ARTS Tuesday, March 10, 1987 The Michigan Daily Page 5 The 16mm Festival goes for the silver By John Shea The Ann Arbor Film Festival, a festival with as rich a past as promising a future, kicks-off its silver anniversary run at the Michigan Theatre today. What started as a forum to exhibit the work of local filmmakers back in 1963 has grown into the oldest and most prestigious 16mm festival in North Am - erca. Promising young filmmakers from across the country point to, Ann Arbor as the place to best display their talents. This year, over 250 entries have been submitted for the festival's 25tH 'run, and festival director Annette Wilson, along with a five-member screening committee, will view them all before choosing the 80-100 films that will be shown during the week. There are 30 hours of programming, running from today through Sunday, when the winning films of the festival will be shown. Part of the appeal of the Ann Arbor. Film Festival is that whatever you're looking for - whether it be animation or narrative, docu- mentary or abstract - you're sure to find it. Three, two hour shows are scheduled daily, with a variety of genres offered. Go to any one show this week, and among the films you might see there are: I Dare Ya, a five minute narrative by Rik Joel Cirter of Paramount, California. Two young girls dare a boy to walk up to a weather-beaten "haunted house" and ring the doorbell. The boy is reluctant, as most young boys are, but after his manhood is called into question, he makes the trip up to the house. I became more suspicious than frightened in watching I Dare Ya, as it seemed to be a long advertisement for Nike, Guess and Sony instead of a scary short. Except fo'r the twist ending, there's nothing exceptional here; it's simple filmmaking on an elementary level. Solitarire's Sanctuary is an excellent animation piece by Karen Kiser of San Francisco. The focus of the six-minute film is on a bird, who, with every step he takes, draws a line which defines his very bound- aries. Realizing he's drawing himself into a box, he attempts to escape by poking his head out of the box and into the real world, where he's persecuted by both man and animals. Kiser's use of stark lines and the contrast between the quiet "sanctuary" which the bird ultimately becomes content with and the real world from which he's escaping is stunning. One thing that has changed since 1963 is the broadening field of international filmh nakers...Entries have been received from Germany, New Zealand, Italy and Ethiopia, just to name a few. The Water Sluice Valve for the Spraying of the Ball Tank is in the Heat Center. It's as confusing as it sounds. Part animation, part abstract, this silent short is from Switzerland's Sebastian Dellers. A piece of clay undergoes one metamorphosis after another, changing at a rapid pace; the imagery is incredible. But for all the furious activity on the screen, there's no music to match it; it's like watching a Peter Gabriel video with the volume turned off. And that's not bad for three minutes; the problem with this film is that it's twelve. While animation, narrative and abstract films are well-represented, the genre whose presence is most felt this year is the documentary; the reason being as much economic (documentaries are cheaper to make because of the natural sets) as artistic. The International Sweethearts of Rhythm tells the story of an predominately black, all-female band in the 1940s, transcending the social restrictions of race and gender through their music. It is a compelling and ultimately triumphant film because directors Andrea Weiss and Greta Schiller refuse to let Sweethearts be - come a sweeping social commentary. Instead, they focus on the tight bonds between the band members and what it meant to the members to belong to such a special group. Sweethearts is documentary at its best. Three renowed filmmakers will judge the competition; those films judged the best will be shown on "Winner's Night," on Sunday. This year's judges are Karloa Gramann, Europe's foremost experi - mental filmmaker; Herby Smith, a filmmaker and director from Kentucky; and Dean Snider, the cofounder of No Nothing Cinema in San Francisco. They will award $5000 in prize money, including the $1000 Berman Award for the "Most Promising Filmmaker in the Festival." One thing that has changed since 1963 is the broadening of the field to international filmmakers; no longer does the festival have a strictly North American flavor. Entries have been received from Ger - many, New Zealand, Italy and Ethiopia, just to name a few. A special program on experimental cinema in Germany, hosted by festival judge Gramann, will be shown on Friday at 3 p.m., with a discussion afterwards. The showing is free. Other special showings during the festival week include a look at judge Dean Snider's seven most recent 35mm films, which takes place on Wednesday at 2 p.m. Also, there will be performances by the dance group, La!, on Friday at 7 p.m. and Mr. B, the well-known keyboard player, on Saturday at 9 p.m. Screenings are at 7, 9, and 11 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and at 1, 7 and 9 p.m. on Saturday, with the winners being shown Sunday at 7, 9 and 11 p.m. All showings are at the Michigan Theatre. The beauty of the Ann Arbor Film Festival lies in that, while it is evolving into an international festival, with more blacks and women entering films, it at the same time remains a local event. Most of the $5000 in prize money has been donated by Ann Arbor businesses and private contributions while those who work for the festival volunteer their time. The Ann Arbor Film Festival, is, in short, a community celebration of the art of film presented by those who love it for those who love it. Books - Toll Call Stephen Greenleaf Villard Books $16.95; 311 pages A perverted phone caller has threatenend secretary Peggy Nettleton into revealing her most intimate secrets in a two month long late-night session of probing calls. Psychplogically epslavEd by her tormentor and emotionally drained, Peggy collapses at work and her boss gets on her case - literally, since her boss is John Marshall Tanner, private eye. But will the working relationship that Nettleton and Tanner have built up over eight years survive the things they learn about each other as Tanner tries to solve the mystery? Does Peggy really want the mystery solved? While Tanner works on this * close-to-the-heart job, he learns a thing or two about himself, as well as about some of Peggy less-than- savory neighbors. He uncovers a kidnapping that looks more like a child pornography session, and visits the disgusting lair of a petty sex offender who soon turns murderer. But still the caller proves hard to trace - until Peggy strips for him late at night in a deserted r playground. The best surprises come from Tanner's colleague Ruthie Spring, a Texan, born and bred, with a crass sense of humor and a streak of * .810S. State - 747-SPOT Q747-7769 1N41 . S F C>) ^°'* S FREE DELIVERY. PHILADELPHIA STYLE STEAK SAND 7WICHES TIRED OF PIZZA? Why Not: WING IT ~with our1 - ORIGINAL BUFFALO CHICKEN WINGS Hot or Mild Sauce All wings come with side order of blue cheese dressing and celery sticksU 1 Free Pepsi U With Order of 2 Dozen Chicken Wings * Please call in advance for Buckets of Wings $5.00 Minimum for Delivery Expires 3/20/87 I s.. honesty a mile-wide. Toll Call is the latest in Greenleaf's Tanner mystery series. Greenleaf has already been ranked up there with Hammett, Chandler, and MacDonald for his stylistic rendering of a San Francisco private eye. However, Greenleaf rises above the others with his command of the comnonents that make the best- detective stories - sex and violence, intelligent plots, and wit and cynicism. This is by far Greenleaf's best Tanner mystery, so drop that quarter into a payphone and make a toll call to the nearest book store to reserve your copy. - Rebecca Cox MACTRUCK BUYERS- YOUR SOFTWARE IS HERE! _ . 7' 70 \4ORD 3.0 i Fgo 000 A] I.. EUEU=UUEEEEE UE U EU EUUI~ CR , -41 r ATTENTION ENGINEERING UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS 1987 Landes Prie Announcement F Undergraduate students currently registered in the Engineering College are eligible to compete for the George M. Landes Prize ($800). This is an award presented annually to an undergraduate student who demonstrates excellence of both technical work and the presentation of that work in written or graphic form. The prize is presented in memory of George M. Landes, a 1977 graduate of the Mechanical Engineering Department and a Ford Motor Company engineer who was killed in an automobile accident in 1981. To enter, a student must submit a single piece of technical work. This presentation -- written, graphic, or some combination of communication media -- can be a technical article, a design report, a piece of technical journalism, or any other presentation of technical work. Submissions will be evaluated for L. aL F-: t i - 11 TI-i c,'. cii1A hp of nrifPcinna Li . LW 0 11 WHEN: WHERE: WHAT TO BRING: Exchange on March or March version 1.05 of Microsoft Word 10-11am to 7pm 11-9am to 5pm for version 3.0 The Michigan Room, Second Floor, Michigan League. Bring the manual for Microsoft Word, version 1.05, system and backup disks for version 1.05 (2 disks!), and the Redemption Coupon (letter) from Microsoft that you received at the sale. Or, if you've lost the Redemption Coupon: bring your Mactruck Computer Weekend Sales Receipt (golden form), your University ID and your Driver's License (or other picture ID)-in addition to the manual and disks. I v