The folks at SIFF seem determined to keep enthusiasm up at the end of the multi-week marathon festival, and in a big way. They’ve packed every moment until Sunday’s closing gala with screenings, parties and special events, as if they suddenly realized that they don’t have enough time left to do all they wanted (or that everyone’s getting a little weary and needs a boost).

Last night, for example, festival fans had to choose between two very different one-shot options: Stephin Merritt of The Magnetic Fields playing his original live score for a new 35-mm print of “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea,” originally made in 1916, and the “Gay-la” dance party. I went to the former. The most impressive thing about the screening was the Paramount Theater’s mighty Wurlitzer organ, played with aplomb by David Hegarty as Merritt and Daniel Handler played other instruments and threw in the occasional and often goofy spoken line or sound effect.

IFC Films has acquired North American rights to “Wake,” from director Chad Feehan. The psychological thriller made its world premiere at this year’s SXSW Film Festival.

Feehan, who makes his directorial debut on the film, also wrote the screenplay; he produced the film with Amanda Micallef and Lea-Beth Shapiro. The film stars Josh Stewart, Jamie-Lynn Sigler, Chris Browning, Angela Featherstone and Afemo Omilami.

The American Film Institute conferred honorary degrees upon Jeffrey Katzenberg and Kathleen Kennedy. The Hollywood heavyweights were cited for "contribution of distinction to the art of the moving image" during Wednesday's AFI Conservatory commencement ceremonies for its 2010 graduating class.
 
Breaking with the AFI tradition of having separate presenters, Katzenberg and Kennedy presented each other with the AFI Honorary Degree to commemorate their years of collaboration and friendship. They have worked together on numerous projects over the years, including the 1980s film classics “Raiders of the Lost Ark” and “Who Framed Roger Rabbit.”
 

Campus MovieFest (CMF) is the world's largest student film festival and a prominent showcase for the next generation of filmmakers. Moving Pictures is proud to join in the festivities to spread the word on the cinematic works of the next wave of talent.

Outside of film festivals, it’s hard for American audiences to get a chance to watch documentaries on theaters’ big screens. But they’re some of the best movies made, both in and outside America.

This past weekend, SIFF festival-goers were flocking to films that gave them new perspectives about people they thought they knew (“American Faust: Condi to Neo-Condi,” “Hugh Hefner: Playboy, Activist, and Rebel”). Or they saw an insider’s look at the fight against California’s Proposition 8, the “Marriage Protection Act” (“8: A Mormon Proposition”) or for Washington’s “Death with Dignity” Act (“The Last Campaign of Governor Booth Gardner”).

They also saw the traditional documentary format turned on its head with films such as “Stolen,” which began as a straightforward doc about reconciliation in war-torn Africa and became something of a real-life thriller for the filmmakers after they stumbled on an underground human slavery network and had to hide their tapes in the sand and flee for their lives.

The countdown is on for Campus MovieFest, the world’s largest student film festival. It concludes its 2009-10 tour with the International Grand Finale beginning Thursday and extending through Sunday at the Wynn Las Vegas.

Some 75,000 students from universities throughout the world have signed up for the weekend of events that include screenings of more than 200 movies, industry workshops, networking opportunities, alumni gatherings, concerts, and a red-carpet, star-studded final ceremony at the Encore Theater.

Thanks to presenting partner AT&T, the contingent of students participating in this year’s festival were provided free of charge with everything needed to make a five-minute movie in a week – including Apple laptops, Panasonic HD cameras, and AT&T Samsung phones. The movies screening at this weekend’s International Grand Finale highlight the best works from the students representing the more than 50 participating schools, giving students an opportunity to share their movies with their peers, guests in Las Vegas, and industry leaders.

Freestyle Releasing announced Monday “Wild Target” is the company’s first all-U.S. rights acquisition. The film directed by Jonathan Lynn (“My Cousin Vinny,” “The Whole Nine Yards”) and produced by Martin Pope and Michael Rose has a planned Oct. 8 release.

"It doesn't look like the Space Needle," Edward Norton said when SIFF presented him with its Golden Space Needle Award. "It's built to a quarter scale," he joked, teasing the city about the underwhelming size of its landmark.

The two-time Oscar nominee has little interest in receiving awards. "You peek behind the curtain and see what goes into those awards, and they might matter to you a little less when you find out what getting them entails." But he has a vested interest in raising awareness of his latest film, "Leaves of Grass," which was screened between the award presentation and a 100-minute-long discussion with film critic Tom Tangney that concluded the tribute.

Norton, who also produced the film, plays dual roles as a pair of twins from Oklahoma — one who left town, dropped his accent and became a noted philosophy scholar, another who stuck to his roots and endeavored to grow the best hydroponic marijuana in the world.

Do the words “film festival” bring to mind images of the hottest celebrities, producers and parties? Or is it more about the films? At Dances with Films (June 3 – 10, in West Hollywood, Calif.), it’s all about the movies. Leslee Scallon, who cofounded the festival in 1998 with Michael Trent, says it is one of the few “real independent” film festivals left. She adds, “We want to stay a boutique film festival because we love the heart of what the festival is. Which is helping the unknown and talented filmmakers get the exposure they deserve.”

Their main focus is on helping filmmakers with great talent be able to advance their careers without having to attach a big-time celebrity’s name. In fact, films with a celebrity actor’s, producer’s or director’s name attached are not eligible to enter. Scallon likes to keep it that way because she believes that many of the film festivals have changed to showcases.

Look out across a typical SIFF screening audience, and you’ll see a sea of gray hair. Aside from late-night screenings, many of the people going to see movies at the festival are middle-aged or older.

There are a few reasons for this. For one, SIFF is an audience-centered festival, focusing more on quality and quantity than bringing brand-new films to the screen. That means fewer industry folks, publicists and journalists than at some other big-name festivals. Seattle’s film community in general strives to be inclusive and democratic, which means you don’t have to be young, famous or rich to get access. And SIFF is user-friendly, which means it’s relatively easy to get tickets, get information or ask questions. Many festival passes also get their holders into press screenings.

These audiences are some of the best I’ve ever seen. They’re polite, quiet and respectful of both the art form and their fellow viewers.