
- K.C. Fennessy
- Jenny Slate, Gillian Robespierre, and SIFF director Carl Spence
I particularly appreciate the opportunity to see a film with a live audience and a visiting guest or two—or even an entire chorus line, which happened when SIFF presented actor-turned-director Matthew Lillard's Seattle-set Fat Kid Rules the World a couple of years ago.

- K.C. Fennessy
I made an exception for Obvious Child. Though I had already seen—and recommended—the film, I still made an effort to catch the Q&A, since actress Jenny Slate and director Gillian Robespierre were both scheduled to attend. I'm glad I did as they were as funny and as charming as I would've hoped. They clearly love each other and enjoy working together, and Robespierre said she hoped to make many more films with Slate, who's already made a mark on TV by way of roles on Parks & Recreation, House of Lies, and Bob's Burgers. Obvious Child proves she can also carry a movie. Unfortunately, the short film from which they developed the feature may never see the light of day due to rights issues.

- K.C. Fennessy
- Megan Griffiths and crew with SIFF programmer Beth Barrett

- K.C. Fennessy
- SIFF programmer Clinton McClung
In a previous post, I mentioned appearances from directors Nancy Kates (Regarding Susan Sontag) and Zeresenay Berhane Mehari (Difret), and I enjoyed their Q&As, too. I especially appreciated the fact that Mehari launched a Kickstarter after US studios turned down his conception for the film, even if they sparked to the idea. The problem: they wanted to make it with English-speaking actors. Though the story has universal implications regarding women's rights, it stems from a specific place and culture, and he was justified in shooting the film in and around Addis Abeba (the spelling used in the film) with native Ethiopian actors. It just wouldn't work as well otherwise.
Although SIFF programmer Clinton McClung is hardly a visiting guest, he deserves credit for always getting into into the spirit of things, which befits a gent who often introduces the Midnight Adrenaline screenings. In the photo above, he's wearing a mask while introducing Frank in which blue-eyed Irishman Michael Fassbender spends most every minute of Lenny Abrahamson's comedy sporting an over-sized, papier mâché head that gets dirtier and smellier as the film goes along. It's like the opposite of Locke, since Fassbender has to do more acting with his body than his face while Tom Hardy has to do more acting with his face than his body, though both actors make ample use of their fine voices and, as it turns out, Fassbender isn't a bad singer either, at least not if you have a high tolerance for baritone crooners like Nick Cave and Calvin Johnson—and I definitely do.
Lucky Them opens at the Northwest Film Forum on June 13 (with Griffiths in attendance at the opening weekend screenings), Obvious Child opens at the Guild 45th on June 20, and Frank opens in limited release on August 22 (details TBA).