A slightly slimmer SIFF still features more than 400 films

Ticket prices for each of these four glitzy premieres are higher than usual evening screenings but include admission to after-screening parties.

World cinema

The festival's largest single grouping is a smorgasbord of films from foreign film industries around the globe -- most of which will not return later in the year for a theatrical run. This year, the cinema of no single country is being spotlighted, but France is particularly well represented, with more than 30 productions or co-productions. Some of the higher profile entries in this division are Germany's "Cherry Blossoms -- Hanami," directed by Doris Dorrie; Taiwan's "Island Etude," a lyrical coming-of-age drama directed by Chen Huai-en; Italy's "The Unknown Woman," a psychological thriller directed by Oscar-winner Giuseppe Tornatore ("Cinema Paradiso"); the British tragicomedy, "When Did You Last See Your Father," directed by Anand Tucker and starring Colin Firth; Jordan's "Captain Abu Raed," the nation's first domestically financed feature film in 50 years; and Poland's "Katyn," a holocaust drama directed by the legendary Andrzej Wajda that was nominated for last year's best foreign-language film Oscar.

American Films

The festival's domestic film offerings fall into three categories.

Documentaries

With more than 57 documentary features this year, SIFF continues its reign as one the world's great platforms for nonfiction filmmaking. The eclectic lineup includes "Stalags -- Holocaust and Pornography in Israel," an Israeli examination of a genre of eroticism that has been unaccountably popular in the country for decades; "Stranded: I've Come From a Plane That's Crashed on the Mountains," a French re-creation of one of the last century's most amazing survival stories; "Theater of War," a behind-the-scenes look at a stage production of Bertolt Brecht's "Mother Courage," starring Meryl Streep; and eight films slugging it out in the documentary competition, including Chuck Workman's "In Search of Kennedy" and "Derek," a Tilda Swinton-narrated memorial to British film director Derek Jarman.

Tributes/guests

The SIFF celebrity guest list is invariably long, with hundreds of eager filmmakers coming to town to promote their films and interact with the audience. At press time, this list was still being firmed up, but these are among the marquee names committed to appearances:

Emerging masters

Also in the way of tributes is this SIFF tradition that honors "four directors poised to become the world's next cinematic masters." SIFF will show two films -- one new, one old -- from each director. This year's honorees, who are expected but not guaranteed to attend their celebrations, are:

Golden oldies

This year's archival offerings include:

Northwest connections

The visibility of locally made films has been steadily rising over the past few editions of SIFF. This year's lineup showcases no less than 11 homegrown films, including the futuristic social satire "Visioneers"; the world premiere of Cornelia Moore's Orcas Island drama, "The Dark Horse"; Rufus Williams' Seattle-filmed psychological thriller, "Butterfly Dreaming"; and six local documentaries, including John Andres' "Creative Nature," a study of Seattle glass artist William Morris; Linus Phillips' "Great Speeches From a Dying World," an unusual look at 10 of Seattle's homeless; and Melissa Young's "Good Food," billed as a "lively tour of various Washington state farms and ranches that have adopted healthier organic methods in raising their products."

Alternative cinema

This category groups nine feature and 13 short avant-garde films from around the world that have been deemed too hard-edged, too non-linear or too weird for the regular program. The offerings -- many presented in the smaller and more philosophically friendly confines of Capitol Hill's Northwest Film Forum -- include the North American premiere of the Czech Republic's "Movie, or an Introduction to the Philosophy of Auteur Filmmaking;" the U.S. premiere of Hungary's "Milky Way;" an Austrian pro-sex feminist documentary, "Who's Afraid of Kathy Acker;" an Italian social study, "We Want Roses Too;" Haiti's surrealistic "Eat, for This Is My Body"; and the Swedish dark comedy "You, the Living."

Other features

Competitions/awards

Special juries will divide a $20,000 purse among winning films competing in the fields of new American cinema, documentaries, the new directors showcase and short films.

In SIFF Interactive's new MyFestival feature, audience members can watch a group of competing movies in a "free, secure streaming environment" and cast their votes for a cash prize: $1,500 for the best feature, $500 for the best short.

A moviegoer poll will determine who gets the coveted Golden Space Needle Awards in the categories of best film, documentary, director, actor, actress and short. All winners will be announced closing night.

SIFF VENUES

Benaroya Hall

200 University St.

206-215-4800

Cinerama

2100 Fourth Ave.

206-441-3080

Egyptian

805 E. Pine St.

206-781-5755

Harvard Exit

807 E. Roy St.

206-781-5755

Moore Theatre

1932 Second Ave.

206-467-5510

Northwest Film Forum

1515 12th Ave.

206-267-5380

Pacific Place

600 Pine St.

206-652-2404

SIFF Cinema at McCaw Hall

Seattle Center, 321 Mercer St.

206-324-9996

Triple Door

216 Union St.

206-838-4333

Uptown

511 Queen Anne Ave. N.

206-285-1022

SIFF INFO