Rian Johnson's The Brothers Bloom will open the AFI Dallas International Film Festival on March 26.

The Hurt Locker director Kathryn Bigelow and The Brothers Bloom star
Adrien Brody will join the previously announced Chinatown screenwriter
Robert Towne as recipients of the AFI Dallas Star Award career
recognition award. Rita Hayworth will receive the award posthumously.

The centerpiece screening of The Hurt Locker is one of the highlights
of a roster that includes the 1946 noir classic Gilda in which Hayworth starred opposite Glenn Ford, and a 35th anniversary screening
of Chinatown.

The line-up includes a centerpiece screening of Guillermo Arriaga's
The Burning Plain, as well as world premieres of Lock And Roll
Forever, Bollywood Beats, Houston We Have A Problem, Pearl, Rock
Prophecies, Desdemona: A Love Story, The Other Side Of Paradise and
Whatever It Takes.

Meanwhile there will be US premieres for Fifty Dead Men Walking,
Americana, Food Inc, American Trap, Gigantic, Morenita, The Seven Of
Daran, and Yoroi: The Samurai Zombie.

Other entries include Against The Current, The Missing Person, Dungeon
Masters, Art & Copy, Tyson, Soul Power, Adam Resurrected, Lymelife,
Moon, and Valentino: The Last Emperor.

All in all the eight-day festival will feature 173 features and shorts
with 150 screenings, with a $25,000 unrestricted cash prize for each
of the winners of the Target narrative and Target documentary feature
competitions. Board of directors chairwoman Stephanie Hunt announced
that the 2009 festival would be dedicated to Ruth O'Donnell Mutch for
her 'invaluable support and contributions to AFI DALLAS since its
inception.'

AFI Dallas 2009 will run from March 26-April 2. For further details
visit www.afidallas.com.

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