Oregon Movies, A to Z

If you want to see Carrie Brownstein (of Sleater-Kinney) and James Mercer (of The Shins) star in Matt McCormick’s first feature, you have to make your way to the SXSW Film Festival in Austin, where it will be making its premiere.

Some Days Are Better Than Others pulls together  Portland’s art scene, music scene and film scene, as McCormick – an artist, curator, filmmaker amd music video director –has membership in all three circles.

From the website:

Katrina (Carrie Brownstein) is a twenty-something reality TV enthusiast, video diarist and animal shelter worker who is addicted to spying on her ex-boyfriend.  Eli (James Mercer) is a mid-30s slacker who could offer a thoroughly researched social critique explaining all the reasons why he shouldn’t get a job.  Camille (Renee Roman Nose) is an anxiety ridden thrift store attendant who spends her days sorting through the donated discards of other people’s lives, and Otis (David Wodehouse) is an 84-year-old eccentric filmmaker and inventor who strives to be recognized for his work.

The film, produced by Neil Kopp (Old Joy, 2005, Wendy and Lucy, 2008) and David Cress (Paranoid Park, 2007) is about the nuances of communication, the desperation of heartbreak, and the struggle to maintain hope through the passing of time.  It’s a sad valentine to the forgotten discards of a throwaway society, and a story about knowing when to hold on, and when to let go.

I hereby preemptively declare Some Days Are Better Than Others an Oregon film, based on a host of qualifying elements, including Portland itself, which serves as its setting.