January 2009 - News from the Colorado Film Society and BIFF

BIFF Red Carpet Valentine’s Day Gala, Saturday, February 14th!

Surrender to your passion for cinema. Step out onto the red-carpet this Valentine’s Day. Plan a romantic date with your special partner, or meet new friends on this night of glamour. Celebrate independent film at the Boulder International Film Festival’s Red-Carpet Valentine’s Gala and enjoy a red hot evening with a film premiere, sensuous, sinful appetizers from the Cheesecake Factory, along with paparazzi, filmmakers galore, and a chance to dig out those designer threads for a fabulous night on the town. Black-tie optional. Tickets are $50 and will be on sale starting January 15 at bouldertheater.com. BIFF Film lover’s special: A posh hotel room at the Hotel Boulderado and 2 tickets to the opening night gala. Call the Hotel Boulderado at 1 800 433-4344 for more information!

VIP Passes on Sale January 15th!

Walk right past the long lines this year! The VIP pass allows priority seating to An Evening with Chevy Chase on Opening Night (Feb 12), the Red-Carpet Gala (Valentine’s Day - Feb 14), Closing Night Film and Awards Ceremony (Feb 15), and all film programs, parties, workshops and panels. Everything! Passes can be purchased at bouldertheater.com starting on January 15th. For more information call (303) 449-2289 or email kathy@biff1.com. BIFF 09 is February 12-15, 2009. A limited number of VIP passes are available!

BIFF gets new website!

Check out our new website biff1.com! Check in daily to take in the pre-festival buzz as it unfolds. Special thanks to Geoff Thompson and Lisa Busch for their countless hours of construction and design, and to Michael Puldy and Arlan Beeck for helping to make it happen!

Help Build a Great Film Festival!

Create a life experience that you can point to with pride all your life. The entirety of BIFF’s operational success depends on the hard work of volunteers, work that can often be boring, frustrating, chaotic and unsung, with magnificent highs followed by unbelievable disasters, and the only bennies being free admission to screenings and dress-up parties. But you’ll meet fascinating, creative people from all over the world, and you’ll emerge from this experience with some great new stories to tell, great new friendships, and a lot of unbelievable memories. To become a volunteer for BIFF 2009, just fill out an application on our website.

Best Buy donates big screen TV to BIFF!

Special thanks to Best Buy-Boulder, one of the newest CFS/BIFF sponsors, for donating and installing a 50 inch flat screen TV at BIFF offices. The screen will be used for our CFS Youth Advisory Committee, who are selecting student films for BIFF 09, in addition to other events. Thanks so much Best Buy for supporting BIFF!

Colorado Film Commission Hosts January 14 Rally on Capitol Steps

Join the Colorado Film Commission for a rally on the west steps of the state capitol (Colfax and Lincoln Streets in downtown Denver) in support of House Bill 1010 on Wednesday, January 14. Gathering time is at 11:30 a.m. and the formal program will begin at 12 noon. Make sure to invite your friends and co-workers to join you on the steps so that we can make sure the legislature knows how important this legislation is to you and to the industry. House Bill 1010 creates a $10 million incentive fund that will help the state to bring feature film and television production back to Colorado and to create more in-state jobs in the production community. Join with members of the production community, the business community, and other supporters on the capitol steps for the first of its kind film industry rally support this new legislation. For more information contact Laura Grey at 303.592.4075 or log on to the film commission web site at coloradofilm.org.

Chevy Chase to Open BIFF 09!

"Hi, I’m Chevy Chase and you’re not." Chevy Chase, award-winning comedian, writer and television and film actor, will be honored Opening Night of the 2009 festival on Thursday, Feb. 12, 2009 at the Boulder Theater. The evening starts with a reception and live music at 7 p.m. Chase will be honored that night with a film retrospective of his work, followed by a Q&A session on stage with Ron Bostwick, BIFF executive producer.

"We are thrilled to have a comedic icon kicking off the 2009 Boulder International Film Festival," said Kathy Beeck, festival co-founder and director. "Not only has Chevy Chase graced so many classic comedic films, and been a major influence to countless comedians, he has also been a tireless advocate for this country’s environmental movement, which Coloradans are so passionate about. We’re truly honored Chevy is able to join us for a lively start to the festival."

Chase became a sensation as a cast member in the inaugural season of Saturday Night Live, where his Weekend Update skit quickly became a staple of the show. He is also well known for his role in Caddyshack, and Clark Griswold in four National Lampoon’s Vacation films. In addition to his numerous movie roles, Chase has hosted the Academy Awards twice. Chase will appear in a new film Stay Cool directed by Michael and Mark Polish being released in theatres later this year.

In addition to his work in film, Chase has played an important role in this country’s environmental movement, helping his wife, Jaynie, launch the Center for Environmental Education in Atlanta (ceeonline.org). The Center works with K-12 schools to address climate change issues and to cultivate healthy lifestyles by teaching children to be more environmentally aware. Chase was also an early advocate to ban genetically modified organisms (GMOs). Tickets for Opening Night are $50 and will be on sale starting January 15 at bouldertheater.com.