Queens World Film Festival co-founders Katah and Don Preston Cato are hosting “Looking Back to Look Forward: A Night of Remembrance & Connection.” at The Local LIC commemorating the fifth anniversary of the COVID-19 lockdown. Photos courtesy of QWFF
March 17, 2025 By Bill Parry
The co-founders of the Queens World Film Festival will host a special evening of remembrance and reflection at The Local in Long Island City on Wednesday night, marking the fifth anniversary of the festival’s historic pivot to an online format.
In March 2020, Queens World became the first film festival in the world to transition entirely online in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, setting a precedent for virtual film programming during the global shutdown.
On the night of March 19, 2020, the first couple of Queens cinema opened their festival on time and online, featuring 191 films from 31 nations, broadcasting live from their Jackson Heights living room.
Queens World Film Festival Executive Director Katha Cato recalled brainstorming with her husband, Don Preston Cato, the festival’s artistic director, just days before the city shut down and the world changed around them.
“On March 7, we had our trailer party at the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria and on that day we had started to talk to the publicist of one of the filmmakers who was in our festival that year who also was handling a very young, brand new online music video site so we start talking to them, and God, it was just all way beyond me and understanding,” she told Queens Post.
“Everybody was saying, okay, well, you better do this, and you’re going to download all your films, and you’ll re-upload them in this format, and you’ll do that, and you’ll do this, we had to reformat everything from playing in big, huge, beautiful screens down to something that people could experience on their phones.”
Queens Memory Project Team. Photos courtesy of QWFF
Once the plan was hatched, they overcame another enormous challenge.
“Out of 220 films that were to be screened, we needed to get permission to show their films online and so we were chasing down people all over the world,” Cato said. “So we couldn’t get a hold of most of the people in Iran. We couldn’t get a hold of the people in China and, I believe, one or two in Nepal. So, we went live with 191 of the films from 31 nations. We did the best that we could.”
Wednesday’s event, dubbed “Looking Back and Looking Forward: A Night of Remembrance and Connection,” will be a 90-minute celebration that will highlight a Listening Tour compilation and collections from the Queens Memory Project at the Queens Public Library.
The Queens Memory Project is a community-engaged archiving program dedicated to preserving the personal histories of Queens residents.
In the early days of the pandemic, Queens Memory launched The COVID-19 Project for borough residents to share their experiences and connect with others through public programs, oral history interviews, podcasting listening sessions, and other digital initiatives.
“Since the pandemic, we’ve continued to find ways to keep Queens connected by recording, preserving, and amplifying community voices,” said Queens Memory Interim Director Meral Agish.
Guests will interact with an interactive mapping installation and share how they stayed connected during the lockdown. They will also watch short films from Queens World alumni that reflect the bleak early days of the pandemic while highlighting hope.
Queens World Listening Tour Screening Van-Dien Family March 2022. Photos courtesy of QWFF
“I wouldn’t want to go through another lockdown, but I’m proud of the way local agencies responded,” Cato said. “Thus, I’m really happy to present the special evening of remembrance and healing with our simply fantastic partners.”
MetroPlusHealth, a supporter of Queens World, will serve appetizers, and representatives will be on hand to provide information on the agency’s vital services.
“MetroPlusHealth is proud to join the event, standing alongside our community partners, filmmakers and artists,” MetroPlusHealth Experiential Marketing Production Associate Harlan Gong said. “As a company that prioritizes people over profit, we’re dedicated to providing healthcare access to every New Yorker. Together, we celebrate resilience and ensure a healthier future for all.”
Looking Back to Look Forward will take place in a large, well-furnished community space next
to the café and bar at The Local, which is located at 13-02 44th Ave. The 37-room hostel is a few blocks from the Court Sq-23 St station on the E, G, and M lines and the Court Sq stop on the 7 train.
Admission is free, but reservations are required via queensworldfilmfestival.org or click here for the Eventbrite page.
Cato added that the evening is a chance to honor the past during these new uncertain times for her neighbors who now worry about ICE raids, Elon Musk DOGE layoffs, and high grocery prices in addition to public health.
“It’s time to come back together because we need each other now more than ever. It’s okay to come back together and say you’re scared. It’s okay,” Cato said.” I hope to see everyone on March 19.”
Featured Events
