July 6: Madison Media Institute premieres pilot, two shorts at High Noon Saloon

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On Sunday July 6 at 3:00p, Madison Media Institute will screen a comedy pilotĀ project and two short films at the High Noon Saloon. The pilot, “In Tandem,” was written by Sean Little and directed by MMI’s Video and Film Department Chair Nella Citino. “In Tandem” finds a man, down on his luck after losing his job, wandering the streets of Madison where a chance encounterĀ landsĀ him a job helping run a bicycle shop.

Citino wrote on Facebook that although the episode is technically a pilot, there are no plans to expand the project into a full-fledged series “unless someone wants to write a check.”

Francisco Torres will screen “A Stain in the Threading,” where two clumsy murderers have some difficulty disposing of a dead body.

Though unfinished, Nicholas Woottoon will also show a rough cut of his short film, “Just God” which promises irreverent humor and colorful characters in its trailer. While Wootton hasn’t finished post-production yet, he did mention inĀ an email that he has plans for submitting a finished product to next year’s Wisconsin Film Festival.

Last week, High NoonĀ screenedĀ a series of shorts from Makeshift Media Group, and Makeshift’s Ben Wydeven used the same venue as a release party forĀ “Quantum of Vengeance” last summer. Now it appears Madison’s visual arts school wants in on the action.

MMI regularly hosts end-of-semester presentations, workshops, and open houses year-round, butĀ those events have often been on campus, so the move to a bar/music venue is a peculiar one. Meanwhile, High Noon, which just celebrated its 10th anniversary in May, has hadĀ a definite impact on Madison’s liveĀ music scene. At the very least, opening their doors to other artists (in a venue that allows them to charge for admission no less) seems like it can only help Wisconsin’s indie filmmakers.

  • The event starts at 3:00p and admission is $5. Each director will be present for a post-show Q&A.