SARASOTA, Fla. — The coronavirus pandemic has had sweeping effects in the public health, business and travel sectors. The film industry has also taken a beating.
But in a time of uncertainty, we need people who will spread hope.
“This too will pass,” Mark Famiglio said.
Famiglio is the chairman and president of the Sarasota Film Festival.
“This will pass, and the region will recover I think very, very quickly, but we rely on tourism, we rely on healthcare,” Famiglio said. “These are some of our principal industries and so we each need to rethink not only the way we do things but how we can help the economy, how we can help the community.”
That’s why the Sarasota Film Festival is adapting and going virtual. So, you film fans out there can still get a fix despite the temporary closing of movie theaters and postponement of the face-to-face festival.
“We’re going virtual because people asked us to and because we’re here to support independent film,” Famiglio said.
The film festival will take place April 27 through May 3 with a mix of features, documentaries, shorts, kid films and several other films with local ties. Famiglio says they have 20 feature films and 40 shorts that they’ll show in the first batch of the festival starting Monday.
“We expect to have Q&A’s associated with the films and with a special emphasis on Florida films and regional films,” Famiglio said.
You can find the full festival lineup here.
Tickets for the festival will go on sale beginning the first day, with an all-access pass costing $30. This will get you into all of the films being shown, as well as a look into the interviews with the directors, writers and stars of some of the films.
If you’re just looking to tune into a particular film, each film or shorts program will cost you $3.99 and educational programming will be free.
“We all have a lot going on and we think it’s important not only to provide people entertainment, but to help demonstrate that Sarasota, Bradenton, Tampa and St. Pete, the entire Suncoast is open for business soon and we don’t want people to forget about us,” Famiglio said.
He even wants those sitting at home watching to get involved, so there will be an Audience Award competition for feature-length films voted on by online viewers. Those judges will be awarding shorts and student-directed films.
“Now more than ever we feel the demand for entertainment and we are excited to work with local organizations to only bring delightful and engaging films but ones that highlight the Sarasota and Florida community as a hub for the arts and as a global destination,” Famiglio said.
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