Backseat Film Festival

Last updated

The Backseat Film Festival is an independent film festival organized by Doug Sakmann, Nick Esposito, and Zafer Ulkucu. [1]

Contents

Beginning in Park City, Utah, during the winter of 2003 as one of many alternatives to the Sundance Film Festival it quickly transformed into a touring festival that continues to the present day. [2]

During the summer of 2003 the festival joined forces with the Vans Warped Tour and its screening bus, the Dirty Erin, traveled through 44 cities across North America playing films for tens of thousands of young people. Doug Sakmann, former Festival Director for the Troma Films' Tromadance Film Festival, filmed a slasher film series Punk Rock Holocaust during this tour which garnered international press attention for the festival. [3] [4]

Backseat is currently based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The touring festival travels across the U.S. each year screening films for those interested in edgy, alternative indy films. It has also showcased its film lineup at the Cannes Film Festival.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Vandals</span> American punk rock band

The Vandals are an American punk rock band, established in 1980 in Orange County, California. They have released ten full-length studio albums, two live albums, and have toured the world extensively, including performances on the Vans Warped Tour. They are well known for their use of humor, preferring to use their music as a vehicle for comedy and sarcasm rather than as a platform for more serious issues. As of 2000, they are signed to Kung Fu Records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Warped Tour</span> Annual traveling rock music festival (1995-2019)

The Warped Tour was a traveling rock tour that toured the United States plus three or four stops in Canada annually each summer from 1995 until 2019. It was the largest traveling music festival in the United States and the longest-running touring music festival to date in North America. Following the first Warped Tour, the skateboard shoe manufacturer Vans became the tour’s main sponsor, when it then became known as the Vans Warped Tour. Vans toured Australia in 1998-2002 and again in 2013. Although Vans continued as main sponsor and lent its name to the festival, other sponsors also participated, with stages or other aspects of the festival being named after them on occasion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simple Plan</span> Canadian rock band

Simple Plan is a Canadian rock band from Montreal, Quebec, formed in 1999. The band's lineup consists of Pierre Bouvier, Chuck Comeau (drums), Jeff Stinco, and Sébastien Lefebvre, with all four performing with the group since its inception. David Desrosiers joined the band in early 2000 and departed in July 2020 due to sexual misconduct accusations. The band has released six studio albums: No Pads, No Helmets...Just Balls (2002), Still Not Getting Any... (2004), Simple Plan (2008), Get Your Heart On! (2011), Taking One for the Team (2016), and Harder Than It Looks (2022). The band has also released an EP titled Get Your Heart On – The Second Coming! (2013), in addition to two live albums: Live in Japan 2002 (2003) and MTV Hard Rock Live (2005).

<i>Good Charlotte</i> (album) 2000 studio album by Good Charlotte

Good Charlotte is the debut album by American rock band Good Charlotte released September 26, 2000 through Epic and Daylight. Despite receiving favorable reviews, the album undersold expectations, charting at number 185 on the Billboard 200. The album's first single "Little Things" reached the top 30 on the Mainstream Top 40 and the Alternative Songs charts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Underoath</span> American rock band from Florida

Underoath is an American rock band from Tampa, Florida. It was founded by lead vocalist Dallas Taylor and guitarist Luke Morton on November 30, 1997, in Ocala, Florida; subsequently, its additional members were from Tampa, including drummer, clean vocalist and last remaining core member Aaron Gillespie. The band's current lineup consists of Gillespie, keyboardist Christopher Dudley, lead guitarist Timothy McTague, bassist Grant Brandell, lead vocalist Spencer Chamberlain, and rhythm guitarist James Smith. Originally, the band identified as a Christian group; they have since distanced themselves from Christianity.(see below)

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Starting Line</span> American pop punk band

The Starting Line is an American pop punk band based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that formed in 1999.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Matches</span> American rock band

The Matches are an American rock band from Oakland, California, active from 1997 to 2009. Formed as the Locals, the group changed their name after five years to avoid conflict with a Chicago band of the same name. As the Matches, they self-released their debut album E. Von Dahl Killed the Locals in 2003, then signed to Epitaph Records who re-released it the following year. Decomposer followed in 2006, seeing the band move from their pop punk roots in a more idiosyncratic direction with contributions from nine different record producers; it reached no. 18 on Billboard's Independent Albums chart. With their third album, A Band in Hope (2008), their sound became even more heavily layered and experimental; it was their only release to chart on the Billboard 200, reaching no. 179.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HorrorPops</span> Danish punk band

HorrorPops are a Danish punk band that formed in 1996. The band's sound is rooted in psychobilly, rockabilly, and punk rock.

Tsunami Bomb is an American punk rock band from Petaluma, California. They were formed in 1998 by bassist Dominic Davi, with keyboardist/vocalist Oobliette Sparks and later joined by drummer Gabe Lindeman. With vocalist Emily Whitehurst aka "Agent M" they would become a staple of Warped Tour and toured extensively throughout the United States, Europe, and Japan, going through a number of lineup changes until they disbanded in 2005 after releasing two full length albums and a number of EP's. In 2015 the band reformed with new vocalist Kate Jacobi and later guitarist Andy Pohl and has remained active since, touring and appearing on a variety of festivals.

Matchbook Romance was an American emo band from Poughkeepsie, New York and was formed in 1997. They were signed to Epitaph Records. They released two full-length albums and one EP. Their EP, West for Wishing, released in 2003 was their first recorded album during their time on Epitaph; their full-length debut album, Stories and Alibis, was recorded in the same year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Phenomenauts</span> Science band from Oakland, California, US

The Phenomenauts are a musical band from Oakland, California, that combine several styles of music with a futuristic science fiction theme. Their sound uses elements from rock and roll, punk, glam, garage rock and new wave styles of music. They call their style "rocket roll".

DiY-Fest "the touring carnival of Do-it-Yourself mediamaking" was a festival of ultra-independent movies, books, zines, music, poetry, and performance art that ran from 1999 until 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Valencia (band)</span> American alternative rock band

Valencia is an American alternative rock band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States.

<i>Stupid Teenagers Must Die!</i> 2006 American film

Stupid Teenagers Must Die! is a 2006 spoof film directed by Jeff C. Smith and written by Smith and Curtis Andersen. During production and initial festival screenings, the film was titled Blood & Guts, but before sending it to distributors, the change to the current title was made to better reflect the humour intended by the filmmakers, as they thought the original title implied more carnage than the film supplied.

<i>Afro-Punk</i> (film) 2003 film

Afro-Punk (2003) is a 66-minute documentary film directed by James Spooner and produced by Matthew Morgan, exploring the roles of African Americans within what was then an overwhelmingly white punk scene across the United States of America—and taking place as the world shifted with the galvanizing power of the internet. The film focuses on the lives of four African Americans dedicated to the punk rock lifestyle, interspersed with interviews from scores of black punk rockers from all over the United States. Fans of the film and the music inspired an alternative movement, that later became the annual Afropunk Festival beginning in 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Every Avenue</span> American pop punk band

Every Avenue is an American pop punk band from Marysville, Michigan, formed in 2003. The band consisted of David Ryan Strauchman, Joshua Randall Withenshaw, Jimmie Deeghan, Matt Black and Dennis Wilson. The band is signed to Fearless Records and released their debut album, Shh, Just Go with it in 2008. It was followed-up by their second album, Picture Perfect, in 2009, which reached No. 136 on Billboard 200. In 2011, the band's latest and third album titled Bad Habits was released, and it peaked at No. 63 on Billboard 200, being the band's highest chart position. Every Avenue has toured with bands such as Mayday Parade, All Time Low, The Maine on The Compromising of Integrity, Morality and Principles in Exchange for Money Tour, Boys Like Girls, and have appeared on the Vans Warped Tour.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">There for Tomorrow</span> American alternative rock band

There for Tomorrow was an American alternative rock band that was originally formed in Orlando, Florida in February 2003. The original group consisted of four members: Maika Maile, Chris Kamrada, James Flaherty, and Jay Enriquez. Christian Climer joined the band in 2006 when the band was looking for a new member after James left in 2005. The band was influenced by bands such as Jimmy Eat World, Third Eye Blind, Blink-182, and the Hives.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Summer Set</span> American rock band

The Summer Set is an American rock band from Scottsdale, Arizona, United States. The band consists of lead vocalist Brian Logan Dales, guitarist John Gomez, bass guitarist Stephen Gomez, and drummer Jess Bowen. The Summer Set was signed to The Militia Group in 2008, Razor & Tie from 2009 to 2011, and to Fearless Records from 2012 to 2017. The Summer Set released four full-length studio albums: Love Like This (2009), Everything's Fine (2011), Legendary (2013), and Stories for Monday (2016). The band toured with numerous musical acts, including The Cab, We Are the In Crowd, Mayday Parade, Sleeping with Sirens, All Time Low, The Downtown Fiction, and Action Item.

Tartan Features is a filmmaking network and distribution platform based in Scotland. It supports the production of micro-budget feature films.

References

  1. "A home at last for local directors and their films". Daily Magazine. The Philadelphia Inquirer. 2008-07-15. Archived from the original on 2008-07-17. Retrieved 2008-07-18.
  2. "The Backseat Gets Messy Every Month in New York". Headlines. Film Threat. 2003-06-11. Archived from the original on 2007-08-22. Retrieved 2008-07-18.
  3. Martens, Todd (14 July 2003). "Warped Tour Bands Team For Film". Billboard. p. 27.
  4. Staff Writer (27 September 2003). "Murder Most Horrid". Kerrang UK. p. 6.