Movies with meaning – minus the yachts and the fanfare

While all the glitz and glamour are going on at the Cannes Film Festival, a small film festival in Los Angeles is setting out to have four days full of meaningful feature films and eye-opening documentaries: minus the yachts, starlets and fanfare.

Organizers say the stars of the Awareness Festival are the “stories of strength and courage, revealing tales of corporate greed and our shrinking resources, consequences of today’s technology and trials of the body, mind and soul”. The Awareness Festival, focusing on films that make a statement, is being held in three venues around Los Angeles, from today to 23. There are more than 90 films playing from around the world. There are free screenings of Fuel, Food Matters, Simply Raw and others. Their main venue is the restored art deco Regent Showcase Theater in Hollywood. The founder, Skye Kelly, is the executive director of Heal One World, a nonprofit organization she formed last year to provide preventative healthcare to those in need and provide awareness through films. Films with a message While studying filmmaking, the former realtor found herself mainly interested in making films that had a message and brought awareness to pressing issues of today. That made a statement and inspired change. She started a call for entries and, she says, she was amazed by the high quality of films she received. There were more than 250 entries from around the world. She knew the festival had to be big enough to showcase these films, and so was born the Awareness Festival. Bringing narrative and documentary films, features and shorts as well as live musical performances and a “wellness fair”, the festival is approaching rapidly. “The amazing all-volunteer team has been going nonstop to spread the word,” say the organizers. Some stand-outs are Bilal’s Stand, from Sundance 2010, Zero Bridge, Horse Boy, urFRENZ and How I Got Lost, all award-winning festival films. May I Be Frank is an LA festival premiere. So is 2012: Time for Change, featuring Sting and others speaking of how to make conscious change for today and the future. Filmmakers and stars in attendance Most filmmakers and stars will be in attendance over the next four days. Confirmed are filmmakers from Fuel, Bilal’s Stand, and The Next 7 Generations and cast members from for One Hour Fantasy Girl, urFRENZ, How I Got Lost and May I Be Frank. There is a forum with the filmmakers, speaking of making films that inspire change and awareness in addition to the Q&A after the film. Marty Dread from Maui will provide reggae, and there will be other musicians playing each evening. A wellness event corresponding with documentaries on health will be at Heaven on Earth, just blocks away from the main venue. The Santa Monica venue will showcase shorts and smaller features.