Meet the Artist Fridays

Thomas Stemrich

andMatt Hoefler

are making the perfect girl and putting her on celluloid. Since last summer, the two film-school students have been stitching together I Am a Teenage Frankenstein — a feature-length script about a precocious serial-killer teen who collects body parts to re-create his lost soulmate but turns out to be too lazy and under-skilled for the task. “It’s about the emotional vacancy of teens,” explains Stemrich. “And there’s lots of dick in the movie.”

So far, the two have shot only a promotional trailer — but thanks to Meet the Artist Fridays at the Mynt Mojito Lounge (1424 Market Street), they’re about $93 closer to completing their dream. Every other week, Mynt features new efforts by studio artists and local filmmakers in an atmosphere that’s like a haughty gallery opening but without the pretension. “It’s a great opportunity for artists to show their work in a social environment,” says artist coordinator Emily Shepherd.

For Stemrich and Hoefler, last Friday’s art mixer was an ideal way to promote their fledgling production company and fund-raise for their in-progress film. Mynt was even kind enough to offer the budding talent free bottle service and full control over the bar’s sound system — which resulted in a curious mingling of glitter-shirted girls sipping mojitos and listening to the likes of Earth, Xiu Xiu and Neil Young. “What was really cool about it was that not only did the people we invited come,” Stemrich notes, “but also the LoDo dudes and chicks stuck around and were forced to listen to subversive music and watch a subversive short film, and they were surprisingly entertained.”

Although $93 won’t be enough to finish Teenage Frankenstein, the filmmakers consider their evening at Mynt a success. “We didn’t really think we were going to make a lot of money anyway,” says Stemrich. “We mostly just wanted to raise awareness and pollute the Denver airwaves with our movie.” You can further support their efforts at www.wastelandvicesquad.com — and power to the people who punish bad cinema!

The next Meet the Artist shindig — from 7 to 9 p.m. Friday, February 10 — will focus on collage artist Kelly Pierce. Equal parts painting and found objects, her work is like digging through a pop-culture dumpster without having to wash your hands afterward. For more details, log on to www.myntdenver.com or call 303-888-0655.