Where have I gotten to? So glad you asked. I could launch into a litany of tax prep/end-of-the-semester woes, but instead let me direct your attention to the rockingest regional festival in the U.S. and A.: Indie Grits. And I'd say that even if they hadn't invited me to spend the greater part of last week in Columbia, S.C., serving on the jury.
Now in its third year, Indie Grits is the brainchild of the staff of the Nickelodeon [South Carolina's only indie theatre, I believe] and the wonderful Amy Shumaker of PBS doc program Southern Lens. Together, director Andy Smith, his codirector Tori Katherman, and their plucky interns pull off the most difficult of balancing acts, programming a festival that is not merely a local version of SXSW but instead draws work from regional makers and on regional subjects.
And they know how to show out-of-towners a good time -- I'm exhausted. For a blow-by-blow accounting of this year's fest by my alter alter ego, click here.
