Every June, Bethlehem's South Side becomes the unlikely home of one of the most eclectic film festivals on the East Coast. The SouthSide Film Festival has been screening independent cinema since 2004, and in that time it has shown nearly 1,900 films from 47 states and 107 countries. For a non-competitive, nonprofit festival in a mid-sized Pennsylvania city, those numbers are remarkable.
A Different Kind of Film Festival
The SouthSide Film Festival is non-competitive, which means there are no awards or prizes. Films are selected because they are worth seeing, not because they are competing against each other. That philosophy creates a more relaxed, community-focused atmosphere. Filmmakers show up not to campaign for trophies but to share their work with an audience that genuinely cares about independent storytelling.
Screenings take place at some of Bethlehem's most distinctive venues: the Cathedral Church of the Nativity, Touchstone Theatre, the Univest Public Media Center, and the Frank Banko Alehouse Cinemas at SteelStacks. Each venue adds its own character to the viewing experience. Watching a documentary in a Gothic cathedral hits different than watching it in a multiplex.
Local and Global
The programming balances local and international voices. You might see a short film by a Lehigh Valley filmmaker followed by a feature from South Korea or Nigeria. That range of perspectives is one of the festival's greatest strengths. It reminds you that great filmmaking happens everywhere, including right here in your own backyard.
21 Years and Counting
The fact that this festival has survived and thrived for over two decades speaks to the depth of the Lehigh Valley's appetite for independent art. The SouthSide Film Festival is not trying to be Sundance or Tribeca. It is something smaller and more personal, a community gathering around the shared experience of watching stories told by people who might not get a platform anywhere else.
