Beginning with the traditional shotgun start at 6 a.m. the morning of Saturday, June 12th, the streets of Albuquerque will once again be taken over for several days when film crews fan out across the city to take part in the DigiFest SouthWest (DFSW) movie-making festival.

Seven crews will have three and a half days to shoot their movies in high definition video, another three and a half to edit, and on the seventh night, June 19th, all seven will be screened in a special Premier Night at the Kiva Auditorium.

About 200 New Mexicans will participate in the event as cast and crew. In addition, four New Mexican writers were selected this year to have their scripts shot, a record showing for the state.

High Definition: What Is It and Why Did We Chose it?
DigiFest SouthWest has established a national reputation for not only embracing the latest tools for independent movie making, but anticipating trends as well. In 1999, DFSW embraced the then new medium of digital video (DV) by being the first filmmaking festival to shoot n DV. Today, most independent shorts and features are shot in DV.

This year is no different. In another first, DFSW can now claim to be the only independent filmmaking festival in the world to be filming in high definition (HD) format. This is important for Albuquerque, as the festival serves as a vital link between technology and the filmmaker who would not otherwise access to this level of equipment,

The Movies: New Year, Riskier Fare.
“This is going to be a pivotal year for the festival,” said Anthony DellaFlora, one of the co-founders of the festival. “We are taking huge risks in both technology and with the dramatic material we have chosen to produce.”

“In the past, the festival has tended toward comedies and lighter fare, although it has taken some artistic risks, as with last year’s audience favorite, ‘Babof,’ an experimental film with stunning visuals and no dialogue.”

Scripts are solicited from around the world and seven are chosen for production. The festival provides cast, crew, equipment, transportation, meals, location scouting, production services and everything else needed to make the movies.

The writers contend for the Palm de Grease award, a sculpted wire mesh statuette by artist Randy Cooper, that is Albuquerque’s answer to the Palm D’Or at Cannes.

The winners and log lines:

“Breakout” by Dan Borengasser, Springdale, AK. (479-236-1411 or 479-751-6631) An actor in a prison theater company decides to give a “breakout” performance.

“Cowboys” by Betsy Burke, Silver Lake, CA. (323-660-9522) When two neglected boys embark upon the adventure of being real cowboys, the spirit of the old west protects them, teaches them a few lessons, and makes festive play of their fantasies.

“Drive By” by Nessa Hawkins, Chandler, AZ. (619-823-8625) A young man driving on a deserted road on a dark night glimpses a young woman by the side of the road, He drives by…and then he drives back.

“Marvel and the Delivery Man” by Ryil Adamson, Albuquerque, NM. (265-1148 or 268-4199) A woman who has lived a life without love or hope may have found a man who can give her both.

“Our Lady of Bud’s” by Tim Costello and Richard Boehler, Albuquerque, NM. (256-0088) An apparition of the Virgin Mary appears on the outside wall of a downtown bar and “Bud” has to manage the ensuing curiosity and mayhem.

“Scarlet Momentum” by C. Hawthorne Flaherty, Los Angeles, CA. (310-383-1115) The tragic relationship between a father and daughter set in a mortuary

“Something Red” by Scott Milder (UNM student winner), Albuquerque NM (660-4941)
A family stumbles on a dead body at a deserted gas station. The body, as it turns out, isn’t all that dead after all.