Last year in a brief pause on Covid restrictions, I had the opportunity to attend the North Bend Film Fest for the first time. A partner in the virtual festival Nightstream, NBFF is a genre fest that takes place just east of Seattle, WA in its namesake city - best known of course as the filming location of Twin Peaks. It was an incredible experience, and I am excited to be returning to the festival with fellow ForReel writer Taylor Beaumont as well as Drink In The Movies' Taylor Baker. 

Tonight kicks off the festival with James Morosini's SXSW award winning film I Love My Dad. Starring Morosini himself alongside Patton Oswalt and a supporting cast that includes Claudia Sulewski, Lil Rey Howery, and Rachel Dratch, about a father (Oswalt) estranged from his son (Morosini) who uses the online persona of a beautiful young girl in an effort reconnect with him - a catfishing scheme taken to an extreme. This comedy film is every bit as awkward as the premise implies and is, to say the least, a memorable film. You can read a review of the film from Taylor Beaumont during SXSW here, and watch an interview I did with James Morosini in person while he was in town for the Seattle International Film Festival screenings of the film here.

Closing NBFF on Sunday is the Amanda Kramer drama Please Baby Please. Screened very recently at the major Canadian genre fest Fantasia, this film follows a couple's exploration of sexual identity after an encounter with a greaser gang in 1950's Manhattan, starring Andrea Riseborough, Harry Melling, Karl Glusman, and Demi Moore, among others. 

In between these two films is an eclectic mix of odd, dramatic, and terrifying films and events throughout the weekend. Centerpiece films include Swallowed directed by Carter Smith and starring Jena Malone, and Next Exit, another official Fantasia selection directed by Mali Elfman. Who, by the way, will be in attendance at the festival and is slated to be the topic of discussion for NBFF's Campfire Conversation following the Saturday night screening. 

Other events include Ghost Hunting 101, presented by HiddenNWTours, a live screenplay reading of The Olympians - a horror-thriller currently in development - sponsored by Valley Center Stage, and Strange Storytelling Hour hosted by comedian Emmett Montgomery and presented by Northwest Film Forum.

You can also see films like Sirens, Incredible But True, Raquel 1:1, The Civil Dead, and a special 20th anniversary presentation of Bubba Ho-Tep.

I love North Bend Film Fest because of the small and intimate nature of it. The festival takes place at the North Bend Theatre on the town's main downtown strip. Everything is within walking distance, and I particularly enjoy socializing with festival attendees, programmers, and filmmakers at Volition Brewery less than a block from the theater.

North Bend Film Fest runs from August 4 to August 7. Find tickets for all of these films and events at northbendfilmfest.com, and of course, follow our coverage of the festival here on the ForReel website and on Twitter and Instagram.