Woods Hole Film Festival

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Imagine Kolle 37

Sep 2017

2017 | Directed by Michele Meek

“Imagine Kolle 37” is a short documentary/narrative hybrid film about two girls who imagine their way to Kolle 37, a real adventure playground in Berlin, Germany.

Recently called “the mother of all Berlin playgrounds” by The New York Times, Kolle 37 enables children to build and climb three-story wooden structures, make fire, and use hammers, saws and axes. Founded in 1990, Kolle 37 invites young people ages six through sixteen, without their parents, to embrace risky play in the “adventure playground” under the loose supervision of playworkers.

Although about 1,000 adventure playgrounds exist in Europe, there are only a few in the U.S. where the concept of “free play” is becoming an endangered concept. But adventure playgrounds not only encourage young people to play outdoors in all seasons, they also provide children a chance to face risk, learn skills, and build confidence.

Ultimately, “Imagine Kolle 37” poses the question—can we, as Americans, imagine Kolle 37, which in fact is a real children’s playground in Berlin?

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Spoken Word

Sep 2017

Spoken Word
2017 | Directed by Ilan Muallem

Race, perception and consequence become the center point of three lives, as Judge Matthews realizes that he can no longer overlook his actions from the bench.

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Crest Of The Hill

Sep 2016

2015 | Directed by Amanda Kowalski and Samantha Broun

As his Alzheimer’s progresses, Greg O’Brien prepares to sell his family home.

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Signing

Sep 2016

2015 | Directed by Gina Catalfo Nelson

A heartwarming, teenage love story about trust and accepting others for exactly who they are. Noah begins to fall in love with his new neighbor Becky, only to find out she has a secret.

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Ribbons

Sep 2016

Ribbons
2016 | Directed by Brandon Cordeiro

Provincetown, a small harbor village at the very tip of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, was already a home to the LGBT community for a few decades when AIDS devastated its population in the mid-1980s. Ribbons is a short film that explores an episode in the life of a second generation Portuguese boy when his mother brings him to a community memorial service by the sea. The boy experiences firsthand the loss incurred by the epidemic, but also his community’s inspirational response to it; an event that as an adult helps him understand the power of forming a bond with a kindred tribe.

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Liz

Sep 2015

2014 | Directed by Sharyn Paul Brusie

Homeless at 13, Liz Leddy lived a tragic life of despair.  Her battle with addictions and raging behavior led to a brutal fight of survival on the streets.  Filmed over four years, in Portland, Maine, we follow Liz as she reclaims her life from desperation to a place of love, forgiveness and hope. Her dreams manifest as she becomes a favorite for competition in the 2012 Olympic sport of boxing.

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Machsom

Sep 2015

2013 | Directed by Joel Novoa

“Machsom,” the Hebrew word for “Checkpoint,” tells the story of Yaniv Greenblatt, a young Israeli soldier stationed at one of the most dangerous such checkpoints along the West Bank. He would like to be a pacifist and struggles to be fair to the Palestinians, but has to contend with the prying eyes of his superiors. The problems Yaniv faces at home are no easier. His mother is a wheelchair bound hard-right-winger due to the same terrorist attack that killed her husband.

The story centers on Yaniv’s relationship with his younger brother, Avi, who attends one of the few mixed Jewish-Arab schools in Israel, and builds towards an incident at the checkpoint that challenges all involved to reconsider their previous resolve.

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Lomax

Sep 2015

2014 | Directed by Jesse Kreitzer

In 1941, folklorist Alan Lomax traveled from the Library of Congress to the Mississippi Delta to record an oral history of the blues. Equipped with 500 pounds of audio equipment powered by his car battery, he ventured across nameless roads to discover the most beautiful and harrowing songs ever known.

This spirited folktale reimagines his meeting with Bill Henley, a 73-year-old recluse living in the backwoods of Lula, Mississippi. Presented in partnership with The Association for Cultural Equity.

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Flesh Eaters

Sep 2014

2013 | Directed by Matt Hollis-Lima

It’s the night before his First Communion, and Liam, a skittish Catholic boy, is having trouble grasping the concept of the ritual. His parents will only tell him that he is going to eat Jesus’ flesh and blood, and his disillusioned older sister only offers that it’s a horrible experience he’ll never forget. But when Liam happens to catch her watching Night of the Living Dead, everything starts to make sense to him: First Communion is really a zombie initiation rite. Now, Liam must find a way to escape this depraved ritual while facing increasingly bizarre visions involving his family, zombies, and Jesus himself.

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Happy Hour

Sep 2014

Happy Hour
2013 | Directed by Gretl Claggett

When a woman meets her boyfriend for a romantic night out, a martini triggers childhood memories that threaten her ability to trust and love. Based on true events and a poem; narrated by Julianne Moore.