Cinequest Wrap-up

It's been a marvelous eleven days of indie film and Maverick meet-ups.  Highlights included an evening with Deepak Chopra and a Day of the Writer with Lew Hunter and other eminent writers discussing the art of writing comedy.  While the opening night's film The Good Heart was enjoyable, at a budget of $3.8 million, it doesn't fall into my personal category of truly indie... So, here are my picks for the best indie films I saw this week... while recognizing that there may have been a few notable flicks that I failed to see:

The Road to Sangam was truly wonderful in its storytelling of how a Muslim man uses Gandhi's peaceful methods to bring his community together.

Another indie from India, Semshook tells the story of Tenzin, a Tibetan born and raised in India, who hops on his motorcycle and embarks on a quest to find his identity and discover the beauty of his homeland.

Cost of A Soul tells the tale of two Iraqi vets who return to their hometown Philadelphia and are drawn into a vicious circle of violence.

Anyone You Want from Scottish filmmaker Campbell Graham tells the story of a couple exploring a life of fantasy until they come up against and have to deal with each other's reality.

Krews tells the story of two high-class cons who get caught in the drug and gang world of L.A.'s Watts neighborhood... full of twists!

And, here's a shout out to British filmmaker Beryl Richards for her short Perfect World.

Congratulations to one and all.  I will look forward to seeing your films in my local theater and on DVD at the video store!  Or, maybe, on demand on Zillions.tv:)

And tonight... it's off to the closing night awards announcement and a final Maverick's meet-up... I am going to miss my family of new-found filmmaker friends... until the next festival! 

And to close, in the words of Deepak Chopra, "Science is an expression of our mind. Art is an expression of the soul. Great art is more than an expression of the soul, it's an expression of a higher consciousness."

Go indie filmmakers!!!