Jacksonville Film Festival 2008

In 1960s Brazil, a construction crew is hard at work building a highway deep in the heart of the desert. A military coup in the capital leaves the men abandoned literally in the middle of nowhere. With a good stock of provisions and frequent visits from the local prostitutes, the men are coping just fine. Soon Juliao, an indigenous Indian, arrives. He teaches them his culture’s worship of the meteorites. The workers come to believe fate has abandoned them in a deeply spiritual place and thus the community of Meteoro is born. In a place of good humor, gentle anarchy and free love, the construction crew no longer wishes to be governed and thoughts of returning home soon fade, until one day, the government reappears bringing dark political motives to the men’s makeshift paradise. “Meteoro,” is a truly charming film featuring an international ensemble cast that will have you leaving the theater with a smile on your face. Southeast Premiere There will be a pre-film cocktail reception one hour before the screening.

A successful New York journalist, Christopher Rockett, 36, is a man who feels everything in his work and nothing in his life. When his estranged father suffers a stroke, he's forced to return to his tiny hometown in Florida, where the events of his dysfunctional past swirl around him. As his charming veneer crumbles, Chris comes to a dramatic realization: If he doesn't learn how to feel, he's destined to relive the empty life of his father, who is dying alone. “The Year of Getting to Know Us,” is a story about what we all fear most: Becoming just like our parents. The film stars Sharon Stone, Jimmy Falon, Lucy Liu, Tom Arnold and lleana Douglas. The annual Film Festival Gala will immediately follow. East Coast Premiere There will be a pre-film cocktail reception one hour before the screening.