The festival has moved on a lot from the days when people gathered outside the Savoy Cinema to glimpse the stars arriving in their black limousines.
Back then it was a black-tie affair and ticket-only to boot. The festival operated far above the ordinary cinema lovers who could watch the comings and goings but seldom got to see what was going on inside.
The festival opens on October 15th with the Irish premiere of Gerry Stembridge's film, About Adam, a satirical morality tale. The venues will be the Cork Opera House, Triskel Arts Centre, the Kino Cinema and the Gate Multiplex.
"I think we have a really solid programme; the festival has never been healthier," the festival director, Mick Hannigan, said.
These days, without a bow tie in sight, the festival has become very much a celebration of film by all the people, and that's why it is operating so successfully, he said.
The resurgence of the Irish film industry, Mick Hannigan adds, has given the festival, now called the Murphy's Cork Film Festival, a new raison d'etre in a new era. The industry in Ireland is on the move and Cork has opened its doors to the emerging talent which in turn is generating an entirely new level of interest.
"The audience is much younger for a start and there's a more sophisticated appreciation of film, but then Cork always had a huge audience for film. Cinema-going was very much a part of the city's cultural life. Today, the festival is attracting new and challenging talent and it's a very accessible event. In Cork, the filmmakers and the audience can meet at a social level and chat. That's the kind of thing you wouldn't find at other festivals with security buzzing about everywhere. "I'll give you an example. A few festivals ago, I bumped into Robert Carlyle of Full Monte fame at the bar in the Opera House. I had called in there after a late screening. He was having a drink with Emily Watson who played the mother in Angela's Ashes which was on location in Cork. We got talking and they wound up presenting the awards at the close of the festival. It wasn't planned; it just happened over a chat at the bar. Cork has that kind of feel to it. It's serious yet it can be very relaxed and it is always very sociable," he said.
Next month, the festival will be 45 years old. It has got thus far, having travelled an often tortuous route, taking in the era of glitz and glamour, as well as financial upheavals, poor product and sometimes poorer prospects.
It began with the innocent aspiration of creating something in Cork that would attract film stars, personalities and tourists. It would be a showcase for the city.
"Irish is sexy at the moment and Irish film is part of that. This year, we'll have people here from festivals in Oberhausen in Germany, Tampere in Finland, Brest and Sydney. They're coming to look at new Irish film and to be part of a festival that has a very eclectic mix. The film content is aimed at being serious and ground-breaking, yet it all happens in a very relaxed atmosphere and our guests enjoy it very much. Cork doesn't have the glamour of Hollywood and it's not Cannes or Berlin but it is unique nevertheless and it enjoys quite a reputation nowadays in the film industry," Mr Hannigan said.
"Our budget this year is £300,000 and of that we expect to raise £60,000 at the box-office. Some 30,000 tickets will be issued and 25 schools from the city and county will be attending, reflecting the fact that film is now on the second-level curriculum. The upturn in the industry's fortunes also means there is now a realistic expectation among young people of finding work in the world of film.
"That's why one of the most popular seminars at the festival in recent years is the one in which directors, producers, editors and casting agents sit down with young hopefuls and tell them how they got started. The point is the world has changed so much.
"When it started, Cork was one of about a dozen annual film festivals, now there are 87 festivals around the world each year. Film has become a very powerful means of communicating and young people are extremely film literate.
"Everything is moving so fast in the industry, like digital imagery in film-making. They want to know about it, not only the end product but how it was assembled. Cork is the kind of festival that allows you to do that," he said.
Digital intelligence, he says, could be regarded as the new art movement of the 21st century, fusing the world of the computer artist and digital poet on film in a radical way. It will feature for the first time at this year's festival.
Other events will include 15X15, a collaboration between 15 European festivals in which the heritage of European cinema will be celebrated through the screening of 15 relatively unknown but remarkable films.
The seminars will include an analysis of the work of Aardman Animation, the company which has brought clay animation to new heights, and a documentary masterclass will be presented by Peter Wintonick. The Irish documentary showcase includes Ahakista, a film about the Air India crash off the south-west coast, and Brian Friel, an appraisal of the playwright's life and work.
The festival has developed a reputation for its commitment to short films and this year, the largest award package for short films in Europe - £57,000 - will be on offer, including the Jameson Award for the best short film (£10,000 plus £10,000 in facilities). The award for the best Irish short is £25,000 in cash and facilities, while the best "made in Cork" short will receive £2,000.