Can’t talk now — watching a crappy video on my phone

April 24, 2009

Scott Wilson,

The Kansas City FilmFest is now under way (at AMC’s cushy new boutique theater, the Mainstreet), and what with the new Kevin Willmott movie and a look at Wichita’s BTK killer, it might be easy to miss one of the festival’s smaller events this weekend. A really small event.

At 12:30 p.m. Saturday, upstairs at Bice Bistro (across Main from the AMC), Fun Little Movies founder Frank January 17, 2008

Chindamo gives a presentation titled “A Digital Future.”

Chindamo’s venture, which takes advantage of smart-phone technology to distribute YouTube-style comedy shorts and episodic vignettes to iPhone and BlackBerry users, has gained some traction in the marketplace.

Last year, he was nominated by Ernst & Young for its Entrepreneur of the Year award, and press materials refer to him as the world-record holder for “most short films made independently.” (It turns out there’s such a thing as the Mobile Entertainment Awards; Chindamo lost to MTV in that contest in 2006.)

So, right, viewing two-minute indie films on an iPhone app is the future of cinema and all, but for now, Saturday’s event provides a handy excuse to post cranky auteur David Lynch’s finest moment.