More from the International Film Festival Rotterdam 2013 linueup, as we continue to scrub each category list for any highlights worth mentioning on this site, like this one from experimental, multiple-award-winning filmmaker Kevin Jerome Everson.

Not only does a short film of his screen (titled Century) screen in the New Frontier section at the Sundance Film Festival later this month, thousands of miles away, across the ocean, a new feature-length film from the director will make its world premiere at Rotterdam next month.

Busy, busy, busy…

Titled The Island of St. Matthews, the 70-minute film is described as follows:

The Island of St. Matthews tells the historic tale of the people of Westport, Mississippi, who had grown accustomed to annual flooding from the Tombigbee River. In 1973, the flooding was worse than ever and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers intervened to put a stop to the cyclical damage by building a dam. In doing so, they created the Island of Saint Matthews. Everson travels to this unique island to capture the stories of local residents as they reflect upon the flooding of 1973 and modern life on the island. The film is infused with static shots that delve the audience into the destruction, vitality, beauty, wonder, and meaning of water on the island.

The 70-minute film is said to combine both color and b&w cinematography, and based on the trailer I found below, contains the usual Kevin Jerome Everson characteristics – sparse and rugged, combining documentary and seemingly scripted elements, focusing on the lives of mostly working class people of African descent; somewhat abstract and will likely be demanding.

I'm scheduled to interview him for the very first time, which I'm looking forward to. Of course, that interview will be posted here. It should happen in the next week or two, so look out for it.

In the meantime, here's the trailer for The Island of St. Matthews – courtesy Trilobite-Arts-DAC and Picture Palace Pictures: