragic results.

 

February 20 – 7:00pm

February 23 – 1:00pm

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March: Pather Panchali (1955)

Impoverished priest Harihar Ray, dreaming of a better life for himself and his family, leaves his rural Bengal village in search of work.

Dates/showtimes TBD

 

 

 

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April: The General (1927)

After being rejected by the Confederate military, not realizing it was due to his crucial civilian role, an engineer must single-handedly recapture his beloved locomotive after it is seized by Union spies and return it through enemy lines.

Dates/showtimes TBD

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May: Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)

In 1936, archaeologists and adventurers of the U.S. government hired Indiana Jones to find the Ark of the Covenant before the Nazis could obtain its extraordinary powers.

Dates/showtimes TBD

 

 

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June: 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

When a mysterious artifact is uncovered on the Moon, a spacecraft manned by two humans and one supercomputer is sent to Jupiter to find its origins.

Dates/showtimes TBD

 

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July: Lawrence of Arabia (1962)

The story of T.E. Lawrence, the English officer who successfully united and led the diverse, often warring, Arab tribes during World War I in order to fight the Turks.

Dates/showtimes TBD

 

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August: Rio Bravo (1959)

A small-town sheriff in the American West enlists the help of a disabled man, a drunk, and a young gunfighter in his efforts to hold in jail the brother of the local bad guy.

Dates/showtimes TBD

 

 

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September: Beau Travail (1999)

An ex-Foreign Legion officer recalls his once-glorious life of leading troops in Djibouti.

Dates/showtimes TBD

 

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October: The Roaring Twenties (1939)

Three men attempt to make a living in Prohibitionist America after returning home from fighting together in World War I.

Dates/showtimes TBD

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November: The French Connection (1971)

A pair of NYPD detectives in the Narcotics Bureau stumble onto a heroin smuggling ring based in Marseilles, but stopping them and capturing their leaders proves an elusive goal.

Dates/showtimes TBD

 

 

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December: Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)

Young love and childish fears highlight a year in the life of a turn-of-the-century family.

Dates/showtimes TBD

 

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Stay tuned as tickets and showtimes are announced throughout the year! See them all and receive a special diploma!

Tickets to all films can be found at sidewalkfest.com/tickets.

Luther Vandross really needs no introduction. Selling over 40 million albums worldwide and with eleven of them going platinum, Billboard hailed him as one of the greatest R&B artists of all time. Rolling Stone called him a “scholar of singing,” ranking him #31 on their 2023 list of 200 Best Singers of All Time. They all were right.

After solidifying his career as a trusted background vocalist and arranger for the greats (David Bowie, Bette Midler, Roberta Flack, Quincy Jones) and for dozens of disco groups like Chic, Sister Sledge, even the faceless dance acts of Change, Charme and Bionic Boogie, the Harlem-raised singer powered his way into the music industry with his 1981 solo album, Never Too Much. And what a riveting debut it was. Thanks to incredible performances like the seven-minute ballad “A House Is Not a Home,” “Don’t You Know That” and the timeless title cut, the LP earned him two Grammy nominations, including Best New Artist and Best R&B Male Vocal Performance. The hard work, buoyed with collaborative support from fellow friends Nat Adderley, Jr. and Marcus Miller, netted Vandross a successful run throughout the 1980s and ‘90s, including production work on albums for Aretha Franklin, Cheryl Lynn and Dionne Warwick. Only a handful of R&B superstars reigned towards the end of the 20th century; Vandross was one of them. 

To best describe the highlights of his catalog, just think big ethereal ballads, anthems about love and supple arrangements that combined the gravitas of Burt Bacharach and Isaac Hayes with a sweet vocal balance that sat somewhere between Marvin Gaye and Teddy Pendergrass. Vandross, for so many adoring R&B fans, became the quintessential Quiet Storm balladeer, pushing the genre to epic heights with a string of platinum-selling albums and radio hits.

It’s been almost twenty years since the sudden passing of eight-time Grammy-award winning Luther Vandross, and yet there had not been a single documentary about his life and legacy. Until now. 

Sidewalk aluma Dawn Porter (John Lewis: Good Trouble) has taken on the incredible task of highlighting the highs and lows of the R&B giant inside the new documentary, Luther: Never Too Much. As the film’s director, she develops a love letter to diehard fans of the legendary R&B titan. After premiering at Sundance to a standing ovation and an enthusiastic run during the film festival circuit this year, Luther: Never Too Much was picked up by CNN Films and will get a national television premiere on CNN on New Year’s Day (Jan 1). But select theaters across the country have been blessed with the opportunity to screen the film before its airing, including our very own Sidewalk Film Center + Cinema from December 20-22.

Along with the run of Luther: Never Too Much, Sidewalk will be hosting Mistletoe Jam, a FREE festive celebration honoring Vandross’s music, the spirit of R&B and the holiday season. The inspiration of the name comes from  “Mistletoe Jam,” a hefty evergreen played on urban radio around the holidays and just one of the musical highlights off Vandross’s platinum-selling 1995 holiday album, This Is Christmas, which also turns 30 next year. Longtime SoulTracks.com contributor writer and Sidewalk’s Internal Events Associate J Matthew Cobb will be hosting the event while also serving as the KJ for Fandross Karaoke at the top of the program. Throughout the evening, guests will be lavished with exclusive programming, speciality cocktails, door prizes, giveaways and much more. 

Culminating the event in true ‘bad boy/havin’ a party’ fashion, DJ Bad Boy Butch will anchor the Superstar R&B Dance Party. Named after the iconic Luther Vandross 1982 song, the Birmingham-based DJ with over thirty years of experience is expected to play ‘nothin’ but the hits’ from Vandross and a host of R&B greats. 

We’re also thrilled to announce that guests at the Mistletoe Jam will have TWO golden opportunities to win tickets to the forthcoming Ruben Sings Luther, a Valentine’s Day concert featuring American Idol winner Ruben Studdard with Dr. Henry Panion, III and the Alabama Symphony Orchestra. Slated for February 8th at the Alys Stephens Performing Arts Center, this magical night will showcase the “power of love” from the Vandross songbook, aided by Dr. Panion’s lush orchestrations and stellar crooning from Studdard, who was once dubbed the ‘Velvet Teddy Bear’ by R&B legend Gladys Knight.

Panion, III is no stranger to Sidewalk. He co-directed A Symphony Celebration: The Blind Boys of Alabama with Dr. Henry Panion along with filmmaker Michael Edwards, which screened this year at the 26th annual Sidewalk Film Festival.

Mistletoe Jam, a free event, will be held on Saturday, December 21st from 6-10 pm and is open to the public, but guests are strongly urged to make reservations in advance. Seating is first come, first served. To RSVP, head to the following link: https://www.goelevent.com/Sidewalk/e/MistletoeJam

– Internal Events Associate J Matthew Cobb

The 26th Annual Sidewalk Film Festival presented by Regions Bank has finally wrapped! A huge thank you to every single person involved from our wonderful staff, volunteers, sponsors, and attendees.

For the moment you’ve all been waiting for, the 2024 Sidewalk Film Festival Award Winners!

Volunteer of the Year Award: Jessica Garrison, Daniel Walters

Black Lens Filmmaker Grant: Bettina Byrd Giles

David Brower Alabama Filmmaker Grant: Melanie Jeffcoat

SIDEWRITE AWARD WINNERS

• Best Alabama Feature Screenplay: The Wishlist by Matthew Curie Holmes, Twich Collins, Lisa Sims Harrison

• Best Feature Screenplay: Currents by Tim Molloy

• Best Alabama Short Screenplay: Company Man by Chase Haislip

• Best Short Screenplay: Pour Myself A Cup of Ambition by Willow Anderson

Reel South Short Film: I’m Still Here

Best Family Film: Unibrow

Best Student Film: Guiding Light

Best SHOUT Short Film: Game Rules

Best SHOUT Feature Film: The World According to Allee Willis

Best Black Lens Short Film: Mama’s Sundry

Best Black Lens Feature Film: Following Harry

Alan Hunter Best Alabama Film: The Torch: Stories of the Holocaust Shared by Alabama Families

Best Documentary Short Film: First Disappearances

Best Narrative Short Film: Our Males and Females

Best Animated Short Film: Burn Out

Best Life + Liberty Film: Public Defender

Best Documentary Feature Film: Happy Campers

Jambor-Franklin Founders Award for Best Narrative Feature Film: Exhibiting Forgiveness

AUDIENCE CHOICE AWARDS

• Best SHOUT Film: Los Frikis

• Best Black Lens Film: Fight Like A Girl

• Best Alabama Film: The Almost Lost Story of Tuxedo Junction

• Best Documentary Short Film: I’m Still Here

• Best Narrative Short Film: Luki & the Lights

• Best Documentary Feature: Secret Mall Apartment

• Best Narrative Feature: Lady Parts

Sidewalk Programmer’s Best Short Film: Solace of Sisterhood

Sidewalk Programmer’s Best Feature Film: Weeknights

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We’ll see you next year for the 27th Annual Sidewalk Film Festival, August 18 – 24, 2025!

As always, HAPPY SIDEWALK! ??

The 26th Annual Sidewalk Film Festival presented by Regions Bank is right around the corner and our staff couldn’t be more excited! We’ve shared graphics of some of their “must-see” titles on our social media and now we’re putting their picks all in one convenient place!

Read below to see what the Sidewalk Staff are excited to see and make your own schedule at sidewalkfest.com/sched!

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T. Marie King

Lead Shorts + Black Lens Programmer

 

Black Table

Following Harry

Commuted

Exhibiting Forgiveness

Swamp Dogg Gets His Pool Painted

 

J. Matthew Cobb

Internal Events + Front of House Associate

 

How to Sue the Klan

The World According to Allee Willis

My Name Is Alfred Hitchcock

Antarctic Voyage

Resynator

Public Defender

Playing to Survive: Von Cramm vs. Hitler

 

 

Nick Ferlisi

Projectionist

 

Exhibiting Forgiveness

Saturday Morning Cartoons

Following Harry

My Name Is Alfred Hitchcock

The South Got Something to Say

 

 

Charlie Brown Sanders III

Festival Programming Coordinator

 

Secret Mall Apartment

Starring Jerry As Himself

No One Asked You

Oddity

Missing From Fire Trail Road

 

 

Allan Monterrubio

Programming Manager + SHOUT LGBTQ+ Programmer

 

1-800-ON-HER-OWN

Lesvia

Los Frikis

Hidden Master

Playing to Survive: Von Cramm vs. Hitler

 

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Get Passes+ Single Tickets at sidewalkfest.com/tix.

I’ll be picking up my VIP Pass as soon as the Central Box Office opens Monday, August 19 @ 11 to get my mind right for the 26th Annual Sidewalk Film Festival presented by Regions Bank! I have like 100 kids and don’t typically make it out to the Spotlight Nights at the Cinema, but we just had our 101st kid (4th, actually) and I’m currently on Paternity Leave, so I’m going to do my level best to make it out during the week. With programming like Movie Trivia on Monday and Karaoke on Wednesday, it’s going to be hard to keep me away! I’m also very interested in the Black Lens Spotlight film, The South Got Something to Say and the Lip Sync Battle that follows!

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FRIDAY (Aug. 23)

OPENING NIGHT! There is really nothing to say here. This is, in my humble opinion, the single best night of the year in Birmingham and not to be missed! Make sure to get your VIP Pass, so you can take advantage of the open bars at the Opening Night Pre-Party AND After Party. I’m also looking forward to the Opening Night film itself, Exhibiting Forgiveness, featuring Bessemer native, André Holland, in the lead role. 

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SATURDAY (Aug. 24)

This is my 11th year involved with the Festival (either volunteering, co-producing, or serving on the board) and I NEVER miss the Saturday Morning Cartoons! There is simply no better way to start the festival weekend and the commercials always steal the show. 

After cereal, Bloody Marys, and 80s/90s cartoons and commercials, I’ll find my way upstairs from the Sidewalk Cinema to the VIP Lounge @ the former SoCu space at The Pizitz. Yet another plug to make sure you get a VIP Pass for the festival, because this is a haven throughout the fest to have more complimentary drinks, food, and recharge/plan your next mov(i)e!

 

I’ve got two options @ 12:30 – either finally catch Nathan Avakian Silent Film Series @ The Alabama Theatre, where he plays a live score he composed for a silent film on the famous Wurlitzer, “Big Bertha”, or watch a really interesting looking documentary, Catching Fire: The Story of Anita Pallenberg back down at the Sidewalk Cinema. 

Next on the agenda is another of my “can’t miss” programs every year, the Animated Shorts block at the ASFA Recital Hall. This is always one of my favorites and chock full of unique content you’ll likely not catch anywhere else. It will also be cool to see the newly renovated space at ASFA. 

Because I’m clearly just going to live at the Sidewalk Cinema on Saturday (FAR worse places to be!), I’m going to head back and catch one of the Secret Screenings. These are surprise screenings and ALWAYS sell out, so I’m hoping I’ll have the good fortune to get into one of them.

I’ve got another game time decision to make for my last screening of the day. I might catch the After Dark Shorts @ ASFA Black Box (another newly renovated space), which is always a great group of shorts, if you like things like Black Mirror. Alternatively, I’ll catch My Name is Alfred Hitchcock at The Lyric. The trailer looks incredibly compelling and The Lyric is one of my absolute favorite places to watch a film.

Lastly, but certainly not least-ly, I’ll head to Workplay for the Saturday Night Party, where we’re allegedly “making a movie, y’all”. I truly can’t overstate how much you need to make sure you get yourself a VIP Pass, which also gets you into what will be another amazing party put on by the incomparable, Jeff Nixon.

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SUNDAY (Aug. 25)

Sunday morning at The Alabama is another annual ritual for me, this year with the South Korean thriller Sleep. It’s definitely a vibe and if you ask our Creative Director, Rachel Morgan, it’s the place to be to start your Sunday @ Sidewalk.

Sunday is a day that I typically spend a lot of in the VIP Lounge. I tend to have grand plans to see as many films as I can squeeze in, but I inevitably need some R&R at many points, so I’ll be there with bells when it opens up @ 12. 

I caught the trailer for Resynator at the Festival Sneak Peak and I’ve been looking forward to it since, so I’ll mozy my way back to The Alabama Theatre.  If you can’t tell yet, I’m a creature of habit, so I’ll be bouncing back-and-forth between The Alabama and VIP Lounge for about 7 hours as I watch another two films I saw trailers for at the Sneak Peak, Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person (this one is THE FILM I’m most excited about in the entire festival line-up) and the Closing Night Film Missing from Fire Trail Road. 

Between the Closing Night Film and the Awards Show @ The Lyric, I’m going to pop back over to the Sidewalk Cinema to see All Happy Families, because the trailer features Josh Radnor and Rob Huebel, and I love those dudes! 

P.S. If you’ve never been to Awards Show, do yourself a favor and attend! You’ll be voting for films all weekend and you should go see the filmmakers who win the awards! It’s also a really entertaining program every year.

Thanks for indulging my best laid plans for the 26th Annual Sidewalk Film Festival and don’t hate me if I completely blow them up and stay in the VIP Lounge the entire time and miss everything! 

HAPPY SIDEWALK!

Sidewalk Film Center + Cinema Board Member Josh Hickman

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Passes + Single Tickets are available NOW at sidewalkfest.com/tix.

The 26th Annual Sidewalk Film Festival presented by Regions Bank actually begins with the first Spotlight Night on Monday, Aug. 19. They are all at the Sidewalk Cinema, which is easily the best venue to see a film. I love getting an Old Fashioned at the bar, grabbing some snacks, and then watching a terrific film. 

• Monday, Aug. 19: Alabama Film Spotlight Night: Happy Hour + Alabama Shorts + Movie Trivia
• Tuesday, Aug. 20: Life + Liberty Spotlight Night: Happy Hour + Film: Public Defender 
• Wednesday, Aug. 21: SHOUT LGBTQ Spotlight Night: Happy Hour + Film: Bob Morgan’s Just Going to Tell Some Stories
• Thursday, Aug. 22: Black Lens Spotlight: Happy Hour + Film: The South Got Something to Say
• Friday Aug. 23: I’m hitting the pre-party and the after party. In between, I’ll be seeing the Opening Night film: Exhibiting Forgiveness

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SATURDAY (Aug. 24):

Time to spend a whole bunch of time in the dark. 

Hot Tip: If you have a VIP or weekend pass and you’re sitting in a film that you realize you don’t like – leave. Go find another film. There are plenty to choose from. 

• 10am ASFA Recital Hall: Shorts: Alabama Documentary

Sidewalk is one of the few places where I can enjoy shorts and I love shorts so my schedule will be fill of shorts.

Afterward, I’ll grab a quick bite to eat and then sit tight because…more shorts!

• 12:30pm ASFA Recital Hall: Shorts: Family Friendly Documentary 

 

Take a quick break into the sunlight. Maybe grab a glass of wine. Then sit tight because…more shorts!

• 3pm ASFA Recital Hall: Shorts: Animated

 

Now it’s time to take a break from shorts and go see what I hope is a great documentary. Heading to The Alabama Theatre.

• 5 pm Alabama Theatre: Secret Mall Apartment

Time to take a break for drinks, some food and visit with other film friends. Then it’s on to…

 

 

• 8pm Lyric Theatre: My Name is Alfred Hitchcock

To close out the evening, I’ll be heading to the famous Sidewalk Saturday Night Party at Workplay.

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SUNDAY (Aug. 25)

Starting off the last day of Sidewalk with a documentary at The Lyric.

• 10am Lyric Theatre: Whatever it Takes

Time to grab a bite to eat and get a cold beverage then wander over to The Alabama Theatre for a documentary.

 

 

• 12:30pm Alabama Theatre: Resynator

I’m going to stick around The Alabama Theatre for the next film so in the meantime I’ll grab a drink or three then grab a seat to see the only narrative film on my schedule. I saw the trailer for this film and was fascinated. 

 

• 3pm Alabama Theatre: Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person

This ends the scheduled portion of my Sidewalk Film Festival Experience. For the rest of Sunday, I’ll surprise myself with a film that was not on my radar screen.

Looking forward to seeing you at Sidewalk!

HAPPY SIDEWALK!

Sidewalk Film Center + Cinema Board President Bret Pippen

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Passes + Single Tickets are available NOW at sidewalkfest.com/tix.