Welcome to the new look and feel of eCinemaBoston! OK, it’s not feeling completely different yet – we have three more phases that will be unleashed in the next 6-8 weeks. But after a few months of retooling and getting things ready, it’s time for Boston Springs A Fethival!
From March 1 to May 1 (give or take a few days on either end) each year, Boston is thriving with festivals. Boston SciFi kicks off the pre-show over President’s Day week each year in February, and then the fun REALLY Begins!
This year, things have been thrown into an uproar – in recent years past, the NINE festivals and two film series have been spread out, usually intersecting here and there . But this year, with Salem Film Fest, usually the first out of the gate, electing to move three weeks later than in previous years, things have been really crazy. The festival movers and shakers ended up moving and shaking so much that FIVE of the festivals are now happening SIMULTANEOUSLY! ARRGHH!
Because of an additional issue with the site, we did NOT make it back online in time to cover the new first festival of the season, the Global Cinema Film Festival, which was held March 8-11; we’ll have a rundown of the festival and the films therein later this week, and we apologize to the folks at GCFF for not being able to provide our usual daily coverage. So now we’re gearing up for coverage of the rest of the fests as best as two people can manage to provide. Here’s this year’s calendar:
Boston Underground Film Festival March 21-25
Boston Turkish Film Festival March 21-25. March 28-April 1, AND April 4-8
ReelAbilities Boston March 21-29
Irish Film Festival March 21-25
Salem Film Fest March 21-29
WickedQueer Boston LGBTQ Film Festival March 29-April 6
Boston International Film Festival April 12-16
Independent Film Festival Boston April 25-May 2
If you look at the schedule above, you will notice that Underground, ReelAbilities, Irish, Salem, and the first weekend of Turkish are all going on THE SAME WEEKEND! AARRRRRRGGGGHHHH! I think I liked it better when festivals pick their own weekend…makes it much easier to cover, and less difficult to choose! And this ISN’T ALL, folks…
Also throughout the BSAF months, both The DocYard and Belmont World Film have weekly or bi-weekly screenings; The DocYard usually runs every other Monday, while BWF runs a Sunday opener this year, and then every week on Monday through mid-May. And BOTH of them occasionally intersect with the various festivals as well.
To say eCB’s coverage is going to be a CHALLENGE this year is an understatement – it’s going to be an incredible six weeks of craziness and fun! And each festival caters to a unique audience, although they will ALL entice film lovers of all shapes and sizes. No matter what you like, be it off the wall, weird and/or subversive (Underground), hard hitting documentaries (The DocYard, Salem), LGBT-interest films (WickedQueer), films with a wee bit o’ the blarney (Irish), films that spotlight the human drive and spirit (ReelAbilities). films with a touch of the Turk (Turkish), a sampling of world films (Belmont World Film, International), or the latest and hottest buzz films in the indie world (IFFB), there’s something for EVERYONE! And we will do our best to help you decide what’s perfect for you!
Here’s what eCB will be providing for the rest of the BSAF season:
- Daily film schedules, descriptions, ticket links and more
- Reviews of films screening at each festival
- Audio and video of festival events we are able to attend
- and more!
We’re looking for contributors to help us out with our massive BSAF coverage this year – if you’re interested and are planning to attend one or more of the festivals or film series, drop me a line at webmaster [at] pnrnetworks.com and put “BSAF Coverage” in the subject line – let us know where you’re going to be and what you’re planning to do – you’ll get a byline for all your coverage, your name (and possibly a blurb or two) in our massive annual “Boston Springs A Fethival” online magazine, and our eternal thanks, and you will also have the chance to be a part of our month-long season of wrap up reports on eCinemaOne’s long running “Subject:CINEMA” podcast – throughout the month of May, we will be highlighting each festival with a spotlight segment on S:C, one of the oldest, longest-running film podcasts on the net, now in it’s twelfth year of podcasting!
Stay tuned beginning later this week for more on each festival as we prepare for this glorious and fun season…and don’t forget, we also have our Boston Fall Fiethta coming up later this year, filled with more glorious festivals and films!
Remember to tell all your friends it’s Boston Springs A Fethival season, and that eCinemaBoston will be THE place to be for coverage of it all!