The Palm Springs International Film Festival has become one of the main film festivals in the country.  Although most probably fly in private jets, Palm Springs' proximity to LA makes it easy for the stars to drive to attend the event which maximizes the star power of this film festival.  While this may not be the Oscars, this is an amazing film festival featuring hundreds of films from over 60 countries and a large attendance of celebrities.  If you've ever watched the Oscars, or other major award shows, and wanted to be a part of the glamour, this is your opportunity to do so while also being in sunny Palm Springs in January when the weather is in the 70's and 80's. 

The 27th annual Palm Springs International Film Festival (PSIFF) will present Johnny Depp with the Desert Palm Achievement Award, Actor at its annual Awards Gala for his performance in Black Mass. Each year the festival selects an actor and actress to receive this award. The Awards Gala, hosted by Mary Hart and presenting sponsor Entertainment Tonight, will be held Saturday, January 2, at the Palm Springs Convention Center. The Festival runs January 1-11.

Johnny Depp is one of the most versatile and dynamic actors of our time,” said Festival Chairman Harold Matzner. “In his latest film, Black Mass, Depp, in a stunning transformation, creates a gripping and multi-layered portrait of infamous gangster James ‘Whitey’ Bulger. He delivers an astounding performance that has earned raves from both critics and audiences and is sure to garnerawards attention. It is our honor to present the 2016 Desert Palm Achievement Award, Actor, to Johnny Depp.”
Past actor recipients of the Desert Palm Achievement Award include Jeff Bridges, Bradley Cooper, Daniel Day-Lewis, Colin Firth, Matthew McConaughey, Sean Penn, Brad Pitt and Eddie Redmayne. In the years they were honored, Bridges, Day-Lewis, McConaughey, Penn and Redmayne went on to win the Academy Award® for Best Actor, while Cooper, Firth and Pitt received Oscar® nominations.

This year's festival runs from January 1 - 11, 2016. The Festival’s glamorous centerpiece, the Awards Gala, scheduled for January 2, 2016, brings the world’s biggest stars to Palm Springs as it honors the year’s best performances both in front of and behind the camera. The 2015 Awards Gala, as an example, featured Julianne Moore, David Oyelowo, Rosamund Pike, Benedict Cumberbatch, J.K. Simmons, Reese Witherspoon and Robert Duvall, among others.

Sun, Blue Skies, Warmth, Movie Stars, An Eleven Day Film Festival, New Years celebration, Pools, Spas, Chic Restaurants, Mountains, Palm Trees, etc, etc.  Its time to visit Palm Springs in January.  

What was once the old Desert Fashion Plaza in downtown Palm Springs is starting to look a lot more like the imagined retail, hotel, restaurants, office space, and outdoor venue that is planned for the prime real estate.  While driving on Palm Canyon the other day, I saw something that got me even more excited about the forthcoming downtown complex;  a banner hanging over the second story of one of the buildings that read "West Elm".  Here is that banner.

For those of you who don't know, West Elm is a furniture store that offers customers modern contemporary furniture at a moderate price point.  I've seen West Elm stores in many large cities across the US, but never in a small city like Palm Springs.  I've always enjoyed browsing these stores and think this brand, which I've learned will be an anchor tenant at the new complex, is a great fit for a city that embraces modernism like Palm Springs does.  From what I've read, Palm Springs will be the smallest city West Elm, part of the William-Sonoma brand, will call home.  Now, I don't want to get ahead of myself (which is hard to do since William-Sonoma is one of my favorite stores), but a William-Sonoma store may not be far behind. 

The picture above shows the Northern most part of the construction.  The Southern most part of the 14 acre site (which is at the intersection of Palm Canyon Dr. and Tahquitz) looks like this:

This part of the development is where the project's Kimpton Hotel, set to open in October 2016, is being erected.