??????????????Great stories start with a spark?an idea, a moment, or a bold decision. For the Cinema Systers Film Festival (CSFF), that spark was an acorn: a tiny seed planted when a 40-year womyn?s music festival came to an end. Lisa Vogel, the organizer of the Michigan Womyn?s Music Festival, urged the community to ?take the seeds from the acorn tree and start your own.? And so, CSFF was born?not just as an event, but as a new branch of a legacy, growing into the vibrant film festival we know today. What began as a single gathering quickly became a 10-year tradition, rooted in community, storytelling by lesbian filmmakers, and the belief that every acorn holds the potential for something mighty.

Let?s rewind to the very first frame? Here?s how Cinema Systers began, as told by Laura Petrie, Founder and Festival Producer:

?Did you know the first Cinema Systers Film Festival was held in September 2016? The second followed just eight months later, in May 2017. Why? Because I saw how well-received and well-attended the first event was?and I knew it needed to happen again. I realized a four-day weekend would give everyone an extra day for travel, so I called the theater during the first festival to request Memorial Day weekend 2017. Within minutes, we had the thumbs-up to proceed. Kentucky is so beautiful in May, so Paducah became our forever home. Since then, we?ve added more films, screenings, and even an extra day of fun.'

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