How to get around and get the most out of jam-packed event

What is the Mill Valley Film Festival? Held in bucolic Marin County every October, the Mill Valley Film Festival is one of the most important movie festivals in the United States. The festival consistently attracts some of the most prestigious Hollywood fare, and more often than not during the past 15 years, the event has been the California or U.S. premiere site for the movie that ended up winning the best picture Oscar.

The festival, which this year runs from Oct. 4 to 14, made its debut in 1977. Back then, it was only three days long and attracted 2,500 people. But even four decades ago, there were signs that the small festival was destined for big things. Closing night featured the 1972 film “The Candidate,” there were tributes to George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola, and there were innovative panels and workshops for both adults and children.

Now the festival routinely plays 100 feature films or more, attracts tens of thousands of filmgoers, and has expanded from Mill Valley to include screenings in San Rafael and Larkspur. Filmmakers from all over the world will be on hand to unveil their work, and plenty of celebrities will be in attendance, too.

Though the Mill Valley Film Festival, which sometimes draws comparisons to the formidable Telluride Film Festival, has become an important bellwether in the annual film awards season, it also is champion of local films, documentaries, foreign cinema and cutting-edge, independent American fare. Beyond the film attractions, the festival offers plenty of live music, much of it performed at Mill Valley’s famed Sweetwater Music Hall.

Where is it? In Mill Valley, San Rafael and Larkspur. The flagship theater of the festival is the Christopher B. Smith Rafael Center, an Art Deco theater complex in downtown San Rafael. It’s one of the best places in the Bay Area to watch a movie. The other venues include the Lark Theater, another Art Deco charmer, in Larkspur; the Century Larkspur, a more traditional multiplex theater with some stadium seating; and the picturesque CineArts Sequoia in the heart of Mill Valley, which is a crucial base of the festival and is within walking distance of the Sweetwater Music Hall.

What’s the vibe? Laid-back and sophisticated. This relaxed attitude is a reflection of both the Marin County scene and the festival organizers them-

Peter DaSilva / Special to The Chronicle 2017 Festivalgoers wait in line for a screening of a film at the Cinearts Sequoia Theater during the 2017 Mill Valley Film Festival. The theater is a crucial base of the festival and within walking distance of the Sweetwater Music Hall.

Warner Bros. Pictures 1972 Robert Redford in “The Candidate” (1972), the closing night film at the first Mill Valley Film Festival in 1977. The festival was only three days long then and drew about 2,500 people.