The long awaited Phuket Film Festival(PFF) will kick off on Saturday, Oct 20 at Jungceylon Shopping Complex with a star studded Opening Gala. Beginning at 18:00 hrs, Thai TV and movie stars along with Festival VIPs from around the world will walk the Red Carpeted “plank” in the world famous shopping center’s “Port Zone”.

Public is invited to come out and see your favorite Thai stars and meet the Festival VIPs.

Screening as PFF’s Opening Movie is the international premiere of the Spanish comedy, ‘Dance Machine’. Join us as a group of friends enters a Dance Machine contest and from there, through a blend of comedy and drama the story of relationships between friends shows how sometimes when faced with the worst, it brings out the best in us.

And of course, what would a Film Festival be, if not for films and PARTIES. Dance Machine screening will be followed by a Disco Party in Jungceylon’s “Port Zone”.

Sunday, October 21 begins with sand artist Peter Donnelly, featured in the Festival’s short film ‘Sand Dancer,’ performing his amazing sand art on Patong Beach. Peter will be performing from the 20th to the 22nd.

Peter’s art can be best seen from the air so make reservations with the “para-sailing” guys now.

A workshop on ‘Preserving the Past, Present and Future on Film’ will take place at SF Cinema Jungceylon at 12:30pm, which not only includes the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) award of the Fellini Silver Medal to the Thai National Film Archives – received by HE Thai Culture Minister Si-Arun Khaisi but also rare, never before seen footage of old Thailand, Bangkok and Phuket will be shown. Included in the 15 minute montage from the National Film Archives is a trip to Phuket by King Rama VII in 1928.

The Thomson Foundation for Television and Film supported, Technicolor (Thailand) restored copy of “The King of the White Elephant” will screen right after the montage. A reception will follow.

Mr. Abdul Waheed Khan, the Assistant Director General of UNESCO’s Communication and Information Sector said he was delighted to have the Fellini Award presented at the Phuket Film Festival as one of the objectives of the Festival is to raise awareness of the film makers of Asia to the need for preservation and proper care/archiving of audio visual attributes which are cultural and historical attributes. This is one of the important concerns of UNESCO’s Memory of the World (MOW) program.

And Sunday is Family Day at the Phuket Film Festival. Screening at around 16:00 will be the Sony Animated, Thai sub-titled feature film ‘Surf’s Up’ – PFF is very pleased that ‘Surf’s Up’ will premiere in Thailand first in Phuket, the first time in Thai movie exhibition history, a motion picture will premiere in a province other than Bangkok.

PFF remembers that “kids are people too” and we want them to “sanook” (have fun) along with adults at the Phuket Film Festival with fun and games at Jungceylon beginning at 2:30 pm on Sunday. Up for grabs, original ‘Surf’s Up’ merchandise provided by Sony/BVI Thailand, distributors of ‘Surf’s Up.’

On Monday, the 22nd, don’t miss the screenings of two ‘Focus on Filipino Film’ movies. Being planned is a reception following the movies held by the Philippine Embassy to Thailand honoring the Philippine film makers and stars in attendance at the PFF.

Tuesday, the 23rd a holiday in Thailand, sees a talk on ‘What the Heck is Making Movies all About Anyway?’. Starting at 11 am at the Millennium Hotel, the talk will be led by Mr. James P. Mimikos who’s Greek company Argovela Films, since 2001, has run the Global Negotiations series of workshops funded by the European Union MEDIA Program.

Anyone interested in a behind the scenes look at what goes into the making of movies is invited to attend this talk, which will be followed by coffee and informal discussions with film makers attending. Attendance is FREE to the public.

Skipping to Friday, Oct 25th, Kinarra Tours has organized “Dinner, Movies and Cabaret” during PFF’s Alternative Lifestyle Day. Screening that evening will be four films with gay and lesbian themes. The evening promises to be a real “Drag”!

Closing Day of the Phuket Film Festival will see the World Premiere of six short films, a slice of Cambodian life and culture by His Majesty the King Father of Cambodia, Norodom Sihanouk and HRH Bhoppha Devi.

Closing out the Festival that evening, the Phuket Film Festival is proud to present another major film premiering in Phuket before playing in Bangkok. PFF is only the second film festival in the world to screen ‘Across the Universe’, the first being the prestigious Toronto International Film Festival.

‘Across the Universe’ directed by acclaimed director Julie Taymor (director of the Broadway hit, ‘The Lion King’), is an original musical film, set in the 1960s amid the turbulent years of anti-war protest, the struggle for free speech and civil rights, mind exploration and rock and roll. At once gritty, whimsical and highly theatrical, the story moves from high schools and universities in Massachusetts, Princeton and Ohio to the Lower East Side of Manhattan, the Detroit riots, Vietnam and the dockyards of Liverpool. A combination of live action and animation, the film is paired with many songs by The Beatles that defined the time.

This adult themed movie is sure to sell out, so get your tickets early.

And speaking of tickets, Phuket Film Festival movie tickets will go on sale October 11 at the Festival Information Counter on the first floor of Jungceylon.

Please note, times and information changes frequently, please check the website, www.phuketfilmfestival.com for the latest information and updates.

And for those of you that have asked why we are not the Phuket INTERNATIONAL Film Festival, PFF has opened talks with the French based International Federation of Film Producers Associations on accreditation of PFF as a formal “International” film festival. Technically, a film festival must follow stringent accreditation procedures before calling itself an International film festival.