Mode of Program Participation
Performances and Arts
Participation Type
Performance
Session Title
New Appalachian Filmmakers
Session Abstract or Summary
New Appalachian Filmmakers
In this performance session, convener Walter Squire will describe the works of young Appalachian filmmakers, primarily from the Huntington, West Virginia area, prior to a screening of short films by Huntington, West Virginia, filmmaker Ian Nolte, who will supplement his work with additional shorts from other Huntington area video artists. Huntington, West Virginia, has a dynamic zero-budget filmmaking community, and the work of the artists that make up that community is as diverse as Appalachia itself. Being on the edge of Appalachia, Huntington inhabits a liminal space, and its filmmakers frequently cross borders between presenting identifiable Appalachian concerns, culture, geography, and identities, and looking beyond Appalachia for audiences, content, influences, and opportunities. However much these filmmakers sometimes stray, though, Appalachian spaces consistently return in various ways in their work. This session will educate attendees on the innovative creative video work being done within just a small portion of Appalachia, promote dialogue regarding the diversity of Appalachia, including the diversity of Appalachian identities and means by which Appalachia is experienced, and, hopefully, inspire attendees to create their own or at least support zero/low-budget filmmaking. This performance session will feature, among others, short works by Ian Nolte, a Cabell County, West Virginia filmmaker; Crystal Good, an Affrilachian poet from Charleston, West Virginia; and Nate Cesco, a Huntington comedy writer and sketch performer. (Permission to screen each work has been obtained by convener Walter Squire or presenter Ian Nolte.)
Frameworks/Topics: Arts and Art History; Media; Place, Space, and Regional Studies
Presentation #1 Title
New Appalachian Filmmakers
Presentation #1 Abstract or Summary
Huntington, West Virginia, has a dynamic zero-budget filmmaking community, and the work of the artists that make up that community is as diverse as Appalachia itself. Being on the edge of Appalachia, Huntington inhabits a liminal space, and its filmmakers frequently cross borders between presenting identifiable Appalachian concerns, culture, geography, and identities, and looking beyond Appalachia for audiences, content, influences, and opportunities. However much these filmmakers sometimes stray, though, Appalachian spaces consistently return in various ways in their work. This session will educate attendees on the innovative creative video work being done within just a small portion of Appalachia, promote dialogue regarding the diversity of Appalachia, including the diversity of Appalachian identities and means by which Appalachia is experienced, and, hopefully, inspire attendees to create their own or at least support zero/low-budget filmmaking.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #1
Walter Squire is an Assistant Professor of English and Director of the Film Studies Program at Marshall University. His publications include articles on Disney adaptations, Nathaniel Hawthorne and American mad scientist films, the savior narrative in classroom dramas, and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.
Presentation #2 Title
Selected Short Films by Video Artists from the Greater Huntington, West Virginia, Area
Presentation #2 Abstract or Summary
Huntington, West Virginia, filmmaker Ian Nolte, screen some his of short films and will supplement his work with additional shorts from other Huntington area video artists. Among others, short works screened will be by Crystal Good, an Affrilachian poet from Charleston, West Virginia; Nate Cesco, a Huntington comedy writer and sketch performer; and David Smith, a filmmaker who specializes in neurotic romantic comedies. (Permission to screen each work has been obtained by convener Walter Squire or presenter Ian Nolte.)
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #2
Ian Nolte lives in Huntington, West Virginia where he teaches at Marshall University. Ian is a passionate zero-budget filmmaker. His film Trace Around Your Heart won Best of Fest at the 2013 Colony Film Festival. Ian was most recently nominated for the Impact Award for work that had an effect on “the culture of film and media creation within the state” at the 2016 West Virginia FILMmakers Festival.
New Appalachian Filmmakers
Huntington, West Virginia, has a dynamic zero-budget filmmaking community, and the work of the artists that make up that community is as diverse as Appalachia itself. Being on the edge of Appalachia, Huntington inhabits a liminal space, and its filmmakers frequently cross borders between presenting identifiable Appalachian concerns, culture, geography, and identities, and looking beyond Appalachia for audiences, content, influences, and opportunities. However much these filmmakers sometimes stray, though, Appalachian spaces consistently return in various ways in their work. This session will educate attendees on the innovative creative video work being done within just a small portion of Appalachia, promote dialogue regarding the diversity of Appalachia, including the diversity of Appalachian identities and means by which Appalachia is experienced, and, hopefully, inspire attendees to create their own or at least support zero/low-budget filmmaking.
