This year sees the 17th annual Sarasota Film Festival, which will take place between April 10th and 19th. Getting tickets to the event is easy, as they are already on sale. Tickets can be bought online through the festival’s official website; alternatively, you can go in person to the box office at the Regal Hollywood 20 Theater or just call. The box office is open from 11am until 6pm each day prior to the event and there will be longer opening hours while the festival is underway.
All screenings are held at the Regal Hollywood 20 Theater, while other events connected to the festival will be held in a variety of locations around the city. Details of these are also available on the website and there are plenty of different types of events being held. Every year there is the Opening Night Film and Party, which is a chance for you to dig out your evening wear and hit the red carpet to see what the celebrity lifestyle is all about. You can also go along to the Cinema Tropicale Celebration.
The festival aims to celebrate independent film, with both new filmmakers and veterans taking part. Every year more than 180 films are shown at the Sarasota Film Festival and you can pick and choose the films that interest you. Categories include features, documentaries, short films and family-friendly films. Screenings start at 10am and do not finish until midnight.
Attending the festival will be celebrity guests, film buffs and local filmmakers. If you want to find out more about the process of film-making then you can go along to the Conversation Series, where writers, directors and actors take part in candid conversations so that you can learn more about the art of film-making. The event finishes with the Closing Night Film with Filmmaker Tribute Awards, which is held at the Sarasota Opera House.
Narrowing down your choices might be difficult. If you really want to immerse yourself in the event, why not try one of the Cinephile passes? This will give you access to every film and you can watch to your heart’s content.
It is not just entertainment that is the focus of the Sarasota Film Festival, as there are also a number of outreach programs and educational events so that kids can find out more about how films are made. This is at no cost to the participants. The Sarasota Film Festival has a dedicated education department that works all year round with local students who want to learn the basics of writing, directing, acting and making films, which helps them to express themselves more easily. There are also free ‘youthFEST’ screenings during the festival for kids who want to watch the newest films.
Film festivals are a great way to find out more about the process of film-making. There are plenty of opportunities to do so at minimal expense and there is no reason not to take advantage.
