📰 What Happened
AFI Fest opens on Wednesday night in Hollywood and marks its 40th year. The first film is Wildwood, an animated feature from Laika. The festival closes on Sunday with Apple's Being Heumann, directed by Siân Heder. The event will show 157 films at the TCL Chinese Theatre across five days. That includes 17 documentaries, 45 short films in competition and 10 official entries for the international feature Oscar.
🔍 The Backstory
The festival began as Filmex, an independent event, before AFI took over and renamed it in 1986. AFI president Bob Gazzale says it still matters because it puts filmmakers and audiences in the same room. This year's guest artistic directors are Phil Lord and Chris Miller, who chose to screen 2001: A Space Odyssey. Quentin Tarantino will answer questions after a sold-out showing of Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.
🎯 Why It Matters
Festivals like this help smaller films find buyers and audiences before the Oscar race begins in earnest.

AFI Fest opens on Wednesday night in Hollywood and marks its 40th year. The first film is Wildwood, an animated feature from Laika. The festival closes on Sunday with Apple's Being Heumann, directed by Siân Heder. The event will show 157 films at the TCL Chinese Theatre across five days. That includes 17 documentaries, 45 short films in competition and 10 official entries for the international feature Oscar.

The festival began as Filmex, an independent event, before AFI took over and renamed it in 1986. AFI president Bob Gazzale says it still matters because it puts filmmakers and audiences in the same room. This year's guest artistic directors are Phil Lord and Chris Miller, who chose to screen 2001: A Space Odyssey. Quentin Tarantino will answer questions after a sold-out showing of Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

Festivals like this help smaller films find buyers and audiences before the Oscar race begins in earnest.

📰 Source: News Source
deadline.com ↗
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