There are many film festivals in Philadelphia. Many of them support diversity and try to be accessible. The BlackStar Film Festival rolls out the red carpet for inclusivity. The festival goes above and beyond to welcome audiences who might be physically challenged or have difficulty experiencing the festival. The festival staff have taken extreme measures to make the programming accessible to a wide range of people. The 2024 BlackStar Film Festival celebrates voices from the Black, Brown and Indigenous Communities.
The first departure from standard festival operations is the mask-requirement for all indoor theaters. Attendees were encouraged to bring their own masks but there were black face masks at the ready. Masking provided protection for the older or infirm attendees. If you couldn’t make it to the festival, there were films to stream; there was a robust online offering of selections.
The program listed films that might need a “content & trigger warning”; for content that might be emotionally challenging or of a sexual nature. And a notice about programs that featured strobe lights. There was ASL interpretation for question-and-answer sessions and panels, as well as close captioning for film screenings. Plus, there was a Quiet Room for attendees who might need to decompress between screenings and a parent/lactation room available.
It was a banner year for the 13th Annual BlackStar Film Festival with 16,000 people attending, in person or online. The Opening Night film, Dreams In Nightmares was sold out. Director Shatara Michelle Ford and many of the cast members were on-hand for the talk back at the end of the 2-hour screening. Billed as a queer road trip movie, this second feature from Ford was beautifully photographed with emotionally resonant performances. The dream sequences were a little repetitive and inconclusive, but the audience seemed to really enjoy the film. It was a lovely celebration of the importance of acceptance, self-love and friendship.
Another Philly-based filmmaker, Kristal Sotomayor, brought their short documentary, Expanding Sanctuary to the festival and which resulted in the Best Philadelphia Filmmaker Award. The story centers one woman as she seeks to bring her mother to Philly for her wedding. Linda Hernandez, an immigrant from Mexico, discovers that she needs to join a local organization to facilitate the visa required. Hernandez progresses from listening and learning at meetings of the Juntos organization, a community-led Lantine immigrant organization in South Philly, to becoming an advocate. Hernandez eventually becomes an outspoken activist. She even appears at a protest in her wedding gown.
Expanding Sanctuary shines a light on recent Philadelphia history when US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) were allowed access to the police database, PARS. That information was used by ICE to deport a record number of immigrants with no criminal background. The film ends with a crucial ruling on whether the city of Philadelphia will continue to allow ICE that access. Sotomayer was given intimate access to film Linda’s life and even her wedding. The filmmaking team does a wonderful job capturing both the everyday struggles and the triumphs of the story. Expanding Sanctuary tells a rarely told story about a Latinx immigrant community’s successful journey to change legislation and protect families.
Kristal Sotomayor is a Bryn Mawr college graduate who got a start in filmmaking with a thesis film, To My Motherland. The film screened at many film festivals and Sotomayor even traveled to Germany with the movie. Sotomayor said that was when they realized that this could be a profession and not just a passion. I had the pleasure of speaking with Kristal. I admire their talent and ambition. Kristal is a first-generation filmmaker, who’s family is from Peru. Kristal is non-binary and they have an incredible work ethic. An acclaimed director, producer, journalist and curator, Kristal has been named one of “10 Latinx Filmmakers You Should Know About” by HipLatina.
Kristal has been distinguished as a 2023 DOC NYC Documentary New Leader Honoree and received the prestigious Rockwood Documentary Leadership. They’ve started Sotomayor Productions, a queer BIPOC-owned media company based in Philadelphia and Pittsburg. This was a pivotal film festival for Sotomayor, aside from the Philadelphia Filmmaker Award, they were also selected for the 2024 Philadelphia Filmmaker Lab, in which they will receive $50,000 for their fiction debut film La Sirenita.
Congratulations to Kristal Sotomayor and all the winners for the 2024 BlackStar Film Festival. It’s the community of Philadelphia that’s also a winner, because we get to enjoy the work of this great organization!
| Juried Awards |
| Best Feature Documentary Songs From the Hole dir. Contessa Gayles Best Short Narrative Boat People dir. Al’Ikens Plancher Best Experimental Film Two Refusals (Would We Recognize Ourselves Unbroken?) dir. Suneil Sanzgiri Best Feature Narrative After the Long Rains dir. Damien Hauser Best Short Documentary And Still, It Remains dirs. Arwa Aburawa & Turab Shah |
| Special Awards |
| Philadelphia Filmmaker Award Expanding Sanctuary dir. Kristal Sotomayor The Center for Cultural Power’s Climate Change Award Bring Them Home dirs. Daniel Glick, Ivan MacDonald & Ivy MacDonald Pitch Winner Highways dir.Zeshawn Ali Pitch Runner-up Halal Bodies dir. Nausheen Dadabhoy |
| Audience Awards |
| Favorite Feature Documentary You Don’t Have to Go Home, But… dir. Aidan Un Favorite Feature Narrative Inky Pinky Ponky – the Odd One Out dirs. Damon Fepule’ai & Ramon Te Wake Favorite Experimental Film Two Refusals (Would We Recognize Ourselves Unbroken?) dir.Suneil Sanzgiri Favorite Short Narrative Burnt Milk dir.Joseph Douglas Elmhirst Favorite Short Documentary A Symphony of Tiny Lights dirs.Nadia Gill & Dominic Gill |
| BlackStar Announces: North Star Fellows & Philly Filmmaker Lab Fellows |
| Over the festival weekend BlackStar also announced the inaugural North Star Fellows, in partnership with Points North Institute and the 2025 Philadelphia Filmmaker Lab Fellows, presented with lead support by Black Experience on Xfinity. The 2024 North Star Fellows are Imani Dennison, Lokotah Sanborn, Rea Tajiri, and Zac Manuel. The 2025 Philadelphia Filmmaker Lab Fellows are Andrew Bilindabagabo, Chisom Chieke, Kristal Sotomayor, and Walé Oyéjidé. Learn more about these incredible filmmakers, their work, and the fellowships in our press release. |
Drinks with films 
nice!! Diversity, Inclusion, and Community Spirit–BlackStar Film Festival