Geena Davis‘ Bentonville Film Festival will run from May 2 to May 7 in 2017, organizers announced on Wednesday.
Co-founded by the Oscar-winning actress and ARC Entertainment CEP Trevor Drinkwater, the Arkansas film festival champions women and diverse voices in the media.
BFF boasts that it is the “only film competition in the world to guarantee theatrical, television, digital and retail home entertainment distribution for its winners in the following categories: Best Family Film, Audience Award and Best Narrative Selected by Jury.”
“We are so very proud of the progress we’ve made and the response we are getting in support of the mission of BFF,” Davis said in a statement. “Now moving into our third year, I feel more confident than ever that — with the support of our partners — we will create change in the media our children view so that it will reflect the world they actually live in, which is half female and very diverse.”
The 2017 festival will expand its short film competitions and add a commercial competition while attendees can enjoy a lineup of narrative and documentary screenings, discussions and musical performances.
The festival’s second year experienced a 70 percent increase in attendance from the previous year with 63,000 seats filled. Notable guests last year included Meg Ryan, Soledad O’Brien, Nia Vardalos, Bruce Dern, Constance Wu and Darius Rucker.
Films accepted into the 2017 festival will be announced in March.