The New Zealand-shot mockumentary comedy “What We Do in the Shadows,” now playing at Liberty Hall, is proof that vampires are alive and well (or undead and loving it) in the collective imagination.

Thanks to “Underworld,” “True Blood” and the “Twilight” series (and no thanks to “Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter”), vampires have been more popular than ever during the last decade, while the stories that surround them have mostly been rote genre exercises.

There’s always exceptions of course, and the Swedish coming-of-age horror film “Let the Right One In” and its surprisingly excellent American remake “Let Me In” are two semi-recent examples of films that did something way different with the vampire myth. The young vampire in those movies is an unglamorous, cursed being who lives in a run-down apartment and relies on an older caregiver to kill people and bring her fresh blood.

In last year’s superlative and melancholy “Only Lovers Left Alive,” director Jim Jarmusch gives us world-weary vampires burdened with the wisdom of living through countless centuries of hanging out with the world’s most talented artists, thinkers and writers.

The vampires in “What We Do in the Shadows,” played by Jonathan Brugh, Ben Fransham, and co-writers/directors Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement (from HBO’s “Flight of the Conchords”), are cursed for sure, but not with wisdom. For them, being cut off from society means not understanding how to Google something and still thinking that frilly sleeves and puffy shirts are cool. A night out in the clubs in Wellington is particularly tough for these guys, because no one wants to invite them in.

The setup — that a crew from The New Zealand Documentary Board is shooting this — is preposterous, but the level of craft and commitment to the mockumentary genre is what sets “What We Do in the Shadows” apart. The film has all the low-key charm of a Christopher Guest movie, but it also has the dynamic kick of seamlessly blending its faux-cinéma vérité style with the supernatural.

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It’s this juxtaposition of the extraordinary with the absolutely ordinary that makes “What We Do in the Shadows” such a novel entry in the vampire canon. Sure, it’s a gas to be able to fly around or turn into a bat, but it’s kind of a bummer to ruin an antique couch with the unstoppable stream of your latest victim’s blood.

The entire movie leads up to a gathering called The Unholy Masquerade, which sounds like an unparalleled paranormal orgy but ends up more resembling an interoffice Christmas party.

Like the best mockumentaries, “What We Do in the Shadows” works on another level outside of its obvious comedic goals. Waititi and Clement generate genuine empathy for their ridiculous characters. The actors aren’t mugging for the camera to try and sell jokes — these guys are masters of deadpan humor — but their characters have flashes of that, as they try too hard sometimes to impress the camera crew.

In the end, it matters not that a lair of vampires — whose very survival depends on their existence being kept a secret — would allow a documentary film to be made about their lives. If anything, their need for sympathy and attention just makes them more relatable, and it makes this sleeper of a movie more charming.

Free ‘Selma’ screening and discussion

“Selma,” a best picture nominee and best song winner at the Oscars last month, is showing for free at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 25, on the KU campus at Wescoe Hall, with a panel discussion to follow. The panel features filmmaker Kevin Willmott, professor of film and media studies; Elizabeth Esch, assistant professor of American studies; and Melissa Foree, from the department of African and African-American studies. The event is sponsored by the Langston Hughes Center.

“Selma” follows Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (David Oyelowo) and protesters in 1964 as they march for the right to vote in Selma, Ala. Besides being an illuminating look at a key period in the American civil rights movement, director Ava DuVernay‘s movie breaks the traditional biopic formula by going wide, and focusing on a number of perspectives.

What I remember most about the film are the faces of the people courageous enough to stand up in the face of death. It’s astonishing to think that this took place just 50 years ago. Here’s my full review of “Selma.” More information on the screening can be found at [news.ku.edu.][3]

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TEDxLawrence

Monday at Liberty Hall, Lawrence will host its first TEDx event, which is essentially an offspring of TED Talks. TEDx events are independently produced, and are designed to start discussion and ideation in the community.

The theme of TEDXLawrence is “Ideas Worth Sharing.” I’m proud to have been chosen as one of the speakers, and for the last month I have been furiously writing, re-writing, and rehearsing my talk, which is about embracing absurdity in the creative process.

Having an annual TEDx-like event is a natural fit for a town that is full of so many artists, thinkers and doers. Monday’s event will feature business owners, professors, musicians, scientists, researchers, marketers, authors, a yo-yo world champion, and an air guitar world champ. (Guess which one I am.)

TEDxLawrence is sold out, but all of the talks will be archived for the TEDx Web vaults, so hopefully they can reach an even bigger audience later. Cheers to the team who helped make this event happen, and here’s hoping it can inspire more people each year!