Organizers of the 34th Mill Valley Film Festival, an 11-day celebration of independent and international cinema that kicked off last year with the Northern California premiere of eventual Best Picture winner The King's Speech, have unveiled this year's lineup, including festival openers Albert Nobbs and Jeff Who Lives at Home.
Nobbs, about a 19th-century Englishwoman who poses as a man to work as a hotel butler, represents a longtime labor of love for festival honoree Glenn Close, who first played the titular heroine in a 1982 stage production. She spent nearly two decades trying to bring Irish novelist George Moore's story to the big screen, only to see financing vanish and co-stars drop out. At last, Nobbs makes its Bay Area debut on Oct. 6 at the Christopher B. Smith Rafael Film Center.
Also premiering that night at the CinéArts at Sequoia theater will be Jeff Who Lives at Home, the new comedy from "mumblecore" pioneers Mark and Jay Duplass. The brothers, who previously collaborated on last year's Cyrus, return with a lighthearted, often hilarious yarn about a 30-year-old layabout (Jason Segel, of TV's Freaks and Geeks) who unexpectedly discovers his destiny – or, at the very least, thinks he does – during a routine trip to Home Depot.
An opening-night gala, featuring cocktails, appetizers, boutique wines and live music, will follow the screenings at 9 p.m. at the Mill Valley Community Center. Special guests will be announced in the coming weeks. For tickets, showtimes or more information, visit the festival's official site.
