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The 2021 Centre Film Festival kicked off with a ceremonial ribbon cutting outside The State Theatre in downtown State College on Nov. 1. The film festival, hosted by Penn State's Bellisario College of Communications, runs through Nov. 7 and offers more than 80 films both streamed and at historic theatres throughout the region including The State, The Mischler in Altoona and The Rowland in Philipsburg.
STATE COLLEGE — The Centre Film Festival kicked off on Nov. 1, bringing an even bigger event to the region in its third year, with more than 80 films and special events at three theaters and online, as well as some celebrity appearances that continue on to Nov. 7.
“We have films that educate, films that entertain and films that do both,” Pearl Gluck, festival co-founder and an associate professor of film at Penn State, said in a release.
“There’s something for everyone, so many entry points. Plus, all the filmmakers are excited to be part of what we’re doing. The quality of the films is so high. It’s exciting to think about all we have on the schedule.”
On Nov. 1 a red-carpet ribbon-cutting ceremony at The State Theatre in State College got things started and was followed by two days of in-person screenings and panels. It then moves to the Mishler Theatre in Altoona for one night and then to the Rowland Theatre in Philipsburg for a weekend of films and visiting filmmakers from Friday, Nov. 5, to Sunday, Nov. 7.
Virtual screenings and filmmaker panels also will be offered at watch.eventive.org/centrefilm2021. For tickets and the full online and in-person schedule, visit centrefilm.org/2021-films-schedule.
The Nov. 7 awards ceremony at the Rowland Theatre will include the presentation of the inaugural Chandler Living Legacy Award to Penn State alumnus and Emmy and Peabody-winning actor, writer and producer Keegan Michael-Key, who will accept the award virtually.
The Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to pioneering filmmaker and PBS producer of “Sesame Street” and “The Electric Company” to Pennsylvania native Madeline Anderson.
Another Penn State alumnus, “Better Call Saul” star Patrick Fabian, will return to his mother’s hometown of Philipsburg for a screening of “Driver X,” in which he stars as a stay-at-home dad who goes on a voyage driving for a rideshare app through Los Angeles’s late-night party scene.
The screening at 1 p.m. on Nov. 6 in the Rowland — where his mother once worked as an usher — will be followed by a talkback session with Fabian.
Another Q&A will feature State College native, actor, writer and director Joshua Leonard, who will discuss acting and directing after the screening of his comedy “Fully Realized Humans.”
Producer and Penn State alum Ian Tarbert will participate in a Q&A following a virtual screening of “Drunk Bus.”
Cinematographer and Penn State alum Michael Craven will appear as a special guest with DJ Harder to go behind-thescenes on their work on Netflix’s “The Chair.”
Documentary “Julia,” chronicling the life of Julia Child, will screen at the Rowland on Nov. 5, the same night it premieres nationwide.
Coinciding with National Native American Heritage Month, the festival had an in-person screening on Nov. 2 at The State Theatre of “Home From School: The Children of Carlisle,” a documentary about a delegation of Northern Arapaho tribal members who travel from Wyoming to Pennsylvania to retrieve the remains of three children who died at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School in the 1880s.
Other films at the festival include comedies, horror, drama, sports, documentaries and children’s movies, including some U.S. and Pennsylvania premieres, as well as award winners and favorites from festivals like Sundance, Telluride and SXSW.
Gluck, a filmmaker whose work has screened Sundance, Outfest, on PBS and theatrically, was inspired to create the Centre Film Festival after moving to Central Pennsylvania to teach filmmaking and discovering the century-old Rowland Theatre.
“To me movie theatres are neutral spaces to engage in conversation and spin the yarn, and the theatre is the perfect place to kick off a festival and celebrate local storytelling,” Gluck said in a release.
“What we unearthed here was not only a history of local movie lovers, but one of movie makers rooted in Central PA, namely Donald P. Bellisario, Patrick Fabian, and Joshua Leonard, just to name a few. Not to mention people like Keegan-Michael Key who studied here at Penn State.
“And we’re only in our third year… I am excited to shed a light on other artists as we continue to grow.”
For more information visit centrefilm.org.
