Richard Linklater’s Bernie will get its world premiere as the opening night film of the 2011 Los Angeles Film Festival (June 16-26).

Starring Jack Black, Shirley MacLaine and Matthew McConaughey, Bernie is produced and financed by Mandalay Vision and Wind Dancer Films. The film, about a beloved mortician in a small Texas town, is being offered to North American distributors by Graham Taylor of WME and attorney John Sloss. Hyde Park International is handling international sales.

“We’re thrilled to be opening the festival with the world premiere of this delicious black comedy - a treat from one of the most original and exciting voices in independent film, Richard Linklater,” said festival director Rebecca Yeldham.

The festival, produced by Film Independent, also announced a Remembering Sidney Lumet session with Quincy Jones and Frank Pierson and said that guest director Guillermo del Toro has chosen to introduce Pupi Avati’s 1996 The Arcane Enchanter as one of his influences.

This year’s festival will include more than 200 feature films, shorts and music videos representing more than 30 countries.

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