TOP LEFT: PHOTOGRAPH BY INGRID MUR; CENTER LEFT: PHOTOGRAPH BY SEAN RAYFORD;
BOTTOM LEFT: PHOTOGRAPH BY ANDREA MORALES; BOTTOM RIGHT: PHOTOGRAPH BY SHAY MARKOWITZ
MARYLAND FILM FEST
April 29–May 3, 2020 /
Baltimore, Maryland / mdfilmfest.com
Organized by The Producer’s Club,
a non-profit founded at a pre-release
screening of (the partially Baltimore-shot)
Sleepless in Seattle in 1993, the Maryland
Film Fest continues to attract reams of
sleepless moviegoers in its 21st year of pro-
gramming. In downtown Baltimore’s arts
district and primarily housed in a reno-
vated 1915-era movie house, the fest has
a reputation for supporting emerging tal-
ent, offering closed-door filmmaker con-
ferences, a first-class filmmaker lounge
and travel accommodations. Its events
lineup includes Balti-shorts, a program of
Baltimore-based short films, an annual pick
chosen by local legend John Waters, act-
ing classes and pitch seminars. Says one
panelist: “My favorite festival in the world.
They do everything right. MFF combines
amazing programming with being the
most filmmaker-focused festival around.”MILWAUKEE FILM FESTIVAL
October 17-31, 2019 /
Milwaukee, Wisconsin / mkefilm.org
Having celebrated its 10th year in 2018,
the festival has tripled its screening output
in a decade, going from 100 films screened
at three venues to over 300 across five.
Festival programs include Black Lens,
which focuses on black creators,
Cine Sin Fronteras, featuring LatinX and
indigenous creators, and Beyond the Film,
a discussion initiative that curates conver-
sations between attendees and industry
pros and also facilitates filmmaker confer-
ences. There’s also Teen Screen,a program curated by teenagers and
Cream City Cinema, a juried competition
for best Milwaukee-created film, with cash
prizes. One panelist observes: “An excep-
tionally well-resourced festival with strong
programming that refreshingly empha-
sizes bringing a large, multi-layered lineup,
rather than bucking horns with other mar-
kets for premieres or overthinking where
they fall in the year’s festival calendar.”MONTCLAIR FILM FESTIVAL
May 2020 / Montclair, New Jersey /
montclairfilm.org
“The best-programmed New York film fes-
tival isn’t even in New York anymore,” quips
one of our panelists. “It’s a short train ride to
New Jersey for the Montclair Film Festival.”
Being a stone’s throw from the Big Apple
has no doubt upped this boutique fest’s
celeb quotient: Past years have seenStephen Colbert holding panel discussions
with other guests such as John Turturro.
(The fest’s advisory board is a who’s-who
of names such as J.J. Abrams.) MFF’s pro-
gramming includes films addressing ani-
mal welfare, criminal justice, teen interest,
Latino interest, environmental interest, and
more. Boasting over 26,000 patrons and
150 attending moviemakers and industry
guests in its eighth year, the sky’s the limit.NAPLES INTERNATIONAL
FILM FESTIVAL
October 24-27, 2019 / Naples, Florida /
artisnaples.org
Having been acquired a couple of years
ago by Artis-Naples, a cultural campus and
center for the arts in Southwest Florida,
the festival has strong backing to grow
and add new dimensions to its carefully
curated lineup. As one panelist puts it:
“Artis-Naples took the film festival under
its wing, so it feels very Lincoln Center now,
but with Florida sun-soaked glamour.”
This fall’s program will include more than
60 screenings (domestic, international,
narrative, doc, and short) over the four-day
event, with all competition films screened
at the Silverspot Cinema, a luxury boutique
theater, and jury and audience awards.
This year will also see a new award called
Focus on the Arts, given to a film with an
emphasis on the visual or performing arts.NEW ORLEANS FILM FESTIVAL
October 16-23, 2019 / New Orleans,
Louisiana / neworleansfilmsociety.org
New Orleans is nothing if not a city for new
discoveries, so it makes sense that NOFF
prides itself on being a discovery fest, withINSIDE OUT FILM AND VIDEO FESTIVAL 2019’S
WOMEN’S GALA AFTER-PARTY GETS UNDERWAY AT THE
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