April 6th

SATURDAY INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM SHOWCASE

The Rose Waldron Firebay | 11:30am Doors

12:00pm Lights

Onjdulea: The Rain Festival (Angola)

In the forgotten heart of the Huíla province in Angola, there exists an ancient people surviving the modern world. A people woven from rituals and stories, their wellspring of culture slowly drying up, struggling to endure in a technological, globalized world. Through the Sacred Ox procession, the Mumuíla initiate the Ondjélua. A tradition upholding culture - and hope - with ancient wisdom, yearning to be shared.

On The Director:

Eurico Pereira
Eurico Pereira is a Director, Marketing and Audiovisuals Project Manager; acting as a dynamic force in the world of communication, particularly in Angola. His role as a project coordinator has been pivotal in shaping impactful communication projects, where he often assumed the role of a film director for social campaigns. This unique experience has granted him a profound understanding of global challenges, with a specific focus on Africa.

1:15PM

Christine’s Wager (US INDIANA)

Christine is counting down the days to graduation so she can escape her demanding family but her plan is sidetracked after her mother’s stroke and some unlikely encounters. As Christine retreats further into herself, her conscience brings her to a breaking point and forces a choice.

Director Biography - Jessica Koloian

Jessica Koloian was born and raised in Plymouth, Michigan. Koloian began performing at a young age by memorizing Bible versus and inspirational monologues, which she would recite in front of her church congregation.

After graduating with her Bachelor of Arts in Theatre, she landed a lead role in Courageous Love (2017). The following year, she was cast as the lead in Thy Neighbor.

Koloian recently completed filming as the lead in the upcoming feature film, Pursuit of Freedom.

Jessica will be playing the lead, Christine Pascal, and will also be making her feature film directorial debut in Christine's Wager.

Director Statement

Writer/Producer's Statement: This film will always be special to me because of a miracle I witnessed after my wife's stroke. That beautiful experience along with the intense pain that proceeded it was the emotional fuel of this screenplay. I built a fictional story around this real life event to reach the heart on the subject of purpose and faith.

3:20pm

PLIGHT (US)

A Ukrainian woman (Valentina) comes to the States to care for her sister after she and her fiancée are victims of a hit and run. Her fiancée's father (Joe) pushes the authorities to find those responsible but faces a dead-end. With nowhere left to turn he decides to take matters into his own hands, enlisting the help of Valentina to bring justice.

Director Biography - MJ Alhabeeb Jr

MJ hails from a long line of artists and began fostering his artistic talents directing and producing at an early age. He was awarded the Junior Filmmaker Award at the age of 17 at the Spaghetti Junction Film Festival in Atlanta, GA. Currently, he is a producer at Quixotic Road which most recently produced the 2017 release, Growing Up Smith with Jason Lee and Hilarie Burton, 2018’s Bayou Caviar with Cuba Gooding Jr and Richard Dreyfuss and 2019’s Crown Vic, with Thomas Jane and Bridget Moynahan. In 2018, MJ co-founded Impavid Entertainment, a production company committed to producing thought provoking and visually striking films which include recently released sci-fi thriller Infrared Dreams, the award winning series Broke Boys and his directorial debut, Plight, which screened at the iconic Grauman’s Chinese Theater in Hollywood and took home the top prizes of Best Narrative Feature, Best Actor and Best Cinematography at the CineWorld Film Festival this past fall. Most recently MJ was awarded Best Director at the Borrego Springs Film Festival.

5:15pm

THE MOTHS (Poland)

A multi-layered poetic survival story. A group of boys aged 8 - 15 who fled gaming camp after the
educators took their computers and cut off Internet has been found after 20 days of search.
During this time, they hadn’t spoke to each other and hid in abandoned places. One of them
was missing. Psychologists found that stress of being cut off from game caused mass hysteria.
This hysteria consists of collective repetition of complex activities without possibility of stopping
until losing one’s strength. The Moths is a combination of musical, documentary and feature
genres . Sampled feminist parable about smartphone civilization . A s tory about how the private
misfortune, shame and hidden lusts can lead through religious sham to a self destruction.
Morality for the moths.

6:30pm

The Way Fish Breathe (South Korea)

Seung-won, who leaves the house and lives in a small theater company because of his dream of becoming an actor as soon as he becomes an adult because he cannot adapt to a remarriage family. While continuing his life as a theater company for a long time, he suddenly hears the news of his father's obituary, who he had not met for seven years, and impulsively leaves the theater company and returns to his biological family's house. One day, half-brother and sister Ga-hyeon suddenly visit Seung-won and propose to return to her stepmother's house because she has to go to Noryangjin to prepare for the civil service exam. Seung-won feels anxious about his dream and family again.

8:00pm

The Founder Effect (Canada)

When a young boy goes missing in the town of Hope, his grandfather must grapple with their family history and navigate mysterious phenomena as he sets out on a quest of conscience to save his grandson from the shadows.

SUMMARY: A perfect family getaway is suddenly upended when a policeman’s grandson disappears. Jack Rooney (Rick Edwards) has already lost a son. He’s not about to lose his grandson, too. Forced to reckon with family history, he sets out to rescue the boy from the shadows… a journey of conscience rippled by the voice of a visiting missing persons expert (Greg Sestero), whose haunting tales of the vanished illuminate the mysterious phenomena that seem to be in Jack’s way. In a town called Hope, can redemption be found?

"Haunting... It will stay with you." — KEVIN BERNHARDT, Screenwriter

"Rick Edwards' performance is a revalation." — TIMON SINGH, Director of Forbidden Worlds Film Festival / BFI FAN Campaigns Manager / Author of 'Born to be Bad'

"A powerful meditation on grief, loss, and familial love... Edwards is devastatingly good in this film." — SARAH BUDDERY, Sarah Saw a Movie / Co-Host of 'Let's Jaws For a Minute' / Features Editor at Looper

"A blend of mystery, drama, and sci-fi that will leave you speechless." — LUSCA Fantastic Film Fest
_______________

Justin MacGregor is a director, cinematographer, and producer, best known for his feature films BEST F(R)IENDS Volumes 1 + 2 — the cinematic reunion of cult legends Tommy Wiseau and Greg Sestero of THE ROOM fame, his first feature film THE GENERATIONS, and his commercial videography and music video work spanning the last decade. Working behind the camera is all he’s ever known. A keen student of cinema, Justin seeks out creative avenues lesser taken, always striving to promulgate new imagery and unexplored perspectives.

Justin grew up in Canada's beautiful Okanagan Valley. He is the co-founder of Roguescots, a commercial videography and narrative film production house, based in Vancouver, Canada, where he now resides.