Grass Valley, Calif., December 28, 2018 – The final selections of films for screening at the 6th Animal Film Festival (AFF)(http://www.animalfilmfestival.org) were announced today. Twenty-four films will be screened including the feature ‘Mercy’s Kennel’ a documentary from Atlanta, Georgia starring GK Simpson, a former dog breeder who takes viewers into a world where money talks and pit bulls are the currency. Audiences will fall in love with GK, an earnest, charismatic and sensitive young man, who provides solutions to combating pit bull overpopulation and clears up many misunderstandings of the breed.

The 6th Animal Film Festival comes to Grass Valley, Saturday, February 9, 2019 at the Gold Miners Inn Ballroom in downtown Grass Valley, CA.  Doors open at 6pm and the show starts at 7pm. The Vegan Van will have a pop up restaurant in the parking lot serving hot, delicious meals.  Special guest Ingrid Newkirk, co-founder and president of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) will give a key note address to open the Saturday evening event. She will be joined on stage by Kim Sturla, executive director of Animal Place, a sanctuary for farmed animals in Grass Valley. Sturla will conduct a Q & A with Newkirk on the topic of animal rights in the 21st century. Their presentation will be followed by a series of officially selected short films.

On Sunday, February 10, the AFF screens a day of films at the historic Nevada Theater in Nevada City. Doors open at 10am and the show begins at 10:30am – 4pm with a one hour intermission from 12:30 -1:30. Grass Valley’s Chef Ramona will prepare her signature, vegan lunches in the lobby during intermission. Throughout the day, films from countries including Canada, Iran, and Uruguay exude compassion and courage, while reexamining ideas regarding animals that many of us take for granted. Films chosen explore an aspect of animal protection, rescue, rights and the human/animal bond.

Up to $14,000 in awards will be presented to filmmakers on behalf of The Adam and Amber Tarshis Foundation.

Shelley Frost, director of the Animal Film Festival, noted some new themes in the films submitted this year: “Last year, several audience members wondered if at a future AFF, we might show movies starring cats. We had not really seen many films about cats until this year! We also received several films tying religious beliefs into the way animals are treated. Because of the excellent quality of films we received this year, selecting the final list was really tough. If you love a good animal “tail” you won’t want to miss this year’s selections – dogs, camels, horses, and of course cats, with many happy endings.” Frost also adds that film-goers can be pro-active by signing petitions, and speaking with filmmakers to learn how they can contribute towards the welfare of animals.

The entire list of (24) Official Selections for the 2019 festival are:  “Joaquin Phoenix: Wool” (Lisa Lange, USA), “Live Your Most Compassionate Life” (Jonathan Rosenberry, USA), “Aware” (Jeremy Cournyea, USA), “Judas Collar” (Alison James, Australia), “On the Cover” (Yegane Moghaddam, Iran), “A Film About Animals” (Eric Daniel Metzgar, USA), “Good for Us” (Adam Peditto, USA), “The Firefox Guardian” (Gunjan Menon, India), “Reboot” (Ellen Osborne, USA), “Hurricane Hero’s” (Shawn Bannon, USA), “Isle of Dogs Parody” (Brittany Gustafson, USA), “Where are you From” (Juan Cristiani, Uruguay), “Absent Referent” (Riikka Grondahl, Sweden), “My Paintbrush Bites” (Joel Pincosy, USA), “I am, I am:  A Musical Expedition” (Harry Hmura, USA), “Anima: Animals. Faith. Compassion” (Jennifer Jessum, USA), “Willow” (Erin Parks, Canada), “Captain Aunofo” (Amy Taylore, New Zealand), “Finding Satan” (Jondaniel Cornett, USA), “Feline Paralysis: (Annie Laurie Medonia, USA), “A Mother’s Monologue (Marzieh Kamyabi and Mehdi Shaafi, Iran) “Mercy’s Kennel” (Tracy Bishop, USA), Sanctuaries: A New Life (Paula Castro, USA), “Vegan Strong: Leilani Munter at the Daytona 500 (Asher Brown, USA).

This year the AFF will also show a selection of heart-warming films from Mutual Rescue, a film series that explores the dramatic ways in which the adoption of a dog can heal both the human and the dog.

Proceeds from the festival support animals with special needs rescued by the Center for Animal Protection and Education (CAPE).

For tickets or more information visit www.animalfilmfestival.org.

About CAPE

The Center for Animal Protection and Education (CAPE) (www.capeanimals.org) works to save the lives of individual animals who are at risk or have special needs. CAPE also creates educational programs aimed to inspire people about ways to alleviate animal suffering. Founded in 1992, CAPE has helped thousands of animals. Those who are older, injured or recovering from an illness are placed into new, loving homes through CAPE’s foster and adoption programs. In 2012 CAPE established the CAPE Animal Sanctuary in Grass Valley, California, a permanent home for dozens of animals with special needs and burros removed from their native habitats on public lands by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management. CAPE also offers educational opportunities to inform people about issues animals face in society such as the Animal Film Festival. CAPE programs emphasize that all animals have the right to a long, full life, free from pain and suffering. To learn more or donate please visit www.capeanimals.org.