OROVILLE – The first annual Tumble Weed Film festival tumbles into Oroville this weekend, with showings of short films from around the world on Aug. 6 and 7.

The festival is being brought to town by two Seattle filmmakers – Geoff Klein and Mo Fine. The two specialize in short features and they’ve dubbed the event “The Film Festival for Filmmakers by Filmmakers.” However, Klein says you don’t have to be a filmmaker to appreciate the short films they’ve lined up which are anywhere from three minutes to 30 minutes long. The movies will be shown at two different venues this weekend.

Since they want to combine their festival with both the local wines and the local beer, the venues they have chosen reflect this. On Friday, Aug. 6 the movies will be shown at Esther Briques Winery, located about a 10 minutes drive south of Oroville on Swanson Mill Road. The doors open at 6 p.m. with showings beginning at 7 p.m. with wine tastings available during intermissions. On Saturday, the venue is the Alpine Brewery located on Ironwood Street in Oroville with the doors opening at 6 p.m. and the films beginning at 7 p.m. Although they plan multiple showings, seating is limited at both events so it is on a first come, first serve basis. In addition to Alpine’s award-winning beer, the four local wineries – Esther Bricques, Copper Mountain, Lake Crest and Okanogan Estate and Vineyards have been invited to pour at the brewery on movie night.

And, as part of their “Watch Globally, Drink Locally” motto, the film festival has arranged to have a special wine tasting by Copper Mountain Winery from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, prior to the film event at Alpine. The wine tasting will be at Taber’s Taste of Summer Fruit Barn just north of Oroville on the west side of Highway 97. 

When asked why they chose Oroville, Klein said, “We’ve been coming out to Oroville for the last 12 years or so and we really love the area. We feel Oroville and the area are a perfect match for showing films from around the world and to sample locally produced beers and wine.”

He made his first short film “Sleepwalker” in 1998 and since has directed and produced “Baxter’s Big Day”, The Bruja” and most recently “The Furry,” which he premiered earlier this year. Fine a Seattle-area video editor with her own multi-media company often collaborates with Klein and released her short film “Prizes” just last year. 

Tickets for the Tumble Weed Film Festival are $5 at the door and the event is open to anyone who wants to come watch, but because of the availability of beer and wine they are limited to those 21 and over. More information on the film festival and scheduled show times is available at www.tumbleweedfilmfest.com.