Seattle, WA – The 35th Seattle International Film Festival will present a revitalized Northwest Connections program featuring an unprecedented lineup of work by local filmmakers, films made in the Northwest, or with distinctive appeal to the region. Sixteen extraordinary features and documentaries and thirteen shorts pay tribute to the thriving filmmaking community in and around Seattle, and highlight an enduring international interest in cinema from and about the Northwest.
“This year’s record-breaking Northwest Connections program underscores SIFF’s dedication to supporting and showcasing the exciting films being produced in Seattle and beyond,” says SIFF Artistic Director Carl Spence. “These films are an important testament to the burgeoning Seattle filmmaking community and give Northwest audiences another way to find the unexpected in extraordinary films that enrich us all.”
Crowning the series is the SIFF Centerpiece Gala on Friday, June 5, honoring Humpday, the acclaimed new feature from Seattle director Lynn Shelton. Filmed in Seattle, Humpday is the story of two college buddies who test the limits of heterosexual male bonding by agreeing to take part in an amateur porn contest, based on the real-life competition held by The Stranger. Humpday is a smart satire starring Joshua Leonard and Mark Duplass about the contradictions of the male ego culminating in a hilariously uncomfortable finale.
“It's a thrill for me to bring Humpday to SIFF, my hometown Festival,” says Shelton. “SIFF has been a huge supporter of my work and a vital booster of the local film community. The impressive number of films in SIFF's Northwest Connections program proves that the local filmmaking community is stronger than ever.”
In addition to Humpday, SIFF will present the celebrated Sundance hit and hometown production, The Immaculate Conception of Little Dizzle, directed by David Russo. Other highlights in the Northwest Connections program include the filmed-in-Wallingford feature World’s Greatest Dad, starring Robin Williams and directed by Bobcat Goldthwait, and Sandy Cioffi’s much-anticipated documentary, Sweet Crude.
SIFF Film Center and the “35 Club”
As part of the focus on this year’s Northwest Connections program, SIFF is on course for its move to the SIFF Film Center, a permanent year-round home at Seattle Center’s Alki Room.
“As a cultural institution celebrating 35 years, SIFF is proud of its legacy being an ally of the flourishing Seattle filmmaking community,” says SIFF Managing Director Deborah Person. “The SIFF Film Center is a critical link in continuing that mutual relationship and essential in expanding our successful educational programs and community outreach. Even in a challenging economy, support of the SIFF Film Center provides priceless grass roots stimulus that will pay dividends long into the future.”
Adds Lynn Shelton, filmmaker and SIFF Film Center Honorary Advisory Cabinet member, “The SIFF Film Center will fill a tremendous need for everyone passionate about film, audiences and filmmakers alike.”
As a way of showing their support for the SIFF Film Center Capital Campaign and in recognition of SIFF’s 35th anniversary, audiences at this year’s Festival will be invited to join the “35 Club.” Membership in the 35 Club is offered to those who give a gift of $35, with the option to “add a zero” and make a pledge of $350, $3,500, $35,000, or more. Donations and pledges of any amount are welcomed.
For more information about the SIFF Film Center, please visit www.siff.net/capitalcampaign/.
SIFF 2009 Centerpiece Gala
Humpday, directed by Lynn Shelton (USA, 2009)
Two college buddies test the limits of heterosexual male bonding by agreeing to take part in an amateur porn contest, based on the real-life competition held by The Stranger. This smart satire from Seattle’s Lynn Shelton about the contradictions of the male ego culminates in a hilariously uncomfortable finale.
SIFF 2009 Northwest Connections Features
Back to the Garden, Flower Power Comes Full Circle, directed by Kevin Tomlinson (USA, 2009) WORLD PREMIERE
Twenty years ago, local filmmaker Kevin Tomlinson interviewed hippies at a “healing gathering” in Eastern Washington. Now he tracks the same folks to see what became of their environmental utopias. Today, in the midst of global warming, the voices of these flower children are prophetic.
Dancing Across Borders, directed by Anne H. Bass (USA, 2008) WORLD PREMIERE
Sokvannara “Sy” Sar was a dancer on the streets of Cambodia until he caught the eye of filmmaker Anne Bass, who helped him become a professional ballet dancer. In her debut feature film, Bass sympathetically chronicles Sy’s ascent as ballet’s newest rising star.
Finding Bliss, directed by Julie Davis (USA, 2008)
Jody needs a place to shoot her movies but all she can find is a porn studio. She starts to secretly film there but is discovered and forced to collaborate with an adult film director. Filmed in Spokane, this fun romantic comedy borrows plot lines from director Julie Davis’ own start in the industry.
Icons Among Us, directed by Michael Rivoira, Lars Larson, Peter J. Vogt (USA, 2009)
Executive producer John Comerford interviewed 75 jazz artists with high-definition cameras, shot 25 hours of concerts on Super-16mm film, and blended them with archival footage. The result is a dynamic and engaging document of many of the greatest jazz musicians of today. Also part of SIFF Face the Music.
The Immaculate Conception of Little Dizzle, directed by David Russo (USA, 2009)
A group of janitorial slackers unwittingly becomes the subject of a very bizarre biochemical engineering experiment involving cookies that may help illuminate the meaning of existence. Full of imaginative animation sequences, this visually inventive comedy from Seattle’s David Russo is really a spiritual quest in sheep’s clothing.
Independent America: Rising From Ruins, directed by Hanson Hosein (Canada, 2008)
Independent America: Rising From Ruins explores the effects of Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans and how the Moms and Pop businesses provided hope where corporate America disappointed. Avoiding over-dramatization, Hanson Hosein educates audiences about the empowered and hopeful in the New Orleans community.
It Takes a Cult, directed by Eric Johannsen (USA, 2008)
The Israel Family (aka, The Love Family) was a communal religious movement born in Seattle that grew to a tribe of nearly 300 men, women, and children. Raised in the Israel Family, Johannsen brings an intimate portrait of communal life and what drew them all together.
Pirate for the Sea, directed by Ronald Colby (USA, 2008)
Hero to conservationists and villain to hunters, marine environmentalist Paul Watson commits himself 100 percent to his cause. In this stirring profile, director and narrator Ron Colby explores Watson's beliefs, blunders, and triumphs. He makes a convincing case that the world's endangered oceans are better off due to Watson’s dedicated and frequently controversial efforts.
The Spy and the Sparrow, directed by Garrett Bennett (USA, 2009) WORLD PREMIERE
Shot in Seattle and produced by local shingle Eke Pictures, Bennett merges spy thriller with domestic drama to sly and surprising effect as retired agent Thomas Sparrow faces his greatest challenges in trying to reconnect with his troubled daughter, Josephine, in this sly and surprising film.
Sweet Crude, directed by Sandy Cioffi (USA, 2008)
Ten percent of our oil supply comes from Nigeria, but few of us know the social and environmental devastation that the oil business wreaks there. Local filmmaker Sandy Cioffi brings her camera overseas to expose the corruption and the growing militant reaction to the politically irresponsible oil companies in the Niger Delta.
Trimpin: The Sound of Invention, directed by Peter Esmonde (USA, 2009)
Trimpin is a wild ride through the kinetic universe of a creative genius. We watch Seattle-based artist/inventor/engineer/composer Trimpin design, scavenge, build, and investigate an outrageous range of materials. This will delight anyone interested in the mysteries, pitfalls, and sheer joy of creative experiment. Also part of SIFF Face the Music program. Also part of SIFF Face the Music.
True Adolescents, directed by Craig Johnson (USA, 2009)
Washington native Craig Johnson fills his directorial debut with the sights and sounds of the Pacific Northwest in this humorous and insightful tale of a down-on-his-luck indie rocker (Mark Duplass from Humpday and The Puffy Chair) who confronts his biggest doubts and fears when a camping trip goes awry.
The Whole Truth, directed by Colleen Patrick (USA, 2009) WORLD PREMIERE
A greedy, high living acting coach transforms disgusting criminals to appeal to juries, until she overhears a client she helped set free plan a heinous crime – and becomes his target for murder. Escaping death and discovering who she really is becomes the most expensive – and rewarding – experience of her life.
World’s Greatest Dad, directed by Bobcat Goldthwait (USA, 2009)
Shot on location in Seattle, this wickedly funny dark comedy stars Robin Williams as a sad-sack poetry teacher who inadvertently finds his greatest opportunity from a freak accident. Bobcat Goldthwait has concocted a lusciously perverse and refreshingly original tale that tackles love, loss, and our curious quest for infamy.
ZMD: Zombies of Mass Destruction, directed by Kevin Hamedani (USA, 2009)
Things are rotten in the idyllic island town of Port Gamble, Washington, quite possibly because there’s been a zombie virus outbreak. Now a small band of intrepid heroes must fight back and eradicate the undead invaders – it’s the American way.
SIFF 2009 Northwest Connections Shorts
Bedtime Story, directed by Sarah Jane Lapp (USA, 2009)
CC 2010, directed by Travis Senger (USA, 2009)
Endless Tunnel, directed by Tommy Thompson (USA, 2008)
The Chronicles of Cleo and Jack, directed by Karn Junkinsmith (USA, 2009)
The Day My Parents Became Cool, directed by Steve Edmiston (USA, 2008)
Dark Material, directed by Maile Martinez and Lane Stroud (USA, 2009)
Her Meds, directed by Matt Cibelli (USA, 2008)
It’s In The P-I, directed by Bradley Hutchinson (USA, 2009)
November, directed by Benjamin Dobyns (USA, 2008)
One Night, directed by Laura Jean Cronin (USA, 2009)
Somewhere, directed by Salise Hughes (USA, 2009)
Sophia + Anna, directed by Joy Andrews and Matt Daniels (USA, 2009)
Thicker Than Water, directed by Sami Kubo and Camille Kolodziejski (USA, 2008)
About the Seattle International Film Festival
The 35th Seattle International Film Festival runs May 21 through June 14. The complete SIFF program schedule will be available Thursday, May 7 at www.siff.net, and as a special pullout section in the Seattle Times. The SIFF Box Office opens to SIFF Supporters May 7, and to the general public on May 8. Tickets will be available online at www.siff.net, by phone at 206-324-9996, or at the Pacific Place Box Office Ticket Island (600 Pine Street, second level).
Now in its 35th year, the Seattle International Film Festival is the largest and most highly-attended film festival in the United States, showcasing more than 400 films from over 60 countries to an audience of 150,000 attendees annually. Listed by Variety as one of the world's "50 unmissable film festivals," SIFF continues to be recognized as one of the top festivals in North America. SIFF combines the best aspects of a casual film marketplace with our well-established reputation as a great audience festival filmmakers love to attend.
SIFF's mission is to create experiences that bring people together to discover extraordinary films from around the world. In addition to the Festival, SIFF operates SIFF Cinema, its year-round flagship theater at McCaw Hall. In 2010, SIFF will open the SIFF Film Center at Seattle Center's Alki Room, thereby fulfilling its long- standing vision of creating a permanent home where SIFF's successful film, education, and community outreach programs can thrive.
The 35th Seattle International Film Festival is made possible in part by support from Comcast, Digital Kitchen, Modern Digital, POP, WongDoody, American Airlines, Brotherton Cadillac Pontiac Buick GMC, The W Seattle Hotel, City Arts Magazine, Cinerama, Alpha Cine, ZonePerfect, Victorinox, Alaska Airlines, BNY Mellon Wealth Management, Boom Noodle, Don Q Rums, Davis Wright Tremaine, and The Wallace Foundation. The Northwest Connections program is made possible in part by News Talk 97.3 KIRO FM, the Seattle Office of Arts & Culture, 4Culture, and The Washington State Arts Commission.
###
