Press Release: New York Tribute to filmmaker Ron Tibbett

Duane

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 1, 2005
For more info contact: Bilge Ebiri: 347-232-3622

THE MAG A NEW YORK TRIBUTE FILM PROGRAM FOR RON TIBBETT,
founder of the Magnolia Independent Film Festival

On March 25th and 26th, the Two Boots Pioneer Theatre will honor the memory of Mississippi filmmaker
and Magnolia film festival founder RON TIBBETT with two extensive programs of award-winning and
acclaimed films. A tribute to the infamous, pioneering spirit of the Mag, as well as a celebration of Ron’s
own work, this event will help raise funds to support the festival.

ABOUT THE MAG FESTIVAL
In 1997, Ron Tibbett was searching for festivals to enter his film, "Swept Off My Feet." When he came to
the "M's," Ron noticed Mississippi had no such festival. So he created one. Since that time, the Magnolia
Independent Film Festival has been a celebration of the spirit, the honesty, and the vision of independent
filmmaking. Above all, it is a filmmaker-friendly festival: Every filmmaker who attends is housed for free in
beautiful villas on The Old Waverly Golf Course in West Point, Mississippi, which hosted the 1999 U.S.
Women's Open Golf Tournament. Many filmmakers have called The Magnolia their favorite film festival
experience ever.

In fact, the Mag was such a hit when it started that the State of Mississippi started its own festival, The
Crossroads. Ron never worried about competition from this new fest. In fact, he embraced The Crossroads and
offered guidance and any films that had been shown at The Mag. He loved the idea of more films coming
into the state -- so much so that he started an annual film workshop in Oxford, MS to encourage students,
young and old, to make films. He was also instrumental in starting two other film fests in Mississippi, The
Oxford and Tupelo Film Festivals.

Ron left us too soon. He died in a car accident on June 7th, 2004. This Pioneer Theater program is a tribute
to Ron, put together by those filmmakers honored to have known him. It will showcase Ron’s own films, as
well as a selection of shorts that have screened at the Mag over the years.

THE MAG - a tribute film program for Ron Tibbett

This two-night event will highlight short films from various Magnolia Independent Film Festival entries over
the years - from animation, experimental narratives, comedies, to documentaries and dramas. The tribute
program reflects the love Ron had as a programmer for all types of films that captured the spirit of indie
filmmaking.

March 25th 7-9 pm & 26th 6:30-9 pm
Tickets 9.00 /$6.50 students
The Two Boots Pioneer Theater
155 East 3rd Street
Closing Night Party at Mama's Bar 3rd St @ Ave B
9-11 pm "THE MAG" Special Cocktail - appetizers
Lizzy Yoder (FischerSpooner) deejays

THE LINE UP (Programmed by Erika Yeomans & Bilge Ebiri):

Friday, March 25th, 7 pm:
Bruce Bennett, Shirtsleeves (1997, 11 min)
Bruce Bennett frequently writes for Time Out NY's film section. He's also played guitar with the The
A-Bones, Action Swingers, Yo La Tengo, Ronnie Dawson, Jad Fair, Amy Rigby, The Shamms, and John
Sinclair. Shirtsleeves screened at festivals in four countries, and can also be seen on the Independent Film
Channel.

Henry Ferrini, Lowell Blues, (2000, 25 min)
Lowell Blues remembers the place Jack Kerouac could not forget. By fusing visual history, language and
jazz into a 30-minute film poem, it illuminates the writer's childhood holy land. Excerpts from Kerouac's
novel, Dr. Sax, are read by: Gregory Corso, Johnny Depp, Robert Creeley, and Joyce Johnson, among
others.

Erika Yeomans, Chubby Buddy (2003, 13 mins)
Yeomans was a recipient of the NY State Arts Council for the Arts 2005 Media Grant for her feature film
Pose-Down. Her work has screened at Lincoln Center's New York Video Festival, Los Angeles's Disney
Hall/Red Cat Theater, Transmediale, the Danish Film Institute, and Anthology Film Archives, among others.
She was the artistic director of the critically acclaimed performance arts group DOORIKA from 1989-1999.

Philip Scarborough, The Light (1999, 7 min.)
Made while Philip was a senior studying film at the University of Southern Mississippi, The Light is a
haunting meditation on a man chased by his inner demons. It has screened and won awards at numerous film
festivals.

Bill Brown, Director. Ron Tibbett, Producer. Buffalo Common (2001, 23 min)
Bill Brown teaches film production in Detroit. In November 2003, the Museum of Modern Art presented a
retrospective of his work. Buffalo Common, the film he made with Ron, played in numerous venues,
including the 2003 Sundance Film Festival. It was recently released on a DVD collection called "The Next
Best Place" by the Peripheral Produce label.

Saturday, March 26th, 6:30 pm:
J. Alec Hawkins, Cookie Jar (2003, 6 mins.)
Alec was one of Ron Tibbett's student filmmakers. Cookie Jar, about two angry teenagers skipping school in
order to go to a porn theatre, was his first film, and was awarded with a prize at the 2002 Magnolia Film
Festival.

Sam Crow, Foie Gras & Three Sonnets (2002, 11 mins)
Sam Crow’s Voodoo People Productions has produced several films and music videos in addition to
commercials and promotional videos. Foie Gras is an award-winning music video for Beret!, chosen by Spin
Magazine as the Best French Hardcore Band. Three Sonnets turns classic Elizabethan poetry into a visual
medium, re-imagining and reinventing this storytelling art.

Levi Abrino, I Ran With a Gray Ghost (2005, 5 mins)
Currently enrolled at NYU’s graduate film program, Levi Abrino’s "Burying Dvorak" also screened at the
2004 Magnolia Film Festival. I Ran With a Gray Ghost is about a lonely 10-year-old superhero and his
relationship with a stolen dog.

Craig Brewer, Resolutions of the Complacent Man (2003, 10 min)
Craig Brewer recently made headlines when his feature Hustle & Flow became the toast of Sundance 2005,
winning the Audience Award and walking away with a major studio distribution deal. Resolutions was one of
two films Craig screened at the 2004 Magnolia Film Festival; the other was his award-winning feature The
Poor and the Hungry.

Marlene Rhein, Let Me Tell You a Story (2000, 9 min)
Named one of Filmmaker Magazine’s Top 25 To Watch in 2000, Marlene has directed over 40 music videos,
including Tupac Shakur's last video. She is currently working on her first feature film.

E.S. Wochensky, Just Like Golf (2002, 26 min)
E.S. Wochensky (aka "The Colonel") is an acclaimed and prolific folk filmmaker working in upstate New
York who has put in numerous Magnolia Film Fest appearances. Just Like Golf is a hilarious and touching
look at the little-known subculture of crashing school buses competitively.

Ron Tibbett, Citizen Shane (2004, 59 min)
A documentary on a maverick 22 year old punk anarchist Shane Ballard, who runs for Sheriff in a small town
in Mississippi, on a platform of pornography and guns. This was Ron Tibbett’s final film before his death in
June 2004.
_________________
Duane L. Martin Webmaster - B-Movie Central Editor / Webmaster / Staff Writer - Rogue Cinema