Local film enthusiasts should be happy to know that our city will be hosting events next week that will proudly celebrate current independent cinema. The newly titled IF Film festival (formerly Flyover) will showcase a variety of works, some from from Sundance, Tribeca and SXSW, with a focus on Kentucky films and filmmakers. The festivals poster by Kevin Lippy and Rankin Mapother featuring a fingerprint and directors chair says a lot with its Saul Bassinspired simplicity.

In Louisvilles Nulu district, the festivals board members, sponsors and guests, including Mayor Greg Fisher, gathered at Decca Restaurant last week for wine, brandy, savory snacks and a sampling of what can be expected from the upcoming engagements.

Festival director Soozie Eastman found this partys location to be one of personal relevance. Her 2006 documentary, By the Wayside about homelessness in America, was partially shot in Deccas building when it used to be part of Wayside Christian Mission. The last time I was going up these stairs I was moving equipment, Eastman said, referring to a time she when was setting up to shoot an interview. It was nine years ago when I was coming up to someones room who had just fled her husband, and now this time Im looking to see where well be serving the Brandy. Its amazing how things change.

Eastmans enthusiasm for this event is clearly driven by her experience in the medium of filmmaking and hopes that the festival can offer a non-competitive atmosphere for artists to grow. I love watching different types of films because even if a film is not a wonderful film, I still learn from it, she said. I learn techniques that I dont want to emulate. In the same vein, I learn new tricks of the trade for telling my stories that do work, that I might never have thought of.

Filmmaker, producer and IF Film board member Stu Pollard has a history with festivals and a good connection with how Louisville runs them. This is the sixth iteration of the film festival that Louisville Film Society puts on and Ive been with them since the beginning, he said.

Before playing a demo reel for the festivals variety of films, the fests chairman, George Parker Jr., addressed the room with a little history of his organization. We started in 2007 and realized that of all the amazing arts organizations in the city, there wasnt anything that was supporting the cinematic arts. It was kind of a blossoming thing. What was happening was a lot of transient filmmakers coming back from L.A. and New York. We really felt that we needed arts organizations that supported bringing independent films here, providing opportunities for Kentucky filmmakers to have a venue for showing there films and also creating really cool experiences around town so that people could experience films different ways.

The Louisville Film Society have found unusual venues for presentation: A downtown rooftop, Bernheim Forest, and even beneath the Second Street Bridge a location-appropriate choice to project the comedy classic Stripes. While the Flyover Film Festival has brought interesting films to our city over the years, the new collaboration with IdeaFestival invites new possibilities.

We rebranded it IF Film, Parker said. IdeaFest has been one of the key festivals in our city. After the success of Flyover, Mayor Fisher proposed merging the two festivals with Parker and IdeaFestival founder Kris Kimmel.

It was kind of a win-win because running a festival is incredibly difficult, Pollard said. (Theres) a lot of people working on it both for pay and from a volunteer standpoint and a lot of outreach required. Hopefully what it means for the film festival, specifically, is a transition for us to get better in terms of larger audiences.

A scene from Produce.

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IF Film Fest: Where Great Cinema Thrives