The sound of wild zydeco flooded into Market Square from the World Grotto as Cinematini concluded its month-long celebration of black history month last Tuesday with a fundraiser for families displaced by Hurricane Katrina.

Student Andrea Kearns assailed everyone who walked in the upstairs entrance with strands of shiny plastic beads to help bring the vibe of Mardi Gras to Knoxville one last time this year.

Before the start of the night's official events, children played on the wall's padded seats as adults lined up at the bar to take advantage of $3 drinks, and everyone was invited to eat a free homemade bayou meal of gumbo, dirty rice and shrimp.

A "silent raffle" was set up at the entrance to the underground where guests could purchase tickets for $1 a piece and bid on prizes such as passes to the Peking Acrobats, a free night at a bed and breakfast and paintings by local artists.  

The benefit was held on behalf of the Lost Cajuns of East Tennessee, a group that started with 10 members in 2004 as a social network of former Louisiana residents who had relocated to the area. It turned from a social group to a support group overnight in the wake of the hurricanes and now boasts a membership of more than 300 families.

Each week starting at 8 p.m., Cinematini hosts a half hour of short films by local artists. Keeping with the night's theme, this week featured a locally produced documentary that took an uncritical look at the National Guards' response in administering aid to victims on the Gulf Coast in the aftermath of Katrina. Created by National Guard members, it played as little more than an extended commercial for guard recruitment.

In contrast, the first act of Spike Lee's documentary, "When the Levees Broke," painted a very different picture of the government's response to the tragedy. The film tells its story through images from the event and interviews with survivors. The audience, made up largely of members of the Lost Cajuns, reacted emotionally to the intense and unflinching reminders of their lost home. Other members of the audience were shocked to see footage for the first time that never made it to the nightly news, such as images of dead bodies floating in the floodwater. While the film was very difficult to watch, it served as a startling reminder of a local catastrophe that occurred less than two years ago but is already fading from the public memory.

"Victims of hurricanes don't want to be forgotten," a group spokeswoman said before the film, "It's not about getting back our money or our things. It's about being remembered."
The documentary was followed by an acoustic set by local artist Brandy Robinson who emphasized with the Lost Cajuns.
 

"I've been displaced many times in my life, for sure," Robinson said.

Cinematini Tuesdays will celebrate "Fabulous Female Filmmakers" on Tuesdays in March. The event on March 7, which was to feature the film "Kissing Jessica Stein," has been canceled because a fire in the lofts above the Grotto left the venue with significant water damage after triggering the sprinkler system. The event planners hope to be able to bring Cinematini back the following week with a screening of "Something New," by Sanaa Karmi.  The month's event should finish with "Lost in Translation," by Sofia Coppola, on March 20 and Niki Caro's "The Whale Rider" on March 27.

Admission to the Cinematini Tuesdays is free, but a $3 donation to Knoxville Films is requested.

The event is produced in collaboration with Knoxville Films.com, the Sweet Southern Pixels, the Knoxville African American Film Festival, WBIR, WUTK, Metro Pulse, the Disc Exchange, Five Man Productions and the East Tennessee Television and Film Commission.

Anyone interested in submitting original short films to screen before the main event should email info@knoxvillefilms.com for more information.