Big Festival in a Small Town

By Chris Ampe

Wyoming has a film festival now, offering movies, documentaries and short films about the western way of life, and at a price families can afford. Entering its fourth year, the Wyoming Film Festival continues to gain support from the community of Saratoga and the rest of the state.

The brainchild began five years ago, when Mark Ducker, who works as Creative Director of the Wyoming Film Festival and Director of Wild Rose Pictures, and David Throgmorton, the Executive Director for the Carbon County Higher Education Center, started discussing the possibility of bringing a film festival four to the state. This was a surprising pairing, largely because Dr. Throgmorton has never been much of a fan of movies or movie houses. "I hate going into... dark theaters and having strangers toy with my emotions," he said.

Seated in his vibrant office in The Carbon County Higher Education Center, Throgmorton described how he was convinced that documentaries could be a great medium in presenting issues that affect people, specifically those living in the West. Around this time Ducker was thinking of starting a film festival but needed financial backing. "The first year, the Carbon County Higher Education Center underwrote the entire thing," Dr. Throgmorton explained. "The secondyear we underwrote most of it and by the third year it was running pretty financially solvent." In a matter of three years this film festival went from being funded by a single higher education facility to having plenty of funding from local businesses with a desire to see this film festival continue. Offered each August in the beautiful town of Saratoga, the Wyoming Film Festival allows local film makers to enter their films and see their work on the big screen. In addition, the film attracts speaking panels including Emmy-winning screenwriters and award-winning documentary makers.

There are a few requirements to enter a film in the festival. First, it must be about the west specifically the Rocky Mountain region. Second, all films for this year's festival have to have been made after 2007. Primarily, the organizers are looking for docu- mentaries that deal with issues in this region such as water rights and land use. This fits with the festival's original mission in informing people about issues that are often overlooked by many mainstream documentaries. Still, the fesitval is not just about documentaries; short films are also welcome if they deal with issues or themes rooted in the western culture. Dr. Throgmorton said the festival was able to find a niche by focusing on life in the West.

In only a few short years, the festival's audience has greatly diversified. Originally the only people who attended lived very close to Saratoga. Now, people are attending from all over the surrounding states, coming to see the work of filmmakers from the Rocky Mountain region.

Another tradition is to show one commercial film every year, along with inviting a speaker who was involved with the film. After the showing in the comfortable 400-seat theatre, a question-and-answer session is held so audience members can get an inside look at what went into making the film. "People pay very close attention and they have some pretty sophisticated questions," Dr. Throgmorton said.

Workshops are also offered for those interested in production but unsure where to start. Ultimately, the festival's prime focus is on independently produced films, some of which will have their largest audience at the festival. For many of the short films, it is the first time the filmmakers will see their work on the big screen. For them, having an audience is the reward.

This year's film festival will take place August 26-27, again in the spacious Platte Valley Community Center in Saratoga. To learn more or order tickets, check out wyomingfilmfestival.org.