SULLIVAN COUNTY —They won't be rolling out a physical red carpet this year, but the show must go on. The Catskill International Film Festival (CIFF), which debuted in Callicoon back in 2018, returns this weekend with a full lineup of films, workshops and Q&A sessions.

The entire event will be hosted virtually starting at 7 p.m. on Friday, October 23 and run through Sunday, October 25. The event is free of charge and available to watch at Catskillfilmfest.com or facebook.com/catskillsfilmfest.

Over 50 local, national and international films will be showcased, ranging in length from short films to full-length features.

“We wanted to plan an event that would inspire others to get creative during this challenging time,” said Charles Marinaro, CIFF President. “Covid-19 hasn't broken our spirits, instead it made filmmakers challenge themselves and think outside the box, creating their best work yet. We have everything from animation to documentaries, horror, sci fi, comedies, drama … you name it.”

Filmmakers from countries all over the world have contributed their work, including Mexico, Spain, the United Kingdom, China, throughout the United States and beyond.

Marinaro co-founded the festival along with Anthony Gagliardo out of their shared passion for filmmaking.

“It was really sad to see the movie theaters close down,” Marinaro said. “People's morale is down the tubes lately, and doing stuff like this - being able to interact with other filmmakers and showcase their work - is more important than ever before.”

Marinaro said the virtual platform allows them the flexibility to present all their films and content. The festival will conclude Sunday night with an awards ceremony. More than a dozen awards will be given out by the festival's committee and directors, as well as several awards that will be decided by the online audience.

“We want to keep this very interactive, so the audience and film makers will be able to vote for their favorite projects at online polls throughout the three-day event,” Marinaro said.