APRIL 8, 2024 - APRIL 14, 2024
A Letter from the directors
As we step into our 23rd annual Ivy Film Festival, we hold immense gratitude toward our community—comprised of collaborative, passionate, and exceptionally kind individuals—who continuously nurture our development and growth as an organization.
At the heart of our festival lies a steadfast commitment to cultivating equity and inclusion within the industry, and within our own community of emerging creatives. Reflecting on last semester, we stood with fellow creatives during the longest strike in Hollywood's history—a movement to secure greater protections and rights for both present and future generations of artists. Throughout this period, the resilience of independent filmmaking sustained both the spirit and livelihoods of countless industry professionals. It's within this context that student filmmaking emerges as an unyielding force, emblematic of the independent spirit that fuels this industry's creativity and resilience.
The Ivy Film Festival is proud to serve as a premier showcase for a diverse array of talented student filmmakers and their innovative work. We remain committed to creating pathways for emerging student filmmakers to engage with their craft and tell the stories most meaningful to them. In this spirit, we are ecstatic to share that IFF’s Rising Star Grant will return for its third year, to provide financial support to marginalized young talents seeking an entryway into the industry. Additionally, this year, we are thrilled to host our awarded filmmakers in Providence, and create opportunities for them to connect with one another and experience audiences embracing their work.
While Festival Week remains our largest endeavor, IFF works year-round to host an array of screenings and events, many of which take place in collaboration with a variety of organizations. In October, we collaborated with Fashion at Brown and the Brown Center for Students of Color to showcase "INVISIBLE BEAUTY," delving into Bethann Hardison's impactful legacy of combating racism and promoting diversity in fashion. The event, featuring a conversation with Hardison herself, highlighted multifaceted approaches to combating injustice and advocating for equitable change. In December, we united with Students for Justice in Palestine, shedding light on how U.S. media bias has villainized and suppressed Palestinians’ decades-long struggle for liberation. In February, we partnered with Brown Center for Students of Color’s South West Asian and North African Heritage Series to celebrate the vibrant history and heritage of Moroccan and African music with a screening of "TRANCES." And this year, we launched our New Media Public Art Initiative, a project to reclaim public spaces for innovative student art.
The work we do at IFF does not happen in a vacuum. It represents a culmination of twenty-three years worth of dedicated students striving to build an industry we can and want to be a part of. As we kick off Ivy Film Festival 2024, we cannot help but feel incredible gratitude for our devoted staff members and coordinators, who have given their hearts and minds to crafting this festival. Everything we have accomplished as a festival, we credit to them and to our loyal, enthusiastic audience. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you.
Ivy Film Festival 2024 is a gift to you. As always, we have taken extreme care to curate our Screenplay, New Media, and Programming Official Selections. Our three Official Selection film blocks, “LIMBO,” “UNDERGROWTH,” and “REVERB,” offer audiences the opportunity to explore novel viewpoints through imaginative works of remarkable quality and intention. We sincerely hope these films leave you as invigorated and impassioned as they do us. Although our film festival only lasts a week, it is our greatest wish that its impact imprints your minds and the film industry forever.
As the world around us remains plagued by injustice and grief, we are consistently reminded of art’s ability to pull us out of life’s darkest corners, and lead our eyes to meticulously-concealed truths. We are honored to be a vessel and platform for artistic expression and generative discussion. May Ivy Film Festival 2024 foster inspiration, joy, and peace within our dear Brown, RISD, and Providence community, and within every corner of the world it may reach. We thank you for being a part of our journey, and for allowing us to be a part of yours.
With love,
Ana Boyd ’24, Gaayatri Godbole ’25, Tara Mandal ’24, Maiya Jannah Ramsaroop ’25