C.A.M. San Antonio Film Slam

It’s a typical Friday night down on the Riverwalk. Where’s the place to be? If you’re into film, its hanging out over at the Ruta Maya, where its intermission at the 1st annual CAM S.A. Film Slam. The diverse, cultured crowd of filmmakers, friends of the arts, and people who wandered in to see what the commotion is all about has thinned down to the die-hard cineastes and barflies enjoying the venue’s spacious lounge and good conversation. The free snacks are long gone, but the locally-brewed beer is cold and the vibe is chill.

How’d you hear about the show? “My professor told me about it. My friends didn’t feel like coming, so I just came by myself,” says Angela Diaz, a student at UTSA. DJ Aquaman is laying down some atmosphere on the wheels of steel (pick up a copy of his demo from the stage) as technical difficulties are being worked out on the night’s main attraction, Clogged Caps 3, a local documentary on San Antonio’s annual “aerosol art festival.”

In one corner, a guy plays his movie work-in-progress to a group of discriminating-looking wine-drinkers huddled around one of the ’self-serve’ screening stations, where anyone can bring in their own work off the street for the viewing pleasure of the attendees. In another corner, a group of graffiti writers point and joke, getting a kick out of seeing their likenesses and creations being screened in an artsy coffee shop. The playback issues are soon resolved, and the “eye-tickling evening of art,” as the night has been billed, resumes.

It’s all part of Contemporary Art Month in San Antonio, where the local chapter of the National Association of Latino Independent Producers, along with the San Antonio Film Commission, the Office of Cultural Affairs, and the NALAC Fund for the Arts have teamed up to showcase experimental works by native and national artists Say Sí, Gisha Zabala, Eric Bosse, Annele Spector, Monessa Esquivel, Sam Lerma, and Alex Ferrari, Mad Media, along with video installations by La Colectiva, John Mata, Goiungo.com and more. Curators TJ Gonzales and Lisa Cortez Walden define “experimental” artists as those who are “innovating and invigorating their works, either through story structure, editing, photography, or even the types of stories that they’re telling.” Most of the flicks on hand this evening are low-budget and rough-around-the-edges, but that’s part of their charm. Hollywood South, this ain’t, but it’s not trying to be. As one moviegoer succinctly put it, “I came here to see something new!”

This didn’t exclude a few familiar sights and sounds, though, such as Sarah Boyle’s Remember, which was shot over at Broadway’s Kiddie Park and got a good reception.

With such encouraging turn-outs and new little festivals and conferences popping up every year, it’s a good time to be a filmmaker in San Antonio. Though it’s not quite known for its film scene (yet), it’s nice to see independent film alive and well tonight in the River City.