SANDPOINT - Building on the buzz of two successful years in operation, the 2008 Schweitzer Lakedance Film Festival went off without a hitch, exceeding expectations in terms of both quality and attendance, said festival director Trevor Greenfield.

The festival, which featured more than 50 movies and numerous film-related events, concluded Sunday with its "best of the fest," which replayed some of the big winners from this year's festival.

"It was the best we've had yet. It was really a big success and I haven't heard anything but good things about it. I think we're really starting to develop a real audience here and people are beginning to really appreciate what we're doing," Greenfield said.

Throughout the festival's short history, Greenfield has always strived to offer attendees films of the highest quality, but he said the movies showcased at this year's event were the best yet.

The higher quality films also ushered in a sizable increase in attendance. While he hasn't calculated the numbers yet, Greenfield believes festival attendance increased 20-30 percent from last year.

One of Greenfield's goals for the 2008 festival was to host more of the filmmakers whose work was showing. In addition to the insight gained at post-film question-and-answer sessions, several of this year's guest filmmakers hosted or attended events aimed at helping local filmmakers hone their craft.

One of the crown jewels of the festival was the attendance of screenwriter Paul Castro, who is credited with penning the 2007 film "August Rush." Castro, a film professor at the prestigious UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television, hosted two workshops designed to teach would-be filmmakers how to succeed in the business.

The festival attempted similar workshops in previous years - with little interest from area residents - but Greenfield said Castro's workshops were extremely well attended.

"It proves to us that North Idaho wants to have these educational opportunities and (Castro) has already agreed to come back for something special next year," Greenfield said.

Above all, Greenfield is hopeful that the festival's success will create an even larger interest in the art of filmmaking and convince residents that you don't need to live in Hollywood to be part of the film industry.

"We're raising the awareness that, 'Hey, we can make films here, we can write films, and all we have to do is want to do it and be dedicated to it,' " Greenfield said. "Those people that do, I guarantee that if they start getting into it, they'll love it. It's a great, fun industry to be involved in."