On Thursday evening October 15th, 6:00pm, the Thomas Edison Film Festival (TEFF) and The Rotunda present three award-winning documentary shorts from the TEFF Archive and 45th Anniversary Tour, followed by live jazz featuring special guest Leo Gadson. In Leo: Keeping the Music Alive, Mr. Gadson, a jazz promoter in West Philadelphia reflects upon his 50-year career of keeping live jazz alive in his community. This documentary portrait was directed by Adam Reim, a recent graduate of Rowan University’s film program.
Film festival director Jane Steuerwald will introduce the program and lead a Q&A. The program is free to the public.
The film program includes:
Grit
14 min. by Vanina Feldsztein and Johannes Kroemer, Brooklyn, NY, USA. A film about people who keep going. What does it mean to be old? Once we reach a certain age are we still being seen? “Grit” looks at old age with a fresh set of eyes on three people who defy perceptions. Featuring Dr. Walter Palmer, organizer and activist and teacher of Institutional Racism and Social Change at the University of Pennsylvania.
Kaotic Drumline: Drumming with a Difference
12 min. by Aaron Steinberg, Chicago, IL, US
On the South Side of Chicago, the Kaotic Drumline brings people together with creativity, energy, and hope. Established in 2001, Jamie Poindexter is the founder/director of Kaotic Drumline. They were selected to perform in Washington, D.C. as part of the 2013 Presidential Inaugural Parade celebrating President Obama’s second term. Outside their musical achievements they give back to their community, youth, and churches with guidance hands on training with the drums, and much more.
Leo: Keeping the Music Alive
28 min. by Adam Reim, Sewell, NJ, USA. An aging jazz promoter in West Philadelphia, Leo Gadson, reflects upon his 50-year career of keeping live jazz alive in the community.
The Thomas Edison Film Festival (TEFF) is an international juried competition celebrating all genres and independent filmmakers across the globe. TEFF is an Academy Award® Qualifying Festival for animated and experimental shorts, and a Canadian Screen Award Qualifying Festival, the only film festival in New Jersey to hold these designations.
For 45 years, the Thomas Edison Film Festival (TEFF) has been advancing the unique creativity and power of the short form. The Festival is an international juried competition open to all genres and filmmakers across the globe. The Festival's touring program reaches out to diverse audiences in diverse settings with screenings of cutting-edge, cross-genre films including animation, documentary, experimental, narrative, and screen dance.
To learn more about the Thomas Edison Film Festival and the Thomas A. Edison Media Arts Consortium visit www.TEFilmFest.org, Jane Steuerwald, Executive Director, +1 551-999-8225, Jane@TEFilmFestival.org.
