Our Mission

Salem Film Fest was founded in 2007 by filmmakers and film enthusiasts united by a passion for storytelling and community-building. Guided by our motto, 'Come to Salem, see the world,' the festival brings timely and thought-provoking documentaries and their creators from across the globe to Boston’s North Shore. Our carefully curated programming, paired with the festival’s intimate local atmosphere, sparks conversations that inspire, educate, and entertain, fostering a deeper understanding of how nonfiction films can shift perspectives and catalyze change.

Our Programming Philosophy

Salem Film Fest was founded in 2007 by filmmakers and film enthusiasts united by a passion for storytelling and community-building. Guided by our motto, 'Come to Salem, see the world,' the fest brings timely and thought-provoking documentaries and their creators from across the globe to Boston’s North Shore. Our carefully curated programming, paired with the fest’s intimate local atmosphere, sparks conversations that inspire, educate, and entertain, fostering a deeper understanding of how nonfiction films can shift perspectives and catalyze change.

Salem Film Fest is a documentary film festival that centers its filmmakers. In 2025, for the first time in almost two decades of history, SFF will be accepting public submissions for a short window through an open call for documentary features and shorts. While we will continue to solicit submissions via invitations, a model our fest was founded on, our hope is to expand our programs and platform voices and stories we may not otherwise have discovered.

As always, SFF will continue to share revenue with selected feature-length filmmakers, while also providing some travel support and accommodations thanks to the support of our generous sponsors and community partners. We view our filmmakers as partners, integral to our festival's mission of bringing films and their makers to share their stories with our festival audience.

More information about our programming rules & eligibility can be found on FilmFreeway.

Our Team

FEST DIRECTORS

Joe Ferrari & Bridie O’Connell

PROGRAM DIRECTOR

Emily Abi-Kheirs

SHORTS PROGRAM DIRECTOR

Homa Sarabi

SPONSORSHIP DIRECTOR

Michelle Hovanetz Bakrevski

PROGRAMMERS

Saul Argenbright | Heather Cassano | Monica Cohen | Joel Roston | Jeff Schmidt

VIDEO MEDIA

Erika Sutter | Michael Sirois | Aidan Heroux

WEB DIRECTOR

Bobbie Bush

VOLUNTEER COORDINATOR

Tom Czahor

STUDENT COMPS MGR

Sadry Assouad

MUSIC DIRECTOR

Tyler Zucco-Bernard

HOSPITALITY DIRECTOR

Liz Cronin

TICKETING & SUPPORT

Wendy Meigs

EVENT COORDINATION

Beki Ferrari | Nora Whouley

SFF2025 BRAND DESIGNER

Elissa Von Letkemann

MARKETING & SOCIAL MEDIA

Bridie O’Connell | Emily Abi-Kheirs

PROGRAM BOOK DESIGN

Chris Cuddy

FEST CO-FOUNDER

Joe Cultrera

STUDENT DOCUMENTARY COMPETITIONS MANAGER