FFs.

"Southern California in general and Los Angeles in particular simply have too many damned film festivals." The "FFs" for this entry's title come from Andy Klein's wonderfully entertaining take on a not-so-entertaining development that, as we all know, is not limited to Los Angeles and Orange counties: "The good news is: Everyone with the desire can now make a film. The bad news is: Everyone with the desire can now make a film. The worse news: most of them are." And, as "one anonymous person on the exhibitor side," tells him:

There may be a limited number of potential viewers, but there's an unlimited number of desperate filmmakers. Let's say they've been rejected at Sundance; now they're working their way down the list, from event to event. The entry fees for some indie fests can go a long way to keeping an organization afloat. The filmmakers get their stuff shown in LA, where they might just catch the eye of a critic or a distributor. And at least they can say they were chosen for an LA festival. Everybody's happy... except maybe the audience.

And do not miss his rundown of the FF schedule for the first half of 2006. If that schedule relieves your righteous anger a little too much, work yourself up again reading Kaleem Aftab in the Independent as he lambasts the role sponsorships play in shaping festivals and their programming.

But of course, "festival fatigue" is probably one of the luxurious maladies imaginable. Even as the multiplexes slowly empty, festival attendance is still on the up-n-up, so someone, somewhere is having a good time. In Chicago, maybe, where Chicago International Film Festival rolls on through October 20. The Chicago Reader reviews the highlights and there's more from Peter Sobczynski at Hollywood Bitchslap.

Twitch has people in Chicago and at Raindance.

Jette Kerion has a round-up of Austin area events at Cinematical.

"The American Film Market is coming [to Santa Monica] November 2 - 9 and it's the week when distributors pinch, squeeze, weigh and check the teeth of potential new acquisitions," notes Grady Hendrix, who then jots up a list of "what looks weird, cheap, off-beat and potentially fun." Plus: deals of note at the Pusan Fest.

The Guardian's Peter Bradshaw and the Observer's Jason Solomon pick their top tens from the offerings at the London Film Festival. Also: Rachel Cook predicts that A Cock and Bull Story will be the hit of the fest.

In the Stranger, Nate Lippens looks over the Seattle Lesbian & Gay Film Festival, through October 23.

In the Boston Phoenix: Peter Keough on the Boston Latino International Film Festival, through October 23.

Robert W Welkos previews the Hollywood Film Festival (October 18 through 24) for the Los Angeles Times.

At Cinema Minima, Austin Burbridge takes note of the New Italian Cinema series slated for November 13 through 20 in San Francisco and André Soares comments on the Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival.

Peter Bowen reviews this year's edition of Outfest for Filmmaker.

It's a wrap: Part 5 of Jamie Stuart's New York Film Festival diary for Mutiny City News. Also: Michael Tully, parts 1 and 2.

Posted by dwhudson at October 16, 2005 1:21 PM