Film! Food! First Tuesdays! The Midwest Independent Film Festival presents another knock out Comedic Shorts Program this Tuesday, June 1st at Landmark’s Century Centre Cinema -- 2828 North Clark -- 6 p.m. Filmmakers in attendance for a post-screening discussion include SUCCESSFUL ALCOHOLICS (Sundance 2010) director Jordan Vogt-Roberts.
Check out this hilarious lineup: http://www.midwestfilm.com/pages/june_1_2010_lineup/446.php.
Purchase tickets today at http://www.midwestfilm.org -- First Tuesdays sell out every month!
Join the festival’s e-mail list at http://www.midwestfilm.com/pages/join_our_e_mail_list_/331.php. We send no more than two e-mails per month with all the latest on film events in Chicagoland, special advance screenings and of course, all the Indie action at the only year round film festival in the nation.
Who’s on First? Midwest Independent Film Festival!
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Refuge Essay
The short film “Refuge of Dragonflies” is a modern multi-cultural adaptation of one chapter of Victor Hugo’s classic “Hunchback of Notre Dame” written, directed, edited, and produced by Michael O’Rourke. It was filmed on location in West Palm Beach in May and June of 2008. Hugo’s novel, originally published in 1831, is in public domain.
Hounded by depression, rage, and survival guilt, the street poet Chancez wills himself into states of exhaustion and ecstasy, building a refuge with words—poetry in defense of civil and human liberty. He offers his poetry as shelter to every stripe of human creativity in every color he imagines might hear or read it. But who’s listening to an unknown Poet who lives in an industrial dumpster?
Heaven sees him struggle with his well-intentioned delusion, takes mercy, and hurls a messenger at him. The messenger is the message—Esmeralda, a “celestial street dancer,” the Poet’s Muse in the flesh, and she’s being hunted down by Father Frollo, assisted by his “monster” Quasimodo, the Hunchback of Hugo’s title. When Chancez creates a diversion, Esmeralda escapes, but so do Frollo and Quasimodo.
After the collision of Poet, Muse, and the Predators, Chancez is literally pulled out of the trash heap by Moon Dog, a blind street Prophet and guardian of Esmeralda. Moon Dog puts Chancez on trial in the Court of Miracles, pushing the poet to engage in his fate—not write about it, not protest about what others are doing, but live his hero’s journey. “Be here now.” The Prophet gives him one last opportunity to prove his humanity, to prove he is at least a pickpocket. When he fails at this basic and basest of occupations, the Prophet pronounces a sentence of death by hanging, which I take to mean the death of the trash heap of his ego—an absolute necessity if he is to have a fighting chance against the Predators in the future. As the noose tightens, Esmeralda, his Muse, miraculously appears, and performs a belly (rebirth) dance and agrees to take Chancez for her husband for four years.
Though Chancez is ecstatic about his escape from death into the arms of his Muse, he soon learns he is fated to be her husband in name only. She introduces him to her Dragonflies, orphans whom she has rescued from the streets. Esmeralda keeps Chancez at a distance physically, while urging him to forge his poetry anew in defense of the oppressed. She leaves him in the courtyard of her refuge asking himself: “Have you saved my life to break my heart?”
This is a story that interlaces the archetypes of dreams with earthbound street people, not unlike the phantasmagoria found in the pages of Victor Hugo’s “Hunchback of Notre Dame.” The making of “Refuge” was very nearly a waking dream, in which I encountered obstacles; made deals with tricksters; shed light on shadow figures inside and out. The film is an attempt to perfectly match universal aspects of the psyche—The Poet, The Muse, The Prophet, The Twisted High Priest [or Predator Mind], and The Monster with the dirt-under-the-fingernails humans called Chancez, Esmeralda, Moon Dog, Frollo, and Quasimodo.
Impossibly, ephemeral and iridescent Dragonflies hold the whole thing together, like a fairytale.
Hounded by depression, rage, and survival guilt, the street poet Chancez wills himself into states of exhaustion and ecstasy, building a refuge with words—poetry in defense of civil and human liberty. He offers his poetry as shelter to every stripe of human creativity in every color he imagines might hear or read it. But who’s listening to an unknown Poet who lives in an industrial dumpster?
Heaven sees him struggle with his well-intentioned delusion, takes mercy, and hurls a messenger at him. The messenger is the message—Esmeralda, a “celestial street dancer,” the Poet’s Muse in the flesh, and she’s being hunted down by Father Frollo, assisted by his “monster” Quasimodo, the Hunchback of Hugo’s title. When Chancez creates a diversion, Esmeralda escapes, but so do Frollo and Quasimodo.
After the collision of Poet, Muse, and the Predators, Chancez is literally pulled out of the trash heap by Moon Dog, a blind street Prophet and guardian of Esmeralda. Moon Dog puts Chancez on trial in the Court of Miracles, pushing the poet to engage in his fate—not write about it, not protest about what others are doing, but live his hero’s journey. “Be here now.” The Prophet gives him one last opportunity to prove his humanity, to prove he is at least a pickpocket. When he fails at this basic and basest of occupations, the Prophet pronounces a sentence of death by hanging, which I take to mean the death of the trash heap of his ego—an absolute necessity if he is to have a fighting chance against the Predators in the future. As the noose tightens, Esmeralda, his Muse, miraculously appears, and performs a belly (rebirth) dance and agrees to take Chancez for her husband for four years.
Though Chancez is ecstatic about his escape from death into the arms of his Muse, he soon learns he is fated to be her husband in name only. She introduces him to her Dragonflies, orphans whom she has rescued from the streets. Esmeralda keeps Chancez at a distance physically, while urging him to forge his poetry anew in defense of the oppressed. She leaves him in the courtyard of her refuge asking himself: “Have you saved my life to break my heart?”
This is a story that interlaces the archetypes of dreams with earthbound street people, not unlike the phantasmagoria found in the pages of Victor Hugo’s “Hunchback of Notre Dame.” The making of “Refuge” was very nearly a waking dream, in which I encountered obstacles; made deals with tricksters; shed light on shadow figures inside and out. The film is an attempt to perfectly match universal aspects of the psyche—The Poet, The Muse, The Prophet, The Twisted High Priest [or Predator Mind], and The Monster with the dirt-under-the-fingernails humans called Chancez, Esmeralda, Moon Dog, Frollo, and Quasimodo.
Impossibly, ephemeral and iridescent Dragonflies hold the whole thing together, like a fairytale.
Friday, December 18, 2009
Friday, November 27, 2009
"Refuge" Wins Two More Awards
CHICAGO – The Indie Fest (), an international film festival, recently announced winners, recognizing film professionals who demonstrate exceptional achievement in craft and creativity, and those who produce standout entertainment or contribute to profound social change. Michael O’Rourke’s first short film “Refuge of Dragonflies” received two Awards of Merit. O’Rourke was recognized for his screenplay adaptation, and John Mazzei for his original score.
Based on characters in Victor Hugo’s “Hunchback of Notre Dame.” O’Rourke’s contemporary adaptation features an international cast and crew from 11 countries filmed on location in West Palm Beach. The film uses striking images and evocative scoring to tell the centuries-old story of the struggle between innocence and corruption, creativity and destruction, love and obsession.
“In winning these Indies, ‘Refuge of Dragonflies’ joins the ranks of high-profile winners of an internationally respected award,” says Thomas Baker, Ph.D., who chairs The Indie Fest. “Our goal is to help winners achieve the recognition they deserve.”
O’Rourke, executive producer for Shadow FX Films, earned a Master’s at the University of Wyoming, worked 7 seasons at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, and co-founded Actors’ Theatre (Ashland/Talent, OR) in 1982, where he served 13 years as producing artistic director. He now freelances in Chicago, and works as grant writer for the Midwest Independent Film Festival (). He has written 13 produced plays and the award-winning screenplay “In the Land Where Acorns Dance.”
He wrote, directed, and edited “Refuge” while attending Palm Beach Film School in West Palm Beach, Florida last year (See ). Earlier this year O’Rourke won The Accolade Award of Merit for direction of his film. (See ) MovieMaker Magazine includes The Accolade among the Top 25 Film Festivals “Worth The Entry Fee.”
Mazzei has composed for film, TV, and theater and has traveled the world as an improvising accompanist for spiritual and inspirational gatherings. He first worked with O’Rourke at Actors’ Theatre as music director and accompanist for Leona Mitchell’s “Tribute to Judy Garland,” which premiered at Oregon Cabaret Theatre in 1990. “That show was a highlight for me. It taught me the value of collaboration with artists of other disciplines,” Mazzei says.
O’Rourke turned to Mazzei, now a composer for Harpo Productions, to write the original score for “Refuge.” “Michael always said ‘tell the story,’ and that has stuck with me,” Mazzei comments. “I was happy to work with him again to be able to help tell the story of our first film collaboration.” Mazzei recently completed the score for the independent feature “Meipporul,” which opened in May concurrently in the US and India. His piece “Summer Memories” was placed in episodes 1-10 of HBO’s “True Blood.” His music can be heard at .
“When we received news about the The Indie Fest awards,” O’Rourke says, “John and I were thrilled and a bit overwhelmed to be honored in the company of such amazing filmmakers from around the world.” Winning films came from Italy, Spain, France, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Spain, Brazil, Denmark, Italy, Peru, and the United States.
“Speaking of Brazil,” O’Rourke continues, “it was our great good fortune that Vilmar Borges, my film classmate and a Brazilian, agreed to be the director of photography on the project.”
“Michael and I met at film school,” Borges says in a very strong Portuguese accent, “and I remember on the first day of school we had to introduce ourselves, and this guy sitting at the back of the class—a slow talking kinda guy—telling about him and his ideas and so on and so forth. And I thought to myself, ‘Man, I think this guy eats books for breakfast.’ When we got deep into the course, I got to know Michael better, he saw my passion for cameras, and we became friends. He came to me and ask me if I wanted to be his DP, and I was very happy to accept. We did an awesome job.”
For information and photos about “Refuge,” visit , or the IMDb title page at . O’Rourke can be contacted at (773) 279-9043.
Based on characters in Victor Hugo’s “Hunchback of Notre Dame.” O’Rourke’s contemporary adaptation features an international cast and crew from 11 countries filmed on location in West Palm Beach. The film uses striking images and evocative scoring to tell the centuries-old story of the struggle between innocence and corruption, creativity and destruction, love and obsession.
“In winning these Indies, ‘Refuge of Dragonflies’ joins the ranks of high-profile winners of an internationally respected award,” says Thomas Baker, Ph.D., who chairs The Indie Fest. “Our goal is to help winners achieve the recognition they deserve.”
O’Rourke, executive producer for Shadow FX Films, earned a Master’s at the University of Wyoming, worked 7 seasons at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, and co-founded Actors’ Theatre (Ashland/Talent, OR) in 1982, where he served 13 years as producing artistic director. He now freelances in Chicago, and works as grant writer for the Midwest Independent Film Festival (). He has written 13 produced plays and the award-winning screenplay “In the Land Where Acorns Dance.”
He wrote, directed, and edited “Refuge” while attending Palm Beach Film School in West Palm Beach, Florida last year (See ). Earlier this year O’Rourke won The Accolade Award of Merit for direction of his film. (See ) MovieMaker Magazine includes The Accolade among the Top 25 Film Festivals “Worth The Entry Fee.”
Mazzei has composed for film, TV, and theater and has traveled the world as an improvising accompanist for spiritual and inspirational gatherings. He first worked with O’Rourke at Actors’ Theatre as music director and accompanist for Leona Mitchell’s “Tribute to Judy Garland,” which premiered at Oregon Cabaret Theatre in 1990. “That show was a highlight for me. It taught me the value of collaboration with artists of other disciplines,” Mazzei says.
O’Rourke turned to Mazzei, now a composer for Harpo Productions, to write the original score for “Refuge.” “Michael always said ‘tell the story,’ and that has stuck with me,” Mazzei comments. “I was happy to work with him again to be able to help tell the story of our first film collaboration.” Mazzei recently completed the score for the independent feature “Meipporul,” which opened in May concurrently in the US and India. His piece “Summer Memories” was placed in episodes 1-10 of HBO’s “True Blood.” His music can be heard at .
“When we received news about the The Indie Fest awards,” O’Rourke says, “John and I were thrilled and a bit overwhelmed to be honored in the company of such amazing filmmakers from around the world.” Winning films came from Italy, Spain, France, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Spain, Brazil, Denmark, Italy, Peru, and the United States.
“Speaking of Brazil,” O’Rourke continues, “it was our great good fortune that Vilmar Borges, my film classmate and a Brazilian, agreed to be the director of photography on the project.”
“Michael and I met at film school,” Borges says in a very strong Portuguese accent, “and I remember on the first day of school we had to introduce ourselves, and this guy sitting at the back of the class—a slow talking kinda guy—telling about him and his ideas and so on and so forth. And I thought to myself, ‘Man, I think this guy eats books for breakfast.’ When we got deep into the course, I got to know Michael better, he saw my passion for cameras, and we became friends. He came to me and ask me if I wanted to be his DP, and I was very happy to accept. We did an awesome job.”
For information and photos about “Refuge,” visit , or the IMDb title page at . O’Rourke can be contacted at (773) 279-9043.
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