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Film

Reel deals for film fans

By Steve Persall
Published April 13, 2007

You can break out formal wear and dent the bank account to hobnob with stars such as director Norman Jewison or Academy Award winner Marcia Gay Harden at the Sarasota Film Festival.

Or, for little or no money, you can sample west-central Florida's own taste of Hollywood chic, which opens its ninth edition today.

"It has always been important to me that I could afford to attend the festival if I wasn't running it," said executive director Jody Kielbasa.

That's a sharp contrast to the let-them-eat-cake attitude of many such festivals where status trumps cinema. Nobody needs to be somebody special at Sarasota's 10-day cinema showcase.

"We get a lot of people who never buy a movie ticket; they just hang around the red carpet taking pictures," Kielbasa said. "And that's okay, too."

Don't settle for merely gawking. Plenty of casual festival activities under $20 are available - compared to triple-figure prices for glamorous events - and several are even free.

I recommend plunking down $8 per ticket to screenings where visiting actors and filmmakers engage the audience in post-show discussions. Harden and co-star Joe Pantoliano will drop by Canvas screenings on April 20 7:15 p.m. and April 21 (4:45 p.m.), discussing their roles as a couple ripped apart by mental illness.

Numerous, relatively unknown filmmakers will present their works, and nearly 200 features, documentaries, short films and student works are in the lineup. Check the festival Web site (www.sarasotafilmfestival.com) for information about scheduled appearances and ticket availability.

"Even if you can't get into one of the screenings with a big star, if you happen to discover one of the gems, sometimes that's one of the great joys," Kielbasa said.

Sarasota audiences tend to be well-informed, which filmmakers appreciate.

"Filmmakers who visited (in the past) say people in Sarasota really appreciate the films, asking very savvy questions, not just what color is Lindsay Lohan's underwear," Kielbasa said.

Some bargains are sold out, including two showings of Paris, je t'aime with appearances by indie film icon Steve Buscemi and a pair of Beautiful Ohio shows with director Chad Lowe and actor Michelle Trachtenberg.

But $20 tickets are still available for Buscemi's session in the festival's "A Conversation with . . ." series. He'll discuss his unorthodox career in films such as Fargo, Reservoir Dogs and The Big Lebowski on Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Historic Asolo Theater, 5401 Bayshore Road.

The conversation series may offer the festival's prime thrills on the cheap.

Harden and Pantoliano discuss their festival entry Canvas at 7 p.m. Thursday, and Jewison recounts his stellar resume - including In the Heat of the Night, Moonstruck, Fiddler on the Roof and Jesus Christ Superstar - at 1 p.m. April 21. Each session in the Historic Asolo Theater is $20.

Other bargains

- Tonight's 7 o'clock opening film at Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, an absorbing chronicle of NASA's Apollo program, In the Shadow of the Moon. ($15; it's a good idea to check ticket availability before you go.)

Director David Sington and former astronaut Edgar Mitchell - the sixth man to walk on the moon - will attend the high-definition screening.

The film combines rare training and TV footage with interviews of each surviving Apollo astronaut - except Neil Armstrong, the first man on the moon, who seldom speaks publicly. ThinkFilm picked up distribution rights after the film's Sundance Film Festival debut, and a September release is planned. Chances are high for an Oscar nomination for best documentary feature.

- The Independent Visions party Thursday at the Minxx nightclub, 7111 S Tamiami Trail. ($20)

Several relatively unknown filmmakers are expected to attend, networking on behalf of their festival entries. Twenty bucks isn't bad to make acquaintance with, perhaps, the next big thing.

Some free stuff

- Festival Forum at Metro Coffee & Wine, 711 S Osprey Ave.

Scan the festival's Web site for varied dates and times of the nine moderated panel discussions on Florida filmmakers, women's screen images, the current state of foreign films, animation and documentaries, and other issues.

- Kodak's crash courses in Super 16mm filmmaking.

The courses will be offered at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Thursday and April 20 at Hollywood 20. Registration is required online or at the theater's box office.

- Readings and book signings at Selby Public Library, 1331 First St.

Jewison appears at 2:30 p.m. April 20. He shared his memoirs in typically modest style in This Terrible Business Has Been Good to Me.

Author Ethan Canin is at the library at 12:30 p.m. April 21; he adapted one of his short stories from The Palace Thief into Beautiful Ohio, the sold-out closing night film directed by festival attendee Chad Lowe.

- Free admission for those younger than 18 to 30 short films and features at Hollywood 20. Adults may purchase tickets. The freebies are available only at the box office. Visit the Web site and click on youthFEST to learn which movies are included.

- A concert Sunday by Caribbean Playground musician Asheba, and the silly-pop band the Jimmies at 2 p.m. at Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall.

The Ragamala Music and Dance Theater will offer South Indian dance lessons and hands-on cultural activities.

Their connection to cinema is dubious but the concert evidences the festival's inclusive approach and its refreshing goal of providing entertainment bang for not many bucks.

Steve Persall can be reached at (727) 893-8365 or persall@sptimes.com.

[Last modified April 12, 2007, 08:37:47]