Columbia Film Festival

MISSION & OBJECTIVE The Columbia Film Festival aims to introduce Howard County audiences to the best in world, national, and local cinema, and is dedicated to inspiring and reflecting the diverse community it serves. ABOUT THE FESTIVAL The Columbia Film Festival was founded in 2016 and is produced by the Columbia Festival of the Arts. Originally presented to live audiences, in 2020 Columbia Film Festival was forced to move to a virtual platform due to the Covid 19 Pandemic. For 2021 The Columbia Film Festival again ran on a virtual platform with an Opening Night Gala presented at Merriweather Post Pavilion. For 2022 we plan to return to LIVE venues in Columbia, Maryland, however we will continue to offer a parallel track on a Virtual platform based on popular demand. The Festival will present films from all genres, including features, shorts, documentaries, world cinema, special themes, Films for Young Audiences, and Maryland based films, as well as work by student filmmakers. The Columbia Festival of the Arts is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit. Founded in 1987, the Festival’s popularity and growth has transformed it into one of the Baltimore/Washington Corridor’s premiere arts events. The Festival presents four weekend-long arts festivals throughout the year, comprised of both free and ticketed events, featuring world-class performances, exhibitions, film programs, concerts, family activities, master classes, workshops and community dialogues. Columbia Festival of the Arts brings together the arts community, businesses, local schools, and individuals to create events that shine a spotlight, not only on the arts, but on the Howard County community as a Maryland showplace. The mission of the Columbia Festival of the Arts is to present a world class celebration of the arts and entertainment that attracts, engages and inspires the broad and diverse community it serves. In support of its Vision and Mission the Columbia Festival of the Arts seeks to attract, engage and inspire through the achievement of the following goals: •Broaden the scope of programming to expand the diversity of offerings for greater community involvement and to increase the Festival’s year-round presence. •Deepen audience engagement through strong programming and artistic experiences. •Strengthen, expand and add local, as well as regional and national, partnerships. •Optimize leadership and management of the Festival and its engagement with Columbia and Howard County residents and businesses. •Build a financially sustainable organization. The Festival is dependent upon a variety of funding sources, including grants, corporate sponsorships and individual donations. The funds are used to subsidize Festival programming costs in order to make the arts accessible for people across a broad spectrum of social, cultural and economic strata. The Festival’s focus is on reaching out and embracing the vast and diverse community that exists in the region. Now in its 35th year, the Festival continues to thrive because so many organizations and individuals are committed to its success. Note: As part of the Columbia Festival of the Arts we are not affiliated with any other local or regional Film Festivals.