May 5-9—VIRTUAL—The Vermont International Film Festival (VTIFF) presents inaugural launch of the Made Here Film Festival, the only film festival dedicated exclusively to films and filmmakers from the northern New England states of Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, and Massachusetts; northern New York; and their neighbors in Québec. The festival is a partnership with Vermont PBS.
The festival will be held virtually and run for five days from Wednesday, May 5 through Sunday, May 9 on VTIFF’s online platform on Cinesend, with a “pay as you can” policy. A portion of the donations will be shared with the filmmakers.
“Cooking the Quotes”
“We are very pleased to continue our support of regional filmmakers in the hope that by introducing them and their films to each other, new partnerships may emerge,” said VTIFF Executive Director Orly Yadin. “MHFF is a natural progression from what used to be the Vermont Filmmakers’ Showcase, which in 2019 expanded to become the Made Here Showcase. We are also looking forward to representing the films at the in-person Vermont International Film Festival in the Fall of this year.”
Of the 44 films submitted, 28 were selected by the judging panel.
The Made Here Festival winners who will be awarded four $500 cash prizes include:
- Vermont PBS Award for Best Documentary goes to “Natasha Mayers: an Un-Still Life” directed by Anita Clearfield & Geoffrey Leighton, of Maine.
- VTIFF Award for Best Fiction film will be shared between “Roseline Like in the Movies” directed by Sara Bourdeau of Québec and “Stay for Tea” directed by Paul Bronislaw Kmiec of Massachusetts.
- James Goldstone Award for Most Promising Newcomer, sponsored by E.W. Stetson III, goes to “Yellow Cards for Equal Pay,” directed by Maia Vota of Vermont.
“Vermont PBS is proud to see our program Made Here and our partnership with VTIFF grow to include the Made Here Film Festival,” said Steve Ferreira, CEO of Vermont PBS. “This new festival will allow the filmmakers from our community to display their talents to a wider audience.”
VTIFF is a cultural nonprofit organization whose mission is to enrich the community and bring the world to Vermont through film. VTIFF celebrated its 35th anniversary in 2020. With membership support VTIFF operates year-round with its virtual cinema platform, showing one or two new films each week. When not during the pandemic, it presents in a theatrical setting monthly screenings, a Global Roots Film Festival and the Made Here Film Festival. The largest program of VTIFF is the annual Vermont International Film Festival, best known for featuring groundbreaking and independent films from around the world and the USA. For more information visit vtiff.org.
