Reel deal: Meet film fest's new executive director

Ryan Lely/Sonoma Valley Sun
Louisa Percudani is the new executive director of the Sonoma Valley Film Festival.

When asked which film left a lasting impression on her, Louisa Percudani, the recently appointed executive director of the Sonoma Valley Film Festival, laughed heartily – if warily.
“Wow, you’re asking those kinds of questions,” she observed with a laugh, then quietly suggested, “Uh, ‘Grease?’”
Percudani was quick to correct herself.
“No, impressed me … gosh, ‘Jaws,’” she said firmly. “I’m going to age myself. ‘Jaws,’ when I was nine. Yeah, I’d say ‘Jaws,’ and it was in a drive-in and I was with my cousins in their big blue station wagon.”
A veteran of the Sedona Film Festival in Arizona and the Newport Film Festival in Rhode Island, Percudani has come to Sonoma to lead the next iteration of the Sonoma Valley Film Festival, which will enter its 12th year in April of 2009. Of course, working the festival circuit is a bit less daunting than swimming with the sharks in Hollywood (apologies to Spielberg’s movie shark), which the Connecticut native did with aplomb, during a stint creating a teen-themed reality show for Fox television called “24/7.”
“I was hooked,” said Percudani of producing. She thrives on “everything that goes with putting something together. Creative-meets-commerce – it just kind of hit all the buttons.” Moreover, Percudani adds, “I just seem to gravitate to beautiful places.”
Percudani learned of the festival’s executive director position when she received an e-mail from a headhunter. The decision to come to Sonoma, however, wasn’t difficult for Percudani, who felt immediately embraced by the community.
“Sonoma feels like home in a short period of time. I’ve never been in such an embracing place. It feels like a sunflower – it’s just so illuminating and bright,” she said. “I feel really lucky and privileged to be the new director.”
Among Percudani’s new initiatives for the festival is creating a year-round cycle of programming events. The Second Tuesday Cinema Series, a monthly screening series presented by the Sonoma Valley Film Society, kicks off at 7 p.m., Tuesday, Aug. 12 with “Sherman’s Way,” a seriocomic redemption tale about a privileged young man on a wine country road trip to self-discovery.
“We have a great tradition here of film, food and wine. We’re definitely going to continue that,” said Percudani, who added,  “A vision that I have, which is something that has been done the past two film festivals I was at, was really turning the festival into a year-round program and making film available for everyone.”
Likewise, Percudani is committed to making the film festival experience accessible to everyone.
“Film affects all walks of life and that’s what I would like to see the film festival do here in the community,” she said. “Whether you are a film patron and are up-and-close with VIP parties, or you’re part of our new Second Tuesday Cinema Series, there’s something for everyone.”
“Sherman’s Way” plays at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 12 at the Sonoma Community Center, 276 E. Napa St., Sonoma. The box office opens at 5:30 p.m. Tickets are $10 ($8 for Film Sonoma Members; free for Film Society Members). For more information, visit sonomafilmfest.org or call 707.933.2600.