Arts Talk

By Times staff
© St. Petersburg Times
published March 3, 2002

Seeing stars on Oscar night

The Film Foundation of Tampa Bay will host its eighth annual A Night with the Stars on March 24, centered around that evening's live telecast of the Academy Awards show from Los Angeles. The event includes hors d'oeuvres and dinner, complimentary beer and wine, a cash bar, live entertainment, silent auction and large-screen broadcast of the Oscars. Festivities begin at 7 p.m. at International Plaza in Tampa with free valet parking. Evening attire or celebrity costumes are requested. Tickets are $50 with proceeds divided equally between the Film Foundation and the Hospice of the Florida Suncoast. Call (727) 464-7240 for information.

Attention, independent filmmakers

The Education Channel seeks original films, videos, animation and digital media from independent artists for the ninth annual Independents' Film Festival. All works completed between March 1999 and March 2002 are eligible. They should be submitted on 1/2-inch video tape by April 18. Notification of selections is scheduled for May. Entry forms are available on the Education Channel's Web site, www.educationchannel.org. Call (813) 254-2253 for information.

Free movie for animal lovers

Animal activist Eddie Lama is profiled in the documentary The Witness, scheduled to be shown March 8 and March 15 at two locations in Pinellas County. The first screening will be at Gulfport Library, 5501 28th Ave. S, sponsored by Florida Voices for Animals. The second show will be at Friends Meeting House, 130 19th Ave. S, St. Petersburg. Admission is free, and both shows will be followed by a discussion period. Because The Witness contains brief scenes of animal suffering, the movie is not recommended for young children. Call (727) 344-5998 for information.

Comedy Film Festival

The Dunedin Fine Art Center is sponsoring an Art of Comedy film festival March 8-10 at Main Street Cinema, 27928 U.S. 19 N, in Clearwater. The opening night selection March 8 is Stanley Kubrick's Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb. Show time is 6:45 p.m. with an introduction by Weekly Planet film critic Lance Goldenberg. A reception will be held later that night at the Chic-A-Boom Room, 321 Main St., Dunedin.

Saturday's film schedule begins at 11:45 a.m. with The Odd Couple, followed by Woody Allen's Sleeper at 2:30 p.m. Former film criticism professor Mim Anne Houk will introduce the French farce The Closet at 6:45, followed by Peter and Bobby Farrelly's Kingpin at 9:30. Closing day selections include Harold and Maude (11:45 a.m.), Raising Arizona (2:30 p.m.) and Monty Python and the Holy Grail (7 p.m.). Tickets are $5 per film, $15 for Dr. Strangelove and the postshow reception, and $35 for weekend passes to all events. Call (727) 298-3322 for information.

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