Inaugural Program
The Mtn Craft Film Festival began in 2023 with a two-day event showcasing 4 curated feature films and 35 short films from Appalachian filmmakers across the region. The first night — Friday, September 29th — ended with the West Virginia premiere of Curren Sheldon’s Country Brawlers followed by a screening of Elaine McMillion Sheldon’s King Coal.
The
Friday Short Films - Block 1
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Purity
A father makes the ultimate sacrifice… (more)
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Strange Taste
Megan rushes an extremely powerful sorority… (more)
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PORTENT OMISSION
If you ignore the omens, you will become one… (more)
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Hitman Motel
Two hitmen cover up their past mistakes… (more)
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Dave Washersmith's The Knifeman
1993 has always been considered a crazy year in sports... (more)
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daisy chain
Part self-portrait, part reflection on the process of film preservation… (more)
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Environmental Defense Fund
Can you imagine a world without farmers…? (more)
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Finding Home
The journey of Cing Khek and her family… (more)
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Troublesome Creek
The song of recovery never sounded so sweet… (more)
Friday Short Films - Block 2
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Cheeseburger
Pee-Paw wakes up hangry… (more)
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Love and Politics
Kevin, an ardent Democrat, is devastated after his girlfriend leaves him… (more)
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How to Tie a Tie
Dominique resented his new step-father for making him share the only parent he’s ever had… (more)
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My Hated Enemy
Two young soldiers on opposite sides of a near future civil war are forced to confront their differences… (more)
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Jason Pell's Pinpricks
Think The Twilight Zone set in rural America… (more)
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I Am Of You
Of you, by you and for you… (more)
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The Reunion
Lucille "Luke" Harlen, seeks redemption after a six year absence from her family… (more)
Film in Virtual Reality
David Smith is a professor at West Virginia University with an extensive body of work in nonfiction documentary and multimedia art.
A Pittsburgh, PA local, David created the virtual reality film “The Home Within” to explore the strong Appalachian spiritual, physical and metaphysical connection to place through volumetric captures of real places, holographic video of dancers and musicians and original music by regional artists.
“The Home Within” played concurrently with the festival program in a dedicated underground exhibition room.
Saturday Short Films - Block 1
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Without Punching Down
Sentient robots exist in harmony, offering aid and camaraderie to one another... (more)
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No Such Right: The End of Roe in Appalachia
A snapshot of a region in crisis in the aftermath of the stunning Dobbs v Jackson decision… (more)
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After the Flood
In the wake of historic climate disasters, Kentuckians of color and their allies come together… (more)
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Hills Run Dry
A single mother in West Virginia, left with no other options to provide for her diabetic son… (more)
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The Last Shot
A long time competition shooter competes at the last International Super Shoot at the Kelbly rifle range, at the age of 94… (more)
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Chasing Crazy
Pacers Running presents the journey of GirlGangCrazy… (more)
Saturday Short Films - Block 2
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Wild
Collage-style video. Wild's base art was made with the text-to-art A.I. program Midjourney v3… (more)
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The Wallflower Pact
A romantic comedy about the secrets introverts keep… (more)
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An Old Barn
It’s exactly what it says… (more)
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The Red Creek Sessions
Red Creek is the elusive Class V+ whitewater gem flowing from the Dolly Sods Wilderness in the West Virginia highlands… (more)
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Burnt Factory
Rob & Jeff explore the dark history of Burnt Factory, an unincorporated West Virginia community… (more)
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Beehold
The gospel of abundance as taught by bees, and Charlie is helping protect Wisconsin’s beloved pollinators… (more)
Saturday Short Films - Block 3
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Ego Trip
Fun. Fast. Frenetic. Fuzzy guitars and a wall of synths… (more)
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Voyager Birdman
A dream on a long dark highway… (more)
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Cabarrus
A glimpse in to the life of a struggling family in North Carolina… (more)
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Her Hope Haven
A comedy-drama about a group of women working the steps toward their sobriety… (more)
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Gift
A jaded alcoholic has his world view challenged by an unexpected act… (more)
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Manufactured Luck
The day to day life of a young Appalachian girl and her grandfather… (more)
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Lilac Gulch
The story of a 12-year-old boy and his recently reimagined childhood friend… (more)
Saturday, September 30th ended the second and final night of the inaugural Mtn Craft Film Festival. The short film blocks concluded with a brief award ceremony followed by a screening of the feature documentary film Impossible Town by Meg Griffiths and Scott Faris.
Scott, Meg and Dr. Ayne Amjad answered questions from the audience after their screening. The Q&A was followed by a screening of the documentary film O Pioneer by Clara Lehmann, Jonathan Lacocque and the rest of the talented team at Coat of Arms. Jonathan and Clara invited the principle cast of their documentary onstage for their Q&A, which lasted nearly an hour.
Curated Features
And the award goes to…
In the spirit of celebration, Mtn Craft recognized select works in all three submission categories with awards. The program judges screened entries in advance to evaluate their cinematic proficiency, then the highest-scoring films from each genre were determined and selected for awards.
Each block also ended with an opportunity for the audience to rate each film they watched. Audience scores were tabulated throughout both days and determined in-between the final block and the awards ceremony. Winners of both audience choice and judge’s choice awards received their physical trophy in the form of an Infinite Object at the awards ceremony.
Winners are are listed below.
