The Denver Film Society this week announced its inaugural Shorts Fest May 6-7 to take advantage of growing interest in the short-film format.
“I’ve gotten the comment many times from young people at the that it can be a little overwhelming committing to so many features. But they always really enjoy the shorts packages,” said programmer Matthew Campbell.
The festival, officially titled RSC Shorts Presented by LivWell, will take place at the Sie FilmCenter under the banner of the Denver Film Society’s , which targets young professionals for the next generation of film lovers.
The festival will feature an separated into five programming blocks, including the popular , which has run during the Denver Film Festival, as well as narratives, documentaries, animation, genre films and webisodes.
The event’s casual, party-oriented tone is evident in events aimed at festival badge-holders. Opening night begins with a happy hour in the Sie’s Henderson’s Lounge (with free drinks for badge-holders), followed by the RSC Liquid Brunch on May 7, also for badge holders, which features a Bloody Mary and mimosa bar.
The event’s title sponsor, LivWell, is a Colorado-based marijuana company that runs medical and recreational pot shops.
“We really want to get new people in the door that might not be as familiar with indie film or international films,” Campbell said. “So this is an easy way to dip your toes into that and see some exciting work from new directors who are getting their start in the shorts format.”
In addition to padding out Reel Social Club’s annual schedule, which includes the popular Summer Scream event at Lakeside Amusement Park, Shorts Fest recognizes the growing interest in quick-hit videos, which has paralleled the rise of on-demand video sites such as YouTube and Vimeo, and the popularity of short films such as “World of Tomorrow” and “Kung Fury” on Netflix.
RSC Shorts also has the potential to become a complementary event to , which is celebrating its 25th anniversary April 5-10.
“We’re nowhere near the level they are, but we’ve been good friends and partners with them over the years, and I worked with (Aspen Film artistic director) Maggie Mackay at the L.A. Film Fest,” Campbell said. “This is only our first year, so we’re intentionally skewing toward an edgier, younger demographic.”
For evidence Campbell cited Shorts Fest’s late-night programming block May 7, which includes titles such as “Toonocalypse,” “Portal to Hell” and “Dinner with Family with Brett Gelman and Brett Gelman’s Family,” a comedy short that originally aired on Adult Swim.
“We’re presenting (Brett Gelman’s film) without commercials or censorship, which is not how it aired, so you’re getting a chance to see these things in a theater, and they’re curated with other content to make them more well-rounded.”
All-access passes are $25 for Reel Social Club members, $30 for Denver Film Society members and $40 for non-members. The pass includes all shorts packages, opening night happy hour and brunch on Saturday morning. Individual tickets to all packages are $10-$15.
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John Wenzel: 303-954-1642, jwenzel@denverpost.com
