Local Film Festivals
Film buffs can get their fix at a variety of festivals on campus and throughout Richmond.
Below are some options to consider.
French Film Festival
For 28 years, the French Film Festival has earned acclaim, in the U.S. and in France, for introducing more than 800 French and francophone films to American audiences.
The Festival has welcomed to Richmond more than 900 directors, screenwriters, actors, cinematographers, music composers, and artists-technicians. Since 2003, it has been recognized formally by former French Ambassador to the U.S., His Excellency Jean-David Levitte, as the most important French film festival in the country.
This festival, founded and organized by Drs. Peter and Françoise Kirkpatrick, professors of French literature, culture and film studies at Virginia Commonwealth University and University of Richmond respectively, has distinguished itself over the years with numerous North American premiere screenings and several world premieres.
Richmond International Film Festival
Richmond International Film Festival (RIFF), one of the largest international competitive film festivals in the Mid-Atlantic, brings cutting edge film & music to the beautiful historic city of Richmond, Virginia.
RVA is a thriving arts, food, and craft brewery city in the U.S. and has been voted as one of the best places for moviemakers to work & live in the country, and top places for indie filmmakers to shoot their projects (Moviemaker Magazine).
Pocahontas Film Festival
The Pocahontas Reframed Film Festival honors the contributions of Native Americans and reinvigorates conversations about telling stories of indigenous life.
The festival aims to raise awareness about Native American language, cultures, and societies through films that share Native American perspectives. The festival, which is the only one of its kind on the East Coast, brings together artists, authors, cineastes, and actors who share a passion for film and features experiential learning opportunities for the entire public. In the past, filmmakers have used demeaning stereotypes when incorporating Native characters or storylines, which lack nuance, accuracy, and complexity. The Pocahontas Reframed Film Festival offers new insight into previously under-told narratives.
RVA Environmental Film Festival
In 2008, the festival was founded as The Biggest Picture: Richmond’s First Environmental Film Festival under The James River Film Society.
In 2011, The Sierra Club – Falls Of The James group backed the event as Tthe RVA Environmental Film Festival.
Support from the community for the festival grows with each passing year.
James River Film Society
The James River Film Society (JRFS) is volunteer run nonprofit dedicated to the art of film and film as art.
The JRFS was originally formed as the Richmond Moving Image Co-op (RMIC) in 1999 through a partnership between the James River Film Festival (founded in 1994) and Flicker. RMIC was incorporated on March 1, 1999, and received its 501(c)(3) nonprofit status from the IRS on July 21, 1999. In 2010 the RMIC changed its name to the James River Film Society to better communicate its mission through its name. The JRFS is an all-volunteer run organization.