Covid-19 failed to stop Reno’s annual movie festival, despite the closing of traditional venues. Joining with Artown for several free presentations, Reno’s Cordillera Festival put its “summer shorts” lineup at the West Wind El Rancho Drive-in. I watched all seven entries and love the quality, ingenuity, and insights the dedicated filmmakers create.
The shorts vary in tone and techniques, with animation and live action covering such topics as school violence and thwarted romance. A piece called The Translator provides enjoyable laughs, while another called The Present effectively blends tension and relief. The shorts schedule represents just part of the festival, which includes online viewing options with details available at C*I*F*F dot org.
Meanwhile, the drive in runs movies all summer. Referring to itself as a quote “retro experience,” the El Rancho and other drive ins fend off cries of final extinction. And granted, drive-ins suffered their own pandemic, dropping from thousands in the 1950s to barely more than 300 today.
In my day as a Nevada film commissioner, I kept a photo file of abandoned drive ins and saw the one near Fallon used in three different projects: Pink Cadillac with Bernadette Peters sleeping there; The Wizard starring Fred Savage; and The Making of the Misfits PBS documentary with Marilyn Monroe’s image playing on a dilapidated screen.
Before the time of abandoned screens, it made sense for movies to set scenes at functioning drive-ins, with classic moments including John Travolta singing “Sandy” in Grease. You can also see a drive-in used memorably in Twister when a tornado bursts through a screen and twirls cars all over the place.
Of course, plenty of us have our own indelible drive in memories. I admit to spending way too many of my teenage evenings at bizarro triple features. How bizarre? Well, my experiences include titles like Mad Doctor of Blood Island plus The Incredible Melting Man. My bringing in pizza made the melting man a bad choice because he looked just like my dinner. This summer’s line up at the El Rancho seems more…uh…tasteful, with flexible food options promoting physical distancing.
You also avoid fiddling with the kind of bad sound boxes old drive ins provided since audio comes through FM radio. Best of all, the drive-in lets viewers see movies as intended—on a big screen. For KUNR, I’m Robin Holabird.
KUNR’s Robin Holabird is a former film commissioner who has participated in many Nevada film festivals, including Reno’s Cordillera Festival. The event starts Friday, July 24th and includes online viewing options at C*I*F*F dot org. The site also provides a link for a free car pass to get into the drive in where gates open at 8 and the show starts at 9.
