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By T. Marie King, lead shorts programmer

Get ready for the extraordinary cinematic experience of the 2023 Sidewalk Film Festival’s shorts programming. As we celebrate our 25^th anniversary, we are going all out to bring you the best of short-form cinema. This year we’ve had a remarkable surge in submissions, resulting in a program of more than 200 captivating short films for your enjoyment.

Our diverse programming covers a wide range of genres, ensuring there’s something for everyone. Here’s just a glance at what you can expect:

• Sports-themed films
• Student productions
• Compelling narratives
• Insightful documentaries
• Family-friendly content
• After Dark selections
• Music videos that will get you grooving
• Enchanting animated creations
• Alabama films

These carefully curated films represent excellence across the entire spectrum of storytelling. And whether you are a dedicated film enthusiast or simply seeking a memorable experience, the 2023 Sidewalk Film Festival shorts programming guarantees an unforgettable cinematic journey. Selecting a block to highlight feels akin to choosing a favorite child, but I must confess that you can’t go wrong with the captivating animation, the powerful and expressive SHOUT films, and the thought-provoking Life & Liberty films.

In the words of fellow shorts programmer Patrick Johnson, “There’s nothing better than a film with a great storyline, except maybe a film about an amazing true story.”

And he is particularly excited about the Black Lens documentary shorts. Here’s what he says you can expect:

“As a long-time enthusiast of documentaries, dating back to the classic “Style Wars” from 1983, I am thrilled to witness our festival’s commitment to truth-telling. Our Black Lens documentary shorts program is a compelling collection of true stories, shining a spotlight on African-American experiences. In this 1.5-hour showcase, viewers can expect to be captivated by thought-provoking narratives like “Garden Ministry” and “The Push,” which are sure to resonate with socially conscious audiences. On the lighter side, “Savi the Cat” and “Slice” offer a fun and refreshing perspective. If you’re seeking motivation and a sense of empowerment to take on any challenge, “The Push” is a must-watch. The Black Lens documentary shorts provide a rich and diverse emotional experience, touching on various aspects of the human condition.”

Whether you’re a film enthusiast or simply looking for a good time, our shorts programming promises to deliver an unforgettable cinematic journey. Join us in celebrating short-form cinema and enjoy the remarkable works of more than 200 talented filmmakers from all corners of the globe.

Check out the short films in this year’s line-up here

Grab your Festival Passes or Tickets here

Today we were so excited to announce the lineup of the 25th annual Sidewalk Film Festival, presented by Regions Bank. As we gear up for this milestone edition of the festival, the challenge of programming a lineup from a pool of hundreds of short and feature films was greater than ever. We are proud to spotlight our selections for opening and closing night.

Opening Night: Art for Everybody
Friday, Aug. 25, at 7 p.m.
The Alabama Theatre
1817 3rd Ave. N.

We are thrilled to open our 25th year with the documentary Art for Everybody, from director Miranda Yousef. Painter Thomas Kinkade, the “Painter of Light,” grew more famous than any American artist in decades when his depictions of quaint Americana boomed in popularity in the 1990s. After his death in 2012, his daughters opened their father’s vault and discovered a trove of secret paintings Kinkade had never shown anyone. That discovery — and this film that tells the story of the controversial artist — will change the way you think about Kinkade, whether you embrace or deride his work. It’s a story about the democratization of fine art and the hidden costs of making it big — and as we start a weekend of providing “art for everybody,” this film is the perfect beginning to our festival. Art for Everybody screens Friday, Aug. 25, at 7 p.m. at the Alabama Theatre. Immediately following the screening, step outside onto 3rd Ave. N. for our Opening Night After Party.

Opening Night After Dark: Hello Dankness
Friday, Aug. 25, at 10 p.m.
Sidewalk Cinema (in both theaters A and B)
1821 2nd Ave. N., in the lower level of the Pizitz Building

For our 25th year, we’re bringing you a second opening night option following the main event — this one a little darker, a little stranger and a little more provocative. Join us at the Sidewalk Cinema (in both theaters A and B) at 10 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 25, for Hello Dankness, our selection for this special Opening Night After Dark screening. From the visionary creative duo known as Soda Jerk, this experimental narrative takes us on a journey through a surreal and dark time: the past decade of life in the United States. Four years in the making, this nightmarish, hilarious odyssey uses hundreds of clips and samples from film, television and popular culture at large to tell the story of the Trump presidency and the outbreak of COVID. It’s fair to say you’ve never seen anything like it. Tickets and seating are extremely limited, so get yours today.

Closing Night: It’s Only Life After All
Sunday, Aug. 27, at 6 p.m.
The Alabama Theatre
1817 3rd Ave. N.

And we’ll close out our festival with director Alexandria Bombach’s documentary on the beloved folk band The Indigo Girls, It’s Only Life After All. This loving portrait features never-before-seen footage of Emily Saliers and Amy Ray, the Atlanta-area duo who became standard-bearers in the late ‘80s and through the ‘90s as one of the few mainstream groups to be openly out as queer. Now, as their decades-long friendship and artistic partnership continues, we look back with them as they reflect on their history and contextualize their careers in the political and social arenas of the times. Join us for our screening of It’s Only Life After All on Sunday, Aug. 27, at 6 p.m. at the Alabama Theatre.

And don’t forget — check out the full lineup here. See a lot you like? You’ll want to purchase VIP, weekend or day passes and join us for all the fun. On a budget, or see a couple of things you absolutely must attend? Premium single tickets to individual screenings and events are also now on sale.

For the July entry in our Staff Picks series, we turn to Marketing Manager Nick Adrian who’s selected a film that’s resonated with him well before his own college graduate days. Here’s what he had to say about it:

“My Sidewalk journey started as a very, very brief intern before accepting the position of Marketing Manager. Before that I was a proud patron, attending a couple festivals and visiting the Cinema as often as I could before the pandemic. My life has been dominated by film for about as long as I can remember, ultimately leading me to pursue it at least in some part in both my academic and professional careers. Though a lot of my favorites were self-discoveries, I have to thank my parents for instilling a love for older titles – basically by having them constantly playing in the house growing up. 

Mike Nichols’ 1967 coming of age classic The Graduate entered my life at probably way too early of an age. As I was beginning to grow more curious about film in my middle school years, my dad had cited it as having one of his favorite movie endings. That – and admittedly a Plain White T’s music video – ignited my curiosity over it, eventually convincing Dad to show it to me. I was far too young to appreciate what was going on, but its uniqueness stuck with me. I still loved it for what it was the few times I’d watch it throughout the years – it came to reflect almost everything I loved about the medium from the boundary pushing plot, influential soundtrack, European influences, and mix of comedy and drama. But it wasn’t until my own approaching college graduation that its importance truly cemented itself.

Everyone’s anxiety about adult life outweighs the ordeal of their graduation, but I participated in mine from my living room as it streamed through YouTube in the midst of the pandemic. Not only was I uncertain about my own future – I was uncertain about the world’s future. It felt almost worthless to worry about grad school and a career when it seemed like the planet wouldn’t even be around that long. That uncertain summer in 2020 mirrored Benjamin’s in 1967. Though somewhat a product of its time – the generational gaps representing the growing resentment towards anyone over thirty in the late 1960s – the themes still prevail to this day, pandemic or not. While it has (thankfully) passed, that period in between finishing your education and beginning your profession can be scary, intimidating, and long – films like The Graduate can help you feel a little less alone.”

The Graduate (1967) plays at the Sidewalk Cinema July 13 + 15. Get tickets here.

This month for our 2023 Staff Picks series, we turn to Rental and Special Events Coordinator Allan Monterrubio whose love of surreal horror brought him to his selection.

Allan started his journey with Sidewalk Film Center + Cinema as an intern for the festival in 2022. Soon after, he joined the Sidewalk administrative staff as the Rental and Special Events Coordinator. His love for film started at a very young age when his cousins thought it’d be funny to play gory scenes of The Shining for him. Little did they know they only fueled a fire for his love of surreal and macabre media. That includes video games like Silent Hill, short stories from Edgar Allan Poe, and Giallo films directed by Dario Argento and Mario Bava to name a few. When he’s not watching something bizarre, he enjoys his time attending concerts and music festivals. Some of his favorite artists include hyper-pop royalty Charli XCX, experimental electronic composer Oneohtrix Point Never (Daniel Lopatin), as well as English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys. He believes that without good music whether it’s an original score or a conceptualized soundtrack, you can’t have a memorable film that transcends reality and sucks you into its orbit. Here’s what he had to say about one of his all-time favorite films: the entrancing Climax by Gaspar Noé.

“What do you get when you mix a bit of horror and color from Suspiria (1977) with a pinch of surrealism from Un Chien Andalou (1929) and an entrancing Daft Punk track? A delirious psychological horror concoction that’s equal parts intoxicating and surreal. Climax is that delicious concoction that I want to keep drinking again and again. I still recall experiencing this film for the first time in a small indie theater in NOLA when it premiered in 2019. Since then, the carefully selected electronic dance music, impeccable choreography, and the one-shot style cinematography all stood out to me as one of the most cohesive cinematic experiences to date. Climax manages to take you on a hallucinatory trip with apexes of high-octane energy and sinkholes of desolation and despair which are hallmarks of Noé’s films. An intriguing fact that makes me appreciate Noé’s craft as a director more is that Climax was shot in only 15 days with a cast made of mainly trained dancers/non-actors who improvised various scenes.

While Climax is based on true events from the late 1990s, the real-life events were far tamer. Be advised that Noé’s reimagining of this incident is not for the faint of heart and plays out like an entrancing nightmarish music video. So go ahead, drink the sangria…”

Climax plays at the Sidewalk Cinema June 16 – 18. Get tickets here.

This month for our 2023 Staff Picks series, we turn to Shorts Programmer Patrick Johnson who’s selected a film about one of his favorite artists and one of the most special things in his life – hip hop. Here’s what he had to say:

“I’ve been a self-proclaimed hip hop head since the genre arrived in the late 70’s. A bit of a purist, but not to the point that I don’t want to see the music and artists grow. Music is my life – I was a band nerd in high school and performed with the hip hop group Red Light District for over 10 years. I have a Tidal hip hop playlist for any occasion you can name. Sometime between 1990 and 1991, I fell in love with the eclectic, jazzy, weirdness that everyone referred to as ‘A Tribe Called Quest.’ The horns. The muddy bass lines. Ali with the ‘sugar cuts,’ and The Abstract and the Five-Footer with the wordplay.

Tribe was a huge part of my 90’s soundtrack. The entire rap community was devastated when Tribe broke up. ‘First the Fat boys break up? Now this?’ How could this be?

Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest, a behind-the-scenes documentary by Michael Rappaport, really attempted to find the answer. Hearing the stories of the come-up and the world tours and watching Phife deal with his health issues gave me the insight I needed. I watched friendships blossom within the group, only to have those same friendships tested during the most integral moments. It was like watching brothers fight and a family separate, only to find that the love is still all there. The admiration is greater. The respect is real.

You like music? You’re really into it, huh? You may even have a favorite group. If so, you gotta check out Beats, Rhyme and Life. Through all its ups and downs, the film is a true celebration. You’ll be looking for your Tribe playlist soon after!”

Beats, Rhymes, & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest plays at the Sidewalk Cinema May 19 – 21. Get tickets here.

 

In the shadow of Alabama filmmaker and multi-time Sidewalk alum Daniel Scheinert sweeping the Academy Awards… it’s time for Sidewalk’s inaugural Alabama Film Week! 

Considering the recent landslide, we’re highlighting Daniel’s films with a best-hits-so-far retrospective including THE DEATH OF DICK LONG (shot in Alabama!), SWISS ARMY MAN and, of course, EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE. We’re also highlighting the short-form work of a number of successful Alabama filmmakers with ALABAMA SHORTS, including a couple of Scheinert’s Sidewalk Scramble films as well as short films by GODZILLA VS KONG director and Alabama-native Adam Wingard, Jay Burleson, Stacey Davis, Xavier Burgin, Lily Ahree Siegel, Paul D. Hart and more. 

 

We’re honored to host a special screening of SUN RA: A JOYFUL NOISE featuring a reading and book signing with director Robert Mugge. Stop by and catch films by future-famous Alabama Filmmakers at the Statewide Scramble Screening (Scheinert credits this quickpaced film competition for his filmmaking start). Plus much more including a conversation with Alabama Public Television, a sneak preview of work by David Brower Alabama Filmmaker Grant winner, Theo Moore II, film trivia in the lobby and beyond + our always expected surprises. 

 

Sidewalk is honored and excited to serve as the capstone for filmmaking and filmmakers in Alabama, join us to celebrate locally connected filmmaking with the spotlight on just a few of Alabama’s amazing filmmakers. Cheers!

Find our full lineup at sidewalkfest.com/tickets.

Happy Women’s History Month!

To celebrate, Sidewalk is bringing back our annual Women In Film Week, starting March 6th and lasting until March 12th. The week will consist of female-centric programming selected by some of Sidewalk’s favorite local female voices.

 

Last Flight Home (2022)

Directed by Ondi Timoner

Playing March 6 – March 12

In his final days, we discover Eli Timoner and an extraordinary life of wild achievements, tragic loss and most of all, enduring love. Last Flight Home shares a stunning verité account of a courageous family confronting life and death.

Get tickets here.

 

Big (1988) Programming Selection by Stacey Davis

Directed by Penny Marshall

Playing March 6 and March 11

After wishing to be made big, a teenage boy wakes the next morning to find himself mysteriously in the body of an adult.

Get tickets here.

 

Eat Pray Love (2010) Programming Selection by T. Marie King

Directed by Ryan Murphy

Playing March 8 and March 9

A married woman realizes how unhappy her marriage really is, and that her life needs to go in a different direction. After a painful divorce, she takes off on a round-the-world journey to “find herself”.

Get tickets here.

 

Women’s Adventure Film Tour

Directed by Chloe Keeley, Danny Warley, Jen Randall, Paula Champagne, and James Q. Martin

Playing March 8, March 9, and March 11

The Women’s Adventure Film Tour® (WAFT) is back for the sixth year. The tour is a celebration of the fantastic women around us who are doing extraordinary things in the name of adventure.

Get tickets here.

 

The Virgin Suicides (1999) Programming Selection by Jackie Lo

Directed by Sofia Coppola

Playing March 9, March 10, and March 12

A group of male friends become obsessed with five mysterious sisters who are sheltered by their strict, religious parents in suburban Detroit in the mid 1970s.

Get tickets here.

 

Cocaine Bear

Directed by Elizabeth Banks

Playing March 10 – March 23

An oddball group of cops, criminals, tourists, and teens converge in a Georgia forest where a 500-pound black bear goes on a murderous rampage after unintentionally ingesting cocaine.

Get tickets here.

Sidewalk’s Black Lens Film Week, a week dedicated to celebrating Black voices and stories, starts this coming Monday, February 20th and ends Sunday, February 26th. With titles ranging from engaging narratives, family-friendly films, cult classics, and captivating documentaries, we’ve got a little something for everyone. If you’re unsure of what to come see at the Cinema, we’re including this year’s complete lineup for you below: 

 

Monday, February 20

Panther (1995) preceded by Fathers (short) – 7:00pm

Tuesday, February 21

Sign O’ The Times (1987), preceded by A Concerto Is A Conversation (short) – 7:00pm

 Wednesday, February 22

February Book + Film Club Public Screening: In the Heat of the Night (1967) – 7:00pm

Thursday, February 23

Roll Bounce (2005), preceded by The Beauty President (short) – 7:00pm

Friday, February 24

Crooklyn (1994) – 7:00pm

Saturday, February 25

Akeelah and the Bee (2006) – 12:00pm

Dope (2015) – 12:30pm

Storming Caesar’s Palace (2022) sponsored by Mayors for a Guaranteed Income – 4:00pm

Shaft (1971) – 4:30pm

Shaft (2000) – 7:00pm

King: A Filmed Record…Montgomery to Memphis (1969) sponsored by Four Corners Gallery – 7:30pm

Sunday, February 26

Can We All Get Along sponsored by Neil Rafferty – 2:00pm

Little (2019) – 3:00pm

Let the Church Say (2022) – 3:30pm

Black Lens Shorts Showcase sponsored by Withrow Newell – 5:30pm

The Bodyguard (1992) – 6:00pm

Posse (1993) – 8:00pm

 

For more info on each screening, follow their respective links or find all our titles here.

Sidewalk is excited to announce the 2^nd Annual Black Lens Film Week, February 20 – 26.  Black Lens Film Week celebrates Black cinema, filmmakers, and artists – committed to elevating Black voices and stories. Join us for a week filled with engaging narratives, family-friendly films, cult classics, and captivating documentaries.

What can you expect to see during Black Lens Film Week?

We will kick off Black Lens Film Week with the Mario Van Peebles film Panther (1995), a drama that chronicles the Black Panther Party for Self Defense from its birth through its decline. We will close out the week with Peebles’ film Posse (1993), a Western story about a group (posse) of African American soldiers who assist their leader in taking revenge on the men that killed his father. You don’t want to miss these two amazing films!

A special thanks to the City of Birmingham for sponsoring the documentary Storming Caesar’s Palace, a film that follows the story of Ruby Duncan and a band of mothers who launched a revolutionary Black feminist anti-poverty movement in the 1960s and 1970s.

Also be sure to join us for the 30^th Anniversary celebration of The Bodyguard starring Whitney Houston, and our Shaft Double Feature which includes Shaft (1971) and Shaft (2000).

 

Our Black Business Fair begins Tuesday, February 21 highlighting entrepreneurs and artists from across the city of Birmingham. Black Lens Trivia is back on Friday and Saturday night along with special Happy Hour music from the Kickback.

So, come celebrate with us!

– T. Marie King, Lead Shorts and Black Lens Programmer

For more information on Black Lens Film Week and a full list of films programmed, visit us at: www.sidewalkfest.com/tickets.

Nick Ferlisi has been involved with Sidewalk since 2015, serving as a member of the Youth Board and participated/attended the Festival almost every year since. Since 2022, he’s worked at the Cinema as a Projectionist. Nick’s deep love of film has been prevalent for most of his life, aspiring to become a filmmaker at a young age with the hope of telling a variety of stories for all to enjoy. As time has gone, on one thing is certain: Nick lives and breathes film. Whether it’s an old-timey classic, a grandiose technicolor epic, a campy B-horror flick, an artsy international think piece, or even a blockbuster superhero spectacle, he’s probably seen them all! One of his favorites is February’s Staff Pick…and here’s what he had to say about it:

“Vertigo, Alfred Hitchcock’s 1958 suspenseful sensation, was one of his films I didn’t get around to seeing until my sophomore year of college film class –  and it disappoints me that it took so long to discover this astonishing classic. From the colorfully eye-popping intro to the gripping finale, I found my mind spinning around in amazement and curiosity as this story has a great deal to tell – making me come back for more. This film manages to thrill me, shock me, and entertain me…as well as perplex me. I was truly hypnotized by those spirals! When looking back at the journey for this film’s place in cinema history, it’s an interesting story. This was a film made by a world renowned director that wasn’t very well-received upon release – then fast-forward some decades later and it’s hailed as one of the greatest films ever made… second chances do exist!

I’ve seen an abundant amount of old movies (more than I can honestly count) and I want to share the love for these old pictures with newer audiences. Some things take time to be fully appreciated… and that’s what happened here with Vertigo. Not only do I want people to have the opportunity to see an old classic, but to take some time to appreciate and learn from the old stuff, as well.

Hope everyone will be on the edge of their seats and enjoy the suspense!”

– Nick Ferlisi