Film buffs are faced with a theater of riches in upcoming days â€" and no, we’re not talking about the release of the new “Bee Movie.”

With activism on the brain, the 24th year of the Olympia Film Festival begins tonight with its usual combination of feature films, shorts, videos, special theme nights and live musical performances, presented by the Olympia Film Society.

More than 20 filmmakers will be in attendance to present their work. OK, that’s huge. But the Olympia Film Festival is not about size or world premieres.  It’s about discovery: documentaries, low-budget independent finds, local works, on-the-spot filmmaking and panel discussions.  It’s about hanging out in an artsy cool town, dodging people in black, watching innovation in a classic movie house then escorting your deep thoughts to the back bar of King Solomon’s Reef and letting them fly among the eccentrics.   

Scared?

If this were high school, you know what you’d do. You’d reach for the booklet with that telltale bumblebee pattern and cram madly. What you need are Cliff’s Notes for the Olympia Film Festival.

Better yet, the World Wide Web.  Check it here for the complete schedule.

Tonight
Opening Night at the Olympia Film Festival is always a blast. Fire dancers, party favors, wackiness, beer garden and a quality film are just a few items to expect tonight.

Tonight's film is the highly-acclaimed "Outsourced."  Check out the review that ran in the Weekly Volcano. â€" Suzy Stump

Dungeons & Dragons entered our universe just as Bobble Tiki was heading to college, and it would go on without him. And go on it did. More than Four million people play every month, in paper and electronic forms.

Saturday, Nov. 3 is Worldwide Dungeons & Dragons Game Day.  Bobble Tiki has no idea what that means.

The game is a myriad of rules and regs and characters that would befuddle Bobble Tiki should he try to learn them. Tacoma’s Comic Book Ink understands it all.

John Munn’s Comic Book Ink celebrates Game Day tomorrow in the follow fashion:

• They have a Treasure Chest of Goodies: Pre-rolled Characters, Character Sheets, Dice and a Pencil.  All prepared for a special adventure set in Icewind Dale; a location in the popular Forgotten Realms world. Bobble Tiki has no idea what that means.
• They have enough Treasure Chests for 25 players, so get your butt over there early.
• Character Parties will begin to be assembled when the store opens at 10 a.m. with adventuring expected to begin at 11 a.m.
• There will also be limited numbers of a special giveaway miniature from the latest Desert of Desolation D&D Miniatures set. 

“Pachamama and the Moon” by Blanda Santander

Next up at The Gallery at Tacoma Community College will be the Latino Art Exhibition, now to Feb. 1, featuring a number of hot Latino artists including the likes of Juan Alonzo and Alfredo Arreguin â€" Latinos living the Pacific Northwest who have become fixtures on the regional art scene.

I first met Alonzo way back in 1988 when he ran his own gallery in Seattle, the Alonzo-Sullivan Gallery. Since then he has gone on to establish a reputation as a leading West Coast artists with gallery representation in L.A. and has recently been included in exhibitions at Tacoma Art Museum, including the latest Neddy Awards show.

“I have found that more than anything, humanity is the driving force in my work,” Alonzo says. “The fact that I was born in Cuba, the quick loss of innocence I experienced as a young person in a foreign place, learning a new language, and growing up without my immediate family will always effect my work. …I am influenced by balance, perceived symmetry, alter-egos, architecture, growth and decay, weathered beauty, and sexuality.”

Alfredo Arreguin, currently represented by the Linda Hodges Gallery in Seattle, is known as a leading figure in the pattern and decoration movement. His paintings tend toward the fantastical and are somewhat contrived, but have a brilliantly sparkling surface and are rich in complexity of pattern and peek-a-boo forms.

Also included in the show are Marcio Diaz, Juan Gimelli Hemme, Maria Juanita Guzman, Amaranta Ibarra-Sandys, Hugo Ludeña, Rick Mahaffey, Maria Olga Meneses, Lesley Rialto, Antonio Rojas, Blanca Santander, Daniel De Siga, Juan Le Torre and Carmen Williams.

I was able to preview only a handful of works, and those only in reproduction, but if the pieces I saw are indicative of the whole show, you can expect it to be as colorful and festive as a mariachi band â€" I suspect we can also see works that are darker and less festive as well as tender and loving, because Latino artists are as varied as any others.

"TCC's Latino art exhibition in 2005 was such a success that The Gallery has decided to organize another exhibition of Latino artists of the Northwest," said Jennifer Olson-Rudenko, gallery coordinator.

An opening reception is slated for Nov. 1 to honor artists and celebrate Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead); a three-day holiday dedicated to loved ones who have died. Artists, community members and students are invited to build altars in TCC's art department for the reception.

The Gallery at TCC is located on Tacoma Community College's Tacoma Campus at 6501 S. 19th St., in Tacoma. â€" Alec Clayton

SPOKEN WORD
Tacoma Word!
What’s in a word, a story, a song? Language can either be a barrier or a bridge.

It can also be the avenue that connects people. Freighthouse Square hosts the Tacoma Area Literary Enthusiasts’ first annual celebration, Tacoma Word! today.

Arrive at Freighthouse Square at 10 a.m. and get set for a full day of emersion into poetry readings, writer workshops by Terri Dunevant (Write Your Book Now!) and others, more than 20 local literary participants, small press, literary journals and an open mic.

Our own Alec Clayton will be there, too.  â€" Jennifer Johnson

[Phoenix Hall at Freighthouse Square, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., free, 430 E. 25th St., Tacoma, 253.305.0678]

STAGE
“The Wonder Bread Years”
Pat Hazell talks baby-boomer Americana that recalls the genuinely funny observations of our collective youth: sugar-highs, milk money, the kid’s table, pop rocks, and those long distance trips in the wayback of the Country Squire Wagon in his one-man show. â€" Suzy Stump

[Theatre on the Square, 3 and 7:30 p.m., $34, 915 Broadway, Tacoma, 253.591.5894]

MORE STAGE: On local stages today.

ROLLER DERBY
Dockyard Derby Dames
There will be no World Series game, but that doesn’t mean you have to forgo an evening of fierce, hard-hitting competition. Lace up your skates and sharpen your elbows, because the Dockyard Derby Dames’ flat track roller derby Championship Bout consumes the Tacoma Soccer Center tonight. Come see The Trampires take on the Hellbound Homewreckers in the championship match-up! See the Femme Fiannas battle the Marauding Mollys in a grudge match! Check out the halftime show! Get drunk at the after party! See more exclamation points! â€" Suzy Stump

[Tacoma Soccer Center, 7 p.m., shuttle from the Freighthouse Square, 2610 Bay St. E., Tacoma]

DANCE
Breakin’ for Beverly
This weekend South Sound hip-hop will rear several of its heads to boost Crime Stoppers’ reward for information about what investigators are referring to as a “suspicious” fire and the death of 20-year-old University Place resident Beverly Ann Steward-Hill â€" a dear friend of the local hip-hop community.

Tonight’s b-boy battle/art show Breakin’ for Beverly will donate all proceeds to boost the reward even higher. So show up.

The b-boy battle will pit five against five on the floors of Temple Theater’s Grand Ballroom. DJs Reign and Save1 will spin while judges whittle crews down to eight finalists who will battle for cash in quarter, semi and final rounds. Meanwhile, local graf writers and others will offer wares. â€" Paul Schrag

[Temple Theater Grand Ballroom, Saturday, Nov. 3, doors at 5 p.m., battle begins at 6:30 p.m., $5, bring more if you have a soul, 47 St. Helens Ave., Tacoma, 253.272.2042]

MUSIC
Wide Eye Panic
Wide Eye Panic, from Lacey, are a coalition of metal loving dudes set on playing as loud and fast as possible, quite possibly burning something down along the way. They released their first full length album, Distorted View, in late summer ’05. They’re everything that Widespread Panic isn’t.

Wide Eye Panic will play Hell’s Kitchen tonight along with Weight of the World, Negative 7, Mom’s Rocket, and Esitu. The show, along with being one of the weekend’s best bets, will be the official after-party for the Dockyard Derby Dames Championship Bout. â€" Matt Driscoll

[Hell’s Kitchen, Saturday, Nov. 3, 8 p.m., $5, 3829 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, 253.759.6003]

MORE MUSIC: In the clubs tonight.

THE DAILY WORD
Learn it, use it, spell it

Woolgathering \WOOL-gath-(uh)-ring\, noun:


Indulgence in idle daydreaming.


USAGE EXAMPLE: In the courtroom, as the guilty verdict was about to be read, Vincent Margera, better known as Don Vito on "Viva La Bam," was busy woolgathering about teenage breasts and buttocks. Once the verdict was announced, however, he quickly came to his senses, proclaiming “Just kill me now.”

THE MORNING NEWS

TACOMA: Many months for Mall shooter.

PAKISTAN: State of emergency?

LOS ANGELES: ICE, ICE maybe.

TOKYO: Love hotels!

HUSTLER OF CULTURE
You can stand atop the mountain and scream your naked desires to the universe or shed that synapse epilepsy and hug the South Sound today with your fellow man:

MUSIC: Tonight, Mismatch, Sammy Barrett, and Courson will be playing Club Vertigo, “Tacoma’s newest hot spot,” according to some. Of course, the people Bobble Tiki has heard say that have been promoting shows at the new venue, but Bobble Tiki figures that’s neither here nor there. Club Vertigo is located at 5240 South Tacoma Way. You may remember it as 54, but Bobble Tiki assures you â€" things are different now. Check it out.

MORE MUSIC: What's on tonight.

VISUAL ARTS: This is an excellent show.

FILM: Olympia Film Festival is on.

BOBBLE TIKI’S THREATS AND PROMISES COLUMN
Sunday, Nov. 4, the Weekly Volcano will sponsor the South Sound Blues Association’s Back to Beale Street 2008 fund-raiser featuring the Red Hot Blues Sisters, Lady A, Randy Oxford, Becki Sue and Her Big Rockin’ Daddies, Kim Archer Band, and Beth McBride. The event will raise money to help the South Sound Blues Association send the Red Hot Blues Sisters â€" who, as you may recall, won the Back to Beale Street competition at this year’s Freedom Fair â€" to Memphis, Tenn., where they’ll compete in the “International Blues Challenge.” Aside from being for a good cause, this Sunday’s show at Jazzbones will bring together a formidable collection of blues musicians, all of whom will no doubt bring the house down. Check the full story here.

Please be Bobble Tiki’s friend here.

Breakfast with Bobble Tiki runs Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.  Deal with it.

“Raiders of the Lost Ark: Adaptation”
Finally, a remake of “Raiders of the Lost Ark” created by bible-belt tweens. Yes, you read that right. “Raiders of the Lost Ark: Adaptation” will screen twice today at the Olympia Film Festival.

The local screening will highlight the culmination of seven years worth of work that began in Mississippi 25 years ago. These kids (now grownups) saved their allowances, stocked their Christmas lists with filmmaking supplies, hustled set materials and props, made their own costumes and generally kicked ass during the course of seven years. The result is a plain awesome reproduction of Steven Speilberg’s legendary tale of treasure hunter and archaeologist Indiana Jones’ quest to find the Ark of the Covenant.

I can’t wait to see how they reproduced the scene where an angry Jehovah incinerates the Nazis.  It screens today at noon and 9:30 p.m. at the Capitol Theater. â€" Paul Schrag

Olympia Film Festival: Check these flicks out, too.

[24th Annual Olympia Film Festival, through Nov. 10, $6-$75, Capitol Theater, Mariah Art School and Le Voyeur, Olympia, 360.754.6670]

Cans
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Chopstix
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Club Impact
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Hell's Kitchen
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Emerald Queen Casino
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Jazzbones
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The Loft
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Maggie O'Toole's
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Magoo's Annex
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Masa Comida Mexicana
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Puget Sound Pizza
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The Spar
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Tempest Lounge
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Thunderbird Lounge
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ADVERTISE WITH US HERE.

In the near future a cultural explosion of art, fashion and music will land in a secret Tacoma launchpad.  For more information, travel here. â€" Suzy Stump

Say AMOCAT! â€" Suzy Stump

OPERA
“Orpheus in the Underworld”
The two-hour performance is an operetta, the musical format with dialog and musical pieces intertwining made most familiar by Gilbert & Sullivan in English some years later,
The Tacoma Opera version of “Orpheus in the Underworld” will be performed in English, which adds to the two-hour length, and the music/dialog/music format of the piece makes it accessible in ways that tragic six-hour operas by composers like Wagner are not.

Add to that, the show contains a notable melody with a notable dance, “The Infernal Galop”, known to most as the can-can dance. â€" Jessica Corey-Butler

[Rialto Theater, Friday, Nov. 2 8 p.m., Sunday, Nov. 4 2 p.m., $25-$60, 310 S. Ninth St., Tacoma, 253.627.7789, www.tacomaopera.com]

MORE THEATER: On local stages today.

ART AT WORK MONTH: Download the brochure for today's events.

SINGER/SONGWRITER
Moozeeke Ultraminifest
This year Mocha Moo has featured 42 local artists on its music stage and hundreds at its weekly open mic night. As a way of thanking these artists for sharing their talent, and as a way of supporting local children during the holidays, Mocha Moo owners Jay and Gwen Inokuchi will host the biggest little benefit concert of the year today.

The festival opens to the public at 2 p.m. and ends at 7 p.m. It will host more than 25 musical acts.  All proceeds go to Fort Lewis’ 4th Striker Brigade Rear Detachment to fund a holiday event for dependent children called Winterfest.

Every hour there will be raffle drawings with various prizes including four iPod Nano’s. â€" Angela Jossy

[Mocha Moo, 2-7 p.m., $10-$12, 3810 Steilacoom Blvd., Lakewood, 253.584.1565]

BLUES
Back To Beale Street
Tonight the Weekly Volcano will sponsor the South Sound Blues Association’s Back to Beale Street 2008 fund-raiser featuring the Red Hot Blues Sisters, Lady A, Randy Oxford, Becki Sue and Her Big Rockin’ Daddies, Kim Archer Band, and Beth McBride. The event will raise money to help the South Sound Blues Association send the Red Hot Blues Sisters â€" who, as you may recall, won the Back to Beale Street competition at this year’s Freedom Fair â€" to Memphis, Tenn., where they’ll compete in the “International Blues Challenge.” Aside from being for a good cause, tonight’s show at Jazzbones will bring together a formidable collection of blues musicians, all of whom will no doubt bring the house down. â€" Bobble Tiki

[Jazzbones, Sunday, Nov. 4, 5-11 p.m., $5-$10, 2803 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, 253.396.9169]

MORE MUSIC: In the clubs tonight.