The MadCat Women’s International Film Festival Tour arrives at URI on April 30 Kingston, R.I. — April 16, 2001 — The MadCat Women’s International Film Festival Tour “Can’t Seem to Find the Words” arrives at the University of Rhode Island’s Kingston campus on Monday, April 30. The films will be shown in Independence Hall Screening Room 304 beginning at 7 p.m. The festival is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Sheri Wills, URI Art Department, at 874-4823 or sheri_wills@uri.edu. MadCat highlights cutting-edge, avant-garde, experimental and independent films by women directors from around the world, and promotes them to large and diverse audiences. The goal is to give these women as much exposure as possible. The festival showcases directors who fall outside the confines of mainstream Hollywood cinema. They challenge the use of sound and image and explore notions of visual storytelling. MadCat has one basic guideline for eligibility: the films and videos must be directed by women. By opening the doors to the ever-growing pool of topics women are exploring in their work, MadCat redefines what is traditionally thought of as “women’s issues”. MadCat’s programming focuses on works that break taboos and re-interprets the vocabulary of filmmaking. MadCat sets itself apart from other women’s film festivals by curating its programs thematically. Thus with each year comes a completely new set of films and themes. Local filmmaker, Johanna Dery, will attend the screening to discuss her work and answer questions. The MadCat Tour Schedule: Telly-Vision: Liz Hughes, 1999, 16mm, 11 minutes, Australia A pair of unhappy lovers search for a TV of their dreams. The nightmare begins when they can’t fit it into their apartment. Introspection: Maya Yonesho, 1998, 16mm, 1:30 min, Japan How does one communicate without a common language? With an international cast of narrators; Yonesho proves “you can do it!” Replay: Margaret Haselgrove; 1998, 16mm, 6 min, Australia Replay is a cinematic etude informed by questions of sexual power and the anticipation of violence through repetition, fragmentation, and allusive grainy images. The film was created as one continuous optical effect through frame by frame mastering of the film negative. A Feminist Creation Myth: Evelyn Zehraoui, 2000, Beta SP, 5 min, USA An absurd journey through a world of fields filled with penises and horny milk shooting cats. Removed: Naomi Uman, 1999, 16mm, 7 min, USA With the use of nail polish, bleach, and a magnifying glass, the filmmaker literally erases the image of a woman in a 70’s porno flick. The Devil Lives in Hollywood: Amy Lockhart, 1999, 16mm, 6 min, Canada An animated film set to a naively sung poem. Through simple hand drawn animation, the film expresses confusion and disillusion about the way the world is run. The Escapades of Madame X: Kerry Laitala and Isabel Reichert, 1999, 16mm, 10 min, USA. The Escapades of Madame X is a stunningly optically printed, hand-processed, black and white film that addresses early Hollywood cinema’s establishment of a woman’s passive role in narrative film. The female protagonist establishes a new role that is sexually, intellectually, and physically empowered; one who takes control and creates meaning through gesture and action. Just For You Girls: M.M. Serra, 1997, 16mm, 1 min, USA A cheeky faux commercial, featuring two girls and lots of baby powder. Tumbleweed Town: Samara Halperin, 1999, 16mm, 7 min, USA Join Todd, the Tonka Cowboy on his hitch hiking adventures through Tumbleweed Town where gay cowpokes roam the Texas plains looking for love. Beyond Voluntary Control: Cathy Cook, 2000, 16mm, 30 min, USA Beyond Voluntary Control is a visually lush film that explores the obsessions, phobias, and diseases that constrict personal and physical freedom. These ideas are communicated through a surreal montage of found and constructed images. The Last The Rest: Johanna Dery, 1999, 16mm 5 min, USA Using wood cut animation and live action, The Last The Rest tells the visually compelling and eerie story of a wingless bird. For Information: Sheri Wills,401-874-4823, Jan Sawyer, 401-874-2116