It's Showtime

The Cleveland Cinematheque holds its first-ever Think Local Film Festival this weekend. Five feature movies made by area filmmakers screen. “We really don’t know each other, but we’re a community,” says Rob Lucas, whose American Stories shows tomorrow night. “We all have the same goals and problems. There aren’t too many outlets for us, and getting people to come see the movies is a major challenge. But we all share a similar drive.”

On tap: --American Stories, Lucas’ anecdotal comedy, in which four indie-rockers share some very tall tales. --Luke and Andy Campbell’s Cordoba Nights, a comedy about a pizza-delivery guy, a girl, and the wildest night of his life (it involves car thieves and the mob). --Madness, Bill Johns’ thriller about five college girls who spend the night in a mansion owned by one of the gals’ very crazy brother. --Ted Sikora’s superhero comedy Hero Tomorrow, in which a pot-smoking comic-book writer transforms into his crime-fighting creation. --The Horror Convention Massacre, Joe Ostrica’s slasher-pic tribute to horror-movie fans -- some of whom are knocked off at a geekfest. Look for cameos by such B-flick faves as Lloyd Kaufman and Lew Temple. --Lucas says he spots a common thread among the directors. “We’re all interested in genre movies. They’re about things that influenced us as kids: comic books, horror movies. We all love telling stories.” Plus, they all have to deal with the obstacles that await Northeast Ohio-based filmmakers. “Finding the time and resources is so challenging,” says Lucas. “I needed a butcher shop for a scene in my movie. Nobody wanted to be a part of it. They all thought I was filming a YouTube video.”
Aug. 17-18