Local Sightings 2023 – ACTION! Stars [In-Person Only]
Discussion
This special screening celebrates the talents of mentors and apprentices alike from Northwest Film Forum’s ACTION! Narrative Apprenticeship Program and gives them a chance to continue getting to know each other and sharing industry tips.
We’ll be watching the 2023 cohort’s new black comedy Babs’s Bouquets (about a flower shop hustling a bereaved husband into becoming their cash cow), alongside a selection of other projects by the mentors. After the show, join us for a conversation about the joys and challenges of being a working filmmaker in Seattle, as mentors reflect on their early years in the industry and give some parting wisdom to apprentices and audience members alike.
Header photo credit: Babs’s Bouquets, dir. Jasira Andrus
Ticketing, concessions, cinemas, restrooms, and our public edit lab are located on Northwest Film Forum’s ground floor, which is wheelchair accessible. All doors in Northwest Film Forum are non-motorized, and may require staff assistance to open. Our upstairs workshop room is not wheelchair accessible.
The majority of seats in our main cinema are 21″ wide from armrest to armrest; some seats are 19″ wide. We are working on creating the option of removable armrests!
We have a limited number of assistive listening devices available for programs hosted in our larger theater, Cinema 1. These devices are maintained by the Technical Director, and can be requested at the ticketing and concessions counter. Also available at the front desk is a Sensory Kit you can borrow, which includes a Communication Card, noise-reducing headphones, and fidget toys.
The Forum does NOT have assistive devices for the visually impaired, and is not (yet) a scent-free venue. Our commitment to increasing access for our audiences is ongoing, and we welcome all public input on the subject!
If you have additional specific questions about accessibility at our venue, please contact our Patron Services Manager at maria@nwfilmforum.org. Our phone number (206-329-2629) is voicemail-only, but we check it often.
Made possible due to a grant from Seattle Office of Arts & Culture, in partnership with Sensory Access, our Sensory Access document presents a visual and descriptive walk-through of the NWFF space. View it in advance of attending an in-person event at bit.ly/nwffsocialnarrativepdf, in order to prepare yourself for the experience.
NWFF patrons will be required to wear masks that cover both nose and mouth while in the building. Disposable masks are available at the door for those who need them. We are not currently checking vaccination cards. Recent variants of COVID-19 readily infect and spread between individuals regardless of vaccination status.
Read more about NWFF’s policies regarding cleaning, masks, and capacity limitations here.
BUY TICKETS HERE
- Purchase your ticket through Brown Paper Tickets; come to the show!
- You can also purchase a ticket on the day of the screening at Northwest Film Forum’s box office (1515 12th Ave, Seattle).
- If you have purchased a Hybrid or In-Person-Only Festival Pass, we’ll be able to look you up at Will Call by the name you purchased under.
- Apologies: this program will not be available online.
Q&A themes:
- How did you “get your foot in the door,” so to speak?
- How do we build the kind of inclusive film sets we’d like to be a part of ourselves?
- What do you know now that you wish you had learned sooner in your career?
- What have you learned from the apprentices this year?
Films in this program:
The Michael Leon Project
(Blake Horn, Seattle, WA, 2023, 6 min, in English)
This short documentary follows University of Michigan soccer star, Michael Leon, as he returns to his hometown of Accra, Ghana to give 100 uniforms to the youth team that ignited his passion for soccer. Explore Michael’s Ghanaian roots, feel the unbreakable bonds of his community, and witness the transformative power of sports. This documentary serves as a tribute to the lasting impact of philanthropy and the profound results of following your dreams.
28 Grams
(D.J. Walker, Seattle, WA, 22 min, in English) This film will also be available to view virtually in the Well Sh*t program!
Two cousins scramble to make their budding weed grow op a legitimate business, but quickly find that they’ll need more than the proper paperwork to get a license from the state.
Boob Cockpit
(Erin O. Kay, Seattle, WA, 2022, 2 min, in English)
A long-lost science fiction television episode follows the adventures of a Double D class spaceship and its plucky pilot.
Babs's Bouquets
(Jasira Andrus, Seattle, WA, 2023, in English) Seattle premiere!
In this absurdist comedy, a floundering flower shop relies on a grieving husband to stay afloat.
About ACTION!
Photo by Heather Garcia
Now in its sophomore year, Northwest Film Forum’s ACTION! Narrative Apprenticeship Program creates opportunities for BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and/or disabled filmmakers to gain on-set film production experience as they create a film together. Applications for the program open each April, and both apprentices and mentors are selected by early June. All participants are paid for their time. Learn more >
The program is made possible through funding from the Butler Family Foundation and National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), and with equipment support from Foundry10.
Festival Directory
⚠️ Please note: NWFF patrons will be required to wear masks that cover both nose and mouth while in the building. We are not currently checking vaccination cards.
Presented by Seattle’s Northwest Film Forum, the 26th Annual Local Sightings Film Festival is a virtual-and-in-person showcase of creative communities from throughout the Pacific Northwest. The 2023 program, which runs from September 15–24, features a competitive selection of curated short film programs and feature films, inviting regional artists to experiment, break, and remake popular conceptions around filmmaking and film exhibition.
Local Sightings champions emerging and established talent, supports the regional film industry, and promotes diverse media as a critical tool for public engagement.