Hollywood big shots are heading to Santa Barbara this week, not to get away from it all as usual, but to meet, greet, see movies and do business at the 15th annual Santa Barbara Film Festival.
This year's festival, running today through March 12, boasts 20 world premieres and 15 U.S. premieres, as well as tributes to Whoopi Goldberg, Richard Pryor and Ivan Reitman.The festival opens tonight with a screening of "The Big Kahuna," a new drama starring Kevin Spacey, Danny DeVito and Peter Facinelli, at the Arlington Theatre. Facinelli and first-time filmmaker James Swanbeck, who directed the original Chicago run of the play, will answer questions about the film.
On Saturday, Oscar winner Anthony Hopkins will receive the festival's Modern Master Award for his body of work in an event hosted by Edward Norton. Film critic Leonard Maltin will interview Hopkins on stage about his career, from his debut in "The Lion in Winter" to his latest release, "Titus." A screening of "Remains of the Day" follows.
The closing-night event is the world premiere of the family drama "Price of Glory," starring Jimmy Smits and made by first-time feature director Carlos Avila.
Among the other world premieres are:
-- "Astoria," a drama about a young man in New York, who tries to break away from the strict values of his Greek-American family, directed by Nick Efteriades and starring Paige Turco and Rick Stear.
-- "The Hand Behind the Mouse: The Ub Iwerks Story," a documentary about the legendary Disney animator made by his granddaughter, Leslie Iwerks.
-- "Noriega: God's Favorite," director Roger Spottiswoode's take on the final years of Manuel Noriega's reign. Bob Hoskins stars as the Panamanian dictator.
-- "Steal This Movie," a biopic about '60s radical Abbie Hoffman starring Vincent D'Onofrio and directed by Robert Greenwald.
The festival also offers nine seminars and panel discussions, five dealing with digital technology. One topic, "Has Indiewood Taken Over Hollywood?," addresses a broader issue: The new trend among studios to produce films with an "independent" feel to them, apparently in response to the commercial and critical successes enjoyed by Miramax, New Line and other indie companies.
Passes range in price from $225 to $750. For more information, call the festival office at 1-805-963-0023 or go to (www.sbfilmfestival.org).