The Atlanta Film Festival + Creative Conference (ATLFF), presented by WarnerMedia, announced that the 44th annual event will now take place from Thursday, September 17 – Sunday, September 27, 2020. The festival was originally scheduled to take place in the spring, but was postponed last week due to precautions surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to the date announcement, the festival has also shared the lineup of creative works, feature-length and short films selected from a record-breaking 8,500+ submissions for the 2020 event.
“We are committed now more than ever to presenting a 2020 Atlanta Film Festival that represents the talent, passion and resilience of the city of Atlanta,” said Christopher Escobar, Executive Director of ATLFF. “While we are disappointed that we are not able to share the stellar lineup announced today as we originally planned in the spring, we are grateful to our sponsors, filmmakers, and supporters for their enthusiasm and dedication that have made it possible for the festival to move to September. We recognize that this is an already busy time of year, and hope to collaborate with as many existing events and organizations as possible to present a 2020 event that truly represents all that Atlanta has to offer.”
The selected works include 38 feature length films, 86 short films and 24 creative media that will be presented during the 11-day festival. This is in addition to the six narrative and documentary features announced in January as the first wave. Five winning screenplays from the screenplay competition will also be announced at a later date. Though ATLFF intends to present the lineup as announced, films are subject to change.
Among the works announced today, there are 20 narrative and 18 documentary features, 14 short film blocks, as well as music videos and virtual reality experiences from the creative media category. Fourteen films are slated to have their world premieres at the festival.
A forthcoming slate of Marquee screenings & Creative Conference events, including Opening and Closing Night presentations, as well as Special Presentations will also join the lineup.
“The programming team, with the support of a multitude of volunteer screeners, has been working since last May to review thousands of submissions in order to select the 148 works announced today,” ATLFF Programming Director Alyssa Armand stated. “Revealing our lineup so soon after the announcement of our postponement is bittersweet, but we are proud to acknowledge the work of the filmmakers we have selected for this year’s festival along with the new dates.”
The 10th annual Creative Conference, a five-day series of 40+ educational events, will remain a key part of ATLFF’s programming. The festival will again host some of the top professionals in the entertainment industry to share their latest ideas, innovations and observations. The Creative Conference lineup of panelists and moderators are expected to be finalized and announced as the September event nears.
With diversity in programming being a cornerstone of ATLFF, this year’s selections have continued with that tradition. In 2020, 55 percent of the selected works are directed by female filmmakers, and more than half are directed by filmmakers of color. These numbers are up 5 percent and 10 percent, respectively, from 2019.
Works from 118 different countries were submitted for the 2020 festival, and 40 countries are represented in the chosen lineup. ATLFF also recognizes the cultural and filmmaking importance of its home state, and with that, approximately 20 percent of the works have ties to the state of Georgia.
Specialty tracks of New Mavericks, which celebrates female excellence in film, ¡CineMás!, which focuses on Latin American culture, and Pink Peach, which features films with LGBTQ stories and characters, all return in 2020.
“We are thrilled that for the fifth year in a row, a record number of diverse and incredibly talented filmmakers and artists submitted works to our festival,” Escobar continued. “Our selections bring the most compelling visual storytelling the world has to offer to Atlanta, while also representing the rich diversity of the city itself.”
The Atlanta Film Festival is the annual centerpiece of educational and enriching film programming that is provided year-round by its parent organization, the Atlanta Film Society (ATLFS). Now in its fifth decade, ATLFF was recently named in USA Today’s ‘10Best Film Festivals’ Reader’s Poll for the second year in a row.
Festival badges, Creative Conference badges and IMAGE Film Awards Gala tickets are on sale now at www.AtlantaFilmFestival.com. Any previously purchased badges will be honored for the new dates. For people that can no longer attend the festival and have already purchased badges for the original dates, the festival has relaxed its refund policy. Please visit the website and the FAQ page for details on refunds.
Additional announcements will be made as programming is added to the 2020 ATLFF lineup. ATLFS and ATLFF will continuously monitor the COVID-19 pandemic and follow guidelines from leaders and experts, and issue any event updates as needed. To stay up-to-date, please visit the website and follow the festival on social media via Facebook (@atlantafilmfestival), Twitter (@atlantafilmfest) and Instagram (@atlantafilmfestival).
