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"Screening more than 190 short and feature films from 20 countries and presenting over 30 musical performances, the 12th annual Richmond International Film Festival returns Sept. 26-Oct. 1." - Richmond Magazine
“Since the festival is involved with current cultural trends, the recent strikes of film and television actors and writers is bound to come up at a couple of panels. “They’re on the front lines doing battle for several industries. It’s not only about entertainment,” Waters reflects on the strikes, “it’s about equity and fairness. So it’s important to support independent artists who aren’t huge corporations.”
Films with a regional connection through talent or location include the 9:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 28, Byrd Theatre premiere of Hannah Hoover’s short “Slingshot.” Hoover, a Richmond native involved in Virginia films, transplanted a decade ago to Los Angeles and turned the background of her husband, Michael Roddy, into a narrative in which he portrays a private investigator. Following a devastating divorce, the PI is after his own gambling-addicted father, played by Chris Mulkey, and there is, Hoover notes, a “quirky appearance” by actor Dana Sparks. “Slingshot” is the lead-in for a dramedy involving divorce and a scheme to avoid alimony, Jhett Tolentino and Mike Ang’s “Asian Persuasion.”"
“I’ll unashamedly say that the arts are saving the world right now,” Waters says. “This world has gotten so volatile and so divided that one of the last safe places to observe and converse is in either creating arts or appreciating the arts. When those worlds can come together at RIFF and other festivals, that’s where the magic happens.”
Slingshot was co-produced by Walid Chaya, who also had a comeo on the film.