MARK POLISH
MURMUR (Opening Night Film)
Award-winning writer, director and actor Mark Polish broke onto the independent filmmaking scene at the Sundance Film Festival in 1999 with the premiere of his first film TWIN FALLS IDAHO, an atmospheric and heartfelt tale of conjoined twins, which he co-wrote and starred in with his identical twin brother Michael Polish.
Polish’s second film, JACKPOT, received the John Cassavetes Best Independent Film Award at the 2001 Spirit Awards and the New American Cinema Award at the 2001 Seattle International Film Festival. His third film, NORTHFORK, premiered at the 2003 Sundance Film Festival and was hailed by Roger Ebert as “a masterpiece.”
FOR LOVERS ONLY, a black and white homage to the French New Wave, starred Mark Polish and Stana Katic as regretful former lovers reunited in France by fate. The film was released on iTunes where it remained at number one for three weeks.
Mark Polish’s next film, HEADLOCK, which he wrote, directed and stars alongside Dianna Agron, will premiere in 2016. Filmed on location in over 15 countries, the story centers on married intelligence traffickers battling nano-terrorism.
Polish also co-wrote The Declaration of Independent Filmmaking, a practical guide to writing, shooting, editing, scoring and distributing films, published by Harcourt.
His most recent film MURMUR, was lensed using only iPhones and an Augmented Reality (AR) app. The majority of visual FX were in-camera using only the power of an app and an iPhone. The film will premiere in 2022.
MELISSA TITTL
For more than a decade, Melissa has been developing and producing and starring in motion pictures and television. Her particular expertise is to create narrative stories around non-fiction subjects. Truth is stranger than fiction. Currently, Melissa is the Creative CEO for Hathor Studios. Hathor Studios specializes in Films, TV shows, that help form a new narrative. Hathor Studios covers topics such as meditation, human potential, aliens, sci fi and ancient civilizations and much more. Formally, she served as Head of Content and Development for GAIA.
She has produced transformation content with some of the biggest names in that space. She has produced and written TV shows for several major networks. A few examples of shows she has written and produced are Chelsea Does, Escaping the prophet, Ancient Aliens, The Universe and Hangar One. In the past she dabbled in Film, served as assistant to the President of Production at Paramount Studios, assigned to such features as Star Trek, Cloverfield and Mission Impossible 2. Most recently, Melissa has produced behind the scenes mini docs for features films such as Standoff with Samuel L. Jackson. She is well versed in all facets of the industry from pre-production to post. In addition to her production work she also writes graphic novels, screenplays and has become a consultant for new film makers in the investigative space.
Melissa also is an investigative journalists on tv, she hosts UFO witness, Alien Endgame and The visitors all on Discovery +
Along with her co-hosts she hosts a weekly podcast called Cosmic Cantina where three sci-fi writers dive into the wormhole of alternative thinking.
KEVIN INTERDANATO
He began his career on the East Coast, an actor known for his work on the rising Indie film scene in NYC, Philadelphia and NJ. From 2001, his Television roles on The Sopranos, Law And Order, CSI:NY, and being nationwide finalist in Producer Joel Silver's "Next Action Star", only added to his resume of acting in many Award-Winning Independent Films. He is of Italian descent.
An abrupt leave from the business to fulfill his military obligations led Kevin to a tour of duty in Baghdad, Iraq in 2004–05. Upon his return, Kevin eased back into film after contemplating his leave from the business.
His work thereafter in the following years on the Indie Film scene led to being honored at the 2008 Garden State Film Festival, where he was awarded the "Robert Pastorelli Rising Star Award".
Kevin's continued work in Dramatic and Comedic roles garnered him recognition at numerous Film Festivals throughout the U.S., and was highlighted in IFQ magazine as "The New Badass of Indie Film" for his portrayal of Nazo in the award-winning feature film Blue Collar Boys.
Currently, Kevin is Acting, Writing and Producing several projects, including upcoming TV Series' Dirty Dead Con Men', and the feature film, Bad Frank which hit the film festival circuit in 2017.
He stars alongside Kevin Bacon in the Showtime series "City on a Hill."
SYLVIA CAMINER
FOLLOW HER (Closing Night Film)
Sylvia is a first generation American filmmaker from a Cuban mother and German-Jewish father. The diversity of her family is reflected in the wide range of projects she works on. She won 2 Emmy’s for her unscripted series (SAMANTHA BROWN’S PLACES TO LOVE and GREAT HOTELS) and has directed 2 award winning feature documentaries RICK SPRINGFIELD: AN AFFAIR OF THE HEART and TANZANIA: A JOURNEY WITHIN.
She just completed her feature narrative directorial debut with the thriller, FOLLOW HER starring Luke Cook, Mark Moses and Dani Barker. She began her career producing indie features out of NYC and is actively producing features through her production company, DolGer Films.
GARY HUGGINS
Named one of Filmmaker Magazine’s “25 New Faces of Independent Film”, Gary Huggins is a Kansas City based filmmaker whose prize-winning shorts have screened at Sundance, Outfest, SXSW and Clermont-Ferrand.
KICK ME is his first feature.
MIKE CHESLIK
Mike Cheslik is an editor and animator. He's worked at FOX Sports, Wall Street Journal, Nickelodeon, and several Netflix shows. Mike was also producer, writer, editor and VFX artist on Arrow Video's LAKE MICHIGAN MONSTER (Gold Audience Award for Best International Feature at the 2019 Fantasia Film Festival).
HUNDREDS OF BEAVERS is Mr. Cheslik's feature film directorial debut.
RONNIE FERGUSON
Ronnie Ferguson is an instructor in the English department at Northern Michigan University. He has presented his creative and scholarly work internationally. A former King Chavez Parks Fellow and President of the Graduate Writing Association, his creative work (often hybrid) spans the genres of poetry, music, film, theatre, and the visual arts. STREAKING IN TONGUES, the music project he shares with his son, has released several critically-acclaimed albums, most recently Christmas with Bigfoot with two-time U.P. Poet Laureate Marty Achatz. Their experimental music film THREE LITTLE PRAYERS is forthcoming.
His forthcoming documentaries— REFLECTIONS OF AN AMERICAN SUNRISE, BIGFOOT AND MARTY, and 3-DAY NOVICE —explore the writing life and feature readings and interviews with various poets, including three-term U.S. Poet Laureate Joy Harjo. He is also the publisher of the indie platform Harvard Square Press and the founder of Electric Words and Music—a monthly series showcasing talented writers and musicians. Along with other poets, he co-founded and co-organizes The International 3-Day Poetry Chapbook Contest and The Great Lakes Poetry Festival. In Other News, his first chapbook, was published by Pyre Publishing in 2021.
MARTIN ACHATZ
Two-time Poet Laureate of the Upper Peninsula Marty Achatz has been a Contingent Professor in the English Department at Northern Michigan University for close to 30 years. Prior to that, he taught at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo.
He grew up in Ishpeming and got his Master’s Degree in Fiction and MFA in Poetry from Norther Michigan University. Marty’s most recent publications include poems in The Other Journal and Undocumented: Great Lakes Poets Laureate on Social Justice.
Marty appears regularly on the radio variety show The Red Jacket Jamboree, and his most recent writing can be found on his blog, Saint Marty, which receives close to 10,000 page views monthly. In his spare time, Marty enjoys hunting for Bigfoot with his son in the wilds of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.
He is the main and titualr subject of the feature documentary BIGFOOT AND MARTY, which world premieres at MidWest WeirdFest this March.
JOSHUA LAND & VICTOR FINK
Joshua Land and Victor Fink are a directing team who met as undergraduates at Johns Hopkins University and have collaborated on five feature films. They run the production company MindInMotion, based in Baltimore MD, and specialize in grounded naturalistic storytelling, focusing on stories about individuals trying to find their place in societies filled with uncertainty.
Joshua and Victor are MidWest WeirdFest alum. Their feature film BAD WITCH won the festival’s “Best Horror Film” award in 2020.
Directors’ statement:
“With The Farmhouse we wanted to create a visceral movie going experience, one that plunges viewers into the precarious situations with our characters and forces them to experience the horror firsthand.
We made this film as a proof of concept for a feature film project we're developing, with the goal of generating buzz and attracting potential collaborators and investors.”
ALLISON TOREM
Allison Torem is a Chicago-based filmmaker and actor. As a writer/director/producer, short film credits include Beefsteak, Friends Who Like Nickelback, Or Your Money Back, the award-winning dramedy Essentials (starring Austin Pendleton, nominated by Indie Outlook for Best Short Film Of 2022), and Road Head. Other production credits include Emma Thatcher's award-winning feature Provo (co-producer) and the short film Horchata (co-writer and producer, now available on Omeleto).
She is currently revising three feature-length screenplays, including the absurd, queer comedy Wannabe (Semifinalist for Screencraft's 2021 Comedy Competition, Quarterfinalist for Scriptapalooza's 2021 Feature Competition and Screencraft's 2021 Writing Fellowship). Acting credits include Lookingglass' Trust dir. David Schwimmer (Jeff Award Nomination for Actress in a Principal Role), Stephen Cone's The Wise Kids (voted Best Supporting Performance of the Year in The Village Voice Poll), and Bradley Grant Smith's Our Father (SXSW 2021).
She is inspired by artfully imagined, existential film and television in which the comedic value and elements of the ridiculous are inextricable from the humanity of the acting.
Her short film ROAD HEAD world premieres at the 7th annual MidWest WeirdFest.
RUSSELL GOLDMAN
Russell Goldman is a writer and filmmaker from Virginia obsessed with sliding doors and inflaming toxic relationships (in movies!). His latest short film RETURN TO SENDER played over 30 film festivals across the country, including Fantastic Fest, Flickers' RIFF and the opening night of HollyShorts.
He is the screenwriter of the upcoming Blumhouse feature MOTHER NATURE, based on the graphic novel out this July he wrote with his Comet Pictures producing partner Jamie Lee Curtis.
CLOSING TIME is his sixth short film on the festival circuit and first time appearing at MidWest WeirdFest.
It world premieres at the fest before the opening night feature film: Mark Polish’s MURMUR.
FRANCESCO CODARO
Francesco Cordaro is a producer, director, editor, and cinematographer. He discovered his love for filmmaking as a teenager - making films with his friends on a camcorder and working as a projectionist in his local cinema. His first major collaboration would be as the producer of the documentary Aerodrome, winner of Best Documentary at Newport Beach Film Festival. As a director he would find more success. In the branded content space, he created a film for the Greenwich International Film Festival with Regis Philbin and Kathie Lee Gifford which would be aired on NBC’s The Today Show. Francesco also spent time in the ad agency world, working for an agency owned by Samsung. There he created many ads for companies like JBL, Ford, Subaru, and Mark Levinson. As an editor for Sony Music, he worked on branded content for fashion brand Marni starring Future, as well as content for Fenty with singer Joy Crooks. He is also a drone cinematographer, and shot the aerials for Adrian Brody’s film Clean, as well spots for Kenneth Cole and Cadillac.
He directed AWAKE with his sister Andrea Cordaro, pictured with him above.
MATT ERNST
Matt Ernst studied at Berklee College of Music and the School of the Museum of Fine Arts. He is a screenwriter, producer and founder of Shotgun Nature Entertainment.
Matt is also a professional drummer/ musician having recorded and toured with multiple bands including The Tracys, The Sparkles, Titanic and Cash Registers.
His first film project, DIRTY WORK, screens with the fest’s opening night feature film, Mark Polish’s MURMUR.
AUDREY COSTADINA
Audrey has spent the last two decades producing documentary film, television, and streaming content. Her production credits include feature film PARADISE LOST 3 the television series ICONOCLASTS and multiple music-driven documentaries for Sundance Channel and VH1.
DIRTY WORK is Audrey’s first music video and was shot in the home she shares with her partner, Matt Ernst. She hopes their next collaboration will be less bloody.
It screens before the fest’s opening night film: Mark Polish’s MURMUR.
CHUCK MERE
Born Roberto Carlos Meré, Chuck Meré is a Mexican American filmmaker, actor, and YouTuber. He was born in Mexico City, Mexico and lived in Cuernavaca, Morelos until the age of 10. He moved to Fayetteville, Arkansas with his family in 1993 where he remains. He is a dual citizen of both Mexico and the United States, and he is fully bilingual. He is best known for hosting the popular YouTube series Zombie Go Boom which has an audience of millions of viewers, and he has won various acting awards and two regional Emmy Awards for his production work.
KEN AVIDOR
Ken Avidor is an artist & filmmaker living and working in Indianapolis. He is currently working on Courier 3 and other short, animatic films.
He is the author of the Bicyclopolis, published by Y.I.L. Editions in Paris.
NICK ROHR
BATTALION OF CLOUDSHIPS - BOXED REMNANTS
Under the banner of his label 'Lemon Pulp Studios,' Nick Rohr is an animator and illustrator out of Chicago.
His animated music video BATTALION OF CLOUDSHIPS - BOXED REMNANTS screens before the world premiere of the feature documentary ACCIDENTAL TRUTH: UFO REVELATIONS.
TIM SCHWAGEL
Tim Schwagel is a filmmaker living in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Not only does he love movies, but he has been making them since middle school. Needless to say he doesn't intend on stopping any time soon, because what fun would that be?
ANDREW PAUL DAVIS
Andrew Paul Davis is a writer, director, and musician based in Chicago, USA. His films have screened across the United States, France and Italy. He is a two-time feature filmmaker with PALACE (2018) and POMPANO BOY (2021).
PALACE was called “an authentic and vivid portrait of Hoosier life that is rarely seen clearly in either independent or mainstream cinema.” (whatzup) Both movies are streaming, along with Andrew's 20+ narrative short films.
In 2020, his debut LP For Now was released. The eleven songs were called “a thoroughly gratifying listen” (Obscure Sound) with “shimmer and delightful charm” (ComeHereFloyd). His followup LP is slated for release this fall, beginning with the release of Eaten on April 26, 2023.
STEVE CHAPPELL
Steve Chappell, an artist from Madison, Wisconsin is the author of the graphic novel STARK PLUG BOOK. He uses a variety of mediums to express his creative ideas. Primarily drawing, making films, and playing music.
Chappell’s film, HOW TO TALK TO YOUR KIDS ABOUT ED GEIN was well-received at The Midwest Weird Fest in 2018. Another one of Chappell's films, TRILOGY OF TEAR! won Best Animated Short at The Midwest WeirdFest 2020.
In one of his most recent films, ED GEIN INTERVIEW (Winner of the Best Animated Film -MLC Awards 2021) scenes were strung together with "vintage" footage after being brought out of hiding by a little known journalist Stavo Churchola. It has been reported that Churchola was one of the only reporters to ever interview Ed Gein. A truly unique and fascinating film viewing experience, perhaps the most controversial film about Ed Gein ever made.
ADAM GREGORY PERGAMENT
FlowPoetry(Adam Gregory Pergament) has published extensively on-line and in print. He includes over 15 published recordings on his discography. In addition, he has published two books of poetry.
He has performed with such notables as Bernie Worrell (Funkadelic and The Talking Heads), Hanah Jon Taylor (Chicago’s Artists For The Advancement of Creative Music), Vincent Davis (Roscoe Mitchell Quartet), Clyde Stubblefield (James Brown's Original Funky Drummer), Wilie Waldman, and Chuck Garvey and Vinnie Amico of Moe. He has opened shows for The Steve Kimock Band, Particle, The Big Wu, Cornmeal, Buck 65, Claude Coleman, Jr of Ween, Greg Ginn of Black Flag, Glostik Willy, The Werks, Horseshoes And Handgrenades, Cosmic Railroad, and The Joe Marcinek Band. He has also appeared on festival billings with The Jerry Garcia Band, Living Colour, Brandon “Taz” Neiderauer, Leftover Salmon, Ekoostik Hookah, Bassnectar, Skrillex, and Chance The Rapper.
JON TRUEI
THE 44TH CHAMBER OF SHAOLIN and HUNDREDS OF BEAVERS
Jon Truei is a Brooklyn-based filmmaker from a quiet suburb in New Jersey where he grew up shooting movies about monsters, aliens, and kung fu with his friends. His past work includes SECONDARY EDUCATION, a Japanese Tokusatsu/edutainment homage, and the Chinese sci-fi action television series GAMER’S GENERATION. Jon’s work has been featured by Nerd Reactor, Geektyrant, Screen Anarchy, IGN, iO9, and Black Belt Magazine.
Jon’s newest project is the Stephen Chow/MTV’s Jackass inspired kung fu comedy, THE 44TH CHAMBER OF SHAOLIN. He is also the fight choreographer of HUNDREDS OF BEAVERS.
LOUIS R. SCHULTZ
(producer, consigliere, beaver, apple box retriever, joie de vivre)
Find me haunting the Twin Cities. My fingerprints are all over the seminal LAKE MICHIGAN MONSTER. My body was sacrificed for HUNDREDS OF BEAVERS.
LUCAS ALEXANDER KURMIS
Mainly described as "weird," Lucas Kurmis is a singer songwriter from Minneapolis Minnesota. Lucas' music ranges from folk-punk, to indie rock, to spoken word, to noise-rock. Lucas' focus is often on guitar, as he's played since his teens, but he uses strings, drums, and a toy casio keyboard in his own style.
Lucas is currently releasing a visual album song by song on Youtube, Bandcamp, and Spotify. The album is called “Another Time/Life/Universe” and focuses on grays of fiction/nonfiction and missed connections.
MAX HEY (lead mascot performer / key grip)
Max Hey served as an assistant editor on prestigious films such as JIM & ANDY: THE GREAT BEYOND (Venice Film Fest, TIFF, Netflix) starring Jim Carrey, THE BLOOD IS AT THE DOORSTEP (SXSW, Sundance Now), and Mark Borchardt’s DUNDEE PROJECT (Slamdance, Fantastic Fest). He also has credits on diverse projects such as JOE PERA TALKS WITH YOU (Adult Swim, HBO Max), WE ARE NOT GHOULS (SXSW Audience Award), THE 414s (Sundance), and MODUS OPERANDI (AFI, Kino, Netflix).
JAY BROWN (lead mascot performer)
Jay is an actor best known for the use of his body in LAKE MICHIGAN MONSTER at approximately 23 mins and 22 secs into the movie.
He enjoys only acting and has no other hobbies. He does not enjoy gambling or cigarettes, or both at the same time.
ADAM REBORA
Adam Rebora is a Chicago-based actor, improviser, filmmaker, and visual artist. Whatever the medium, he has a passion for bringing the whimsical and wonderful to life. Recent film credits include the short films Doors (writer-director), Scoped Out (writer-director), Essentials (producer), and Road Head (producer). He is currently in post-production for his first feature film, Margaret & The Alien.
ADAM JEFFERS
Adam Jeffers is a 20-year veteran art director. He provided extensive creative consultation on Gary Huggins' KICK ME and is currently producing THEY CALL HER DEATH, a 16mm horror-western feature with Sunrunner Films, as well as a re-release of the 1991 Missouri-lensed superhero film THE SKID KID through his company Trash Nite Home Video.
PAT DRUMMOND
Pat Drummonf is a VHS collage artist known for his collaborations with the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater and directing music videos for Death Spells, Memory Cassette and The Get Up Kids, among others.
JEFF FRELING
Jeff Freling is a musician and composer who spent 11 years performing with Blue Man Group in Chicago. Since returning to Kansas City, Jeff has composed music for multiple film and television projects, including KICK ME. Jeff’s current live music projects include “Victor & Penny”, a guitar and ukulele duo alongside his wife, musician/actor Erin McGrane, and F/M Duo, a guitar duo with Cubanisms’ Michael McClintock.
TUCKER DRYDEN
Tucker is a writer and producer who got his start in the Minneapolis horror scene before moving on to work in the Chicago theater community. He served as a prop and set designer for various stage productions and music videos around the country. This is his first time serving as director.
SANTINO “MARIO” MARIN
Santino “Mario” Marin is an actor, MMA Coach, and former professional fighter from Queens, New York. He has trained across the world in Muay Thai, Savate, Escrima, JKD, Kickboxing, Wing Chun, and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, and is the owner of RED PLANET MMA in Brooklyn.
Mario’s films include AUTOBODY and THE 44TH CHAMBER OF SHAOLIN. Mario also plays a lot of Dungeons and Dragons.
JACOB BEAULIEU
Jacob Beaulieu is a 17 year old first time director at Midwest Weirdest, though his love for film has spanned since he was little. He has self written and directed over five short films since 2019. He is a very energetic, comedic, and creative mind that intends to continue making more movies for more festivals. Jacob has recently been accepted to the Visual Communications program at Madison Area Technical College for an Associate Degree. He thanks his family and friends for inspiring, supporting, and helping him create pieces of art and memories to last a lifetime. He hopes you enjoy his presentations and welcomes you to his show.
LOGAN SPAHOS
Logan Spahos is a 17 year old editor/producer who is ecstatic to have something he worked on at a festival. He is currently a Teachers Assistant in the Video Engineering class at school, he runs his own YouTube and Twitch channels, and does freelance editing on the side. Logan is currently enrolled at two film classes at Madison Area Technical College through his high school, and is planning to major in film at a 4-year college after high school. Logan is very excited to explore his passion even more. Logan would like to thank Jake for inviting him to work on this movie, and to all of the cast for being wonderful to work with, and he hopes that you will enjoy He Appears just as much as he does!
SAMUEL T WESTON
FEATURE SCREENPLAY: WIZARDS OF THE UNDERWORLD
Samuel T Weston is an award-winning autistic fantasy writer turned filmmaker. Raised in the woods and prairies of rural Minnesota, weaned on stories like The Lord of the Rings, Eragon, and Avatar: The Last Airbender, and cutting his teeth in Duluth’s arthouse film community, Sam gained a unique perspective on what makes a good fantasy story. He has earned a reputation across Minnesota for his fierce dedication to the craft of filmmaking. His debut feature film, the adventure-comedy Gleahan and the Knaves of Industry, made waves in the Duluth film community and was one of the top 10 most-watched films on The Fantasy Network.