Rhode Island International Film Festival

Lawrence J. Andrade acts as the Executive Advisor and Human Resource Director, and Michael Drywa is the Board President.

[2][3] The Festival draws over 45,000 people annually along with a strong filmmaker presence attending its main event each August and its Horror Film sidebar in October.

The festival often attracts major industry talent and celebrities who attend to participate in conversations about varied aspects of filmmaking.

Attending filmmakers in the past have included actor Andrew McCarthy, who premiered his directorial debut, News for the Church; Michael Showalter discussing his feature film The Baxter, and actors Seymour Cassel, Kim Chan, and Ernest Borgnine (2009) who received Festival Lifetime Achievement Awards.

Director Blake Edwards received a Festival Lifetime Achievement Award in 2001, which was accepted by his wife, actress/singer, Julie Andrews.

Actress Blythe Danner received the Festival's Creative Vision Award in 2008 for "significant contributions to the arts."

That same year, actor Richard Jenkins received the George M. Cohan Ambassador Award which honors "unique Americans who have made a timeless contribution to the arts and have inspired future generations of Rhode Islanders."