The legendary Jane Goodall once hung her hat in Ridgefield. For most of the 1990s, the Jane Goodall Institute resided on Main Street (above Planet Pizza). The Ridgefield Independent Film Festival is celebrating that relationship with a special screening and discussion.

The Ridgefield Independent Film Festival presents Jane the Movie. Drawing from over 100 hours of never-before-seen footage that has been tucked away in the National Geographic archives for over 50 years, award-winning director Brett Morgen tells the story of Jane Goodall, a woman whose chimpanzee research challenged the male-dominated scientific consensus of her time. Q&A with Jane Goodall Institute videographer Bill Wallauer JGI member Kristin Mosher follows in the theater immediately following the screening. In fact, Wallauer met his wife Kristin Mosher in Ridgefield while she was running the JGI office.

The Ridgefield Independent Film Festival (RIFF) celebrates independent films from around the world that enlighten, entertain, and inspire moviegoers through compelling visual storytelling. RIFF brings innovative films and filmmakers to the artistically vibrant community of Ridgefield, Connecticut for an annual four-day festival that includes screenings, panel discussions, and nightly parties. Venues are all walking distance and include the Ridgefield Playhouse, Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, Ridgefield Library, Keeler Tavern Museum, the Prospector Theater, and the new ACT Theatre.

The annual film festival will be held on Thursday, October 18 through Sunday, October 21, 2018.

All films are screened and selected by a team of committed filmmakers and experienced viewers with an eye to discovering extraordinary narrative, documentary, and animated films. Entries are judged on a point system for craft, originality, and storytelling with winners of jury awards receiving festival gifts and cash prizes for their work.

The Ridgefield Playhouse is a gorgeous, renovated 1930s theater with a 500-seat capacity. The venue holds 200 shows a year, with live rock concerts, Broadway & Cabaret shows, to HD opera.

Is there parking?
Yes, there is plenty of free parking at the venue.

Will there be live chimpanzees at the screening?
No, they don't like to travel during the rainy season in Tanzania, so they will not be attending the event. Besides, they have seen the film many times already.

Are there concessions?
Yes, there is food available as well as alcohol and non-alocohol drinks which can be brought into the theater.

Is the venue handicap accessible?

Yes, there is a wheelchair ramp and seating.