Moviemaking will play a leading role in Tijuana in the next few days as well as this fall's innovation conference.

This week, a short film festival returns for its ninth edition. And on Oct. 12, the conference Tijuana Innovadora will explore innovation in the film industry in general and in Baja California.

Industry leaders from the United States and Latin America will deliver keynote addresses and lead panel discussions. They include:

* Ricardo Arnaiz, a Mexican TV and film producer and director specializing in animated films;

* Armando Casas, the director of the Center for Film Studies at Mexico's Autonomous University, the oldest film school in Latin America;

* Elizabeth M. Daley, the dean of the School of Cinematic Arts at the University of Southern California;

* Henner Hoffman, one of Mexico's best cinematographers and screenwriters, with more than 47 titles to his credit;

* Charlie Iturriaga, an Oscar-winning producer of special effects, particularly CGI;

* Larry Parker-Mole, an executive at Mole Richardson Co., an industry leader in lighting instruments for the film industry;

* Alejandro Ramírez , CEO of Cinépolis, the biggest cinema chain in Mexico, which also has a presence in the United States, including in San Diego County;

* Eduardo Verástegui, a leading Mexican TV and movie actor who has his own production company.

Innovation leaders from the United States, Latin America and Europe will explore innovation in technology, industry and other fields in the conference, to be held Oct. 11 to 21.

San Diego-area residents are particularly invited to attend the event, which will offer all sessions in English and Spanish.

There will be shuttle transportation available twice a day from downtown San Diego to the conference venue, Tijuana's Cultural Center. Details at tijuana2012.com.

Meanwhile, the International University of the Californias will present the ninth annual Short Film Festival, to be held Thursday, Aug. 29, to Saturday, Sept. 1, at the movieplex Cinépolis at the Plaza Galerías shopping center.

The director of cinematographic studies at the university, known as UDCI, said that the festival will present 30 short films made by college students from Mexico and other countries.

The director, René Castillo, said the Lumen Prize will be presented for the second time at the festival, which also will offer a variety of film workshops.

The Baja California government, meanwhile, is sponsoring a competition called "Rally Descubre BC." Ten production teams, both professionals and amateur, will have 72 hours to capture various scenic locations across the state.

The winning team in each category will share prize money totaling 44,000 pesos, around $3,300, to be presented at the end of the festival.

Tourism Secretary Juan Tintos Funcke said the goal was to support the development of young talent in the film industry to be able to attract top productions to the state.