Ness Hutchins

Communications & New Media Major

The Emerge Film Festival is an annual four day festival held in Lewiston/ Auburn that highlights independent movies from Maine, the United States, and the world. This was the third festival for the nonprofit organization. Emerge’s 2016 schedule started Thursday April 28, ran until Sunday May 1, and was held at five different venues. In addition to screenings, Emerge offers master classes, Q&A’s with film makers and actors, and hosts several award ceremonies. Tickets ranged from $5 to $50, while students with valid school IDs watch for free.

On Saturday morning at the Franco Center Heritage Hall, SMCC professor, Corey Norman, had his Maine debut of his adaptation of Stephen King’s short story Suffer the Little Children. Norman’s film was shown along with two other movie shorts, Selfie and The Poet; which were followed by a Q&A session with some cast and crew members. Selfie was a 30-second horror short written and produced by Maine director, R.J. Wilson. The Poet, a short featuring a vampire who moves to the city to follow his dreams of being a poet who falls in love with a vampire hunting real estate agent along the way, was written and directed by Mainer Erin Enberg. All three shorts showcased different themes, and approached the horror genre in creative ways. After the screening audience members were encouraged to rate each film, and vote for their favorites.

Selfie was a great example of how powerful just 30 seconds of film can be. Wilson’s short involved no dialogue but built suspense through the culmination of “selfies” a young girl takes in her bedroom. When she goes through her photo feed she releases she might not be the only one in the room.

Suffer the Little Children is about an aging school teacher who starts to question her sanity as she believes something evil is taking possession of the bodies of her young students. Norman starts this film off with a bang showing an old woman in a hospital gown slit her own throat with a pair of scissors. He balances the scary and sometimes campy vibes of StephenKing’s writing perfectly. The use of real special effects is also a treat in this modern day in age.

The Poet managed to be both a rom-com and a horror film with a great soundtrack too. The most artsy of the bunch, this short had beautiful stills and great transitions. The story echoed Romeo and Juliet with its starcrossed lovers and tragic ending. Actors Erik Moody and Erika J. Wilson also had great on-screen chemistry.

After the first screening, the Franco Center Heritage Hall showed In the Dark written and directed by David Spaltro. In the Dark was a full length film about a grad student, Veronica Carpenter (Lynn Justinger) who interviews paranormal specialist Dr. Lois Kearne (Fiona Horrigan) for her thesis. Carpenter is invited by Dr. Kearne to  accompany her on a visit to the home of Joan Mills (Catherine Cobb Ryan) who believes her daughter Bethany (Grace Folsom) might be possessed by demons.

In the subsequent Q&A with Spaltro, he explained that his most favorite horror movies were metaphors for bigger issues. What he was trying to convey through the story of demonic possession was that the “demons” we fight within ourselves, like abuse and abandonment (themes prevalent in In the Dark), aren’t tangible like a possession but are just as, if not more, real. In the Dark was beautifully produced and scored, with some incredible special effects, make-up, and compelling themes, but taken in total, did not bring anything new to the paranormal horror genre. A few audience members compared scenes to 1973 cult classic The Exorcist.

The Emerge Film festival is a great way to see indie films, especially those directed and produced by other Maine residents. It’s a great organization; well worth a trip to Lewiston/ Auburn and a browse of next year’s schedule. Don’t forget to mark your calendar for the @017 Emerge film festival.