BY DANIELLE GAITHER
Over 30 feature films will be shown at this year's Thin Line Festival. Of course you'd like to see them all, but that's not feasible. If you're still deciding which films to see, you're in luck! We have some great films to recommend for you that represent a variety of subjects.
Boston
Today the Boston Marathon is one of the most prestigious running events in the world, but did you know the first edition of the race in 1897 only had 15 runners? Boston explores the history of this famous race, including the many firsts over the years and high-profile events connected with the marathon. The Boston Marathon's parent organization, the Boston Athletic Association, cooperated extensively with the filmmakers for the use of photos, videos, and memorabilia. The film also explores the aftermath of the tragic bombing at the 2013 race and how people came together to support each other leading up to the 2014 race. Boston native Matt Damon narrates the film.
Boston will be shown Sunday, April 22nd at 2:00 PM in Movie Tavern Theater 1.
Dance Hall Days
Closer to home, Dance Hall Days examines the Texas institution that is the dance hall. Dance halls have long served as gathering places for their communities, as well as a way for up-and-coming country musicians to launch their careers. Unfortunately, the popularity of dance halls has dwindled over the last few decades, and the dance hall as an institution faces an uncertain future. This film, which is making its World Premiere at Thin Line, explores what is being done to preserve and revitalize the dance halls that are still left.
Dance Hall Days will be shown Saturday, April 21st at 2:00 PM in the Campus Theatre.
Sickies Making Films
It probably won't surprise you that concern about a film's content is as old as filmmaking itself. The first known film censorship law in America was passed in 1897. Maine's state legislature passed a statute outlawing the exhibition of boxing films, a popular and controversial genre of the time. In the early 20th century, many cities and states set up film censorship boards to determine whether a given film could be shown in their jurisdictions. Sickies Making Films studies this history with a particular focus on the Maryland Board of Censors, which was the last state censorship board to disband, only doing so in 1981. The film also explores the reasons why people might wish to censor films in the first place.
Sickies Making Films will be shown Saturday, April 21st at 8:00 PM in the Campus Theatre and on Sunday, April 22nd at 12:30 PM in Movie Tavern Theater 3.
The documentaries here have something for a variety of tastes, so we hope at least one of them is yours! A full schedule of films is available at Thin Line Film.
Thin Line Fest starts April 18th and runs through April 22nd. Festival events will be taking place throughout Denton. To get your tickets, visit the festival website.