After COVID-19 forced a virtual Big Muddy Film Festival last year, organizers say they are excited to bring the event back to in-person screenings this year.
Filmmaker Sarah Lewison is an associate professor in SIU's School of Media Arts, and she says her inbox is busy with people telling her how excited they are to be coming to Carbondale.
"People have been writing to me on Facebook and saying they're excited about the Big Muddy Film Festival being in person again, and they're going to come into town and come to the Festival."Sarah Lewison
Among the jurors who will be in Carbondale, is a filmmaker originally from Iran who, Lewison says , expands the boundaries of film art.
"Her name is Roya Ebtehaj and she makes really extraordinary short films but also installations, those are kind of immersive works that people can step into."Sarah Lewison
A total of 81 films will be featured at this year's festival which opens on February 24 with a reception at the Morris Library Rotunda at 2:00 p.m.
Later that evening, the public can view the film titled, "18 1/2" at the Varsity Center for the Arts. This a dark comedy film produced by one of the jurors, filmmaker Dan Mirvish, about a about a fictional transcriber from the Watergate Era.
All events are free and open to the public, and masks are required in shared indoor spaces.
For more information about this year's Big Muddy Film Festival, browse to: http://www.bigmuddyfilmfestival.com/
