CLEVELAND — The curtain has been raised for the 48th annual Cleveland International Film Festival.
"Our goal is to present the newest and best films from around the world and then we help people learn along the way," said Patrick Shepherd, CIFF associate director.
Over an 11-day span there will be 263 screenings at five theatres in Playhouse Square, with films representing 60 countries.
"The community that it brings together, it takes you on a trip around the world, it brings subjects from every walk of life and every way right here in Cleveland without having to travel that far for it," attendee Tim Piazza said.
Piazza is from Cleveland and has been attending CIFF for the last 31 years.
"My record in a year is about 36 films, this year will be a little less, I'll hit about 15," Piazza said.
Helen Wright said she wanted to support all of the major events in the city.
"What I love about it is everyone gets to shine, whether you're a big-time producer or someone who is just starting out," Wright said.
Wright said she hopes other Clevelanders will show their support as well, to draw more large events to the city in the future.
"We’ve always been the butt of jokes and Lake Erie catching on fire and the teams can never win, and it's just finally good to have some prideful events that are happening that are major that kind of puts us on par with Chicago and Atlanta," Wright said.
Actors, writers, directors and other film guests are also on hand to discuss their respective films. Josh Margolin, the writer and director of "Thelma," had his film featured on opening night.
"First time here, it's been amazing," Margolin said. "And it's interesting too because our lead, June Squibb, who is the lead of the movie, she started her career as an actress in the theatre at the Cleveland Play House, so there's some nice symmetry to it."
Margolin shared his take on the magic of film festivals.
"They’re so important because they keep a feeling I think of excitement around new discoveries, new movies, things that might not normally get the attention that a festival can garner," Margolin said.
Other films, like "All You Hear is Noise," feature local ties.
"It's executive produced by LeBron James and it's about three Special Olympics athletes, and the three athletes will be here alongside the director of the film," Shepherd said.
Organizers are hopeful the two other major events taking place in Cleveland, the NCAA Women's Final Four and the total solar eclipse, will bring in an even bigger crowd this year.
"This is a once in a lifetime opportunity the way we see it because there are going to be so many people downtown," Shepherd said.
Tickets for in-person screenings are $16 for CIFF members and $18 for non-members. The full schedule can be found here.
For those who cannot make the in-person showings, organizers say CIFF48 Streams will screen more than half of the festival's in-person films and nearly all of the short films online. Streaming screenings are priced at $12 for CIFF members and $14 for non-members.