Long Beach Film Fest Ready to Roll … in 2013


At a mixer Thursday night that was a year to the day before the Long Beach Film Festival is scheduled to be resurrected, organizers disclosed plans for the May 17-19, 2013, event.

Coming up: more mixers and–pretty please with sugar on top?–more money.

Did we say please?
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Yup, more of that thing that makes the world go 'round is needed if this sucker is going to get off the ground. But executive director Logan Crow of Long Beach Cinematheque told a Honduras Kitchen crowd that numbered in the dozens that the push is off to a good start.

First, there was the $10 a head collected from those slurping on rum and munching yummy Honduran delights Thursday night. Next, there's the Long Beach Film Festival being designated an official charity of the hugely popular Long Beach Marathon, which is coming up in October.

But making it all more within the realm of possibility is the intimate approach being taken for the re-boot of the film festival, which will be held during the 100th anniversary of Long Beach's Balboa film studio and, besides motion pictures, will be a showcase for local art, music and fashion.

Crow and his crew will rely entirely on volunteers, who were being rounded up Thursday night. And, taking a cue from the Silverlake Film Festival, the Long Beach version will be confined to the hep area around Fourth Street and Cherry Avenue that includes Honduras Kitchen, Lola's Mexican Cuisine and what will be the center of the movie-going universe that weekend, the historic Art Theatre.

In the meantime, starting with the mixer and through the actual event next year, Logan says he and his Cinematheque co-horts Shawn King, the program director, and Roberta King, membership and volunteer coordinator, will be relying on community feedback to, well, give the community the film festival it wants.

“We want to curate a film festival that reflects Long Beach,” Logan said. “Long Beach is the most culturally diverse community.”

So, diverse community, start sending those diverse ideas to lo***@lb******.org, sh***@lb******.org and ro*****@lb******.org. Also check out the Long Beach Cinematheque and Long Beach Film Festival sites for more details as they develop.

Oh, and if you have and spare change in your pockets, send that along, too.

Puh-leeeez!

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