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Wednesday, Nov. 04, 2009
Lone Star film fest returns with stronger sense of identity
The Lone Star International Film Festival returns with an intriguing lineup and a stronger sense of identity
By CHRISTOPHER KELLY
cmkelly@dfw.com
Everyone talks about big debuts and sophomore slumps, but when it comes to film festivals, it’s usually the third year that matters the most: By then the fanfare and novelty have worn off and a festival can no longer coast on community goodwill.
The good news about this year’s Lone Star International Film Festival, which kicks off Wednesday with a screening of the indie comedy The Scenesters, and continues through Nov. 15, is that it’s built to last.
This third edition lacks the star wattage of the inaugural edition of the festival in 2007, which brought the likes of Martin Sheen, Robert Rodriguez, Fred Durst and Harry Dean Stanton to town.
But the festival’s organizers also seem to have moved past the melodrama that plagued the festival last year. (Artistic director Tom Huckabee was unexpectedly removed from his position in late 2007, prompting local favorite Bill Paxton to resign from the festival’s advisory board.)
This year’s edition is a well-programmed, modestly scaled five-day event that isn’t trying to be everything to everyone. Lone Star finally seems to be on firm footing, both artistically and financially.
"We’re now at the point where it’s about putting on a unique festival," says festival director Dennis Bishop, who took over the reins in early 2008. "We’re just showing movies that we think we need to show."
Among the highlights of this year’s festival:
Legendary singer and actor Kris Kristofferson is being awarded the inaugural "Steven Bruton Award," named for the famed Fort Worth musician. The award celebrates an artist who has contributed to both the film and music worlds.
Following last year’s focus on Russian cinema, this year the programmers turn their attention to Germany, with three titles that have barely screened in the United States.
A posthumous lifetime achievement award for playwright and screenwriter Horton Foote (Tender Mercies), to be accepted by his son Horton Foote Jr.
These are all smart, intriguing choices that speak to the festival’s determination to focus on quality and enhance Fort Worth’s film culture — instead of just trying to fill seats on the strength of A-list names.
"We don’t honor people to raise money," says Bishop. "If we honor someone, it’s because it fits into our agenda and we believe in that person."
Few big titles
If there’s a disappointment with this year’s festival, though, it’s that there aren’t many instantly recognizable movies in the lineup. The organizers have programmed one piece of Oscar bait, the closing night feature The Messenger, starring Ben Foster and Woody Harrelson. But the big guns that have been screening at other regional festivals — Up in the Air starring George Clooney, say, or the adaptation of Cormac McCarthy’s The Road — won’t be playing here.
Artistic director Alec Jhangiani acknowledges that the festival is still working on developing relationships with the big studios — a process that can take many years for upstart film festivals.
For now, though, he’s confident in a lineup that he thinks pushes Fort Worth outside its collective comfort zone. He points to titles like Strongman — a sometimes graphic documentary about a man competing to be "North America’s strongest man," and Modern Love Is Automatic, a dark comedy about a dominatrix — as challenging movies that probably would never screen in Cowtown otherwise.
"We’ve never made a decision that you can’t show a movie in Fort Worth because the audience wouldn’t be ready for it," Jhangiani says.
"You don’t necessarily fill the theaters with some of these movies, but they’re important to show," Bishop says.
Looking to the future
Perhaps most encouraging to Fort Worth film buffs: The festival is doing a great deal to ensure that it will be around for many more years to come. Despite the now-common challenges of fundraising during a recession, Bishop, Jhangiani and managing director John Storm were able to secure the festival’s first major corporate sponsor, Sundance Square.
Organizers are also committed to year-round programming, including the "Best of the Fest" series at the Modern Art Museum, which brings films and filmmakers whose work premieres at the festival back to Cowtown for an encore performance.
And for anyone who has been disappointed that it’s taken so long for a Fort Worth-centric film festival to get off the ground and stay aloft, here’s another reason to be excited about this year’s Lone Star International Film Festival: The organizers are learning from their mistakes.
"We’re learning what people will come to and what they won’t," says Bishop. "Last year, we had too many festival lounges. If you have too many lounges and venues, you get too spread out. We’re trying to be particular about making the people who attend the festival feel like they are part of a community."
Lone Star International Film Festival
Wednesday through Nov. 15
Wednesday through Nov. 15
At multiple venues, including AMC Palace, Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth and Four Day Weekend Theater
Individual tickets are $8-$10, depending on the film; $70 (10-pack); $75 (one-day access pass); $175 (panels and lounges pass); $250 (five-day premier pass); $395 (five-day all-access pass)
For more information and a complete schedule, go to www.lsiff.com
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