Organizers of the Upton Film Festival are still reeling with excitement over the successful turnout from their inaugural event. 140Arts Collaborative hosted Upton’s first ever short film festival for 12 local filmmakers at the Upton Community Center on Friday, August 22nd and the audience was packed. 140Arts Vice President, Natalie Crosier, said she counted 71 guests. 

The film festival was structured in two 1-hour blocks, one for students and the other for professional filmmakers with an intermission between the two blocks so people could meet each other. Organizers hoped this Film Festival could connect the local filmmakers and create friendships and networking opportunities for each other in the area. 

Local filmmaker and published playwright, Robert Mattson, kicked off the professional block with his short titled, “Clunker” filmed at a local car dealership along route 140. The audience responded well to the comedy by laughing in all the right places. Over the course of the two-hour event, other genres were featured such as horror, comedy, experimental, documentary, docudrama, and mockumentary for a well-rounded evening. 

Organizers received supportive feedback from the audience following the event and look forward to making this an annual occurrence. If you would like to get on 140Arts email list to learn of other events happening in the area or have a suggestion of what you would like to participate in, email [email protected]. 

Submitted by Erika McGowan