I Drove 5,400 Miles Across America and My First Stop Was a Film Festival

I drove 5,400 miles across America and back again noticing three things.

1. Puppets are everywhere.

2. Dirty Sodas are everywhere.

3. Animation is definitely everywhere.

I had a blast zigzagging through twelve states, camping along the way and stopping whenever something strange caught my eye. Somewhere along the way I realized I unintentionally embarked on an America 250 road trip, discovering that the middle of the country is absolutely rife with unexpected things: puppets (welcome!), dirty sodas (gross!), and, most importantly, animation. The first stop was a Film Festival, where I started noticing just how thoroughly animation is everywhere. Bless.

Oh, I’m sorry, what are dirty sodas? It’s basically pilk. Remember pilk? The portmanteau of Pepsi Milk. Sweet, delicious, pilk. Well, it’s everywhere now. Gas stations. Coffee shops. McDonald’s. Bars. Curious, I almost ordered the local favorite outside a national park:

• Dr. Pepper (everything is fine so far)

• 2 pumps coconut syrup (that sounds pretty nice actually)

• Big splash of half n half (you’ve lost me)

Reader, I ordered a coffee (I’m sowwy, I couldn't do it!)

I started my journey heading to the Mammoth Lakes Film Festival, tucked away in the Eastern Sierras at approximately 8000 feet elevation. I’ve camped a bunch in California so I’m no stranger to the area. Mammoth Lakes serve an important function as being the last place to get a non-burned espresso before heading deeper into the Inyo National Forest. Get those electrolytes, bring a swimsuit for the hot springs, because we gotta watch some films.

Mammoth Lakes Film Festival, founded by Shira Dubrovner and festival director Paul Sbrizzi, is unique. One of its venues is a ranger station, with huge wooden beams and handmade objects adorning the walls. It has a handcrafted warmth that always takes me back to being a child in the Girl Scouts, shifting around on my “sit-upon” while learning new camp songs. That appreciation for craftsmanship and specificity extends to the programming, which often features films you won’t see making the same rounds on FilmFreeway. Expect bold creative swings: movies shot in unconventional formats, works that are rough around the edges, and filmmakers willing to prioritize originality over polish.

I half remember a Steven Soderbergh interview in which he asked, “Why is everyone still doing shot/reverse shot?” His point was that new filmmakers should invent new visual languages for the stories of today. We live in a different world; our films should reflect it. Mammoth Lakes seems to share that philosophy, championing artist-forward work that feels intimate, warm, or deeply personal, often evoking nostalgia for times either lived or lovingly imagined.

Mammoth Lakes itself is small town known mostly for skiing and it’s striking outdoor locales. That and it’s hot springs which are notorious for filmmakers piling in late night after the day has wrapped up. It’s charming, the air is crisp. Whenever I’ve been, I always try to take in some of the scenery and hit up the local thrift which has super low actual thrift store prices and a stacked outdoor supply section. I left with two 1940s stuffed animals that are most likely cursed. I love them.

Animation was thankfully not limited to its own category. In Music Videos, Fox Warrens’s listen2me kicked off the block created by the animation wizard, Winston Hacking. All animated in camera, which is actually actually crazy, the collaged piece evokes 1960s graphic design and Victorian shadowboxes. Meanwhile, the Axel Digoix directed video for Tinariwen’s track Erghad Afewo, is an incredibly fresh take on the 2020s revival of the 2000s 2D animation aesthetic. It’s a style that's become almost as ubiquitous as dirty sodas. The video draws on the history and resilience of the Tuareg people, whose homeland spans the Sahara, grounding its vibrant visuals in a culture with deep roots and a continuing story of endurance.

Featured in a special category, I was captivated by Alisi Telengut’s latest, Materia. Shot with a “macro lens and small handheld digital microscope”, its gaze turns skin, stone, and everyday objects into vast, otherworldly landscapes, quietly reminding us that our bodies and the earth are made of the same material story. Telengut’s eye for abstraction is ruminative and exploratory hoping to “blur the boundary between factual detail and poetic interpretation”.

Several current festival stalwarts were peppered throughout various blocks including Kate Renshaw-Lewis’s striking printed animation, Busy Bodies, and Natalie Xie’s irreverently buoyant Blinks in Mimi’s singing voice. Grace Demopoulos’s film Better Half, programmed in narrative shorts, is a mercurial mixture of projection, puppets, light painting, and weaving loops. The image heavy melange coalesces with a punchy, crunchy soundtrack. The film feels like it plays just as well on a big screen as well as on your phone. It was recently released online so you can put that theory to the test below.

In the animation category proper, Mayuko Kobayashi’s film Wan Wan took home the prize for best animated short. It’s a film I’ve seen several times now and each iteration, I find something new in it to appreciate. There are stickers, smears, and composting artifacts dreamily filling out the frame. Sasha Shin’s ruminative Juicy and Sweet and Katrina Larner’s rumbling Playfight! were welcome sights, both recent RISD grads like the above Xie and Kobayashi.

In contrast to some of the faster paced films, Shannon Lee’s Starlit and Zach Dorn’s Long Live Livia were both affecting in different ways. Starlit is hand painted with gouache taking about four years to make in total. The coming of age story is about girls sneaking out at night to party with bootlegging teenage aliens. Relatable.

Of the Long Live Livia, Dorn says that he “really loves pop culture. I'm always interested in how it affects and changes our lives, and the way we remember, and the way we think about our identity.” Looking back on his own family’s home movies, he compares it with HBO juggernaut The Sopranos use of VFX to bring back a deceased cast member for one last episode.

Inspired by a Zillow listing, Air by Anna Firth calls this her “bedroom” film. It’s a reimagining of a house back when it was a home, the worlds possible within. Created with a hybrid digital 2D process, the film’s edges look tipped in ink full of humanized patina. Full disclosure, Anna is also who I road tripped with. Hop into my Honda fit!

With a heart full of films and a head full of altitude induced nausea, it was time to hit the road.

Next stop: High plains, animatronic cowboys, puppets, and the films that played behind my eyeballs on endless roads

Things Going On and Things I’m thinking about:

• Magician Studios (Amanda Bonaiuto and former Smear Frame Podcast guest James Thacher) has finally released their walk cycle zine! I was interviewed for it with the rest of the mod squad at 24memespersecond. Really cool work in here, check it out if you can.

• Caught the fr fr incredible Lightstruck Jordan Belson screening in LA last week and will absolutely be attending the upcoming second part on July 9th at 2220 Arts & Archives. These films are hard to find online or off. Must see.

• Heavy Manners Library, a mixed use arts space in Echo Park LA, is moving! Moving into a bigger and better space while Whammy Analog Media is moving into theirs. It’s like Russian Nesting Dolls and it’s DIY art all the way down :)

• Crybaby Comedy & Animation night this Friday at LA’s Non Plus Ultra hosted by Dekunle. DIY 4ever!

• Saturday Morning Cartoons United has a few events this summer coming up including Betty Boop’s Birthday bash. One of the several happening with the Fleischer family.

• Nothing coming up that’s animated right now BUT 7th House has been putting on a lot of great screenings in LA. If you aren’t familiar with them, you can see their June calendar here.

• Also not animated, Muscle Distribution currently has a fundraiser up. They are trying to restore Pumping Iron II: The Women. Please, for the love of sweaty muscles, help them.