Imperial Beach Film Festival and Art Walk is Going Green, Sept. 18th!

Imperial Beach (Photo from 'kotoviski' via Wikimedia)

Imperial Beach is home to some of the most famous Southern California beaches and eco-tourism sites, and since 2003 has also been the host of the Imperial Beach International Film Festival and Art Walk.

This year, the event organizer Steve Futterman, has adopted the popular trend of “going green” in order to support and recognize the conservation efforts from local artists within San Diego.

The festival this year will pay tribute to eco artists and film-makers, showcasing their works in various venues around South Bay. Best part about it… its free!

Kick off begins Friday, September 18th at 7 PM at Mar Vista High School’s Black Box Theater with a marathon of short films created by high school and college students in the South County region of San Diego. This is an amazing opportunity for young artists to get exposure for their meaningful pieces.

The celebration continues into Saturday with an art walk event at both the Tijuana Estuary Visitor Center, and the Beachfront Imperial Beach Pier Plaza. Here you can enjoy the sites and sounds of the oceanfront view along with viewing various artworks from local digital artists. One artist you will encounter will be Marv Lyons, a local who focuses his work on endangered species, environments, and conservation.

In between admiring these inspirational pieces, you can stop by an area where some artists will be painting pieces live throughout the day. As you watch, these amazing pictures come to life; keep in mind you get the chance to own them during a silent auction that takes place that night at 5 PM.

At the end of the night, around 7 PM, there will be an awards ceremony recognizing the three top pieces of artwork throughout the day. These three pieces will also be auctioned off after the awards.

All proceeds from the silent auctions will go towards the South County Renaissance Project. This non-profit program inspires and encourages youth all around South Bay communities to continue to create and expand their minds year-round.

This wonderfully relevant event will be brought to you by Cox Communications, Coldwell Bankers, Unified Port of San Diego, and many other supporting local businesses throughout San Diego County.

It is supposed to be a beautiful weekend, so why not spend it on the beach, in the sun, and supporting a great cause!