Watch: Crispin Glover Auditions in Exclusive Clip From Sundance Documentary ‘Beaver Trilogy Part IV’
In 1979, Trent Harris, a television producer in Salt Lake City began a project that would eventually become The Beaver Trilogy, a documentary which ultimately didn’t premiere until 2001 at the Sundance Film Festival. Featuring a performer who was then depicted by Sean Penn and Crispin Glover in later enactments, it’s a strange, reality-blurring tale, and the perfect story to capture in its very own documentary.
Director Brad Besser has done just that with Beaver Trilogy Part IV, which premiered at Sundance Film Festival last year — nearly 15 years after the original film debuted there — and is now arriving on VOD this week. Narrated by Bill Hader as it explores the making of the cult classic, we’re pleased to debut an exclusive clip which shows of Glover’s participation in the original film. Check it out below, along with the trailer.
Trent Harris is the director of offbeat comedies such...
Director Brad Besser has done just that with Beaver Trilogy Part IV, which premiered at Sundance Film Festival last year — nearly 15 years after the original film debuted there — and is now arriving on VOD this week. Narrated by Bill Hader as it explores the making of the cult classic, we’re pleased to debut an exclusive clip which shows of Glover’s participation in the original film. Check it out below, along with the trailer.
Trent Harris is the director of offbeat comedies such...
- 4/6/2016
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Director Trent Harris’ The Beaver Trilogy screens at The St. Louis International Film Festival Saturday, November 14h at 7:30pm at Webster University’s Moore Auditorium. Harris will be in attendance and will receive a Contemporary Cinema Award. Ticket information can be found Here. It will be on a double bill with director Brad Besser’s The Beaver Trilogy Part 4. Trent Harris will also attend a screening of his 1995 science fiction comedy/musical Plan 10 From Outer Space on Sunday November 15th at 6:30pm at Webster University’s Moore Auditorium. Ticket information for that can be found Here.
The long, odd tale of director Trent Harris’ The Beaver Trilogy begins in 1979 with the chance meeting between Harris and an earnest small-town dreamer from Beaver, Utah. Charmed and amused, Harris soon accepts the stranger’s invitation to come to the small town of Beaver to film a talent show, where...
The long, odd tale of director Trent Harris’ The Beaver Trilogy begins in 1979 with the chance meeting between Harris and an earnest small-town dreamer from Beaver, Utah. Charmed and amused, Harris soon accepts the stranger’s invitation to come to the small town of Beaver to film a talent show, where...
- 11/12/2015
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Trailers are an under-appreciated art form insofar that many times they’re seen as vehicles for showing footage, explaining films away, or showing their hand about what moviegoers can expect. Foreign, domestic, independent, big budget: What better way to hone your skills as a thoughtful moviegoer than by deconstructing these little pieces of advertising? This week […]
The post This Week In Trailers: The Visit, The Hunting Ground, Mad as Hell, Partisan, The Beaver Trilogy – Part IV appeared first on /Film.
The post This Week In Trailers: The Visit, The Hunting Ground, Mad as Hell, Partisan, The Beaver Trilogy – Part IV appeared first on /Film.
- 1/25/2015
- by Christopher Stipp
- Slash Film
Exclusive: Deadline can exclusively reveal that Bill Hader is narrating the feature documentary Beaver Trilogy Part IV, a meta-movie centered on cult director Trent Harris that’s set to come full circle when it premieres Friday night at the Sundance Film Festival.
Director Brad Besser’s new docu explores Utah filmmaker Harris’ years-long obsession with the story of Groovin’ Gary, an enigmatic performer from Beaver, Utah. The two met by chance in a parking lot in 1979 and Harris started filming, resulting in the cult documentary The Beaver Kid, a study in hopes and dreams highlighted by Gary’s performance in drag singing Olivia Newton-John’s “Please Don’t Keep Me Waiting.” A distraught Gary shot himself soon after the first film, but survived.
The film went on to earn cult status on the underground circuit, where fans traded VHS tapes of Harris’ once-in-a-lifetime film and the subsequent shorts he made re-creating it,...
Director Brad Besser’s new docu explores Utah filmmaker Harris’ years-long obsession with the story of Groovin’ Gary, an enigmatic performer from Beaver, Utah. The two met by chance in a parking lot in 1979 and Harris started filming, resulting in the cult documentary The Beaver Kid, a study in hopes and dreams highlighted by Gary’s performance in drag singing Olivia Newton-John’s “Please Don’t Keep Me Waiting.” A distraught Gary shot himself soon after the first film, but survived.
The film went on to earn cult status on the underground circuit, where fans traded VHS tapes of Harris’ once-in-a-lifetime film and the subsequent shorts he made re-creating it,...
- 1/20/2015
- by Jen Yamato
- Deadline
This is the 10th post in a series covering the most outrageous moments in underground film history. You can follow the entire series here.
Film: The Beaver Trilogy
Director: Trent Harris
Year: 1979-2000
A chance meeting in the parking lot of a Salt Lake City, Utah, news station resulted in an enormously beloved — and outrageous — underground film.
Filmmaker Trent Harris was working as a news cameraman in 1979 and testing out some new gear when he met an affable young man known only as “Groovin’ Gary.”
After a few minutes of chatting on camera, Groovin’ Gary launches into several celebrity impersonations, such as John Wayne and Sylvester Stallone, and invites Harris to visit Gary’s hometown of Beaver to videotape its allegedly talented residents.
Off-screen, Gary arranges for a talent show at the Beaver high school for Trent to videotape for a possible TV special — with Groovin’ Gary as the special’s main star,...
Film: The Beaver Trilogy
Director: Trent Harris
Year: 1979-2000
A chance meeting in the parking lot of a Salt Lake City, Utah, news station resulted in an enormously beloved — and outrageous — underground film.
Filmmaker Trent Harris was working as a news cameraman in 1979 and testing out some new gear when he met an affable young man known only as “Groovin’ Gary.”
After a few minutes of chatting on camera, Groovin’ Gary launches into several celebrity impersonations, such as John Wayne and Sylvester Stallone, and invites Harris to visit Gary’s hometown of Beaver to videotape its allegedly talented residents.
Off-screen, Gary arranges for a talent show at the Beaver high school for Trent to videotape for a possible TV special — with Groovin’ Gary as the special’s main star,...
- 11/4/2014
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
It’s lucky 13 — as in 13th annual edition — for Switzerland’s Lausanne Underground Film Festival, an epic celebration of cinematic weirdness, violence, filth and everything else that makes life worth living. The wild debauchery runs October 15-19.
The fest opens on Oct. 15 with the feature film debut by Leah Meyerhoff, I Believe in Unicorns, which tells the story of a troubled teenage girl who runs away with an aggressive older boy.
Other new films include the misanthropic comedy Buzzard by Joel Potrykus; the deep woods psychological thriller Mother Nature by Johan Liedgren; the complex Japanese drama Kept by Maki Mizui; and more.
Luff this year is really stuffed with great retrospectives beginning with a tribute to Beth B, who has been churning out controversial, thought-provoking flicks since the New York No Wave era to know. There will be screenings of her classic films, such as The Offenders and Salvation!, and her latest documentary,...
The fest opens on Oct. 15 with the feature film debut by Leah Meyerhoff, I Believe in Unicorns, which tells the story of a troubled teenage girl who runs away with an aggressive older boy.
Other new films include the misanthropic comedy Buzzard by Joel Potrykus; the deep woods psychological thriller Mother Nature by Johan Liedgren; the complex Japanese drama Kept by Maki Mizui; and more.
Luff this year is really stuffed with great retrospectives beginning with a tribute to Beth B, who has been churning out controversial, thought-provoking flicks since the New York No Wave era to know. There will be screenings of her classic films, such as The Offenders and Salvation!, and her latest documentary,...
- 10/10/2014
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
When I heard that Trent Harris, one of America's premier cult directors, of such films as Rubin and Ed, Plan 10 from Outer Space and The Beaver Trilogy would be in New York for his traveling mini-retro, I couldn't help but feeling giddy like a little kid on his first day of school. I was an awkward kid, both growing up in Korea and later here in the Us. So the outsiders, heroic misfits, if you will, in Harris's films, however over the top and ridiculous they are, always have a special place in my heart.In person, I found Harris easygoing, guileless and incredibly open. The following interview is an excerpt from our hour-long lunch conversation: we talked about everything from his tumultuous career ("career...
[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...
[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...
- 5/12/2013
- Screen Anarchy
Trent Harris has paid his dues. The Salt Lake City-based filmmaker has made more films than he can count, mostly shorts, documentaries, and experimental films. But his narrative feature films are among the best examples of underground cult films, including three that will show tonight, tomorrow, and Friday at the 92 Street Y’s Tribeca location. Harris will be in attendance for a post-screening discussion every night. The Beaver Trilogy (Wednesday), his best-known work, is broken into three parts, each filmed years apart. The first is a documentary about Groovin’ Gary (Richard Lavon Griffith), a young man from the small town …...
- 5/1/2013
- by Randy Astle
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
The Raindance Film Festival recently announced its 20th festival programme lineup which includes an unprecedented 105 features, 138 shorts and 64 UK Premieres, 13 International Premieres, 5 European Premieres, 19 World Premieres and 24 Directorial Debuts from 38 countries, proof of another exceptional year of internationally acclaimed films, special live events, exclusive Q&As and masterclasses. The festival will take place from 26th September to 7thOctober at its home of the Apollo Cinema Piccadilly Circus SW1Y 4Lr.T
Opening the festival on Wednesday 26th September is the International Premiere of Here Comes The Devil – a powerful fantasy horror from Mexico. Shot in Tijuana, a married couple lose their children while on a family trip near some caves in Tijuana. The kids eventually reappear without explanation, but it becomes clear that they are not who they used to be and that something terrifying has changed them. The Opening Night afterparty will feature band The Real Tuesday Weld which The Sunday Times calls: “beautiful…...
Opening the festival on Wednesday 26th September is the International Premiere of Here Comes The Devil – a powerful fantasy horror from Mexico. Shot in Tijuana, a married couple lose their children while on a family trip near some caves in Tijuana. The kids eventually reappear without explanation, but it becomes clear that they are not who they used to be and that something terrifying has changed them. The Opening Night afterparty will feature band The Real Tuesday Weld which The Sunday Times calls: “beautiful…...
- 9/4/2012
- by John
- SoundOnSight
Raindance have just announced their line-up for their 20th annual film festival. The 2012 festival will, like every year showcase some of the best independent movies that we can expect in the coming year and beyond. Raindance 2012 will take place 26th September to 7th October at the Apollo Cinema, Piccadilly Circus in London. This year we can expect to see 105 features, more than 138 shorts, 64 UK Premieres, 13 International Premieres, 5 European Premieres, 19 World Premieres and 24 Directorial Debuts from 38 countries.
Scroll down to see the full press release as well as all the feature films that will be showing at the festival. To find out more, click here to visit their official site.
Opening the festival on Wednesday 26th September is the International Premiere of Here Comes The Devil a powerful fantasy horror from Mexico. Shot in Tijuana, a married couple lose their children while on a family trip near some caves in Tijuana.
Scroll down to see the full press release as well as all the feature films that will be showing at the festival. To find out more, click here to visit their official site.
Opening the festival on Wednesday 26th September is the International Premiere of Here Comes The Devil a powerful fantasy horror from Mexico. Shot in Tijuana, a married couple lose their children while on a family trip near some caves in Tijuana.
- 9/4/2012
- by David Sztypuljak
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
The Raindance Film Festival has announced its 20th festival programme today. This year?s lineup includes 105 features and over 138 shorts and 64 UK Premieres, 13 International Premieres, 5 European Premieres, 19 World Premieres and 24 Directorial Debuts from 38 countries. The festival will take place from 26th September to 7th October at the Apollo Cinema, Piccadilly Circus.
Here’s the low-down:
Opening the festival on Wednesday 26th September is the International Premiere of Here Comes The Devil a powerful fantasy horror from Mexico. Shot in Tijuana, a married couple lose their children while on a family trip near some caves in Tijuana. The kids eventually reappear without explanation, but it becomes clear that they are not who they used to be and that something terrifying has changed them.
Closing the festival on Sunday 7th October is the UK Premiere of 7 Crates from Paraguay and fresh from its screening in Toronto Film Festival’ s vanguard section. The film focusses on Victor,...
Here’s the low-down:
Opening the festival on Wednesday 26th September is the International Premiere of Here Comes The Devil a powerful fantasy horror from Mexico. Shot in Tijuana, a married couple lose their children while on a family trip near some caves in Tijuana. The kids eventually reappear without explanation, but it becomes clear that they are not who they used to be and that something terrifying has changed them.
Closing the festival on Sunday 7th October is the UK Premiere of 7 Crates from Paraguay and fresh from its screening in Toronto Film Festival’ s vanguard section. The film focusses on Victor,...
- 9/4/2012
- by Phil
- Nerdly
Obsessive fans of Crispin Glover likely need no introduction to Trent Harris, a director responsible for some of Glover's most notoriously odd moments. Rubin And Ed, a film in which Glover and Howard Hesseman wander the desert trying to bury a frozen cat? That was Harris. Glover's bit as Groovin' Gary - a part also played by Sean Penn - in The Beaver Trilogy? Also Harris. And now Harris is back with a new feature: Luna Mesa.Luna, a young beauty has a fling with and older man then she finds him dead in a hotel room in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. She also discovers his notebook filled with cryptic messages. The book leads her to Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Mexico, and beyond as she tries to...
- 2/21/2012
- Screen Anarchy
The fine folks at Disturbia have been inspired by Taxi Driver’s Travis Bickle for their latest art print. The piece simply titled “Travis Bickle” is an 18″ x 24″ screenprint, has an edition of 50, and costs £17. Visit DisturbiaClothing.co.uk.
The fictional character from the 1976 film directed by Martin Scorsese, was played by Robert De Niro. He is widely considered one of the most iconic characters in film history, and De Niro earned an Oscar nomination for his portrayal of him. He is greatly inspired by Arthur Bremer, who attempted to assassinate presidential candidate George Wallace on May 15, 1972.
Lleju Productions has released the poster for their upcoming feature Cat Run starring Paz Vega. The film is directed by John Stockwell and hits theaters on April 1st.
Here is the official plot synopsis:
Anthony always dreamed of being a famous chef. Julian only thought about women. With neither really working out, the...
The fictional character from the 1976 film directed by Martin Scorsese, was played by Robert De Niro. He is widely considered one of the most iconic characters in film history, and De Niro earned an Oscar nomination for his portrayal of him. He is greatly inspired by Arthur Bremer, who attempted to assassinate presidential candidate George Wallace on May 15, 1972.
Lleju Productions has released the poster for their upcoming feature Cat Run starring Paz Vega. The film is directed by John Stockwell and hits theaters on April 1st.
Here is the official plot synopsis:
Anthony always dreamed of being a famous chef. Julian only thought about women. With neither really working out, the...
- 2/23/2011
- by Ricky
- SoundOnSight
Finally, filmmaker Trent Harris has made available his complete underground cult classic The Beaver Kid, the first part of his mind-blowing Beaver Trilogy. It’s been uploaded to YouTube in 3 parts, which you can just let the above run through all three. Witness the amazement and wonder that is the late, the great, the beloved Groovin’ Gary who loves his little town of Beaver, Utah so much that he’s willing to bare his soul and dress up like Olivia Newton John in a local talent show he’s organized.
It was kismet the day Harris, a Salt Lake City news cameraman at the time, ran into the man known only as Groovin’ Gary, who was so bursting with small-town pride that he invited his new friend to record a local talent show at which he would be the big star. (But who can also forget the Kessler sisters, Kristy...
It was kismet the day Harris, a Salt Lake City news cameraman at the time, ran into the man known only as Groovin’ Gary, who was so bursting with small-town pride that he invited his new friend to record a local talent show at which he would be the big star. (But who can also forget the Kessler sisters, Kristy...
- 3/3/2010
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
The new Alice in Wonderland stills caught my eye today, in part because I'd almost forgotten about one costar in particular: Crispin Glover, who plays the Knave of Hearts. A few years ago I went to see a screening of Glover's deeply strange art films What Is It? and It Is Fine. Everything Is Fine! that featured among other things, an actor with cerebral palsy and repeated deaths of snails via salt. I came away from Glover's post-screening Q&A reminded of what an odd duck he is — though a thoughtful and articulate one who seemed determined to pursue his...
- 1/29/2010
- by Kerrie Mitchell
- EW.com - PopWatch
Stop The Presses! (Or the internet, as it may be.) Trent Harris himself has officially uploaded the first part of his Beaver Trilogy — the initial meeting with the one, the only, Groovin’ Gary. Whatever it is you are doing, stop and watch one of the most beautiful seven minutes of video ever.
A chance encounter became a beloved underground masterpiece. Back in 1979, Trent Harris was a TV news cameraman testing out a new camera outside the station when he met a young man taking pictures of the news helicopter. Identifying himself as just “Groovin’ Gary,” the young man quickly launched into his repertoire of impersonations, including Sylvester Stallone and Barry Manilow. He also makes an off-hand comment about imitating Olivia Newton-John, but doesn’t actually impersonate her.
A complete unknown living in the middle of nowhere — aka Beaver, Utah — Groovin’ Gary is truly a superstar at heart with big dreams of making it onto TV.
A chance encounter became a beloved underground masterpiece. Back in 1979, Trent Harris was a TV news cameraman testing out a new camera outside the station when he met a young man taking pictures of the news helicopter. Identifying himself as just “Groovin’ Gary,” the young man quickly launched into his repertoire of impersonations, including Sylvester Stallone and Barry Manilow. He also makes an off-hand comment about imitating Olivia Newton-John, but doesn’t actually impersonate her.
A complete unknown living in the middle of nowhere — aka Beaver, Utah — Groovin’ Gary is truly a superstar at heart with big dreams of making it onto TV.
- 1/25/2010
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
Animator Nina Paley has placed her entire feature film Sita Sings the Blues online for viewing. That’s it embedded above in really good quality on YouTube, which sounds like an oxymoron, but it’s not. It’s extremely crisp looking so that the incredibly eye-catching animation really grabs you.
Paley’s situation with her film has been a big story in 2009, particularly in the past month or so. Here’s the deal: Paley crafted the film — which combines her own personal story of her painful divorce with the ancient Indian story of Sita and Rama, two gods who try to exist as human beings — around songs sung by Annette Hanshaw, a jazz singer who was popular in the ’20s.
However, in trying to clear the copyrights to the composition of those songs, Paley ran into a big problem: Namely that the copyright holders wanted Paley to pay $50,000 to include them in the film.
Paley’s situation with her film has been a big story in 2009, particularly in the past month or so. Here’s the deal: Paley crafted the film — which combines her own personal story of her painful divorce with the ancient Indian story of Sita and Rama, two gods who try to exist as human beings — around songs sung by Annette Hanshaw, a jazz singer who was popular in the ’20s.
However, in trying to clear the copyrights to the composition of those songs, Paley ran into a big problem: Namely that the copyright holders wanted Paley to pay $50,000 to include them in the film.
- 1/3/2010
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
When I read the news I wondered if we have time travelled back to April 1st. But no, it's still July 10th and Mel Gibson really is going to portray a homeless man (believable) who feels comfort from wearing a beaver hand puppet (er...) in the movie called The Beaver. Don't ask me. For a split second I was wondering if The Beaver Trilogy ( ♥ ) was about to become a quadrilogy. Wouldn't that be something?
a visualization to haunt your dreams
Mel's Maverick co-star and fellow beaver fan Jodie Foster will direct (goodbye Flora Plum... Get thee back to the attic of unfulfilled dreams!) Jodie will also play his wife. Apparently this was once a Steve Carell project so we're assuming comedy. And given that Jodie's previous comedic directorial effort was Home For the Holidays (I'm a big fan) I suppose I should be excited. I'm halfway there. I'm totally A-ok with hand puppets but.
a visualization to haunt your dreams
Mel's Maverick co-star and fellow beaver fan Jodie Foster will direct (goodbye Flora Plum... Get thee back to the attic of unfulfilled dreams!) Jodie will also play his wife. Apparently this was once a Steve Carell project so we're assuming comedy. And given that Jodie's previous comedic directorial effort was Home For the Holidays (I'm a big fan) I suppose I should be excited. I'm halfway there. I'm totally A-ok with hand puppets but.
- 7/11/2009
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
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