Festival Celebrates the American Story Told Through a Century of Classic Film
Film history will once again grace the Whidbey Island Center for the Arts (WICA) mainstage January 8-18 with the seventh annual Whidbey Island Film Festival (WIFF). The only purely classic film festival in Washington State, the two-week run will feature the enduring charm of screen legends Charlie Chaplin and Steve Martin and will pull at the heartstrings with impactful storytelling in films like Fried Green Tomatoes. The lineup, curated by James Hinkley, captures work, community, reinvention, struggle, music, and imagination in the 11 classics curated to represent this year’s theme—Americana: The American Story Told Through a Century of Classic Film.
“We invite you to come out of the cold and enjoy wonderful community in Whidbey’s art hub,” says WICA Executive Artistic Director and WIFF Co-Curator Deana Duncan. “Each year we literally roll out the red carpet for our patrons, bringing Hollywood to Langley and providing a space to celebrate generations of film classics.”
Produced by WICA, WIFF brings in movie lovers from Whidbey and beyond to enjoy iconic classics how they were originally meant to be seen—on the big screen. The festival will kick off with a red carpet opening party and will feature a signature cocktail and bottomless popcorn. The audience-favorite Art of the Score concert will return on January 17, featuring festival Co-Curator James Hinkley playing alongside Whidbey icons Sheila Weidendorf and Gloria Ferry-Brennan. Patrons will also experience other programming, including a film talk led by Scarecrow Video’s Jonathan Marlow on January 10. On January 11, WICA Costume Designer Randon Pool will lead a discussion on The Art of Illusion and the clothes we wear to deceive the world. Pool will be joined by actors Gail Liston and Charlie Walsh, two familiar faces to the WICA stage, for a visual demonstration using clothing as a tool to alter reality. On January 16, WICA’s Production Director Honza Kourimsky will lead attendees in movie night trivia, a free event in Zech Hall for patrons to enjoy classic cinema moments and fun prizes, while January 18 will bring to WICA the taste of Southern comfort classics.
WEEK 1 | JANUARY 8 - 11
Modern Times
JANUARY 8 | 7:00PM
The Music Man
JANUARY 9 | 7:00PM
The Last Picture Show
JANUARY 10 | 1:00PM
TALKS An American Retrograde:
As Observed in THE GRAPES OF WRATH to THE LAST PICTURE SHOW and Back Again
JANUARY 10 | 3:00PM
Grapes of Wrath
JANUARY 10 | 7:00PM
TALKS The Art of Illusion:
The clothes we wear to deceive the world
JANUARY 11 | 12:30PM
The Sting
JANUARY 11 | 1:00PM
Pennies from Heaven
JANUARY 11 | 7:00PM
WEEK 2 | JANUARY 15 - 18
Ragtime
JANUARY 15 | 7:00PM
Movie Night Trivia
JANUARY 16 | 5:30PM
The Road to Wellville
JANUARY 16 | 7:00PM
Matinee
JANUARY 17 | 1:00PM
Art of the Score
JANUARY 17 | 7:30PM
Fried Green Tomatoes
JANUARY 18 | 1:00PM
The Secret’s in the Sauce:
A Fried Green Tomatoes Meal
JANUARY 18 | 4:00PM
Cradle Will Rock
JANUARY 18 | 7:00PM
As the weather becomes colder, WICA invites patrons to come inside and experience the stories within these films that continue to resonate. To learn more and to purchase tickets or festival passes, visit whidbeyislandfilmfestival.org.