Movies & Music Panel Sept 25th @ Dix Hills Performing Arts Center

Last Sunday I spoke briefly and then returned for a panel at the Dix Hills Performing Arts Center at Five Towns College. It was the first Movies & Music Event, which was a way to introduce the public to local filmmakers and musical talents, and it also was a good networking resource.

Russ Camarda spoke first, introducing a trailer for his film Night For Day.

Then I spoke, and of course screened the trailer for Purgatory Comics. I think this was the first time the trailer was played on a big screen for an audience.

Next was Mitchell Kase, presenting a trailer for True to the Heart.

Kim Cummings showed a montage of footage from her still-in-production film In Montauk (can't wait to see it).

Alexander Etseyatse presented a teaser for his indie boxing film Mikel's Faith. Then T.J. Collins presented his film, Willets Point.

Fred Carpenter showed the trailer for one of his earlier films, The Blue Lizard. Interesting note: this film stars Fred's frequent collaborator Paul Regina, who sadly passed away in 2006. Years ago I got to hang around with Paul on a few occasions, and his passion for film definitely inspired me to keep going with it.

After a brief intermission, the music half of the event began. Stella Davie played a track called Fools Gold.

Then we were treated to a live performance of Marianna, from David Bailey.

Martha Trachtenberg played One Step Ahead of the Storm, with some backup from Tom Griffith. Then, Tom played 1,000 Shades of Grey with some help from Martha. I've GOT to see more shows from these two.

Steve Farella took to the stage and sang Mississippi Mudslide. Afterwards, Jerry Silverstein played a track called Then There's Love.

All of the filmmakers and panelists were invited back to the stage for a brief Q&A session. Debra Markowitz of the Long Island Film Foundation also fielded a question about next year's Long Island International Film Expo.

I took a question about how I found the music I used in my film. I mentioned how important the right song choices are when creating a scene; something many filmmakers don't realize until they're deep into editing.

Afterward I got to give away some DVDs, mingle, and swap contact info with some of the musicians and filmmakers. Hope you enjoyed the report!