Dam Short Film Festival

Chris and I volunteered at the Dam Short Film Festival here in Boulder City last week, and had a blast doing it. The festival was founded in 2003 by Lee Lenier (senior animator for Antz and Shrek), and has been gaining momentum since then. It's held at the very charming Boulder Theatre which is owned by Desi Arnaz Jr. He was milling about the theatre all weekend and we got to hang out with him and his wife, Amy, a bit. That was really cool; I even got a little starstruck thinking about the fact that he has Lucille's and Desi's blood coursing through his veins. We worked more closely, though, with the festival's director, John LaBonney, and his wife/volunteer coordinator, Michelle. They were so great, we really liked them. The most interesting thing about working the festival was all the fantastic people watching, and chatting up said people. I always enjoy meeting new people, and there were certainly some memorable characters: a longwinded lovable man we called Gordon because he looked like our pal of the same name, Diamond the older woman who watched all 110+ films in the festival, and Joe and Barb our favorite fellow volunteers. I was surprised to see the company the festival drew - mostly local seniors and obscure industry people. It wasn't until Saturday night, when they showed the Best of the Fest, that a younger, hipper crowd showed up along with the aforementioned crew. Nonetheless, it was all very enjoyable people watching and interacting. Chris and I did get to be patrons for one block - we went to see the comedy films on Friday evening. I won't be polite on this one, I was disappointed. And I couldn't tell what was more of a bummer - the underwhelming films or the all too easily pleased audience. And I wish we had gotten to see more blocks. Still, it was a really great experience being a part of the festival, being exposed to the industry, starting relationships, and getting to know our beloved little Boulder City a bit better. We'll definitely be there next year.