The world premiere of Wanted opened the 2008 Los Angeles Film Festival with a bang and delivered everything you expect from Hollywood: limos riding up to the red carpet, dressed up celebrities crawling out, screaming fans, hundreds of photographers, film crews, … Very overwhelming for a first timer like me and the many directors who thought they were prepared for all that media glitz, until they stepped onto the carpet.

Some directors literally had drops of sweat rolling down their forehead. But that is where we came in: to calm them down, escort them on the red carpet, and ’sell’ them to the press, who were mostly there for the tabloid stars. Missing were Brangelina and Morgan Freeman (one getting ready to pop twins, the other on Broadway), but there was plenty to go around: James McAvoy, his wife and actress Anne-Marie Duff, Wanted director Timur Bekmambetov, Terence Stamp, Festival Honorary Director Melvin Van Peebles, and so many more.

I walked Philippe Petit down the carpet, star of the movie Man On Wire, which won the Grand Jury Prize and Documentary Audience Award at Sundance. Fascinating man (he walked on a line between the Twin Towers for Christ’s sake!), but obviously grown a little weary of the whole Festival experience. He gave up mid-press line and just wanted to go in the theater. I guess the deal was already sealed with the good reviews the film has been receiving and awards all around.

More in need of publicity support was Jennifer Phang, whose film Half-Life is premiering at the LA Film Fest. Same for PJ Raval and Jay Hodges, directors of Trinidad, a documentary on life in the transsexual capital of America. They are the people that will be big in five years from now, and it still feels surreal to be helping them get there.

Being one of the lucky people to get into the theater, I got the chance to see Bekmambetov’s daring cross-over into American cinema. Wanted is very in your face… all the time! The film is bloody, violent, and most importantly has a good sense of humor about it. It’s been done so many times before: the nerd with no life who becomes a superhero. But it’s the fast, art-house cinematography that makes it remarkable and puts it in the vein of Timur’s earlier Russian work.

The afterparty and the Universal VIP Lounge topped off the evening with cocktails and fine delicatesse.