The Builder
(Rick Alverson, 2009, 94 min.)
With co-writer and director Rick Alverson
6:30 pm
The Firehouse Theatre
Admission $5

Many Richmonders know Rick Alverson through his music (Spokane); now come get to know Rick Alverson, filmmaker, through his new feature, The Builder. From its opening meditative moments when we first meet “the builder” as he moves through his morning rituals – taking a bath, cutting his hair with scissors, making coffee, boiling eggs and eating – we know right away this is not your standard movie fare. Following an Irish immigrant carpenter from coastal Queens to the Catskills to Richmond and beyond, The Builder is an American existential portrait that explores the gulf between the idea of a thing and the thing itself. Alverson explains: “This type of production is meant to be small, intimate, local – I cast people who I know, whose personalities I understand, so that I can recontextualize them in the film. I really don’t want to project a worldview. I find that reprehensible, arrogant. A film should be much more communal, something captured that we’re looking at together.” Rick Alverson will be on hand to introduce the film and for a post-screening Q&A.

The Secret To A Happy Ending: A documentary about the Drive-By Truckers
(Barr Weissman, 2010, color, 101 min.)
With filmmaker Barr Weissman and artist Wes Freed
9:30 pm
The Byrd Theatre
Admission $5

This is a film about the redemptive power of rock and roll; it’s about the American South, where rock was born; it’s about a band straddling the borders of rock, punk and country; it’s about making art, making love and making a living; it’s about the Drive-By Truckers. This film documents the band and their fans as they explore tales of human weakness and redemption. With unparalleled access, this documentary encompasses three critical years of touring and recording as the band struggles to overcome trauma and survives a near breakup, in a persistent search for a happy ending. Filmmaker Barr Weissman will be on hand for a post-screening Q&A and artist Wes Freed, who created original artwork for the film, will sign and sell STAHE movie posters.