The Wild and Free Film Festival in Goleta celebrates the wonder of the natural world.
"But we're redefining what that means and we're playing films that perhaps challenge the status quo and make people think about what a festival like this can represent," explained Gareth Kelly, Founder and Executive Director of the Wild and Free Film festival.
He said the festival is also an opportunity for film makers to connect directly with audiences.
"It provides an opportunity for emerging filmmakers to share their stories with audiences in a way that they can—it's not easy trying to break through in the streaming platforms and stuff. And it also provides an opportunities for people to actually come together as a community inside a movie theater and watch some of these amazing short films."
The Wild and Free Film Festival starts Friday and runs through Sunday.
