Craig Volk is an accomplished television writer, award-winning playwright and an associate professor of theater and film at the University of Colorado-Denver.
He’s also among a number of Colorado filmmakers showcased in the fest. It’s not his first time. In 2007, Volk’s “One Story” brought audiences the tale of Isaac Khor Bher, the first Sudanese “lost boy” to be reunited with his family. Last year, while introducing “Her Life Is My Teacher,” he was upstaged by the chatty and charming subject of the film: blind yogi and microfinance activist Abdul Salam.
This year, “Del: 100” captures in short order the long life of journalist Del Plested. Sadly, Plested won’t be interrupting Volk this time out. She died last November at age 101.
Though “Del: 100” isn’t scheduled to screen again, a number of other Colorado flicks are, including “The Smell of Lemons,” (Nov. 14); “Mzungu (n.) White Wanderer” (Nov. 13); and “Leading Ladies” (Nov. 14).
Q: How is this latest film related to your others?
A: All three represent an ongoing series of biographical portraits my producing partner Stephanie Two Eagles and I are creating about people who have entered our lives and changed how we view the world. All of them are crusaders, optimists, humanists.
Q: What does Two Eagles, one-time Colorado film commish, bring to the table?
A: I’m blessed that Stephanie brings her vast knowledge of the Colorado film community to our films. Our projects are truly handmade. The vast majority of our creative work occurs with our editor, Michelle Bauer Carpenter. And it’s at the cutting-room table that Stephanie again brings her innate artistic sense of what truly delivers a final edit.
Q: Was there an “aha” moment during the edit?
A: There was a painting I saw on her wall that now provides the opening and closing shots for the film. It depicts a lone woman serenely aloft in a wash of turquoise blue. That captured Del’s spirit. Lisa Kennedy, The Denver Post
