Film festival season keeps unspooling across the Bay area with St. Petersburg's Sunscreen Film Festival taking up residence at the Muvico BayWalk (and surrounding locales) starting Wed., April 14. Founded in 2005, Sunscreen has made a name for itself by splitting its focus almost evenly between film screenings and the types of educational classes that appeal mainly to those in the film industry. The festival was founded to "encourage the creation, production, and exhibition of independent film in Florida through its educational programs and public screenings, thereby increasing awareness and support of local filmmaking as a cultural and economic asset," and this year's offering promises to be no exception.
The festival kicks off on Wednesday night with a screening of the blacksplotation spoof Black Dynamite, starring Michael Jai White and Arsenio Hall, followed by a classy cocktail party at St. Pete's Museum of Fine Arts. Things are sure to go off Thursday night, as the most famous malt liquor pitchman in the galaxy rolls into town for "An Evening with Billy Dee Williams." Hosted by NOVA 535, you can expect cocktails, dancing, a live band, and epic stories about the shooting of The Empire Strikes Back, all punctuated by repeated cries of "Works Every Time!" (Sorry, no Wookies allowed.)
On Friday, catch a few movies before heading to the wonderful Café Alma for the filmmaker's party, an event expected to last until the wee hours of the morning. Saturday afternoon sees more star power, as Watchmen star Patrick Wilson will be on hand for the screening of his new film Barry Munday. Wilson will stick around after the show for a Q&A with the audience, and then everyone will gather Saturday night at the Mirror Lake Lyceum for the festival's awards ceremony. May the best movie win.
I've only just scratched the surface of the many events that Sunscreen has to offer. For a full list of screenings, events and educational programs, check out sunscreenfilmfestival.com.
Also, get special discounted tickets from Creative Loafing here.
This article appears in Apr 14-20, 2010.