About Clinton McClung

SIFF & SIFF Cinema Programmer

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  SIFF - I'm not in the know; any suggestions?

  1 0 The festival free catalogue is already out if you want to get a jump start (and individual tickets are now on sale). You can pick them up at any Starbucks or many other locations throughout town. We have the films arranged by "Pathways" to make the process easier to navigate, so you can browse by kind of movie rather than a big list of just titles. Pathways are also pretty self explanatory "Make Me Laugh", "Give Me Drama!", "Thrill Me", "Show Me the World", etc. Also, it is actually really easy to get tickets to most shows - just buy a ticket on line or at our box office. Often times tickets are still available day of show, and we publish a handy list on our site each day of any films that are on waitlist (usually the big weekend films, galas, and ones with a lot of local connections). With our main venues this year being the 3 screens at the Uptown, as well as the Egyptian and 2 screens at the Harvard Exit - it's easier than ever to see multiple films in a day as well (and don't forget our satellite festival screenings in Renton, Everett, and Kirkland, too). If there are any specific types of movies you like, let me know and I'll recommend some titles for you. Clinton McClung answered in Film 20 days ago Answer and comment »

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  1 0 It's okay. There are a lot of ins and outs to festival and film booking, and I understand the frustrations from people on the outside looking in. You want to see these films, darnit! I too wish we could play everything that we want -- and that we could extend the festival, oh, another two months so we could include even more films. Ah, but that might be overkill. By the way, I should mention that SIFF is expanding our year-round programming thanks to the new SIFF Film Center that will be opening in the fall. We'll have a lot more opportunity to play smaller films that may not make the festival, but still need a home in Seattle. So keep your eyes peeled for even more international cinema, indie films, and documentaries year round. Clinton McClung commented about 1 year ago

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  1 0 Sometimes that is precisely why we don't get a film, because it is already playing at another festival near our date, or because the distributor feels that they have enough festival exposure. The festival world is pretty competitive (and with more and more festivals in the world, more so today than it ever has been). Sometimes we'll "lose" a film to another festival, sometimes we get it before anyone else, sometimes we have to negotiate away one film in order to get another. That's just the way it works. Wish we could just point at any film we want and say "you're IN!", but there is a lot of behind the scenes negotiation that needs to happen to play most films. Clinton McClung commented about 1 year ago

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  Is there a reason SIFF (via POP) has abandoned development of the iSIFF app?

  0 0 Your feedback is appreciated, and it is good to hear about any bugs, etc. I use the app religiously and find it quite useful, and compared to many other film festival apps (which I am often tied to as an attendee at other fests), I have to say it is one of the easiest to use. But obviously you are anxious for us to amp it up to the next level, which is totally expected in a tech-savvy community like ours. Development wasn't abandoned, but we do have limited resources and were not able to make any changes to the overall architecture of the program for this year's festival (and a bunch of us are iPad junkies as well, so don't think we didn't go there). But we do have goals to further refine it, most notably to get it to the android market. There have been a few minor bug fixes since the app went live (like the filter issue which we fixed as soon as we were made aware), and by the start of the festival we should have everything fully updated (at this point mostly just removing outdated venue and genre information). As for the multitasking - it isn't quite lighting speed, but the app doesn't reset when you click away. There is a brief start-up window, then it takes you back to where you last were, instead of resetting to a home screen. At least that's how it's been working on my iPhone 4G. Let me know if your experience is different. Clinton McClung answered in SIFF about 1 year ago Answer, comment & read 2 more answers »

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  d What kind of ID does a kid need in order to take advantage of the $6 day-of-show student admission price?

  2 0 I double checked with the box office manager who said that in lieu of a student ID, a Washington ID showing student age is fine for getting the discount. Discount tickets are day-of-show, and you can purchase them as soon as the box office opens that day. People do line up early for the tickets, so try soon as you can for maximum availability. Box offices for all SIFF tickets are located at Pacific Place and at our office building, hours and addresses are here: http://www.siff.net/festival/tickets/ Also, for teens there is an even BETTER deal than the student tickets if you use Seattle Center's TeenTix program. You can sign up for that for free here: http://www.seattlecenter.com/teentix/default.asp#signupform It generally takes about two weeks to get a TeenTix pass, but if you do it now then maybe you can get it in time for the festival (drop them a line and ask). The teen pass is good for $5 rush tickets not only to SIFF, but to tons of other arts events. Clinton McClung answered in SIFF about 1 year ago Answer and comment »

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  What's the best at SIFF for kids and family?

  0 0 For all ages, we have WINNIE THE POOH, KUNG FU PANDA 2, and the FAMILY PICTURE SHOW, as well as a really groovy stop motion film from Germany (dubbed in English) called THE SANDMAN AND THE LOST SAND OF DREAMS. For ages 8 and up there is CIRCUS DREAMS, a peek at the nation's only travelling youth circus, followed by a special circus workshop at Teatro ZinZanni (advance registration required, get the details here: http://www.siff.net/festival/film/detail.aspx?id=44566&FID=206 Also, don't miss BEING ELMO, an amazing documentary about the man who created and does the puppeteering for Sesame Street's Elmo. A big hit with family audiences at Sundance and SXSW Festivals. And more! The full list of Films4Families is here: http://www.siff.net/festival/film/programdetail.aspx?FID=206&PID=369 Clinton McClung answered in Things to do with Your Kids about 1 year ago Answer, comment & read 4 more answers »

• Comment on Steve Schonberger's answer…

  0 0 That is totally awesome! Clinton McClung commented about 1 year ago

• Comment on Kim Stockbridge's answer…

  0 0 Thanks, Kim, you RULED this question! I second everything she says - especially the part about volunteering. Not just because it helps us out, but it really is a great way to meet all sorts of people. Clinton McClung commented about 1 year ago

• Comment on Clinton McClung's answer…

  3 0 Quite frankly, those are all films that were on our hit list but didn't make it for various reasons. The most likely reason for the absence of any important international release is that it simply wasn't available to us. I can't tell you all our behind the scenes details, but it usually simply boils down to things just not working out. But all of those titles we considered, and many we really wanted to play. But that doesn't mean you won't see them. Uncle Boonmee, which is really wonderful is playing at NWFF for two weeks, June 17-30; Le Quatro Volte (Four Times) is now playing at the Varsity; and Sleeping Beauty will be out later this year. My advice is to try not to get too upset about specific films that you feel are missing from the festival (which is something that we programmers have to learn, too. It's heartbreaking sometimes to not be able to play a movie that we love). Every year there will be some films that we simply can't get. But SIFF is still the largest festival in the U.S. - 257 features & 184 shorts - and we fill our programs will plenty of new films still worth discovering. Clinton McClung commented about 1 year ago

• Comment on Clinton McClung's answer…

  0 0 So yeah, the IMAX and 3D shows are NOT included, so the pass doesn't cover those. Sorry I had the wrong info, but I did finally confirm this with the box office manager. Clinton McClung commented about 1 year ago

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