Calgary Underground Film Festival 2014 - CUFF Announces 2013 Line-up

Posted on Thursday, March 21, 2013 at 06:00 PM

Review Type: Festival

Calgary’s 10 year old CUFF (Calgary Underground Film Festival) a not-for-profit organization dedicated to programming films that defy convention, announced their line-up of films for the 2013 Festival and they are gonna blow your socks off! Tickets are on sale NOW and will sell out quickly. Here are some of the MUST SEES:

-OPENING GALA PARTY-

Film: Big Ass Spider- Canadian Premiere, Director and Cast will be in Attendance (Mike Mendez USA, 2013, 85 min.) Click HERE to watch the trailer in HD

Date: Monday April 15, 2013

Time: 9PM

Venue: Film at the GLOBE theatre, Opening Gala Party at Vern’s 622 8th Avenue SW, Calgary, AB

What it’s all about: A BIG ASS SPIDER!!!

-SUPPORT LOCAL-

Film: CAFé CAFé- World Premiere, Cast and Crew will be in Attendance (Pat Downing Canada, 2013, 82 min.) Click HERE to watch the trailer

Date: Tuesday April 16, 2013

Time: 7PM

Venue: Film at the GLOBE theatre (unless you SHOW UP AND SHIP OUT from the Ship & Anchor to this Screening!)

What it’s all about: The second feature from ex-Calgarian Pat Downing (I Heart Doomsday) and Loose Moose’s Eric Amber, CAFé CAFé is a romantic comedy of errors like no other. Set in Montreal’s historic neighborhood of St-Henri, the film tells the story of Vlad, a hapless, lonely poet in search of love, who falls for Vanessa, a student working at his favorite cafe.

What ensues is a romp through the indie art scene of hipsters and a realistic ode to the relationships that carry us forth in life, following Vlad and Vanessa, along with Ginette and Al, the eccentric owners of Cafe Joe, as well as the many regulars who come and go though the doors of Cafe Joe. Like the novels of Mordecai Richler, CAFé CAFé offers a glimpse of life in Canada’s independent subculture, looking with affection and humour at a group of people trying to make their way in a world that rarely makes sense.

SHOW UP AND SHIP OUT from the Ship & Anchor to this Screening!

How it works: Purchase your ticket in advance from The Ship & Anchor Pub located at 534-17 Ave SW. ($10 each – only 43 spots)
Show up at The Ship & Anchor by 6pm the day of the screening. The big yellow school bus will pick ticket holders up at 6:15pm and bring you to the theatre for the screening.
After the fllm, you get back on the bus…. and go back to The Ship & Anchor for a free beer with your ticket stub. (PLUS an after-party hosted by CUFF)
There is a limited number of these tickets available at The Ship and Anchor Pub for this specialty deal.

Everyone from the screening (regardless of being a part of the Show Up & Ship Out) is welcome to join the cast, crew and bus patrons back at the bar after the screening. Just make your way to The Ship and find us in the far back corner. No cover charge.

-LOOKS THRILLING-

Film: Upstream Color- Canadian Premiere (Shane Carruth USA, 2013, 96 min.) Click HERE to watch the trailer

Date: Wednesday April 17, 2013

Time: 9:30PM

Venue: Film at the GLOBE theatre

What it’s all about: This film won the special jury prize sound design at the Sundance Film Festival in 2013 and the critics choice best director at the Berlin International Film Fest 2013. This is the first chance to see this critically acclaimed film in Canada that was the official selection at SXSW 2013. From writer-director Shane Carruth, whose 2004 film Primer won the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival and redefined cinematic time travel, Upstream Color follows a man and woman who are drawn together and entangled in the life-cycle of an ageless organism. Identity becomes an illusion as they struggle to assemble the loose fragments of wrecked lives.

Kris is derailed from her life when she is drugged by a small-time thief. But something bigger is going on. She is unknowingly drawn into the life cycle of a presence that permeates the microscopic world, moving to nematodes, plant life, livestock, and back again. Along the way, she finds another being—a familiar, who is equally consumed by the larger force. The two search urgently for a place of safety within each other as they struggle to assemble the loose fragments of their wrecked lives in this thoughtful, thrilling and thoroughly unique science fiction thriller.

-AFTERPARTY-

Film: A Band Caled Death- Canadian Premiere (Jeff Howlett, Mark Covino USA, 2012, 96 min) Click HERE to watch the trailer

Date: Friday April 19, 2013

Time: 7PM

Venue: Film at the GLOBE theatre followed by the after party at The Palomino 109 7th Ave SW, Calgary, AB

What it’s all about: Before Bad Brains, the Sex Pistols or even the Ramones, there was Death. Formed in the early ’70s by three teenage brothers from Detroit, Death is credited as being the first black punk band, and the Hackney brothers, David, Bobby, and Dannis, are now considered pioneers in their field. But it wasn’t until recently, when a dusty 1974 demo tape made its way out of Bobby’s attic nearly 30 years after Death’s heyday, that anyone outside a small group of punk enthusiasts had even heard of them.

Equal parts electrifying rockumentary and epic family chronicle, the story of Death is one of brotherly love and fierce, divinely inspired expression. A Band Called Death was the official selection of SXSW 2013 and the 2012 Los Angeles Film Festival.

There will be a live concert following the screening featuring the band DEATH FROM DETROIT, at The Palomino Smokehouse located at 109 – 7 Ave SW. Tickets for concert are separate ($20) and can be purchased in advance at Sloth Records 736b 17th Ave SW.

-PROGRAMED FILM THE SURPRISED ME-

Film: I Am Divine- Canadian Premiere (Jeffrey Schwartz USA, 2013, 86 min.) Click HERE to watch the trailer in HD

Date: Saturday April 20, 2013

Time: 9:30PM

Venue: Film at the GLOBE theatre

What it’s all about: I Am Divine is the story of Divine, aka Harris Glenn Milstead, from his humble beginnings as an overweight, teased Baltimore youth to internationally recognized drag superstar through his collaboration with filmmaker John Waters. Spitting in the face of the status quos of body image, gender identity, sexuality, and preconceived notions of beauty, Divine was the ultimate outsider turned underground royalty. With a completely committed in-your-face style, he blurred the line between performer and personality, and revolutionized pop culture. I Am Divine is a definitive biographical portrait that charts the legendary icon’s rise to infamy and emotional complexities. Official selection at SXSW 2013.

Why it surprised me: I watched a Divine film called Female Trouble (John Waters USA, 1974, 89 min.) I found in my cousins apartment when I was in junior high school. It was rated NC-17 and still to-this-day is one of the most bizarre films I have ever seen. I will never forget it, so I will be seeing this film out of sheer fascination. I remember weeks, months, and even years after, not being able to comprehend “Divine“. Maybe now after all these years my questions will be answered by this documentary?

For full CUFF Schedule please click HERE