Rex Sikes' Movie Beat chats Rick Vaicius Flyway Film Fest

Rick Vaicius is director and founder of Flyway Film Festival, Wisconsin's bluff premier destination for independent film as noted by Emmy award-winning blogger Scott W. Smith “ … a festival that should be on your radar” . Founded in 2008 it evolved from the monthly film programming and semi-annual filmmaker events Vaicius proposed and curated at the Lake Pepin Art & Design Center in Pepin. Vaicius has created a standout, intimate and high-quality annual festival. Over the past four years, Flyway has brought over 80 filmmakers into the local community. In addition to screening remarkable films, it has become a unique venue for filmmakers to network and discuss projects and the "state of the industry" in the film world. Vaicius has already persuaded some top film industry talent to appear including Brian Newman (former CEO of Robert DeNiro's Tribeca Film Festival), director Kelley Baker (former Hollywood sound designer known as the “Angry Filmmaker"); director/author John Reiss (Bomb It, “Think Outside the Box Office: The Ultimate Guide to Distribution on the Digital Era”); and Academy award-nominated producer Ted Hope (21 Grams, American Splendor). Vaicius, a lifelong cinephile developed a true passion for independent cinema as a student at the University of Minnesota. He spent many hours addressing postcards for Al Migrom’s then-fledgling Rivertown Film Festival (now in its 31st year as the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Film Festival), and doing manual labor for David Lee at the Cedar Theatre, in exchange for free admission to the independent films they offered.  His love of movies has never wavered. Stay tuned to Rex Sikes Movie Beat for other great archived interviews, cast and crew listings, events, festivals, premieres, and more at rexsikes.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.