GREAT ESCAPE: The 13th Annual Maryland Film Festival

The Maryland Film Festival is gearing up this weekend to present movies from all over the world.

The first weekend in May in Baltimore means movies—documentaries, narratives, experiments and animations alike. Come downtown to see film and video, both American and international, and even some live performances.

Each year, the festival screens approximately 50 feature-length films and 75 short films, and this year is no exception. Starting on Thursday evening, May 5, and running through Sunday, May 8, the 13th annual Maryland Film Festival will present titles such as:

• Domaine. It’s about a sexy and riveting French mathematician, as seen through the eyes of her young nephew. This film will be presented by Baltimore’s own John Waters (a Lutherville native).

• Restless City. In New York City, African immigrants struggle to achieve their dreams without falling prey to drugs, crime and prostitution, and discover whether a love story can redeem the violence.

• The Learning. Approximately 10 percent of Baltimore City’s school teachers come from the Philippines—that’s 600 new teachers who are also new to the country. In this documentary, the audience follows a year in the life of four of them, and sees how they acclimated to the tough hallways of Baltimore’s city schools.

• Sing Your Song. This is a documentary about Harry Belafonte, the civil rights activist who is often best known for his Calypso-style music and a signature "Day-O" chorus in the “Banana Boat Song.” Sing Your Song will be presented on the festival’s closing night, with none other than Harry Belafonte himself as a special guest.

These are a mere fraction of the festival’s offerings.

There will also be a collection of silent film slapstick moments, starring Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton, accompanied by the live, original music of Baltimore’s Alloy Orchestra.

Want to see more? Click here to see the full schedule and read synopses of each film.