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Dear Festividder 2024
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festivids.
HUNDREDS OF BEAVERS (2022 movie)
Summary: A contemporary black-and-white slapstick about a soused applejack brewer turned fur trapper who tries to kill the titular hundreds of beavers to win the hand of the general store owner's daughter. The beavers, of course, have their own plans. All the animals -- beavers, rabbits, raccoons, wolves -- are played by actors in full-body mascot costumes except, inexplicably and hilariously, the horse, which is a guy on all fours in some draped cloth. The film mixes live action with animation to enhance the comedic effect, and the structure mimics a video game as the plot progresses. It is kooky and creative and a hoot to watch in a crowd.
To get a real flavor, watch the trailer.
In the U.S., available to rent on Amazon Prime and Apple TV or free to borrow on Hoopla.
Caveats: Gratuitous cartoonish animal harm, of the sort where the mascots' eyes turn to X's when they're killed and styrofoam popcorn stuffing comes out when they're injured. Drinking.
Vid request: Pretty much anything? Recruit more people to watch this indie gem!
WILDLIKE (2014 movie)
Will this be the year someone vids Wildlike, soft hurt/comfort movie of my heart??
Summary: In Alaska, a neglected young woman runs away from the family member she’s visiting and forms an unlikely connection with a gruff older backpacker. Features gorgeous open landscapes from Juneau to Denali. Starring Ella Purnell, who played young Maleficent, and personal fave Bruce Greenwood, who played Christopher Pike in the Star Trek: Reboot movies and has been in lots of other stuff.
Caveats: Molestation of high school-aged girl by uncle; mention of spousal death from cancer.
Vid request: I would be so happy to have a vid of this movie that simply told the story, focusing on Mackenzie and René's developing relationship and taking advantage of the visual splendor of the Alaskan setting. Or whatever focus and structure appeals to you. FWIW, the emotional high point of the movie for me was René's protectiveness once he found out what really happened with Kenzie and her uncle, specifically when René bundled her back into the ferry cabin. I like to think he made good use of the bear spray when he made that stop in Juneau. :)
DOG and ANIMAL SHOWS (The Dog House UK, The Wizard of Paws, Cesar Millan: Better Human Better Dog, Critter Fixers: Country Vets)
Sales pitch: Animal feelinnngggs. Human/animal affection. Dogs, cats, etc.
Blanket/umbrella vid request: So I would love a vid that uses any or all of the above to wallow in the good feelings that come from loving and bonding with and caring for pets. If you want to expand to include a favorite show of your own, that’d be cool. I also have enjoyed Festivids-eligible things like Animal Cribs (TV/Disney+), Dog: Impossible (TV/Disney+), Dogs (TV/Netflix) and Cat Daddies (movie/Kanopy).
Summaries: The Dog House UK: Staff at a rescue matchmake dogs with potential owners. The people and the pups meet in an outdoor area and see if they’re a good fit. In the U.S., three 10-episode seasons streaming on HBO/Max.
The Wizard of Paws: A man who used to make prosthetic limbs and braces for people now makes them custom for animals. Each episode features one or two animals getting fitted and learning to use the assistive device. These include not only cats and dogs but also a sheep, a goat, and a duck. Very sweet. Two not-long-enough seasons streaming on Disney+.
Cesar Millan: Better Human Better Dog: The “dog whisperer” returns to provide advice at his fancy ranch. Some of the people really need therapy instead of dog training, but here we are. Streaming on HBO/Max and Hulu.
Critter Fixers: Country Vets: Two Black American veterinarians, Dr. Hodges and Dr. Ferguson, run a private practice in rural Georgia where they and their staff see cats, dogs, and “exotics” and make farm calls. Hodges and Ferguson have a great straight man/funny man dynamic. Three or four seasons on Disney+ and… Hulu? or HBO/Max.
Caveats: The Dog House UK: There are some sad stories about why people give up their pets to the rescue.
The Wizard of Paws: Pets and farm animals with limb differences and limb injuries. Most are happy. Once or twice, an animal dies offscreen.
Better Human Better Dog: Cesar’s training methods sometimes veer into victim- (owner-)blaming.
Critter Fixers: An unpredictable amount of animal illness, injury, and/or death in each episode. Surgery and other medical procedures intended to treat animals. Occasional use of parent/child language to describe humans and animals. Occasional discussion of animal weight, diet, and weight loss. In one episode there's insensitive parading around of an animal, I think a dog, that has male and female reproductive organs.
Specific vid requests: If the above doesn’t appeal to you, here are some other thoughts.
- The Dog House UK: People bonding with dogs, plz. There’s room for suspense when matches don’t work out right away or when people try out multiple candidates or individual dogs keep getting not chosen.
- The Wizard of Paws: Anything that revels in the joy and aid that Derrick brings to his work and those he helps, both furry and human. Maybe something about the tech of it, his mastery in a niche field.
- Better Human Better Dog: Other than bonding, hm. Something about improvement, maybe? A humor vid about the humans needing therapy? lol, Yo Gabba Gabba has that song “Don’t bite your friends.”
- Critter Fixers: Care of so-called exotic animals <3 <3 <3. Also, there’s this song I heard at the end of a documentary, “I Love My Dog” by Cat Stevens, which is simple but very cute and could be fun as a way to look at the vet care and the affection between the two docs (and their team).
THE ENGLISH (2022 TV)
Summary: A BBC/Amazon revisionist Western miniseries about an Englishwoman (Emily Blunt) who goes to the “frontier” to avenge a wrong that isn’t detailed until later; a Pawnee man (Chaske Spencer) who’s retiring as a U.S. Army scout and looking for some land to live in peace on; a bunch of white people being either naïve or brutal; scattershot Native people in all kinds of different situations; and [disease redacted]. Notable actors include Rafe Spall, Ciaran Hinds and Gary Farmer. Six episodes streaming on Prime.
Caveats: Pretty much everything bad that can happen to a woman happens to a woman. Massacre of a Native American village. Offscreen death of a child. Disfigurement. Racist and misogynist language and behavior. Gun violence, obviously. Probably other stuff I’m forgetting.
Vid request: I’m super ambivalent about this show. It’s a bleak tale full of loss and violence, the sort of grimdark that’s still fashionable in prestige television. While it critiques the traditional Western, it’s still a story told from the point of view of white people, and shouldn’t we be more varied than that by now? Shouldn’t we be beyond ‘oh wow, the Native characters are sympathetic and, like, almost fully realized, and the conquest of the west was bad’? But then, it says what it is in the title, and it’s probably more to do with the director wrestling with English media (or actual) history than anything else. I almost quit watching several times, but it kept pulling me back.
ANYWAY. I have this incredibly specific vid idea. It’s set to Agnes Obel’s cover of the English folk song “Katie Cruel”. It would be a haunting, brooding look at Cornelia’s search for her heart’s desire, as that desire evolves. It could also tie in Eli’s similarly shifting search for who he is and what he wants. And/or it could be about the several women on the show struggling with [redacted again] and all the other crap they’re forced to deal with.
If that doesn’t speak to you, then feel free to vid as you desire. If it’s helpful, I like Chaske Spencer and would be pleased with a character study of Eli, if there’s enough there to support a vid. Something that questions and critiques the approach the show takes. A straightforward telling of Cornelia’s story. Maybe a spiral down into men’s ‘heart of darkness.’ Would prefer that it not focus on Melmont.
ATLANTA (TV)
Sales pitch: Disaster friends, social commentary, sharp writing, black humor, Black humor, random one-off episodes that dive into the frightening and/or absurd. Main plot: A guy in Atlanta hits it big as a rapper, and his cousin becomes his manager while negotiating a rocky relationship and trying to co-parent. Starring: Donald Glover! Brian Tyree Henry! Lakeith Stanfield! Zazie Beetz! Celeb cameos! Four seasons streaming on Hulu.
Here's a cool video analyzing what the narrator calls the show’s Afrosurrealism.
Caveats: Content can be disturbing, usually in relation to confronting anti-Black racism in many forms. Also off the top of my head: drug use, gun violence, physical violence, suicide.
Vid request: This show is so good! Yet there are all of 10 fanworks for it on the AO3 and none of them are vids?? So, first off, A VID would be most welcome!
Ideas:
- A recruiter vid that gives a flavor of the characters and their main arc(s).
- A deeper dive into Paper Boi’s life, or Earn’s or Van‘s or Darius’.
- A taste of the way the show veers into the supernatural and/or political thought experiments and/or specific media spoofs.
- A focus on one of the standalone episodes, whether about the main characters (Paper Boi’s journey into the heart of darkness or new jazz? The Teddy Perkins/Michael Jackson or Mr. Chocolate nightmares? Van’s double life as a French baguette-wielding black market dealer?) or anthology standalones (the kid who gets sent into foster care, the ancestral slaveholder’s tax, the affirmative action donor, the homegoing service…).
- Something that manages to capture the humor of the series even though so much of it lies in the dialogue.
- Themes like "being lost" can help make connections.
I look forward to whatever you come up with!
SARAH & DUCK (TV)
Sales pitch: A feel-good BBC kids’ cartoon about a girl and her pet duck (who understands English and is understood by others even though he only quacks) who go on household and neighborhood adventures. Comfort watch. Three seasons. In the U.S., accessible on Tubi with a free account.
Caveats: None?
Vid request: Something sweet that showcases the many friendships and sometimes striking art would be loved and hugged. Or if you have another idea, go for it. I like the yarn lady’s long-suffering gay-coded handbag and the shallots, and the especially whimsical episodes, and Sarah’s love of manatees.
Music-wise, my favorite genres are folk from pretty much any country, rock, classical, instrumental, bluegrass, movie scores, Celtic, choral, country where it intersects with folk and rock, some pop, some dance, some hip hop, indie... If you mix dialogue with music, please make the dialogue very clear/easily audible.
Thank you!!
festivids.
HUNDREDS OF BEAVERS (2022 movie)
Summary: A contemporary black-and-white slapstick about a soused applejack brewer turned fur trapper who tries to kill the titular hundreds of beavers to win the hand of the general store owner's daughter. The beavers, of course, have their own plans. All the animals -- beavers, rabbits, raccoons, wolves -- are played by actors in full-body mascot costumes except, inexplicably and hilariously, the horse, which is a guy on all fours in some draped cloth. The film mixes live action with animation to enhance the comedic effect, and the structure mimics a video game as the plot progresses. It is kooky and creative and a hoot to watch in a crowd.
To get a real flavor, watch the trailer.
In the U.S., available to rent on Amazon Prime and Apple TV or free to borrow on Hoopla.
Caveats: Gratuitous cartoonish animal harm, of the sort where the mascots' eyes turn to X's when they're killed and styrofoam popcorn stuffing comes out when they're injured. Drinking.
Vid request: Pretty much anything? Recruit more people to watch this indie gem!
WILDLIKE (2014 movie)
Will this be the year someone vids Wildlike, soft hurt/comfort movie of my heart??
Summary: In Alaska, a neglected young woman runs away from the family member she’s visiting and forms an unlikely connection with a gruff older backpacker. Features gorgeous open landscapes from Juneau to Denali. Starring Ella Purnell, who played young Maleficent, and personal fave Bruce Greenwood, who played Christopher Pike in the Star Trek: Reboot movies and has been in lots of other stuff.
Caveats: Molestation of high school-aged girl by uncle; mention of spousal death from cancer.
Vid request: I would be so happy to have a vid of this movie that simply told the story, focusing on Mackenzie and René's developing relationship and taking advantage of the visual splendor of the Alaskan setting. Or whatever focus and structure appeals to you. FWIW, the emotional high point of the movie for me was René's protectiveness once he found out what really happened with Kenzie and her uncle, specifically when René bundled her back into the ferry cabin. I like to think he made good use of the bear spray when he made that stop in Juneau. :)
DOG and ANIMAL SHOWS (The Dog House UK, The Wizard of Paws, Cesar Millan: Better Human Better Dog, Critter Fixers: Country Vets)
Sales pitch: Animal feelinnngggs. Human/animal affection. Dogs, cats, etc.
Blanket/umbrella vid request: So I would love a vid that uses any or all of the above to wallow in the good feelings that come from loving and bonding with and caring for pets. If you want to expand to include a favorite show of your own, that’d be cool. I also have enjoyed Festivids-eligible things like Animal Cribs (TV/Disney+), Dog: Impossible (TV/Disney+), Dogs (TV/Netflix) and Cat Daddies (movie/Kanopy).
Summaries: The Dog House UK: Staff at a rescue matchmake dogs with potential owners. The people and the pups meet in an outdoor area and see if they’re a good fit. In the U.S., three 10-episode seasons streaming on HBO/Max.
The Wizard of Paws: A man who used to make prosthetic limbs and braces for people now makes them custom for animals. Each episode features one or two animals getting fitted and learning to use the assistive device. These include not only cats and dogs but also a sheep, a goat, and a duck. Very sweet. Two not-long-enough seasons streaming on Disney+.
Cesar Millan: Better Human Better Dog: The “dog whisperer” returns to provide advice at his fancy ranch. Some of the people really need therapy instead of dog training, but here we are. Streaming on HBO/Max and Hulu.
Critter Fixers: Country Vets: Two Black American veterinarians, Dr. Hodges and Dr. Ferguson, run a private practice in rural Georgia where they and their staff see cats, dogs, and “exotics” and make farm calls. Hodges and Ferguson have a great straight man/funny man dynamic. Three or four seasons on Disney+ and… Hulu? or HBO/Max.
Caveats: The Dog House UK: There are some sad stories about why people give up their pets to the rescue.
The Wizard of Paws: Pets and farm animals with limb differences and limb injuries. Most are happy. Once or twice, an animal dies offscreen.
Better Human Better Dog: Cesar’s training methods sometimes veer into victim- (owner-)blaming.
Critter Fixers: An unpredictable amount of animal illness, injury, and/or death in each episode. Surgery and other medical procedures intended to treat animals. Occasional use of parent/child language to describe humans and animals. Occasional discussion of animal weight, diet, and weight loss. In one episode there's insensitive parading around of an animal, I think a dog, that has male and female reproductive organs.
Specific vid requests: If the above doesn’t appeal to you, here are some other thoughts.
- The Dog House UK: People bonding with dogs, plz. There’s room for suspense when matches don’t work out right away or when people try out multiple candidates or individual dogs keep getting not chosen.
- The Wizard of Paws: Anything that revels in the joy and aid that Derrick brings to his work and those he helps, both furry and human. Maybe something about the tech of it, his mastery in a niche field.
- Better Human Better Dog: Other than bonding, hm. Something about improvement, maybe? A humor vid about the humans needing therapy? lol, Yo Gabba Gabba has that song “Don’t bite your friends.”
- Critter Fixers: Care of so-called exotic animals <3 <3 <3. Also, there’s this song I heard at the end of a documentary, “I Love My Dog” by Cat Stevens, which is simple but very cute and could be fun as a way to look at the vet care and the affection between the two docs (and their team).
THE ENGLISH (2022 TV)
Summary: A BBC/Amazon revisionist Western miniseries about an Englishwoman (Emily Blunt) who goes to the “frontier” to avenge a wrong that isn’t detailed until later; a Pawnee man (Chaske Spencer) who’s retiring as a U.S. Army scout and looking for some land to live in peace on; a bunch of white people being either naïve or brutal; scattershot Native people in all kinds of different situations; and [disease redacted]. Notable actors include Rafe Spall, Ciaran Hinds and Gary Farmer. Six episodes streaming on Prime.
Caveats: Pretty much everything bad that can happen to a woman happens to a woman. Massacre of a Native American village. Offscreen death of a child. Disfigurement. Racist and misogynist language and behavior. Gun violence, obviously. Probably other stuff I’m forgetting.
Vid request: I’m super ambivalent about this show. It’s a bleak tale full of loss and violence, the sort of grimdark that’s still fashionable in prestige television. While it critiques the traditional Western, it’s still a story told from the point of view of white people, and shouldn’t we be more varied than that by now? Shouldn’t we be beyond ‘oh wow, the Native characters are sympathetic and, like, almost fully realized, and the conquest of the west was bad’? But then, it says what it is in the title, and it’s probably more to do with the director wrestling with English media (or actual) history than anything else. I almost quit watching several times, but it kept pulling me back.
ANYWAY. I have this incredibly specific vid idea. It’s set to Agnes Obel’s cover of the English folk song “Katie Cruel”. It would be a haunting, brooding look at Cornelia’s search for her heart’s desire, as that desire evolves. It could also tie in Eli’s similarly shifting search for who he is and what he wants. And/or it could be about the several women on the show struggling with [redacted again] and all the other crap they’re forced to deal with.
If that doesn’t speak to you, then feel free to vid as you desire. If it’s helpful, I like Chaske Spencer and would be pleased with a character study of Eli, if there’s enough there to support a vid. Something that questions and critiques the approach the show takes. A straightforward telling of Cornelia’s story. Maybe a spiral down into men’s ‘heart of darkness.’ Would prefer that it not focus on Melmont.
ATLANTA (TV)
Sales pitch: Disaster friends, social commentary, sharp writing, black humor, Black humor, random one-off episodes that dive into the frightening and/or absurd. Main plot: A guy in Atlanta hits it big as a rapper, and his cousin becomes his manager while negotiating a rocky relationship and trying to co-parent. Starring: Donald Glover! Brian Tyree Henry! Lakeith Stanfield! Zazie Beetz! Celeb cameos! Four seasons streaming on Hulu.
Here's a cool video analyzing what the narrator calls the show’s Afrosurrealism.
Caveats: Content can be disturbing, usually in relation to confronting anti-Black racism in many forms. Also off the top of my head: drug use, gun violence, physical violence, suicide.
Vid request: This show is so good! Yet there are all of 10 fanworks for it on the AO3 and none of them are vids?? So, first off, A VID would be most welcome!
Ideas:
- A recruiter vid that gives a flavor of the characters and their main arc(s).
- A deeper dive into Paper Boi’s life, or Earn’s or Van‘s or Darius’.
- A taste of the way the show veers into the supernatural and/or political thought experiments and/or specific media spoofs.
- A focus on one of the standalone episodes, whether about the main characters (Paper Boi’s journey into the heart of darkness or new jazz? The Teddy Perkins/Michael Jackson or Mr. Chocolate nightmares? Van’s double life as a French baguette-wielding black market dealer?) or anthology standalones (the kid who gets sent into foster care, the ancestral slaveholder’s tax, the affirmative action donor, the homegoing service…).
- Something that manages to capture the humor of the series even though so much of it lies in the dialogue.
- Themes like "being lost" can help make connections.
I look forward to whatever you come up with!
SARAH & DUCK (TV)
Sales pitch: A feel-good BBC kids’ cartoon about a girl and her pet duck (who understands English and is understood by others even though he only quacks) who go on household and neighborhood adventures. Comfort watch. Three seasons. In the U.S., accessible on Tubi with a free account.
Caveats: None?
Vid request: Something sweet that showcases the many friendships and sometimes striking art would be loved and hugged. Or if you have another idea, go for it. I like the yarn lady’s long-suffering gay-coded handbag and the shallots, and the especially whimsical episodes, and Sarah’s love of manatees.
Music-wise, my favorite genres are folk from pretty much any country, rock, classical, instrumental, bluegrass, movie scores, Celtic, choral, country where it intersects with folk and rock, some pop, some dance, some hip hop, indie... If you mix dialogue with music, please make the dialogue very clear/easily audible.
Thank you!!