For the second consecutive year, MovieMaker Magazine named Cucalorus among its Top 25 Coolest Film Festivals in the World, according to a news release from the festival.
The distinction came atop numbers released by Cucalorus that showed the festival continues to grow in size and financial success.
Cucalorus screened a record 241 films and attracted a “record cumulated attendance of 15,743,” an increase of 7 percent from last year, festival officials stated in the release. The festival also generated $67,513 in box office sales, an increase of 10 percent from last year, the release added.
For the first time, MovieMaker's “coolest” list was compiled by a panel of seven judges very familiar with the film festival circuit who "know what it takes to be cool,” Cucalorus officials said they learned from MovieMaker.
Commenting about the 2014 list, MovieMaker’s online story stated, “Uniformly excellent cinema is one thing the 25 festivals have in common, as well as genuinely thoughtful, inspiring panels and moviemaker education events.”
Other marks of coolness, according to the story, were evidence of a festival’s “willingness to experiment with outside-the-box programming, integrating cinema not only with alternative spaces but with other media, both traditional and cutting-edge.”
The story included several judges’ comments about Cucalorus.
“It flies in even shorts filmmakers, hosts an artist residency program, shows works in progress, and offers programs with a focus on magical realism and unusual art,” said one.
Others noted Cucalorus’ dance component, praising the festival for offering “a unique dance/film collaboration called Dance-a-lorus, with master classes in dance.”
Another judge said that the spirit of David Lynch resonates throughout the festival.
“I’ve toured shooting locations from Blue Velvet, visited Dennis Hopper’s old loft, and had many a PBR at the Barbary Coast Bar,” the release quoted the judge as saying. “I also had lunch on a battleship. No, that’s not Lynch-related, but it’s damn cool.”
"Cucalorus 20 was all about the audience,” executive director Dan Brawley said in the release. “We had great crowds throughout the festival and a growing group of saintly creatures who remain connected to Cucalorus even after the festival ends. I'm honored to be part of a transformative experience like Cucalorus - where creativity takes center stage, filmmakers and artists get to shine, and the daily grind gets pushed aside."