The American Film Institute (AFI) has always been there to encourage the art of American film, and this year they are encouraging American filmgoers by offering a limited number of free tickets for every show at the AFI Fest. Partially out of gratitude, partially as a counter-recession gesture, the “See a Film [On Us]” program has been turning heads. In an interview with the LA Weekly, AFI Fest Artistic Director Rose Kuo exclaimed, “It was time to turn the conversation around, to do something somewhat audacious, and to get people excited about indie film.” The best part is that they are showing films you’d want to see, only less of them. As a way to cover this program, the festival has pared down their selection from the usual 100 or so features to just 60 this year. While not heavy on premieres, the fest shows many of the more notable works from this year’s festival circuit––Harmony Korrine’s own brand of family comedy Trash Humpers, Lee Daniels’ critically acclaimed Precious, Tom Ford’s adaptation of Christopher Isherwood’s A Single Man, Andrea Arnold’s tough but tender chick flick Fish Tank, Oren Moverman’s military melodrama The Messenger, to name just a few. Interestingly, a large number of the films are not from the LA that makes films, a fact that makes the AFIFest all the more crucial to its home town.