NYSIFF: Albany’s feisty festival for emerging film talent 🎬️

Happy Monday! Today, we’re taking you to the Steamer 10 Theatre in Albany where the scrappy New York State International Film Festival is playing this weekend.

🍁 Also, we goofed in Thursday’s Fall Foliage Guide and added the wrong link for Bish Bash Falls. Click here to watch a video of this stunning hike in its autumn glory.

📍Last week, we asked whether you see any difference between “Capital District” and “Capital Region.” The majority of our readers (69.5%) said nope, there’s no difference. But folks in the opposing camp were adamant that these names mean different things. We got a lot of variations on this sentiment:

“The Capital District includes Albany, Schenectady and Troy, while the Capital Region has a much broader geographical reach."

Jesse Sommer of New Scotland Spirits chimed in with an exhaustive answer to this eternal question—thank you, Mr. Sommer! Read the rest of your comments here: "Capital District or Capital Region: What’s the difference?”

—Phat X. Chiem & Karley Sullivan

🎬️ NYSIFF: Albany’s feisty festival for emerging film talent

If you read Paul Grondahl’s recent TU column on filmmaking in the 518, you know that it’s gaining momentum.

“The word’s really out on Albany because of the lower cost, the ease of shooting and experienced crew,” filmmaker Jon Russell Cring tells Paul.

This weekend, the Capital Region’s indie filmmaking scene is back in the spotlight as the New York State International Film Festival (NYSIFF) returns to Albany.

Although not particularly well known outside of Albany, this scrappy festival is marking its 10th anniversary with a two-day lineup of 29 short films from around the world, including several from local filmmakers and UAlbany students. 

This year’s entries span genres including drama, comedy, animation, horror, experimental, and music videos. But why only short films?

“Short films give indie filmmakers a real shot,” festival founder Nico Altekin tells us. “You don’t need a massive budget. You just need a good story.”

Nico launched NYSIFF in 2016 after graduating from Hudson Valley Community College and working in production at Spectrum News. Since then, his passion project has blossomed into a serious platform for emerging talent, especially students and first-time directors.

This year, the fest settles into its new home at Steamer 10 Theatre in Albany after several venue changes (RIP to The Linda). It runs over two nights and includes live Q&As with filmmakers and nightly award ceremonies. Expect jury awards plus the coveted Audience Favorite award.

One emotional highlight: the Brandon Fahey Foundation Award, which honors a young Capital Region filmmaker who recently passed away. The award, which comes with a $500 cash prize, will be announced during the festival.

Nico says the post-Covid landscape has been challenging for filmmakers and movie theaters alike, but his mission remains the same: “We’re here to support indie film. Always.”

🎟️ The deets: New York State International Film Festival, running this Friday and Saturday at Steamer 10 Theatre, 500 Western Ave, Albany. Tickets are $25 per night or $45 for both nights. Students and seniors get $5 off per night. Get tix here.

Making a community mosaic at Westminster Commons

This Sunday, from 4 to 6 pm, the basement of Albany’s Westminster Presbyterian Church will transform into a free community art studio—open to everyone, no registration required. It’s part of Westminster Commons, a grassroots series of events aimed at “turning strangers into friends.”

This month’s gathering centers around collaborative art. Guests will pair up to design 12" mosaic squares using tiles, buttons, cracked pottery, and other found materials. By day’s end, all the squares will be joined into a single 8x12’ mural.

“It’s not just about the art,” says Pastor Heather Kirk-Davidoff. “It’s about the experience of creating community.”

To support these events, Heather received a fellowship grant from New America’s Us@250, an initiative that supports community leaders “who aspire to tell a fuller, more comprehensive American story.”

Each event draws a diverse crowd: neighbors from Center Square, unhoused folks who attend the church’s Breakfast Club, newly arrived refugees, West African congregants, and more.

“These events started as a way to reconnect after Covid,” Heather says. “Now they feel like attempts to sustain hope.”

Live music, pizza, and plenty of good vibes will be on hand. Westminster Presbyterian Church, 85 Chestnut St, Albany. Sun, 4-6p, free.

💰️ Keep an eye on your mailbox. “Inflation Refund” checks are on their way to 8.2 million New York households this month. See what kind of check you can expect based on your income… [News10]

👻 File this one under “scary idea.” The Watervliet City Council is seeking to impose a 10 pm curfew for minors on Oct. 30 and 31. That seems un-American somehow. [News10]

☕️ In a major revamping, Starbucks starting closing hundreds of stores nationwide last week. This includes the Albany location at 563 New Scotland Ave, across from St. Peter’s Hospital. Doc, where are we gonna get our espresso shot now?

Btw, today is National Coffee Day! Find the best promotions at these national chains. You can also grab a free coffee at any Stewart’s Shops from noon to close today.

🎃 In case you didn’t get out to Saratoga for the Great PumpkinFest this past weekend, Larry Masters won the annual weigh-in with a 2,212.5 pound beast. That’s the weight of a subcompact car. Watch Larry as he could hardly squash his excitement at winning first place.

This colonial farmhouse in Ballston Spa might just be the apple of your eye, serving up folksy charm with smart updates. Wide plank floors, exposed beams, a woodstove, and stained glass add character, while 3 bedrooms plus an office and 2 full baths make space for beloved people and projects alike. A newer metal roof, siding, furnace, windows, and Culligan water filtration system notch up the country charm to a solid investment.

Make plans for plenty of alfresco dining (or even a music festival!) on nearly an acre of flat lawn, including a sturdy arbor, hand-built fieldstone patio, and side deck. Located in the 10/10 rated Burnt Hills School District and right up the road from Ellms Farm, this sweet slice of apple pie is well positioned for living well.

The deets: 3 bd, 2 ba, 1536 sf. Asking: $315,000. Days on market: 4. See the full listing here.

Our full weekend roundup publishes every Thursday. Be sure to check your inboxes!

EVENTS THIS WEEK

🗞️ Tonight, famed journalist and New Yorker writer Ken Auletta is at UAlbany as part of the NYS Writers Institute’s fall season.

📐Starting this week: Archtober is a month-long celebration of architecture and design in Troy, led locally by TAP Inc. and inspired by NYC’s month-long architecture festival. Celebrate the collaboration, craft, and buildings that shape our daily lives. See the full schedule of events.

🍸️ On Thursday, Curio Studio hosts a kick-off party & fundraiser for Archtober at the Arts Center of the Capital Region. Catch an exhibition of architectural works from regional artists and architects while supporting the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

📚️ If you missed the Albany Book Festival last weekend, the Saratoga Book Festival brings dozens of literary and genre writers to downtown Saratoga Thur-Sun. And it’s all free!

💨 On Tuesday, learn how to make a DIY Air Purifier at Context Collective.

🖼️ On Thursday, Opalka Gallery welcomes performances by multimedia artists Kyle Turgeon and Adam Tinkle, director of the MDOCS program at Skidmore College.

🌗 On Friday, Moonlit Maze at Engelke Farm in Troy invites you to get lost in the cornfields under the harvest moon.

📷️ On Saturday, the Tang Museum puts on Memorial, Memory & Meaning: A Performance with Artist Carrie Mae Weems, one of the most lauded photographers of our era.

🍗 The Downtown Schenectady Wing Walk is Saturday, but you’re in fowl territory if you haven’t already bought tix—it’s completely sold out.

🎸 The popular Caffè Lena @ SPAC festival returns this Saturday with a free day-long concert. This year’s lineup features five bands that explore roots, global, bluegrass, pop, and indie-folk music: Misty Blues, Tom Chapin, Chatham County Line, Farah Siraj, and Aleksi Campagne.

🍺 The Real McCoy Beer Co. in Ballston Spa invites you to its Oktoberfest on Saturday.

🍎 🍩 Hard cider & doughnuts? Count us in! The Night Owl hosts the Saratoga Hard Cider & Doughnut Fest on Saturday.

🍕Anthony’s by Romo in Voorheesville is putting on its Fall Fest on Saturday with live music, food specials, and a bounce house for the kids.

♻️ On Saturday, drop off your old paint and let Sustainable Saratoga worry about the responsible recycling part.

🚲️ Also Saturday, the Saratoga Cycling Club is putting on its Octoberfest Ride!

🚗 The Mayfield Historical Society hosts its Annual Fall Harvest Cruise-In at the Rice Homestead in Gloversville on Saturday.

🐈‍⬛ The 2025 Capital Region Fur Ball on Saturday benefits the Animal Protective Foundation, which provides medical care, housing, food, and lifesaving support for companion animals in need throughout the area.

🦉🍻 On Sunday, Feathers & Fermentation is your chance to join a guided walk with experts from Hudson-Mohawk Bird Club, followed by a refreshing beverage with the Warbler Brewery inside the Pine Hollow Arboretum’s historic mid-century house.

🟡 Also Sunday, Poke-a-Con takes over the Albany Armory for the ultimate gathering of Pokémon enthusiasts.

🖼️ ART ON VIEW

• Catch Compass Roses: Albany at Opalka Gallery before it closes!

• Art at APL: Sight Specific, at the Pine Hills Branch of Albany Public Library. Curated by Opalka Gallery. Closes Nov. 8

• Liberation and For Life celebrates 50 years of Black Dimensions in Art, showcasing 90+ artists and 100+ works that will blow your mind | Albany Institute of History & Art

• Up to Us highlights BDA’s powerful legacy with archival materials spanning 1975 to the future | The Tang Museum

• Noel W Anderson: Black Excellence and Romare Bearden & Ralph Ellison: From the Archive | UAlbany Art Museum

Our music listings are now published separately on The 518 website. Click here.

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