Cinequest 2003

In the spirit of trying something new, I will be attending my first film festival this weekend.

For more than a decade, Cinequest has presented a film festival in San Jose. It features a few world premieres and a number of independent, international and student films. Since almost all of my movie experiences have been through mainstream theaters or rented videos, the festival should be exciting and eye-opening.

It runs from February 27th through March 9th and takes place in a couple of different venues like the Camera Cinemas and the San Jose Repertory Theatre. With some careful planning and some possible sprinting, I'll be seeing ten movies over the next two weeks.

Half of the movies I plan to watch are part of the Pacific Basin Showcase, which highlights films from China, Japan, Vietnam and India. It is perhaps a token effort to feel more in touch with my cultural heritage, a cinematic companion to the stories I've been told and the books I've read.

A few of the movies I chose are digital films that will be shown with state-of-the-art digital projectors. Very fancy. I wonder if it will be a mind-blowing experience, like the first time I saw an IMAX film. I think that one was about dolphins and I had a distinct swimming feeling during the entire viewing.

I should note that whenever I actually talk about or write about upcoming plans, something always seems to thwart them, which would explain a few trips and hiking excursions that fell through this year. So I mention this whole thing in a rather hushed tone, checking over my shoulder, with my fingers crossed.