Just Do It

Philadelphia Film Festival and CineFest: Meet the Curators

by Lauren F. Friedman

Thu., March 12, 7 p.m., free, Philadelphia Art Alliance, 251 S. 18th St., 215-545-4302, philartalliance.org.

For a while there, Philly's balkanized film world seemed at risk of falling apart entirely. With TLA and the Philadelphia Film Society entangled in a legal and ideological battle over the Philadelphia Film Festival, local cinephiles began entertaining the none-too-pretty notion that we might end up with no film festival at all.

But all is well, with considering the upcoming Philadelphia Film Festival and CineFest is scheduled for March 26 to April 6. At this year's "Meet the Curators" event, attendees will get a sneak peek at the 2009 festival in all of its new-name, same-game glory.

The event will be part instruction manual, part preview and part Q & A. The five curators will pull back the curtain on the selection process, unveil the official festival program, show some favorite clips and allow the audience to pose questions.

"It gives people a chance to ask anything. Like, what's your obsession with Spanish women?" suggests festival publicist Matthew Ray. "Or, how do you always find movies that make me cry?"

We've got a question: Could you guys do us a favor and not fight like that again?