DAILY NEWS

by Eugene Hernandez and Mark Rabinowitz

>>New York Underground Expands to Seven Days in Year Seven; Lineup Chosen from Nearly 1,200 Entries

(indieWIRE/2.16.2000) -- As IndieWood consumes the indie world, the underground and alternative scene flourishes. Witness the growth over the past seven years of festivals like the New York Underground (NYUFF), Slamdance, the Chicago Underground. The NYUFF expands to a full week in its seventh year, set to deliver 21 narrative and doc features alongside more than 120 short films. Organizers indicated that the fest received nearly 1,200 submissions for their 2000 installment.

After a pre-fest screening of Paul Morrissey's "Trash," the event will kick off on March 8th with Lech Kowalski's "Born to Lose: The Last Rock and Roll Movie" and close on March 14th with Esther Bell's

"Godass."

"We exist to present a viable and vibrant alternative to what mainstream festivals offer, and a showcase for the burgeoning world of underground culture," explained Festival Director Ed Halter in a prepared statement, "Other fests have increasingly catered to entertainment industry concerns by pandering to big distributors and credibility-hungry celebrities. The NY Underground doesn’t care about mass market appeal. We create a festival that's not for everyone, and we like it that way."

In addition the week long festival in downtown Manhattan, the NYUFF is joining forces with the online site, Insound, to stream festival films and sell self-distributed tapes. Musicians will also be represented -- alongside the festival, the event will include a five-day music showcase at CBGB's and CB's 313 Gallery featuring the bands "The Lapse," "New Wet Kojak," "Hall of Fame," and "Aspera Ad Astra" among others. Shooting Gallery exec Eamonn Bowles' band "The Martinets" will perform on opening night. [Eugene Hernandez]

New York Underground Narrative Feature Lineup (descriptions provided by the festival):

-- The New York premiere of Bob Ray's Texas weed-dealing, punk-ass crime story "Rock Opera."

[For more information on the Festival and the complete lineup, visit the official website at: http://www.nyuff.com, or call the Festival Hotline at (212) 252-3845.]