Film festival success guides future generations

'Best’ winners are announced

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The red carpet has been rolled back up, but this year’s Port Townsend Film Festival lives on in the memories made.

 

Before going into storage though, it was treated to the feel of the feet of filmmakers from around the world, including Peter Murphy hailing from Dublin, Ireland who came to tout the movie he co-directed, “Róise & Frank,” a feature-length narrative about a dog believed to be the reincarnation of a widow’s deceased husband who goes on to help coach a local sports team.

The biggest names of the event, Jared and Jerusha Hess of “Napoleon Dynamite” fame, were almost always accompanied by John Cooper, who recently retired from being the executive director of the Sundance Film Festival that first premiered that comedic epic. All three had plenty of opportunities to regale the town with tales and tips for would-be filmmakers at various panels and events throughout the weekend.

Perhaps most poignant for anyone newly starting out and on a budget, this piece should seem obvious, but is worth restating:

“Don’t write a script about outer space or aliens or anything that’s going to be expensive,” Jared said.

Alongside the star-studded screenings people had to pay to attend, the free outdoor movie nights were, as always, a big hit.

Saturday night’s family-friendly animated feature “Sing” drew perhaps the biggest crowd of the weekend with Taylor Street packed full of young and old.

That same night, filmmakers were treated to a chance to escape the crowds by attending a private affair hosted at Vintage by Port Townsend Vineyards where stories were told around the outdoor fire pits and indoors alongside the ambience of a live cellist.

While all of the films had already gone through a massive voting process just to make it to the event, winners from each category were awarded on Sunday. “The Falconer,” was unanimously chosen at this year’s winner for Best Narrative Feature; “Of Medicine and Miracles,” won Best Documentary Feature; “The Treatment,” won Best Narrative Short; and “Long Line of Ladies,” was awarded Best Documentary Short.