Road movie recurring theme of first Social Media Film Festival

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Ross H. Martin can’t walk away from a good idea.

“This title popped in my head: Social Media Film Festival,” the Las Vegas filmmaker recalls. “I went home, I typed it in to see if the (Internet) domain, by chance, was free. And it was available.

“It was extremely exciting and extremely horrifying all at the same moment. Because I realized, ‘I sort of have to follow through with this thing now.’ It was just too good of a name.”

A year later, the public can see the results of that idea as the inaugural Social Media Film Festival kicks off with a free screening of the travel documentary “Twittamentary” at 7 p.m. today at /usr/lib on the second floor of the Emergency Arts building, 520 E. Fremont St.

The road movie is a recurring theme of the festival, the bulk of which takes place Saturday in meeting rooms Bermuda A and Bermuda B at The Mirage, 3400 Las Vegas Blvd. South. (For a full schedule, visit socialmedia
filmfestival.com.)

“Craigslist Joe” documents Joseph Garner’s 31-day odyssey of surviving on nothing but the kindness of strangers he encountered through the online community. A free screening is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Sunday as part of the closing party at The Royal House in The Royal Resort, 99 Convention Center Drive.

“Face 2 Face” (11:30 a.m. Saturday, Bermuda B) follows Emmy-winning director Katherine Brooks on her 11,000-mile journey to meet 50 of her Facebook friends in person.

But despite its name, there’s more to the Social Media Film Festival. Realizing that the subject matter might be too narrow for a festival in its first year, Martin expanded it to include movies about technology and social change.

“I’m kind of really glad I did,” he says. “A lot of the films ended up being about social movements taking place around the world.”

And they come from around the world as well. Films from England, Switzerland, Bangladesh and China are among the nine features and eight shorts being screened Saturday.

Former Las Vegan Porter Erisman directed the documentary “Crocodile on the Yangtze” (12:45 p.m. Saturday, Bermuda A), which follows Jack Ma, China’s first Internet entrepreneur.

In another local touch, the documentary “The Naked Brand” (10 a.m. Saturday, Bermuda A) looks at the social responsibility of corporations and includes an interview with Tony Hsieh, CEO of Las Vegas-based Zappos.

Elsewhere, the festival’s two panels, “Social Media for Social Change” (2:30 p.m. Saturday, Bermuda B) and “Visual Effects” (7:45 p.m. Saturday, Bermuda B), will be streamed live at facebook.com/socialmediafilmfestival.

“We’re trying to add as much social media as we can to the festival,” Martin says.

Still, he isn’t sure what next year’s installment might look like. It could more closely adhere to its name. But following this year’s inclusion of “The Last Push” (6:15 p.m. Saturday, Bermuda B), he’s also considering adding a section for science fiction movies. (Lance Henriksen and “The Office’s” Brian Baumgartner star in the “science fiction art film” about a mission to Jupiter’s moon.)

Either way, though, Martin says the festival is achieving his goal.

“I’m trying to bring people together through the use of social-media technology and using film,” he says. “Film is such a great avenue for getting your ideas out there.”

Contact Christopher Lawrence at clawrence@ reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4567.