The problem with most Festival highlight articles (including ours) is that they don’t take into account the reality of what is actually available at a given time and what you might miss that plays opposite of a film you end up seeing. With the current downtown / Sundance split, and 10 to 15 minute intervals between films at different venues, one has to take into account travel time between venues, parking, and general quality of life issues (like eating) when making ticket selections.
So, in the spirit of a “mock draft,” in this article I will make screening selections based on what is playing when and where, and what I would have to do to actually go to the films.
This mock draft has a few ground rules. I’m going to pretend that I could go to whatever film I want, regardless of ticket availability or how many tickets I can afford. I’m also going to assume the persona of someone who, um, works. I’m going to take off Thursday through Sunday, but Monday through Friday my persona will get off work at 5:00 pm. (In real life I get off work at 6:00 or 6:30 pm, so I’m going to have to figure some things out). My persona will have seen several Festival preview screeners, however, which will influence Festival week selections. But my persona will not have seen most of those screeners yet, so the preference will simply be based on what I have access to, not based on which film is better than the other.
These decisions can be mind bending. So rather than map out all of the choices in prose form, I suggest that you simply open up another browser window with the Festival schedule grid, or open up to the center of the program guide that came in Isthmus last week, and follow along.
Thursday, April 3
This evening is easy. Everything is on campus, so you probably can’t go wrong with any combination of an early and late screening.
I’ll go to Manakamana (6:15, UW Chazen) and Joe (9:00, Union South).
Friday, April 4
Now we have to think about location, and how much, if at all, we want to bounce back and forth between the campus and Sundance. On Friday, I’m going to elect to go to Sundance and stay there the whole day.
I will see: Stray Dogs (11:30 am); Actress (2:15); Like Father, Like Son (4:45); Commando: A One Man Army (7:15); and The Sacrament (9:45).
Rationale: This takes care of several big tickets and minimizes movement. In fact, they are all in Sundance Cinema 1.
Regret to miss (and not see later): Sepideh; Stand Clear of the Closing Doors.
Regret to miss (but will review before Festival): Dangerous Acts Starring the Unstable Elements of Belarus; A Spell to Ward off the Darkness; Domestic; Shooter and Whitley.
Saturday, April 5
Saturday is the hardest day for decisions in this year’s festival, because there is one crucial “pivot” film that you need to decide whether or not you want to see. If you want to see it, you must make some sacrifices, before and after, to make it work. If you don’t care, then things become somewhat simpler.
That film is Paul Verhoven’s Tricked at Union South at 5:30. If you want to see it, it really goofs things up for the third and forth block of films on Saturday, regardless if you stay on campus or come or go from Sundance. For all practical purposes, it overlaps with or makes it impossible to see 11 other screenings (12 if you can’t get from Union South to Sundance Cinemas in 15 minutes, which, um, you can’t). On top of all that, there are no repeat Festival screenings of Tricked.
So, with that in mind, I’m going to go to Paul Verhoven’s Tricked at Union South at 5:30. It’s an “all in” kind of move, because if it falls flat it could really ruin Saturday. The Festival experience is all about missing films as well as seeing them, but it might be worth asking: If you can only show Tricked once, why program it in between and overlapping two blocks of films, and put it in the venue that is hardest to get in and out of? But this is the life we’ve chosen, so we’ll move on.
I will start the day at Sundance, use Tricked as the pivot film to come to campus, sacrificing all of the third and possibly most of the forth blocks, then try to move as quickly as I can on campus.
I will see: The Immortalists (Sundance 5, Noon); Happy Christmas (Sundance 6, 2:45); Tricked (Union South, 5:30); then Plan A will be to run to the Cinematheque to see When Evening Falls on Bucharest (UW Cinematheque, 7:00). If I can’t manage that, I will simply skip the fourth block, because my only other choice would be Dom Hemingway, which I won’t see because it would eliminate my chance to see Crimes Against Humanity (UW Elvehjem, 9:00 pm).
Rationale: See the “pivot” argument above. Also, gap between Happy Christmas and Tricked allows for travel and eating time.
Regret to miss (and not see later): All About the Feathers; Vertigo (you know what I mean); Nathaniel Dorsky: Then and Now (well, I brought in 3 of the films years ago); Club Sandwich (clearly I need to catch up with Fernando Eimbcke, but after the Festival).
Regret to miss (but will review before Festival): The Rocket; Domestic; Nobody’s Daughter Haewon (actually Jake will write the Madison Film Forum review); Coherence.
Sunday, April 6
Sunday I will alternate between the campus and the Overture Capitol Theater. At the transition points that I’ve chosen there should be enough travel time, even if I’m on foot. One of my proudest Festival moments way back when was speed-walking from the Majestic to the UW Cinematheque to catch The Five Obstructions, and I might be needing those skills again at the end of Sunday night this year.
I will see: To Be Takei (UW Elvehjem, 11:30 am); Gabrielle (Union South 1:15); Le Week-end (Capitol Theater, 3:45); The Congress (Capitol Theater, 6:00); 20,000 Days on Earth (Union South, 8:15).
Rationale: Even though I think the Capitol Theater films will return to Madison, I want to support the one day of programming at a off-campus downtown venue.
Regret to miss (and not see later): Stand Clear of the Closing Doors; Coherence; All About the Feathers; Jodie Mack: Let Your Light Shine; Young and Beautiful; Ida, Cheatin’
Regret to miss (but will review before Festival): Shooter and Whitley; A Spell to Ward off the Darkness; Village at the End of the World.
Monday, April 7
As mentioned before, for this mock draft my persona will have to start working to earn enough money to see all of these films. So while the location is no longer an issue, I will have to sacrifice the matinees, and only go to the evening films.
That said, I wonder if there is a reason why evening shows for commercial theaters throughout the year start at 7:00 or so. I wonder if they’ve found success with that because many people get off work around 5:00, and need at least a little time between work and a movie. I’m just wondering this out loud, because I couldn’t help but notice that almost all of evening blocks during the Festival week start at 6:00 or 6:30. I’m confident that all of the local theaters will be taking notice of this experiment, and will probably change their start times an hour earlier when they see how successful 6:00 weekday start times can be.
I will see: Rat Pack Rat (6:15); Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter (8:30)
Rationale: Both filmmaker Q & A’s, and by now I’ve already seen The Sacrament (on Friday).
Regret to miss (and not see later): Sabbatical (2:00); Club Sandwich (4:45).
Tuesday, April 8
I will see: Visitors (6:45); You and the Night (9:15)
Rationale: Filmmaker Godfrey Reggio will be at the Visitors screening. You and the Night will be the only film this year that I preview before the Festival and watch with a crowd.
Regret to miss (and not see later): Ida, Cairo Drive.
Regret to miss (but will review before Festival): Nobody’s Daughter Haewon; Dangerous Acts Starring the Unstable Elements of Belarus.
Wednesday, April 9
I will take off of work to get to Alejandro Jodorowsky’s The Dance of Reality on time.
I will see: The Dance of Reality (6:00); Intruders (9:00)
Rationale: Dude.
Regret to miss (and not see later): Cairo Drive, Young and Beautiful, Cheatin’
Regret to miss (but will review before Festival): The Rocket
Thursday, April 10
What a long, strange trip it has been. Even just writing all of this out was a mind-bender.
I will see: Macaroni & Cheese (6:00); Why Don’t You Play in Hell? (8:00)
Rationale: You know, if I’m tired, I might just skip Macaroni and Cheese, but Why Don’t You Play in Hell? looks like a great way to end the Festival.
Regret to miss (but will review before Festival): In Bloom; Il Sorpasso, Village at the End of the World.
Well, there’s the mock draft. But like Mel Kiper or Todd McShay, I will probably change this lineup once or twice before the real event.
Please share your thoughts on navigating the Festival schedule in the comments below. I’d particularly like to hear comments about how screening location is driving ticket purchases.