By: Aaron

Newport Beach, CA – The Newport Beach Film Festival (NBFF) will celebrate its 10th anniversary with two outstanding feature films. The Festival will kick off its eight-day run with the Opening Night screening of Screen Media Film’s Lymelife on April 23, 2009 at 7:00pm at Edwards Big Newport (300 Newport Center Drive) and close with the West Coast premiere of Fox Searchlight’s (500) Days of Summer on April 30, 2009 at 8:00pm at Regency Lido Theater (3459 Via Lido).

Co-written by brothers Derick and Steven Martini and directed by Derick Martini, Lymelife is a bright story about the dark side of suburban paradise. From executive producers Martin Scorsese and Leonard Loventhal, Lymelife stars Alec Baldwin, Kieran Culkin, Rory Culkin, Jill Hennessy, Timothy Hutton, Cynthia Nixon and Emma Roberts.

Lymelife, centers on two deeply troubled, dysfunctional families during the late 1970s. The film revolves around an awkward, sensitive 15-year old boy, Scott Bartlett (Rory Culkin), whose family life is turned upside-down after an outbreak of Lyme disease hits the community spreading illness and paranoia.

Marc Webb, makes his feature film directorial debut in (500) Days of Summer, written by Scott Neustadter and Michael Weber. This is a story of boy meets girl, begins the wry, probing narrator of (500) Days of Summer, and with that the film takes off at breakneck speed into a funny, true-to-life and unique dissection of the unruly and unpredictable year-and-a-half of one young man’s no-holds-barred love affair. Tom (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), the boy, still believes, even in this cynical modern world, in the notion of a transforming, cosmically destined, lightning-strikes-once kind of love. Summer (Zooey Deschanel), the girl, doesn’t. Not at all. But that doesn’t stop Tom from going after her, again and again, like a modern Don Quixote, with all his might and courage. Suddenly, Tom is in love not just with a lovely, witty, intelligent woman – not that he minds any of that -- but with the very idea of Summer, the very idea of a love that still has the power to shock the heart and stop the world.

“The Festival is honored to celebrate its 10th Anniversary with two impressive feature films book-ending a week of truly independent cinema and special events. The amazing support from the community since its inception has been remarkable,” stated Gregg Schwenk, Executive Director/CEO of NBFF. 

Following the red carpet screening of Lymelife, the Festival will host an Opening Night Gala at the Bloomingdale’s Courtyard in Fashion Island (401 Newport Center Drive), with over 20 Newport Beach area restaurants, a fashion show presented by Bloomingdale’s and Fashion Island and a special performance by Cirque du Soleil’s Zumanity. The Closing Night celebration will take place at the Via Lido Plaza Courtyard (3459 Via Lido Drive) following West Coast premiere screening of (500) Days of Summer with over a dozen restaurants, live entertainment and other festivities.

The Festival will showcase more than 400 films from over 30 countries, along with nightly special events, red carpet galas, post screening receptions, compelling conversations with filmmakers, international spotlights, industry seminars and retrospectives. The Festival offers filmgoers unique opportunities to mingle with Hollywood celebrities, filmmakers from around the globe and film industry professionals in a beautiful seaside locale.

The Festival is sponsored in part by Absolut Vodka, Cox Communications, Leigh Steinberg Sports & Entertainment, Fashion Island, The Orange County Register, Esquire Magazine, Regal Entertainment Group, Time Warner Cable and the City of Newport Beach. Tickets for screenings and galas will go on sale April 1. To purchase tickets and for more information about the Newport Beach Film Festival, visit www.NewportBeachFilmFest.com

About The Newport Beach Film Festival
Launched in 1999, the Newport Beach Film Festival is celebrated as one of the leading lifestyle film festivals in the United States. Annually presenting over 350 films from over 35 countries, the Festival has featured many acclaimed motion pictures, including the U.S. premiere of the 2006 Academy Award® Best Picture winner Crash, and the west coast premieres of The Illusionist, Waitress, Captain Abu Raed, Son of Rambow, Mad Hot Ballroom, Layer Cake, Riding Giants, Spellbound, and Dogtown and Z-Boys.

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For more information about Lymelife visit www.screenmediafilms.net/lymelife/
For more information about (500) Days of Summer visit: www.foxsearchlight.com/500daysofsummer/