Starting tonight, the 26th Local Sightings film festival beings its ten-day run at Northwest Film Forum (and online). The annual film festival champions emerging and established talent and aims to showcase creative communities from throughout the Pacific Northwest. As before this year’s event features a curated program of short and feature film programs that run the gamut from documentaries to experimental films.
Opening Night festivities spotlight one of the region’s surprising breakout success stories in the form of Fantasy Gets A Mattress. The highly eclectic, brightly colored, hyperlocally produced story of an autistic rapper’s odyssey through the trials and tribulations has packed local theaters throughout the summer. Filmed around modern day Seattle with an eye toward the steep challenges facing art scene strivers and those on precipice of housing insecurity, the broad comedy takes a broadly comedic yet clear-eyed look at the inaccessibilities of our city. True to form, tonight’s in-person screening — complete with an set from Fantasy A himself and a pre-show happy hour — is sold out, but it’s still possible to catch a look at this hit online.
Another standout of the feature film programming is Even Hell Has Its Heroes, Clyde Petersen’s standout documentary which previously played SIFF. Ostensibly the story of Dylan Carlson and his band Earth (“the slowest metal band on the planet”), the film uses the seminal northwest band’s thirty-five year history as a lens for the region’s musical history, including the specter of addiction that haunted some of the era’s brightest lights, including his friend and roommate Kurt Cobain. Over a series of interviews shot in grainy 16mm film to evoke the time period — only seemingly stray anachronisms like the Great Wheel or posters for shows that occurred decades later remind viewers that the footage is contemporary rather than archival — bandmates and major figures of grunge like producer Phil Ek and Sub Pop founders Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman weave a languid history. Along with Earth’s music, the soundtrack features original compositions from participants, making the tapestry linking past and present all the richer. The film screens tomorrow (Saturday September 16) in person and is also available online throughout the festival.
Other feature films at the festival include:
- CATS TWO (September 16), Jacob Jones & Curran Foster’s unauthorized animated sequel to Cats
- Aitamaako’tamisskapi Natosi: Before the Sun (September 17), Banchi Hanuse’s documentary about bareback horse relay racing
- A Midsummer Night’s Dream in Prison (September 21), Bushra Azzouz’s documentary about a theater program among the incarcerated in eastern Oregon
- back home (September 24), Nisha Platzer’s remembrance of her older brother
- Mayako (September 23), Bijan Karim’s surreal exploration of shedding worldly comforts
- PLAY BY EAR: A DIY DOC (September 22), Alexei Shishkin’s behind-the-scenes look at Boise Idaho’s Treefort Music Festival
Most are available for in-person and online screenings, with some occasional georestrictions. The festival also includes a host of short film programs, practical workshops and panels, and some special events like an adults-only evening of film and performance from Scumtrust.
An in-person or virtual-only pass runs from $60 for NWFF members up to $140 (sliding scale) for non-members. A hybrid pass, allowing access to either/both, is a bit more at $75 for members and $100-150 for non-members. Individual tickets are also available for both in-person and online screenings.