BIFF Gears Up for 2021 Virtual Festival
It’s that time again. That’s right the 2021 Belize International Film Festival is almost here. This time around, thirty films and ten music videos will be featured in the festival that always includes both locally produced short films and documentaries, along with films from across the world. This year it is going to be all virtual. Founder and Director of the International Belize Film Festival Suzette Zayden is partnering with Caribbean Tales, an organization out of Canada. We spoke to Zayden via zoom to find out more about this year’s event and how you can gain access to the productions.
Suzette Zayden
Suzette Zayden, Founder & Director, BIFF
“We started late in the planning of the festival this year, because we were trying to understand how to stream a festival. Like I said, it is the first year we are doing this. There were a lot of privacy concerns. We were trying to figure out how we protect the films of the people who entrusted them to us, for screening, for just a particular time. We looked at several different options and we settled with Caribbean Tales based in Canada. And they have the Caribbean Tales film festival. They have a wide audience in the Diaspora who looks at them for all things Caribbean. I have worked with them in the past, and they agreed to come on board, basically as a sponsor this year and we will be presenting through their platform. The way it is going to work, our website will become live by Monday. Later today, or tomorrow we will be releasing the name of all the films on our Facebook page. Basically you will go to our website, at www.BelizeFilmFestival.com. You will see the films that you want. It will be like a Netflix situation. You will go to the films and you will have the option to choose either an individual film, by purchasing an individual ticket at ten dollars Belize, or five US. Or you can buy the full access pass for fifty Belize. So for fifty Belize, you will be able to see any of the films, at any time during the ten day period.”
The Belize International Film Festival officially launches on Friday November fifth, at seven thirty p.m., with a brief opening ceremony right here on Channel Five.
