Free Loony Film Festival returns to the Sarnia Library Theatre

The second Loony Film Festival brings free Canadian and local shorts to the Sarnia Library Theatre on Saturday, Oct. 3. Organizer Sean Johnson wants a room where independent work can be seen without a ticket or a submission fee.

The Loony Film Festival is back at the Sarnia Library Theatre on Saturday, Oct. 3, from noon to 4 p.m., with no ticket at the door and no fee charged to the filmmakers who got in.

Sean Johnson, a Sarnia independent filmmaker who runs Film Schtuff Inc., started the festival after watching how often that kind of work never reaches a screen outside Toronto or Vancouver.

“There’s lots of film festivals out there but not many focus on independent films, let alone ones from places outside the major cities like Toronto, or Vancouver,” Johnson said. “Also many festivals charge filmmakers to submit their film and sometimes that isn’t in the budget for a lot of artists that are fantastic but don’t have the support of studios or major film schools behind them.”

Last year’s first edition filled the same downtown theatre on Oct. 4. Johnson’s company later posted that the program was pulled from almost 250 submissions. The festival listing still caps the room at 300 seats and still bars generative AI “in any capacity from script to visuals.”

This year’s shorts are all under 15 minutes. Johnson said the program mixes local work with films from across Canada, in horror, comedy, drama, documentary and animation.

“I want it to really be a good place for the community to enjoy independent art that normally they wouldn’t come across on their streaming services,” he said.

The Library Theatre, at 124 Christina St. S., already carries a regular film habit. cineSARNIA has used the room for 30 seasons of Canadian and international features. Community groups have also booked it for free public screenings. Johnson called the venue “a staple of our downtown hub,” with a theatre he likes and staff who made the booking work.

Nobody is underwriting the afternoon with a grant. Johnson said the festival runs on merch and concession sales. A vendor room will sell DVDs, Blu-rays, VHS tapes, exclusive merchandise and collectibles. Filmmakers can sell their own discs. Trophies go out at an awards ceremony for people who show up.

That free-door policy is the point.

“This event is meant to celebrate independent Canadian film and it’s important to me that this event is accessible for anyone in our community to come and watch the films and not have to worry about an admission price and just enjoy themselves,” Johnson said.

He argues the timing matters because local talent has few public rooms left, and because AI is shrinking paid work even further.

“I feel like there are so many great people in this city with tremendous talent but unfortunately don’t have a chance to showcase it,” he said. “Plus with the rise of A.I there’s even less chances for these people to even find work with their talent let alone simple opportunities to display it to the public. I’d really love for Sarnia to develop a great film community that can work together to uplift each other.”

The crew behind the day is volunteer. Johnson named Chris Cave, who runs The Cave, the long-running collectibles shop at 145 Davis St.; Danielle Pettit; Chuck Kicknosway; and himself. Local filmmakers on the program include David Lauzier, a Sarnia Francophone filmmaker who reviewed last year’s festival on FilmFreeway and said he would be back, and Alan Branton.

Johnson released his own feature, Inner Earth Attacks: A Love Story, in 2021. It was shot around Sarnia-Lambton — including the former Sarnia General Hospital, a former Taco Bell and the old Murray Street school in Corunna — and sold on DVD at The Cave.

His hope for Oct. 3 is smaller than a circuit. He wants people in the same room.

“My goal to bring the festival to the downtown library is to have a space for people to meet and connect with other people locally who love and make films,” Johnson said. “As well as hopefully inspire some of the attendees to maybe make a film themselves.”

If you go

What: Loony Film Festival, free short-film program, vendor room and awards
When: Saturday, Oct. 3, noon to 4 p.m.
Where: Sarnia Library Theatre, 124 Christina St. S.
Cost: Free
Notes: Shorts under 15 minutes; no generative AI in the selected films. Seating is limited.