Film festival coming to Pablo Center this weekend

Chris Vetter, The Leader-Telegram, Eau Claire, Wis.
·2 min read

Sep. 27—EAU CLAIRE — The 2021 Eau Claire International Film Festival will have a decidedly Midwest flavor this year, with four of the entrants being filmed in Wisconsin.

Chris Herriges, 58, is organizing this year's festival, which will be held Friday through Sunday at the Pablo Center.

"It's 45 films over three days; there's a dozen features and 33 shorts," Herriges said. "It's looking really good. We received a ton of submissions from around Wisconsin. Every day, we are featuring a film that was made around our home state."

The locally-made films include "Blame," a mystery-thriller shot in Wausau, the documentary "Operation Wolf Patrol" shot in several areas in the state, the Milwaukee-based film "Blame," and a documentary titled "Bob the Buck" about Bob Wanek, the scorekeeper for the Milwaukee Bucks.

"It's just a charming tribute to a charming guy," Herriges said of the Wanek film. "It's a really nice piece."

Herriges said all the films are acceptable for families; none would be rated R or NC-17.

Herriges now resides in the Twin Cities, but he grew up in Eau Claire, graduated from Memorial High School, then earned his degree in business management at UW-Eau Claire. He joked that he is using his degree in all the different aspects of pulling together the festival.

"I've made a couple features," Herriges said. When he produced his movie "The Vase" in 2014, he saw the challenges of getting it shown. It did have a run in Eau Claire at the Micon downtown theater, and it also ran in the Twin Cities.

"I tried to enter it into a lot of festivals," he said. "I learned more about them, and decided to get one together. It just became exciting and fun."

There are several foreign language films, all with sub-titles, not English dubbing.

"There's a good bevy of foreign films, but fewer than in past years," he said.

Overall, Herriges is proud of the wide range of intriguing films to be shown this year.

"We've drawn filmmakers from across the country," he said. "We had some people who really love cinema."

Herriges said the typical screening will draw 50 viewers, and he anticipates perhaps 300 people will attend over the weekend. He is hopeful the public will stop in and check out some of the movies.

"It's connecting with the community, and celebrating regional cinema," he said.