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Messages - mowermovie

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1
Coffee Shop / On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW! screens in Alexandria, VA Nov 8
« on: November 07, 2013, 03:52:38 am »
Hello folks,

I am extremely excited to announce that my documentary On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW! which shows how the sport of lawn mower racing is working to benefit those suffering from Huntington's disease, is an OFFICIAL SELECTION of the 2013 Alexandria Film Festival.  The screening will be on November 8th at noon at the Beatley Library 5005 Duke St., Alexandria, VA.  There is no admission charge for the screening.  I will be on hand to answer audience questions.

Last month after my screening at the Downbeach Film Festival in Atlantic City, NJ I won the award for BEST DIRECTORY - DOCUMENTARY FEATURE.  It is indeed an honor to win such an award at a festival which screened so many fine films.

I encourage all of you to have a look at the film's web site and please feel free to share it with anyone you think might be interested.

Thank you for your continued to support.


2
Coffee Shop / NJ premiere of On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW! Oct 12
« on: October 06, 2013, 05:49:56 pm »
 Racers,
I am very excited to announce that my documentary, On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW! has been chosen as an OFFICIAL SELECTION of the 2013 Downbeach Film Festival to be held the weekend of October 11-13 in Atlantic City, NJ.  The screening will be the NJ premiere.  I have included the press release I plan on sending out to media outlets in the region. If you have friends or family in the area I would be grateful if you'd let them know about the screening.  The Facebook event page can be found here:

https://www.facebook.com/events/407645402668244/?ref_dashboard_filter=calendar
For those who have not see the film's trailer you can head on over to http://www.mowermovie.com

Thanks to all for your support.

On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW!
A Tale of Hope, Redemption, and Lawn Mower Racing

New Jersey Premiere • 2013 Downbeach Film Festival

WASHINGTON, DC October 4, 2013 – Can the sport of lawn mower racing be used to save lives?
Fans of independent films will find out on October 12th as On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW! has been officially selected to screen at the 2013 Downbeach Film Festival. The documentary film which will be making its New Jersey premiere will explore the world of lawn mower racing through the eyes of a Michigan family who have lost six members to Huntington's disease and use the sport to raise awareness of the disease and funds for its research.  Filmthreat.com has called the documentary “a blast to watch” and viewer ratings on IMDb.com have been very positive.

Huntington's disease is a disorder passed down through families in which nerve cells in certain parts of the brain waste away, or degenerate.  While there are some treatment for some of the aspects of Huntington's disease there is no cure.  The disease causes a deterioration in both physical and mental health and results in death 15-20 years after onset.   In order to offer an explanation of Huntington's disease to a general audience producer/director Mike Ratel has conducted on camera interviews with medical professionals, US congressmen, Huntington's disease advocates, and Arlo Guthrie who lost his father Woody Guthrie, an American folk music icon to the disease in 1967.

As a son of the Garden State, Ratel is excited about returning to the state for the New Jersey Premiere of a documentary in which he spent five years making. The Downbeach Film Festival/Atlantic City Cinefest  presents a cultural event for residents of and visitors to the communities of Atlantic City, Ventnor, Margate, Longport, Ocean City and beyond. The festival promotes new films, as well as filmmakers and actors all in an effort to celebrate the art form of filmmaking.

Now in their twentieth season the US Lawn Mower Racing Association (USLMRA) is a national governing body for the sport of lawn mower racing.  With chapters and members across America the organization works to schedule races, promote the association and its races via media opportunities, as well coordinate efforts with race day partners such as the Michigan chapter of the Huntington's Disease Society of America among others.

"Mike Ratel has put is heart and soul into this movie for the past five years, he is truly MOWtivated," said Bruce Kaufman, USLMRA Founder & President. "This movie will showcase the unique culture of lawn mower racing and how our people band together to help battle a horrific disease."
 
A Grand Rapids Press article about Ratel and the documentary was distributed by the Associated Press in 2009 resulting in radio, Internet, and newspaper coverage across the US. On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW! has also been selected by the DC Independent, South Texas Underground, Naperville Independent, and Maryland International Film Festivals.

In 2009 Docs in Progress selected the trailer for On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW! as one of five documentary trailers to be included in an evening of trailer screenings.  Recently Ratel was interviewed by Stephanie Webb on on the Grand Rapids ABC TV affiliate WZZM Channel 13  regarding On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW!'s Michigan Premiere.  He was joined by Donna Mikula who is both wife and mother to two of the racers featured in the film and the organizer of the race to raise money for Huntington's disease research.  The interview can be seen here:
http://www.wzzm13.com/news/article/218962/205/On-Your-Mark-Get-Set-Mow-Lawnmower-Racing-Documentary
 
On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW! will screen Saturday, October 12 at 2:30 pm at the Atlantic City Library.  The  screening is free and appropriate for all ages. The library's address is 1 North Tennessee Avenue
Atlantic City, NJ 08401
(609) 345-2269

3
Coffee Shop / Maryland International Film Festival
« on: April 29, 2013, 02:26:03 am »
Folks,
It was a great day at the Maryland International Film Festival in Hagerstown, MD.  Lou Filos and his family along with Joey and Vickie Nahas, who have been hugely supportive of the film showed up a couple hours prior to the film's screening to show off their mowers to the passerbys in downtown Hagerstown on a beautiful spring day.  Someone who I used to work with at the Washington Post and have not seen in about 15 years came early and loved the mowers.  He took me out to dinner afterwards and could not stop talking about how much he loved the film and how proud he was that I was able to fulfil my lifelong dream. You can see photos from the afternoon at the film's web site http://mowermovie.com under the "News" link.

I am looking into booking screenings in Baltimore and Arlington, VA.  Additionally, I am waiting to hear back from several film festivals.  I expect to have pay per view online screening and DVDs available later this year.

Thanks to all of you for your support.

There's no business like.....MOW! business!!

4
Folks,
As some of you know my documentary on the sport of lawn mower racing, On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW! will screen at the Maryland International Film Festival in Hagerstown on April 13th at 4pm. The festival organizers and I are discussing the possibility of parking a racing mower or two in front of the theater an hour or two prior to the film screening. They are waiting to hear from the city on the legality of doing so.  Would there be anyone interested in participating in this?  It would be a great opportunity to promote the sport and any events you may have upcoming.

I have overhauled the film's web site and invite you to view the trailer, some clips, "like" it on Facebook, and follow me on Twitter.  The web site can be found at http://www.mowermovie.com.

Thanks to all who have helped out during this wild, crazy, and wonderful ride.  I hope to see many of you in Hagerstown.


5
Here is the event info for those of you thinking of attending. https://www.facebook.com/events/359726890811104/359738524143274/?comment_id=359740747476385&notif_t=event_mall_reply It goes without saying that I'd love to see all my racing friends from MD, PA, and WV at the screening. So far response to the film has been incredibly strong.  At the South Texas Underground Film Festival in Corpus Christi there was an encore screening on closing night due to audience demand.

If you haven't done so check out the whole new http://www.mowermovie.com.  You can see the film's trailer as well as a handful of clips.  You can "like" the film on Facebook and follow me on Twitter.

Thanks all!

6
Coffee Shop / Re: lone Star Racers on Travel Channel!
« on: March 15, 2013, 03:14:16 pm »
Rooster, you were great on that segment.  Way to mow!

7
On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW!, a documentary which shows how the sport of lawn mower racing is on the “cutting edge” in the battle against Huntington’s disease is an OFFICIAL SELECTION  of the 2013 Maryland International Film Festival to be held in April in Hagerstown, MD.  It is exciting to be able to screen the film in an area of the country in which the sport is very popular.  The three day event will showcase fifty films from around the world.  On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW! is one of seven documentaries selected by the festival. The film will screen at 4pm on 4/12.  I hope to see you there! The film's web site has been revamped and you can view a few clips from the film as well as read my tweets, follow me on Twitter, or "like" the film on Facebook. The web site is at http://www.mowermovie.com

For mow info please visit the festival’s web site at http://marylandiff.com

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Coffee Shop / Catch Carpet Racers on the Documentary Channel Mon 10/22
« on: October 21, 2012, 02:09:15 pm »
I have been working with the filmmakers who made the documentary Carpet Racers to help both their film and mine to reach greater audiences.  Carpet Racers will be shown on Monday 10/22 at 10 AM on the Documentary Channel. 

From IMDb.com:

"A funny, yet dramatic, in-depth look inside the subculture of professional, competitive radio control race car drivers. Carpet Racers explores the lives of the men (and women) who's love affair with RC is timeless."

 http://www.carpetracers.com/

Tivo it if you'll be at work or you can purchase the DVD.  I am sure you'll enjoy it, I did.

9
Here's a clip from the film: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFyv_BKGVnM  Someone posted it on reddit.com and there were 1000 views in the first 48 hours.

10
To all my racing friends,
It just dawned on me that I didn't post an update on the two recent screenings of On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW! The film screened at the Naperville Independent Film Festival last month.  A friend of mine here in DC is from Naperville and I got to meet his family and have dinner with them.  Long time racer Dave Lewis was nice enough to make the trek to Naperville and it was sure nice to see him again. The most bizarre story happened while there.  I got a call a few hours before the screening from my cousin who lives in New Jersey to tell me that he was not only in Naperville but at the same hotel I was staying in. After the film screened Dave was nice enough to drop both of us off at our hotel.  Damon Hennessey who shot an interview of USLMRA President Bruce Kaufman for the film and whose band Mother May I provided two songs for the film was in attendance as well.  Once again there was great feedback from the audience.  The Naperville Patch offered the film's screening a plug on their web site a few days before: http://naperville.patch.com/articles/documentary-highlighting-lawn-mower-racing-huntington-s-disease-premieres-monday-at-film-festival

A week later the film screened at the South Texas Underground Film Festival in Corpus Christi. I was not able to attend that and I am sorry that I didn't.  The film's slot was at 1:30pm on a Wednesday afternoon so my expectations of an audience turnout were pretty low.  The night after the screening I got a message from the festival to inform me that due to audience demand there would be an encore screening of the film on closing night of the festival.  I have been to a handful of festivals in the past and I have never heard of that being done.  I do not think I need to tell you that I was pretty blown away by the news. Jim Lago on Corpus Christi's news radio KKTX had me as a guest on his show to talk about the film and its screening at the festival.

I will continue to submit to festivals and offer the film to any Huntington's disease related charity for fund and/or awareness raising.  I am hoping to have a DVD release in time for Christmas. 


11
Coffee Shop / On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW! screens in Corpus Christi on 9/26
« on: September 24, 2012, 08:48:45 pm »
Hey folks, actually when addressing the lawn mower racing community perhaps it should be "hay" folks?

My documentary film On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW! - A Tale of Hope, Redemption, and Lawn Mower Racing screened last week at the Naperville Independent Film Festival in Naperville, IL.  Once again crowd reactions were awesome and I filmed commentary from a few who have seen it and should be able to post them to the web this week.  The screening was attended by Illinois racer Dave Lewis and long time friend Damon Hennessey who shot an interview with USLMRA President Bruce Kaufman in his office for the film.  Damon's band Mother May I also provided two songs for the film's sound track.  Perhaps the biggest surprise was the fact that a cousin of mine from New Jersey just happened to be staying in the same hotel as I was and was able to attend the film's screening.  What are the odds of that happening? I extended an invitation to a member of the Illinois chapter of the Huntington's Disease Society of America (HDSA) to speak prior to the film's screening but a family emergency came up at the last minute and they were not able to attend.

This Wednesday, Sept 26 the film will screen at the South Texas Underground Film Festival in Corpus Christi, TX at 1:30pm.  Once again I have extended an invitation to anyone from a HD related organization to speak prior to the film's screening.  If you have friends in the area please make them aware of this event.  The Facebook event page is: https://www.facebook.com/events/122801131200324/  The festival's web site can be found here: http://www.southtexasundergroundfilm.com/

My editor John Kinhart and I released a clip from the film and in its first 48 hours was seen over 1000 times.  It's from the Sparta race in the film and if you'd like to have a look it can be found here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFyv_BKGVnM

Recently on the Documentary Channel I saw a film called Carpet Racers.  The people in the film reminded me a great deal of the people I have met who race lawn mowers in that there is a community of like minded people.  I truly enjoyed the film and thought many of those who race lawn mowers would as well.  I contacted the filmmakers and we have been working together to help promote each other's films.  If you'd like to see the trailer for Carpet Racers, learn more about the film, or even buy a DVD copy here's the place to go: http://www.carpetracers.com/

I hope to have DVDs of On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW! in time for holiday gift giving. If you'd like to read the reviews and ratings or leave one if you've seen it you can see them here: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2254085/

Thanks to everyone for their support of the film.  Special thanks go out to Joey and Vickie Nahas, my parents Joe and Eileen Ratel, the Mikula family, Bruce Kaufman and the USLMRA staff, Cliff and Pete at Speed Talk Radio, Stephanie Webb at Channel 13 and the rest of the Grand Rapids media community, and anyone who donated money, gave me a lift, grabbed a dinner check, and shared their sport on camera.

You have all help make a lifelong dream come true.

12
Coffee Shop / Re: Tom L looking for volunteers.
« on: July 10, 2012, 10:06:29 pm »
Joey,
I didn't see this until Sunday night when I posted about the Michigan Premiere of my film.  Until further notice I am available any time you need a hand with something.  You might have to pick me up from the Metro but I am willing to help out my friend with anything you need.

Tom,
You are certainly a wonderful person for driving down from PA to lend Joey and Vicki a hand.  

13
Folks,
We are less than 2 weeks away from the Michigan Premiere of On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW! in Sparta.   As most of you know my documentary film shows how the sport of lawn mower racing is being used to spread awareness of Huntington's disease.  User ratings on IMDb.com have given the film a 8.5 rating and Filmthreat.com called it "a blast to watch".  The film will screen Friday night July 20th kicking off a weekend of the Jim Keech Memorial race for Huntington's disease research.   In the past the Mikula family who host the race have been recognized by the Huntington's Disease Society of America for their outstanding achievement in raising funds for research of the disease.

I am looking forward to seeing all of my racing friends during this weekend which we will remember our friend Jim and raise money to put on end to this deadly and ugly disease.

On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW! Michigan Premiere
Friday, July 20 8pm
Sparta High School Auditorium 475 W. Spartan Dr. Sparta, MI 49345
Here is the link to the event on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/150023091801638

To see the film's trailer and learn mow go to http://www.mowermovie.com




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Coffee Shop / Re: Another update for On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW!
« on: July 08, 2012, 10:13:01 pm »
Thanks a lot mowinmachine!

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Coffee Shop / Re: Another update for On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW!
« on: June 25, 2012, 09:21:20 pm »
oey,
Thanks to you, Vickie, John, and especially Squirrel for your hospitality and for the opportunity to share my film On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW!  It's been a long five years in the making but I am beyond happy with the way it came out and people's reactions to the film

On July 20th it will be screened in Sparta, MI as part of the weekend of Huntington's disease fund raising.   I am asking all lawn mower racers thoughout America to contact their congress members and ask them to support the House and Senate bills which will allow those diagnosed with HD to get on disability and waive the current 2 year wait.  As stated in my film those who have diagnosed with HD often lose their jobs and end up with no income or insurance.  We all have an obligation to contact our elected officials and let then know that this is not acceptable.   Please take a look at this web site and if your guy or gal is not a co sponsor please email, write, or call them and ask them to support House Bill 718 or Senate Bill  648   http://www.hdsa.org/living-with-huntingtons/advocacy/ssdi-medicare-bill/index.html

Here's a recent article about my film http://www.thecalifornian.com/article/20120622/OFFSIXTYEIGHT02/306220014

Here is the review on Filmthreat.com http://www.filmthreat.com/reviews/50413/
 

Thanks to all for your support.

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