2011 Los Angeles Film Festival lineup unveiled

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Movie lovers who were unable to make the trek to Utah in January for Sundance may feel better once they see what the Los Angeles Film Festival has planned.

A number of films that proved popular in Park City will screen for local audiences at the Los Angeles Times-sponsored festival -- which offers both specialty cinema and fare that is more commercial. From June 16 to 26, more than 200 films, music videos and shorts from over 30 countries will be shown (including 27 world, North American and U.S. premieres). Organizers successfully moved the festival from its longtime home in Westwood to downtown Los Angeles last year, and this year the majority of screenings will again be held at L.A. Live.

Among the films that played at Sundance are Mike Cahill’s upcoming Fox Searchlight release ‘Another Earth’; actress-turned-director Vera Farmiga’s religious drama ‘Higher Ground’; and ‘Page One,’ a documentary about the New York Times. Other Sundance titles are ‘Terri,’ ‘Tyrannosaur’ and ‘The Future.’ Those are just some of the 18 movies that are part of the festival’s Summer Showcase selection. ‘Senna’ and ‘Project Nim,’ two popular documentaries at Sundance, will be shown in other sections of the festival.

The festival, produced by the nonprofit group Film Independent, is still keeping the wraps on the movies that will open and close the festival, as well as details on its gala screenings and special programs -- which last year included eventual Oscar best picture nominee ‘The Kids Are All Right’ and the crowd-pleasing ‘The Twilight Saga: Eclipse.’

A number of the films unveiled so far have a distinct L.A. pedigree, including ‘Crime After Crime,’ which raises questions about Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley’s role in the appeal of a 1982 murder case; ‘Leave It on the Floor,’ an African American musical; ‘L!fe Happens,’ about some Silver Lake roommates; ‘Mamitas,’ a coming-of-age story shot against L.A.’s downtown skyline; and ‘How to Cheat,’ a comedic look at an L.A. couple’s struggle to get pregnant.

But the movies are hardly all California-centric. The Narrative Competition section features entries from countries including Austria, Iran and Canada. The festival also will offer an International Spotlight program focused on four Cuban films.

Meanwhile, some of the more intriguing titles look to come from the documentary competition. One of those movies, ‘Once I Was a Champion,’ centers around the death of Ultimate Fighting Championship star Evan Tanner. Another, ‘Salaam Dunk,’ focuses on a group of young female basketball players in Iraq. And ‘Wish Me Away’ documents country singer Chely Wright’s decision to come out publicly as a lesbian.

General admission tickets to individual films go on sale May 31. Contact the ticket office for passes, tickets and event information by calling (866) 345-6337, or visit LAFilmFest.com. Check out the full lineup below the jump. ...

Narrative Competition (10):

‘The Bad Intentions,’ Rosario Garcia-Montero – Argentina/Germany/Peru – U.S. premiere

‘The Dynamiter,’ Matthew Gordon – North American premiere

‘Familiar Grounds,’Stephane Lefleur – Canada – North Americanpremiere

‘The Fatherless,’ Marie Kreutzer – Austria – North Americanpremiere

‘How to Cheat,’ Amber Sealey – world premiere

‘Mamitas,’ Nicholas Ozeki – worldpremiere

‘An Ordinary Family,’ Mike Akel – world premiere

‘Please Do Not Disturb,’ Mohsen Abdolvahab – Iran – North American premiere

‘Sawdust City,’ David Nordstrom – world premiere

‘You Hurt My Feelings,’ Steve Collins – world premiere

Documentary competition (9):

‘Cheonggyecheon Medley: Dream of Iron,’ Kelvin Kyung Kun Park – South Korea – U.S. premiere

‘Family Instinct,’ Andris Gauja – Latvia – U.S. premiere

‘Once I Was a Champion,’ Gerard Roxburgh – world premiere

‘Paraiso for Sale,’ Anayansi Prado – world premiere

‘Salaam Dunk,’ David Fine – Iraq/USA – world premiere

‘Somewhere Between,’ Linda Goldstein Knowlton – U.S. premiere

‘Unfinished Spaces,’ Alysa Nahimas, Ben Murray - world premiere

‘Unraveled,’ Marc H. Simon – world premiere

‘Wish Me Away,’ Bobbie Birleffi, Beverly Kopf –world premiere

International Showcase (18):

‘108,’ Renate Costa – Spain/Paraguay

‘Christopher and His Kind,’ Geoffrey Sax – United Kingdom – North American premiere

‘Come Rain, Come Shine,’ Lee Yoon-ki – South Korea – North American premiere

‘Curling,’ Denis Côté – Canada

‘The Destiny of Lesser Animals,’ Deron Albright – Ghana/USA

‘Elite Squad 2: The Enemy Within,’ Jose Padilha – Brazil (New Video)

‘Eternity,’ Sivaroj Kongsakul – Thailand

‘Family Portrait in Black and White,’ Julia Ivanova – Canada

‘Kawasaki’s Rose,’ Jan Hrebejk – Czech Republic (Menemsha Films)

‘Love Crime,’ Alain Corneau – France (IFC Films)

‘Medianeras,’ Gustavo Taretto – Argentina/Germany/Spain (IFC Films) -- North American premiere

‘Mysteries of Lisbon,’ Raúl Ruiz – Portugal (Music Box Films)

‘Ocaso,’ Theo Court – Chile -- North American premiere

‘Position Among the Stars,’ Leonard Retel Helmrich – Netherlands

‘The Salesman,’ Sébastien Pilote – Canada

‘Self Made,’ Gillian Wearing – England

‘Senna,’ Asif Kapadia – England (PDA)

‘Tomboy,’ Céline Sciamma – France (Rocket Releasing) -- North American premiere

Summer Showcase (18):

‘Another Earth,’ Mike Cahill (Fox Searchlight)

‘L!fe Happens,’ Kat Coiro -- world premiere

‘Elevate,’ Anne Buford

‘The Future,’ Miranda July (Roadside Attractions)

‘The Guard,’ John Michael McDonagh - Ireland (Sony Pictures Classics)

‘Higher Ground,’ Vera Farmiga (Sony Pictures Classics)

‘Leave It on the Floor,’ Sheldon Larry -- world premiere

‘Letters From the Big Man,’ Christopher Munch

‘Natural Selection,’ Robbie Pickering

‘Page One: A Year Inside the New York Times,’ Andrew Rossi (Magnolia Pictures/Participant Media)

‘The Pruitt-lgoe Myth,’ Chad Freidrichs

‘Renée,’ Eric Drath (ESPN Films)

‘Sex Crimes Unit,’ Lisa F. Jackson (HBO Films)

‘Skateistan: Four Wheels and a Board in Kabul,’ Kai Sehr

‘Terri,’ Azazel Jacobs (ATO)

‘Tyrannosaur,’ Paddy Considine -- England (Strand Releasing)

‘Where Soldiers Come From,’ Heather Courtney

‘Winnie the Pooh,’ Stephen J. Anderson, Don Hall (Disney)

Outdoor screenings at the Ford Amphitheatre (3):

‘Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of a Tribe Called Quest,’ Michael Rapaport

‘Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame,’ Tsui Hark – Hong Kong

The Seduction of Ingmar Bergman,’ Ron & Russell Mael, aka Sparks, with Guy Maddin -World musical premiere’

International Spotlight -- Cuba (4):

‘Habana Eva,’ Fina Torres -- Cuba/France/Venezuela

‘Operation Peter Pan: Flying Back to Cuba,’ Estela Bravo -- Cuba

‘Suite Habana’ (2003), Fernando Pérez -- Cuba

‘Ticket to Paradise,’ Gerardo Chijona Valdes -- Cuba

Documenting Mexico (2):

‘The Night Watchman,’ Natalia Almada -- Mexico

‘The Tiniest Place,’ Tatiana Huezo -- Mexico

Community Screenings (8):

‘The Bully Project,’ Lee Hirsch (The Weinstein Co.)

Choose Your Own Movie -- vote at LAFilmFest.com for this free outdoor screening

‘Crime After Crime,’ Yoav Potash – Grand Performances Screening

‘Ferris Bueller’s Day Off’ (1986), John Hughes -- 25th anniversary screening

‘Hot Coffee,’ Susan Saladoff (HBO Films)

‘On the Ice,’ Andrew Okpeaha MacLean -- Project:Involve Screening

‘Project Nim,’ James Marsh -- United Kingdom (Roadside Attractions)

‘Stand by Me’ (1986), Rob Reiner -- 25th anniversary screening

The Beyond (5):

‘Entrance,’ Dallas Hallam, Patrick Horvath

‘Haunters,’ Kim Min-suk –- South Korea -– North American premiere

‘The Innkeepers,’ Ti West

‘Karate Robo Zarborger,’ Iguchi Noboru -- Japan -- North American premiere

‘The Yellow Sea,’ Na Hong-jin -- South Korea

Retro (2):

‘Boyz n the Hood’ (1991), John Singleton -– 20th anniversary digitally remastered screening with a cast and crew reunion

‘Das Boot’ (1981), Wolfgang Peterson -– Germany -– 30th anniversary digitally remastered screening

The Film Foundation Screening Program (1):

‘Wild River’ (1960), Elia Kazan

Short Films (41):

Shorts Program 1-5

Future Filmmakers Showcase: High School Shorts (33):

Programs 1-2

Music Videos (48):

‘Eclectic Mix 1-2’

‘In Lust: The Music Videos of Eric Wareheim’

-- Amy Kaufman

twitter.com/AmyKinLA

Photos, from top: Krysten Ritter, left, Rachel Bilson and Kate Bosworth in ‘L!fe Happens.’ A scene from ‘Leave It on the Floor.’ Credit: Los Angeles Film Festival