The Maryland Film Festival in Baltimore kicks off its 19th year May 3-7 with the opening of its new home, the recently refurbished Parkway Theatre. The theater will also serve as a year-round home for independent film in Baltimore and is an appropriate centerpiece for the Maryland Film Festival. With more than 50 feature films and some 75 shorts from around the world along with workshops, Q&As and other events celebrating the silver screen, the Maryland Film Festival is a film fan’s paradise and the state’s largest film festival. Each of the North American featured films will be presented by a filmmaker from the project. This year, the annual five-day festival is expected to be the biggest yet; get your tickets at the Maryland Film Festival’s official site.

The seventh annual Maryland Traditions Folklife Festival will occur on Saturday, June 10, from noon to 7 p.m. at the Creative Alliance at the Patterson in Highlandtown. This free, family-friendly festival celebrates folk and traditional arts from across Maryland. Come to participate in Native American, Brazilian, West African, and Irish dance; make your own paper quilts, piñatas, drums, and beaded jewelry; and experience jazz, blues, bluegrass, cumbia, hip-hop, and Chinese opera traditions. Keep your energy up with multicultural food offerings, and learn about maritime culture from the watermen of the Chesapeake Bay. Find out more about the festival and Maryland’s folk traditions at MSAC.org.
Photo by Edwin Remsberg Photographs.

At its April meeting, the Board of Directors that oversees the multi-state Civil War Trails program approved several major changes to reflect its goals of being more stakeholder-driven and universal in its approach to increasing visitation to its more than 1,500 sites. Among the changes was the unanimous approval of John Fieseler, Executive Director for the Tourism Council of Frederick County, as the new Board Chairperson, and Marci Ross, Assistant Director Tourism Development, OTD, as Treasurer. “I am honored to serve as Chair during the post-sesquicentennial phase of the program,” said Fieseler. “The American Civil War remains a very popular travel motivator and Civil War Trails is positioned well to attract both domestic and international visitors.”

Marci Ross, Assistant Director Tourism Development, OTD, was on hand for the April 21 rededication of the Burnside Bridge. The rededication came after the National Park Service completed a $2.2 million refurbishment of the historic stone-arch bridge, which required the removal and exact replacement of each stone.

During the September 17, 1862, Battle of Antietam, the iconic bridge was the location of one of the fiercest engagements between Union and Confederate forces, with more than 600 soldiers perishing in the skirmish. “We wanted to take an opportunity to thank all of those involved in the magnificent restoration work that was completed on the bridge,” said Susan Trail, Superintendent, Antietam National Battlefield. “Their work has preserved this national treasure for this and future generations.”

In honor of National/Baltimore Tourism Week, Visit Baltimore and the Visit Baltimore Foundation are shining a light on the people and organizations who make the Baltimore tourism experience exceptional. As part of the celebration, there will be a sector-focused career pathways and resources fair for job-seekers to network with top Baltimore-area employers from a variety of industries, hear from individuals and inspirational speakers, and take advantage of a variety of resources in one place to help them in their job search. For more information and to register, click here.

The National Park Service, National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom (NTF) Program and the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Conference are co-hosting a conference in honor of the opening of the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Visitor Center in Church Creek, Maryland, marking the first time Maryland has hosted the event. The conference, “On the Edge of Freedom: Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad in the Borderlands,” will be held in Cambridge, May 18-21, 2017. The conference will explore all aspects of the Underground Railroad in borderlands—both literal and figurative. The conference brings together scholars, site stewards, researchers, student artists, and enthusiasts from across the nation for four days of renowned speakers, panel discussions, workshops, an exhibit hall, and tours. “The Network to Freedom program is excited to bring the annual Underground Railroad conference to Dorchester County in recognition of the opening of the new Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Visitor Center, so that attendees will get an opportunity to experience this marvelous new facility,” says Diane Miller, Acting Superintendent, Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park.

Begin your conference experience on Thursday by choosing from four great pre-conference workshops or take a tour of Harriet Tubman's birthplace. Sessions start on Friday morning and last through Saturday afternoon. Also, stick around for the Sunday bus and walking tour along the Delmarva Peninsula. For information and to register, click here.

The latest Maryland Tourism Monitor shows continuing gains from OTD’s outreach efforts. Print and broadcast leads for 2017 are outperforming 2016 with broadcast leads showing 27.6 percent growth, and media outreach efforts have generated nearly $8.4 million in advertising value. On social media, TravelMD has posted a 29 percent rise in Facebook fans, a 12.8 percent growth on Twitter, and a 117.2 percent rise in Instagram followers through the fiscal year. Traffic to VisitMaryland.org has seen an increase of nearly 100 percent, with unique traffic generating more than 174,000 outbound links to our partners. These efforts have coincided with a 5.2 percent increase in Tourism Tax Code revenues, doubling the increase from all other categories which rose 2.6 percent. To read the full monitor, visit our website.

IPW, the largest generator of travel to the U.S., is coming to Washington, D.C. and bringing more than 7,000 attendees, including domestic and international travel buyers. This rare opportunity to have the tourism industry’s premier event in Maryland’s backyard doesn’t come often, so register now and benefit from one-on-one appointments with buyers, meet with travel supplier organizations from every region in the U.S., and representatives from more than 75 countries, generating more than $4.7 billion in future travel.

In addition to registering for IPW, you and your colleagues may also volunteer to work at special events throughout the duration of the convention. To become a volunteer, log on to washington.org\ipw2017 and click on the triple bar download icon in the page header. All volunteers will receive training, passes, shirts, and the opportunity to participate in the country's most exciting international tourism event.

Each week, the Maryland Minute provides highlights and insights on this weekend’s events around the state. Maryland Minute is featured on CBS radio stations in Baltimore and Washington, D.C. and on Baltimore’s WBAL-AM 1090.