Poker Documentary "Cracking Aces" Getting Rave Reviews at Film Festivals

Playing to a number of sold out shows at various film festivals last month, "Cracking Aces: A Woman's Place at the Table" is scheduled for a showing at another film fest in Indiana in June, with hopes of also appearing on screen in Las Vegas during the upcoming World Series of Poker.

A movie about the women in poker who blazed the trail for other ladies to follow despite an often unwelcoming environment created by men who dominate the sport, the timing of Cracking Aces' release is nearly perfect. Women's voices are getting louder and stronger in 2018, unfortunately, it took exposure surrounding the #MeToo movement to make it happen.

“The mistreatment of women in poker is a decades-long problem, but now the world is listening,'' said the film's producer, Flagler College communication professor Dr. Tracy Halcomb. She and director H. James Gilmore added interviews with a number of poker players in the documentary, including the newest inductees into the Women in Poker Hall of Fame, Maria Ho and Lupe Soto.

Coast-To-Coast Screenings

Not all the reviews for Cracking Aces are in, but the early ones seem favorable, such as this one from Joan Casamo on Facebook:

"I realized half way through the movie that I had a big smile on my face and it continued throughout the film. Excellent!"

Screenings of the feature-length poker documentary have been shown at the Sunscreen Film Festival, Sarasota Film Festival, Through Women’s Eyes International Film Festival and the Silicon Beach Film Festival in Los Angeles. Still to come are the Hobnobben Film Festival in June and the University Film & Video Association national conference in July.

Halcomb was part of a panel of women who participated in a Women in Film Brunch tied in with the Sunscreen Film Festival, while Gilmore took a seat at the Director's Panel.

Female Poker Players Wanted

Halcomb told a Flagler College reporter that inspiration for the movie came from asking herself why men continue to make up 95% of player fields in poker. The game requires intellect, not size or muscular strength, so the ratio of male to female players is at least somewhat puzzling.

Of course, there are still some short-sighted men who would prefer that women simply polish the glass ceiling instead of break it. But I'd like to believe that the number of men who think that way are dwindling, and it's movies like Cracking Aces that will shine a light on the issue even more.

“We did this for everyone playing poker, not just women playing poker,” Halcomb said. “Creating change in the poker industry makes the game better for everyone.”