El Dorado Film Festival announces 2024 lineup
by January 10, 2024 10:07 am 669 views
The El Dorado Film Festival announced its 2024 line-up for this year’s event taking place on Feb. 8-11, 2024, at the South Arkansas Arts Center in El Dorado. This year’s festival includes films starring Jon Heder (Napoleon Dynamite), Billy Zane (Titanic) and Anthony Rapp (RENT).
“The El Dorado Film Festival has spawned so many great conversations, collaborations and relationships in previous iterations,” said Executive Director Alexander Jeffery. “We are thrilled to bring this event back to South Arkansas after a three-year hiatus. What’s wonderful about these films is they are all created by truly independent filmmakers who had to get incredibly creative to get their work made and seen. No big studios, no big theatrical releases, you as the audience get to discover these gems and help the filmmakers spread the word about their achievement.”
The lineup includes a special presentation feature film, Tapawingo, directed by Dylan Narang. It stars Heder, Zane, and Gina Gershon. The film is the story of an oddball who becomes the bodyguard for a misfit teenager and finds himself in the crosshairs of the town’s family of bullies.
Shudderbugs, directed by Johanna Putnam, will be shown for the first time in Arkansas. In the film, a woman unravels in the wake of her mother’s mysterious death, following her suspicions to dangerous ends. Shudderbugs has been widely recognized across the film festival circuit with over 16 awards and nominations.
The feature film Scrap, directed by Vivian Kerr will also be shown. The El Dorado Film Festival originally screened the short film of Scrap in 2019 and now Kerr is back with the feature film. Directed by Kerr, Scrap stars Anthony Rapp from the Broadway sensation RENT.
The festival is also connecting with filmmakers south of the state line with a block of seven films from the Louisiana Film Prize Founders Circle. These films are: “The Candy Lady” (winner), “The Capitalist,” “Clownfish” (directed by Smackover native Clayton Henderson), “Caught on Tape” (co-directed by Alexander Jeffery), “Dead Flesh,” “Off-Sides” and “Pink Suit, Black Suit.”
Tamra Corley Davis, chair of the film committee, believes a cross-borders partnership is a fantastic way to grow the film industry regionally.
“Beyond being excited to be a part of bringing back the El Dorado Film Festival, I am proud that we are able to partner with the Louisiana Film Prize to bring some of the 2023 award winning Prize films,” she said. “Over the years, I have realized the film community is really small like a family. And no doubt over the weekend in February at the El Dorado Film Festival, new friendships will be made and collaborations formed that you will see for years to come at future festivals like ours and the Prize.”