ISSUE #32
BEAM FROM THE BOOTH | GRAND RAPIDS FILM SOCIETY
[EDITED BY: GRIFFIN SHERIDAN]
Hello and welcome back to an all-new, very special installment of BEAM FROM THE BOOTH brought to you by GRAND RAPIDS FILM SOCIETY!
Your eyes do not deceive you! Beam from the Booth has a new look in celebration of the ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY of GRAND RAPIDS FILM SOCIETY, which we celebrated on OCTOBER 28th. We are bringing in YEAR TWO with a special anniversary newsletter featuring a look back at our first year and a preview of what’s to come...
A NOTE FROM NICHOLAS HARTMAN
Has it seriously already been a year since we launched GRFS? I mean, you know what they say: “time flies when you’re having fun” right?
In this year, we’ve accomplished so much. We launched a newsletter, a Discord server, and brought the Grand Rapids community unique events such as It’s A Wonderful Life on 16mm film, Evil Dead II on VHS, Twin Peaks Day, Open Projector Night, Roundtables, and so much more. Honestly, I don’t know how we do it because we’re doing a lot. However, when you truly care about something, anything and everything is possible.
I find myself lying awake at night dreaming up new ways to celebrate film and unique ways to bring our community together. I don’t know what it is about me, but I’m one who always wants more — it’s never enough no matter how burnt out I am. That’s why my team and I will continue to do everything we can to nurture filmmakers and cinephiles in this community.
We’re not just any society. We’re not the “Wealthy Theatre Film Society,” we’re not the “Lafayette St. Film Society,” we are the GRAND RAPIDS FILM SOCIETY. We don’t represent a small portion of this beautiful city — we represent the ENTIRE city, and we take extreme pride in that.
Due to firsthand experience as a filmmaker/artist myself, I understand the hurdles and difficulties we face. I understand how much time, money, and emotion goes into making a film. As a film lover, I understand the importance of the cinematic experience. I understand that watching a film in a theater is more than just a projector and screen; it can be a spiritual experience and a communal one at that.
We here at GRFS want to see you grow, we want to provide you with opportunities, community, and a home. We don’t want to see you rush off to L.A. or NYC because we want to see you strive here and for you to do that we must provide those opportunities. We will continue to host roundtables, pitch nights, cinematic events, and continue to push the boundaries of community and creativity so that we can keep you here.
GRFS is not just for us, it is for you: our community, the entire city of Grand Rapids, and we can’t wait to show you what we have planned for 2024.
To those who have supported us this past year, thank you. We appreciate your kindness and support more than you’ll ever know.
GRFS YEAR ONE: A LOOK BACK
OCTOBER 2022
DOUBLE FEATURE OF TERROR: The Slumber Party Massacre / A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge
NOVEMBER 2022
Memoria
Open Projector Night: November ’22
Looking back on one year of GRFS, I’m so glad that we were able to continue programming Open Projector Night at the Wealthy Theatre! I was asked to be a part of the selection committee in 2015 when it was hosted in its former home, The Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts, and I’ve been a part of the panel ever since. OPN holds a special place in my heart for many reasons. I love that we’re able to program independently-made films and video art pieces from the talented filmmakers and artists throughout our state and show them to an engaged audience on the big screen. It’s a filmmaker’s dream come true, and I’m grateful to have been a part of making these dreams come true for hundreds of filmmakers over the past 8 years! This year, we had five OPN shows with another coming up in November! In the past, we’ve done four shows per year, but it’s been incredible making up for lost time and showcasing short films, documentaries, animations, music videos, experimental works, and pieces that defy all genre and categorization!
I owe so much gratitude to my fellow selection panelists Dale, Spencer, and Nick, and I owe a huge thanks to Anjalika Lobo — a fellow film lover, film worker, and friend — who asked me if I wanted to help screen films for OPN eight years ago! Because of OPN I’ve seen hundreds, possibly thousands, of short films which have helped me grow as a filmmaker and has deepened my appreciation for the art of filmmaking. We have always wished that OPN was truly “open” — we receive so many wonderful, interesting, challenging, and creative submissions for every show that if we were to screen every film, the lineup would be 4–8 hours long! We do our best to put together an 80–90 minute show that our wonderful audiences will be able to enjoy, be challenged or inspired by, and that they think about and discuss long after the lobby has emptied for the night.
I’m grateful to be a part of the Grand Rapids Film Society and that we’ve put together a full year of film programming for our community! Being a filmmaker with an unpredictable schedule can make it hard to attend our weekly meetings, but my fellow board members hold down the fort and get shit done! It’s an honor planning, programming, and putting on unique film events with Breana, Caleb, Chris, David, Griffin, Lauren, Matt, Nicholas, Sam, and Spencer! I’m looking forward to our 2nd year!
- Jackson Ezinga
DECEMBER 2022
It’s A Wonderful Life (on 16mm!)
It has been a lovely joy to be on the GRFS board for one year now! To look back at a year of programming is a very cool thing. What a privilege it has been to see some of these films for the first time (and some the 8th or 9th time) on the big screen! Twin Peaks Day was damn fine, How to Blow Up a Pipeline charged my social justice meter, Showing Up and Memoria changed and challenged my mind and perspective entirely.
The event that felt most special to me was It’s A Wonderful Life. This is my childhood holiday film, the one my mom and I watched every year together, and how incredibly sweet that we got to show it on 16mm too! I was a part of the film threading process and served as ‘Junior Projectionist;’ my geeky 16-year old celluloid cravings were satisfied! It was a wonderful day. Catch that film again this December, and here’s to another year of creative curation, connection over story, and celebration of this beautiful art form.
- Caleb Francis Jenkins
FEBRUARY 2023
‘Beam from the Booth’ Launches
TWIN PEAKS DAY: Twin Peaks Ep. 1 & 2
Open Projector Night: February ’23
MARCH 2023
Little Women
Aftersun
I won’t soon forget the feeling of stumbling out into the lobby of Wealthy Theatre, in a daze, after the immensely moving final sequence in Charlotte Wells’ debut feature and encountering a crowd of similarly shaken fellow moviegoers, all trying to process what we’d just seen, heard, and experienced. There’s a lot of ink spilled about the ‘communal’ aspect of public cinema, perhaps even to the point of cliche at this point, but it’s moments like those following our screening of Aftersun that remind you of what can be shared — together — by both friends and strangers alike at the movies.
- Spencer Everhart
All the Beauty and the Bloodshed
APRIL 2023
Film Society Roundtable: April ’23
Titanic: An Evening at Sea
Singin’ in the Rain
MAY 2023
Lady Snowblood
Film Society Roundtable: May ’23
Tampopo
Another lasting memory: I doubt that my fellow board member Lauren was the only person in attendance who had already seen Tampopo before our screening, but I won’t forget the pure joy of what felt like an entire theater full of people hootin’ and hollerin’ in unison with that singular excitement that comes from discovering a new all-time favorite film for the first time.
- Spencer Everhart
Open Projector Night: May ’23
JUNE 2023
Showing Up
How to Blow Up A Pipeline (feat. filmmaker Q&A)
Film Society Roundtable: June ’23
Joyland
JULY 2023
Film Society Roundtable: July ’23
Lynch/Oz
Purple Noon
Rear Window
AUGUST 2023
Film Society Roundtable: August ’23
Open Projector Night: August ’23
The Sandlot at Sullivan Field
Double Feature: Daisies / Unemployees
The French Connection
SEPTEMBER 2023
Blowout
OCTOBER 2023
Possession
Evil Dead 2 (on VHS!)
Friday the 13th: Part 3 (in 3D!)
Open Projector Night: Halloween Edition
Film Society Pitch Night: October ’23
I can’t rule out recency bias, but the first Pitch Night was everything I’ve hoped to see in Grand Rapids for so long. It was inspiring to see all the people present their projects and find others in the community that want to be part of bringing them to life. I really think it’s the beginning of some incredible collaborations!
- Matt Everitt
GRFS YEAR ONE: REFLECTIONS
[BY: DAVID BLAKESLEE]
It was just about a year ago when I started seeing posts in my social media feed notifying me that Memoria was set to be shown at Wealthy Theatre. The 2021 release, directed by Apichatpong Weerasethakul and starring Tilda Swinton, had already established a semi-legendary reputation in art house cinephile circles as a uniquely immersive viewing experience and a film that absolutely needed to be seen on the big screen. And that last claim wasn’t just hype about how much better it was to watch it in theater — the film’s distributor, Neon, had issued numerous statements that Memoria was not destined to ever be released on disc or streaming media for consumption at home but would instead be viewable only as a traveling ‘road show’ exhibition that would presumably extend for years.
Knowing all that back in the fall of 2022, discovering that this film was making its way to Grand Rapids was not merely welcome news to let me know that my curiosity would soon be satisfied, but it also served to alert me to the fact that someone here in town had similar cinematic tastes and the right connections to book a local screening. I made it a priority to find out who that was.
The element of intrigue was magnified by the fact that this event was being sponsored by “The Grand Rapids Film Society.” As the guy who created a Facebook page with that name back in 2014, I was now wondering about the membership and resources of said group. When I set up that page, it was just a notion that a friend and I had, though neither of us had the time, energy, or network of relationships in the local community to actually make it happen. But I was delighted to see that something tangible had attached itself to my still-up-and-running Facebook page! As I pursued answers to my questions about who was behind this, my search led me to a series of interactions with GRFS board members who went on to graciously welcome me into their ranks and who I now consider dear friends.
Over the past 12 months, I’ve contributed a number of articles to this newsletter that recapped my impressions of some of the events that GRFS sponsored: Twin Peaks Day in February … Aftersun in March… Titanic in April… Lady Snowblood in May… How to Blow Up a Pipeline in June. Those screenings, and many others that we’ve held more recently, are certainly among my most memorable experiences with the Society over this past year. But really, the most exciting and gratifying aspect of my affiliation with GRFS so far has been the opportunity for great conversations and shared experiences with folks in my local community, who I presume are just as delighted as I am that we have a group in Grand Rapids that is actively providing opportunities to see some great films in a wonderful theatrical setting, across a broad and diverse range of styles, genres, nations, and cinematic eras that would probably never make their way here otherwise.
As an avid home video collector who’s also built a cherished circle of like-minded online friends that I’ve developed over the years through blogging, podcasting, and social media interactions, I get a lot of ongoing satisfaction from those relationships. But what a joy it’s been for me to be a part of the GRFS effort, planning events, welcoming audiences, and, through our Roundtable gatherings, learning about the dynamic energy and enthusiasm of so many filmmakers and aspiring creators right here in West Michigan. I’m truly grateful to be affiliated with the Grand Rapids Film Society, and I’m eager to move forward with plans for more unique cinematic offerings as we launch our way into Year 2!
COMING UP IN YEAR TWO...
NOIR-VEMBER IS UPON US
Join us for our first events of our sophomore year on back-to-back Mondays this November as we paint the town black and white for NOIR-VEMBER! First, on November 6th, it’s Orson Welles’ classic noir TOUCH OF EVIL...and one week later, we jump ahead to the neo-noir movement with BLOOD SIMPLE, the feature debut of the Coen Brothers. Jump down to our ‘Upcoming Events’ section for more details and links to purchase tickets for these events.
COSTUMES AND CELLULOID
We’re so excited for the events we have planned for December. On December 1st, we’re playing the first part in Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings epic: Fellowship of the Ring. We encourage everyone to come dressed as your favorite character, or at the very least to arrive in a very festive mood, as if we were celebrating someone’s one hundred and eleventyth birthday.
Then, on December 17th, we’re bringing back what we hope to be a holiday tradition for GRFS: It’s A Wonderful Life on 16mm film! Those who came out to this screening last year know what a truly special event this was, and we’re working to make it even better this year; stay tuned for more details.
OPEN PROJECTOR NIGHT, ROUNDTABLE, AND PITCH NIGHTS CONTINUE
We’re continuing our efforts to provide spaces for local and independent filmmakers to exhibit, discuss, and grow their craft with our OPEN PROJECTOR NIGHT, FILM SOCIETY ROUNDTABLE, and PITCH NIGHT events. Roundtable and OPN are returning next month on the 15th and 29th, respectively, and our next Pitch Night is currently slated for January. Like Nick said in his wonderful introduction to this issue, GRFS is for the community, and this community is home to so many fantastic cinephiles and filmmakers alike, and we’re grateful to be able to take part in building the West MI film scene with said community. Speaking of getting involved with our community...
OUR FIRST GA MEETING
We will be hosting our first GRFS GENERAL ASSEMBLY MEETING in JANUARY. We want to hear from all of you who have been attending our events for the past year. What have you enjoyed about GRFS events? What changes or additions would you like to see made? Let us know at this very special meeting early next year.
T-SHIRTS
We’ve been working up to this for some time. Starting very soon, you’ll be able to order your very own GRAND RAPIDS FILM SOCIETY T-SHIRT. Check out this mock up for an idea of what these comfy and cool threads will look like:
We’ll start taking pre-orders for these at an upcoming event, so keep your eyes peeled!
AND MORE!
Yes, all this is quite literally just the start of YEAR TWO for GRAND RAPIDS FILM SOCIETY. We can’t wait to share even more details and pull the curtain back on future events as we move through 2024.
FOLLOW GRFS ON LETTERBOXD
That’s right! Your favorite Film Society is now on your favorite Film Discourse™ app!
Follow our account for lists of our past and upcoming events with more curated lists from GRFS to come in the very near future.
UPCOMING EVENTS
TOUCH OF EVIL (Welles, 1958)
WHAT: When a car bomb explodes on the American side of the U.S./Mexico border, a Mexican drug enforcement agent begins his investigation, putting himself and his new bride in jeopardy.
WHEN: Monday, November 6th, 8:00pm
WHERE: The Wealthy Theatre
BLOOD SIMPLE (Coen, 1984)
WHAT: A Texas bartender finds himself in the midst of a murder plot when his boss discovers that he is having a love affair with his wife and he hires a private investigator to kill the couple, but the investigator has his own agenda.
WHEN: Monday, November 13th, 8:00pm
WHERE: The Wealthy Theatre
And so we’ve arrived at the end of another BEAM FROM THE BOOTH! We appreciate you taking the time to read it and truly hope you’ll continue to do so. Be sure to SUBSCRIBE to get each issue in your inbox every SUNDAY, and stay up-to-date on all things GRFS.
Plus, join us on social media! We’d love to chat with everyone and hear YOUR OWN thoughts on everything above (you can also hop in the comments section below).
Know someone you think will dig BEAM FROM THE BOOTH? Send them our way!
Look for ISSUE #33 in your inbox NEXT SUNDAY, 11/5!
Until then, friends...
