What's Up - Your guide to what's happening in Fayetteville, AR this week!
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NOVEMBER 8-14, 2020 WHAT'S UP! 3 BECCA MARTIN-BROWN NWA Democrat-Gazette A ustin Dean Ashford is a perfect example of the kind of filmmaker the Fayetteville Film Prize wants to encourage. As a grad student in playwriting and acting at the University of Arkansas, Ashford was busy making an impact not only in the campus arts community but around the world with his one-man show "(I)sland T(rap)." It won Best One-Man Show Off-Broadway at Theatre Row during the United Solo Festival; won its share of 17 awards from the Kennedy Center, along with his play "Black Book"; and won awards at the San Diego International Fringe Festival. Then Ashford pitched "(I)sland T(rap)" for the Fayetteville Film Fest's first $2,000 Fayetteville Film Prize in 2018 and won, allowing him to turn the "hip-hop riff about Black Ulysses on an Odyssey of self-discovery and a powerful exploration of a young artist of color navigating the turbulent waters of contemporary American culture while trying to find his authentic voice" into a film. Now a Ph.D. candidate at Texas Tech, Ashford is a success story even before he reveals he was a high school dropout who had to start his road to higher education with a GED. He's also a person of color, which would make him perfect for the new Fayetteville Film FYI Fayetteville Film Fest Remaining Schedule Nov. 8 8 a.m. — "Indians, Outlaws, Marshals and the Hangin' Judge": While set in the late 19th century, the stories docu- mented in this film resonate today: gun violence, racial strife, police brutality and American Indian rights. This is a true tale of Indian removal, crime, capital punishment and a charismatic federal judge who sentenced scores of felons to "hang by the neck until you are dead." (Documentary Features) 10 a.m. — Student Narrative Shorts Block Noon — Student Documentary Shorts Block 2 p.m. — Arkansas Film School: An Education Roundtable (lives- treamed) 4 p.m. — "The Unlikely Story of the Lesbians of First Friday": In the 1980s, a group calling itself First Friday sprung fully formed from the imaginations of a group of lesbians living in the small city of Roanoke, Va. Some of the women were locals and some moved to the Roanoke Valley for employment. It was the Reagan era, and homosex- uals were vilified, especially in the Bible Belt. Spurred on by the pure serendipity of finding each other, the group created safe space, threw fantastic events and grew a community of lasting friendships, all in the shadow of the Moral Majority. (Documentary Features) 6 p.m. — "The Rock of Gibralter": When a vicious criminal master- mind escapes prison in 1940s Arkansas, the retired detective who put him there is recruited to hunt him down one last time and avenge the death of his partner. (Narrative Features) 8 p.m. — "Arkansas Rock and Soul Royalty: The Cate Brothers Band": The history and current performances of a legendary band in Northwest Arkansas who spawned The Band and the solo career of Levon Helm. (Documentary Features) Nov. 14 Noon — Fayetteville Pitch Prize (livestreamed) 7 p.m. — Awards Ceremony (livestreamed) COST — By donation INFO — fayettevillefilmfest.org Filmmaking 101 Festival prizes provide local opportunities FAYETTEVILLE Austin Dean Ashford, at the time a graduate student at the University of Arkansas, won the first Fayetteville Film Prize in 2018 and turned his one-man play "(I)sland T(rap)" into a film. This year, pitches for the prize are being accepted online through 11:59 p.m. today. (File Photo) FAQ Fayetteville Film Prize WHEN — Pitches open via video until 11:59 p.m. Nov. 8 WHERE — fayettevillefilm fest.org COST — There is a $15 entry fee INFO — fayettevillefilmfest. org See Filmfest Page 41