Athens, Ga. – To Catch a Thief, The Wizard of Oz and The Godfather II are among films selected for the sixth annual Robert Osborne Classic Film Festival, to be held March 25-28 at The Classic Center.
Osborne, the prime-time host of Turner Classic Movies and columnist for The Hollywood Reporter, has picked nine classic films that, he says, “represent the breadth and variety of classic cinema from the 1920s to the 1980s.”Other movies in the festival are Double Indemnity, All About Eve, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Steamboat Bill, The Shining and Stand by Me.
Nate Kohn, festival executive producer and professor of telecommunications in the University of Georgia Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, is thrilled by the list.
“Robert is the world’s foremost authority on the Academy Awards, and he worked hard to put together this dynamic program,” Kohn said. “Robert’s commitment to the success of our festival is something we’re very proud of.”
On opening night Tom Brown, vice president of original productions for TMC, will introduce To Catch a Thief and discuss the film with a special guest.Osborne will join the festival to assume his hosting duties on March 26.
“We are fortunate to have Tom joining us for opening night,” said Pam Kohn, festival director. “As head of original programming at TCM, he has been involved with the production of many highly acclaimed and award-winning documentaries including Cary Grant: A Class Apart. Having Tom introduce the opening film, To Catch A Thief, is particularly wonderful in light of his extensive knowledge on the star of the film, the marvelous Cary Grant.”
Past festivals have brought guests Jane Powell, Louise Fletcher, Maximilian Schell, Pia Lindstrom, Patricia Neal, Parker Posey, Mickey Rooney, Talia Shire and Fred Willard to Athens to discuss their films on stage with Osborne.Pam Kohn expects the upcoming festival to feature guests of similar stature.
During the four-day festival, the 2,000-seat Classic Center theater will be transformed into a world-class movie palace with the installation of a 60-foot motion picture screen and state-of-the-art 35mm projection and sound systems.Most prints will be pristine archival 35 mm prints from many of the major studios.
“It’s an exciting adventure to see these films the way they were meant to be seen,” said Osborne. “The big screen gives a different dimension and vitality to them.”
New to the festival this year is a midnight movie. The Shining will be shown March 26 with a special guest host.
In addition, the festival will feature a panel discussion hosted by Osborne. Panelists will include UGA scholars, festival guests, artists, critics and others. Topics will relate to the classic festival films and their various influences.The panel discussion is free and open to the public.
All films will require a paid ticket for admission. Discounts are available for UGA alumni and anyone with a student identification card (from UGA or another educational institution).Children 12 and younger receive a special ticket price of $5 for The Wizard of Oz.
Passes and tickets for individual films go on sale Nov. 16 at The Classic Center box office, online atwww.classiccenter.comor by calling 1 (800) 918-6393. Individual film tickets are $10 for the general public and $8 for students, UGA Alumni Association members and the midnight movie.
A variety of passes ranging from a student-only half pass to a full pass with brunch are available. For pricing, see www.robertosbornefilmfestival.com. In addition to paid tickets, the Classic Center charges a $1 service charge per purchase and $2 per day for parking during the festival.
Robert Osborne’s Classic Film Festival is an annual non-profit event of the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication. For more information, seewww.robertosbornefilmfestival.com.
Established in 1915, the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication offers seven undergraduate majors; advertising, broadcast news, magazines, newspapers, public relations, publication management and telecommunication arts. The college offers two graduate degrees, and is home to WNEG-TV, the Knight Chair in Health and Medical Journalism and the Peabody Awards, internationally recognized as one of the most prestigious prizes for excellence in electronic media. For more information, see www.grady.uga.edu or follow Grady on Twitter at twitter.com/ugagrady.
Films on the list are subject to change.
