Breast cancer fundraiser LunaFest comes to Moscow
Independent films by women filmmakers from all over the world will make an appearance in Moscow Tuesday, as LunaFest returns to the Palouse to entertain community members and help fight breast cancer.
The film festival will take place at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Kenworthy Performing Arts Centre. The University of Idaho Women’s Center will host LunaFest, a travelling film festival put on by the LUNA bar company.
Bekah MillerMacPhee, assistant director for programs at the Women’s Center, said LunaFest is a unique event showcasing women filmmakers in an accessible way to help people feel connected to the stories told on screen.
“Out of all of the Women’s Center events, it really brings the campus together,” MillerMacPhee said. “These are films that you can’t see anywhere else, and they’ll be right here in Moscow.”
The films are all made by women filmmakers and tell stories about women from all over the world. The film festival has eight films, as well as five additional films created by local filmmakers. Although the films begin at 7:30 p.m., there is a pre-show reception with hors d’oeuvres and a no-host bar at 6:30 p.m.
General admission for the reception and films is $12 — or $6 for just the films. Student admission for the reception and films is $6, and $3 to view the films. Included in the ticket price for the reception is also a raffle ticket for prizes donated by local businesses. The raffle will take place at 8:15 p.m.
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BY THE NUMBERS
$1,715,000 raised for local causes
$757,000 raised for the Breast Cancer Fund
25,000 expected to attend LUNAFEST’s 2014-2015 season
950 films submitted to LUNAFEST each year
$2,500 awarded to each filmmaker selected to participate in LUNAFEST
1094 women’s nonprofit organizations have benefited from LUNAFEST
15% of every dollar raised goes to the Breast Cancer Fund
85% of every dollar raised goes directly to the host’s local charity of choice
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LunaFest has been touring the U.S. for 15 years and this is the 10th year the Women’s Center will host it in Moscow. LunaFest will reach 150 cities in the U.S. this year, MillerMacPhee said.
The festival is a fundraiser, both for the Women’s Center and also for the LUNA fund, which benefits research on environmental factors contributing to breast cancer, MillerMacPhee said. In fact, 15 percent of every dollar raised goes to the Breast Cancer Fund.
The event is also part of Women’s History Month events put on by the Women’s Center every year.
Director of the Women’s Center Lysa Salsbury said LunaFest is a great way to showcase the work of independent women filmmakers, because women are drastically underrepresented in the arts.
“It’s really about celebrating women’s contribution to the arts, which not very many of our other events do,” Salsbury said. “The films are all over the world, all different topics. They’re touching, heartwarming, deal with really important issues and always a really eclectic mix of topics and themes that they explore. It’s also just a really fun event.”
Salsbury said there is usually an even mix of community members and students in attendance and many people attend year after year.
Many Women’s Center events focus on the struggles women go through, but MillerMacPhee said LunaFest is different.
“This is a lot lighter,” MillerMacPhee said. “For the most part it’s really a celebration of women, and there are lots of opportunities for laughter. There’s going to be food, there’s going to be prizes, it’s going to be fun. Something you’ll leave with a smile.”
Kelsey Stevenson can be reached at [email protected]