ATHENS, Ohio -- The 30th Athens International Film and Video Festival is slated to run April 25 through May 1. Over a dozen international feature films, as well as numerous documentaries, short subjects, experimental films and guest artist presentations are scheduled for this year's celebration.
Among the feature films highlighting the festival are: Roman Polanski's Academy-Award winning film "The Pianist," featuring Oscar-winning actor Adrian Brody; Pedro Amaldovar's "Talk To Her," "The Quiet American" and "Bend It Like Beckham." Rounding out the feature selections are "Ten," an Iranian film by Abbas Kiarostami, "City of God" from Brazil and "Karmen Gei" from Senegal.
The feature "Russian Ark" portrays the history of Russia in one single take -- the longest single shot in the history of cinema -- while "Lost in La Mancha" -- an on-the-scene look at the collapse of former Monty Python Terry Gilliam's failed version of Don Quixote -- dissects the film-making process.
The festival's competition highlights new documentary and short films from around the world, offering audiences rare opportunities to see work by emerging and non-commercial film makers.
Festival director Ruth Bradley is very pleased with the quality of this year's selection. "We received around 350 entries this year," Bradley said, "and they run the gamut from serious and challenging documentaries to really fun, short comedies. The festival continues to be a wonderful community event and is only possible because of the great community support we receive -- including ongoing funding from the Ohio Arts Council and, this year, from the National Endowment for the Arts."
Among the guest artists attending the festival are legendary experimental and special effects expert Pat O'Neill, who will be screening his latest feature film, "The Decay of Fiction," Su Friedrich, a New York feminist filmmaker presenting "The Odds of Recovery" and Tom Hansell, a documentarian from Appalshop, an arts center in eastern Kentucky, who will be screening his latest work, "Coal Bucket Outlaw." Other guest artists include Ohio film makers Robert Banks and Jeffrey Wray, who will screen new work celebrating the African American culture.
There will be three venues for Festival films this year -- the Athena Cinema, The Ridges Auditorium and the 1954 Lounge in Ohio University's Baker University Center. Admission for films at the Athena is $5.50; The Ridges presentations are $3 and the Baker Center screenings are free. A pass good for five admissions is available for $20 and will be available at the Fine Arts Ticket Office in Kantner Hall starting April 15. Passes will also be available at the Athena Cinema ticket booth.
