It's going to be an exciting afternoon!

Our first round of afternoon showings kicks off at 1:45 with Falkenberg Farewell and Still Alive, and then Bamako and Going Private starting at 2:00, and Frozen City at 2:15. Members of the Polish-American Cultural Center will be holding a Q&A after Still Alive screens, and a discussion about Bamako will be held in the Legends of Rock Room at the Hard Rock Cafe after its screening concludes. If you want to expand your cultural and political awareness, these are some great things to attend!

Then it's time for our "4:00 Round," which is actually beginning at 4:15 with Fresh Air and Indy Shorts #1. Then Stolen Holidays and Transylvania start at 4:30, and Boy Culture kicks off at 4:45.

The showing of Boy Culture will be followed by a Filmmaker Q&A, and actor Derek Magyar will be in attendance. Afterwards (or instead, if you couldn't make it) go to the MATURE Gallery Opening Reception at M% Studios and attend one of the most provocative art gallery openings around. You'll also have a chance to mingle with other Festival attendees, and Derek Magyar will be there, too! The Opening Reception runs from 5pm to 9pm, and M% Studios is the sponsor of the Festival's 10% Cinema, devoted to films of a gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender nature.

Inside Tip: Word is that parking at Tower City is filling up fast, so you might get sent to an outlying lot or garage. If you'd rather not walk, I'd recommend driving over to one of the RTA parking lots for the trains. All of the RTA trains come in to Tower City, and that's a great way to avoid the crowding. (And it'll be even more important tomorrow when the St. Patrick's Day Parade is going off!) As another inside tip, the Producer Pass comes with Free Valet Parking, which will let you sidestep all of that kind of hassle for the entire festival.

Our Challenge Match is off to a fantastic start. As of this morning, we're well on our way to our $31,000 goal; donations stand at $3,425 between pre-Festival donations and Opening Night contributions. There are a whole lot of fantastic prizes and premiums for Challenge Match contributions, so stop by the table and check them out. I'm going to try to post a list of them later.

I have the best job in the world!