YOUNG AUTEURS
This year, the Seattle International Film Festival will introduce FutureWave, a program to showcase short films by moviemaking youth. Filmmakers 18 and younger are encouraged to submit original work no longer than 20 minutes. Liza Comtois, who joined the SIFF staff last fall, proposed the idea as a way to garner more interest and participation from the younger crowd. She said San Francisco has been doing something similar for years, and the concept was immediately well received by the film festival team here. Although promotion of FutureWave will be focused locally, Comtois says the goal is to showcase all talent, so entries will be accepted from anywhere; and she emphasizes that all the young filmmakers whose works are chosen will be welcomed just like their older counterparts, which includes passes to the festival. Deadline is March 20, kids, so grab your cameras and get to work. Visit www.seattlefilm.org for a downloadable entry form, or e-mail questions to futurewave@seattlefilm.org. MARISA MCQUILKEN
RAILS ‘N’ TRAILS
The Spirit of Washington Dinner Train‘s fate remains unclear, though the attraction’s president, Eric Temple, is optimistic that its 47-mile route from Renton to Snohomish can accommodate both train tracks and a walking/biking trail. Spirit’s contract with the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway was set to expire Nov. 30, 2006, according to Temple; that’s when King County hoped to purchase the route and turn it into a trail. But Temple and company have received an extension from BNSF until Sept. 30, 2007, which leaves plenty of time for negotiation. Temple says the notion of combining tracks and trail along the route has “broad support” on the King County Council. He also points out that the Interurban and Myrtle Edwards trails, both in King County, already have “rails with trails” setups. NEAL SCHINDLER
EXPANDING FESTIVAL
Typically, the Sasquatch! Music Festival is only one day long, but this year the annual Memorial Day weekend fete is tripling in size. Forty bands have just been announced for the concert, taking place Friday, May 26–Sunday, May 28, including headliners Nine Inch Nails (Friday), Ben Harper (Saturday), Beck, Death Cab for Cutie, and Queens of the Stone Age (Sunday). Other confirmations include the Flaming Lips, the Shins, Neko Case, Sufjan Stevens, and the Decemberists, as well as Seattle artists Korby Lenker, Common Market, Blue Scholars, Rocky Votolato, Laura Viers, and Mercir. For the full lineup, see www.hob.com/sasquatch. MICHAELANGELO MATOS
