Now Attending: Bentonville Film Festival 2021
It’s time yet again for another film festival experience! Today kicks off the start of the 7th Bentonville Film Festival, happening in Bentonville, AR paired with a hybrid virtual version of the festival. With an incredible selection that includes narrative, documentary, and short presentations - some of which had their debuts at Sundance 2021 and SXSW 2021 - there will be a lot of great cinema to experience at BFF.
BFF runs for a week, from today August 2nd to August 8th.
Among the lineup are fantastic films that we at ForReel had the privilege of covering at other festivals over the past year. Like Uprooted, a phenomenal and insightful documentary about the origins and evolution of jazz dance which I had the chance to watch during Raindance 2020 last year. Or the high school law enforcement training documentary At The Ready, a Sundance 2021 premiere which I had the privilege to discuss with director Maisie Crow. BFF will also be screening the narrative feature See You Then, which I also had the chance to discuss with director Mari Walker and lead actors Pooya Mohseni and Lynn Chen.
In addition, the festival will host a 30th anniversary drive-in screening of Thelma & Louise on Tuesday, August 3. The event screening will be followed by a special exclusive conversation with the film’s star, Festival Chair, and Academy Award® winner Geena Davis as well as Academy Award®-winning screenwriter Callie Khouri.
There will also be dozens of short films screened during the festival as well, including the World Premiere of the shorts Beta, Following Hannah Stone, First Down, and I Was A Stranger.
BFF prides itself on showcasing excellence and diversity in filmmaking. In their press release announcing the initial lineup of films, they reported the following:
“In the BFF 2021 juried competition program, 71% are directed by women, 75% by people that are BIPOC or AAPI, and 33% by people of the LGBTQIA+ community. 70% of these films are written by women, 70% by people that are BIPOC or AAPI, 32% by people of the LGBTQIA+ community and 87% feature a female lead, 81% a BIPOC or AAPI lead, and 30% an LGBTQIA+ lead.”
So, there is no shortage of great talent and incredible storytelling this year at BFF, and it’s a privilege to be a part of covering the festival this year. I want to send a special thank you to the BFF press team for offering me the opportunity.
To learn more about Bentonville Film Festival and the non-profit organization that organizes the event, BFFOUNDATION, visit https://bentonvillefilm.org/. To view the schedule and get tickets, visit https://www.goelevent.com/BFF/e/List.