Ashland International Film Festival, BendFilm, and Portland Film Festival all made the cut for the MovieMaker 2018 “50 Best Film Festivals Worth The Entry Fee.”
Here is what MM had to say about each:
AIFF: “Submitting to screen at this five-day Southern Oregon fest comes with the promise that your film will be viewed and evaluated by more than one screener. Ashland Independent Film Festival’s crowd of over 7,000 fills out the art-deco Varsity Theatre, historic Ashland Armory, and other venues to take in over 90 doc, feature, and short selections. In 2017, maverick moviemaker Alex Cox took his Japanese-inflected Western Tombstone-Rashomon to AIFF for its world premiere; panels dug into on-screen activism and indie doc journalism in the age of fake news; and Pride Award-winner Jenni Olson conducted a queer film production workshop for Southern Oregon University students. Consistently high-quality programming.”
BendFilm Festival: “
Celebrating its 15th anniversary this year, BendFilm steeps itself in the laid back
, yet heartily engaged arts community culture of Bend, Oregon—a home turf overflowing with award-winning craft beer, surrounding natural beauty, and cinephile citizenry. In 2017, up to $10,500 in cash prizes were doled out to winning moviemakers, but that didn’t detract from the fest’s greater message: One of its handful of panels sought to dispel the myth that only financially privileged filmmakers can build a viable career.“
Portland Film Festival: “
Portland Film Festival takes care of its own. One of the locally crafted and growing festival’s most ingenious job creations is their Director of Alumni, who coordinates with past moviemakers to help decide future selections. PDXFF
hosts daily coffee chats for moviemakers on the day of their screenings, three to four daily industry professional-led panels, and a variety of other events in which to connect with other moviemakers and industry insiders, all in an accessible (low-to-no cost, two-square block radius) and gorgeous environment.”
