Skippers is my second feature film, an intense and offbeat comedy melodrama, and probably the best narrative stone skipping film ever made. It was shot in beautiful Bay City, Michigan, in the fall of 2016, and premiered in 2018.

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Synopsis

A mysterious drifter breathes new life into a small town by teaching the Zen of stone skipping. But when he gets too close to the sister of a powerful local, stones might not be the only thing sinking in the river.

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Awards

Best Feature - Adirondack Film Festival

Best Feature - Twin Falls Sandwiches Film Festival​

Ginny Award for Inspiration, Creativity & Imagination - Twin Falls Sandwiches Film Festival​

Best of Fest - Benton Park Film Festival

Best Feature - Benton Park Film Festival

Best Screenplay - Benton Park Film Festival

Nominee: Best Feature - Windy City International Film Festival

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Official Selections

2018 Manhattan Film Festival (New York, NY)

2018 Indy Film Fest (Indianapolis, IN)

2018 Windy City International Film Festival (Chicago, IL)

2018 Hell's Half Mile Film & Music Festival (Bay City, MI)

2018 Adirondack Film Festival (Glens Falls, NY)

2018 Twin Falls Sandwiches Film Festival (Twin Falls, ID)

2019 Borrego Springs Film Festival (Borrego Springs, CA)

2019 Central Michigan International Film Festival (Mount Pleasant, MI)

2019 Benton Park Film Festival (St. Louis, MO)

2019 Sunscreen Film Festival (St. Petersburg, FL)

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Other Screenings

Google Chicago, June 25, 2019 (Chicago, IL)

Midland Center for the Arts, September 13-15, 2019 (Midland, MI)

ATF on Demand, June 12 - August 7, 2020 (Adirondack Theatre Festival online screening) 

Howland Public Library Movie Kit To-Go selection, July 29, 2021 (Beacon, NY)

Analog Video + Cinema, November 10, 2022 (Chicago, IL)

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Press

• Cole Waterman, "Film crew shooting indie movie in Bay County," Bay City Times, November 7, 2016

• Richard Propes, "Skippers Screens at the 2018 Indy Film Fest," The Independent Critic, April 2018

• Joey Filer, "Windy City Fest to premiere Wertheimer's 'Skippers'," Reel Chicago, July 11, 2018

• Jaylie Dice, "Hell's Half Mile reveals lineup for 2018 festival," Delta Collegiate, August 21, 2018

• Robert E. Martin, "A Compelling Meditation on the Dichotomy Between Desire & Necessity," Review Magazine, Vol. XXXIX, Issue #867, September 6, 2018

• Gretta Hochsprung, "'Radium Girls' to headline Adirondack Film Festival," The Post-Star, Sept. 13, 2018

• Zach Parfeniuk, "'Skippers' provides laughs and surprising emotion," Delta Collegiate, Oct. 3, 2018

• Kathleen Phalen-Tomaselli, "Best of the Adirondack Film Festival," The Post-Star, October 21, 2018

• "5Q's w/Aaron Milan Wertheimer 'Skippers' Director," BSFF, December 16, 2018

• "The Skevanston Movie Star," Inside the Skev, Season 1, Episode 2, December 24, 2018

• Mindy Norton, "Central Michigan Film Festival features Oscar nominees along with smaller films," 

• Morning Sun, February 3, 2019

• Paul Friswold, "The Benton Park Film Fest Is Coming to Lemp Grand Hall This Weekend," Riverfront Times, March 25, 2019

• Alan Ng, "Review: Skippers," Film Threat, July 19, 2019

• Daniel Patton, "Cow Lamp releases 'Skippers'," Reel Chicago, August 9, 2019

• Lori Qualls, "What's Happening," Midland Daily News, September 12, 2019

• Linda & Al Lerner, "Skippers review," Movies and Shakers, September 17, 2019