Local angles and international stories share the screen, Sept. 27- Oct. 2 at YCPAC

A look at the latest innovations in filmmaking; events that blend on-screen stories with real-time community outreach; and movies that share people from the other side of the world, and issues as close as smoke on the horizon. Bring your love of all things cinematic, your capacity for amazement, and perhaps even a little pomade to the twelfth edition of the Prescott Film Festival (PFF), Sept. 27 – Oct. 2, at the Yavapai College Performing Arts Center (YCPAC), 1100 E. Sheldon St., Prescott.

Bigger, better, and more diverse than ever, the 2022 Prescott Film Festival rolls into town with an enticing combination of on-screen excellence, industry talkbacks and activities that bond the community through a shared love of film.

“We’re very excited about the Festival this year,” PFF Director and Yavapai College Film & Media Arts Director Helen Stephenson said in a news release. “It’s a terrific blend of great films, great ideas and events that let you celebrate it all. I’m especially grateful for all the volunteers who continue to help us create this beautiful community event.”

The Prescott Film Festival leads with a diverse collection of movies that span the breadth of world cultures while demonstrating the common thread of humanity running through each. This year’s slate of 25+ films includes iMordecai, a charming Judd Hirsch-Carol Kane comedy about flip phones and personal discovery; Full Time, the French story of a single mother balancing children, job and dreams in a transit strike; Marcel the Shell with Shoes On, the funny, heartfelt story of a young shell’s search for his family; and Elemental: Reimagining Our Relationship with Wildfire, a documentary that realigns policy, scientific and cultural approaches to natural disasters.

For its twelfth edition, the Prescott Film Festival has created an eclectic array of film-related events headlined by the Riverboat Bash, a seafaring-themed soiree of hors d’oeuvres, wine, and spirits in the Sculpture Garden, followed by PFF’s traditional Silent Symphony, which adds live orchestrations to a screening of Buster Keaton’s Steamboat Bill, Jr. The PFF also welcomes filmmaker Sean Cistera for a special screening of his breathtaking Canada-to-Brazil-by-horseback odyssey The Long Rider. This year’s PFF includes The Manhattan Short Film Festival, where local audiences see and vote on competitors for the Oscar’s Best Short Subject categories. And Grease is the word once more, with a live sing-along to the classic 1978 movie musical. Audiences are encouraged to slick that hair, break out the poodle skirts, and join John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John in song, the release stated.

Yavapai College’s Film & Media Arts program always manages to drop a host of informative talkbacks between the celebrations and entertainment. This year is no exception. In “We Have a Film Tax-Credit (What Does That Mean?),” filmmaker Greg Paul examines the new incentives Ariz. will offer film crews for location shooting and what that it means for the future of movies here. In “How to Create a Trailer that Tells a Story,” filmmaker Greg Kupiec details the formula for a compelling movie-style preview that draws eyes to your creative project; and in “Livin’ the Life: From Creation to Distribution Deals,” veteran filmmaker Levi Holiman describes the process of bringing a great idea through the camera lens and out into movie houses.

The Prescott Film Festival offers a variety of ticket packages – from a $282 Platinum Pass Experience with reserve seating at all films and access to the VIP Director’s Loft – to a $177 All-Film Pass and a Ten-Ticket Discount Pass at $100. Individual events are $14 for general admissio, with a 50% discount for students. The Silent Symphony and Silent Symphony Riverboat Package are $27 and $52 respectively. Tickets are available online or at the YCPAC Ticket Office, open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m Tuesdays and Wednesdays; and from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays. Film trailers and a full festival schedule are also available on the Prescott Film Festival website, www.prescottfilmfestival.com.

For more information on the Prescott Film Festival, call (928) 776.2000, email helen.stephenson@yc.edu, or visit www.ycpac.com.

Information provided by Yavapai College.