Newport Beach Film Festival Opening Night Gala Gets Funky

by Emily Green · May 4, 2011

    Go HERE for more photos by Douglas Neill and tag yourself and your friends!

    When we think of film festivals, visions of raging and generally rowdy, wild times don't come to mind. Except in the case of James Franco who simply cannot resist singing karaoke in drag no matter where he is. And we certainly don't associate that kind of behavior with galas. But maybe we should in light of what we saw at the Newport Beach Film Festival Opening Night Gala.

    Of course the night was about honoring the films and filmmakers participating in the Newport Beach Film Fest and celebrating the art of cinema with a grand kickoff gala at the Bloomingdale's courtyard. But as we learned, in Newport, that does not mean getting funky is off the table. Perhaps things aren't so straight-laced beyond the Orange Curtain because this crowd really knew how to get loose for the occasion. Even Kris Kringle made the trip down from the North Pole for the night because he knew this was going to be one helluva shindig.

    Okay, so it's not actually him but he must not be able to walk down the street in this getup without every kid in his path running up to him to ask to sit on lap or complain that he got the wrong thing for them last year. But enough about him even though I'd love to get into that fabulous material his suit is made of. Let's look at some photos people getting weird.