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Arts Playlist: Dirty Popcorn Black Film Festival

A filmmaker and videographer is bringing Wilmington its first ever Black film festival later this year.

In this week’s Arts Playlist, Dirty Popcorn Black Film Festival founder Jet Phynx and festival director Ryan Eagen chat with Delaware Public Media’s Kelli Steele.

Delaware Public Media's Kelli Steele interviews Jet Phynx and Ryan Eagen from the Dirty Popcorn Black Film Festival

The Dirty Popcorn Black Film Festival is coming to the Delaware Art Museum in August.

The festival is accepting short film submissions from regional Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) filmmakers until May 31.

The festival’s director Ryan Eagan says they’re looking for short films in three categories - narrative, including drama or fiction; documentary and experimental, including music videos and animation.

“We wanted a little bit of everything," Eagan said. "You know there’s more than just feature films and that route. So we kept it very broad in that sense and under those three categories, just about anything can be submitted. It’s all welcome because it’s all visual talent. And like Jet said, that’s what he wants to do- is that he really wants to give a platform for anybody who is creating.”

Films need to be under 30 minutes and from filmmakers in Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania or New York. There is no fee to submit.

Festival founder Jet Phynx says he sees a lot of talent in his home state of Delaware.

“I travel all over the world," Phynx said. "I’ve been from California to Japan and pretty much everywhere. But one thing about the State of Delaware I’ve always seen, there’s a lot of great creators who need a platform - they need a voice in the spotlight to shine more onto their work.”

Selected films will be showcased at the Delaware Art Museum over the first three Sundays in August.

On the final Sunday of the month, the festival will screen the best films in various categories - followed by an awards ceremony.

You can read more about the film festival and make your submissions here.

Delaware Public Media' s arts coverage is made possible, in part, by support from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency dedicated to nurturing and supporting the arts in Delaware, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts.

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Kelli Steele has over 30 years of experience covering news in Delaware, Baltimore, Winchester, Virginia, Phoenix, Arizona and San Diego, California.