BFI Flare is going digital. Originally scheduled to take place March 18-29, the London-based LGBTIQ+ fest was cancelled due to COVID-19. Now it’s getting a second life: organizers have announced a plan for a digital edition, Deadline reports.
Titled BFI Flare at Home, the fest will “run through the British Film Institute’s BFI Player application. Festivalgoers will be invited to screen a number of BFI Flare’s planned shorts and features from March 20th through March 29th, with those who had booked tickets offered a special deal on a subscription to the BFI Player service, and general audiences given a two-week trial,” the source details.
“BFI Flare is a very special and long standing festival with a loyal and dedicated following,” the BFI’s director of festivals Tricia Tuttle said in a statement. “When the decision was made to cancel the ‘live’ festival the team knew that they wanted to share some elements of BFI Flare digitally to celebrate the spirit of BFI Flare and the incredible range of LGBTIQ+ stories from talented filmmakers being told in the UK and internationally. We want to bring some of the spirit of Flare into viewers’ living rooms.”
BFI Flare at Home will include more than screenings. The fest is set to utilize BFI’s social media channels to host live filmmaker Q&As. Curated programmer selections and Spotify playlists will also be offered,
Programming details are expected to be confirmed “in the coming days,” according to Deadline. Titles originally set to screen at the fest included Jessica Swale’s “Summerland,” a WWII drama about a woman rediscovering her ability to love, and Isabel Sandoval’s “Lingua Franca,” a portrait of an undocumented Filipina transwoman living in New York City.
You can find more information about BFI Flare’s digital edition on the fest’s website.