‘In Burnt Norton’ from Eighty-Watt Cinema to Screen September 29th and 30th at the San Diego Film Festival
September 17, 2007
Innovative 8mm short film to have its West Coast premiere at multiple award-winning festival
(New York, NY) September 17, 2007 — The latest short film from Eighty-Watt Cinema, ‘In Burnt Norton,’ (2006, 14 minutes, 8mm) has been selected to screen at the San Diego Film Festival. The film will have its West Coast and San Diego premiere in the “Torn” Shorts section, at the Pacific Gaslamp 15 Theater on Saturday, September 29th at 12:00 p.m. and on Sunday, September 30th at 5:00 p.m.
A filmmaker Q+A will immediately follow. The Pacific Gaslamp 15 Theater is located at 701 5th Avenue (at G Street). Passes are available online now, and individual screening tickets will go on sale today for $10 each at http://www.sdff.org/boxoffice.html
The project, written and directed by Joshua Dilworth, tells the story of Professor Stephen Marvigelo, whose journey outside the classroom blurs the line between science fiction and nonfiction. It is a film about “solving the most difficult equations in life, one plane of existence at a time.” says Dilworth. ‘In Burnt Norton’ is the third short in as many years from Dilworth and executive producer Nicholas White’s production shingle, and centers around Marvigelo’s attempts to reunite with his wife and family after a seemingly random event defies the most basic laws of nature.
A West Coast Institution
The festival features more than 100 American and international feature, documentary, short films and music videos. Additional events include intimate filmmaker and celebrity gatherings, industry panels, the American Screenwriters Association’s annual conference, and four nights of San Diego’s most glamorous parties. The San Diego Film Festival has earned more than 12 awards, including Best Beach Fest, Best Party Fest, Best Regional Film Fest and a coveted spot as one of the country’s Top 10 Film Festival Vacations.
Since its founding in 2001, the festival has received nearly 5,000 film entries from around the world. Of the thousands submitted, more than 300 feature length, short and documentary films have been selected to screen at the competitive event. More than two-dozen awards have been given in 13 competitive categories.
“We’re really pleased to be screening ‘In Burnt Norton,’” said executive director Robin Laatz. “Visually it’s completely unique, and overall the piece is a great example of the kind of film we strive to highlight as the among very best work that is being done in independent film right now.”
Pioneering A New Workflow For Budget-Minded Independents
Taking advantage of an increasingly viable workflow option for independent filmmakers, Dilworth shot ‘Norton’ on Super-8mm filmstock and transferred to DVCPro HD videotape using a Thompson Grassvalley Spirit film scanner with DaVinci color correction at Technicolor in New York City. This unique process produced an arresting result.
“If you want to shoot film, this is a great way to go” says Dilworth, who has 35mm, 16mm and 8mm films under his belt. “It’s the best of two worlds, both high and low-tech.”
At a time when shooting digitally has become much more cost-effective, originating on film is increasingly rare in the independent world. “I’m so happy that Kodak and other companies haven’t abandoned Super-8mm,” said executive producer White. “There’s a viable community of experimental filmmakers around this format, and that’s good for everyone. It makes it easier to fit a story to a budget appropriately. It’s one more tool for a community that typically doesn’t have many.”
The unique look of the film is more visibly SD than HD, but the grain structure remains true, and the remarkable latitude of newer Super-8mm stocks made shooting the format a far less nerve-racking experience for the filmmakers. Dilworth used modified widescreen cameras from Pro8mm in Burbank, California and Kodak Vision2 200T and 400T film. The final product also boasts an uncharacteristically smooth image, due to the stability of the cameras as well as the transfer gate.
About Eighty-Watt Cinema:
Eighty-Watt Cinema, LLC was founded in 2002 by Joshua Dilworth and Nicholas White. Located in New York City, Eighty-Watt Cinema has produced several dramatic and comedic shorts, and these projects have screened at film festivals and theaters nationwide. The company is currently prepping its first feature film.
About the San Diego Film Festival:
Held in the Gaslamp Quarter — San Diego’s premier entertainment district — San Diego Film Festival (SDFF) is a competitive four-day fest that offers attendees a 360 festival experience. Whether it’s a relaxing day of film and a night of parties, or catching a workshop and hitting a conference to learn from the pros, no single day is like another at SDFF. Produced by the non profit 501(C) 3 San Diego Film Foundation, SDFF celebrates its sixth anniversary Sept. 27 — 30, 2007.