Whidbey Island Film Festival Set For January
This is the only purely classic film festival in Washington State.
Film history will once again grace the Whidbey Island Center for the Arts (WICA) mainstage January 8-18 with the seventh annual Whidbey Island Film Festival (WIFF). The only purely classic film festival in Washington State, the two-week run will feature the enduring charm of screen legends Charlie Chaplin and Steve Martin and will pull at the heartstrings with impactful storytelling in films like Fried Green Tomatoes. The lineup, curated by James Hinkley, captures work, community, reinvention, struggle, music, and imagination in the 11 classics curated to represent this year's theme—Americana: The American Story Told Through a Century of Classic Film.
“We invite you to come out of the cold and enjoy wonderful community in Whidbey's art hub,” says WICA Executive Artistic Director and WIFF Co-Curator Deana Duncan. “Each year we literally roll out the red carpet for our patrons, bringing Hollywood to Langley and providing a space to celebrate generations of film classics.”
Produced by WICA, WIFF brings in movie lovers from Whidbey and beyond to enjoy iconic classics how they were originally meant to be seen—on the big screen. The festival will kick off with a red carpet opening party and will feature a signature cocktail and bottomless popcorn. The audience-favorite Art of the Score concert will return on January 17, featuring festival Co-Curator James Hinkley playing alongside Whidbey icons Sheila Weidendorf and Gloria Ferry-Brennan. Patrons will also experience other programming, including a film talk led by Scarecrow Video's Jonathan Marlow on January 10. On January 11, WICA Costume Designer Randon Pool will lead a discussion on The Art of Illusion and the clothes we wear to deceive the world. Pool will be joined by actors Gail Liston and Charlie Walsh, two familiar faces to the WICA stage, for a visual demonstration using clothing as a tool to alter reality. On January 16, WICA's Production Director Honza Kourimsky will lead attendees in movie night trivia, a free event in Zech Hall for patrons to enjoy classic cinema moments and fun prizes, while January 18 will bring to WICA the taste of Southern comfort classics.
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