Founded
in 1991 by International House as the Philadelphia Festival
of World Cinema, the Philadelphia
Film Festival has become one of the fastest-growing
film festivals in the country.
For
two weeks in April, the Festival presents as many as 300
works on film and video, ranging from star-studded studio
features to daring experimental student shorts. Anywhere
from 40-50 nationalities are represented, with the latest
works from such standard-bearers as France and Italy screening
alongside new voices from Estonia, Lebanon, South Africa
and beyond.
Festival
programming is arranged into thematic sections, including
World Focus, American Independents, Documentary Traditions,
Cinema of the Muslim Worlds, New Korean Cinema, and the
utterly unique and often alarming Danger After Dark, a
celebration of genre film from around the world. The Festival
also hosts a showcase of regional filmmaking, entitled
Festival of the Independents, sponsored by CityPaper.
In
2001, the Festival instituted a Juried Competition for
Best Feature, Documentary, and Short Film, and it distributes
ballots to all ticket holders to determine Audience Awards.
The Festival also hosts the "Set in Philadelphia
" screenplay competition in collaboration with the
Greater Philadelphia Film Office.
Click
here for Festival information, tickets and
showtimes. |
