First-ever HIDE Fest celebrates movies, music and Halloween at Lake Lansing Park South

Independent filmmaker Paul Rothman is proud to be able to give back to the community he grew up in through a new event he’s organizing, Haslett Independent Discoveries and Entertainment Fest.

The fest’s profits go toward repairing damage from the 70-mile-per-hour winds that blew through Haslett’s Lake Lansing Park South back in September.

“It’s a really amazing community,” said Rothman, who grew up in Okemos and lived in Haslett before moving to Canton 10 years ago. “I lived in the Shoals subdivision, so you had a lot of places you could go. You could go to the park nearby, you could go down to the river, you could go into town to the mall. If you wanted a nice lake scenario, you could go to Lake Lansing Park South. It’s a really nice area that I think, now especially, is a little bit slept on. It’s really cool to come back and do something.”

The inaugural HIDE Fest will take over Lake Lansing Park South and the nearby Mayfair Bar on Saturday to celebrate independent film, Michigan music and, of course, Halloween. The free, all-ages, rain-or-shine event aims to provide accessible entertainment to folks, with seven bands, a costume contest, trick-or-treating and a full lineup of film screenings.

Many of Rothman’s projects have ties to Mayfair Bar, where the films will be shown. One of his short films, “Salamander,” was shot at the local watering hole. The 15-minute movie won third place at the Saugatuck Film Festival on the west side of the state. 

His new film, “Small Business,” will debut at 8 p.m. during HIDE Fest. 

The movie and music lover enjoys attending large-scale live events, including Sonic Temple music festival, the former Common Ground Music Festival and the East Lansing Film Festival, a formative event during his youth.

“I personally think it’s important to have that type of outlet for kids,” Rothman said. “I remember what it was like to be a kid in the Okemos area. I remember getting in trouble while trying to find something to do and feeling that sort of suburban dread. You need something to do, and if you don’t have that outlet, it can be hard.”

He aims to provide a stage for all generations of filmmakers. 

“I’ve been to enough film festivals to see the things I like and don’t like about them,” he said. “I really wanted to do something that gets young or new filmmakers activated, shows them it’s not that hard.”

Rothman hopes that Michigan’s filmmaking scene can flourish again, even though the state no longer offers tax incentives to Michigan-made movies. He also hopes that as the festival grows and more filmmakers and artists travel to attend, there can be a positive economic impact on the local community. 

“The idea is to try to build up Michigan as a film state,” he said. “With Hollywood kind of going away in terms of how it’s working, people are going elsewhere. Michigan really does have a tremendous opportunity to take advantage of that. In my opinion, it’s the best place to make films because we have so many different locations. You can go to the mountains and beach within the same day. In terms of populus, we have a wide range of talented people to cast.”

The goal is to build HIDE Fest into a Sundance-type film festival, putting Michigan back on the movie-making map. 

While bringing in high-class talent is a priority, it’s also important to Rothman to keep ticket prices low for attendees. HIDE Fest tickets are free, but online registration is encouraged. Ingham County Parks has waived the parking fees for the event. There is a $30 VIP package that includes special film-fest seating, access to a covered VIP tent for live music, two drink tokens and exclusive HIDE merch. 

“One of my philosophies of life that has served me very well is that numbers and money follow, they don’t lead. Anything you go after in life, if you’re looking to get money first, it’s generally not going to work out that well for you,” Rothman said.

The movie screenings begin at 11 a.m., with awards at 6 p.m. on the bandshell at Lake Lansing Park South. Films are broken into different categories, with more family-friendly options earlier in the day, leading up to the more bloody, mature flicks in the evening. Filmmaker Q&As and discussions will take place between movie blocks.

In addition to the movies, there’s also a range of live music, including punk, pop-rock, emo, metal, alternative/indie and folk. 

“One artist I’m really excited about is Victoria Irish,” Rothman said. “She’s got some really cool folk music, stuff to put on in the car. She’s got a song called ‘Groceries’ that’s awesome. 

“The headliner is a metal band called Honeyfoot that travels the entire state,” he continued.

Although the music might get loud, Rothman ensures the event is welcoming to attendees of all ages. 

“The whole idea is to get the youth out here. At the park itself, we’ll have water, soda pop and some snacks for $2 or less. We’re not trying to overcharge you, not trying to nickel and dime you. We really just want to celebrate some good music and get some fun energy out.”

Being on Halloween, the event is also designed to be a break from the endless trunk-or-treating-type events. 

“It’s a great way to get families out of the house and get some fresh air,” Rothman said.