Little Miss Sunshine

With the Paramount Theatre closing for a massive refurbishment this month, the big question has been, how will the many film festivals and events that call Austin’s biggest cinema home respond?

Well, Austin Film Festival (Oct. 29-Nov. 5) has announced that it will be adding both the Hogg Memorial Auditorium and the Texas Union Theater on the UT campus to a list of returning venues that include the State Theatre, Bullock Texas State History Museum, and Galaxy Highland. With concerns that the loss of the Paramount would reduce the size of events at AFF, the comparably sized 1,000 seat-capacity and recently renovated Hogg will be a suitable replacement, while the 374-seat Texas Union Theater is a big addition to the schedule.

To match the mood of relocation, AFF has also announced its first round of film programming. On the Road, a series of cinematic classics united by the theme of transit and travel, presented with the support of Austin Arts, Culture, Music, and Entertainment, the Texas Commission on the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

First up, take a trip from Kansas to Missouri with 1973’s Paper Moon, with legendary producer Frank Marshall (Raiders of the Lost Ark, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Back to the Future, Who Framed Roger Rabbit) presenting the Oscar-winning drama of an orphan (Best Supporting Actress winner Tatum O’Neal) and a con man (Ryan O’Neal) surviving in the Great Depression-era Midwest.

The festival then motors up I-5 from Los Angeles to Oakland with film historian Mark Cunningham (Once Upon a Time in South Central L.A.: John Singleton’s Hood Trilogy) on hand to discuss Singleton’s career after a screening of 1993’s Poetic Justice.

Next, it’s a slow roll from Iowa to Wisconsin for the movie that brought together David Lynch and Disney, the often overlooked The Straight Story. Based on the true story of how 73-year-old Alvin Straight (Richard Farnsworth) drove a sit-on lawnmower over 240 miles to visit his ailing brother, it will be presented by co-writer, editor, and longtime Lynch collaborator Mary Sweeney.

Completing the itinerary, it’s back to California via New Mexico for another Oscar winner with a special 20th anniversary screening of Little Miss Sunshine, with screenwriter Michael Arndt in attendance to discuss the film that kickstarted his career and garnered him his own Academy Award.

The 33rd Austin Film Festival runs Oct. 29-Nov. 5. Tickets, passes, and info at austinfilmfestival.com.

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The Chronicle's first Culture Desk editor, Richard has reported on Austin's growing film production and appreciation scene for over a decade. A graduate of the universities of York, Stirling, and UT-Austin, a Rotten Tomatoes certified critic, and eight-time Best of Austin winner, he's currently at work on two books and a play.