Film Festival Brings the World to Cody

They say the West was built on legends… and now new stories ride into town. The first annual Yellowstone Film Festival will be held in Cody, Wyoming, from March 21st through March 27th.

With 78 films taking over two screens for the week, there will be something for everyone. These independent films come from throughout the world, all coming to Cody for the first year of this film festival, which is planned to be here for many years to come.

Unfiltered by Hollywood

Many of the films allow us to see the world through the eyes of a different culture. You will see films from the United States, India, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, Brazil, Spain, Iran, China, and more. Regional filmmakers from Wyoming, Idaho, and Montana will also take center stage. The Yellowstone Film Festival offers an opportunity for independent filmmakers to make their mark.

The spotlight will land on competitive categories, including Best Narrative Feature, Best Narrative Short, Best Documentary Feature, Best Animated Short, and Best Local Feature. In truly Western fashion, the winner will receive a beautiful custom-made belt buckle, made exclusively for the festival in neighboring Montana.

The film industry is changing in the same way the photography, publishing, and music industries have. What used to be a high-dollar venture has come within the reach of more people due to technological advances. Budgets for these high-quality visual stories are less than what a Hollywood blockbuster might spend on their catering bill. While the Hollywood model has worked for years, there is a change on the horizon.

However, making independent films still requires funding, drive, and commitment. Some directors have poured their life savings into creating these films, and some will travel to attend the event.

The Beginning of the Idea for a Film Festival

Born and raised in Cody, the film festival’s director, Jacob Graham, has always loved films and how they move people. He started in the industry at the old video store near Albertsons. From there, he studied film at Northwest College and practiced screenwriting. He now works as the manager of Big Horn Cinemas.

His experiences brought together the puzzle pieces that would form a yearly film festival in Cody. Sifting through and watching over 500 film submissions from around the world, he has curated a selection that is mindful of the community’s wide diversity of interests.

Looking Forward

Director Jacob Graham shares, “My vision is to grow the festival into an event where people can enjoy independent films from all over the world, but also have the opportunity to learn the art of filmmaking.”

He is already looking ahead to next year by taking notes on all the ideas and thoughts he’s learned while organizing the inaugural Yellowstone Film Festival. “In the future, we plan to add in classes and other opportunities to learn more about the independent film industry,” Graham says.

Learn about the Films and Buy Tickets

Visit BigHornCinemas.com or YellowstoneFF.com for a visual list of films. Clicking on each film will take you to a page with more information and a link to purchase festival tickets.

TOKYO COWBOY

Tokyo Cowboy is a heartwarming cross-cultural story about a Japanese businessman that goes on an unwitting journey of self-discovery when he takes a company trip from Tokyo to a Montana cattle ranch.

The movies follows Hideki Sakai, a Japanese salaryman, a no-nonsense suit-and-tie business executive who lives in the hustle and bustle of central Tokyo. In an effort to impress his superiors at the food multinational he works for, Hideki boldly volunteers to visit one of the company’s troubled cattle ranches in the US to turn it around and show off his capabilities. From the moment he steps off the plane, the adjustment from the hectic world of Tokyo to the wide expanse of Montana’s big sky country is more shocking than he expected.

EASTERN WESTERN

We are sister filmmakers from Bulgaria with a background in documentary film and non-fiction storytelling. The practices of documentary filmmaking very much shaped the production of EASTERN WESTERN, while our own immigrant backstory and immigrant identity in the United States inspired the narrative.

This film is an improvisational fiction set in the late 1800s. Filmed almost entirely in Montana, our story is rooted in the history of the American West. We filmed in historical locations and with real people (non-actors) who bring their on-screen characters to life through their personal lived experiences. On-screen cowboys are real-life cowboys; on-screen families are actual families; the locations of filming hold the history and practice of horsemanship, cowboying, and the relationships that developed between the different people who crossed paths on the American Frontier in the late 1800s.

WHEN SANTA WAS A COMMUNIST

When Santa was a Communist – Once upon a time, in a small country in the Balkans, three ethnic groups lived in happiness and unity.

Everything was different about that country. Leaning against each other, churches and mosques did not compete which one is closer to the sky. It was a communist country and yet, Coca Cola was consumed, Levi’s jeans were worn, Playboy Magazine was read and movies starring Richard Barton were made. Everything about that country was reminiscent of a fairytale. Even Santa Claus did not visit on Christmas Eve, but on New Year’s Eve, so that children of different religions could rejoice together. And then some dark forces began to hover over that land. The war came, and Santa didn’t come for a while.

Today, 20 years after that event, at a time when the world is starting to polarize in the same way as my country, I made a film about their endeavour. “When Santa Was a Communist” is a feelgood film about an acting troupe that cannot agree with the new social order based on divisions that is being imposed on them. It is a dark ensemble comedy that talks about the consequences of conflict and divisions in a post-conflict society.

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