Three hundred films from 60 countries. 100,000 butts in seats throughout the Czech Republic. Those are some numbers Febiofest’s organizers have thrown around to highlight the extravaganza’s prowess. Here are some of the many attractions they’ve got to lure you to the theater this year:

Building on ever-more rampant news of cell-phone movies, video-game movies, and other “new media” outlets for creating and viewing film, the annual Febiofest celebration will, it claims, “become part of a wider field of audio-vision.” Oh, and it also promises “several surprises and special treats.” Two of those are: a 445-minute film by Hungarian musician and a Do-It-Yourself section presenting experimentation opportunities with new filmmaking technologies.
For those who are masters in the art of patience, Febiofest is screening Scottish artist Douglas Gordon’s 24 Hour Psycho. What every film fan knows as a 109-minute thriller is slowed to an entire day. Drop in for the shower scene—stay for half-a-day.

A Panorama of Young European Cinema to highlight upstart whippersnappers from around Europe debuting their first or second works, including three short films by Czech auteurs.
A smorgasbord of other cultural/national feature divisions: Latin American Panorama (including “new wave Mexican cinema”), British American Cinema (sponsored by British American Tobacco, so you can bet “Thank You for Smoking” probably isn’t on this bill), the curiously-named Southern Panorama of works from the Near East and Northern Africa, and a collection of Eastern European Cinema with a special focus on the development of film in Hungary.
Cultural film groupings include the ever-popular Gay and Lesbian Cinema section, and Febiofest Junior, a series of screenings of films made by children and teenagers. Morning screenings of these works will be open to field-trip groups from local schools. 

The title of one Febiofest presentation just reminds me too much of the Hall of Presidents at Disneyworld to pass up: the Cinema of Personalities in Cinema Hall No. 1.  I don’t think there are animatronic re-creations of movie stars, but the festival is promising a “mini-portrait” of a different director, author or actor each day, in which the personality in question introduces their film and holds a q&a with the audience. One of this year’s personalities is that of Cannes-lauded French director Bruno Dumont.

You’d think all this would be enough for a nine-day festival, but no, the folks behind Febiofest want to truly blow your mind (and fill your schedule) by including a concert of Scandinavian music trends entitled “Finnish Friendly Underground,” headlined by the bands Islaja, Es and Kemialliset Ystävät at Roxy. Oh, and there’s the accompanying Febiofest Music Festival of about 50 concerts with international bands from 10+ countries.
This festival is exhausting me just writing about it … but must keep going …
Febiofest will also have a special focus on spiritual films, and included in that theme will be a screening at a local church. That’s not quite as cool as last year’s special screening at a crematorium in Pardubice.
And FINALLY: for those who love this issue’s Youth in Asia focus, Febiofest still applies. An Asian Panorama will feature 16 films from throughout that continent, including works from Vietnam and Indonesia, and featured Japanese films at the Ponrepo Cinema accented by a showing at the Rudolfinum Gallery of Japanese art of the 1960s.
Home base for Febiofest 2007 is Village Cinemas Anděl, so rest assured that the seats will be comfy for that 24-hour screening of Psycho. For more information about locations and times of screenings and shows, go to www.febiofest.cz .

Oh, and some other eye-catching listings from the month of March around Prague:
The Federation of International Sports, Aerobics & Fitness will hold its Czech finals here March 30–April 4. I have no idea what this will be like, but the photos on the website look hilarious.  (www.fisaf.org )
For those cultural consumers interested in not only on-screen action, but live performance as well, the Prague Post's first annual playwriting contest will present performances of the three winning scripts. March 10, 11, 17 and 19, at Divadlo Minor.

In 2003, the first Prague Biennale presented a space for the unique, sometimes surreal work, of about 200 up and coming young artists. This year, from May 24 until September 16, The Prague Biennale will be on display at Karlín Hall. This year's theme: Global & Outsiders.
Rejecting the communist regime. "Rebel Art." A formerly homeless artist working with materials such as old batteries and beer cans. The art of Luděk Pešek Pachl will be on display at the Gallery Art Factory; April 17 through June 1.

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