Lawrence-based Heartland Film Festival and its Indy Shorts Film Festival both made MovieMaker Magazine’s list of the 25 Coolest Film Festivals in the World for 2023.
“We’re thrilled that moviegoers, filmmakers and industry alike all feel welcomed and enjoy their time at our two festivals in Indianapolis,” Heartland stated in an announcement. “Join us this year and you can be cool, too!”
In the entry for Heartland Film Festival, the magazine stated that festival organizers show they really care about filmmakers.
“The events and parties took place all around Indianapolis in cool and modern places,” the magazine stated. “One of the parties took place at a bowling alley, and it was such a great way to meet and mingle with filmmakers while playing a game.”
The magazine states that the 31-year-old Heartland Film Festival has a team that defines the word cool, combining Midwestern hospitality with “sublime taste.”
Heartland Film Festival’s 2023 festival is set for Oct. 5-15.
Hearland’s six-day Indy Shorts Film Festival, which wrapped up on July 23, started six years ago to highlight short films. MovieMaker Magazine noted the Indy Shorts’ strong programming and the great prize money available to reward filmmakers.
“Along with Heartland, it’s one of our ’50 Film Festivals Worth the Entry Fee,’” the magazine stated.
Heartland Film Festival moved this year from the Fountain Square area in Indianapolis to the Sterrett Center, 8950 Otis Ave., in Lawrence. An official ribbon cutting for the festival’s new headquarters was in February.
