Friday Harbor Film Festival offers feast for eyes and mind

Today you are one boat ride and 16 days away from 35 documentary films playing on six screens at four venues over three days. At the 7th annual Friday Harbor Film Festival, each film will be screened twice. That adds up to a whole lot of eye and mind stimulation – and heart, also.

From October 25 to 27 Friday Harbor will be documentary film central in the Pacific Northwest.

In this 50th anniversary year of landing on the moon, the films Apollo 11 and Mission Control will be shown, with three NASA astronauts taking questions from audiences for reflecting back on the American space program.

Amidst all this, for Founding Director Lynn Danaher, “the most exciting aspect is that we will be honoring Paul Allen with the Lifetime Achievement Award for his extraordinary support in producing wonderful documentaries.” This year that film is “Ghost Fleet.” At least one film each year has been due to Allen’s donations, Danaher said. Allen died last year.

Allen made significant contributions to filmmaking through his company, Vulcan Productions, providing critical support to filmmakers working to make the world a better place by telling important stories, the Festival website states.

A Festival practice is participation by the filmmakers, withquestions after screenings. She is proud that “viewers get a fuller, richer experience from an often lively and very insightful level of dialogue.”

The Festival is also proud of its Opening Night Gala, Friday. It is billed on the website as “a big dressy party with robust appetizers and beverages at the San Juan Island Community Theatre.”

Founding producer Karen Palmer, a retired film and TV producer, has worked with Danaher to develop and grow the festival into one of the most important in the Pacific Northwest. The Festival enacts their vision to share compelling, relevant documentary films and to encourage viewers to be a force for positive change. Its mission is: entertain, inspire and enlighten audiences while encouraging students to learn the art storytelling through film. The Festival closes on Sunday night with the Audience Choice Awards, honoring the best films.

A $15 ticket gets you one film, while an all festival pass is $200. It includes the Friday night gala. Five and ten ticket packages reduce per film costs.

And, the Student Showcase has 19 submitted films, shown for free. The winner receives the Lazslo Pal Emerging Filmmaker Award and his/her film is screened..

The first film shows at 10 a.m. the 25th. The last ends 11 p.m. the 27th.

Information and tickets: FHFF.org, The program is online and on Washington state ferries.