The first time I attended the Seattle International Film Festival, I bit off more than I could chew and bought a six-pack of tickets. I was going to be a cinephile, damn it! Also, I wanted to see movies with my old coworker from the Cinerama, and he really knew how to SIFF.

I went strong for about the first three movies... and then I realized the two movies I wanted to see the most—Sorry to Bother You, featuring a Q&A with Lakeith Stanfield, and Eighth Grade, featuring a Q&A with Bo Burnham (of whom I've been, embarrassingly enough, a long-time fan, maybe since eighth grade, honestly)—were on the same day as my college graduation.

I had been overwhelmed that I had to buy my tickets all at once. I should have spent more time thinking about it. I should have checked my calendar, or at least made myself a calendar to check before I bought the tickets. I goofed up! And I don't want you to.

SIFF Is Overwhelming

That's what I'm trying to say. Not only are there hundreds of movies, but it lasts for almost a month. The 2019 festival runs from May 16 to June 9.

Where to See What's Playing

Go to thestranger.com/siff. There you'll see the title and description of every film playing this year. You can also use the tools at the top of the page to sort by date and movie theater, and to see our staff picks. There are reviews, showtimes, and ticket links, too.

Pick What You Want to See Before Buying Tickets

As mentioned, at my first SIFF I wanted to start with tickets because that seems like a natural jumping-off point, but really the smart thing to do is decide what you're going to see before you make any purchases. A work colleague of mine who's been to SIFF more times than I have, Renée Krulich, meticulously maps out her schedule in advance and has for years. In 2017, she saw 79 movies at SIFF. I trust her.

Renée scours the lineup. She uses IMDb to look up films, or Letterboxd, a social-media network for cinephiles where she follows other festivalgoers' recommendations. After Renée makes a massive schedule of everything she wants to see (which won't be humanly possible), she'll whittle down her picks based on times and venues.

Movie Theaters

There are nine main festival venues: SIFF Cinema Egyptian, SIFF Cinema Uptown, Pacific Place, SIFF Film Center, Majestic Bay, Ark Lodge, Lincoln Square in Bellevue, Shoreline Community College, and Kirkland Performance Center. Make sure you know where your film will be playing when you're planning your schedule. If your films are back to back and one is in Ballard and the other is in Kirkland, I hope you have a hot-air balloon.

Buying Tickets

At siff.net/festival, you can get single tickets for individual movies. Or you can buy ticket packages: There are six-packs and 20-packs. There are also more extensive packages that have their own perks. The most dedicated SIFF-goers get the Platinum Plus Pass. It has the most perks, including reserved seats and skip-the-line abilities. (People who buy single tickets and have to wait forever in line often refer to the people with passes as "passholes." But that's just rude.)

Renée recommends the Secret Festival Pass, which gets you into a screening of a secret movie every Sunday morning of the festival. Attendees go to a movie not knowing what it is. They're sworn to secrecy and can never talk about what they saw. Sometimes it could be a huge blockbuster that SIFF somehow managed to get, or a movie rife with copyright infringements, or a bloody horror flick.

What to Expect the Day Of

Get to the movie theater early. The line for ticket holders will start about an hour before the movie unless it's a really popular film, in which case it will start even earlier. Pass holders wait in their own line and get in first. Renee says, "One of the best things about SIFF is it forces a community because of waiting in line. You end up making friends or learning weird things about movies or experiences. It brings in a huge, demographically varied group of people."

Dress for outdoor weather in case you're at a venue where the line will queue up outside (such as the Uptown or the Egyptian). Don't be that fool who arrives 15 minutes after the movie starts assuming there will be previews. (If you are that guy, make sure you're going with friends who are punctual.) Use the bathroom right before the movie starts. There can be a bit of monologuing from filmmakers and SIFF staff before a film, so that's a great time to fit in a tinkle.

Prepare for Famous People

There will be famous people at SIFF. There are Q&As that will be listed on the SIFF site. If you're trying to hobnob with one of the Hollywood A-listers (or, let's be real, C-listers), plan accordingly. You can usually bump into them in the lobby. You may even be able to tell where they're sitting in the theater if they're watching the film with you. Don't throw popcorn at them. They're people, too. Another colleague of mine, Charles Mudede, has had some memorable conversations with celebrities at SIFFs past—see page 31 for more on that.

Prepare to Party

There are a bunch of parties every year at SIFF. You've got to buy tickets to those, but you get free drinks and you get to feel fancy. Renée says the only one she actually thinks is worth going to is the Closing Night Gala. It's in the Museum of History & Industry. One year, Kyle MacLachlan (you know, Agent Cooper from Twin Peaks) was there. He talked a lot about his winery.