Darkon

Winner of the 2006 South By Southwest (SXSW) Film Festival Audience Award, Darkon is a documentary feature that follows the real-life adventures of an unusual group of weekend warriors, fierce maidens and mystical wizards, fantasy role-playing gamers whose live action "battleground" is modern-day Baltimore, Maryland, re-imagined as a make-believe medieval world named Darkon.

These live action gamers live out their wildest medieval fantasies, combining the physical drama of historical re-enactments with character-driven storylines inspired in part by such perennial favorite fantasy epics as the legends of King Arthur, Lord of the Rings, and the saga of Conan the Barbarian.

Darkon is the story of people who refuse to allow the roles they play from nine to five define their lives. As role players, these gamers create alter-egos with rich emotional, psychological, and social lives. They costume themselves and physically act out their characters' exploits both in intimate court intrigue and campouts and in panoramic battle scenarios involving competitive strategies, convincingly real props, and full contact "combat."

“Fascinating subject . . . thoughtful documentary . . . eloquent and occasionally touching” (Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times)

“A clear-eyed and oddly touching docu . . . a lucid and streamlined saga.” (Eddie Cockrell, Variety)

“An epic fantasy adventure with loads of laughs.” (Eric Campos, Film Threat)

“An overwhelming favorite on the 2006 festival circuit.” (Richard Whittaker, Austin Chronicle)