Portland filmmaker spotlights First Thursday, skate culture
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Thom Hilton's latest short film was shot at a handful of Portland-area landmarks. Photo: Courtesy of Jr Gonzalez
Local filmmaker Thom Hilton's latest 30-minute short is a love letter to two longtime Portland institutions — First Thursday and the city's skateboarding scene.
The big picture: "Waking Up From a Nap on a Long Day of Doing Nothing" follows a painter and his friend as they skate around the city in an attempt to assuage his anxiety about his first gallery show.
- The film, which premiered earlier this month to a sold-out, 200-person crowd at the Clinton Street Theater, was the result of a years-long crowdfunding campaign and donations from more than three dozen local businesses.
Zoom in: This is Hilton's fifth short film, and it continues in line with his previous body of work, which explores stories shaped by friendship, queer culture and the surreal.
- Hilton said he draws on the work of directors like David Lynch, Gus Van Sant, Gregg Araki and John Waters — particularly their embrace of absurdity and dream logic.
- While skateboarding acts as the vehicle of the film, it has a dizzying impact: the main characters travel over 50 miles on four wheels, stopping at iconic local landmarks, only to encounter stranger and stranger people along the way.
- Plus: There are surprise cameos from cookbook author Dan Pelosi, former "Saturday Night Live" cast member Bowen Yang and a posthumous performance by Hilton's grandfather.
The intrigue: Hilton's filmmaking style is also distinctly Portland — scrappy and DIY. He didn't receive any major arts grants, but instead relied on relationships he's made across the city's arts and restaurant industries.
- As a former food writer, Hilton tapped nearly 30 restaurant owners to donate raffle prizes so he could raise funds for production.
- He used his real friends (and skateboarders) to act, produce and edit, and scored discounted gear through a local studio because his director of photography worked there.
"I want it to be like summer camp," he said. "Not like a job."
Between the lines: It also helps that Portland's cinema scene is having a resurgence.
- The Clinton Street Theater, where Hilton regularly hosts "The Rocky Horror Picture Show," plays a prominent role in his films and is one a handful of indie theaters that highlight up-and-coming filmmakers to audiences that are hungry for new creative talent.
- "It can be really, really hard, especially like in the months where I'm raising money," he said. "But I would never want to make stuff anywhere else."
If you go: "Waking Up From a Nap on a Long Day of Doing Nothing" is playing at Clinton Street Theater on June 1 and at Academy Theater on June 10.