Sayles and 'Honeydripper' @ Indie Memphis

John Sayles -- "probably the most significant filmmaker ever to attend Indie Memphis" -- will present the Memphis premiere of "Honeydripper." The acclaimed writer/director/actor, two-time Oscar nominee and Bruce Springsteen music video director will introduce the film, a blues-based drama about an Ike Turner-like electric guitar innovator who galvanizes a rural juke joint in 1950 Alabama. There will also be a Q&A after the screening on Oct. 19 at the Malco Studio on the Square.

John Beifuss in The Commercial Appeal writes: As a pioneer of personal, independent cinema and a sometime studio screenwriter-for-hire, Sayles, 57, has found success in the mainstream and on the margins of Hollywood. His projects as a writer-director have dealt with labor disputes, Latin American politics and the environment, while his scripting duties have included such commercial features as "The Clan of the Cave Bear" (1986) and the upcoming sequel, "Jurassic Park IV."

Here is ticket info on Indie Memphis: "Honeydripper" will screen at 8 p.m. Oct. 19 on two screens at Malco's Studio on the Square, 2105 Court at Overton Square. Tickets are $8.50 each, and will be available in advance starting Friday at malco.com or the Studio on the Square box office. Tickets for all other Indie Memphis screenings also go on sale Friday at the Malco Web site and the Studio box office.

Also, "six-packs" good for admission to any six screenings (excluding the Sayles premiere) are available for $40 at Indiememphis.com. Also at the Indie Memphis Web site, festival passes good for all screenings and events will be available for $80 each (or $70, if bought before Oct. 18). Passes also can be bought at a free public Indie Memphis preview party to be held from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Friday at Otherlands, 641 S. Cooper.

All proceeds from ticket sales go to Indie Memphis, a project of Delta Axis, a nonprofit organization that promotes the visual arts.

The festival runs Oct. 19-Oct. 25 on three screens at Studio on the Square, with a lineup that includes close to 120 shorts, documentaries, narrative features, locally produced movies, music videos and other films.