Damah Film Festival
Before May 19th, I had never been to a film festival before. I did not know what to expect, what to wear, who I would talk to, and even where to go! Many of those questions were answered fairly quickly that afternoon. Casual dress, preferrably jeans; Thad attended the first session with me, so I was not entirely on my own; the festival was to take place at Culver Studios and another attendee from the Creative Summit had extra space in his car, so we didn't have to manouever the crazy LA streets!!
But, what to expect? That came as the film reel started to roll...
Damah Film Festival
Spiritual Experiences in Film
(website)
Damah (dù mah’) noun.
Etymology: Hebrew
1. a metaphor that transforms. 2. an art form that starts with a commonly accepted way of looking at the world and adds a surprise or unexpected twist that results in a new perspective that inspires and transforms the viewer. 3. the merging of the known, the unknown and the transcendent. 4. similar to the storytelling form known as the parable.
Around 350 films were submitted to the Damah jury this past year, from there the number was narrowed down to 79. The films were in lengths of 40 seconds all the way to nearly 30 minutes. The first session I attended featured 9 films of all varieties, lengths, and meanings, but all brought to mind questions of spirituality. From journeying with a teenager who has a terminal illness to battling with a young adult who has AIDS, from a middle-aged couple on the verge of divorce to a look at a robot striving to imitate images on television, and even from a quirky take on God's answer to soccer and a dryly humourous obituary writer who has a knack for predicting her next scoop. One of the films had every person in the theatre crying, while another left us literally breathless and saying "no!!" in the end.
After the film showing on Saturday, every person attending the festival gathered at a restaurant for an after-party. It was a delightful time visiting with filmmakers, score coreographers, and people who were there just to see what Damah is all about (like myself!!). On Sunday, I had the chance to catch two other reels, so in total I saw around 27 films. An award show was held on Sunday evening, in which I was able to see a few of my favorites win awards. The Best of Show award was given to "Cabin 6," the film about the middle-aged couple heading to divorce, and also the one that had the whole theatre in tears!
The reason Damah was included in the Creative Summit, is because it is a wonderful representation of how film can affect, move, and leave an imprint on people. It also gave us a glimpse into the lives, thoughts, beliefs, and struggles of the represented filmmakers.
Film in particular is becoming a wonderful medium for teaching people about Christ, so pray for our fellow believers who are in the field of filmmaking...directors, writers, composers etc...they are in an industry that greatly affects our society and our world.
