Campus playing host to film festival

It may not be Cannes, but the Philadelphia Festival of World Cinema, going on this week and next, is bringing stars like Morgan Freeman and Danny Aiello to the City of Brotherly Love. The festival, started by International House, has undergone a major facelift for its 10th anniversary. Many of the festival's 121 features and 65 short films will play near Penn's campus at International House and the Annenberg Center. "We wanted to really make it a city-wide event," said Ray Murray, the artistic director of the festival and president of the TLA Entertainment Group. Previously, International House was solely responsible for the festival, but after last year's disappointing turnout of only 17,000 total, TLA joined in. "We are trying to jump-start it," Murray said. With this year's beefed-up program, including added events and awards, TLA is hoping audiences will total more than 30,000. There will be new categories, such as "Danger After Dark," "Action Asia" and "The Documentary Tradition" -- which was programmed by John Katz, a visiting Penn professor of English and film studies, and his wife, Joan Salzman. "I think it's a chance for young people to see films they might not see," Katz said, adding that this is particularly true of the documentaries -- many of which will never be released to theaters. "The film festival provides an opportunity for students interested in film to meet with writers, filmmakers and movie stars," Katz said. He noted that many of his film studies students are taking advantage of chances to volunteer at events. And some students are interested in the festival's diverse film offerings. "I think it's great that people can see a film from a small country," said College senior Asgeir Sigfusson. On Monday, Sigfusson saw 101 Reykijavik -- a film from his native Iceland. Throughout the festival, which kicked off last Thursday, "Cine Cafes" in the Penn Bookstore will offer open dialogues on topics such as Europe and women and the media. This year also marks the festival's first competition. Awards will be handed out in seven categories. The Philadelphia City Paper Festival of Independents -- part of the festival -- will also distribute honors. A lifetime achievement award was presented to actor Morgan Freeman after the Sunday screening of his film Along Came a Spider. "It gives [the festival] a certain pizazz," Murray said, in reference to giving the award to someone well known and respected. The festival hopes to catch the attention of Hollywood with such big names. Last Thursday's viewing of Dinner Rush brought the Zellerbach theater to near-capacity. The festival will continue until May 7, with films showing both on campus and downtown.

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