“Our hero is not a two-fisted badass, but a clumsy geek who dreams of being a two-fisted badass.”
Set to premiere at New York’s Big Apple Film Festival on Tuesday, May 12, Nate Neal’s 16mm adventure-comedy follows a professor’s voyage to preserve a long-lost reel begging to be buried by a dominant production company. Starring William Russ, Sean Shannon, Katie Hannigan, Kevin R. Free, and Martin Barabas, the film dissects topics such as animation and copyright, with an underlying discourse on creative ethnocide and filmic racism.
“I wanted to make a big adventure movie, but we didn’t have enough money – so we made a sort of parody of an adventure movie instead,” said Neal. Satire is always tough to master, but alongside its whimsical delivery, Treasure of the Lost Reel struck a balance between informative and amusing attributes. I was reluctant to give this film a chance after catching wind of it, as it seemed like the classic low-budget parody that would end exactly as expected. However, I was pleasantly surprised when the comedy went beyond shallow humor and quickly reminded the audience of more extensive issues like cultural importance in film.
The infamous lost reel was revealed to be a 95-year-old animation, originally the product of a black creator. Not only were there examples of erasure in the cartoon itself, but also in the copyright. Without leaving spoilers, I’ll admit I was appreciative of the film’s demonstration of real-world matters; namely, media powerhouses stealing from nonwhite founders after enough time has passed to overlook a trademark’s origin.
The film was not only a genuine laugh, but also gave a necessary reminder of pictorial capitalism, racism, and gimmicks; further, the means taken to protect them.
Seeking a parody with a purpose? Give Nate Neal’s Treasure of the Lost Reel a watch at the Big Apple Film Festival this Tuesday.
