From the "On The Scene" Archives:

by Eugene Hernandez

The buttons adorning the lapels of organizers and others at the 1999 AFI Los Angeles International Film Festival read "Lucky 13" -­ an example of the festival's determination to shake any stigma that might come from this 13th annual installment. Over the course of its nine-day run (October 21 ­ 29), based at the beautifully restored Egyptian Theater on Hollywood Blvd., the event further established itself as a formidable player in the crowded L.A. festival and event circuit.

Without a doubt, drawing a crowd to a film function in this company town can be a daunting task. While some festivals focus on indies and others on industry, the American Film Institute (AFI) is carving out a niche of its own, offering an eclectic mix of international films, documentaries, gala screenings and new indie work. The festival scored by centering its diverse lineup in Hollywood and by offering filmmakers and attendees an opportunity to mix and mingle at an Egyptian courtyard hospitality suite and the nearby Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, the Festival's temporary dorm for the run of the event.

Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan joined AFI Director and CEO Jean Picker Firstenber in publicly toasting Festivals Director John Fitzgerald (who joined the AFI after founding Slamdance). Fitzgerald was singled out for setting the festival's current course while at the same time being a part of the drive to re-vitalize Hollywood and make it a legitimate Southern California destination.

Fitzgerald looked to IndieWood to anchor the 1999 Festival, opening the event with Lasse Hallström's "The Cider House Rules" from Miramax, offering Fine Line's "The Legend of 1900" by Giuseppe Tornatore, and closing with Pedro Almodovar's "All About My Mother" from Sony Pictures Classics. Gala screenings were just that, drawing spruced-up Southlanders at events that welcomed large crowds, celebrities and media.

The festival relied on Hollywood attendees such as Steve Martin, Tim Roth, Shirley Maclaine, Penelope Cruz, Tobey Maguire, Oliver Stone, Julie Delpy, David Schwimmer and Kirstie Alley to attract attention. Yet the event wisely shied away from programming indie movies that have nothing more to show for themselves than a forgotten TV actor or a supermodel turned thespian.

Two American indies that stood out in the Festivalšs "New Directions" section also were double-award winners on closing night. They also happened to feature their makers in lead roles on-screen: John-Luke Montias' "Bobby G. Can't Swim...," which stars Montias, and Adam and Kipp Marcus' "Snow Days," which features Kipp Marcus in a starring role. Accepting "Snow Days" editing award at the ceremony, director Adam Marcus acknowledged the craft as the core of successful comedy, eliciting good-natured jibes from the DGA's Jack Shea and SAG's Richard Masur who presented awards during the evening.

The AFI Festival's official competition relied entirely on U.S. premieres of international work, including: Takashi Koizumi's "After the Rain," Olli Saarela's "Ambush," Kim ki-Duk's "Birdcage Inn," Jan Hrebejk's "Cosy Dens," Chen Kaige's "The Emperor and the Assassin," Shinya Tsukamoto's "Gemini," Ferzan Ozpetek's "Harem Suare," Morten Henriksen's "The Magnetists Fifth Winter," Shaji Karun's "Vanaprastham, The Last Dance," and Giuseppe Piccioni's "Not of This World." Winner of 4 major awards at Italy's Oscars equivalent, the David di Donatello Awards, including Best Film and Best Actress, Puccioni's film about a nun who must confront her life choice when given an abandoned baby, stole the show capturing both the Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award.

Of personal interest (in part because I moderated a seminar) was the Festival's two-day Digital Cinema Symposium. Now a fixture at most festivals, digital panels are often less than compelling. Yet, at AFI '99, the digital section was fueled by the participation and interest of members of the Hollywood entertainment industry seeking insight on such subjects as Internet marketing or online distribution. The event hosted an eclectic group of panelists, including director Spike Jonze, web entrepreneurs Mika Salmi of Atom Films and Luke McDonough of iFilm, producer of "The Blair Witch Project" Kevin Foxe, former studio executive Michael Jenkinson of Urbanmedia.com, Digital Coast editorial gatekeeper Mark London Williams, and even Tom Winkler, the man who has made doodie.com a household word.

With a handful of film festivals (among them the LAIFF and the Hollywood Film Festival) on the annual map in Los Angeles, the battle for local bragging rights and warm bodies to fill the seats remains fiercely competitive. If it can prove that its 13th installment was more than mere luck, the AFI Los Angeles Film Festival will undoubtedly remain an increasingly important annual L.A. destination.