This Wednesday, I found out we were officially selected to appear as a work in progress at The Fortress of the Arts Festival of Shorts, in Philadelphia on Saturday, June 21st. With such short notice, native Philadelphian and fellow cast member Melissa Russo and I decided to do something different and took the Chinatown bus down to Philly to attend our first screening of our film.

When we arrived, we took the Septa subway system which still takes tokens. We met the assistant director, who escorted us there personally as a gesture of courtesy. This festival is a genuine grass roots festival featuring independent filmmakers. The directors, Kat and Sean McKnight, could not have been more gracious hosts. Their openness and acceptance of all types of films is admirable. It was nice to see a variety of artists such as musicians, photographers, and filmmakers all come together; they complemented each other well. It was a great learning experience to see our own film in comparison to other shorts.

The last bus left at 11pm. and we just missed it. The festival director’s assistant tailed the bus and honked her horn, the bus driver didn’t pay her any attention and he continued until his vehicle was stopped by a red light. We jumped out of the car, ran after it and pounded on the door yelling, “please let us in- we want to return to NYC!” The driver cocked his hat, smiled, and waived us in. The entire bus was thinking we were nuts, “which we knew we were”. It felt like something right out of a movie. We were on our way- thank god! It was a great day and I now look forward to further film festivals and promoting It’s Me, Matthew! Next up: Durham, North Carolina, as a Official Selection of The North Carolina Gay and Lesbian Film Festival, August 14-16. The film will be screened four times during the festival, and I look forward to seeing y’all down there soon. Stay tuned for further updates on new film festival acceptances.