HOLLYWOOD, CA (October 4, 2004) The City of the Angels Film Festival announces that its upcoming 10th anniversary event will examine the theme "Reel Myths" - nine international films that illumine the larger myths and stories that shape our spiritual understanding and the human condition. The festival, sponsored by Fuller Theological Seminary, Family Theater Productions, Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship, Pepperdine University, Water's Edge Communications, and 25 other organizations, is open to the public and will be held Friday - Sunday, Oct. 22-24, 2004, at the Directors Guild of America, 7920 Sunset Blvd. in Los Angeles. For more information, call 626-304-3775 or visit our website at www.cityofangelsfilmfest.org.

At 9:45 p.m. on Saturday, the festival presents the West Coast premiere of Man Dancin', directed by award-winning Norman Stone. Man Dancin' , set in Glasgow, Scotland, is a gritty gangster movie, as well as a modern-day British passion play. Following the premiere, Stone will be on hand to discuss the film.

"There are many levels of allegory that can be picked out in the film. They're there for the spotting but if you don't pick up on them it doesn't detract from what I hope will be received as an enjoyable story," Stone says.

The purpose of the City of the Angels Film Festival is to bring together spiritually charged filmmakers, media-savvy theologians, and passionate movie viewers eager to discuss films that raise ultimate questions. "Our festival is about screening great films that stimulate imagination and alter our thinking," says festival producer Scott Young.

The City of the Angels Film Festival draws participants and audiences from all over the country. In addition to having the opportunity to see these films on the big screen for perhaps the first time, audiences can stay after the films to listen to - and participate in - discussions led by expert panels of filmmakers and members of the religious and academic communities in Southern California.

This year's festival's lineup of movies and special panelists examines the role of myth in film, and how those myths help shape us and the world around us.

"Myth is often associated with stories or ideas that are untrue," Young says. "Our festival is designed and developed to retrieve myth from this negative image and to present 'Reel Myths' as an imaginary view of 'what is' and 'what should be.' The films we're screening in this year's festival intentionally promote myth as one of the ways in which we gain understanding of ourselves, others, and the societies we are constructing."

"Opening night of the festival, which begins at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, features La Belle et la Bete (Beauty and the Beast). Other films featured over the weekend include the influential Japanese filmYojimbo, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Chinatown, Road Warrior, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (extended version), the Wizard of Oz, and the French film Black Orpheus.

Ticket prices per film are $8 for adults and $6 for students. All-festival passes are also available for $60 and $45. Advance tickets and updated information are available at www.cityofangelsfilmfest.org, or call the festival hotline at 626 304-3775.

On Oct. 22, Fuller Theological Seminary's Reel Spirituality presents Music to Our Eyes: Music, Film, and Theology in Dialogue, a one-day conference exploring the power and role of music in the film and storytelling process, also at the Director's Guild. Guests will include: Klaus Badelt, Marq Roswell, Graham Ward and others. For details and reservations visit or call 626-304-3789.