At first, it seems almost too expedient to describe indie filmmaker Trent Harris as "Utah's answer to John Waters," but then you realize how well it fits. Swapping Waters's Baltimore freak show for the friendlier, duller, but just-as-weird weirdness of Utah, Harris has crafted a small oeuvre of scrappy films that capture a side of America that hasn't really been seen before. He's also impressively obsessive, as proven by his de facto masterwork, The Beaver Trilogy, the instigating work of which is a serendipitous and amazing man-on-the-street interview that spirals into a mind-blowing documentary short involving a small-town talent show, shambolic drag, and an Olivia Newton-John lip-synch.

For installments two and three, Harris directed re-creations/expansions of his documentary treasure that star professional actors—first a baby-faced Sean Penn, then a pre–Back to the Future Crispin Glover, each of whom does a terrific job in an imperfect vehicle, as Harris's reenactments try and fail to capture the magic of the real-life original. The whole thing's an impressive study in the distancing aspects of art, and the original documentary short is a thing of eternal wonder. If this sounds like something you'd like, it is. (Also on the roster for the Grand Illusion's Films of Trent Harris series: the woozy Mormon satire Plan 10 from Outer Space, the surreal road-trip tale Rubin & Ed, and Harris's latest work, Luna Mesa. For full info, see grandillusioncinema.org.)

Meanwhile over at SIFF, things are getting very, very quiet with the Hitchcock 9, a weekend-long festival featuring freshly restored editions of Alfred Hitchcock's nine surviving silent films. Breaking the silence: original live soundtracks for eight of the films, performed by Seattle musicians, including violinist Julie Baldridge, harpist Leslie McMichael, and cellist (and Stranger Genius Award winner) Lori Goldston. For full info on the Hitchcock 9 and SIFF's tandem series of Hitchcock's early-career sound films, see siff.net.)

The Films of Trent Harris runs July 26–31 at Grand Illusion, grandillusioncinema.org. The Hitchcock 9 runs July 26–28 at SIFF Cinema Uptown, siff.net.

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