THE 18th ANNUAL DAM SHORT FILM FESTIVAL RETURNS FEB. 10 IN VIRTUAL FORMAT

The Dam Short Film Society is proudly keeping the 18th Annual Dam Short Film Festival online as a virtual event. Offering all the great qualities of past festivals – including excellent and diverse programming, filmmaker Q&As, and scheduled virtual events that give audiences and filmmakers the opportunity to mix, mingle and learn about these original stories from around the world – the 2022 Festival remains COVID-friendly and more accessible than ever before. The festival runs Feb. 10-14.

“We received so much positive feedback on the virtual experience last year and are excited to be able to stay true to our mission of making original, unusual and entertaining short films available to the general public for our 18th Annual Festival,” said Lee Lanier, Dam Short Film Festival Co-Founder and Director of Continuity. “The virtual aspect allows viewers to watch at their leisure, from anywhere in the U.S. at any time of the day or night. We love presenting the festival in person in Boulder City, but the virtual platform allows us to keep everyone safe while the pandemic lingers. We plan to return to the Boulder Theatre in 2023.”

Powered by Eventive, the Dam Short Film Festival’s virtual experience will offer viewers an on-demand screening experience, with tickets sold for entire households to enjoy rather than per person, like in years past. All-access household passes to the entire Festival, as well as household tickets to individual program blocks will be available. A full lineup of live-streaming events will be announced soon. For more information, visit damshortfilm.org.

The Dam Short Film Festival ranks in the top 1% of more than 12,000 film festivals and contests worldwide, as per FilmFreeway – the premier platform for festivals and filmmakers. The Las Vegas Review-Journal named the Festival Best of Las Vegas 2020 Bronze in the category of Best Arts & Culture Event. Throughout its 18 years, Dam Short Film Festival has screened more than 2,500 films – giving local, state, national, and international filmmakers a platform to showcase their films, and audiences access to these unique and original stories. Dam Short Film Festival is supported, in part, by the Nevada Arts Council, a state agency, which receives support from the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency, and the state of Nevada. Funding to support this organization has been provided by Nevada Humanities through Congress and the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Dam Short Film Festival, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, was founded in 2003 by Lee and Anita Lanier. The pair developed a love of short films while traveling to numerous film festivals in the U.S., Canada, and Europe. Lee worked in film production and computer animation since 1989 and directed a half-dozen short films. In 2008, the festival moved to the historic Boulder Theatre. John LaBonney served as festival director from 2012 to 2019, expanding the scope of the event and reaching sell-out crowds. Today, the Dam Short Film Festival has become a traditional Southern Nevada cultural event that attracts thousands of visitors to Boulder City each February. The festival has welcomed scores of filmmakers from all over the world and has screened several thousand unique independent short films during its history. For more information visit damshortfilm.org; like on Facebook @damshortfilm; and follow on Twitter @damshortfilm and Instagram @damshortfilm.

Las Vegas Queer Arts Film Festival returns featuring powerful stories.

By Josh Bell

After two years as a promising new local film festival, the Las Vegas Queer Arts Film Festival took 2020 off, and it briefly looked like it might be one more casualty of the pandemic. But LVQAFF returned this year with a virtual edition, providing a valuable showcase of films by and/or about the LGBTQ+ community. The festival was scaled back a bit, with only one feature film alongside its programs of shorts, and no discussions or Q&A sessions with filmmakers. Still, it was filled with entertaining and ambitious short films, including a spotlight program for local talent, plus dedicated animation and music video programs that festival founder Kris Manzano said he was especially proud to include.

Among the local shorts, my favorite was the tender family drama “Novenario,” by longtime local filmmaker Alberto Triana. “Novenario” follows Adrianna (Amanda Guardado), a Hispanic woman who feels disconnected from her family and her culture, as she travels for her grandfather’s funeral. Triana explores the potential disconnect between immigrants and their American-born children, as Adrianna never learned Spanish growing up and resents her father for denying her what she sees as part of her heritage. She’s also a lesbian, but the movie isn’t about the intolerance of an older generation. Triana handles the conflicts in a low-key, measured way, with realistic character interactions that never tip into melodrama.

Indie rock band Indigo Kidd’s music video “Better Off,” directed by Joel Martinez, was another highlight of the local program. It features a simple story about a woman being dumped and then attempting to show off for her now-ex-girlfriend, but it’s delivered with energy and charm. Martinez showcases local roller skaters, alongside comedian and actor Roberto Raad goofing off in a pink flamingo costume, plus Indigo Kidd’s catchy song.

The animation program was full of amusing and experimental vignettes, although many of them were too short to make much of an impression. The festival’s award winner for best animated short, “DracuDate,” is a cute, colorful story about a nervous vampire on a date with a human, as she’s being pursued by a monster hunter. Director Rhael McGregor employs a bubbly visual style drenched in pink and makes her monsters cuddly and harmless, with a simple metaphor for any aspect of identity that people are afraid will be revealed.

Barbara E. Guertin’s “Love in Transit” is similarly cute, although a bit more grounded and much less pink. It depicts a simple daydream of a woman standing on a subway platform, wondering about the romantic possibilities with someone she spots nearby. Likewise, Josh Boehnke and Jeff Dempsey’s “Laundry Night” uses animation to express its characters’ inner longings, as two shy guys eye each other at a laundromat. Their clothes come to life via stop motion to express what the wearers can’t.

Elsewhere in the festival, award winners “Memoirs of the (Non)Existent Me” (best screenplay) and “Roadkill” (best performance) stood out for their smart, sensitive storytelling and understated style. Thiago Kistenmacker’s “Memoirs of the (Non)Existent Me” looks at the aftermath of the death of a transgender woman as her judgmental father and her supportive friends mourn her in different ways. It celebrates a journey of self-discovery while facing harsh truths, without getting maudlin. Aliza Brugger’s “Roadkill” is a brief but memorable character study about a small-town loner who works as a municipal roadkill collector and emerges from her insular shell when she hooks up with an outgoing visitor stranded in town for the night.

There were plenty of bold avant-garde pieces as well, but the simple stories were the most resonant. LVQAFF has always demonstrated the range of filmmaking from the LGBTQ+ community, and this year’s festival was a welcome return for an event that will hopefully remain a vital part of the local cinematic landscape.

Get on Board with local arts with new Nevada Volunteers portal

Volunteer Connect and Board Connect offer statewide support for NV nonprofits.

There are lots of ways to help your community.

A game-changing tool for the Creative Economy and nonprofit advancement is here -- and it is FREE to all Nevadans!

Local arts do not grow on trees, especially in the Mojave desert. Our Creative Economy is powered by paid professionals, passionate volunteers, and community partnerships. While producers and presenters maintain a brave face as they celebrate reopening, the truth is our Creative Industries are on shaky ground. Arts and Culture are created by people for people, and now they are doing what they can to keep creating after a lot of exhaustion and loss from the pandemic. The arts and culture ecosystem needs everyone's help to #CreateOurRecovery, and thanks to Nevada Volunteers and AmeriCorps, it has never been easier for you to get involved through their Volunteer Connect and Board Connect online portals.

In addition to this new tool, Nevada Volunteers offers grants to nonprofits to establish and strengthen volunteer programs. Check them out here.

You can match your interests to a great volunteer opportunity

Your personal interests are your best guide to finding the volunteer opportunity that is right for you. Use NV Volunteer Connect to see what’s out there. Or try answering these questions:

1. How much time can you spare?

• Project-based volunteering (short-term, intensive focused project)

• Continual volunteering (on-going, regular commitment)

• Event or episodic volunteering (one-day or occasional support)

• Full year AmeriCorps service

2. What would be fun for you? Do you care about a particular issue or a problem in our community? Do you have a particular interest or hobby? Is there something you would like to learn?

3. Who could use your expertise or skills? What interest or skills could you like to share with others?

• Check out skills-based volunteering

• Consider virtual volunteering

4. Do you want to learn something new?

• Our Skills Matrix provides ideas for types of skills you can learn from volunteering

5. Who needs your help?

• See a list of organizations in your area

You can list your nonprofit and volunteer opportunities to a statewide database

1. Complete Your Nonprofit's Profile - Highlight your organization’s mission, vision and goals.

2. Post A Position - Use templates or create your own position description.

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• Set notification preferences for emails to help you stay up to date with candidate suggestions.

4. Nonprofit Dashboard - Use your organization’s customized dashboard to see all candidate types and your communication with them. 5. Fill Your Position - The technology reveals potential candidates and you determine fit and next steps.

You can find and/or become a Board Member for nonprofits across the state

1. Complete Your Board Connect Profile - Highlight your experience, skills, cause interests and board desires.

2. Explore Custom Matches - Review a list of all open opportunities.

3. Search Open Opportunities - Search for nonprofits or specific opportunities by name or filter by causes, skills, location and more.