Get ready – here it comes again! The 28th Heartland International Film Festival (HIFF) will take place Oct. 10-20 in venues throughout Indianapolis and The Historic Artcraft Theatre in Franklin. With a record 200 plus feature films and 400 film screenings, HIFF is the largest and longest-running film festival in Indiana.
Great Day TV will have extensive coverage of the festival as well as present a TV special, “Ticket to Heartland,” which will be streamed and available on www.GreatDayTV.com, Facebook and other social media.
“Great Day TV is swelling with pride as we honor the 28th Annual Heartland International Film Festival,” says show host Patty Spitler. “The devotion and dedication to sharing film excellence from around the world by presenting various movies at exclusive Indianapolis Premieres is nothing short of amazing. Plus, honoring some of filmland’s most cherished celebrities is just a fabulous addition. Heartland is heartfelt!”
Closing HIFF on Sunday, Oct. 20, will be the Warner Bros. release “Just Mercy” directed by Destin Daniel Cretton and starring Michael B. Jordan, Jamie Foxx, and Brie Larson, based on the memoir of the same name by Bryan Stevenson.
“We could not be more excited about what’s in store for this year’s Heartland International Film Festival and welcome filmgoers to explore our bold cinematic space,” said Craig Prater, Heartland Film President. “From award contenders, premieres, stars, and sensational events, Heartland is proud to be able to represent this important art form on such an international scale here in Indiana.”
The festival will present Director Michael Apted and actor Cloris Leachman with Lifetime Achievement Awards as well as host anniversary screenings with Brendan Fraser, Michael Childers, and Dennis Christopher. Cloris Leachman is unable to attend but is sending a video acceptance speech.
The festival will award $60,000 in cash prizes across multiple categories, recognizing the best in independent filmmaking from all over the world. Only 10 finalist films are chosen to compete for HIFF Grand Prizes; five Narrative Features and five Documentary Features. Each category will carry a $15,000 cash prize. Fifty percent of these competition titles are directed or co-directed by women. At HIFF 2019, 43 percent of the films in the overall lineup are directed or co-directed by women.
Beyond its top prizes, HIFF will present cash awards for Best International Feature Film Oscar® Contender, best premieres, Indiana Spotlight, Richard D. Propes Social Impact Awards, Humor and Humanity, and the Jimmy Stewart Legacy Award, which is the only sanctioned festival award in the beloved actor’s namesake approved by the Stewart Family.
Tickets for HIFF events and screenings are on sale and can be purchased online at www.heartlandfilmfestival.org.
Heartland Film is a nonprofit arts organization founded in 1991 with the mission to inspire filmmakers and audiences through the transformative power of film. For more information, visit www.heartlandfilm.org.