After a successful 2007 run, can the success of the Lone Star International Film Festival be duplicated? Or will recent developments at the Lone Star Film Society threaten the existence of a festival in 2008?

In case you missed it (and you probably did), there was a pretty big deal of an International Film Festival right here in Fort Worth back in November. For four days, a bunch of people you’d recognize from TV and film were wandering around the streets of our city, participating in panel discussions, screening films, and partying as if what happens here stays here. If you’re curious about what you missed (and you totally should be), go back and read and listen to our coverage of the festival. Don’t bother to search back issues of the FW Weekly or the Star-Telegram, they rarely bothered to show up.

Considering the success of 2007’s event, (a remarkable performance considering that for nearly everyone involved it was their first film festival) most people would expect that the team charged with putting it together would be kept on, to make 2008 just as successful, right?

Wrong.

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So the big buzz amongst festival-goers was for Fred Durst’s directorial debut The Education of Charlie Banks. Never a fan of Limp Bizkit or the associated music videos, I was kinda like “meh” about seeing the movie. But everyone kept talking about how good it was and like Pete W, I too was worried that this was some artificially created Hollywood buzz.

Ah, heck…I was standing right there at the red carpet, so after shooting the following pics I followed the talent in and watched the thing.

Fred Durst

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The Lone Star International Film Festival is just starting to warm up, and Thursday was definitely more encouraging than Wednesday. I was finally able to make it to a couple of movies, and you can read more about it after the jump!

Bernie and I went to see Hell on Wheels, a documentary about roller derby in Austin that was shot BEFORE it started to really take off and get its own reality show. It was really good, with just the right amount of feel-good and tension that a good documentary should provide.

After that we headed over to the Four Day Weekend Theater to catch the DIY Shorts presentation hosted by local filmmaker James Johnston. Of the 6 short films that we saw, James’ were excellent, and the one about the guy and his dog was really moving. I’m not ashamed to say that I cried at the end of it.

After the shorts (actually we had to leave early to make it in time) we went to catch Red Road, a movie filmed in Scotland. I’m not going to ruin it for you in case you get a chance to see it, but it was really, really good. I’ll just say that it was really intense, and leave it at that.

As Bernie and I left the Palace, Steve-O called to tell me that he was heading to the Saucer after seeing “Before The Devil Knows You’re Dead,” to spend some time in the “hospitality suite,” which was really Half-Acre Hall. As I’m climbing the stairs to meet Steve, Bill Paxton is heading the opposite direction, so I turn around, thinking (rightfully so) that the party is leaving. It turns out that they’re all heading back to the Palace to introduce Frailty, and Steve and I have been personally invited by Tom Huckabee to come over for the intro. What moron would turn down that invitation?

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Hey Fort Worth! There’s something pretty rad going on downtown right now. The first ever Lone Star International Film Festival opened yesterday, bringing with it red carpets and spotlights slicing through the night sky, after parties and movie stars.

With a five day schedule crammed with parties, red carpets, movie screenings and panel discussions the festival has a bit of something for everyone. Perhaps the best part is, you don’t need to drop a brick of cash on a festival pass to see some excellent cinematic offerings. For as little as $8 each you can attend any of the showings on the schedule.

Onto last night…it was as cold as insert colorful phrase on Third Street as the wind howled through the valley created by the DR Horton building and the AMC Palace Theater. Me, I was well bundled in a jacket and sweater and cap, but some of the ladies walking the red carpet didn’t fair so well. Chattering teeth and clicking shutters echoed in the night. But don’t let all bright lights and the talk of “movie stars” and “red carpets” turn you off; the LSIFF seems to have that certain small town approachability that we all love about Fort Worth.

Here are some photos:

Bill Paxton @ the Lone Star International Film Festival, originally uploaded by peteg.

Hometown hero Bill Paxton walked the red carpet in front of the AMC Palace before the premiere of Kabluey. Written, directed and starring Galveston’s Scott Prendergrast, Kabluey is one of many Texas-centric offerings in the long list of LSIFF movies.

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