By MARTA HEPLER DRAHOS
mdrahos@record-eagle.com
TRAVERSE CITY — Marilyn Clark and Nancy Wells perused the brochures at the Traverse City Convention & Visitors Bureau for sightseeing ideas.
The friends were in town Monday for the Traverse City Film Festival and said they plan to stay for the whole week in a rented condo with Wells' husband, Ken, and another friend.
"We love indie films, foreign films," said Wells, of Beverly Shores, Ind., who plans to cram in about three movies a day.
The sixth annual festival kicks off today with two opening films instead of one, "Twister" at dusk at the Open Space, and an elaborate downtown street party.
The Michigan Filmmaker of the Year award will be dedicated posthumously to director, producer and writer John Hughes before screenings of the 6:30 and 7 p.m. films at the City Opera House and the State Theatre, said Festival Executive Director Deb Lake.
Hughes lived in suburban Detroit until his teens and scripted some of the most successful films of the 1980s and early 1990s, including "Ferris Bueller's Day Off," "The Breakfast Club," "101 Dalmatians" and the "Home Alone" series.
About 700 people paid $50 each to attend the Opening Night Party, which features international food, music and displays.
"We're going to create a global village," said Events Manager Nancy Belton, who worked with city officials to get approval for the ticketed event. The party will take place from 8:30 to 11:30 p.m. on Front Street between Park and Cass. The block will be closed to traffic, but sidewalks will be open.
The festival runs through Sunday and features 138 screenings of more than 115 films. Attendance is expected to top 100,000, Lake said.
Some 40 filmmakers — from directors and producers to actors — plan to introduce their films, speak at daily discussion panels, and offer advice at a festival film school.
This year's school is double the size of last year's, with two master classes a day, held at Northwestern Michigan College's Scholars Hall next to Milliken Auditorium for the first time this year.
The festival also will salute Cuban filmmakers, several of whom will be on hand to give audiences an inside look at Cuban cinema, filmmaking and culture.
An outdoor "Film Forum" will take place at Lay Park after specially designated noon and 3 p.m. movies Wednesday through Saturday.
"We think this will be a very cool way to spend an hour and take a break from all the movie-watching," said Festival Founder Michael Moore in an e-mail to Friends of the Film Festival. "Think of this as a movie lovers' 'be-in'."
There will also be free daily concerts from noon to 7 p.m. at the park and free music and interactive entertainment — including a Beatles karaoke contest before Thursday's screening of "Help" — at the Open Space daily from 7 to 9:30 p.m.
Some 150 musicians — more than 50 acts — are scheduled to perform at this year's festival, said Music Manager Michael Sullivan.
"Our effort is to match the performance with the theme of the movie," said Sullivan, who posted an open invitation to performers on the band-and-promoter matchmaking website Sonicbids. "This year we've gone international in addition to our steady, local performers."
Non-regional performers include the Indian duo Veena and Devesh Chandra; Canadian singer-songwriter Thunderclap!; Kalamazoo-based klezmer and swing band, The Red Sea Pedestrians; English singer-songwriter Henry Sparks; and Milwaukee-based root, funk and hip-hop group Fresh Cut Collective.
Ann Arbor singer-songwriter Jetty Rae is appearing fresh off last week's Lilith Fair concert in Detroit.
"The connections you can make with the filmmakers and directors is really cool, because I'd love for my music to be played in films," said Rae, who will perform all week at the festival, including the Filmmakers Party on Friday.
About 44 of the festival's 138 screenings are sold out, said Assistant Box Office Manager Travis Fink on Monday. That still leaves plenty of tickets for last-minute movie-goers.
"We still have two TBA slots, so I hope those will be announced (soon)," Fink said.
About 700 volunteers will put on this year's festival, which includes five other parties and a movie-themed costume 5K race, said Volunteer Manager Nancy Baker.
