With the arrival of spring comes film festival season. In the next few months, the newest and most exciting films from up-and-coming filmmakers will premiere at festivals hosted in venues and movie theaters all over Manhattan.

Below is our list of upcoming film festivals and information on how to discover truly original films from fresh voices in the industry.

• New York Underground Film Festival
  
  • Dates: March 28 – April 3, 2007
  
  
  • Location: Anthology Film Archives, 32 2nd Avenue between 1st and 2nd Streets
  
  
  • Festival Highlights: Over 100 films -- including shorts, feature films and documentaries -- explore everything from supernatural slashfests to stories of sexual identity crises to the daily struggles of Iraqi citizens.



• New York African Film Festival
  
  • Dates: April 4 – April 12,2007
  
  
  • Location: Walter Reade Theater, 70 Lincoln Center Plaza
  
  
  • Festival Highlights: A wide variety of films, documentaries, archival footage and newsreels examine current beliefs and stereotypes about African society and culture and recount significant movements and events throughout history.



• GenArt Film Festival
  
  • Dates: April 11 – April 17, 2007
  
  
  • Location: Clearview Chelsea West, 333 West 23rd Street, between 8th and 9th Avenues
  
  
  • Festival Highlights: The seven day Gen Art Film Festival presents films from the best North American independent filmmakers. Each night, after watching a short film and a feature film, festival-goers attend an after-party at one of several hot Chelsea nightclubs.



• Tribeca Film Festival
  
  • Dates: April 26 – May 7, 2007
  
  
  • Location: Various venues in and around Tribeca
  
  
  • Festival Highlights: The Tribeca Film Festival was established in 2002 and has grown to become one of the country's biggest and most buzzworthy film festivals. Find out more about the Tribeca Film Festival and how to navigate it.



• Columbia University Film Festival
  
  • Dates: April 30 – May 10, 2007
  
  
  • Location: IFC Center, 323 Sixth Avenue at West 3rd Street
  
  
  • Festival Highlights: This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Columbia University Film Festival, a showcase of the finest films, documentaries, and screenplays from the school’s most talented M.F.A. students.



• Bosnian-Herzegovinian Film Festival
  
  • Dates: May 11 – May 12, 2007
  
  
  • Location: Tribeca Cinemas, 54 Varick Street at Laight Street
  
  
  • Festival Highlights: Over the past several years, this festival has rapidly expanded and evolved to become a celebrated and respected display of feature films, shorts, and documentaries by emerging Bosnian filmmakers. Films explore social, cultural and political issues relating to Bosnia and Herzegovina.



• Media That Matters Film Festival
  
  • Dates:May 30 – May 31, 2007
  
  
  • Location: Online and in NYC locations to be announced
    
  • Festival Highlights: This festival's films can be viewed online and will also featured at various screenings around Manhattan. Past festivals have included films produced by students of Manhattan-based youth media organizations such as the Educational Video Center and Global Action Project.



• 19th New York Lesbian & Gay Film Festival
  
  • Dates: May 31 – June 10, 2007
  
  
  • Location: Loews 34th Street Theater, 312 West 34th Street, between 8th and 9th Aves.
  
  
  • Festival Highlights: Complete with panels, forums and pre- and post-festival galas, this festival presents an expansive showcase of films covering interesting and illuminating topics such as treatment of transgender people in prison facilities, the intersection of homosexuality and religious beliefs, and homoerotic photography in the 1950s and 1960s.



• H2O International Film Festival
  
  • Dates: May 31 – June 16, 2007
    
  • Location: The ImaginAsian Theatre, 239 East 59th Street between 2nd and 3rd Avenues
  
  
  • Festival Highlights:The films at H2O (Hip-Hop Odyssey) International Film Festival explore familiar images, representations and stereotypes of hip hop culture. Panel discussions and personal and professional development classes complement six days of film screenings.