24th annual Black Bear Film Festival enjoys a ‘beary’ successful weekend

Last weekend, about 200 guests came out to The Black Bear Film Festival, which ran from Oct. 13 through 15. This high energy celebration was like a non-stop party from the opening night red carpet reception in the tent across from the Milford Theater to the after party on Saturday night at Forest Hall Studios, where people could let loose and dance the night away with a local DJ, endless canapes, and drinks provided by the Milford Hospitality Group.

“We had tons of fun,” said Max Brinson, festival president.

Brinson added, “This is the most successful festival that we have had in my memory in terms of popularity of the films and the satisfaction of our audience. They were so happy with what we were doing. They loved the films, they loved the food, and they loved the after party.”

There were more dramatic films this year than previously, and even one of the documentaries evoked emotional responses. The opening night film, “Sympathy for Delicious,” based on a true story of a DJ motorcyclist who ended up being paralyzed after an accident, was raw and gritty at times. We see him slowly processing his circumstances as he turns to the world of healing.

What made this even more gripping was that Christopher Thornton, who wrote the film and acted in it, was there on stage, in his wheelchair, answering questions from the audience.

This film was directed by Mark Ruffalo, who also stared in it, along with Thornton, Laura Linney, Juliette Lewis, and Orlando Bloom.

Another film that showed some grit and the seamy side of the East Village was “Make Me Famous,” depicting the art scene in the 1980s and the sometimes gut-wrenching journey of Edward Brezinski as he becomes hell bent on his quest for fame. A Q&A with director Brian Vincent and producer Heather Spore followed the screening.

“Lakota Nation vs. United States,” another documentary that pulled on our heartstrings, showed the Lakota people’s struggle as they fight to keep control of the Black Hills, their homeland, and how the U.S. has reneged on treaty after treaty with them. We see the U.S. taking children out of their homes and away from their families and putting them into boarding schools, trying to punish them for using their native language and forcing them to use Anglo names.

Jennifer Grambs, a former reporter who is quite familiar with the Lakota Sioux said, “The film showed wonderful insight into a world that is hard for the average person to understand — children being kidnapped and sent away, but look what is happening in our world today.”

On a somewhat lighter note, Shira Levin wrote and directed a fascinating documentary called “Forty Years in a Box,” exploring the journey of time, aging, and self-acceptance. She did engaging interviews with a variety of women, asking questions that many of the women (and possibly men) have asked themselves about growing older. There was a lot of headshaking in agreement in the audience. John DiLeo did the Q&A with Levin.

There was a lot of action in the tent. Of course, there was the silent auction of goods and special events and the auction of the hand-painted bears. One bear that stood out from the rest was the “Daveisms Bear,” submitted by Tamara Chant. She had handwritten various sayings that her father, the late Davis R. Chant, was known for, such as, “Do not waste a minute on what did not work yesterday,” and ,“Another beautiful day in the Poconos.” This was particularly poignant since the entire festival was dedicated to the memory of this pillar of the community. Chant was also one of the festival’s founders.

Barbara McNamara, festival vice president, remarked on how well things went. “We showed some really terrific films, and many of the filmmakers showed up. The best thing was the community getting together and loving this little theater that we have here, the comradery, and showing love for film.”

Alan Kaplan, himself a photographer and producer, who has watched the film festival from the beginning, said, “Black Bear has definitely changed. It has become more mature, more intelligent. The level of film has definitely gone up, the level of the audience has gone up. Black Bear has become a specific identity and has become an important creative force.”