The SPLIFF Film Festival jury was great this year! After three previous cycles of taking submissions and curating lineups, this round just felt more solid, and we can't wait to share it with you. SPLIFF starts streaming on 4/20. Get your tickets here, or watch it in person at The Egyptian on 4/30 with our host, local drag legend Betty Wetter!
But there’s a ton more happening on 4/20 that SPLIFF jury members are excited about, which leads us to the 4/20 screenings and WTF collections at this year’s Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF). Playing on various screens around the city, this array of mind-melting spectacles is rife with otherworldly deliriums and delights. Our editorial team has gone through the collection and highlighted their must-sees. Many of these events will feature ticket giveaways to SPLIFF — winners can choose from the streaming option or in-person at The Egyptian — so get high and get out there!
Japan, 2021, 97 min, Director Masaaki Yuasa
This magnificent and sonorous journey, based on a true story and directed by Japanese animation superstar Masaaki Yuasa (Mind Game, Ride Your Wave), fictionalizes the collaboration between Inu-kong, a 14th-century masked performer, and a blind biwa player. 6:30 pm @ The Egyptian
Hong Kong, 2021, 111 mins, Director Fruit Chan
Auteur Fruit Chan (Made in Hong Kong, Dumplings) sets his satiric sights on the Hong Kong real estate crisis, intertwining three humorous, horrific tales of housing filled with ghosts, gonzo gore, and contract law. 8:30 pm @ SIFF Film Center
United Kingdom, 2021, 83 minutes, Directors Lucy Harvey & Danielle Kummer
An irresistible real-life mix of Waiting for Guffman and H.R. Giger, a crew of bus drivers from Dorset take their amateur dramatic production of Ridley Scott’s 1979 masterpiece Alien all the way to London for a one-night-only West End performance. 6 pm @ Shoreline Community College
USA, 2022, 83 mins, Director Jessica Edwards
Tracing the ascent of women’s skateboarding up from the streets to its 2021 debut in Tokyo as an Olympic sport, this doc focuses on U.S. coach Mimi Knoop and her team as well as skaters from Cambodia and Ghana. 7 pm @ Pacific Place
Denmark, 2022, 97 mins, Director Christian Tafdrup
When a Danish family visits a Dutch family they met on holiday, what starts as an idyllic weekend unravels as the Danes try to understand whether their new friends are eccentric or hiding something more sinister. 9 pm at the Egyptian.
And some of us are headed to non-film pursuits on 4/20:
Cucci Binaca and Cherry Nightclub welcome you to a 420 “drag show” featuring some of the scariest users, brain losers, and edible abusers in “drag." Doors at 7 pm, show at 8.
Doom lovers rejoice — there’s a 4/20 celebration perfect for you happening at Substation. Enjoy a handful of performances throughout the day and into the night. A portion of proceeds go to Seattle Children’s Hospital, too!
