Northwest Film Center's second festival of the Fall highlights the talents of Northwest locals. From snappy animated shorts to award-winning indie films, the 41st Northwest Filmmakers' Festival offers a diverse crop of unsung, up-and-coming directors. The festival begins tonight, with a string of shorts, and ends next Saturday, November 15.

With a program of over 30 films, we've narrowed it down to a manageable six picks. Tickets are cheap, at most $9, so grab a pair online or at the door. 

Anxious Oswald Greene

Anxious Oswald Greene
November 7 
Whitsell Auditorium   Director: Marshall Axani (Vancouver, BC) 
Friday, Whitsell Auditorium 
In a fantastical Wes Anderson-style world, Oswald Greene finds himself in a surrealist doctor’s office, complete with twin receptionists, a blind Nurse Ratched descendant, and an unnerving, rhyme-ready doctor. His only friend might be the talking fly on the wall, or maybe not.

BFE

BFE
November 9
Whitsell Auditorium   Director: Shawn Telford (Seattle, Wa) 
Sunday, Whitsell Auditorium 
Up-and-coming Seattle filmmaker Shawn Telford uncovers the wretched, often unseen world of Small Town, USA. Following a dysfunctional foursome—terminally ill grandpa, spry grandson, his young love interest, and her crushingly popular boyfriend—BFE portrays real life, as forlorn and brazen as it may be. The tagline reads: “They say it's quiet out in the country... they don't know shit!” Well don’t take their word for it, go see for yourself. 

Return Of The River

Return Of The River
November 10
Whitsell Auditorium   Director: John Gussman and Jessica Plumb (Port Townsend, Wa) 
Monday, Whitsell Auditorium  
What could have come off as an environmentalist PSA actually marries expansive, artful shots of Washington’s captivating countryside with the enlightening story of the Elwha River and the country’s largest dam removal and river restoration in history.

Freeload

Freeload
November 12
Whitsell Auditorium   Director: Daniel T. Skagg (Billings, MT)  
Wednesday, Whitsell Auditorium
The story isn’t new, but the narrative remains captivating, as documentary filmmaker Daniel Skaggs explores the storied subculture of freeloaders and freight hoppers. From the inside looking out, the freedom and adventure these rail riders embody will always tap into some instinctual fascination with their rogue lifestyle.

A Tale of Momentum and Inertia

A Tale Of Momentum and Inertia
November 13
Whitsell Auditorium   Director: Kirk Kelley and Kameron Gates (Portland, Or) 
Thursday, Whitsell Auditorium
Portland animators continue to produce some of the most masterful, visually engrossing works of CGI currently on screen. The folks at HouseSpecial, a spin-off of Laika (remember The Boxtrolls, Coraline, ParaNorman), have produced a charming little short depicting the conflicted life of a rock giant who holds a little village’s fate in his hands—literally.