Filmmakers for "Upstream Battle," "Good Cats" and "Metal Samurai" will attend screenings today of their movies at this year's Louis Vuitton Hawaii International Film Festival. All films are being shown at the Regal Stadium 18 Cinemas at Dole Cannery.

"Upstream Battle" screens at 6:45 p.m. Director Ben Kempas will be in attendance. The film follows the struggles of Native Americans in Northern California as they fight for their salmon and the survival of their culture. Their battle with a giant energy corporation, which praises hydroelectric power as climate-friendly electricity, could trigger the largest dam removal project in the world.

"Good Cats" screens at 8:30 p.m. Director Ying Liang will be in the audience. The film gets its name from reformist politician Deng Xiaoping, who said the color of a cat doesn't matter because as long as it catches mice, it's a good cat. In this story of a modern-day China tainted by a money hungry rat race, the director views human existence dominated by impalpable paradoxes, and a day-to-day life permeated with surreal events playing out on the border between reality, absurdity and hallucination.

"Metal Samurai" screens at 9:30 p.m. Director Ryosuke Kanesaki will be there dressed in a samurai costume. This zany film features a wandering samurai who fancies himself a heavy metal guitarist. He frequents a diner where he has a crush on a young girl who hasn't really noticed him yet.

The festival runs through Oct. 19.

The program guide can be viewed at www.hiff.org/prog-guides.php and film images downloaded at picasaweb.google.com/hiff2008filmimages. More information is available at online at www.hiff.org.

Tickets are $10 for general admission, $9 for students, seniors, children and the military.