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PAINT ME, BITCH!

Donnie getting “Toasted”

We’re kicking off April with a month-long art show at Gallery 5 (It’s also their 14th Anniversary celebration). This will feature:
– Several portraits of Donnie by local artists.
– Photos by Alice McCabe from her calendar and other life events.
– Matt Lively’s illustrations from the doc (like the one above).

First Friday, April 5

6-7pm Private Opening for our friends (you included)

8-Midnight Public Celebration (“After Hours” PLF dance party til 2am)

Click here to visit the Facebook page

EAT ME, BITCH!

As any Dirtwoman fan knows, Donnie grew up in Oregon Hill, where he was notorious for peeling garlic at Mamma Zu’s (and selling flowers out front during dinner). Restaurant owner Ed Vasaio and Donnie’s friends are hosting a special benefit for Massey Cancer Center.

Sunday, April 7 from 6-8pm.

Mamma Zu’s

EAT ME, BITCH! will feature:
– A buffet of the restaurants fabulous dishes (and cash bar)
– Exclusive clips from the doc
– The unveiling of the Dirtwoman/Donnie Corker memorial plaque, which will be implanted in the sidewalk out front.

Click here to make your reservations. (Tickets are $50)

INFORMATION ON SALES FOR TICKETS TO THE DOC COMING SOON (and you’ll be the first to know).

Dirtwoman will be exposed (!) to people in 2 sunny states during the coming months.

SPIDER MITES will have 2 screenings at the FLORIDA FILM FESTIVAL in April:
Sunday, 4/14 at 6pm (Regal Winter Park Village)
Wednesday, 4/17 at 9:30 pm (Enzian Theater)
I’ll be there for Q&A after both showings.

In September I’ll be travelling to California for CINEMA DIVERSE: THE PALM SPRINGS LGBTQ FILM FESTIVAL. If you have friends in either city, give ’em the heads up!

The hometown premiere will be at this year’s Richmond International Film Festival (RIFF).

The festival runs April 23-28 and the screening will be Thursday, 4/25 at the Byrd Theatre (evening show time). This is a one-nite only showing and tickets go on sale in mid-March.

Because you’re signed up for updates, I’ll send an email with the link to purchase tix.

December 7 would have been Donnie’s 67th birthday. In honor of his memory, here’s the first ever publically-released clip from the finished doc.

Sign up at the bottom of this page for email updates on film festivals and other news about the doc.

My first job out of college was running a record store in Charlottesville in the early 70s. Already a big movie buff, I spent many hours at the Vinegar Hill Theatre.

In 1988, when I was reviewing for CBS-6, I went to Cville to cover the FIRST Virginia Film Festival. It was especially gratifying to have my movie premiere at Vinegar Hill on 11/3/18 for the 31st annual festival.

A healthy crowd enthusiastically enjoyed themselves (and the movie). One of the most gratifying reactions for me was from 3 youngish attendees who knew nothing about Dirtwoman before and were impressed with the film and Donnie’s story.

SPIDER MITES has been entered in a number of additional festivals all over the country with the hometown premiere at the Richmond International Film Festival in April 2019.

Photo by my longtime Cville friend Bill Emory at billemory.com

Q&A with moderator Joe Fab.

With Rita McClenney (President/CEO, Virginia Tourism) & Kirk Schroder (Schroder Brooks PLC and the projects legal advisor).

Producer Virginia Bertholet

Longtime friend Ken Clements, who came down from NYC for the screening.

I visited my old friend Don Harrison to record an interview about the doc. It’ll be broadcast Friday 10/26 on WRIR’s OpenSourceRVA. If you missed it, click on the site and you can hear a replay. That’s producer Krysti Albus below and yes, I had that Dirtwoman T-shirt made for the premiere!

I’ll be doing another interview Monday morning 11/18, 9am on Boomtown Richmond with Robyn Bentley and Jeff McKee (who’s also interviewed in the doc talking about the Song for Richmond).

BTW, tickets are still available for the Saturday 11/3 premiere at the Virginia Film Festival (click here for tickets). The show’s at 9pm at Vinegar Hill, so you could actually drive up and be home before midnite.

The 31st Annual Virginia Film Festival will host the first public showing:

Saturday, November 3, 9pm

The Vinegar Hill Theatre (where I saw many great films when I lived in C’ville).

Interestingly, I was reviewing for CBS-6 when the FIRST festival happened in 1987 and covered it (complete with a Sissy Spacek interview, which I don’t still have).

Tickets go on sale Monday 10/8 at noon. I’ll be there for Q&A after the screening, so come on up!

A year ago today, Donnie left us for the big Hamaganza in the sky. Some of his friends and family recently had a chance to see a preview of the completed documentary.

Aimee and Alex Martin hosted some of the key crew for a lovely dinner and showing in their screening room. Thanks for their generous hospitality.

On 9/24, there was a private show for people who were featured in interviews, plus people who contributed their skills and talent or provided invaluable photos or video. Thanks to Ethan Ochis and Movieland at Boulevard Square for hosting us (and Kenny Bendheim’s yummy desserts).

Dean Owen, Debra Corker, Tammy Harris, Chris Dovi (me in the back in my Dirtwoman Tshirt).

The doc now goes to film festivals and the official RVA premiere will be announced soon.

The initial cut of the doc is done! I’ve been sending it to contacts here and in LA for feedback (and also entered it in Sundance).
Meanwhile, I created a new trailer to help promote it.

Trailer for SPIDER MITES OF JESUS: THE DIRTWOMAN DOCUMENTARY from Jerry Williams on Vimeo.