film festival tourism

Why Go: Top-notch festival fare showcased in an unparalleled setting. Your best North American option for recent international fare.

Festival Description

Begun in 1971, this well run festival takes place in the epicenter of Hollywood and is in a position to cherry-pick some of the best titles from the festival circuit. The event, under the artistic leadership of Rose Kuo since 2007, attracts important guests from both the international film community and the Hollywood glitterati. In 2009 the festival, like many other cultural events, was radically scaled back to 57 films from 100 screened in 2008. And in order to better coordinate with the American Film Market the last two days of screenings were held in Santa Monica. Robert Koehler’s participation as chief programmer and author of numerous blurbs, blogs and on-stage intros was a welcome addition.

Festival Website: www.afi.com/afifest

Timing: Eleven Days at the beginning of November

2009 Dates: October 30-November 7

Programming: A conservative selection of highlights from the film festival circuit.

Special Guests

Many international filmmakers are drawn to the festival by its Hollywood location coupled with opportunities for distribution deals offered by the concurrent American Film Market event. Such visitors often conduct Q and A sessions after screenings. In addition, if you like glitzy premieres, the glam quotient of Hollywood royalty here is high.

Audience: Mostly locals. Many have a high degree of movie literacy, which makes for provocative Q and A sessions with filmmakers.

Screening Venues:

The 2009 festival was moved from the Hollywood Arclight to the  nearby Grauman’s Chinese Theater and its attendant Mann 6 multiplex. Though not quite as ideal as the Arclight, the Grauman’s complex nonetheless boasts superb screening facilities, comfort and sightlines.

Screening Schedule:

In 2009, movies began at 4 on weekdays on 2 screens.

Tickets

In 2009 the festival initiated a policy of free tickets. This strategy meant that most tickets that were made available online were snatched up immediately. However, tickets were in good supply at the box office for those who went to pick them up in person–with the exception of the big Hollywood-style galas and the opening and closing night titles. For those films, most had to stand in rush lines, though a few hundred were admitted for each big event.

Program Book: Like the rest of the festival, the 2009 program book was a relatively modest affair, but the write-ups were more authoritative and most were signed. The fest’s  expansive and  informative website and blog is the best way of getting information about the program.

Surroundings

Hollywood is undergoing a Renaissance with new buildings and restorations in progress all around. A grunge factor persists, however, especially along Hollywood Boulevard.

Getting There

You can avoid renting a car by flying into LAX and taking the SuperShuttle to your hotel. From Hollywood, you can use the new subway system (yes, LA has a subway) to get downtown or to Universal City.

Getting Around

The Roosevelt, the fest’s host hotel, is right across the street from the Grauman’s Chinese multiplex which, in turn, is next door to the Kodak center shopping mall with its multitude of cafes and fast-food joints.

Accommodations

Hollywood is home to a burgeoning cadre of hotels in all price categories. A few options:

• The Roosevelt. Newly restored and notable for its old Hollywood feel. 7000 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, CA. (323) 466-700 www.Hollywoodroosevelt.com

• Hollywood Celebrity Hotel. A good budget option, located on a quiet street just behind the Kodak Center.1775 Orchid Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90028. (323) 850-6464. www.hotelcelebrity.com

Restaurants

Many, many choices. For special meals I like:

• The Grill. Best upscale choice in the Kodak Center. Quiet and reliable.

• Yamashiros Very expensive, but fabulous ambience and views. To hold down your budget while enjoying the setting and views, go for drinks. 1999 N. Sycamore Ave., Hollywood, CA 323-466-5125 www.yamashirorestaurant.com

Excursions

Paramount Studios Tour: A pretty good studio tour, close by. Guides have a tendency to go off on tangents about haunted sets and other unenlightening trivia. 323-956-1777. http://www.paramount.com/paramount.php

Mood Movies:

Films set in Hollywood you might want to watch before you go.

• Mulholland Drive. David Lynch’s postmodern visit to old-style Hollywood. Not all locations are in Hollywood, but the film evokes the Hollywood spirit.

THE FESTIVAL YEAR BY YEAR

2005

Best Film I Saw: Tsotsi. Gavin Hood’s slam-bang study of violent youth in the new South Africa.

2006

Best Film I Saw: Time. Another disturbing, enigmatic work from Korea’s Kim Ki-Duk (The Isle, 3-Iron).

2007

Best Films I Saw

4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days. Cristian Mungiu’s relentless portrait of a back-street abortion in 1980’s Romania, told largely in sequence shots and squeezed into a tightly compressed time period to generate maximum tension.

Silent Light. Perhaps the most personal and uncompromising filmmaker of the Mexican New Wave, Carlos Reygadas has produced a haunting Dreyer-esque study of life among Mexico’s Mennonite community.

Secret Sunshine. Another astonishing work from Korea by filmmaker Chang-dong Lee. Do-yeon Jeon won a well-deserved acting prize at Cannes for her portrayal of a young mother beset by pain and loss.

2008

Best Film I Saw: Lake Tahoe. A droll, formalistic piece of cinematic minimalism by the young Mexican auteur Fernando Eimbcke. Entirely original and endlessly engaging.

Unexpected Pleasures

• Berenice Reynaud’s knowledgable, provocative introduction to the screening of Jia Zhang-ke’s 24 City.
• The intelligent, informed Q and A session after the screening of The Headless Woman.

2009

Best film I saw: About Elly. With its kinetic energy and over-privileged characters, Asgar Farhadi’s portrait of Tehran’s  idle rich feels like the Iranian New Wave turned on its head. Were these people were the kind of  Iranians  who recently concluded that a sybaritic lifestyle was no longer sustainable in view of the situation in the country at large and decided to turn their energies to political protest rather than petty pleasures? The film does not try to answer this question but clearly raises it by focusing on the disastrous consequences and moral quagmires that follow from irresponsible behavior.

Unexpected Pleasures

• Robert Koehler’s  helpful on-stage introductions to some of the films.

• The festival promo reel, shown before each films. Legendary movie stars as audience members looking at the big screen–enchanting!

Link to my essay on AFI FEST movies:

http://blog.afi.com/afifest/index.php/2009/10/31/anti-detective-stories/

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