Insider’s guide to Columbia’s film festival 📽
It’s Indie Grits week, people. The time where film enthusiasts, arts aficionados, music lovers and local food + beer all come together for a four-day festival that celebrates our city’s culture – while diving into issues in our community (like this year’s “Two Cities” project... more on that later).

The 12th annual festival has been called one of the 20 “Coolest Film Festivals” in the world… twice. That’s a pretty big deal for Columbia, who is constantly fighting our big sisters Greenville + Charleston to get on the map.

Meet 6 of the people that make the magic of Indie Grits happen every year, and learn each of their #1 can’t-miss moments of this year’s festival, straight from their mouths. Then impress your friends with your insider knowledge.

Director: Seth Gadsden

When Seth – an artist and filmmaker – moved to Columbia, the Nick staff hired him right off the bat for film trafficking and filmmaker hospitality. That ultimately led to him being named co-director, and now director, of the Indie Grits Festival. His creativity has really been what's propelled Indie Grits to where it is now. He's been instrumental in bringing the art component of the festival to life, which ultimately led to commissioning artists → to big time grants from organizations like the National Education Association (NEA) → to Indie Grits Labs, which is now continuing the work of Indie Grits year-round (and has its own headquarters on Duke Ave.!).

#1 can’t-miss IG moment:

“Ahhhh. My can't miss event is a Night with Two Cities [Thurs., April 12, various times + locations, free]. It is the first public representation of the culmination of a year's worth of work. It is a night of celebration, dialogue, community, and difficult conversations. There will be film, art installations, photography, new book editions, performances, and more. Not to mention good food and drink!”

Volunteer Coordinator: Keiondria (Kei) Grant

Like lots of other festivals in this town, Indie Grits really relies on volunteers. With about 60 events on the schedule, 30 bands performing during IG and 83 different films on tap for this year, they need above-and-beyond volunteers to help support the staff and explain things like how to make your pick for the people's choice awards and where to go for the after party. Several volunteers come back again + again, but there are also newbies each year – and Kei is in charge of training and gathering all volunteers.

#1 can’t-miss IG moment:

“My number one can't miss event this year would have to be the Indie Bits arcade [Thurs., April 12, 12-6 p.m. at Tapp’s, free]. It features local and regional independent video games and I'm an avid gamer so it's top of the list for me.”

Program Coordinator / Educator: Pedro Lopez De Victoria

Pedro is known to be such a helping hand to the festival, the Nick and to Indie Grits Labs – also a talented musician and just plain entertaining. He's now a media educator and he's been really involved in film selection, which is a massive undertaking. (They watch hundreds of films.) He was very involved in programming last year for Visiones, and he's just very close to the festival.

#1 can’t-miss IG moment:

“Since I love how explosive the music program is this year (over 30 bands!) –– I'll have to say the opening night music events, Love, Grits & Hip Hop [Thurs., April 12, 7 p.m.-1 a.m. at Tapp’s, $10-12]. It features the some of the most progressive, mind-blowing music the region has to offer. It's a partnership between Indie Grits and Love, Peace & Hip Hop, and features top notch hip hop, indie rock and dance pop.”

Programming Coordinator at the Nickelodeon: Amada Torruella

(Amada was also very, very involved in IG last year – the theme, Visiones, was her idea!). Amada started as a volunteer and worked her way up to now being in charge of programming at the Nick. That means programming the Nick’s films and special programs with talkbacks. She loves film. Amada is kind of Seth's right hand for the festival. She is super close to the mission of the festival, and especially proud of the notable female filmmakers at the fest this year – 53% of the films this year are made by women.

#1 can’t-miss IG moment:

“Sunday Dinner [Sun., April 15, 1-5 p.m., Monticello Rd. next to Hyatt Park, free]. Admission is free of cost, it's family friendly, we will have the best food in town and there will be live music!”

Lead Designer: Savannah Taylor

Savannah is such a talented graphic designer. She's so creative and has an eye for design that is so uniquely fit for the Nick/Indie Grits. She led the rebrand for IG this year (it was time!). She also redesigned the website this year. So much work. She handles all printing and she also mans social media for Indie Grits. She also does a lot of this for the Nick. To say she's busy is a real understatement.

#1 can’t-miss IG moment:

“My can't miss event during Indie Grits (if you have young whippersnappers at home) is Kindie Grits [Sat., April 14, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., IG Labs: 1013 Duke Ave., free]! Every year, Kindie Grits is a free event where Indie Grits filmmakers teach kids the basics of stop-motion animation. It's always amazing to see the kids' work come to life at the end of the day. And this year we are making Kindie Grits an all day event at the IG Labs house! In addition to the animation workshop, there will be a Field Day organized by Rico McDaniel — one of the Two Cities Fellows, filled with classic outdoor activities and team building exercises (tug-of-war anyone?) and an aquaponics class for kids by Tahirah Spann, another Two Cities Fellow, where kids will learn how to grow sustainable produce at home!”

Development Director: Carrie Grebenc

Carrie handles fundraising for the Nick and for IGL, and Indie Grits wouldn't be possible without Carrie's help with finding sponsorships and keeping all details straight for reporting to major donors like the Andy Warhol Foundation, the Ford Foundation and the NEA and Central Carolina Community Foundation. She also is in charge of all fundraising events for the Nick. Carrie is an asset to Indie Grits for a lot of reasons, but also because she's super organized and into spreadsheets.

#1 can’t-miss IG moment:

“The Weekly Revue’s Church of Karaoke [Fri., April 13, 8/9 p.m., $10]. It's a wild and spontaneous comedy show led your party captain, Toby Lou. An experience, unlike any other, Lou involves the crowd in his hilarious shenanigans for an always memorable event!”

Looks like there’s a #MustDo every day of Indie Grits, so hope you wrote all those down. I’m looking forward to opening night on Thursday, but I’m not sure which events I’ll pick yet – if only I could be in six places at once.

Are you headed to Indie Grits for the first time this year? Share your discoveries with us by tagging @COLAtoday or using hashtag #COLAtoday.

–Chloe