Zombie Night Scheduled for Nov. 8 at Main Art Theatre

When Curator Connie Mangilin took over the Mitten Movie Project in November of 2007, her task was to organize the first ever Zombie Night.  Over the next several years she’s witnessed the annual event grow in popularity. 

The every month at the .  The monthly festival averages approximately 100 attendees.  For Zombie Night, attendance doubles and Mangilin is forced to host the event in one of the theatre’s larger auditoriums. 

This year’s event is scheduled to take place on Tuesday, Nov. 8 and Mangilin has hand-picked the dozen or so shorts to be featured. 

“I look for production quality. It’s got to be shot solidly. That means good sound, lighting, and acting. Production quality is the number one thing I look at,” said Mangilin.  “After that, I consider story. How entertaining is it?” 

Among the filmmakers featured is Kristina Lakey of Flint, who submitted a 5-minute promo for the 2011 Flint Zombie Walk. The Zombie Walk took place on Oct. 8 and raised $4,500 for the Michigan School for the Deaf. (Royal Oak hosted a on Oct. 10 to raise money for the Gleaners Community Food Bank.)

“What we wanted to do was to create a music video to Michael Jackson’s Thriller, only do it our own way – in sign language,” said Lakey. 

The Michael Jackson role was performed by 10-year-old Tyler Naeyert, who is partially deaf himself.  More than 40 zombies (some deaf) gathered every Sunday for a month to learn the dance moves.  “The challenge for me was to teach the deaf people the dance because they cannot hear the music,” Lakey said.

Another filmmaker, who goes by the moniker MCR/Electric Otto of Detroit, submitted three shorts for Zombie Night. His theme is Detroit Exploitation, which pays homage to the exploitation films of the 70’s and features zombies and other creatures of the night. 

Otto's films mix animation and live action, and his technique is a closely guarded secret.  He’s looking forward to seeing the reaction from the live audience.

“It’s cool. It’s a lot of fun.That’s the best part," he said. "It’s one thing to make films, but the cool thing is sharing your gift with other people and connecting with other people,” 

Each month the audience votes on the best short film of the night. The monthly winners are then featured at the December Mitten Movie Project.  That night, audience members and selected independent filmmakers, will name the Best Short of 2011.  The announcement will be made at Mr. B’s following the event. 

For more information about the Mitten Movie Project, visit facebook.com/mittenmovieproject.  There you can find submission guidelines and technical information.  If you’d like to submit a short film you better get a move on.  The first few months of 2012 are filling up quickly.