A SHORT DOCUMENTARY ABOUT A GIANT PENCIL is playing at SBIFF (Santa Barbara International Film Festival), and I had the opportunity to see an early look. Here’s my spoiler-free take:
On my SBIFF film hit list, I didn’t expect to see a film about a giant pencil that brings the community together. Yet, in Daniel Straub’s short documentary, that’s precisely what audiences see. It’s an inspiring tale of passion, vision, and a little bit of fun.
The film explores three protagonists. First is Curtis Ingvoldstad. Someone who cashed a bonus check from work, bought a chainsaw, and started using it to build a very different career. Meeting Curtis, I was struck by his infectious enthusiasm and by how he transformed his life by pivoting from his rational mind to his creative one. Then, we have John and Amy Higgens. A couple in Minneapolis that has a broken tree, a little bit of inwithn, and are connected with a perfect woodcarver,tis, to turn an old stump into something special. Director Daniel Straub uses his passionate subject matter experts, interviews, music, and how-they-built-it clips to turn this into a feel-good short documentary.
Final Thought: A SHORT DOCUMENTARY ABOUT A GIANT PENCIL is an absolute delight for the entire family. It’s a “sharpened” showcase of what happens when art connects and gives people a sense of community… and one film I won’t want to “erase” from my memory any time soon.
A SHORT DOCUMENTARY ABOUT A GIANT PENCIL premieres at SBIFF on Tues 2/10 – 9:00 PM
