Kazimierz Dolny, Gen Con Indy & Chicago

I’m sorry it has taken this long to update The Smallest Star. Since my last post I have been to the Two Riversides Film & Art Festival in Kazimierz Dolny Poland, Gen Con Indy festival in Indianapolis IN, presented Stingray Sam & The American Astronaut at the Chicago Art Institute, moved my home from Brooklyn to Queens, and created a non-budget feature that I’m very excited about. I will give you more details very soon. (It’s not Werewolf Hunters Of The Midwest, but that film is still happening)

Here are photos from my recent travels. They feature pictures from Kazimierz Donly Poland, an old medieval village and one of the few places that the Nazis did not destroy. Polish people go there for summer vacations.

Below is a photo taken from a clearing on a hill where 3 tall crucifixes stand. I was told that the original crucifix was placed there to ward off the Black Plague. My hotel room widow is directly under the car that is parked in the village square.














The next two photos were taken from my hotel room window. The images overlap at the gray building with the two open windows. On the hill at the left you can see the three crucifixes where I stood when I photographed the overview of the village square.




























This is a wooden well that stands in the center of the square. It has been there for centuries and is a village landmark. There’s a very old inscription on the well that says the water is safe, so I filled up a bottle with water from that well and used it as my drinking water for the first couple of days. Someone from the festival saw what I was doing and told me that it wasn’t a good idea. They asked if I was feeling okay. I said sometimes.














Meals were included as part of my hotel stay. It was a different style of service. There was food and drinks placed on a few of the table. I would seat myself at a table and start eating. A waitress would see me and bring additional courses. Then I would leave without tipping or giving my room number. They knew who their guests were. Below is a photo of the room-temperature drink that would be waiting on the tables at lunchtime.














This woman was selling home cooked cheese-loafs and shoes on the corner.














There was a castle a short walking distance from the square. In past years it was used as a venue for festival screenings. This year it was roped off for an anthropological dig.














Polish posters for The American Astronaut were hung around the village. It made my day to see two girls stealing one. I took one myself.














All of the electrical poles were made of brick with beautiful blue glass transformers.


















































A couple of days after I returned to NYC I attended a screening of Stingray Sam at the Gen Con Indy convention in Indianapolis, IN. Gen Con Indy is a gamer’s convention. Many of the participants come in costume. There were a lot of Sailor Moons in attendance. I met this gentleman in the hotel restroom as he was reapplying his neck makeup.














A couple weeks later I had the honor of presenting Stingray Sam & The American Astronaut at the Chicago Art Institute. The screenings took place outdoors in the garden area of their new modern art building. It was the first event held in this new space. The photo below was taken during sound-check.














Below is the view from my hotel room window.














My next trip will be to New Orleans & Ellensburg, WA, followed by a tour of the Billy Nayer Show in support of our new upcoming album. I will also be in post-production of my new feature while working in pre-production on Werewolf Hunters Of The Midwest. I’ll keep you posted as to how all of it is coming along.

Thank you so much for checking in. I hope to see you out there soon.
Your friend,
Cory McAbee
@ The Smallest Star
www.corymcabee.com