Weekly View » Heartland Film Festival

Heartland Rewind

CJ Woods III — Thu, 18 Jun 2015 05:08:31 +0000

Last October, I was given the opportunity to attend the Heartland Film Festival. I came away with a feeling of wonderment, and disappointment in myself that I had never before made an effort to sample the offerings of the festival. Among the many films that I enjoyed, I was especially struck by the passion of a “conflict’ photojournalist in 1,000 Times Good Night, and a man’s gut-wrenching despair as he searches for his lost 12-year-old son in Siddarth, a Heartland best narrative feature winner. I saw that Siddarth was available on the video-streaming service Netflix, a subscription service that my friend has at the home I was going to watch while she attended her niece’s wedding. I reacquainted myself with Siddarth, and a father’s pain.
Set in India, Siddarth opens as a “chain wallah” — a man whose occupation is to repair “chains, zippers . . . bags and jackets” — comes home to discuss with his wife about their son’s job at a “trolley factory.” The parents and their daughter speak to 12-year-old Siddarth on the phone. He assures them that the “food is good,” that he is being treated well, and that he will be home “in a month.” When Siddarth does not return as expected, we learn of Mahendra Saini’s decision to send his son to an unknown place, and begin to understand the economic forces that apply the kind of pressure that would cause a father to agree to send away his young child.
Mahendra makes his living peddling his services on the streets of a village near Delhi. He walks the streets with a duffel bag of repair parts, calling out to all on a portable loudspeaker that he can repair their bags, zippers, chains and jackets. We see him working on everything, including buggy wheels and cameras. His difficulties making a living, hitting “a bad patch,” caused him to consider his brother-in-law’s offer to have Siddarth work for a month at the factory.
Worry and despair grow as the time grows longer and Siddarth still does not return. When the family decides to report the son as missing, the police are initially less than sympathetic. The officer who takes Mahendra’s report looks at him with anger. “You people never learn,” she says, chiding him. She tells him that child labor is illegal and that the child should be in school, getting an education. Mahendra’s family starts to fracture and he travels to the place where his son was last seen and begins a search that, at every stage, exposes the dangers that his son has been exposed to, the results of his decision to contract out the boy’s services. Mahendra’s modest means hinder his ability to conduct an effective search for his son, but the family’s inability to produce a picture of the boy frustrate the police and highlight the poverty that that ultimately proves devastating to the family.
Siddarth is a compelling story about the difficult choices that poor families must make, worldwide, and how one man’s search for his lost son can heal great wounds and highlight ingrained misery.
The Heartland Film Festival will have its “Summer Rewind” — a sampling of films from previous years — from June 18th through June 25th, and Siddarth will be one of many quality offerings. I am looking forward to October’s line-up and more award-winning films.
(For more information, visit heartlandfilm.org.)

Heartland Film Festival: A Short Story about a Short Film

Paula Nicewanger — Thu, 24 Oct 2013 05:09:33 +0000

The first Heartland film I’ve seen this year was Shorts 1 — four short films presented in one showing. When I saw Shorts 1 I didn’t realize that my favorite one was the Grand Prize Winner for Shorts, Amber Amulet. There is a great interview with director/co-writer Matthew Moore on Heartland’s blog www.trulymovingpictures.org/blog-post/heartland-film-festival-interview-matthew-moore-directorco-writer-of-the-amber-amulet/
The film was about a young boy who dresses as a superhero and sets out to help an abused neighbor. Moore says “I think the importance of our little hero, is that he has a power all of us possess. The power to affect positive change. You don’t need a utility belt for that.”
Three different directors were introduced at the end of Shorts 1 for a Q&A session — it’s always a special treat to hear what motivated the film makers to do their films and the inside stories.
Matthew Moore was an actor who stopped acting to pursue his passion for filmmaking. Seems like it was a very good choice.
There is still a time left to see this great short film on Friday, October 25, 9:00 p.m. at AMC Castleton Square 14 and Saturday, October 26, 2:00 p.m. at AMC Traders Point Showplace 12. For more information and a compete schedule of films go to HeartlandFilmFestival.org

Heartland Film Festival: 134 Films, 10 Days of Movie Magic

Weekly View — Thu, 17 Oct 2013 05:10:39 +0000

INDIANAPOLIS — The Heartland Film Festival (Oct. 17-26) kicks off its 22nd annual showcase of independent, international, enlightening film on Thursday, Oct. 17 with its Opening Night Event at the Indianapolis Museum of Art. In total, the Festival includes 134 independent films from 44 countries and will host over 100 filmmakers from around the world.
As an Academy Awards-qualifying festival within the Short Films category, Heartland is widely respected in the independent film community. Offering 282 film screenings, Q&A sessions with filmmakers, workshops and special events, Heartland gives you the opportunity to see films from around the world and meet the filmmakers who craft them.
New for 2013, the Festival has added a third screening venue close to its headquarters in Fountain Square. Over four nights Heartland will screen films at the Theater at the Wheeler Arts Community (Oct. 23-26) along with featured sponsors Sun King Brewing and Just Pop In!
Films will be screened at AMC Castleton Square 14, AMC Traders Point 12, and the Theater at the Wheeler Arts Community. Tickets are $9 per show; visit www.trulymovingpictures.org to order tickets online and get information about the many films, documentaries, and special events that make the Heartland Film Festival a truly moving experience.