Bryn Mawr Film Institute to host Internet Cat Video Festival

The Bryn Mawr Film Institute will soon hold an event geared toward fans of online felines with the touring version of the Internet Cat Video Festival, which comes to the area next month.

Produced by Minneapolis' Walker Art Center, the Internet Cat Video Festival first launched in 2012 as a "showcase of feline hijinks" that hoped to "bring online communities together." A touring version of the festival began in 2013.

Locally, we will get a taste on April 20th, when the festival comes to Bryn Mawr. And, unfortunately, this year's tour is being touted as the festival's last edition.

"We think that cat videos will live on without us, and we're really excited for other people to take up the mantle and program their own festivals," Walker Art Center design director Emmet Byrne told the Star Tribune earlier this month.

The Bryn Mawr stop will feature an hour-long presentation of curated cat clips, as well as what a release calls "cat-ivities," courtesy of Main Line Animal Rescue. That means "photo ops, trivia, and a coloring station," which will be set up in the BMFI atrium.

Attendees wearing their "favorite kitty clothes" will be eligible to receive a free small popcorn. However, please note that should not actually bring your cat to the event.

Despite this being the final year for the festival, it appears that its spirit will live on. Following this year's festivities, the Walker Art Museum will reportedly donate its Internet cat archives to the Minneapolis Historical Society.

Tickets for the Bryn Mawr stop are available now and run between $8 and $12.