by Stephen Milek 

​When I tell people I am going to the Milwaukee Film Festival one of the first things they ask is "do they show anything good?" Of course they do. With over 300 films playing there is something for everyone; it's all a matter of finding ones you will like. What people might not realize is just because the Milwaukee Film Festival doesn't have the name recognition like Sundance or Toronto it doesn't mean its sub-par festival.

The festival guide makes it easy for you to find movies you might like. They have their Quick Picks based on what kind of movies you like and who you are going with. If you never been to a film fest before this is a great place to start. Last year instead of writing up a list of movie recommendations or what movies I plan on going to see (my tastes aren't for everyone) what I did was highlight things that make the Milwaukee Film Festival special. Not only are there great movies but it’s an excellent opportunity to experience different things. No matter what movies you like there are things at the festival everyone should take advantage of. And this list is only the film related things. There are plenty of other great events surrounding the festival like live music, special gatherings, panels, and parties.

Check out the list below.

By Christopher K House

Gags the clown took the country by storm. People were puzzled by this odd sight on the streets of Green Bay, Wisconsin. The nocturnal clown had people frightened to walk the streets after sundown. Parents kept their children in and shared clown sightings on social media. Mothers warned of clowns riding in unmarked white vans snatching kids up off the streets in broad daylight. Yes, Gags caused a national crisis and struck fear into the heart of America. Ok, maybe I'm exaggerating a little. Either way, Gags scared the heck out of us and he is coming to Milwaukee.

Gags is the title character in a short film and is just one of a great selection of films that will be featured at the 2016 Milwaukee Paranormal Conference Film Festival. Located at The Underground Collaborative in the bowels of the Grand Avenue Mall, the fest will host a number of the filmmakers for special Q&A's hosted by Milwaukee Movie Talk and the Twisted Dreams Film Festival founders Christopher House and Stephen Milek. The films were all hand picked by local author Tea Krulos (Monster Hunters) who is the coordinator of the Milwaukee Paranormal Conference. In it's second year the conference hosts experts in a variety of fields from crypto zoology to paranormal investigators. Who knows? Gags might even make an appearance....

Check out the press release:


Milwaukee Paranormal Conference Film Festival Will Scare the Bleep Out of You

Riverwest Currents is a sponsor of the Milwaukee Paranormal Conference Film Festival, which concludes festival activities on Sunday, October 16 from 5-10pm. It is taking place at the Underground Collaborative, a performance space located in the basement level of the Plankinton Building in the Grand Ave. Mall. The screening session features documentaries and “based on true story” films related to ghosts, Bigfoot, creepy clowns, and more.
Here’s the fest line-up:

Gags (2016) Milwaukee premiere! In August, a grainy photo of a creepy clown lurking under a highway overpass with a fist full of black balloons went viral. News of a clown haunting Green Bay was picked up by new agencies around the world. It turned out to be a publicity stunt by a production company making a short horror film. Inspired by actual bizarre sightings of spooky clowns, Gags is not recommended to people afraid of clowns. The screening will be followed with a Q and A by director Adam Krause.

Beast of Whitehall: the Abair Road Incident (2016) Milwaukee premiere! This documentary, part of the Small Town Monsters doc series examines a strange encounter several people (including a police officer) had with a 7-foot hairy creature in the Adirondacks village of Whitehall, New York.

The Hidden Truth?  (2012) Filmmakers Jay Bachochin, Scott Markus, Neil Sanders examine a string of drownings in the Mississippi River in the La Crosse area. They look at theories including coincidence, a potential serial killer, or a paranormal explanation. Followed by Q and A with the filmmakers.

A short doc session includes:

PIM: A Paranormal Documentary, which follows local investigation team Paranormal Investigators of Milwaukee.
Award winning short The House is Innocent, about an eccentric couple who buys a house that used to belong to a notorious serial killer.

Pilgrimage to the Witch’s House, a rarely seen short that examines artist Mary Nohl’s home aka “the Fox Point Witch’s House,” directed by Joseph R. Skow.
The SuperNaturals, a short feature on a team of Real Life Superheroes that take on the challenge of investigating the paranormal.

An exclusive extended clip from Scary Stories: A Documentary, which explores the most controversial of modern children’s literature: Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark.

UberDork Café will be there selling refreshments and the Underground Collaborative has a new bar. MKE Production Rental and Milwaukee Twisted Dreams Film Fest are supporting sponsors of the screenings. Tickets are just $6 and include access to all screenings. More info and tickets available at: milwaukeeparacon.com





  

by Stephen Milek 

September in Milwaukee. Kids going back to school, weather starts to cool off, and for movie fans it's a month filled with Film Festivals.  
Kicking things off on September 9th and 10th is the Milwaukee Short Film Festival.  It's run and programmed by Ross Bigley the festival is in it's 18th year and keeps getting bigger.  Most of the screenings last year played to a packed house.  

While the festival has been popular with overseas filmmakers the past couple of years have seen some great local films getting submitted.   The majority of films that are going to be shown at this years festival is from local talent with diverse backgrounds.  There is no better place to see the diversity then in the Voices Heard Program. In it's second year the program aims to highlight local films from multi-cultural directors.  The screening last year was packed and you could feel the energy in the room having so much great talent in the room.  In addition to Voices Heard there will be plenty of other local films screening throughout the festival.  One of them Screen: Righter which won the Milwaukee 48 Hour Film Festival and has connection to Milwaukee Movie Talk since Chris helped out on the production.  

What makes this a special year for the film festival is the number of films that have women directors, writers or producers.  As women struggle to have their films shown it's great to see them having such great success at festivals like this and festivals like The Milwaukee Women's Festival.  

A total of 48 films will be screened with 35 of them local films. There are 5 sessions over the two days.  
Get your tickets here http://mkeshortfest.blogspot.com/2016/08/advanced-tickets-for-18th-annual.html
and be sure to get them soon since last year a lot of the screening sold out.