Your guide to the first Peoria Film Fest
Fans of independent films will want to check out the inaugural Peoria Film Fest.
Moviegoers can select from 18 movies, none of which is similar to the other, notes Jason Carney, executive director of the festival.
“To choose the 18 films, we went through our distribution and film contacts first to see what they had available, and then the three folks on my team reviewed them, giving each one a yea or nay,” Carney says.
The Peoria Film Fest is a program under the non-profit organization Phoenix Film Foundation.
As Carney noted, the Foundation had been looking to “increase the size of its footprint across the Valley” for some time, so when city officials in Peoria reached out about a possible film festival, the various parties met to discuss it.
“The city of Peoria was supportive and then Harkins got on board, so it all worked out,” Carney says.
In addition to showing a wide range of films that are a mix of independent films and upcoming studio releases, Carney says the Peoria Film Fest offers a DIY experience for attendees.
“You can buy a pass and cram in as many films as possible, or attend just one or two,” he says.
The highlights
While Carney is excited about all 18 movies in the film festival, four definitely stand out as must-sees:
“To Dust” is “a dark comedy with some charm to it, and it’s really well done,” Carney says. “What They Had” stars a “really
great cast,” including Hilary Swank, Blythe Danner and others, Carney says, adding that the film tells the story of a woman with Alzheimer’s disease.
“Point Defiance,” which stars Derek Phillips and Josh Crotty is “also worthy of checking out for sure. It’s also going to have its world premiere during the Peoria
Film Fest,” Carney says. “White Tide: The Legend of Culebra” is a documentary that tells a wild story about a man who is trying to find cocaine that has been buried. “It’s a really crazy story about an urban legend that turned out to be true,” Carney says.