Coming up in Philly film: Festivals galore

Spring is upon us, and the Philadelphia film community is back in full swing with four fantastic, diverse film festivals this March.

The Israeli Film Festival of Philadelphia is hosting its monthlong program at multiple venues throughout the city on weekends and select weekdays through March 25. Many of the weekend screenings at Lightbox Film Center are close to selling out, so be sure to purchase your tickets in advance ($6 to $15).

The University of Pennsylvania Middle Eastern Center and Cinema Studies host the Middle Eastern Film Festival March 20 through 24 on campus at Fisher-Bennett Hall (Room 401). All screenings start at 6pm and are free and open to the public, except for the Saturday, March 24, screening of Longing, which will be shown in partnership with the Israeli Film Festival at Lightbox Film Center.

The Women’s Film Festival

Now in its fourth year, The Women’s Film Festival of Philadelphia (TWFF) returns March 16 through 24 with its largest program yet. Hosted in eight venues across town and spanning nine days, including an opening at the Kimmel, the festival will present more than 75 films from 17 countries. Purchase individual tickets ($8 to $15) or an all-access badge ($100).

TWFF will provide a refreshing approach to intersectional feminism with programs like Free at Last? (screening on Saturday, March 17, at 3:30pm at Drexel’s URBN Annex), which examines the reality of race relations from the feminist gaze, shared by women of color across a multitude of ethnicities. Short-film topics in this program include immigrant-labor abuse, an homage to Nina Simone, and the 2017 Women’s March movement.

On Sunday, March 18 at 6pm at the same location (co-presented by Taller Puertorriqueño), catch Angelica, about a mixed-race Afro-Latina struggling with issues of colorism while navigating her father’s end-of-life care. Fifty percent of the ticket sales for Angelica will go towards Taller’s Puerto Rico Recovery Fund, aiding hurricane-relief efforts.

If you’re interested in some off-screen programming, check out TWFF’s screening of feature documentary A Fine Line on Thursday, March 22, at 8pm, detailing the struggles of women in the culinary profession, who make up less than six percent of executive chefs nationwide. The screening comes to Chima Brazilian Steakhouse, where $35 admission includes dinner.

qFLIX Philadelphia

Fans of ABC’s Fresh Off the Boat won’t want to miss series star Constance Wu in lesbian sex comedy The Feels, screening Sunday, March 25 at 2:30pm at UArts. This film is presented in partnership with qFLIX Philadelphia, as part of a special two-feature and two-shorts program collaboration hosted between the festivals during their overlapping dates.

March 19 through 25, qFLIX (known as QFest for 20 years) celebrates its fourth year since rebranding. The 2018 program includes more than 33 features and five shorts programs, which represent the best of this year’s LGBTQ+ independent cinema offerings both domestically and abroad. Purchase individual tickets ($8 to $15) or an all-access badge ($175).

This year’s festival opens with a black-tie gala at the Kimmel at 6:30pm on Monday, March 19, and the Philadelphia premiere of musical dramedy Hello Again. Based on the critically acclaimed off-Broadway musical of the same title, Hello Again’s ensemble engages in a variety of love trysts, told through a series of musical vignettes spanning 10 distinct periods throughout New York City’s history. Following the screening, qFLIX will host a catered open-bar reception at the One Liberty Observation Deck; entry to both events is included in the $150 ticket.

qFLIX will host several North American premieres of sought-after international films. On Friday, March 23, at 7:15pm at Plays & Players, check out Voyage: a young Chinese psychiatrist embarks on a lone sea voyage through Southeast Asia, attempting to reconcile with his own depression amid the memories of former patients. That same evening, there’s also A Moment in the Reeds, detailing a summer fling between a Finnish university student and a Syrian asylum seeker, set against the backdrop of rural Finland (screening 7:30pm at UArts).

Another highlight is the East Coast premiere of The Revival, a tense romance about a secret affair between a Southern Baptist preacher and a young drifter that threatens both the preacher’s marriage and his fledgling congregation (screening at noon on Saturday, March 24, at Plays & Players).

Finally, don’t miss qFLIX’s closing-night screening of After Louie (8pm on Sunday, March 25, at the Kimmel), which tells the story of a queer 50-something artist who begins a relationship with a gay millennial. Uniting two generations of gay men with incredibly different experiences, Los Angeles Blade says it “may well be the most important gay movie you’ll see in your lifetime.” The closing-night awards presentation finishes the evening.

Above: Angelica, screening at TWFF on March 18, explores a family's experience of colorism in hospice care. (Image via IMDB.)