The Renegade Film Festival Returns, and So Does Sonic Cinema : Sonic Cinema

The Renegade Film Festival Returns, and So Does Sonic Cinema

Posted by Brian Skutle Posted on Mar - 2 - 2022 0 Comment

The 2 1/2 days I spent in downtown Marietta covering the 2020 Women in Horror Film Festival was some of the best times I’ve spent in the midst of genre fans and filmmakers ever, and that includes DragonCon. The atmosphere, the interactions, the creativity were all electric, and helped sustain me when theatres shut down shortly after that, and the COVID pandemic began. I knew I would have to make the trip back to the festival, whenever it returned.

This past year, the film festival rebranded into the Renegade Film Festival, and honestly, that’s the better name. While the majority of the films at the festival were made by women in 2020, or had women at their center, there were films from men, as well, some of which were highlights of the festival. The thing that stood out with those 70+ features and shorts I watched that weekend was the spirit of the creativity, energy, and imagination in the films. They all feel rebellious in one way or another. The filmmakers were not a whole because of what gender they were, but the way they approached their craft.

While I wish I was going to be spending the entire weekend at the festival, the release of a certain Caped Crusader is going to require my attention. That said, I’ll be around for most of the weekend, and I cannot wait to see what comes out of the festival this year.

Thursday, March 3
Thursday morning starts with two short film blocks of new voices- the first featuring films from filmmakers ages 17 and younger (Gen Z, starting at noon), and then some student films (Filmmaking 101 at 1:15pm). At 2:30pm, the first feature of the festival plays in “Take Back the Night”, a psychological horror movie from Gia Elliot that looks interesting. Following that are two more short film blocks (Techno Terror at 4pm and It’s All in Your Head at 5:30pm) before the second feature at 6:45pm, “Souvenirs”, which follows a woman who uncovers her family’s dark past after a mysterious phone call. The night concludes with another short film block at 8:30pm (Global Terror) before an night cap at Red Hare Brewing to round out the day.

Friday, March 4
Based solely on what I know is playing, this was the day I really didn’t want to miss. The day begins at 12pm with a block of experimental short films (I Myself am Strange and Unusual) before following it up with the first feature of the day at 1:30pm with Álvaro García Gutiérrez’s “The Winter Hunger”. At 3:45pm, we get a short film block about trauma, Catharsis, that has the world premiere of Robbie Barnes’s “Scales”; if you’ll recall, she was a filmmaker I got to meet at the 2020 edition, and I cannot wait to see her new film. At 5:45pm, we get what is the event of the fest for me in “Maya”. It’s the second feature film from K/XI, whose “Black Lake” knocked me all the way on my ass in 2020, and was my favorite film of 2020. I’ve already watched the film, and so the world premiere will be my second time seeing it, and I cannot wait to see what the reaction will be. I’ll also be writing about K/XI for In Their Own League, so be on the lookout for that. Following that will be two more short film blocks (Things That Go Bump in the Night at 7:45pm and Let’s Make It a Blockbuster Night at 9:15pm) before another night cap at Red Hare.

Saturday, March 5
Unfortunately, this is the day when my work schedule gets in the way…but only a few hours. I’ll miss the Southern Discomfort short film block at 12pm, as well as the 1:30pm screening of “Wolfman’s Got Nards”, a documentary about the 1987 cult classic “The Monster Squad”. My first screening of the day will be the 3:45pm short film block, Side Splitting, and the final screening of the day will be for the 2020 horror comedy, “Freaky”. The night will round out with the awards ceremony at 9pm before the after party at Red Hare.