LA Film Festival to open 2017 round this week

Summer is almost here and that means the kick off to another installment of LA Film Festival will take place this Wednesday (June 14).

Hosted by the Culver City ArcLight theater and The Culver City Studios screenings will be premiering in three of the ArcLight Cinemas throughout the LA area (Culver City, Santa Monica and Hollywood). Festival goers also have the chance to catch films in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACAMA) and The Theatre at the Ace Hotel.

Selections from this year’s festival will include feature films from the Film Independent Spirit Awards, documentaries from Cinema Eye Honors for Non-Fiction Film Making and Academy Award® shorts from the Narrative, Animated and Documentary Short Film categories. Features will also include those from the Jury Winners of LA MUSE (fiction and documentary entries), Nightfall, US and World Fiction.

Here is the highlighted list that we are covering this year:

Becks

“Becks” tells the long-distance relationship story between musician Becks and her girlfriend. When a move from Brooklyn to LA fails, Becks must move back in with her mother and attempts to put back together her life. This film is the directing debut for screenwriters Elizabeth Rohrbaugh and Daniel Powell.

Screening: June 15, 8:40pm at Arclight Culver City 1

The Classic

Written and directed by Billy McMillin, “The Classic” centers around the annual rivalry football match between Garfield and Roosevelt High School and tributes East LA, the community to the largest Latino immigrants, which both teams are proud to call home.

Screening:  June 15, 8:15 at ArcLight Santa Monica 8

Beauty Mark

Written and directed by Harris Doran, this film hubs in the poverty-stricken area of Louisville and recounts the life of Angie (Auden Thornton, “True Story”), a fraught mother. When Angie is evicted from her home, she struggles to find a new home, keep her convenience store job to care for her alcoholic mother and toddler son, and a run in from her past.

Screening: June 16, 7pm at ArcLight Culver City 3

20 Weeks

“20 Weeks” follows the couple Ronan (Amir Arison, “The Blacklist”) and Maya (Anna Margaret Hollyman, “MR. ROOSVELT”) and their decision regarding the serious health condition affecting their unborn baby after an in utero, 20-week scan. Directed and written by Leena Pendharker, this film conveys the pressures surrounding pregnancy and relationships with modern science and technology.

Screening: June 19, 7pm at ArcLight Culver City 4

You Get Me

The Netflix original “You Get Me” is about the teenage love-sick drama between Tyler (Taylor John Smith, “Cruel Intentions”) and Alison (Halston Sage, “Before I Fall”). When Tyler finds out about Alison’s past, he follows for Holly (Bella Thorne) but soon rekindles with his former flame. But when Holly finds out, she seeks to get back at Tyler by posing as a new student at Tyler and Alison’s high school.

Screening: June 19, 9:25pm at ArcLight Santa Monica 8

Don’t Come Back From The Moon

The drama “Don’t Come Back From The Moon” directed by Bruce Thierry and starring James Franco, unlocks the mystery of men vanishing in a small community. When teenager Michael loses his father, he is left to fend for himself and support his mother and younger brother.  But when the time comes when Michael reaches manhood, he questions whether to stay or leave in search of his own future.

Screening: June 20, 6:45pm at ArcLight Culver City 3

Ingrid Goes West

Starring Aubrey Plaza and Elizabeth Olsen, “Ingrid Goes West” tells the story about social media stalker Ingrid Thorburn (Plaza) and boho-chic lifestyle Instagramer Taylor Sloane (Olsen).  Written by Matt Spicer and David Branson Smith, this comedy delves into the modern world of social media and perfection.

Screening: June 22, 7:30pm at ArcLight Culver City

Special coffee talks, master classes, filmmaker retreats and panels that discuss topics of defining diversity and incorporating it in the entertainment industry, including one that describes the impact from the LA riots, years later all will be included for the 2017 round.

The festival concludes next Thursday, June 22.

For more information on the festival including purchasing passes, parking, directions and the official 2017 Pocket Guide can be found on the Film Independent website.