The ninth annual festival runs from Oct. 1-5, but the first screenings will not be until Oct. 2. The highlight on Oct. 1 will be an 8 p.m. concert by Bela Fleck at the Bearsville Theater in Woodstock.
On Oct. 2, the U.S. premiere of "Pride and Glory" - a drama that, according to promotional materials, "examines a family's moral codes in the face of police corruption in New York City" - will be shown at 6:15 and 9:30 p.m. at the Tinker Street Cinema in Woodstock. In the film, the character played by Edward Norton investigates a case that reveals a scandal involving his brother-in-law, played by Collin Farrell.
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In Rhinebeck, Upstate Films on U.S. Route 9 will welcome the festival with a screening of "Happy Go Lucky" at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 2.
"Happy Go Lucky," directed by Mike Leigh, a multiple Academy Award nominee for directing and writing, is described as an "infectiously joyous comedy" about a free-spirited school teacher's search for happiness.
Finally, at 10 p.m., the Rosendale Theater on Main Street in Rosendale will show "Flash of Genius," which festival organizers described as a "corporate David and Goliath" drama based on the true story of college professor and part-time inventor Rovert Kearns' long battle with the automobile industry over his 1960s invention - the intermittent windshield wiper.
Last year's festival opened with "The Fiddle and the Drum," a ballet performed to the music of Joni Mitchell. At the time, Blaustein called the opening "perfect" because, coupled with the closing film, "I'm Not There," inspired by the life of folk music icon Bob Dylan, the festival began an ended with "cultural icons."
Now, Blaustein says, she is excited about the "opportunity to show more fabulous, exciting films" to more people and offer "a diverse slate" of first-night movies.
Individual tickets for screenings at the festival go on sale Sept. 10. Full festival passes are on sale already.
This year's festival is to feature more than 150 films and film-related events, such as workshops and panel discussions.
Among the announced films so fare are three that were made in the Hudson Valley, including a short documentary about an everyday sight for drivers in Kingston.
"Dinosaurs and Rocketships" is a 17-1/2-minute documentary about welder and artist Steve Heller's task of moving his life-sized tyrannosaurus rex, made of tire chains and bulldozer sprockets, to the intersection of Broadway, Albany Avenue and Col. Chandler Drive in Kingston for the city's 2007 Sculpture Biennial.
Vindora Wixom, executive director of the Art Society of Kingston, said the mental dinosaur remains because "there are always a few sculptures that end up on permanent display" after the show ends.
The fact that Heller took the time to build a dinosaur to scale is indicative of his interests, which "haven't changed in six decades," the 63-year-old artist said, listing "dinosaurs, rocket ships, cars and girls."
Heller's interest in cars led to the creation of the documentary, he said, after he met director Liz Fulton and cameraman Bruce Stanbery, both of whom have worked in television, at a car show in Rhinebeck in 2006.
Heller, who lives in West Shokan, said Fulton and Stanbery were "quite taken" with his entries in the car show, which included a Mercury Marquis with parts from 20 different 1950s cars and "my yellow Caddie with pink and yellow flames."
The 15-1/2-minute film "Predisposed," directed by Woodstock native Philip Dorling and filmed in Kingston, is about a man who intends to admit his mother to rehab before he goes to his college interview.
Shot in Red Hook, Rhinebeck and Tivoli was the 27-minute film "Edge of Town," during which connections between four locals gradually reveal the cause of a woman's death.
On the Web: www.woodstockfilmfestival.com.
