MIDDLETOWN – The third Hoboken International Film Festival in Middletown is continuing this week.
The event, the 10th annual, means a great deal to the entire Mid-Hudson Valley region, said Middletown Mayor Joseph DeStefano.
“We are trying to get people to enjoy what the city has to offer, and not only Middletown, but the region,” DeStefano said. “We encourage people who are here for the whole week to enjoy the Newburgh waterfront, the Port Jervis rafting down the Delaware, or Warwick wineries, so I think it has a great regional impact on the community when you bring this many people into the community.”
The festival is under contract for one more year with Middletown, but its founder and director, Kenneth Del Vecchio, would like to stay in the city permanently.
“My goal is to stay here in Middletown and when this year’s film festival gets over I will sit down with Middletown and we will see where we will go,” Del Vecchio said.
DeStefano, meanwhile, said it will be a business decision.
“Hopefully during the course of the next year we will be able to discuss more, but as the thing grows, we understand business and we are going to be thankful for what we have had and hopefully we will be able to keep it,” the mayor said.
The festival draws between 8,000 and 10,000 people to the region annually.
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