The Sarasota Film Festival is a

film festival A film festival is an organized, extended presentation of films in one or more cinemas or screening venues, usually in a single city or region. Increasingly, film festivals show some films outdoors. Films may be of recent date and, depending upon ...

located in

Sarasota, Florida Sarasota () is a city in Sarasota County on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The area is renowned for its cultural and environmental amenities, beaches, resorts, and the Sarasota School of Architecture. The city is located in the sout ...

and is held in April. Its mission is "to celebrate the art of filmmaking and the contribution of filmmakers by hosting an international film festival and developing year-long programs for the economic, educational, and cultural benefit of our community".

History

Following the demise of the Sarasota French Film Festival in 1996, John Welch began researching and planning an independent film festival. He hired Jody Kielbasa as Executive Director and the first "mini-festival", featuring eight independent films, six actors and a gala fundraiser was held in January 1999. The county controversially funded the festival double what it requested, for a total of $50,000. The investment was defended as good for tourism. In 2002, the ''

St. Petersburg Times The ''Tampa Bay Times'', previously named the ''St. Petersburg Times'' until 2011, is an American newspaper published in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. It has won fourteen Pulitzer Prizes since 1964, and in 2009, won two in a single ...

'' highlighted the festival's potential for marketing and distribution, and, in 2003, ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' called the festival "one of the edgier, more interesting entrants on the scene." In 2006, the start date was changed from January to April. In 2008, the ''

Sarasota Herald-Tribune The ''Sarasota Herald-Tribune'' is a daily newspaper, located in Sarasota, Florida, founded in 1925 as the ''Sarasota Herald''. History The newspaper was owned by The New York Times Company from 1982 to 2012. It was then owned by Halifax Media ...

'' wrote that the festival had evolved to be more about funding than premieres. Amid financial problems, Welch and others resigned from the executive committee in 2009, citing a different vision than that of the current festival. The festival has since grown, showing 252 films and bringing more than 100 filmmakers and actors to the Sarasota area over its ten-day run of April 4–13, 2014. The ''Sarasota Herald-Tribune'' said in 2014 that the festival was now a "showcase for serious independent films and the cinephiles who love them." It has integrated smaller programs, including

UN Women The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women, also known as UN Women, is a United Nations entity working for gender equality and the empowerment of women. UN Women advocates for the rights of women and girls, and focu ...

's "Through Women's Eyes" Film Festival and the student-focused "YouthFEST" The 2015 Sarasota Film Festival Education Program features a documentary summer camp for students.

References

External links

*
IMDB Festival Profile
{{coord, 27.339503, -82.544523, type:event_globe:earth_region:US-FL, display=title 1999 establishments in Florida Film festivals in Florida Film festivals established in 1999 Culture of Sarasota, Florida Tourist attractions in Sarasota County, Florida