Robert Banks Jr. isn’t into super-hyped films with multi million dollar budgets. He’s an independent filmmaker with a message, and he’s offering an alternative to the mainstream Hollywood blockbuster.

Banks will be introducing a selection of films from his twelve-year career at the Wexner Center Film and Video Theater 7 p.m. Friday. David Filipi, an associate curator who oversees the film and video screening program at the Wexner, said the event will provide students with an opportunity to see an accomplished independent filmmaker.

“He’s a regional filmmaker who has had his work shown everywhere; at Sundance and Rotterdam, which are two of the biggest film festivals in the world,” Filipi said. “It’s a good chance for people to come and see work they would not ordinarily get to see, and he’ll be here to talk about it.”

Actually, Banks has shown his work in over one hundred film festivals, but said his most rewarding moment was when a high school senior chose his film X: A Baby Cinema for a class project.

“All the kids had to pick their favorite films and start talking about them, and apparently one of my films was his all-time favorite,” Banks said. “He showed it to the entire class and talked about why films like it are really important. When I heard about this through the grapevine, I was like, ‘Wow!’ That was a great moment.”

Banks credits his father for instilling his passion for film. He introduced him to the 8 mm projector at the age of six, and regularly brought home secondhand tape recorders and equipment so that Banks could experiment with film and sound. His interest grew, and he soon began educating himself by watching films and visiting the local library. His only formal education in film was the year he spent at the Cleveland School of the Arts.

Filipi described the style of Banks’ films as “short, experimental, non-narrative pieces, with political content. They are very kinetic, with lots of movement in the frame and images.”

A self-proclaimed ‘starving artist,’ Banks said he isn’t concerned with the amount of money he could make with a film, but with creating a film with a lasting message.

“What I strive for is getting the work out there and making sure it stays out there. Somewhere down the line it’s even going to be shown 20, 40, even 50 years from now,” Banks said. “To me that’s the ultimate success. It’s more important than any Oscar or billion dollar return at the box office.”

Banks also enjoys the opportunity to express his opinions in his films. He comments on the commodification of women in Jaded, which portrays the distorting effects the fashion and beauty industry have in women. His film MPG: Motion Picture Genocide exposes the racism and sexism promoted by the film industry. His most focused commentary is the film X: The Baby Cinema. In it, he reveals his disappointment in Spike Lee’s merchandised film about Malcolm X, as well as audience reaction to the film.

“A lot of people think it’s anti-Spike Lee, but it’s not. I feel he should have put more effort into making a great film instead of putting money into his pocket,” Banks said. “A lot of people forgot what the film was about and what Malcolm X was about – they just wanted to be weekend militants.”

Banks insists on using 35-mm film, rejecting newer video and digital technologies. His manipulation of images requires physically scratching, painting and writing on the film, and comes with a big price tag.

“Just to purchase the film is expensive, and to develop it is expensive. Everything is an expensive undertaking, working in that medium,” Filipi said.

He’ll never achieve Spielberg-level notoriety, and he has to work odd jobs to support his art. So why does Banks continue to spend five to fifteen hours a day making movies?

“This is what I love doing. There is a passion for the magic of filmmaking that I don’t want to see die off,” Banks said. “Also, I feel it is the responsibility of an artist to speak your mind and say what you have to say.”

Tickets are $5 for general public, $4 for students, members and senior citizens, and $2 for children younger than 12.