Good things come in dark packages.

For every filmmaker out there that can't seem to figure out how to get recognized, found, or "hired" - I say this: check out Jake Mahaffy. Mahaffy's very little film "War" thrust him into Sundance, onto the Pages of MovieMaker magazine, and to the top of several grant lists. Mahaffy teaches at Hollins University; so, occassionally you forget the lessons that are being played out so close to you till someone else points them out.

"War" is unlike almost anything else. I was lucky enough to program "War" for the West Virginia International Film Festival last year. The stark black & white images with the MOS dialogue and distant soundtrack leave an impression on an audience. Love it or hate it, the movie sticks with you.

It's not another Tarantino rip-off, or the next rom-com with the prettiest teens in the world, or another film school, Hitchcockian rip-off. It's its own film. And that uniqueness has given Jake untold appreciation, acceptance and accolades. It's not about popularity. It's just about the film which exists outside of everyone else.

Do that - people will notice.

j.brown