Since we're less than a month away from the start of Nòt Film Fest, here's a in-depth look at what you'll see this year! We'll keep you informed every week by telling you more about what you can watch and experience at Nòt Film Fest 2021.
We're proud to announce that the festival continues to grow and make room for new voices, to the cry of "Rebel Up!".
This year's festival will offer its audience feature films, short films and events of all kinds.
One of the many purposes of Nòt this year is to provide space and to highlight the topic of disability in film, expand the conversation and promote inclusion.
Are you curious to know more? What are you waiting for? Let's see in detail!
⚡Feeling Through by Doug Roland⚡
At the opening night, August 24th, you can watch Feeling through (executive produced by actress and deaf activist Marlee Matlin, Oscar winner for Children of a Lesser God), a short film that features a deaf-blind man, Robert Tarango, as the main character for the first time.
This short film is part of a new Slamdance programme, "Unstoppable", a showcase for creators with disabilities.
The film is inspired by the director, Doug Roland's, real encounter with a deaf-blind man named Artie (which is the name of the on-screen character) and it tells about the relationship between a homeless teen and the protagonist.
After meeting Robert Tarango while casting for the film, Roland worked with a specialized center (Keller National Center) to properly stage American Sign Language and Print-on-Palm communication.
A real innovation made by the cast and crew that showed that creators with disabilities have to be included in the industry, have to be taken seriously and their experiences have to be told on film through those who live this condition daily.
"There’s before that event and after it, and I’ll never think of experiencing a film the same again", says Roland to Variety, explaining the Feeling Through experience.
The short film is an European premiere, after having been acclaimed at the Slamdance Film Festival in 2021 and having been nominated as Best Live-Action Short Film at Oscars 2021.
If you're interested, you could meet the filmmaker, Doug Roland, in person at the Filmmaker Lounge at Nòt Film Fest 2021, a space where you could talk and connect to creators during the festival.
⚡Check the trailer!⚡
⚡Best Summer Ever by Michael Parks Randa and Lauren Smitelli⚡
On the same night, a feature-length musical will be screened starring Shannon De Vido, a disabled actress, and a fully integrated cast and crew of people with and without disabilities.
The film is part of the teen musical strand (such as Grease and High School Musical). The two main characters meet at a summer campus (Zeno Mountain Farm, a real-life summer campus where people with and without disabilities come into fellowship) and fall in love, only to see each other in high school the following year.
Best Summer Ever takes up the stereotypes of the genre (evil cheerleaders, muscular athletes and a boy with a heart of gold), but accomplishes a revolution for cinematic representation, which rarely gives voice to diversity.
"People are just people", this is the theme of this film. "People all the time tell you, especially as a disabled performer, that you don't fit in this box", says De Vido to USA Today, giving voice to what actors and actresses with disabilities experience in the cinema industry.
Every person must be represented on screen, without being defined by his or her disability.
The creators of Best Summer Ever remind us that disability is not a dramatic and sorrowful condition, using a lot of songs (there are 8 original songs in the movie), dances and a colorful and bright cinematography, making us want to get inside the world portrayed in the film!
The film has been incredibly successful to the point that it's available on selected streaming platforms, such as Amazon Prime Video and recently on Hulu as well.
⚡Check the trailer!⚡
⚡️ See you next week!⚡️