Attending and showcasing a little 2011 Recap (will post video soon)  and updating the State on our growing annual festival in Eastern Oregon.  Along with EOU’s Film Program La Grande and Eastern Oregon are becoming points of interest for the film community and industry in Oregon.

Feel free to join us via Satellite Monday, December 12 at Eastern Oregon University – Inlow Hall Room 013 : The conference will be broadcasted and we will speak to the conference as well.  Support film in Eastern Oregon and check it out. (Wear your hoodie.

Recap 2011

Don’t forget to mark your calendars and come join us and Governor John Kitzhaber for the:

Governor’s Office of Film & Television’s Annual Meeting
Monday, December 12 at 6:00PM.

Come celebrate Oregon’s record breaking year for film and television production!

We will be honoring several people and organizations throughout the state who have played an important role this year in the industry’s success. We also have some exciting announcements to reveal at this event that will be worth celebrating the future of the industry.

You can either join us in person at the Portland location (listed below), meet up with people in your area at one of the three teleconference sites throughout the state, or view a live web-stream of the event online.

Portland: University of Oregon Portland Campus
70 NW Couch Street
Portland, OR 97209

Now confirmed are three teleconference sites:

Ashland: Southern Oregon University – Hannon Library Room 117

Eugene: The Center for Media and Educational Technologies (CMET), in Studio A.
(We’ll start at 5:30 PM to ensure we’re ready for the teleconferenced event.)

La Grande: Eastern Oregon University – Inlow Hall Room 013

*** If you are unable to make it to any of the sites above, you can view the event live online at:
http://pdx.uoregon.edu/index.php?p=webcast and click on the first “Live Webcast” link.***

Industry members and supporters are also invited to attend a
Reception and ”Thank You” Party
beginning at 5:oopm at the Portland location and continuing after the annual meeting.

An exposition of projects developed by student winners of the Digital Media Commission will be on display at that time. Both the Commission and party are generously sponsored by Intel and the Oregon Media Production Association. The reception is free, and attendees are encouraged to bring canned food donation for the Oregon Food Bank. (Details at www.ompa.org)

We hope you will come and celebrate (that is if you’re not too busy working on a project) and demonstrate to ourselves as well as the general public that the film and TV industry is thriving here in Oregon!

The 2011 Jury Award for best narrative feature went to Evan Glodell’s ‘Bellflower‘. Following the screening on Saturday, October 22, Glodell tuned into La Grande, Oregon via skype from his hotel room in Ireland. He discusses the use of very little resources, participation of key players, and the grueling, yet rewarding, process behind the development and production of ‘Bellflower’.

Jury awards were given to the best narrative and documentary features, as well as a Special Mention for a powerful small independent film that caught everyone’s attention:

Bellflower – 2011 WINNER Best Narrative Feature

DIRECTOR: Evan Glodell

Dragonslayer – 2011 WINNER Best Documentary

DIRECTOR: Tristan Patterson

Cirkus Columbia – Audience Choice, Best Feature Film

DIRECTOR: Danis Tanovic

Summer Snapshot – Audience Choice, Best Short Film

DIRECTOR: IAN MCCLUSKEY

Dustin Guy Defa, Bad Fever — Innovation in Directing

The Eastern Oregon Film Festival owes its success to the incredibly generous and supportive communities of artists and patrons that fuel the event. This year’s fest proved that 2010′s leap was no aberration. EOFF continues to grow in size and scope, and appears to be here to stay.

The 2011 Eastern Oregon Film Festival was a blast. Maybe you caught a film or two, or maybe you were one of the hard-cores who saw all 20 and made it to all the after-parties. But to those of you who were part of EOFF 2011, hats off to you.

Check back tomorrow as we announce the winners of this year’s awards, and in the meantime, check out some photos from last week!

Eastern Oregon Film Festival announces the official 2011 short film selection. Each feature film for this year’s festival will be preceded by one of these great short films.

A Face Fixed

DIRECTOR: ANDREW DROZ PALERMO
19 MINUTES
Thursday, Oct. 21 : 7:00pm
Precedes Resurrect Dead

Lost in a deep depression, a young man finds boxes of home videos and photographs of his parents creation, which shed light onto his broken home and give perspective on young love and fatherhood.

Kosmos

DIRECTOR: FANTAVIOUS FRITZ
15 MINUTES
Friday, Oct. 21 : 12:35pm
Followed by  Green

A 16mm surrealist tale of adventure that follows a young man’s search for purpose.

To Say Goodbye

DIRECTOR: JASON HEADLEY
19 MINUTES
Friday, Oct. 21 : 2:50pm
Followed by   Cirkus Columbia

A man works for a company called Care-A-Spondence, writing letters people won’t write for themselves. When he’s assigned to write a woman’s suicide note, he finds making a living isn’t so easy when someone might end up dying.

Veterans

DIRECTOR: VALERIE BISCHOFF
13 MINUTES
Friday, Oct. 21 : 5:30pm
Followed by   The Last Mountain
Everything changes for Diamond, the fallen star of a Nevada brothel,
after a unique encounter with a young Veteran.

The Strange Ones

DIRECTOR: CHRISTOPHER RADCLIFF & LAUREN WOLKSTEIN
14 MINUTES
Friday, Oct. 21 : 8:20pm
Followed by   Dragonslayer

A man and a boy, traveling to an unknown destination, find respite in a motel swimming pool. On the surface all seems normal, but nothing is what it seems to be.

Summer Snapshot

DIRECTOR: IAN MCCLUSKEY
10 MINUTES
Saturday, Oct. 22 : 11:00am
Followed by   Country Story

A group of friends in their 20s drive along winding forest roads, hike a secret trail, and spend a summer afternoon skinny-dipping, strumming guitars, and circling a campfire.

We’re Leaving

DIRECTOR: ZACHARY TREITZ
12 MINUTES
Saturday, Oct. 22 : 11:00am
Followed by   Bad Fever

Rusty has to find a new place to live with his wife and his teenage American alligator, Chopper.

Pioneer

DIRECTOR: DAVID LOWERY
16 MINUTES
Saturday, Oct. 22 : 6:00pm
Followed by   Press Pause Play

A father tells his son the most epic bedtime story ever.

Negativipeg

DIRECTOR: MATTHEW RANKING
15 MINUTES
Saturday, Oct. 22 : 8:05pm
Followed by   Bellflower

Negativipeg tells the story of Rory Lepine, who shot to Herostratic fame in 1985 when he attacked Winnipeg rock legend Burton Cummings with a beer bottle in a North End 7-Eleven. Narrated by Lepine himself, the film meditates on this mysterious act of destruction and suggests that Winnipeg might have an attitude problem.

OPENING NIGHT FEATURE
Resurrect Dead: The Mystery of the Toynbee Tiles

Feature Documentary
TRT: 85 min.| U.S.A. | color
A Film By: JON FOY
Awards: 2011 Sundance Director’s Award: Documentary

‘Toynbee Idea in Movie 2001. Resurrect Dead on Planet Jupiter.’

Strangeness is afoot. Most people don’t notice the hundreds of cryptic tiled messages about resurrecting the dead that have been appearing in city streets over the past three decades. But Justin Duerr does. For years, finding an answer to this long-standing urban mystery has been his obsession. He has been collecting clues that the tiler has embedded in the streets of major cities across the U.S. and South America. But as Justin starts piecing together key events of the past he finds a story that is more surreal than he imagined, and one that hits disturbingly close to home.

“The bizarre, yet utterly hypnotic love child of David Lynch and Errol Morris [...] easily one of the most unique and satisfying documentaries of the year.

- Andrew Mack, TWITCH.COM

The Trailer

“You couldn’t write a better mystery story than life did in this documentary”

-Mark Bell, FILM THREAT

SYNOPSIS

Filmmaker Jon Foy and Philadelphia-based artist and musician Justin Duerr began planning a documentary film about the Toynbee Tiles in 2000. Five years later, they began filming their investigation of these strange street plaques embedded in the asphalt of major U.S. and South American urban intersections that had held Duerr’s fascination for over a decade. Having appeared on hundreds of reported examples from the mid-1980s to present, the cryptic four-line message of the Toynbee Tiles read: “Toynbee Idea / In Kubrick’s 2001 / Resurrect Dead / On Planet Jupiter”. While the text on the plaques was clear enough, neither Duerr nor the numerous media outlets that had documented the phenomenon knew what these tiles meant, how or why they were installed, or who was responsible for them.

Duerr’s interest in the tiles began in 1994, when he moved from rural Pennsylvania to Philadelphia and began noticing them while working as a foot courier in the city’s business district. He documented dozens of tiles downtown, and was struck by how little attention the bizarre phenomenon received from other pedestrians. He was shocked when, several years later, he discovered an obscure website on the Internet documenting tile sightings in other cities like New York, Baltimore, St. Louis and Boston, which he would later visit; soon, tile sightings soon appeared as far away as Buenos Aires and Santiago. Despite this prolifacy, Duerr could find no answers as to what the texts meant or who was responsible for them, although marginal clues towards the artist’s identity slowly began to mount. In 2000, his obsession was amplified by a near run-in with the tiler when Duerr found a freshly laid tile in front of a local convenience store late at night. Having missed the tiler by minutes, Duerr vowed to definitively solve the mystery of the Toynbee Tiles.Teaming up with local Toynbee Tile fanatics Steve Weinik and Colin Smith, Duerr began his quest with few clues towards the tiler’s identity. The investigation led the team through a series of strange and unexpected turns from the discovery of a Jupiter colonization organization to the David Mamet play “4 a.m.” and a TV news hijacker with a cryptic message. Along the way, the team met with the eccentric residents in the deepest reaches of South Philadelphia and dedicated shortwave radio buffs for clues and guidance. As the picture of the Toynbee Tiles’ narrative slowly entered into focus, Duerr was shocked by the answers he was uncovering and his unexpected emotional connection to the elusive tiler.

An artfully crafted documentary, Resurrect Dead: The Mystery of the Toynbee Tiles is both an account of Duerr’s own obsession and a meditation on the broadly defined drive towards cathartic realization in the face of towering obscurity. The information age has seen few mysteries as impenetrable as that of the Toynbee Tiles, and the film champions the underdog accomplishments of these unlikely investigators. The documentary creates an atmosphere of magical realism as the unexpected pieces of this complex puzzle click into place.

Resurrect Dead: The Mystery of the Toynbee Tiles is a Land of Missing Parts production. The film is directed, edited, photographed and scored by Jon Foy. It is written and produced by Jon Foy and Colin Smith, and executive produced by Doug Block.

Filmmaker in Attendance: Q&A to follow the film.

Jon Foy

Director, producer, writer, editor, composer

Filmmaker and musical composer Jon Foy started planning his documentary about the mysterious Toynbee tiles with artist Justin Duerr a decade ago, and began filming in 2005 after dropping out of film school in Austin, TX. While working on the film, the Philadelphia native sustained himself by cleaning houses and participating in medical research studies. A seasoned rock musician, Foy taught himself the art of film score composition for Resurrect Dead: The Mystery of the Toynbee Tiles, and also scored 2008′s The Chinese Room. Resurrect Dead is his directorial debut.

Green

Narrative Feature 
TRT: 72 min.| U.S.A. | color
Written and Directed by Sophia Takal
Awards: SXSW / Chicken & Egg Emergent Woman Director Award

An intimate friendship between two women dissolves as they are drawn into an irrational, destructive spiral of jealousy and paranoid fantasy in this haunting examination of the female psyche.

“Brilliantly observed….strong performances and seamless, probing dialogue generate sequences of subtly shifting emotions, filling each scene with a palpable sense of tension and discomfort.”

- New York Magazine

Synopsis:

Genevieve, a New York intellectual, moves to the country with her self-involved journalist boyfriend, Sebastian, while he works on his latest project about sustainable farming.

Bored and neglected, Genevieve turns to Robin, a working class local, for companionship. When Sebastian forms a bond of his own with Robin, Genevieve finds herself overpowered by jealousy and insecurity. Tensions mount between the two women and soon reality and jealousy fantasy become inseparable in this haunting meditation on jealousy.

The Trailer: *Mature Audiences

Green – a film by Sophia Takal – Trailer from Sophia Takal on Vimeo.

“Green is the kind of fiction feature that restores our faith in independent cinema…Deftly crafted. Beautifully shot. [A] nuanced and evocative debut.”

- Flavorpill

Filmmaker SKYPE: Q&A to follow the film.

Sofia Takal

Writer/Director

Sophia Takal attended Vassar College and graduated from Barnard college, Columbia University with a BA in Film Studies.

She served as producer, editor and star of the feature film GABI ON THE ROOF IN JULY for which she won the Best Actress award at the Brooklyn Film Festival in 2010. The film won numerous awards including Best Feature from the Brooklyn Film Festival and special Programmer’s awards at Sidewalk Moving Picture Festival and IndieMemphis. Gabi was released theatrically in New York City in early 2011 and is available on VOD, and as Amazon and iTunes digital downloads.

GREEN, her first feature as writer/director, premiered at SXSW in 2011 where it won the SXSW / Chicken & Egg Emergent Woman Director Award. The film has gone on to play a number of other festivals, winning other awards.

Sophia was named one of Filmmaker Magazine’s 25 New Faces of Film in 2011.

Cirkus Columbia

Narrative Feature
TRT: 113min | Bosnia | color
A film by Danis Tanovic
*In Bosnian with English Subtitles
Official selection of the Toronto International Film Festival

“With his fourth film, “Cirkus Columbia,” Tanovic wisely returns to his Bosnia and Herzegovina roots, where the small but highly nuanced story, set in prewar 1991, rings with authenticity and weight.”

-The Hollywood Reporter

SYNOPSIS:
Bosnia and Herzegovina, 1991. The communists have fallen from power and Divko Buntic returns to the small town where he grew up to reclaim his family home. After a 20-year exile in Germany, Divko arrives in his flashy red Mercedes with sexy young girlfriend Azra, lucky black cat Bonny and a pocketful of Deutschmarks. Divko uses his money and connections to forcefully evict estranged wife Lucija, but he tries to reunite with 20-year-old son Martin. When Divko’s beloved cat Bonny disappears, the whole town joins in a frantic search to get the cash reward. The daily hunt for the missing cat strains Divko’s fragile relationship with Azra and opens up an unexpected but strong attraction between Azra and Martin. Busy fretting over everyday concerns, most of the townsfolk seem to disregard the rumbling political unrest: Croatia has seceded, all Yugoslavs are being forced to take sides, and the Serbs begin bombing Dubrovnik. Although their area is on high alert, many still can’t imagine anyone or anything could divide Bosnia and Herzegovina …

The Trailer

Director Bio

Danis Tanovic

CIRKUS COLUMBIA is Danis Tanović’s most recent film about war and its consequences. While CIRKUS COLUMBIA is set in the period before the conflict reaches his native Bosnia & Herzegovina, Tanović’s TRIAGE dealt with post-war trauma. The English-language feature starred Colin Farrell as the troubled photojournalist returning home from war-torn Iraq. Tanović dealt directly with war in his 2001 debut feature NO MAN’S LAND.

Set in the midst of the Bosnian war in 1993, NO MAN’S LAND won the Oscar and Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film, as well as Best Script prizes at the Cannes Film Festival and European Film Awards. The widely acclaimed film received over 40 international awards, making it one of the most awarded first feature films in history.

Eastern Oregon Film Festival is pleased to announce Boise, Idaho’s Hillfolk Noir as our festival kick off band Thursday, October 20th at the Granada Theater with a little pre-screening Junkerdash — then again as a follow up to the opening night film. Expect to really get cash-swanked as they team up with James Dean Kindle & the Eastern Oregon Playboys (more info to come) to provide the needed rhythm for the first of three after-parties in downtown La Grande, Oregon.

“If John Steinbeck owned a speakeasy, Hillfolk Noir would be the house band.” — John Doe (X, The Knitters)

About the Band

Fronted by singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Travis Ward, Boise, Idahoʼs Hillfolk Noir (petometz.com) has been described as a dark, country-tinged, swampy- swinginʼ, hillbilly-delta-blues-ragtime word machine. The band calls it Junkerdash, but no matter the descriptor, youʼll find Hillfolk Noirʼs psychedelic swamp-shack rags equally spooky and toe-tapping.

Last year the trio (missing Alison:( welcomed the excited opening night crowd at the Granada Theater. After the film they packed the late White House Coffee for a stompin’-drifty house style after party. We look forward to sharing in a great night of music and film with our friends and insanely talented cluster of clang and bang. Check out the bands links below and get to know ‘em!

Band Links

http://www.petometz.com
Facebook
MySpace

SAMPLE TRACK
Pirate Shanty

Pirate Shanty by Hillfolk Noir (MP3)

“You guys sound like Johnny Cash on Robitussin.” — Ryan,Pengillyʼs Saloon bartender

Rodeway Inn of La Grande
402 Adams Ave • La Grande, Oregon
Phone: (541) 962-7143
Web: http://www.rodewayinn.com/hotel/or210

Show your pass and receive 15% off your room

Royal Motor Inn
1510 Adams Ave • La Grande, Oregon
Phone: (541) 963-4154

Show your pass and receive 15% off your room

Mt. Emily Ale House
1202 Adams Avenue • La Grande, Oregon
541-962-7711
*Show your pass and receive $1 off your Ale House Pints

BELLA
1216 Adams Avenue • La Grande, Oregon
Phone: 800.452.8639

Show your EOFF pass at either BELLA location (La Grande or Baker City)and enjoy a FREE wine tasting.
TAKE $2 OFF on any purchase of $15 or more.

The Potter’s House Gallery and Gift Boutique
corner 6th & Penn, LG, 1601 6th st.
15% off any purchase (excluding consignment)

Books and Brew
1118 Adams Ave • La Grande, Oregon
12oz free drink with purchase of bagel sandwich.

Joe & Sugars
1119 Adams Ave • La Grande, Oregon
Free 16oz drink (limit 1 per pass)

Marie Josephine’s
1304 Adams • La Grande, Oregon
Show your pass and get 25% off your purchase

Night Fright Haunted House at the Maridell Center
1124 Washington Avenue, La Grande

$2.00 off a Combo Pass or $1.00 off an individual attraction at the Night Fright Haunted House, featuring Mortis Mansion II and Phantoms of the Deep, open Oct. 21 & 22, 7:00-10:00 pm. OR get $5.00 off the Paranormal Investigation on Oct. 22nd beginning at 11:00 pm. Also enjoy our food, games and live entertainment.

Direct Music
1010 Adams Avenue

Receive 20% off all accessories!

“Hailing from the land of rodeos, whiskey, high desert and crystal, James Dean Kindle and the Eastern Oregon Playboys boast the rare ability to genre hop without losing steam. “ …

About the Band

James Dean Kindle has been writing songs since his teenage years and cut his teeth early on in a punk band called The Sick Kids. He continued his solo career living at times in Portland, Eugene, Or., and Richland, Wa. often playing with a revolving cast of backing bands as well as a stint as a member of alt-country rockers Blue Is Cold. When he returned to Pendleton, his long-time friends Matt, Brian and Peter naturally came together to back him up on a few songs for shows. The chemistry was familiar and soon The Eastern Oregon Playboys were formed. On his own, JD has shared showbills with artists like Pete Krebs, Loch Lomond, The Helio Sequence, Calvin Johnson, Laura Gibson and Jason Webley and with the band he’s played with Point Juncture, Wa., Blitzen Trapper, Stoney Larue and Beirut. James Dean Kindle and the Eastern Oregon Playboys have enjoyed tremendous response from audiences of all ages while playing venues from dive-bars, coffee shops and house parties to rodeo arenas, water parks and even medium-security prisons for inmates on good-behavior (No joke!). In October of last year the they performed a collaborative concert with the Oregon East Symphony where an ensemble of the symphony accompanied the band on a selection of James’ songs. They have also enjoyed exposure on Oregon Public Broadcasting and Boise State Radio. With all this behind them and a full-length in the bag and a recently released 7 inch record the band is gearing up to record a proper follow up album this November.

“Both live and on its album, Campfire Pop Abstraction, the Pendleton quartet shifts effortlessly between freak folk, fuzzy guitar rock, psychedelic pop, alt country, eerie waltzes, blaring Mexican-style ballads and everything in between.” …

Sample Tracks

These tunes are from their new 7 inch record.

Tomorrow Is Another Change Of Face

James Dean Kindle and Eastern Oregon Playboys – Yes Man(192kps)

“It’s rare that a band can evoke everything from Tom Waits and Nick Cave to the Pixies and Lou Reed in one set, but Kindle and company never miss a beat in crafting a sound that is at once entrancing, exciting and wholly original.” — Willamette Week

We are honored to have our Pendleton friends join us in our festivities. For more information about the band and to harass them through social networking, see the links below.

Band Links

Facebook
Myspace

*photos by Ric Walters

“Sons of Guns is a four-piece Northwest band that brings together acoustic and electric, rock and poetry, sweaty beats and folk stories. We’ve all seen the dual frontman bit, where two guys share the stage and a rhythm section, taking turns as they back each other up, but Mike Surber and Gregory Rawlins act as a unified songwriting and singing unit, in the same way that Wayne Callahan’s intricate bass lines are a pea in the pod of Jeff Grammer’s merciless drums.”

~Martin Baker, Cold Hard Theories

About the Band

In the summer of 2006, Sons of Guns recorded their first full-length album entitled “Clutch.” Their CD release in 2007 at a show at The Crocodile Cafe in Seattle and was smash success, and the band continued to frequent the region’s venues with the likes of Finn Riggins, Blitzen Trapper, Oh No Not Stereo, Tartufi and many others, in between pursuing other creative and musical endeavors.

By mid 2010, Mike and Greg had teamed up with local musicians Jeff Grammer and Wayne Callahan–two former members of Test Audiences who welcomed the prospect of assisting the creation of a forthcoming SOG record in their off-time from Elidila– the duo’s main project.

“Oregon Slogan,” the title of the second full-length album by Sons of Guns was recorded in a basement of the Maridell Center in La Grande, OR, from Februrary 23-28th, 2011. Brad Kaminski of Vertigo Studios travelled from Seattle to capture their sound and take it home with him, and by the end of their five-day session, he had 13 tracks in tow. The band had always wanted to avoid the ho-humness of track by track recording, and sought to capture the essence of a live performance on the record as best they could. To do this, they all set up around one another, sticking their amplifiers in separate rooms, then played the songs as they would during a show. The result is an energy and grit yet to be captured in the band’s history, and a string of release dates are underway.

For more info on the band, sample tracks, updates etc – visit their website at www.sonsofgunsmusic.com or find them on facebook.

Sample Tracks

Olde St. Valentine

Bust Or Bust

The Eastern Oregon Film Festival would not be possible without the growing support of local businesses, organizations, The City of La Grande, and festival participants (cinephiles and band-buff’s alike), Eastern Oregon University, and the great energy emanating in the Grande Ronde Valley.

Volunteers: It takes an awful lot of energy to bring something like this to pass. The, dare I say, thousands of hours put in by community members to make this this happen is nothing to shake a stick at. The Eastern Oregon Film Festival is run by community volunteers who are dedicated to enriching this community & region through film and music. The EOU Film Club, Jeremiah Marshal, and Scott Nearing, for their efforts to rally a student base that creates the backbone to the event should all be commended for their commitment to this exciting project.

Festival Sponsors: Cold Coffee Media and La Grande Life has been an instrumental piece of the festival.  An incredible amount of donated services and volunteer time from these guys make this entire festival manifest. Additionally, media sponsors who donated gobs of great radio and advertising options include: Pacific Radio Empire, Capps Broadcasting, The Observer, Union County Chamber of Commerce, and more. Without the press – no-one would know!

Big Cash Sponsors need a shout out – the capital has helped secure insurance, 501 c3 status, screening fees, band fees, thai food, and more.  John J. Howard and Associates,  Blue Mountain Associates & Grande Ronde Recovery, Bella, La Grande Main Street, ArtsEast, Horizon Wind, Jeff D. Clark, and Candy Bowman should be recognized as supporters of arts and cultural event and cultivation in our valley.  Additional sponsors who stepped up to the plate: Blue Mountain Pathology, Chiller City, Eastern Oregon University, EOU Media Arts & Communications, Mindandmusicle.net, Mountain Valley Therapy, OMPA, Oregon Film, Oregon Rural Action, Oregon Wireless, Praise Photography, Taylinn Signs, USANA Health Sciences, Candy Bowman, Realtor, Edward Jones, Jeff D. Clark, Realtor, Kim Kenney, Marketing Consultant , Looking Glass Books, and Stuart Jones Designs.

Successful Grants
Wildhorse Foundation assisted in this year’s efforts by funding the fest $4K to purchase production package to document this year’s festival.  Already being put to use documenting our great annual fundraiser EOFF looks forward to preparing a short documentary of the 3 day event.  As inline with the education / resource goals for EOFF the package will become an available resource for budding filmmakers and creative project in the area.  More information on future use of the equipment will be available after this year’s festival. A special thanks to EOU faculty member Nancy Knowles for her assistance on the project.

The City of La Grande also awarded a grant in the amount of $1000.00 to be used for marketing purposes. Special thanks to the city and to Union County Chamber of Commerce for encouraging the event and we hope that we can grow this relationship and develop some sustainable support through our community leadership.

Thank you all.

“The Elidila of Perelandra gave to them dominion and rule of the planet. They were now old enough to take care of it. The Man and Lady know of evil, not by giving into it like The Bent One wanted, but by resisting it. Ransom spoke with them about what was the beginning of days of Perelandra and the end of the siege of Earth.

–from summary of C.S. Lewis’ Perelandra

About the Band

Jeff Grammer and Wayne Callahan started playing folk music together about 10 years ago in La Grande, Oregon. After years of playing the random bar room show, senior citizen breakfasts, museum openings, weddings, etc. they eventually plugged in (and Jeff became a drummer) and were a part of many bands around town such as: Test Audiences, Black Bottle Trio, and City of Animals. Jeff has self-released two solo albums, and Wayne has self-released one album as his solo yet collaborative project, Correspondence School. After years of disappearing band members and the usual struggles of coordinating schedules and drama, they decided to give it a go as a duo being as that after all the years and people that had gone by, they were the ones still around, and it has definitely allowed them to concentrate and write new music.

After the fizzling out of City of Animals, they took the winter of 2010-11 off from playing shows and started to write new music and figure out how to make a full sound as a duo. They also, in the midst of evolving their new sound, took on back line duties for La Grande favorites Sons of Guns with Jeff on drums and Wayne on bass. In a freezing cold basement at the end of this past winter, they made a record with Sons of Guns which will be out at the end of this summer. Jeff and Wayne finally debuted Elidila in May, and will continue to play shows throughout the summer, both electric and acoustic, to continue to shape their songs, develop new ones, and RECORD!!!

Sample Track

Andy

Connect

Facebook
Email: waynemarvincallahan@gmail.com

The Last Mountain

Feature Documentary
TRT: 113min | USA | color

Director: Bill Haney

*A panel discussion hosted by Oregon Rural Action will follow the screening.

“One of the most compelling environmental documentaries I’ve ever seen”

- Dave Paiz, The Loft Cinema

Synopsis

In the valleys of Appalachia, a battle is being fought over a mountain. It is a battle with severe consequences that affect every American, regardless of their social status, economic background or where they live. It is a battle that has taken many lives and continues to do so the longer it is waged. It is a battle over
protecting our health and environment from the destructive power of Big Coal. The mining and burning of coal is at the epicenter of America’s struggle to balance its energy needs with environmental concerns. Nowhere is that concern greater than in Coal River Valley, West Virginia, where a small but passionate group of ordinary citizens are trying to stop Big Coal corporations, like Massey Energy, from continuing the devastating practice of Mountain Top Removal.

David, himself, never faced a Goliath like Big Coal.

The citizens argue the practice of dynamiting the mountain’s top off to mine the coal within pollutes the air and water, is responsible for the deaths of their
neighbors and spreads pollution to other states. Yet, regardless of evidence supporting these claims, Big Coal corporations repeat the process daily in the name of profit. Massive profit allows Big Coal to wield incredible financial influence over lobbyists and government officials in both parties, rewrite environmental protection laws, avoid lawsuits and eliminate more than 40,000 mining jobs, all while claiming to be a miner’s best friend. As our energy needs increase, so does Big Coal’s control over our future. This fact and a belief that America was founded on the democratic principal that no individual or corporation owns the air and water and we all share the responsibility of protecting it, drives these patriotic citizens and their supporters from outside of Appalachia, like Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., to keep fighting.

A passionate and personal tale that honors the extraordinary power of ordinary Americans who fight for what they believe in, THE LAST MOUNTAIN shines a light on America’s energy needs and how those needs are being supplied. It is a fight for our future that affects us all.

The Trailer

“A thoughtful and elegantly made documentary”

- Jennie Punter, Globe and Mail

Director Bio

BILL HANEY

Producer/ Director/ Writer
Bill Haney has written, produced and directed award winning documentary and narrative
features for ten years. He is co-founder of Uncommon Productions.
His most recent feature documentary, The Price of Sugar, which he wrote, produced and
directed, was short-listed for an Academy Award®, nominated for the NAACP’s Image Award
and was the recipient of numerous other honors, including the Gabriel Award and the Audience
Award at South by Southwest.

“Drawing inspiration and influence from several musical realms– a bit of prog here, some indie rock there, an occasional steel drum thrown in for good measure, Finn Riggins’ sound is slippery to say the least.”

—Oregon Public Broadcasting

Photo by Bobby McHugh

“VS WILDERNESS, THE TRIO’S FOURTH RECORD AND THIRD FOR TENDER LOVING EMPIRE, IS A COMPOSITIONALLY COMPLEX, DIRTY, EXTRA-HOOKY GEM OF AN ALBUM. ITS UNDENIABLY BRIGHT POP SENSIBILITY IS FILTERED THROUGH OFF-KILTER TIME SIGNATURES AND SURPRISING CHORD PROGRESSIONS THAT DELIGHT AND AMUSE—FINN RIGGINS WILL GET TO THE PAYOFF, BUT THEY TAKE THE ROAD LESS TRAVELED TO GET THERE.”

About the Band

Finn Riggins is the result of a longtime collaboration between Cameron Bouiss, Eric Gilbert and Lisa Simpson. Having met while completing their music degrees at the University of Idaho, the trio began playing music together in 2000, an endeavor that would ultimately culminate in what is now Finn Riggins. In August of 2006, Bouiss, Gilbert and Simpson quit their jobs and moved to Sun Valley, Idaho to stitch together the outlines of Finn Riggins at “the helibase” – a secret practice spot/tour launch pad. Practices yielded shows, shows yielded tours and by the end of their first year as a group, Finn Riggins found themselves a national touring act who lived as much on the road as they did at home.

Finn Riggins has been touring the U.S. relentlessly since the release of its debut full length A SOLDIER, A SAINT, AN OCEAN EXPLORER released Nov. 13th 2007 on Tender Loving Empire — an independent record label, fine art/literature publishing house, fashion collective, art gallery and screen printer based in Portland, OR.

In 2008 alone, Finn Riggins played over 200 shows in 35 different states, including appearances at esteemed festivals like the CMJ Music Marathon in New York City, and Music Fest Northwest in Portland, OR. They’ve made a name for themselves as road warriors brandishing a fresh take on NW indie rock and helping to further push Idaho on to the national independent music scene.

As the calendar flipped to 2009, Finn Riggins relocated to Boise, ID to begin work on a new record and to further immerse themselves in Idaho’s growing music scene. in October of 2009, they’re second full length VS WILDERNESS was released nationwide on Tender Loving Empire and Finn Riggins toured the West extensively, including a stretch of shows with fellow Idahoans Built To Spill.

Sample Tracks

10 Some are Knightz

Sweet Video

“Finn Riggins’ Dawg, Finn Riggins… Finn Riggins!”

– Dude from video.

Connect

finnriggins.com
Facebook
Tender Loving Empire

In a world of quick fixes and shock value, one-hit wonders and weekly online sensations, it is a rare treat to hear a songwriter like Gregory Rawlins, a poet whose words are both whittled from the sturdy oak of folk tradition as they are tempered by the modern-day skyscraper. His images dance whimsically, often playfully, yet reveal a landscape littered with subtle truths, dark confessions, and fierce social critiques, placing him among the ranks of musicians John Prine, Bob Dylan, and Townes Van Zandt.

About the Musician

Born and raised in the lush and sodden Puget Sound area of Western Washington, Rawlins’ musical inspiration derives from a mash-up of classic rock, country music, and the Seattle grunge wave of the early 1990s– genres illustrated in his solo work, as well as in Sons of Guns, a band he co-fronts with longtime friend Mike Surber.

In 2008, Rawlins self-released “The Amazing Circle of Boxes,” his 19-track debut album recorded between 2002-2007 during the interims of band activity, in a series of bedrooms, basements, garages and warehouses. At times simple and meditative, at times erratic, spacey, distorted and fused with a myriad of electronics and natural sounds, Rawlins auspiciously established himself as unique force in the NW independent music scene.

The envelope of experimentation was pushed even further with his 2010 release “Fuggit, I’ll Bet a Hunnerd,”  a dust-covered, booze-draped daydream, centered around the concept of one’s struggle to embrace the magical and maddening affects of life in the Grande Ronde Valley– an area Rawlins has inhabited off-and-on for the past decade.

“(Fuggit, I’ll Bet a Hunnerd) takes you on a journey that will have you tapping your toes, bobbing you head and cringing in all the best ways as Rawlins intertwines his cozy sense of camaraderie with a wistful tone that is entirely unique.”

~ Jeff Van Vickle, The Voice

2011 has proven to be Gregory Rawlins’ most dynamic and prolific year to date. In addition to releasing “Oregon Slogan,” the second full-length by Sons of Guns, he has performed over two-dozen shows this summer alone– including a two-week, three-state NW tour, and has once again entered the studio under the engineering tutelage of Elidila’s Wayne Callahan, to record his third work.

When asked about the forthcoming album, Rawlins disclosed, “it’s a conscious effort to get back to the fundaments of songwriting and recording. Whereas the first two records were heaps of ambient electronic effects, artificial beats and layers and layers of vocals, these sessions are completely stripped-down and organic, with minimal accompaniment and harmonies. The goal is to reproduce each song live… a thing impossible to do with much of the previous material.”

Sample Tracks

05 I like you a lot Ms. Penn

18 Allegiance (pt. I) 1

Window Wash Out: Video

DRAGONSLAYER

Documentary Feature
TRT 74 minute | United States | HD
Director: Tristan Patterson
Awards: Best Documentary Feature, SXSW 2011, Best Cinematography, SXSW 2011, Best International Feature, Hot Docs 2011

Drag City in association with Killer Films presents the transmissions of a lost kid falling in love in the suburbs of Fullerton, California. Featuring skateboarding, the usual drugs, and stray glimpses of unusual beauty.

“A must-see doc…”Dragonslayer” is a terrific new non-fiction movie with a lot of love for its leading man and a disjointed cinematic spirit that makes it a thrill to watch on a big screen.”

—indieWIRE

Synopsis

Directed by Tristan Patterson and executive produced by indie-maverick Christine Vachon, DRAGONSLAYER is the Grand Jury Prize winner for Best Documentary Feature at SXSW 2011, and is the second feature to be released theatrically by Drag City following Harmony Korineʼs Trash Humpers.

DRAGONSLAYER documents the transgressions of a lost skate punk falling in love in the stagnant suburbs of Fullerton, California in the aftermath of Americaʼs economic collapse. Taking the viewer through a golden SoCal haze of broken homes, abandoned swimming pools and stray glimpses of unusual beauty, DRAGONSLAYER captures the life and times of Josh “Skreech” Sandoval, a local skate legend and new father, as his endless summer finally collides with the future. Set to the alternately roaring and dreamy soundtrack of bands from the indie labels Mexican Summer and Kemado Records— including Best Coast, Bipolar Bear, Children, Dungen, Eddy Current and the
Suppression Ring, Golden Triangle, Jacuzzi Boys, Little Girls, Real Estate, The Soft Pack, Saviours, as well as DEATH and Thee Oh Sees —DRAGONSLAYER is a punkrock manifesto to youth, love and learning to survive after the decline of western civilization.

“Thereʼs a high probability that it will be one of the most talked about documentaries of the year, like last yearʼs Catfish or Exit Through the Gift Shop… Itʼs much like The Wrestler only this is real life… Dragonslayer is practically flawless.”

—The Playlist

Trailer

“A portrait of a generation swooping brilliantly through an empty swimming pool.”

—The Boston Globe

SKYPE Q&A to Follow the film.

Tristan Patterson, Director

Tristan Patterson is a screenwriter living in Los Angeles. He has written screenplays for Disney, Fox and Warner Brothers, and is currently writing American Cigarette for director Tony Scott and Fox 2000. He is attached to direct his own screenplay Electric Slide starring Ewan McGregor for Killer Films and Myriad Pictures. Dragonslayer is his first feature.

“Atomic Mama is a contemporary electronic rock band based out of Boise, ID. Since their inception, Atomic Mama has defined itself as a powerhouse duo for intricate construction of musical chivalry, fusing the wildly popular sounds of tomorrow with the shameless bravado of 1960′s rock and roll, heightened only by the live performance”

-Zach Voss, Filmmaker

About the Band

Atomic Mama arrived on the Boise music scene early in 2011. Spawned from the same creative pool that manifested the likes of Youth Lagoon and Teens, Atomic Mama has a wholly unique sound; synthesized from a lofty combination of organic blues and shamanistic dance beats. It’s equal parts space rock, drugged out garage fuzz, dance floor boogie, and noodle-shaking rock and roll. Imagine a delicious musical stew of Black Keys style riffs, Mos Eisley Cantina band charm, Yeasayer electronic experimentalism, and impenetrable lysergic ambitiousness—lick your lips—and then you might get some idea of the vast territory that this band likes to explore.

The group hatched as a one-off DJ gig for a friend’s keg party, but quickly turned into something more substantial as the two young men that constitute the group – longtime friends Dan Kerr and Jake Warnock – began composing infectious original numbers and developing a distinctive musical chemistry. It wasn’t long before the two ventured onto the stages of Boise’s humble night clubs, armed with guitars, pedals, and keys, and proceeded to tear straight into the hearts and minds of local music fanatics. The Boise Weekly described these happenings as “the early stages of something teetering on the edge of greatness.”

Compelled by this initial success, Atomic Mama intends to deliver its musical offerings across state lines. Provided the necessary fuel, the duo will journey throughout the West Coast this Fall in a pimped out yellow school bus. After making the rounds, the band will put out its first official release, an EP titled [ ], on October 25.

Sample Track

13 Psychocillin Robo-Boogie

“Psychocillin Robo-Boogie”

Video

Check out their recent kickstarter campaign to fuel their West Coast Tour!