“My crotch has become a character all to itself” – Gary Brewer
Quote of the day, and possibly of the weekend is that gem from Tim Doiron, regarding his cutoff shorts as he stayed in character for the duration of the festival. Both he and April Mullen had been standing outside the room that would screen their feature debut Rock, Paper, Scissors: The Way of the Tosser the entire time, passing out postcards, signing posters, and posing for photos as their alter-egos Gary and Holly Brewer. A quick look at them, as well as the marketing materials, made me think Napoleon Dynamite completely—not a good thing. But their dedication to the work and genuine enthusiasm warranted giving them a shot, so Sarah and I tried our best to make sure to catch their screening today at 5. It all rested with our weekend stalking subject James Kyson Lee and whether he’d make his photo-op time so my sister could be in and done quick enough to make the film. (Props to him for posing with her by doing the goofy face he used in season 3 to quiet Baby Parkman).
I will say that three straight days of an expo such as this can be very draining. Sure, there are some cool lectures and events, but the down time consists of the convention floor … that’s right, the same floor booths that are there the entire show. Don’t get me wrong, the artwork and collectibles and displays are great, very cool to check out, but the tenth time you’ve walked by, feigned that smile, and avoided contact so as not to be pulled in to spend money is about seven times too many. I did pull the trigger on that DVD of three horror festival shorts by Rodrigo Gudiño, publisher of Rue Morgue magazine, so all was not lost. They seem creepy and aesthetically so; I can’t wait to watch. Also, the extra roaming time allowed my brain to remember the fact that Stephen King’s Dark Tower series had been given a comic transformation by Marvel. After trying two booths, both sold out, I finally found a copy marked down from $30 to $8 … I couldn’t say no.
But the highlight of staying day three became that little movie about a game we all know and love. Shot as a documentary of “tosser” Gary and his acceptance to the Rock, Paper, Scissors tournament in Toronto, we learn the idiosyncracies of he, his girlfriend, and buddy Trevor the amnesiac. The laughs were big and the story a lot of fun, spanning a quick and concise 82 minutes. I was scared about what to expect, but the tone ended up being more like a Christopher Guest film than any voting for Pedro flashbacks. The fact that the filmmakers/stars were there for a laugh-inducing introduction and post-screening Q&A helped my enjoyment and I can say now that I’ll be looking forward to their second feature called GravyTrain, with Tim Meadows and Colin Mochrie. Mark me down as a Doiron/Mullen fan.
photography:
[1] The World Ends With You cast in cosplay (Sarah Mobarak as Rhyme, front left)
[2] April Mullen and Tim Doiron as Holly and Gary Brewer, introducing their film