Enriched projects, films to be screened at Black film festival
Marking its fifth annual event, the Columbus Black International Film Festival will spotlight the growing influence of Black filmmakers and their projects throughout the weekend.
This year’s festival will kick off from 4 to 9 p.m. Friday for the Opening Night reception at the Wexner Center for the Arts, 1871 N. High St.
During the event, the rom-com “The Weekend,” starring “Saturday Night Live” alumna Sasheer Zamata, will be screened at 4 p.m, followed by “Zola,” a project inspired by the infamous 148 tweet thread with details of murder, prostitution and suicide at 7 p.m.
Admission $9, or $7 for Wexner Centr members, $5 for students.
On Saturday, the festival will move to the Art of Republic, 34 W. 5th Ave., from noon to 3 p.m. for the Transcend Mixtape Vol. 1 event. During this block, a number of short films, music videos and documentaries will be screened.
The list includes music video: “Black Girls Fly 2;” short film: “1st KINGS;” short film “Play Day;” short film: “Discovering Autism;” short documentary: “Wash Day;” short film: “Alsit;” short film: “As a Matter of Black;” short documentary: “Our Voices: The Sounds of the Silenced;” and music video: “X-ray.”
Admission is $10.
In an effort to forge a more lucrative film industry within the state, the festival invites all Ohio filmmakers to the Filmmaker’s Connect event from 5 to 7 p.m. Saturday at Burger IM, 121 S. High St. Admission is free.
To close out the weekend, the festival will hold the annual outdoor movie event, “Blackness under the Stars,” from 8 p.m. to midnight Saturday at Chocolate Fields, 1086 Hart Road. Along with food trucks, hookah and exclusive seating areas, attendees will be welcomed with screenings of various short films and other projects. Admission is $20, or $40 VIP (includes hookah and exclusive seating area).
For ticket prices and other information, visit https://www.columbusbiff.com/schedule.
ehopkins@dispatch.com