Holidays from Home
A 2020 curated film, food and spirits program.
To help us stay in touch this holiday, our President Chris Hamel, is curating a weekly selection of holiday short films and features, paired with some of our favorite local restaurants (available for take-out) and a cocktail recipe to make from home.
We know this cannot replace the magic of watching movies together at the Center but perhaps it can add some extra joy to your holiday season.
With this, we introduce: Holidays From Home, Film Center-style.
Week One
Week One features two amazing English stories with discovery and kindness at their core. Things that seem more appealing than ever as 2020 comes to a close.
Start your evening with takeout from Geordie’s Restaurant off of South High (we recommend the Geordie Bowl) and, for our drinking-age friends, a simple, refreshing Tom Collins will pair nicely. Try it with Watershed Four Peel Gin, another local favorite. Then, curl up on the couch for two beloved British films, Dianne Jackson’s The Snowman (1982) and Danny Boyle’s Millions from 2004.
The Snowman (1982)
Director: Diane Jackson
Country: United Kingdom
Runtime: 27 min.
About the film: This 27-minute, animated short, was created for Channel 4 in Britain, and is based on a 1978 children’s book by English author Raymond Briggs. The Snowman won a BAFTA in 1982 and was nominated for the Oscar for Best Animated Short Film.
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“The Snowman truly is one of my favorite holiday specials and while it’s quiet and methodical approach to a child’s love of Christmas is quite different from the Rankin Bass films of the ’60s and ’70s, it’s impact on me is no less magical.” – CH
Millions (2004)
Director: Danny Boyle
Country: United Kingdom
Runtime: 99 min.
About the film: Five years before Danny Boyle collected eight Oscars for Slumdog Millionaire, he directed the lesser-scene gem, Millions. This heartwarming story of two little boys, recovering from the death of their mother, uses faith, fantasy and imagination to help them make sense of their new and confusing world. When a stolen suitcase containing 265,000 pounds falls out of the sky at their feet, it sets the boys on an adventure that helps them discover that true wealth might involve more than money.
Week Two
Week Two is a celebration of childhood holiday nostalgia featuring the 1952 short film Pluto’s Christmas Tree and the 1994 adaptation of one of America’s most beloved books, Little Women.
Dive in to this weeks theme with takeout from The Brown Bag Deli in German Village and the Short North (try the The Village Addiction). To top it all off, pair your dinner and a movie with a classic Hot Toddy. Once you have your food and drink in hand, cozy up with these two comforting holiday family favorites.
Little Women (1994)
Director: Gillian Armstrong
Country: United States
Runtime: 115 min.About the film: Louisa May Alcott’s autobiographical account of her life with her three sisters in Concord, Massachusetts in the 1860s. With their father fighting in the American Civil War, sisters Jo, Meg, Amy and Beth are at home with their mother. The story tells of how the sisters grow up, find love and find their place in the world.
“Gillian Armstrong’s 1994 adaptation is like a snow globe full of winter magic. I love it and I think you will too.” – CH
Pluto’s Christmas Tree (1952)
Director: Jack Hannah
Country: United States
Runtime: 6 min.About the film: Mickey and Pluto pick out a tree for Christmas and bring it back home, completely unaware that Chip and Dale are already living in it.
Week Three
Week Three of Holidays from Home is a family affair, with a film from the innovative animator, puppeteer, director and creator of the Muppets, Jim Henson, followed by a film from his son of equal talents and renown, Brian Henson.
Reminisce with these childhood favorites, the 1977 short Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas and the 1992 feature The Muppet Christmas Carol. Complete your holiday movie night-in with a local pizza legend. Late Night Slice’s Pizzassault Truck will be at the Daily Growler on Saturday for dinner service. Pick up a Great Lakes Christmas Ale, or a mix of holiday brews, from the Growler and order Mikey’s Favorite for pickup to pair with these holiday classics.
“I can’t imagine a better pairing than these two classic Jim Henson creations and a pizza from one of Columbus’s best local restaurateurs, Mike Sorboro.” – CH
Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas (1977)
Director: Jim Henson
Country: United States
Runtime: 53 min.
About the film: Based on a book by Russell Hoban, this beloved Christmas story, with music from Paul Williams and an all-puppet cast of woodland creatures, tells the story of Ma and Emmet Otter – a family that has little more than each other. When a talent show is held in town, a fifty-dollar prize gives them each hope of buying the other a real present this year.
**Join Film Center favorite, The Shazzbots! for their tribute to this classic holiday special Saturday at 7PM on Facebook live.
The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992)
Director: Brian Henson
Country: United States
Runtime: 86 min.
About the film: Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Fozzie and the entire cast of the Muppet universe come together to re-tell Charles Dicken’s immortal classic “A Christmas Carol” This was the first time the Muppets appeared on screen since Jim Henson’s death in 1990. Michael Caine gives a magnificent performance as Ebenezer Scrooge in a world full of muppet comedy and almost scary performances from the “Ghosts of Christmas past, present, and yet to come.”
Week Four
Take a moment and journey into an alternate reality with this ultimate Christmas Week pairing.
First up is a throwback to one of the greatest anthologies of all-time, The Twilight Zone. A now classic episode, The Night of the Meek, premiered 60 years ago on December 23. Afterwards, curl up with the holiday film that has truly stood the test of time, It’s a Wonderful Life. We recommend pairing these films with takeout from Natalie’s Coal-Fired Pizza in Worthington (try the Arancini Crispy Risotto balls and the Trevi Fountain Pizza) and Clarence Odbody’s drink of choice, Mulled White Wine.
“Frank Capra’s It’s A Wonderful Life is not just an incredible holiday film, it’s among the best American films ever made. Enjoy it again this season with this classic Twilight Zone episode, Night of the Meek and take out from this great Columbus restaurant” – CH
The Twilight Zone: The Night of the Meek (1960)
(Season 2, Episode 11)
Director: Jack Smight
Country: United States
Runtime: 25 min.
About the film: After a derelict Santa Claus is fired on Christmas Eve, he finds a mysterious bag that gives out presents. With this bag he sets out to fulfill his one wish – to see the less fortunate inherit the bounties of Christmas.
It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)
Director: Frank Capra
Country: United States
Runtime: 130 min.
About the film: After George Bailey wishes he had never been born, an angel is sent to earth to make George’s wish come true. George starts to realize how many lives he has changed and impacted, and how they would be different if he was never there.
NYE Edition
Enjoy the final week of Holidays from Home with a special New Years Eve lineup featuring two Academy Award winning films.
Begin the night with the beautifully moving animated short film from the Netherlands, Father and Daughter from Director Michaël Dudok de Wit. Follow up with the ultimate New Year’s Eve film, Director Billy Wilder’s The Apartment from 1960. Complete your movie night in with takeout from Sushiko Sushi & Roll Bar. We recommend the Vegetable Udon and a bottle of Rai Junmai Sake (also available for takeout from Sushiko for those over 21).
Father and Daughter (2000)
Director: Michael Dudok de Wit
Country: Netherlands
Runtime: 9 min.About the film: The 2001 Academy Award winner for best Animated Short Film. A girl grows up, but within her there is always a deep longing for her missing father.
The Apartment (1960)
Director: Billy Wilder
Country: United States
Runtime: 125 min.About the film:
A lonely insurance man attempts to earn promotion by lending his apartment to various bosses for use in their extramarital affairs. He finds himself having to choose between career advancement and love when his manager begins using the apartment to woo the girl he has his eye on.