Lights! Camera! Action! Words familiar around Southern California, and thanks to the efforts of Jo Moulton and now the Temecula Valley Film Council, words that are becoming familiar here in Temecula. What a coup to bring the festival slated for our big sister San Diego to Temecula!

Now, the question is, with five honorary award winners, including new academy award winner James Coburn, can Temecula rise to the challenge and begin filling seats. The festival has been lengthened from three days to eight, giving hotels, restaurants, and local shops plenty to be excited about. The workshops, film screenings, and gala events keep participants busy, giving them a chance to do the all important work in that business – networking. However, I have seen more than one filmmaker try to put a happy face on the 5-10 people in the audience for their premier. As a faithful attendee, let me give you the scoop so you can mark some big x’s on your June calendar.

The Temecula Valley International Film Festival is your chance to be part of the action. Producers, directors, writers and stars often come along to see their films screen. You have a chance to meet them and ask questions and they are anxious to meet you. This is their baby they are putting up there, with intense investments of time, talent and money. An amazing collaboration of talents is required to make a film, and here you get a chance to go behind the glossy pic to the real people who thought it all up.

This year, as always, the Festival will feature student films including student projects from the creative hotbeds of UCLA and USC where many major filmmakers have cut their teeth. These are generally short films, which for me, are the main attraction, student or professional. Shorts are cram packed, getting their message across with bold strokes. As a film festival is one of the few venues open to shorts, the picks are selective, and if you get one not to your liking, so what, it’s short!

This year the festival is adding to the college student effort with a slew of films made by kids! This opens an audience first sought last year when the festival introduced several films for kids. Another addition this year, appealing to all age audiences is a MGM Film Retrospective.

Maybe you have given up on the cliches of Hollywood or the schtick of slick production. A film festival is the only place you can see, in addition to the above, documentaries, foreign films and full-length features that won’t get a major distribution because they aren’t commercial enough. To have Temecula blossom in only five years to a festival with a 1999 academy award winner as its honorary guest and eight days of screenings, is a major accomplishment.