Seed&Spark To Launch Online Screening Platform With NewFilmmakers LA, Cineola And Big Read

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As virtual festivals become more front and center until in-person fests make a comeback, Seed&Spark has launched their new online screening platform starting June 5 with virtual events NewFilmmakers LA, Cineola and Big Read: Our Stories, Our Lives.

In response to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, Seed&Spark built the online screening platform for the entertainment, arts to connect the cultural community. With its existing streaming technology and its reputation in the indie space, the platform supports time-based events with ticketed screenings, shorts and series programs as well as live Q&As. As Deadline previously reported, Seed&Spark assembled a roster of celebrities who have signed on to host Q&As.

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“We’re thrilled to be launching our online screening platform to power events for organizations that also care deeply about the survival and wellbeing of the creative ecosystem,” said Emily Best, founder and CEO of Seed&Spark. “Participating in online festivals is critical for our collective cultural health — the filmmakers, arts organizations, cultural curators and audiences in communities large and small. The three festivals kicking off this launch with us are a perfect example of the true diversity of programming perspectives we need for creators’ work to really move the culture forward.”

The Seed&Spark-led Film Festival Survival Pledge has been taken by more than 248 arts organizations, including 199 film festivals since launching in March.

The NewFilmmakers LA Monthly Film Festival will have its first all-digital fest June 5-7 featuring the line-ups of InFocus: Female Cinema, InFocus: Asian Cinema and other official selections from the March and April 2020 monthly festivals postponed due to the pandemic. The event includes Q&As introduced by Academy-Award nominated writer Emily V Gordon (The Big Sick) and CNN contributor and author Jeff Yang.

Cineola’s annual festival is set for June 6-12 will feature a shorts block discussion with a special introduction by Jurassic World director Colin Trevorrow. Co-presented by the Bay Area Video Coalition, proceeds from the online festival will benefit San Francisco venues The Roxie and Artists’ Television Access, as well as CARECEN SF, a non-profit supporting Latino, immigrant and under-resources families in the San Francisco Bay Area.

And last but certainly not least, Big Read: Our Stories, Our Lives will showcase short films created by LGBTQIA storytellers on June 6. Organized by the California LGBT Arts Alliance and with the support from the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, Big Read is a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest. The programming will feature film screenings as well as readings from a collection of poems by Stephanie (formerly Stephen) Burt. These will be made available for free with registration.

All screenings can be watched on any internet-connected device. Visit each festival for full lineups.

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