24000 attendees, 400 films, 11 days

More than 300 stories from 65 countries were told in thousands of hours of film at the St. Louis International Film Festival, Nov. 10-20.
“My favorite part is always the opportunity to bring in film makers and great films in conjunction with those filmmakers; the opportunity to not only see the film but to meet the makers,” executive director Cliff Froehlich said. “That’s what defines the festival.”
The festival showcased a variety of feature length films, documentaries and shorts–everything from this years Oscar contenders, such “The Descendants” and “The Artist” to films by up-and-coming filmmakers across the nation. The festival brought in thousands of guests throughout the area and nation.
“We are known as a regional festival. We serve the St. Louis region primarily, a 120 mile radius, Columbia, Springfield, farther away, Nashville, Chicago and places of that kind,” Froehlich said. “Mostly what our festival does is try and bring film [to] our people in St. Louis and give them that opportunity to experience world cinema, to experience cinema in a way that they wouldn’t be able to if the festival didn’t exist.
Organized by the non-profit film organization, Cinema St. Louis, the 20th Annual St. Louis International Film Festival (SLIFF) screened at locations in the St. Louis area, including the Tivoli Theater in the Delmar Loop, the Landmark Cinema at Plaza Frontenac, and Brown Hall at Washington University. With over 300 films selected to be screened over 450 times, this was one of its largest festivals to date, receiving 1,400 submissions from filmmakers.
“When an independent filmmaker deals with a subject that I find interesting they usually do so in an incredibly original and in-depth manner.  I appreciate the artistry and thought that goes into making an independent film,” art teacher Michelle Graf said.
Of the more than 1,000 shorts that were submitted, only 150 made the cut, while of the 150 films submitted for both the documentary and feature film categories, only 24 and ten pieces made it respectively.
Brian Woodman, co-curator for the documentary sidebar, said that he typically screens over 15 films a week in the summer in an effort to view the hundreds of submissions by September 15th, the date when the companies were notified about their selection.
“I feel like independent films are more about the telling the story, rather than who’s in it,” senior Bonnie Silver said. “People go watch Hollywood films more for the actors, but for indie film you go to see the plot.”
The films shown at the festival, however, were not solely based on the submissions received, as a few films were selected by being followed in the national film festival circuit. Film festivals such as Sundance in Salt Lake City in the spring, and Telluride, CO were monitored to track down what films were getting attention and could potentially be screened in St. Louis. However, if a chosen film was picked up for distribution before the festival, the film was not be allowed to air at SLIFF. The film festival also takes pride in the number of international films they show each year.
After the initial screenings, the films were then divided into sidebars: groups based on the content or origin of the films. Popular sidebars were the African American sidebar, British Isles sidebar, and the LGBTQ sidebar. Sidebars were also created in response to the St. Louis community. The Eastern European sidebar was created in regards to St. Louis’ large Bosnian community. Some new sidebars were the architecture and environment sidebars, created because of the amount of films pertaining to these subjects.
The human rights sidebar films, mostly documentaries, were free to the public. This was done with the intention of getting as many people as possible to go see the film. Froehlich, who is also in charge of documentary programming, said that “there are certain subjects that need to be addressed in each festival: environmental issues, human rights issues.”
Shorts were similarly divided, but into clusters of six to eight which added up to two hours, the typical length of a feature-film. The shorts had target audiences including “Animation: Family” and “Animation: Absurd” in which the films were more edgy. Shorts were not only grouped by age, but also by interest. Divisions like “Sex & Gender,” and “Arts and Issues” both oriented around a specific audience.
Additionally,  the festival also featured a side project called Cinema For Students, where films oriented towards students are broadcasted during the day. These films included documentaries such as The Bully Project, which highlights the bullying epidemic in the country. Students either traveled to one of the SLIFF venues, or the films were brought to their schools. Often, English and history classes would see these films, and afterwords, follow up with an activity in class.
Seniors David Mullis and Dennis Wong attended the festival last year for extra credit in film analysis and Wong said they went this year “because last year was pretty enjoyable.”
“With independent films you get a lot more variety in how they approach it and there’s not a formula, there’s a lot more leniency in them and cooler stuff,” Mullis, who saw seven films, said.
The festival also featured many free events, adding to the tradition set by St. Louis for being second, following D.C., as the city with the most accommodating and complementary attractions.  This feature was made possible by corporate sponsors such as Stella Artois and American Airlines. Stella Artois approached Cinema St. Louis three years ago as a principal sponsor and has been ever since. They support the festival financially and also provided refreshments for film parties and screenings. American Airlines assisted by providing complimentary transportation for filmmakers and actors. Prominent local companies and individuals also sponsored screenings, as many of the films showed multiple nights.
“We were extremely pleased with the turnout, the response, and the thoughtful questions that were put forth during the Q & A session that followed.  The festival is extremely well run, and everyone was most hospitable,” said Tom Rasky, executive producer from the documentary, “A People Uncounted.”
Like Rasky, who’s film tells the untold story of the Roma in World War II, many directors, actors, producers and cast and crew came to the screenings and stayed for question and answer sessions to talk directly with the audience. Another film, “23 Minutes To Sunrise”, was screened as a work in progress, and the cast and crew were present to hear what the audience had to say. Freshman Lee Goodman was on the production staff.
“I think the screening worked as a great barometer. We knew that the film was not totally where it needed to be. But, it was good to get early feedback and an audience point of view before the film is actually released in 2012,” “23 Minutes” actor Dingani Beza said. “I feel our team now has a better understanding of the things that worked, didn’t work, or needs to be tweaked. I think in all it was a win/win situation for the project.”
Though the festival is over, Cinema St. Louis has goals for next year, primarily maintaining and increasing the quality of the programming while increasing attendance Froehlich said.
“We hope that people also come for the experience of getting to watch these films with an audience: a community of people,” Cinema St. Louis Operations Supervisor, Brian Spath said. “That’s something that Blockbuster, Netflix and IFC cannot replace.” #

St. Louis International Film Festival: past and present

Established in 1992, the St. Louis International Film Festival (SLIFF) was created with the purpose of producing, promoting and presenting annual film events to advance film as an art form in St. Louis. In comparison to other film festivals across the country, SLIFF is located in the middle of the country, at the midpoint of New York and Los Angeles. While film is also one of the top in the Midwest, right behind Chicago, Cleveland and SXSW (South by Southwest) in Austin,TX, and unlike it’s counterparts, SLIFF is more focused on showcasing great film to people, rather than finding distributors to release films. Regardless of this difference, the festival has had many famous directors pass through the circuit.
Past SLIFF alumni include directors Jason Reitman (“Juno” and “Up In the Air” –Juno won audience choice award at SLIFF in 2007), Tate Taylor (“The Help”), and Drake Doremus (“Like Crazy”). All of these filmmakers took part in the New Filmmaker’s Forum panel. The New Filmmakers Forum features five first-time directors, who have shown promise/exceptional quality in their work, and a have a long career ahead, answer questions brought by the audience about their films and their work as directors.
Cinema St. Louis also hosts StlShowcase, a festival dedicated to films shot locally or by local filmmakers, QFest, an LGBTQ film festival, a French film festival and CinemaSpoke, a screen-writing competition. #