Tacoma film festival

This year's Tacoma Film Festival opened with a documentary about Rock & Roll Hall of Famers The Ventures, an instrumental band from Tacoma that blew up in the 1960s. The film won't officially premiere until next year, but the filmmakers wanted to give the community a first look at the Tacoma-rooted story.

The Tacoma Film Festival kicked off in downtown Tacoma Thursday. The festival will show 17 feature films and more than 150 short films by filmmakers from all over the world, including dozens from across the Pacific Northwest.

Many of the region’s annual film festivals are going virtual this year, as the pandemic continues. That includes next year’s Seattle International Film…