SATURDAY

When the bloated whore that is Corporate America finally collapses under the weight of its culturally devoid, french-fry-stuffed bloat, the filmmakers highlighted in the Lost Film Festival will be there to capture the moment. Until then, festival director-producer Scott Beibin (pictured) has assembled a collection of mostly tongue-in-cheek pranks and Adbusters-inspired spoofs. Featured shorts such as Sara Rimensnyder and Rhys Southan’s Sean Connery Golf Project and R Room’s Unhappy Meal poke fun at the usual list of corporate targets—Hollywood studios, McDonald’s, and the World Trade Organization. Ben Scholle’s Maryland 355 and Justin Levy’s Anarchy Carpet take dead aim at the disorganization and lack of motivation rampant in anarchist communities. The most serious venture—Amy Hicks’ Hatching Beauty, a cut-and-paste collage of live-action, stop-motion, and found footage exploring the world of paid ovum donation—is challenging enough to keep film-school hipsters happily spending their parents’ money on admission. The Lost Film Festival’s dedication to humor as a means of dismantling capitalism may not bring the system crumbling to its knees. But in Old Man McLuhan’s world (where the medium is the message), Beibin’s championing of cost-effective digital-video technology points to a future where every amateur filmmaker can independently create, release, and distribute a film on a shoestring budget. Is this a good thing? Decide for yourself at 4 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 3, at the National City Christian Church, 14th and N Streets NW. $4 (suggested donation). (240) 475-3362. (Matthew Borlik)