The Portland International Film Festival turns 30

The Portland International Film Festival
30th Anniversary
February 9-24, 2007


On March 17th, 1977, the first Portland International Film Festival (PIFF) opened with a long line of film fans and eager patrons ready to see Orson Welles' F is for Fake, the first of 20 films from 20 countries. Over the last 30 years and thousand of films, the Festival has drawn hundreds of thousands of people from throughout the Northwest to an event that will this year showcase 125 films from three dozen countries and an audience of more than 30,000.

This year's Portland International Film Festival opens February 9th at the Newmark Theatre at the Portland Center for the Performing Arts with the internationally award winning The Lives of Others, this year's German submission for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar. The Director, Florian Henckel von Donners, will be in attendance, joining the audience for an Opening Night party in the theatre's elegant foyer featuring music by Portland's Stolen Sweets.

On the eve of the 30th anniversary of PIFF, Northwest Film Center Director Bill Foster said, "On this milestone for the Festival, we look back to reflect on our appreciation for the great audiences, staff, Silver Screen members, sponsors and friends whose continuing support has made this event such a success. The Film Center looks forward to producing this wonderful event for the next thirty years in a city full of cinema lovers."

One of the region's most culturally diverse arts events, the Portland International Film Festival offers a window to the world for a broad mix of film, arts, multicultural, family and education audiences sharing a love of film and an interest in our global context. In addition to highlighting new international feature films, this year's Festival will present screen classics, visiting artists, shorts, documentaries, family films, and a featured showcase of new Hispanic language cinema. The showcase will be accompanied by "Cine-Lit," an international conference on Hispanic film and literature co-produced by the Foreign Language Departments at Portland State University and Oregon State University. Together, the Festival and Conference will bring directors, writers, and scholars from throughout the U.S. and Spanish-speaking countries.

This year PIFF films will be shown at the Regal Broadway Metroplex, the Film Center's Whitsell Auditorium in the Portland Art Museum, and at Cinema 21. Press screenings will start January 29th. This year's PIFF Presenting Sponsors include The Oregonian, Regal Cinemas and Tropicana, along with major program sponsors that include Hollywood Video, the Living Room Theaters, the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation, The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Electronic Data Systems, Laika, and Wieden + Kennedy.