The 2020 Gold Coast International Film Festival, taking place on Oct. 13-20, is celebrating 10 years of bringing the best in new and independent films to audiences throughout the region.
For the first time ever, GCIFF will launch a digital platform for the Festival, which will host virtual screenings to engage with audiences within the community and beyond. The Festival will also feature a great selection of drive-in events. This year’s lineup showcases more than 70 feature-length and short films with filmmaker Q&As including documentaries, foreign films, narratives, dramas, comedies, and more.
GCIFF will kick off the Festival with its Opening Night Virtual Gala celebrating the 25th Anniversary of Gold Coast Arts on October 13, at 7:30 p.m. The gala, which is free to the public, will highlight some of Gold Coast’s most unforgettable moments from its 25-year history as well as spotlight its current innovative online and in-person programs.
The Gala will include special performances and appearances by the legendary Joel Grey, Broadway star Melissa Errico, award-winning violinist Colin Jacobsen, Grammy-award winning musician Vince Giordano, and many Hollywood notables; plus performances by Gold Coast Arts students, faculty, and friends from The Children’s Orchestra Society.
Over the past 9 years, GCIFF’s Festival and year-round film screening series has premiered over 900 feature-length and short films from over 30 countries, many of which have gone on to receive the film industry’s highest awards, including 2019’s The Two Popes, starring Anthony Hopkins and Jonathan Pryce, Marriage Story, starring Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver, and Clemency, starring Alfre Woodard.
One of the hallmarks of Gold Coast’s film programs are filmmaker and special guest Q&As. Some of their most unforgettable moments include an audience of several hundred film lovers singing happy birthday to Bruce Dern as he accepted the GCIFF 2011 Legend Award; hearing Baz Luhrmann discusses his extraordinary filmmaking process in a live introduction to the sold-out premiere of The Great Gatsby; listening to Hugh Grant joke about his favorite diner meals while filming in Nassau County.
In 2017, the Gold Coast International Film Festival introduced the first Burton Moss Hollywood Golden Era Award, named after a man who has represented and befriended some of the greatest stars in Hollywood. The creation of this award, itself a genuine original work of art created by an internationally known sculptor, Edwina Sandys (granddaughter of Winston Churchill); preserves the legacy of the Golden Age of Hollywood and shines a spotlight on the stars who made it so great.
Information regarding film selection, drive-in screenings, and ticket sales will be available in the coming weeks at www.goldcoastfilmfestival.org. To RSVP for the 25th Anniversary Gala and for ways to help sponsor or support this important event, please visit www.goldcoastarts.org/gala25.
