Plainfield’s Queen City Film Festival Showcases Diverse Voices In Global Cinema

Plainfield has had a long history of celebrating art and culture in New Jersey. From Thursday to Sunday, it will transform into an international filmmaking hub as it holds the 2025 Queen City Film Festival.

Produced by the local nonprofit, Queen City Film & Television Workshop, the festival will feature movie screenings and panels throughout Plainfield that highlight underrepresented filmmakers and communities.

Lamar David Mackson, a producer and assistant director from Plainfield, founded the Queen City Film Festival. In an interview with New Jersey Urban News, Mackson said he started the festival “out of necessity.” Having showcased short films made by his production company, Nonstop Show Group, to great fanfare all over the world, Mackson sought to present these films to a live audience in his hometown.

The festival began in 2018 as a short film showcase for Plainfield filmmakers and movies produced within the city. Following its extraordinary success, the festival started to expand. Today, the festival has reportedly screened films from 52 countries and has supported filmmakers across the “underrepresented diaspora of Black, Latinx, Asian, female, and LGBTQ+ creatives.” 

The 2025 festival will present over 30 movies by filmmakers from all over the world, including California, Georgia, Canada, England, Jamaica, and Africa. Venues for the Queen City Film Festival include Cindelle’s Bookstore, the duCret Center of Art, the Cinemark XD Theater, and Plainfield High School. 

“Honestly, [the festival] continues to grow more and more each year,” said Mackson. “So really, the difference [this year] is in the response, the audience response thus far, and the filmmakers’ response, and…each year that we do this, it becomes more and more apparent and evident how needed this platform is, and how much people appreciate an opportunity.”

The films at this year’s festival explore themes of trauma, atonement, depression, resilience, and traditions across the African diaspora. 

One of the most notable selections is director Jamal Smart’s “Behind the Joy,” an award-winning film about a couple grappling with the challenges of parenthood as the mother experiences postpartum depression.

Another festival highlight is director Muhammad Bilal’s “Perdido.” This short film follows a Black man trying seeking therapy to overcome his trauma following a terrifying experience with police brutality. Bilal wrote that “Perdido” is based on his own traumatic experiences with police brutality, and that it will “encapsulate this issue and the journey of a Black man to seek treatment despite the stigma [of mental illness].”

In addition to movie screenings, the Queen City Film Festival will present several notable speakers from across the film, television, and media industries.

Guests can attend a panel on navigating media in America featuring Jamal Simmons, a renowned political commentator and the former communications director for Vice President Kamala Harris. Pulitzer Prize-winning author Tamara Payne will also appear to discuss her new book, “The Dead Are Arising: The Life of Malcolm X.” Even eight-time Emmy-winning director Bobby Yan will host a workshop on the business of directing for television.

The festival will also present awards to honorees for their artistic achievements, for pushing cultural boundaries, and for uplifting diverse voices in the media. 

These honorees include actor and singer Naturi Naughton (“Power”) from East Orange; actor and stunt person R. Marcus Taylor (“Straight Outta Compton” and “Baby Driver”); Elizabeth-born actor, producer, and assistant director Guyviaud Joseph (“Power,” “Harlem”); and Powerhouse Productions CEOs Rochelle Brown and Sonia Armstead.

“All of these panels are free to the public,” said Mackson. “We want to create access for young filmmakers, for students, as well as professionals, because the business is tough right now. The economy is tough right now. So all of these professional development panels are…So it’s another way that we are able to serve the filmmaking community.”

The Queen City Film Festival highlights how New Jersey has become a popular film-friendly destination. The event provides a platform for filmmakers to connect and showcase their work while supporting greater visibility for underrepresented creatives in the industry.

Tickets for the Queen City Film Festival are now available. To learn more, please visit the Queen City Film Festival website here.