Up to the wire

With more than 100 screenings, including a number of US and international premieres, and a packed schedule of filmmaker appearances, there's something on tap for cineastes of all kinds at the 11th Newport International Film Festival. The festival kicks off tonight at 7 at the Jane Pickens Theater with "Man on Wire", winner of the best documentary at Sundance, about a death-defying high-wire act between the World Trade Center towers in 1974. Other highlights include "The Wackness," with Ben Kingsley as a psychiatrist who forms a quirky relationship with a pot-dealing kid. The opening party is tonight at 9 at the Yachting Center. Today-Sun, various locations in Newport, R.I. 401-846-9100. newportfilmfestival.com