If you ever want to find out how out of touch you are or even just plain wrong, write about it.
After more than four decades in this biz, I can tell fine people will let you know and isn’t that what this whole thing is all about – remember water cooler fodder as imo continues.
The Mission valley has music, lots of music and the genre – well attend the variety that tickles your fancy and your pocketbook.
But this weekend here in his burg of Polson that I have affectionately called home for a decade, besides the sprinkling of local music it’s time for the movies and talk about movies.
This marks the fifth time around for the Flathead Lake International Cinemafest (aptly shortened to FLIC) which kicks off with an informal opening get-together Friday at the Lake Bar.
The inaugural film, The Violin Alone is a 57-minute documentary about the unlikely pairing of two visionaries, one a Hungarian virtuoso and the second a classic composer from Montana.
As in many of the festival’s movies filmmaker Scott Sterling, a senior producer for Montana PBS, and composer Eric Funk, will be on hand for a discussion after the 7 p.m. showing.
A pair of other films on each of two screens closes out the evening.
Saturday features a full slate beginning at 8:30 a. with a 95-minute free children’s film, “Home” on both screens and including breakfast provided by Polson Rotary.
Shorter presentations starting at 10 a.m. are featured on Sunday followed by an awards show and desert reception at 5:30 at Showboat Cinemas.
Included with technical awards is the People’s Choice, voted on by the public with ballots available in the theater lobby.
A trio of judges, David King, Karen Lewing and Mac Swan will score films on a 1 to 10 basis in ten categories.
Sixteen of the weekend’s projects were made in-state and if you miss a film you really counted on seeing, eight encores and the best of the lot will be shown at the theater Monday thru Thursday. Pick up a schedule in the lobby.
The weekend is comprised of 60 films from Spain, Croatia, Taiwan, Austria, Canada and France in addition to the United States.
Fourteen of the presentations are Jr/or student movies, boding well both for the future of the festival but also filmmaking in general.
The idea for a winter film festival to attract tourism to the Mission Valley during the shoulder months was partially brainstormed by Envision Polson’s Year around Committee, formed under the Greater Polson Community Foundation.
Tickets are $5 per showing or $40 for the entire weekend.
