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An exciting announcement for The 2010 Los Angeles Film Festival came out yesterday that will be of great use to those attending or following the festival. Film Independent, the non-profit arts organization that produces the Spirit Awards, the Los Angeles Film Festival, and year-round artist development programs and exhibition events, has announced along with mobile software company MacroView Labs, the launch of the official 2010 Los Angeles Film Festival smart phone apps. They said "these free, location-aware apps will give users real-time updates about hundreds of films, filmmakers, news items and events happening in L.A." Festival Director Rebecca Yeldham said through the press release that “The Los Angeles Film Festival app is an entertaining and simple way to engage our audiences, encourage an online dialogue, and enhance their festival-going experience.” She added that “it’s also the perfect method for helping attendees navigate our new Festival footprint downtown.” The fest will take place in downtown LA centered around the L.A. Live complex. Aron Ezra, CEO of MacroView Labs said “this is an exciting step forward for event and entertainment industry apps." He adds that “unlike a simple information guide, this allows attendees to have a live, two-way dialogue with the Festival and the surrounding city. People can actually interact with Festival staff and local businesses via the app as they enjoy the films. Attendees get a virtual concierge to show them around, give them inside tips, and respond to their requests.” This sounds like a must have if you are going to The LAFF and have a smart phone.

According to the press release, features in the application include innovative sorting & in-app search, so you can find movies by title, director, genre, venue, section, or country with full summaries and key credits. For additional assistance in finding what you are looking for, you can use the integrated search bar to find films, places, events, or people at the Festival. There is the daily show schedule which displays Festival Films, music in the ZonePerfect live.create. lounge, and events. As they said: "Handy. Cool. Pretty self-explanatory." You can also order tickets & passes by a touch to call the Coca-Cola Ticket Center and place your ticket order. My L.A. Film Festival allows you to bookmark any film, event, map, or just about anything else for later viewing in your custom favorites folder. Of course, you have easy, quick access to trailers from the films and you can use the Twitter, Facebook & Tell-A-Friend Integration system, allowing you to check out the fest's live Twitter & Facebook content right from the app, or send any page in the app to a friend.

To help in getting around, there are interactive maps so you can find your exact location and get directions to any key area of the festival. You will be able to view satellite maps, road maps, or a hybrid of both. They said you can even drop a pin to bookmark any location you choose so that you can remember where you parked or how to get to your favorite theater, with almost every key Festival location mapped for easy navigation. You will also have easy access to countless downtown destinations affiliated with the Festival. For the bargain hunters, you can find big discounts thanks to the generosity of LAFF sponsors and partners. You'll find discounts on everything from parking to rental cars to airline travel to hotel stays to bars & restaurants across the city. And since you are going to save, maybe you can give back something to this great event, by volunteering, donating, or rating content within the app to let the LAFF know what you think.

There is also a staff directory if you need to locate key Festival staff with a pressing question, now they are just a button away. Seems like a must have for anyone working in the press, a visiting filmmaker, or anyone having involvement working on the Festival. Another cool part is real-time weather and traffic updates viewable through the "Get There" section, where you can check current conditions. There is of course V.I.P content for filmmakers, press, and other groups can unlock private, passcode- protected content only accessible to them.

Here is some of the technical information about the app and how to get it. The native iPhone application is available now for download in the Apple iTunes Store at  http://itunes.com/apps/losangelesfilmfestival2010. The mobile web app can be accessed from Android phones, recent Blackberry phones and many other modern Internet-capable smart phones at http://app.lafilmfest.com.

This is a lot of great stuff from this new app. For more information, tickets, updates, you can always head to the website for LAFF linked below. The festivities and films are about to begin, anticipation is being felt by so many, it is time to get it going and it looks like it will be a memorable and inspiring event. Look for much more as The 2010 Los Angeles Film Festival approaches, with a bunch of interviews lining up with filmmakers, reviews, and more. For continuing coverage of The 2010 LAFF and other film festivals in the future, you can receive these articles directly as they are published by clicking on the “Subscribe” button at the top of this piece. You can also follow me on Twitter by searching for ericshlapack or by clicking the link below.

For more info: 
The 2010 Los Angeles Film Festival
Film Independent
Los Angeles Times
Membership information for Film Independent
Smart phone apps info on LAFF website
My coverage of The LAFF
Follow me on Twitter