Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival looks to their 25th year
This October, the oldest nonfiction film festival in North America will celebrate a quarter-century of bringing top documentaries, filmmakers and personalities to Hot Springs each fall, according to a news release.
The 25th Annual Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival is set to run from Oct. 7-16, with Deltic Timber returning as the festival’s Exclusive Presenting Sponsor.
In the early 1990s, a visitor to Hot Springs named Sy Gomberg, at the time head of the Documentary Branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, became enamored with the city he found during his trip, the release said. Gomberg helped cement an idea from the Hot Springs and Little Rock arts communities that, with the determination and hard work of many locals, soon became a reality: The Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival.
Now, 25 years later, HSDFF is a qualifying festival for filmmakers vying to win the Oscar for Best Documentary Short Subject. The festival is one of 38 such qualifiers among thousands of film festivals, and in 2016 alone, drew submissions from more than 80 countries around the world.
This year’s festival will again feature the Academy-sponsored Women Behind the Lens series, featuring the work of diverse female documentarians. Deltic Timber will showcase a series of environmental films. The Spa City Sports Series and the AARP Movies for Grownups series will return, as will HSDFF Family Day, and numerous student friendly films will be available throughout the festival.
The 25th Anniversary Celebration will include more than 100 of the most compelling films of the current festival circuit as well as the addition of a past-festival tradition. An array of parties throughout the 10 days will showcase historic Hot Springs’ Central Avenue, its restaurants and venues.
There will be announcements of screenings, special events and celebrity guests in the weeks to come.
Visit http://www.hsdfi.org for more information on the festival or to purchase passes and tickets.