But we don’t recommend it. With more than 140 films from 35 countries, a spotlight on Chinese cinema and several good Belgian selections, it’s worth fitting a few into your schedule. There are plenty of crowd pleasers and big titles to choose from, such as the hurts-so-good, post-romance comedy 500 Days of Summer; Jane Campion’s new film Bright Star, which details the romance between poet John Keats and Fanny Brawne; and Messenger, another surprisingly good US drama about the emotional consequences of the war in Iraq.

Any of those films would be an excellent choice. But film festivals are for exploring – for picking an obscure documentary about rice farmers or a social drama by a Chinese director you’ve never heard of. And this festival offers you plenty of opportunities for that.

The sounds

The festival’s focus has always been sound and music, with many performances of film music. Flanders’ own Jef Neve is on the programme this year, as well as the Traffic Quintet, who join composer Alexandre Desplat for Divine Féminin, a tribute to world-class actresses. Shigeru Umebayashi, the Japanese composer known for his work on Zhang Yimous’ films and a wealth of other international projects, plays two concerts.

The festival is home to the World Soundtrack Awards, which is open to the public and draws über-famous composers to Ghent. Desplat is one of this year’s guests of honour, and he’ll lead the Brussels Philharmonic in a performance of several of his award-winning scores, including The Queen and Lust Caution.

Marvin Hamlisch, Oscar-winning composer of more than 50 films, including The Sting and Sophie’s Choice, will also be at the 17 October ceremony to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award. Desplat is also nominated this year for both Film Composer of the Year and Best Original Score for his work on The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. He’ll be given a run for his money in the Original Score category by Slumdog Millionaire’s AR Rahman, who will also be turning heads at the event.

And then there is the other end of the spectrum: the festival has invited Kevin Costner and his band Modern West to perform their old-fashioned blend of country music. Costner is a big star for the festival but, unfortunately, his singing is even worse than his acting.

The guests

The big draw at this year’s festival is Cuban-American actor Andy García (Ocean’s 11, The Lost City), who will talk about his new comedy City Island. Another venerable festival guest, French director Claude Miller, will introduce his new film Marching Band later that same night. Seeing García doesn’t mean you have to miss the much-anticipated new film Soul Kitchen by the phenomenal German-born Turkish director Fatih Akin (Crossing the Bridge, The Edge of Heaven), which screens at the same time – it’s showing again as one of the festival’s closing films.

The competitions

The film festival sponsors several competitions, including a popular public choice award. But the big prize is the juried Grand Prix, which is awarded to the film that makes the most creative use of music. The Bergman-inspired Turkish film There, about a family coming together after the death of the mother, and the Danish film Applause, with a mesmerising central performance by Paprika Steen as an alcoholic actress, are two highlights of the 12 entries.

The Asians

The festival places a special emphasis on Asia this year, particularly Chinese films (in a nod to Europalia). Contemporary Chinese cinema conveys the complexities of a culture caught between tradition and modernity, with its rapid economic growth and increasing influences from the west. Director Wang Quan’an and actress Yu Nan are on the jury, so you’ll find some of their previous films, including 2007 Golden Bear winner Tuya’s Marriage.

Most of the new Chinese films in the programme do not yet have a Belgian distributor. “Festivals are more and more the only platform for world cinema,” says the festival’s programme director Wim De Witte. “That’s a shame because there are really beautiful films that can change the way you see the world.” Of the 11 new Chinese films on the programme, you’d do well to see young director Zheng Wei’s Fish Eyes, the story of a father and son eking out a living in a desert region, when a mysterious woman suddenly enters their lives. Getting the most out of the minimalist landscapes, it’s superbly shot and fills its silences with emotion.

The exhibitions

The festival has a special focus this year on films from Asia, so its annual exhibition is Anime! High Art - Pop Culture, a window onto the world of Japanese animation. Arts centre Vooruit, meanwhile, returns Almost Cinema, with performances enhancing the central exhibition of artists who operate outside of the traditional boundaries of film.

Almost Cinema is a cornerstone event of the Flanders International Film Festival, consistently delivering work that is both entertaining and provocative.

The Belgians

The Belgian selections this year are as diverse as the country: Feature film Altiplano (also in competition for the Grand Prix for Best Film) by husbandand- wife team Peter Brosens and Jessica Woodworth (Khadak) finds the native people of the Peruvian Andes turning against the foreign doctors in their village. Portrait of a Young Man as an Artist is the long-awaited documentary on dEUS musician Tom Barman, who let Manu Riche trail him with a camera for two years.

Two more Flemish films are part of the section called A Look Apart, a series of experimental films curated every year by Cis Bierinckx, director of Brussels’ Beursschouwburg arts centre. Not Waving But Drowning by Elias Grootaers documents the flight of Indian emigrants to the UK (by way of Zeebrugge). Double Take is Johan Grimonprez’s revealing look at our “catastrophe culture” that cleverly cuts in old footage of Alfred Hitchcock taking chase after his double.

Meanwhile, over at Ghent University’s cinema, a release party celebrates a new DVD of films by Emile Degelin. The 83-year old former director and author will be on hand to introduce a screening of three of his short films.