Huntington Beach Cultural Film Festival continues to support human dignity
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V.C. Rhone is a Huntington Beach-based writer, producer and director. If there’s one thing she knows about a show, it must go on.
The Huntington Beach City Council axed the city’s Human Relations Committee, which was chaired by Rhone, in 2023. But that doesn’t mean the work has finished.
The Huntington Beach Cultural Film Festival returns on Labor Day weekend, Sept. 4-5, with two days of short films planned at Community United Methodist Church in Huntington Beach.
Funding for the showcase was previously provided by the committee, and it’s been self-funded since.
“We’re just continuing to go, and continuing on,” said Rhone, the festival’s director, recently. “I’ve been doing it silently, because it’s just such a toxic environment. Once you have a target on your back, it’s a little harder to move, so I’ve just been moving silently.”
Then she saw a social media post that encouraged her to poke her head out a little bit more.
“The group has disbanded, but there are still people here who still uphold those principles and values, and they still mean something,” Rhone said. “We’re just doing our thing. I really am looking for a way to reach out to people in the community who still share some of those same values, to let them know that there’s something here in the community for you.”
The festival highlights more than 20 short films. There will be a two-hour block on Friday night, Sept. 4, and three more the following day, each with a corresponding panel.
The festival will kick off with a screening of “Tough Enough,” which tells the story of Frankie Groves, the teenager who made history in Texas in 1947 as the first female high school football player. Director Laura Somers is expected to be in attendance; Rhone was producer of the short film.
“We thought it was such an important piece, with so much going on with women in sports,” Rhone said. “Whether you agree or don’t agree about [transgender] women playing sports, it’s not even the issue. The issue is just that we have women in sports, you know?”
Each block of short films has a common theme. All of the Friday night selections were directed by females.
The second block, which starts Saturday at noon, is dubbed “The Brave Ones” and features films from military veterans, active first responders and disabled filmmakers. It includes “Natty,” which chronicles the life of Natalie Rose, a woman living with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The film was directed by David Fortune, an NAACP Image Award nominee whose film “Color Book” — about a devoted single father raising his son with Down Syndrome — was recently acquired by Netflix.
The second block also features “Every 85 Minutes,” about a U.S. Army veteran in Las Vegas suffering from post traumatic stress disorder and military sexual trauma. An active duty Army reservist is in the lead role and a Vietnam veteran in a supporting role, and the film had a large team of veterans taking on roles behind the camera.
The third block of films is dedicated to Huntington Beach culture and lifestyle. It features “Salty,” a film about an aging surfer.
“This is one that actually became one of my favorite films,” Rhone said. “It’s just such a funny film.”
The block also includes “The Sea & She,” a coming-of-age surf documentary that’s narrated by five-time world surfing champion Carissa Moore.
The festival closes with the fourth block, dubbed “Can We Talk?,” which features films dealing with weightier issues. “Disordered,” directed by Corey Allen, tells the story of a character, J. Doe, who navigates a post-apocalyptic wreck of a nation as “Black patient zero.” Rhone said the film has become a favorite among the festival’s jury.
An awards presentation will wrap things up on Saturday evening.
Rhone, who served as a missionary in the Middle East for a time, believes film also plays a role in helping society. She has directed several films now playing at festivals, she said.
“It’s truly a passion that I have to help people, all people,” she said. “Anyone who needs help, that is something that I’m still very much about doing. Now, our phrase is, ‘Using the arts to promote human dignity.’ That’s something that we did with the Human Relations Committee, and it’s something that I’m still continuing to do. All of our films touch on that in some way.”
Tickets for the Huntington Beach Cultural Film Festival and more information are available at thecinemashowcase.com. Each block costs $20 individually, or an all-weekend pass is $60.
