What's Up - Your guide to what's happening in Fayetteville, AR this week!
Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/1275002
8 WHAT'S UP! AUGUST 2-8, 2020 COVER STORY "However, that is not what happened here with Geena. Most people are familiar with the story of how the idea came to her of wanting to do something about creating equity and opportunities both in front of and behind the camera when she noticed her daughter watching TV programs dominated by male characters," Wildman recalls of the festival's inception. "'If you see it, you can be it' was inspired by that moment. That's organic. That's real. Not manufactured. And that's why those of us who work with the festival, and work with her, do so very much with the idea of furthering that mission than just doing a job. We believe in her, and we believe in what the film festival is trying to do to promote inclusion and diversity." "We're seeing some filmmakers that were here in 2015 in bigger and bigger and bigger roles, and hopefully one day they're international directors and stars and everything, and they could have started in a small festival circuit," Rebecca Elkins, this year's marketing director and CEO and co-owner of Bentonville's The Elkins Agency, says, demonstrating the festival's success. "So we don't want people to say, 'Oh, I don't want to do online.' These filmmakers still need support and we want to support them." Ever-expanding, this year's competition film category include 12 narrative films and 12 documentary films, 26 shorts and 10 episodic films up for consideration, plus the Spotlight films in both narrative film and short regional reels categories. All said, some 68 films will be showcased in the festival's sixth year — told by 80 percent female, 65 percent BIPOC and 40 percent LGBTQ+ directors and filmmakers. "I think what sets it apart is what always sets the festival apart — our mission," Guerrero says of standing out in a sea of other virtual events. "I think you'll find a lot of pieces in there that are going to be inspirational. There's a strong commitment to our underrepresented voices that I think the audiences of the festival over the years have supported pretty aggressively by coming out and making sure that those filmmakers know how much they value their voice." Names like Keira Knightley, Greg Kinnear, LeVar Burton and SNL's Bowen Yang can be viewed from the safety of at-home screens in the competing films — not to mention the plethora of other underrepresented perspectives portrayed in the competition and Spotlight films. But while some may be disappointed at the lack of in-person engagement opportunities due to covid, Guerrero and Elkins both espouse what they hope will be advantages to the online format. Filmmaker Q&As and festival panels — like the crowd favorite "Geena & Friends" panel that reverses gender roles as female panelists read scenes from popular films with mostly male casts — will all take place virtually for the sixth annual Bentonville Film Festival. (NWA Democrat-Gazette File Photo/BEN GOFF) BFF Continued From Page 7