Des Moines Arts Festival® to feature 24 films at the Interrobang Film Festival

Festival presents nearly 12 hours of independent films and notable panel discussions

(Des Moines, IA) – The Des Moines Arts Festival® has released the film line-up for the annual Interrobang Film Festival. Interrobang will feature 24 films from nine countries. The films will be screened inside the air-conditioned comfort of the Central Library (1000 Grand Ave., Des Moines), during the Des Moines Arts Festival, June 27 – 29. The Interrobang Film Festival is open Friday, June 27, 11:30 a.m. – 6 p.m., Saturday, June 28, 1 p.m. – 6 p.m., and Sunday, June 29, 11:30 a.m. – 5 p.m. Admission to both festivals is free.

Screenings will include feature, student, short, found footage, web/TV pilot, and documentary films. It will also feature talkbacks and two notable panel discussions: Iowa Filmmaker’s Panel hosted by the Iowa Economic Development Authority, and DMACC Studio 5 Conversations.

Four films have Iowa ties and may be of particular interest to Iowans:

Light Painter

Director: Eric Smidt

Running Time: 38 minutes, 12 seconds

Saturday, June 28 at 2 p.m.

Synopsis: “To control the story, you must first control the light.” Dan McClanahan is a Master of Photography and “Light Painter” offers a behind-the-scenes look at how he creates some of his most Epic images.

Iowa Tie: McClanahan was raised and currently resides in Iowa.

The Entomologist’s Wife

Director: Shelby Hagerdon

Running Time: 12 minutes, 9 seconds

Saturday, June 28 at 4:30 p.m.

Synopsis: This film follows one man’s desperate attempt to save his wife through their study of moths and is heavily inspired by German expressionist films, like “The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari,” “Nosferatu,” and “Metropolis.”

Iowa Tie: Director Shelby Hagerdon was born and raised in Iowa and is now based in the Midwest.

The North Star

Director: Tim Weed, Bryan Vanderpool, and Sarah Vanderpool

Running Time: 31 minutes, 24 seconds + Talkback

Saturday, June 28 at 3:15 p.m.

Synopsis: When George Weed passed away, he left behind a home filled with artifacts and relics collected during his adventurous travels as a young man, including a box of color film he shot between 1938 and the early 1950s. These reels, created by George as an amateur filmmaker, documented his participation in Admiral Byrd’s third expedition to the South Pole, rare scenes from Papua New Guinea and the surrounding South Pacific Islands during World War II, and intimate glimpses of pre-war life in Hawaii, Mount Rainier, and rural Washington State.

Iowa Ties: Two of the Directors, Bryan and Sarah Vanderpool, of the Well Pennies, are based in Des Moines.

Tinker

Director: Ryan Adams | Running Time: 7 minutes + Talkback

Saturday, June 28 at 3:15 p.m.

Synopsis and Iowa Tie: Iowa-based artist Braden Dexter takes you on a tour of whimsical objects of his creation while reflecting on subjects of creativity, wild media, and memory.