![Most films are available to stream nationwide and on-demand throughout the festival. [CIFF]](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/4183af7/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3000x1687+0+0/resize/840x472!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Flegacy%2Fuploads%2F2021%2F3%2F19%2FCIFF45web.jpg)
The Cleveland International Film Festival (CIFF) announced its 2021 lineup today. The online-only festival will stream 116 feature films and 182 shorts from April 7-20.
Nearly half — 46% of the offerings — are by women filmmakers, according to a release from CIFF.
This lineup also includes films made in Ohio, by Ohioans or about Ohio. For instance, “Apart” is a documentary following Ohio women in a reentry program outside of prison and “Holler” is Nicole Riegel’s semi-autobiographical tale of the harsh realities of breaking the cycle of poverty, set in her hometown of Jackson, Ohio, south of Columbus.
Most films are available to stream nationwide and on-demand throughout the festival. Even though the streams are online there are still some capacity limits, and access will be available on a first-come, first-served basis. Tickets go on sale to members on Monday and for the public on Friday, March 26.
While online only, the 45th annual festival still provides a competition for filmmakers, virtual audience conversations with the filmmakers and other related programming.
Due to COVID-19, the in-person festival was canceled last year and eventually replaced with an online version. The longtime event concluded its run at Tower City Cinemas, now closed, in 2019, and announced a move to Playhouse Square.
