Editor

As part of its global tour, RESFEST 2004 touched down in Los Angeles October 13-17, showcasing its biggest festival ever at the Egyptian Theatre.
RESFEST 2004, a traveling film festival showcasing the world’s most innovative shorts and music videos, this year includes the work of more than twenty Los Angeles-based filmmakers as RES continues to make Los Angeles its second home.

“Los Angeles has always been one of the top cities for RESFEST because it is home to so many innovative artists, designers and filmmakers.” said Jonathan Wells, RESFEST Festival Director and new L.A. resident. “With our new monthly screening series leading up to this year’s five-day festival in October, it promises to be our biggest and best yet. Our program offerings go beyond the screen with Studio Tours, immersive lounge environments and this year for the first time, a Meet the Filmmakers BBQ.”

RESFEST programmers received over 1,500 short film submissions and traveled the world to curate a wide array of programs, including: a retrospective of the works of director Jonathan Glazer (celebrated filmmaker responsible the feature film Sexy Beast, the forthcoming Birth starring Nicole Kidman, award-winning commercials such as Guinness “Surfer” and groundbreaking music videos for UNKLE, Radiohead and Jamiroquai); a program of rare works from acclaimed UK animation collective Shynola, which continues to bring home awards such as the 2003 MTV Award for Best Effects, 2003 CAD Best Director Award and the 2004 D&AD Best Director Award for their work for artists such as Blur, The Rapture, Queens of the Stone Age and Radiohead; three collections of international short films; Bushwhacked!, a program of politically oriented shorts; By Design, a showcase of experimental design films; and three music video programs (Cinema Electronica, Videos that Rock, and Warp Vision, a celebration of 15 years of videos from the renowned electronic label Warp Records).

Among the selected films are several projects by Los Angeles filmmakers, highlighting the diversity of talents in the city:

… Oedipus, an animation by Jason Wishnow, re-tells Sophocles’ tragic tale, but with a cast of vegetables.

… Pol Pot’s Birthday, by Talmage Cooley, is a dark, satiric comedy set after the fall of Phnom Penh, during the Khmer Rouge’s long retreat toward Thailand. The action concerns the dictator’s office staff as they plot to throw a surprise party for their boss. And you’ll never guess what they got him!

… “Needy Girl,” is a music video for a Chromeo track and features a dazzling kaleidoscopic dance sequence; it was directed by the young design collective Tomorrow’s Brightest Minds.

… “Rocket Ride,” a music video for Felix Da Housecat, was directed by Logan, a design/directorial studio featured many times at RESFEST.

After last year’s sell-out success, RESFEST will also conduct studio tours in Los Angeles, visiting the studios and workspaces of top designers, filmmakers and graphics artists, offering an insider’s glimpse into the working methods and spatial arrangements of the festival’s contributors. The Los Angeles tours will include stops at Stardust, Exopolis, Oceanmonsters, Brand New School, The Directors Bureau and many more.

For more information visit: www.resfest.com.
Festival reporter Craig Parish