The Martha's Vineyard Film Festival (MVFF) announces that the 17th annual festival will be taking place March 16 – 19, 2017.
The MVFF is more than movies. As in past years, the MVFF's "Hay Café" will be a warm, inviting place to enjoy farm-to-table meals, gourmet coffee, and live music. Each of the three venues will be filled with couches and transformed into comfy community living rooms.
Directors, producers, and film subjects will be on hand to present their films to festivalgoers of all ages.
This year's guest of honor is labor rights activist and Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient Dolores Huerta. She will take part in a discussion following a screening of DOLORES, the new documentary about her life, fresh from the Sundance Film Festival. Eduardo Garcia, outdoor chef and subject of CHARGED: THE EDUARDO GARCIA STORY, will stir audiences with his story of transformation after the near-death experience of being jolted by 2,400 volts of electricity in Montana's backcountry.
As always, the MVFF aims to expand social awareness through film and discussion. In his new documentary CITY OF GHOSTS, Vineyard resident Matthew Heineman (director of the Oscar-nominated CARTEL LAND) sheds light on the Syrian citizens-turned-activists who banded together after their hometown was taken over by ISIS.
The March festival also includes award-winning films like I, DANIEL BLAKE, winner of the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival and the BAFTA award for Outstanding British Film of the Year. DEAN, the hilarious directorial debut from comedian Demetri Martin, won the Best Narrative Feature award at the Tribeca Film Festival. I AM NOT YOUR NEGRO was nominated for this year's Best Documentary Oscar. BLIND VAYSHA, part of the MVFF's INTERNATIONAL SHORTS program, was nominated for the Best Short Animation Oscar.
And all weekend long, there will be free workshops and screenings for children. Saturday is opening day of the Kids Fest!, starting with the free screening of SATURDAY MORNING CARTOONS, a compilation of animated shorts from around the world. A discussion with director Lynn Tomlinson, an award-winning animator, will follow. She will also teach the STOP MOTION WORKSHOP on Sunday.
The MVFF is dedicated to producing community events, educational programs, and film screenings that spark discussion, debate, and action. More information and the full festival schedule are available at www.tmvff.org or by phone at (508) 645-9599.
