IBMA Film Festival announces attractions

ibmaThe films to be screened during the debut IBMA Bluegrass Film Festival at the 2014 World of Bluegrass Convention have been announced. Eight different projects will be shown, including a pair of highlight films that were selected for special merit. All have been profiled here at Bluegrass Today and should be at least conceptually familiar to dedicated readers.

The two highlight films are Banjo Romantika by Lee Bidgood, and The Porchlight Sessions from Anna Schwaber, both documentaries. Bidgood’s project, made with Shara Lange, chronicles the development of the bluegrass music scene in Czech Republic, with assistance from East Tennessee State University. Porchlight is more a journey of discovery, where Schwaber travels to a number of bluegrass festivals and speaks with artists about the music’s history, and where it is going.

Both of these films will be screened during the business conference portion of the week, including a Q&A with the filmmakers. They will be shown again during that weekend’s Wide Open Bluegrass event, October 3-4, along with these six other selected productions:

The weekend screenings will be free of charge and open to the public.

Film Festival Committee Chair Michael Hall, who had initiated what is thought to be the very first bluegrass film festival for the Northern California Bluegrass Society in 2008, says that the organization is happy to now include the visual arts in its annual celebration.

“The first IBMA Film Festival will welcome bluegrass filmmakers to the mix of creative professionals at the World Of Bluegrass. Films about bluegrass music history, culture, performers, and lifestyles help tell the bluegrass story to existing fans and new fans alike. These films are now beginning to reach beyond ‘film’ audiences to ‘music’ audiences and are an important developing area of bluegrass event programming. Thanks to the IBMA’s staff and volunteers for supporting this new trend by introducing the films at the World Of Bluegrass.”

For more details on the IBMA Bluegrass Film Festival, and all eight of these films, visit IBMA online.

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About the Author

John Lawless

John had served as primary author and editor for The Bluegrass Blog from its launch in 2006 until being folded into Bluegrass Today in September of 2011. He continues in that capacity here, managing a strong team of columnists and correspondents.