ITSA Film Festival At The Opera Hall

This weekend, film makers, directors, producers, sound technicians and actors will be gathering in at the Opera Hall in downtown Sonora, CA.

Chris Wilkinson, co-founder of the ITSA Film Festival, was Thursday’s KVML “Newsmaker of the Day”.

The seventh annual ITSA Film Festival begins Friday night at 6 pm at the historic Opera Hall. David Vassar’s “Generation of the Wind” will be shown. This Academy Award Nominated film originally aired on PBS. David Vassar will be there in person and there is no admission fee.

On Saturday, more films will be shown throughout the day beginning at 10 am and continue at various times through 11 PM. Film makers will be on hand for brief Q&A sessions.

A feature workshop will take place from 1:50 – 2:30 PM with actress, model and voiceover artist Alexis Nichols.

There will also be two brief concerts. Oscar Goldman performs at 4:50 PM. Felice LaZae performs at 5:40 PM. A guest speakers panel will take place from 6:30 through 7:15 PM.

2nd Saturday Arts Night will also be taking place in downtown Sonora and Wilkinson is inviting participants to stop by the Opera Hall for this completely free event.

Finally on Sunday, more films shorts will be shown starting at noon and the Festival concludes with an Awards Ceremony on Sunday evening.

The ITSA Film Festival has the backing of several local sponsors and the City of Sonora.

According to Wilkinson, this is a perfect time of year for Sonora to play host to numerous people who can make an economic difference perhaps by eventually scouting film locations throughout both Sonora and Tuolumne County.

“It’s purposefully held at the very beginning of November, just before the snow and the Holiday season,” said Wilkinson. “We used to have the Wild West Film Fest here and the ITSA Film Festival helps bring film makers and tourists back to the area. The Festival promotes what the area has to offer, brings in large names and showcases our creative and artistic community.”

Complete information and a full schedule, is at www.itsafilmfestival.com

The “Newsmaker of the Day” is heard every weekday morning at 6:45, 7:45 and 8:45 on AM 1450 and FM 102.7 KVML.