Movies at the Mill will come full circle for the 10th annual festival and celebration of independent film.
The popular Easton event will be held 6 p.m. Sept. 29 on the grounds of the former Simon Silk Mill property, now known as Silk -- the same location which inspired the festival's namesake and where the event was first held in 2009.
Attendees will be treated to screenings of genre-spanning short films created and submitted by regional, national and international filmmakers, according to a news release.
"I can promise you when you sit down to view the films that we curated, you will be engaged and entertained," teases Movies at the Mill founder and chairman Gershon Hinkson in the release.
In keeping with tradition, the festival kick off earlier in the day with its signature filmmaking seminar. Previous seminars have featured talks by documentarian Morgan Spurlock, of Super Size Me fame, writer-actor-director Gary Ross and director Doug Liman. More details on this year's guest speaker will be revealed shortly, according to an event spokesperson.
Movies at the Mill will again feature savory and sweet culinary fare provided by Easton-based restaurants and eateries, including Ocean, Sette Luna and participating Silk restaurants, the release states. There will also be live music, a deejay, tours of the adjacent Karl Stirner Arts Trail and Silk apartments, a VIP lounge, and an on-site beer garden.
A ribbon cutting ceremony highlighted by Easton Mayor Sal Panto Jr. and other local, state and federal dignitaries will take place just prior to the screening, according to the release.
General admission tickets cost $30 in advance, $40 at the door. VIP tickets cost $125 per person and include VIP seating, parking lounge access, and a beer and wine bar. Tickets can be purchased through the Movies at the Mill Facebook page.
The Silk complex currently houses several apartments and businesses, including Brick + Mortar Gallery, Easton Wine Project, Tucker Silk Mill, Trinity Fitness, Salon at the Silk, Separatist Beer Project, and Boser Geist Brewing Company, among others. Silk is located at 13th Street and Bushkill Drive.
The first Movies at the Mill was held in 2009 at the Silk property. The event remained there for four years before relocating in 2013 to Easton's Hugh Moore Park and in 2014 to the State Theatre. Movies at the Mill has recently been held at the parking deck behind City Hall; last year's event was held on the roof of the facility.
In the near decade since its inception, Movies at the Mill has showcased short films directed, written, and produced by Lehigh Valley-based and international filmmakers, as well as guest submissions from such Hollywood talent as actor-director Danny DeVito and actor Matthew Modine. (DeVito's short film Curmudgeons took won the 2017 Movies at the Mill Best in Show award.)
Hinkson's lengthy resume includes editing credits on such Hollywood blockbusters as Spider-Man 2, Edge of Tomorrow, True Grit, and the recent Ocean's Eight. He directed the 2011 short film The Turtle & the Nightingale.