San Diego International Film Festival announces 2021 programming line-up

As the San Diego International Film Festival prepares for the 20th anniversary of the festival this October, Tonya Mantooth, CEO/artistic director, recently announced the launch of MySDFilmFest, the San Diego International Film Festival Channel, ShortsFest and Town Hall Series.

According to Mantooth, “The work we did last October to present the Re-Imagined San Diego International Film Festival in our Virtual Village has truly transformed our organization from a primarily San Diego/Southern California-based event to an international year-round content provider focused on the power of cinematic storytelling. So as we’re planning our 20th anniversary festival this coming October, we’ve built out our line-up with year-round memberships and programming.”

The SD International Film Festival Channel will showcase films each month including live chats with the filmmakers. The channel will be an exclusive benefit for subscribers to the MySDFilmFest membership – a global community of film lovers supporting international independent film. The festival’s virtual Town Hall Series kicks off in April. This series features social impact films - pairing the filmmakers with community leaders in moderated Q & A panels. The festival is also launching the San Diego International ShortsFest May 21-23 – featuring short films, networking with filmmakers from around the world, panels and presentations representing the very best in short film storytelling. All of the virtual programming culminates with the expanded 11-day 20th Anniversary San Diego International Film Festival Oct. 14-24, 2021.

“The big question is whether or not there will be in-person events by the Oct. 20 anniversary festival. As for the return of the physical events, we’re all hopeful. We’ll more than likely be hosting drive-in movies again and perhaps there will be other live events. Either way, we’ll have a full year of presenting films, doing live chats with international filmmakers and building a community of film lovers from around the world,” said Mantooth. “Community is all the more important now. Stories are also more important now than ever. Film allows people to come together and have dialogue - and a virtual platform lends itself to a global conversation. Expanding our Virtual Village is providing storytellers - both local and global - a platform to continue telling stories and bring important films to the screen.”

For more information, visit www.sdfilmfest.com.

MySDFilmFest Membership - Yearly subscription is $100. Or $9.99 a month.

Subscribers receive exclusive access to the San Diego International Film Festival Channel, the Townhall series, surprise screenings throughout the year, discounts to the San Diego International ShortsFest in May, the San Diego International Film Festival in October and more.

MySDFIlmFest Subscription: Enjoy films and discounts all year. https://sdfilmfest.com/passes-tickets-2021/