Photo by: N.L. Belardes
One Bakersfield Woman's Blog to Mankind
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
Matildakay Redux: Volume 1, Issue 3 – Noveltown Presents ‘Cinema of the Lords’ Short Film Contest
A friend and I walked down Oleander Street the other day, admiring houses and trees, having a little ‘girl time’. We walked around Beale Park and stopped to watch kids run and play in one of Bakersfield’s newest city spray parks.
“This is the famous Oleander Street of that Lords: Part One book,” I said as we continued.
“Oh really?”
I had loaned her my copy of Lords: Part One by N.L. Belardes and she had just read about the big 1977 dust storm.
“So that was the park where Minstrel and the other kids were hanging out?” She asked.
“Yeah.”
“Whoa! This is weird,” she whispered. “I feel like I’m walking inside the story I’m reading.”
“Yeah, it’s kind of neat to be somewhere a book was written about.”
“I wonder which house is Simon Sundale’s big creepy mansion?” She asked as we passed by some of the street’s mid-20th Century houses.
“I think it’s that one,” I said, pointing to a huge house with a wrap around porch on the corner of Oleander and Chester Lane.
“That place does look creepy.” She stopped across the street from the house and stared.
After a few minutes we noticed something odd about another house.
“Does that front door have curtains hung over it?” I asked.
“Yeah it looks like it,” she said.
“How strange!”
“Very.”
“I think it’s an interior decorating faux pas to hang curtains over your front door on the outside of your house,” I remarked.
She nodded.
“What would make a person do that?” She asked.
“I don’t know.”
“Either they ran out of things to decorate on the inside of their house or they’re hiding something.”
“Weird.”
“Definitely weird.”
“Is that a valance and a rod iron decorative curtain rod?” I asked as we crept closer for a better look.
“Oh my! The lady that lives here must be crazy! Who hangs curtains over their front door?” She exclaimed.
“Look there’s a note on the mailbox.” I pointed out.
“What’s it say?” She asked.
I snuck over to the mailbox to read the note while my friend kept watch.
DOOR UNLOCKED
ENTER QUIETLY
ABSOLUTELY NO SOUND
I read the sign aloud.
“This is creepy! Look I have goose bumps!” She exclaimed.
The hair on the back of my neck was standing up.
“Want to see what’s behind curtain #1?” I asked.
“OK,” she hesitated.
I reached my hand through the dark curtains, found the doorknob of the sturdy oak door, turned it and pushed the door ajar. It was dark inside the house and there were candles lit about the room. We stood against a wall in the shadows when suddenly we heard voices.
“Where is Gregory? I’m about to speak.”
“No one’s seen him. I’ve inquired of the group and I haven’t heard a thing.”
“I don’t like this behavior at all.”
“Shall I look for him? Shall I try calling him?”
“No. We can’t postpone. I’m not in the mood to wait. He knows he’s supposed to be here. In fact, he has to be here. For him not to show up to this event is unforgivable.”
“This is a sacred night.”
Spooked, we grabbed for each other in the dark holding our breath. Our knees shook.
“Yes, one of our most sacred ever. This is unbearable. But the show must go on as they say.”
Just then I noticed there were twenty other men in the room too. They were wearing some kind of ceremonial robes and their faces were dark shadows.
“What’s going on in here?” My friend whispered in my ear.
“I don’t know.” I whispered.
The man began speaking again…
“Do you know who the Lords of the Southern Valley are? We are people who want to change the future, but who have control of the present in the meantime. Did you know that some people would just let this valley rot into a cesspool of chaos? There are entities of which we must retain a firm grasp over. Politics, police, the judicial system; that means crime; county government and lawmaking; water, oil and agriculture. All of the media. Not just my newspaper. The media controls behavior. Do you know what that means? We control how people act. If we want the masses excited about something, all we have to do is tell stories. These stories feed into popular beliefs. You know, if people believe the end of the world is near, then we can help them to continue to believe that, for years to come. If we want to preserve our way of life, it is simple. We must retain control. Symbolically, we test our control methods now and then in sacred acts. And through such acts, we remind those around us that to be sacred is to be secret. Let this tape be a symbol of our power, that we are truly to be feared, and that we are truly untouched, and that the minds of this city are easily and forever broken.”
A movie began to play on a screen behind the man at the end of his speech. The other men crowded around eagerly, hungrily to watch.
And then the man held out his arms and began speaking again…
“This is me. This is us. This is our sacred moment. I have waited to show this to all of you. Although a few of you have seen these images, we finally have the perfect moment together, and that, my friends, is tonight.”
“OH MY GOD IT’S REAL! THE LORDS ARE REAL!” My friend screamed giving away our existence.
“CUT!” A man yelled as the house lights suddenly came on and the movie stopped playing.
“Who are you and what are you doing in the middle of my film shoot?” An angry director yelled at us.
“Film shoot?” I timidly asked.
“Yes, film shoot. We’re filming a scene from the novel Lords: Part One for Noveltown’s Cinema of the Lords short film contest.” He explained.
“Short film contest? This is a movie? You’re all in a movie?” I asked relieved.
“Yeah. I’m gonna win the cash grand prize!” He said winking at me.
“Take five everyone,” he instructed his actors.
“You sure had us fooled,” I mumbled.
“Yeah, I thought we were gonners for sure,” my friend exclaimed.
“A film contest on Lords: Part One, that’s really cool. How do you enter?” I asked the director. He didn’t look scary at all in the light.
“All you have to do is beg, borrow, buy or steal a copy of Lords: Part One and film a scene based on the novel, then mail it in to Noveltown with the entry fee,” he explained
“Any kind of movie you want?”
“Yeah. It could be drama, horror, documentary, comedy, mockumentary, claymation, or animation. Anything your creative juices come up with.”
“How long of a movie do you have to make?”
“3-10 minutes long.”
“Is it a DVD or film that plays on a projector?”
“All entries must be on DVD,” he explained.
“How much does it cost to enter the contest?”
“$15 bucks for every film entry. You can submit as many films as you want.”
“That’s cheap!”
“Yeah,” he winked.
“Hey you guys want to stick around and watch?” The director asked.
“Cool.” We both said.
“Ok. Let’s get ready to go again,” the director instructed in a booming voice as we found a place to sit and watch.
********
So what are all you filmmakers waiting for? Get all your friends together, dress them up like the Lords of Bakersfield, make sure you have a kid to play the star Minstrel… and get to filmmaking!
I can’t wait to see all your wonderful creepy short films…
Purchase your copy of Lords: Part One here.
More contest info:
Cinema of the Lords’ short film contest. Grand prize to be announced! We're hoping the grand prize will surpass $1000.00. All you have to do is beg, borrow or steal a copy of Lords: Part One as all entries have to be based on a scene from the dark N.L. Belardes novel on creepy happenings in Bakersfield, circa 1977.
Short films must be based/loosely based on a scene from the dark N.L. Belardes novel Lords: Part One, but can be drama, horror, documentary, comedy, mockumentary, claymation, or animation.
Entry fee is $15 per entry. You can enter as many times as you like.
Entries must be original working files submitted on DVD (not embedded) and be at least 3-10 minutes in length. We will be uploading to youtube.com.
All entries will be posted on Noveltown.net and possibly shown at an upcoming Bakersfield Independent Film Festival.
Remember, Bakersfield is in Hollywood’s backyard, only 100 miles north…
Entries and entry fees are due by October 1st with winners announced on Halloween, 2006.
Contact melody@noveltown.net with any more questions on this very creepy short film contest.
Mail your entries and entry fee to:
Cinema of the Lords contest:
Noveltown
P.O. Box 10115
Bakersfield, CA 93389
You’re not going to want to miss out on this exciting Noveltown project.
The ‘Cinema of the Lords’ short film contest is Noveltown’s first short film event in its continuing cultural vision of helping fuse California’s Southern Central Valley arts into one community.
Learn more about Noveltown here…
Watch the promotional short film about the Cinema of the Lords short film contest by Jarod Mann of Meatydish Productions and get inspired to create your own Lords: Part One short film.
A friend and I walked down Oleander Street the other day, admiring houses and trees, having a little ‘girl time’. We walked around Beale Park and stopped to watch kids run and play in one of Bakersfield’s newest city spray parks.
“This is the famous Oleander Street of that Lords: Part One book,” I said as we continued.
“Oh really?”
I had loaned her my copy of Lords: Part One by N.L. Belardes and she had just read about the big 1977 dust storm.
“So that was the park where Minstrel and the other kids were hanging out?” She asked.
“Yeah.”
“Whoa! This is weird,” she whispered. “I feel like I’m walking inside the story I’m reading.”
“Yeah, it’s kind of neat to be somewhere a book was written about.”
“I wonder which house is Simon Sundale’s big creepy mansion?” She asked as we passed by some of the street’s mid-20th Century houses.
“I think it’s that one,” I said, pointing to a huge house with a wrap around porch on the corner of Oleander and Chester Lane.
“That place does look creepy.” She stopped across the street from the house and stared.
After a few minutes we noticed something odd about another house.
“Does that front door have curtains hung over it?” I asked.
“Yeah it looks like it,” she said.
“How strange!”
“Very.”
“I think it’s an interior decorating faux pas to hang curtains over your front door on the outside of your house,” I remarked.
She nodded.
“What would make a person do that?” She asked.
“I don’t know.”
“Either they ran out of things to decorate on the inside of their house or they’re hiding something.”
“Weird.”
“Definitely weird.”
“Is that a valance and a rod iron decorative curtain rod?” I asked as we crept closer for a better look.
“Oh my! The lady that lives here must be crazy! Who hangs curtains over their front door?” She exclaimed.
“Look there’s a note on the mailbox.” I pointed out.
“What’s it say?” She asked.
I snuck over to the mailbox to read the note while my friend kept watch.
DOOR UNLOCKED
ENTER QUIETLY
ABSOLUTELY NO SOUND
I read the sign aloud.
“This is creepy! Look I have goose bumps!” She exclaimed.
The hair on the back of my neck was standing up.
“Want to see what’s behind curtain #1?” I asked.
“OK,” she hesitated.
I reached my hand through the dark curtains, found the doorknob of the sturdy oak door, turned it and pushed the door ajar. It was dark inside the house and there were candles lit about the room. We stood against a wall in the shadows when suddenly we heard voices.
“Where is Gregory? I’m about to speak.”
“No one’s seen him. I’ve inquired of the group and I haven’t heard a thing.”
“I don’t like this behavior at all.”
“Shall I look for him? Shall I try calling him?”
“No. We can’t postpone. I’m not in the mood to wait. He knows he’s supposed to be here. In fact, he has to be here. For him not to show up to this event is unforgivable.”
“This is a sacred night.”
Spooked, we grabbed for each other in the dark holding our breath. Our knees shook.
“Yes, one of our most sacred ever. This is unbearable. But the show must go on as they say.”
Just then I noticed there were twenty other men in the room too. They were wearing some kind of ceremonial robes and their faces were dark shadows.
“What’s going on in here?” My friend whispered in my ear.
“I don’t know.” I whispered.
The man began speaking again…
“Do you know who the Lords of the Southern Valley are? We are people who want to change the future, but who have control of the present in the meantime. Did you know that some people would just let this valley rot into a cesspool of chaos? There are entities of which we must retain a firm grasp over. Politics, police, the judicial system; that means crime; county government and lawmaking; water, oil and agriculture. All of the media. Not just my newspaper. The media controls behavior. Do you know what that means? We control how people act. If we want the masses excited about something, all we have to do is tell stories. These stories feed into popular beliefs. You know, if people believe the end of the world is near, then we can help them to continue to believe that, for years to come. If we want to preserve our way of life, it is simple. We must retain control. Symbolically, we test our control methods now and then in sacred acts. And through such acts, we remind those around us that to be sacred is to be secret. Let this tape be a symbol of our power, that we are truly to be feared, and that we are truly untouched, and that the minds of this city are easily and forever broken.”
A movie began to play on a screen behind the man at the end of his speech. The other men crowded around eagerly, hungrily to watch.
And then the man held out his arms and began speaking again…
“This is me. This is us. This is our sacred moment. I have waited to show this to all of you. Although a few of you have seen these images, we finally have the perfect moment together, and that, my friends, is tonight.”
“OH MY GOD IT’S REAL! THE LORDS ARE REAL!” My friend screamed giving away our existence.
“CUT!” A man yelled as the house lights suddenly came on and the movie stopped playing.
“Who are you and what are you doing in the middle of my film shoot?” An angry director yelled at us.
“Film shoot?” I timidly asked.
“Yes, film shoot. We’re filming a scene from the novel Lords: Part One for Noveltown’s Cinema of the Lords short film contest.” He explained.
“Short film contest? This is a movie? You’re all in a movie?” I asked relieved.
“Yeah. I’m gonna win the cash grand prize!” He said winking at me.
“Take five everyone,” he instructed his actors.
“You sure had us fooled,” I mumbled.
“Yeah, I thought we were gonners for sure,” my friend exclaimed.
“A film contest on Lords: Part One, that’s really cool. How do you enter?” I asked the director. He didn’t look scary at all in the light.
“All you have to do is beg, borrow, buy or steal a copy of Lords: Part One and film a scene based on the novel, then mail it in to Noveltown with the entry fee,” he explained
“Any kind of movie you want?”
“Yeah. It could be drama, horror, documentary, comedy, mockumentary, claymation, or animation. Anything your creative juices come up with.”
“How long of a movie do you have to make?”
“3-10 minutes long.”
“Is it a DVD or film that plays on a projector?”
“All entries must be on DVD,” he explained.
“How much does it cost to enter the contest?”
“$15 bucks for every film entry. You can submit as many films as you want.”
“That’s cheap!”
“Yeah,” he winked.
“Hey you guys want to stick around and watch?” The director asked.
“Cool.” We both said.
“Ok. Let’s get ready to go again,” the director instructed in a booming voice as we found a place to sit and watch.
********
So what are all you filmmakers waiting for? Get all your friends together, dress them up like the Lords of Bakersfield, make sure you have a kid to play the star Minstrel… and get to filmmaking!
I can’t wait to see all your wonderful creepy short films…
Purchase your copy of Lords: Part One here.
More contest info:
Cinema of the Lords’ short film contest. Grand prize to be announced! We're hoping the grand prize will surpass $1000.00. All you have to do is beg, borrow or steal a copy of Lords: Part One as all entries have to be based on a scene from the dark N.L. Belardes novel on creepy happenings in Bakersfield, circa 1977.
Short films must be based/loosely based on a scene from the dark N.L. Belardes novel Lords: Part One, but can be drama, horror, documentary, comedy, mockumentary, claymation, or animation.
Entry fee is $15 per entry. You can enter as many times as you like.
Entries must be original working files submitted on DVD (not embedded) and be at least 3-10 minutes in length. We will be uploading to youtube.com.
All entries will be posted on Noveltown.net and possibly shown at an upcoming Bakersfield Independent Film Festival.
Remember, Bakersfield is in Hollywood’s backyard, only 100 miles north…
Entries and entry fees are due by October 1st with winners announced on Halloween, 2006.
Contact melody@noveltown.net with any more questions on this very creepy short film contest.
Mail your entries and entry fee to:
Cinema of the Lords contest:
Noveltown
P.O. Box 10115
Bakersfield, CA 93389
You’re not going to want to miss out on this exciting Noveltown project.
The ‘Cinema of the Lords’ short film contest is Noveltown’s first short film event in its continuing cultural vision of helping fuse California’s Southern Central Valley arts into one community.
Learn more about Noveltown here…
Watch the promotional short film about the Cinema of the Lords short film contest by Jarod Mann of Meatydish Productions and get inspired to create your own Lords: Part One short film.
you got me good with this one...
You had me going for a minute. But really whats up with those curtains I have always thought that is really strange.
OK--you officially freaked me out.
I was totally with you, but I thought it was a DIFFERENT house on that street. I had picked it out in my investigative mind's eye....
And I am also working on my film.. the ideas... and it is so evocative, it makes me cry just thinking about it...
Now... to put into film what is in my HEAD!