It’s official: There’s only a month until summer ends. Although daylight is getting shorter, the good news is we’re finally getting a little break from the heat, and it’s starting to be really comfortable outside. It’s also good that every festival organizer in Sacramento seems to know this and wants to capitalize on this window of opportunity. Sure, this week’s events aren’t the absolute last of the summer (next weekend, which happens to be Labor Day weekend, is full of festivals, too). But these five should at least get you through the denial phase of summer’s end—so make sure to break out the shorts for one last time.
OK, so the Sacramento Film & Music Festival (www.sacfilm.com) doesn’t exactly happen outdoors—in fact, it happens completely indoors the Crest Theatre (1013 K Street). But it’s a great way to spend the whole weekend in case it does get unpleasantly hot. From Friday, August 22, through Sunday, August 24, the festival features a fashion challenge, short films, feature films, documentaries, music videos and the 10×10 Filmmaker Challenge—10-minute films created in 10 days by local filmmakers. Tickets are $15 per day.
Woofstock (www.rocklin.ca.us/woofstock), on the other hand, is an all-outdoor, dog-friendly festival in Rocklin. In addition to an adoption fair, the free event offers an art show, vendors, food, races and a play zone for dogs. It’s also a fundraiser for more than 20 local dog-rescue organizations. It happens at from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sunday, August 24, at Johnson-Springview Park (5460 Fifth Street in Rocklin).
Lastly, three community festivals celebrate three very different things this week: the Sacramento Culture Fest at the Woodlake Grove amphitheater at the Red Lion Hotel Woodlake Conference Center Sacramento (500 Leisure Lane), Curtis Fest at Curtis Park (3349 W. Curtis Drive) and the Multicultural Festival at Elk Grove Regional Park (9950 Elk Grove-Florin Road in Elk Grove). The Sacramento Culture Fest ($20-$25, 5 p.m. on Friday, August 22; www.sacculturefest.com) is actually a music festival featuring Polynesian music by Valufa, Finn Da Groovah, Samu and more. Proceeds benefit various Sacramento-area community arts organizations. Curtis Fest (free, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, August 24; www.sierra2.org) celebrates the works of 50 local artists, with food trucks, music and a petting zoo. And the Elk Grove Multicultural Festival (free, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday, August 23; www.elkgrovecity.org/multicultural-festival) honors Elk Grove’s diversity with food, music, art and fashion.
