The 11th Annual East Lansing Film Festival gets underway tonight with a screening of “War/Dance,” an Oscar-nominated documentary about three children in war-torn Uganda. The critically acclaimed film was one of a handful ELFF executive director (and City Pulse movie critic) Susan Woods specifically sought out for this year’s fest. And although she got her other top picks too (“Paprika,” “Lars and the Real Girl,” “Jellyfish”), she says the most exciting thing is the number of great films she had never heard of before they were sent in for consideration. Woods says the quality of these unsolicited “cold submissions” has dramatically improved, which she sees as a sign that the festival is catching on beyond mid-Michigan.

“They recognize the East Lansing Film Festival is a world-class event that has good audiences, good projection and is a good place for their film to be shown,” Woods says.

This year’s submitted features include “Monster Camp,” “Darius Goes West, “Out Late,” “On Broadway,” “Les Paul: Chasing Sound” and “Blood Car.”

In addition to showing more submitted films, the festival is also introducing family films and a special “midnight madness” showing. As usual, the festival also includes many issue-oriented films, covering the spectrum from mental health to predatory lending.

“This film fest strikes me as being the most whole or complete that we’ve ever had,” Woods said. “All of [the films] complement each other and provide a complete event.”

And from documentaries to fantasies, features to shorts and national to regional productions, our reviewers critiqued every festival entry we could get our hands on to offer you the most complete guide to the fest possible over these eight pages, complete with a full schedule of events.

So enough with the previews, it’s time for the feature presentation.

The East Lansing Film Festival kicks off today and the following article looks at the indie film genre including Michigan’s own Bruce Campbell who will be screening his new film “My Name is Bruce”.

Back in 1981, some Michigan State University students and their friends brought fresh vigor to low-budget filmmaking.

Plunging into a Tennessee woods, they had corn syrup, red dye, camera concoctions and imagination. They emerged with “Evil Dead” and fame.

As the 11th annual East Lansing Film Festival opens tonight, that reflects one route for independent filmmakers.

Campbell was at the core, when the indie-movie idea hit East Lansing. He starred in “Evil Dead” and its sequels, directed by his friend Sam Raimi.

Raimi went on to make movies that have totaled billions at the box office. And Campbell? “I kind of have two different identities,” he said. He’s:

• A Hollywood actor, going from “X-Files” to “Burn Notice” to Raimi’s
“Spider-Man” films.

• King of the B-movies. That brings him to town Thursday.

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Everything from Oscar nominees to award-winning documentaries highlight the schedule for the 11th annual East Lansing Film Festival, which begins Wednesday, March 12.

The event, billed as “the largest and most diverse film festival in Michigan,” continues through Thursday, March 20.