Prepare for the 2020 Greater Farmington Film Festival with our film-by-film breakdown

It’s become an annual tradition in and around downtown Farmington. A time when the city is awash in arts and culture, when cinephiles from throughout the region--and likely beyond--descend upon the town for a weekend of feature films and documentaries, and many of them difficult to find anywhere else around these parts.

The line-up for the 2020 Greater Farmington Film Festival has been released. As announced by the kickstART Farmington non-profit organization, an organization that found its permanent home in downtown Farmington in the fall of 2019, these films represent some of the better films to be released lately. Or, as the tagline tells it, they are good films for a better world.

The Prison Within

Thursday, March 19 at 7:30 p.m.
Smith Theatre at Oakland Community College

Winner of the Best Social Justice Documentary prize at 35th annual Santa Barbara International Film Festival, the documentary features interviews with both survivors of violent crimes and prisoners convicted of murder at San Quentin prison, exploring the effects of trauma.

A Q&A with director Katherin Hervey follows the screening.

Normie

Friday, Marcy 20 at 7 p.m.
Farmington Civic Theatre

A woman examines her life as someone diagnosed with Down syndrome and what it means to be "normal."

Driveways

Friday, March 20 at 9 p.m.
Farmington Civic Theatre

A Korean war veteran forms a bond with a young Asian American after the boy’s mother travels to her late sister’s house to clean and sell it.

NYICFF Kid Flicks One

Saturday, March 21 at 10:30 a.m.
Farmington Civic Theatre

A presentation of short films for children ranging in ages from 3 to 7 years old. This event is free.

Skid Row Marathon

Saturday, March 21st at 7:00 pm
Farmington Civic Theater

A group of addicts and criminals from the famed Skid Row of Los Angeles experience changes in their lives following a criminal court judge’s order to form a running club.

By the Grace of God

Saturday, March 21 at 9:00 p.m.
Farmington Civic Theater

Three men form an alliance to take on the code of silence surrounding an abusive priest, facing trauma experienced long ago.

The Euphoria of Being

Sunday, March 22 at 2:00 p.m.
Holocaust Memorial Center

Director Réka Szabó asks Éva Fahidi, a 90-year-old Holocaust survivor, to collaborate on creating a dance theater piece.

Tickets for the festival, which cost $6 per film or $30 for a festival pass, are available online.

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MJ Galbraith is a writer and musician living in Detroit. Follow him on Twitter @mikegalbraith.