Oscar co-host, Best Actor nominee James Franco comes to BIFF!

James is on the right. Say, was that a Best Actor nomination or a Beast Actor nomination? Bear with us.

The 7^th Annual Boulder International Film Festival (BIFF) is drumming up excitement with today’s announcement that Golden Globe-winning actor James Franco will make a special appearance in the festival’s Saturday night line-up for “A Conversation with James Franco.”

One week before he co-hosts the Academy Awards with actress Anne Hathaway and vies for his own Best Actor Oscar win for his portrayal of Aron Ralston in “127 Hours,” Franco will attend a screening of his short film "The Clerk’s Tale" and receive BIFF’s Vanguard Award on Saturday evening, Feb. 19, at the Boulder Theater.

“We are delighted that James Franco is bringing his film to our festival this year,” said Kathy Beeck, BIFF co-founder and director. “James is a man of many talents, and we’re very excited to speak with him about his work and his future endeavors in the film industry.”

Franco has written and directed a number of notable films. His most recent, “The Clerk’s Tale,” premiered at Cannes in May, and will be screened during the evening’s event. The program will also include a retrospective of Franco’s work, an interview with BIFF Executive Producer of Special Events Ron Bostwick and an audience question and answer session.

Franco’s performance in the TNT biopic “James Dean” earned him career-making reviews, as well as a Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Motion Picture made for Television and nominations for an Emmy and Screen Actors Guild Award. His performance in “Milk” earned an Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Actor and he was nominated for a Golden Globe for his role in the comedy “Pineapple Express.” He is known for his starring role as Harry Osbourne in the “Spider-Man” trilogy and also recently starred in “Eat, Pray, Love” and “Date Night.”

Oscar-winning producer, director and screenwriter Oliver Stone is also scheduled to make an appearance on the closing night of the festival, Feb. 20, when he will be honored with a Master of Cinema Award.

The four-day festival, sponsored at the platinum level by 97.3 KBCO and Comcast Spotlight, will feature “A Conversation with James Franco” on Saturday, Feb. 19, 7:30 p.m. at the Boulder Theater, at 2032 14th St. Tickets for the event are $30 and are on sale now at www.biff1.com. Proceeds benefit the non-profit, year-round activities of the Colorado Film Society/BIFF.

All-access VIP passes can be purchased for $345. All tickets for BIFF films go on sale Jan. 28, and can be purchased at www.biff1.com, or by calling (303) 786-7070. For more information, please visit www.biff1.com.

Sponsor (and Partner) Love

Let's face it. We couldn't do it alone.

Just as you need your big bag of hot buttered popcorn, drink and box of Jujubes in order to enjoy your favorite film, so we need the help of nearly countless folks to make our big, exciting festival happen every year.

As much as inspiration, hard work and the help of thousands of volunteers have shaped the Boulder International Film Festival, we would be in quite a state indeed if not for our sponsors and partners.

Look around -- almost all of the artistic and cultural festivals in America are supported by the kindness and capital of sponsors and partners. Non-profit organizations must rely on the wisdom of businesses which realize how important these events are for the feeding of the mental, emotional and spiritual needs of the community.

Time and time again, our sponsors and partners have come through for us. Besides financial contributions, they give us resources, time, effort, equipment, goodwill, networking and publicity. They pitch in and help out. They engage; they sit in the theater with us -- and help us pick up the empty popcorn boxes afterward. In a very real sense, they are our friends.

That's why we're proud to let you know who are and how much they care. You'll find a new sidebar here on our blog, listing them alphabetically and providing links to their websites. We encourage you to patronize them -- or at least give them a high-five if you run across them on the street. We can't thank them enough!