Spark: a Burning Man Story is the latest from directors Steve Brown and Jessie Deeter. This engaging documentary gives audiences a rare behind-the-scenes look at Burning Man. "But what is Burning Man, exactly?" you ask. "Is it that movie where Nicolas Cage screams about bees?" No, that's The Wicker Man, but that's a common mistake. Actually, Burning Man has been going on for more than 25 years; I'm betting that even the most straightlaced and conservative among us have a vague idea of what it is: "That thing in the desert where they burn a big, wooden guy". Yes, it is that, but it's also much more. Burning Man is a week-long annual art exhibition/party/socioeconomic experiment held in the Black Rock Desert in northern Nevada. While on the surface it may appear to be nothing more than a bunch of hippies living it up in the desert, Burning Man is a monumental undertaking, requiring months of planning and the combined efforts of hundreds of people to pull off each year. Spark treats us to the amusing juxtaposition of people who look like they work at a smoke shop, (including one noteworthy gent using his own beard as a scarf), having a board meeting to address issues of funding, permits, labor and safety. These segments are intercut with footage of construction crews and utility workers preparing the grounds and artists working feverishly to finish their pieces.

Read Jared Lovrak's full review of Spark: A Burning Man Story in the Movies section.

SPARK: A BURNING MAN STORY, 6:45 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2 and 9 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 5, film discussion after 9 p.m. show, The Grand Cinema, 606 S. Fawcett Ave., Tacoma, $4.50-$9, 253.593.4474