6 Bay State film fests and events to soak up this summer – The Boston Globe

Nantucket Film Festival

Described by executive director Mystelle Brabbée as a film festival “incubator” 30 miles out to sea, the annual Nantucket Film Festival celebrates screenwriters and storytellers and promotes signature programming, including garden conversations and “Morning Coffee With,” designed to bring the island community together.

Sibling duo and Nantucket natives Jill and Jonathan Burkhart founded the festival in 1996; Brabbée joined the team the following year and has helped expand its programming over the decades to include interactive, live events that put attendees in discussion with those in front of and behind the camera. Noteworthy appearances this year include screenwriter Kerry Ehrin, actor and comedian Jason Mantzoukas, and documentarian Ken Burns.

“This festival is able to thrive because the town supports it, and people want to come,” said Brabbée. “All the audiences that we bring in, they love that festival environment.”

“The Water Connection” is one of the overarching themes of this year’s festival, Brabbée said, noting that programming includes films and live events related to the impact of climate change on water both locally and globally. “Chasing Time,” for instance, is a short film following environmental photographer James Balog, while “Shaped by Water” is a documentary exploring the relationship between athletes and water.

Nantucket Film Festival, June 19-24, nantucketfilmfestival.org

Roxbury International Film Festival

For the 26th year, the Roxbury International Film Festival, a staple of the Boston film festival circuit, brings films from around the world to locations throughout the neighborhood. The festival returns this summer for in-person and online events, including feature-length and short film screenings, live script readings, filmmaker hangouts, and more.

The festival originally was a local showcase before growing into an international film festival, though it’s still committed to displaying the creative lifeblood of Roxbury.

Lisa Simmons, artistic and executive director of the festival, said the people “in this community are storytellers. Whether it’s through music, poetry, visual arts, theater, there are a lot of folks in this community who are creative people.”

For the past two-plus decades, the festival has devoted itself to telling the many unique experiences of people of color, at home and around the world.

“For audiences who can come to a festival over 10 days and at any given moment see themselves on the screen, that’s the most important thing,” Simmons said. “This community is not a monolith.”

Roxbury International Film Festival. In person June 20-28, online June 27-July 2. roxfilmfest.com

Woods Hole Film Festival

Mainland Cape Cod boasts the oldest film festival in the state. The Woods Hole Film Festival has held annual screenings for more than 30 years; its upcoming programming will showcase 100-plus films over the span of eight days.

“Our programming tends to include films that are relevant to the work that happens here,” said founder and director Judy Laster. “We probably have more of a science focus in our selections than other festivals might.”

Following this theme, the WHFF will screen “76 Days,” a film that follows Steven Callahan as he navigates the open ocean after a whale sinks his sailboat, and “Follow the Journey,” a deep dive into the lives of whales.

Woods Hole is a hub for ocean science, with several local institutions dedicated to education and research about the planet’s largest ecosystem. Laster recommends checking out the Woods Hole Science Aquarium, the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Ocean Science Discovery Center, the Nobska Lighthouse, and area restaurants.

“We include lots of films around music or comedy or animation, things that are a little bit lighter because our main competition isn’t other festivals — it’s the beach,” said Laster.

For those interested in attending, Laster recommends solidifying travel plans as soon as possible: “It’s the height of summer,” she said. “It can be crowded around here.”

Woods Hole Film Festival, July 27-Aug. 3, woodsholefilmfestival.org

Martha’s Vineyard Film Society Documentary Week

The Martha’s Vineyard Film Society’s Documentary Week kicks off its annual programming in late July, in time for the island’s busy season. The organization hosts half a dozen film festivals annually, the majority of which take place between May and August.

Executive Director Richard Paradise recognized Doc Week as a need nearly a decade ago, opting to show one documentary each night for eight nights. Programming this year includes “Girls State,” a documentary that considers what our democracy would look like in the hands of teenage girls, and “Donyale Luna: Supermodel,” which follows the life of a pioneering Black supermodel.

“It’s a little easier to get the filmmakers to come and attend — like, who wouldn’t want to be on Martha’s Vineyard in August?,” said Paradise. “Each documentary we show, we always have people there to talk about the documentary afterwards, and it’s become a mainstay of our August programming.”

Martha’s Vineyard Film Society’s Doc Week, July 29-Aug. 2, mvfilmsociety.com

Lonely Seal International Film, Screenplay, and Music Festival

California resident Hammad Zaidi started his film festival in Arlington because “I wanted to find a city with an incredibly high level of intelligence, with a lot of universities, and with a lot of open-mindedness,” he said, calling from his home in Redondo Beach.

Since 2018, Zaidi’s Lonely Seal Festival has been a fixture of Arlington’s Regent Theatre, with feature-length films, documentaries, shorts, and music videos from around the world. The festival’s full lineup will be revealed next Thursday, but a few highlights he teased include the documentary “The Water of Life: A Whisky Film” and the 45th anniversary screening of The Who’s 1979 film “The Kids Are Alright,” directed by Jeff Stein, brother of Regent Theatre co-owner Leland Stein.

Zaidi, who heads a distribution company called Lonely Seal Releasing, said a mission of the festival is to spotlight diverse voices — including female, LGBTQ+, and disabled filmmakers — and stories that other festivals wouldn’t typically show.

Zaidi says he’s had great experiences at other film festivals, but “I’d always tell my friends, if I ever had one, I would do this differently.”

Lonely Seal International Film, Screenplay, and Music Festival. Aug. 20-25. Use code “GLOBESEAL” for 20 percent off tickets and passes. lonelysealfestival.com

Parks Movie Nights

Throughout August, 11 public parks across the Greater Boston area will become free outdoor movie theaters as a part of the city’s annual Parks Movie Nights program. From “Encanto” in East Boston to “A Million Miles Away” at Jamaica Pond under a meteor-shower sky, there are plenty of opportunities for people to camp out under the stars and screens.

“I love parks, I love being outside, and it’s so fun for me to be able to activate [the parks] in this way,” said Steve Kruszkowski, program manager of Parks Movie Nights. “Good memories are created with your friends and family at movie nights.”

Other films and locations include “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” at Peters Park in the South End, “Elemental” at Healy Playground in Roslindale, and “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom” at Malcolm X Park in Roxbury. Each movie begins at dusk, and free popcorn will be provided while supplies last.

Parks Movie Nights. August. boston.gov/movie-nights

Adri Pray can be reached at adri.pray@globe.com. Follow her @adriprayy. Henry Bova can be reached at henry.bova@globe.com.