On Sept. 28, 2024, Ventura, Calif. was home to the Central Coast International Film Festival (CCIFF) at the Crowne Plaza, in its second year of existence and third semiannual assembly. The festival, as it had been created to do, recognized the best local works, those that may not have been picked up by larger festivals and all the outstanding works that were submitted. Thirty pieces from 105 sent in over FilmFreeway were accepted and shown during the all day event, where many were nominated, and few were awarded, based on ten categories.
Joss Refauvelet, a filmmaker himself, with five features to his name, created the CCIFF after his experiences with other festivals and his insight into the high demand for exposure among smaller, local creators.
“The only film festivals available were Santa Barbara and Ojai, and those are big film festivals, they’re big ones, so when you are a local, young filmmaker you never get accepted. Never. There is no room for you,” Refauvelet said, explaining his thought process when he decided “That kind of sucks. So why not create [a film festival] because there is so much demand among filmmakers who can’t make it … let’s make one and invite all of the local filmmakers.”
And many accepted the invitation. From 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. five blocks containing five to eight unique short movies, along with one highlighted feature film and documentary, were the sum of the festival’s large talent pool. The diversity of creative drive and character of the creators shone through the pieces, representing a broad range of genres, styles and themes. Pieces in individual blocks varied from ambiguous futuristic thrillers like “The Red Market” to short comedies like “Finder’s Fee.” One such standout and unique piece (and winner of best cinematography) was “Enemy No More,” directed by Chris Schultz, a short war drama about an American soldier stranded in the Philippines and forced to coexist with a “former enemy.”
Shultz found this particular festival though FilmFreeway, and when seeing a local festival, jumped on the chance to be there. “I think promoting film in Ventura county and anywhere … further from Los Angeles is kind of cool because there is a lot of filmmakers in LA … and I thought why not try and bring some recognition to the talent in Ventura County,” Shultz said, adding “In Ventura this is really the first [festival] that really stood out to me.”
Similarly, Doug Leeper, another local talent and photographer, added “I do know that the county of Ventura just recently came up with an arts council … where they’re encouraging more festivals and more arts and bringing more filming and more performing into the county, and I think that’s a good thing.”
The festival’s uniqueness could not only come out of its location, but the depth of the works involved, and many heavily leaned on the richness of themes. One such film, the winner of best actress, “Punjabi Protector,” directed by Daniel Locicer, a superbly choreographed action short involving a British agent’s violent revenge mission, had much more depth under the surface. Star Keeran Panesar, with this project and others hinted at in the future, wants to be “A powerful voice for women, especially minority women,” adding “whether that’s in action roles specifically or its like producing films or just acting in them I want to cover all the bases.”
Additionally, the highly well received and powerful winner, “Novelty” created by Raymond Gerard Braza touched on, in part, the value of dance. “Dance has always been a part of me; it’s something I’ve always looked up to. It’s like poetry in motion. I always thought it was very unique, especially in the art form where you’re expressing yourself through movement … I feel like [creators of musicals] are focusing more on the music and not the movement, and I really want to portray people’s emotions through the movement.”
The CCIFF, since its inception, has been creating opportunities for smaller, local creators to get their work out and create community in sharing their art. While the CCIFF has already implemented many core concepts, Refauvelet wishes to have Q&As after blocks and an award ceremony. The CCIFF is, and will be, ever evolving in the future.
“We haven’t found the right location yet … especially because right now it’s only a one day event and I’d like to make it a two or three day event” Refauvelet stated in expressing his goals for the future. He continued to say “I got so many more movies now that it’s very very difficult to select a small amount to put in twelve hours … the way it’s going right now we think we’re going to have 200 movies in February.”
The festival, for one reason or another, is catching eyes as it potentially snowballs into a largely successful and supportive community. These changes, and any others, can be seen in February, 2025, during the next festival, and on the official CCIFF instagram. So when the next time the CCIFF returns, somewhere new or twice as big, you can trust it will maintain the same goals and give a voice to the Ventura County community.
