Filmed By Bike Day One

Last night, at Filmed by Bike, the annual celebration in Portland of bikes and movies, I got to have an authentic filmmaker experience—actually a couple of them.

First, while waiting to get in line for the 9:00 show, in which, among a number of other more ambitious and certainly more professional efforts, was Mimi and my little 40-second stop-frame animated film, “Bike Love,” I walked next door to the Clinton theater to get a beer and while I was standing in line for my Pale Ale, this rather squirrelly-looking guy sitting in a chair looked up at me and said, “Hey, can I interest you in some free blow?”

Certainly, this is what happens to real-live Hollywood filmmakers and why they go from making charming human-interest stories for their first efforts to churning out big-budget action thrillers subsequently.

I declined, of course, cocaine not being my drug of choice at all, although I did thank the fellow profusely for his largesse, wondering, at the time whether or not he was a shill set there by the fabulous Ayleen Crotty, organizer of Filmed by Bike, who seemed to have every other eventuality taken care of.

My second filmmaker moment came a bit later, as I waited in the special white ticket line for fellows moviemakers and jury members for the show. I got to be among the first group of people allowed into the theater, while the hoi polloi had to wait and although this did some damage to my egalitarian sensibilities, it was nice to get in and get a seat early.

The program was wonderful—my favorites were a short animation called “Flat,” a charming illustrated poem called “Wherever You Stand,” and the thrilling “Unicycle Bastards Kick Zombie Ass,” which played to universal acclaim.

I was worried that our little film wouldn’t stand up, but it looked great on the big screen and people even cheered for it, no doubt in part, because it was so short.