Lights, camera, ACTION…mark your calendars for a love-themed film festival coming to Paris, Texas early next year.
“We are excited to announce The Paris International Film Festival (PIFF) will be held in downtown Paris April 17-19, 2020,” said CEO of PTFO and Film Festival Co-Director Noor Naghmi.
Naghmi, an Award-winning producer/director along with screenwriter/director Lisa Mikitarian, “fell in love” with Paris while filming a documentary in January with local cardiologist Dr. A.J. Hashmi.
“The first time I saw downtown Paris I fell in love with the area,” he said. “Right away, I thought if I can do a film festival here and bring Hollywood to Paris it would be so awesome for this little town.”
While more details on the film festival will be released at a later date, Naghmi said all those participating and the films that will be shown will have something to do with love.
“Love is a natural theme for the PIFF,” Naghmi said, “PIFF will invite/curate feature films, shorts, and documentaries promoting love with a focus of relationship-building among people of diverse backgrounds.”
Last month, plans for a 36,000 sq. ft. full-fledged film production studio, the Paris Texas Film Office, in the old Phillips lighting building on Clarksville Street was announced.
“The film production studio will provide jobs and economic impact for the area for decades to come,” explained Naghmi. “This important undertaking along with the annual film festival could solidly cement Paris as a film destination not only in Texas but across the country.”
PTFO also plans on partnering with local colleges to set up industry-related courses and programs for those seeking education and experience in film production.
