“Our first festival was an incredible success, and we couldn’t be more excited for year two,” says Koestner. “We had a heavy focus on horror and science-fiction, which we plan to continue and take even further. With the opportunity to expand, we want to draw in more of the offbeat, bizarre, and unknown.”

“Due to the overwhelmingly positive response to both our Bizarre and Local films last year, we want to dedicate more time to those programs,” said Gardner “We will also continue with our International program featuring the best shorts from around the world.”

The second annual PUFF will not only be expanding its short programs, but upgrading the event to showcase more features, in a bigger space, while never forgetting to put a heavy emphasis on fun. Aiming to facilitate a sense of community, the founders are looking to partner with local Philly businesses and to help undiscovered or unappreciated talent reach an enthusiastic audience, critics, and distributors who can help champion their films.

“The trend of remakes and sequels isn’t going to slow down anytime soon, and underground festivals are one of the only ways movie lovers can see new and original movies,” explains Gardner. “Combined with our free monthly screening series, we’ve presented several films that have found success on the VOD and direct-to-DVD markets. We’re excited to grow PUFF in 2017 to feature even more films that movie fans in Philadelphia would never be able to see at a mainstream multiplex.”

Currently accepting early submissions, Filmmakers can submit their films to PUFF through Withoutabox or FilmFreeway for a discounted rate until regular submissions begin in March. PUFF is looking for independent feature length and short films in all categories.