After years of planning, months of fundraising and weeks full of scheduling and organizing, the Ashland Independent Film Festival is back — and less than a month away for cinephiles in and around the Rogue Valley.

The festival is set to make a full return utilizing multiple venues across Ashland to screen a wide range of films, documentaries and more.

The majority of movies will play at the Varsity Theatre, but other works will be showcased at AIFF’s headquarters in downtown Ashland, Southern Oregon University’s Music Recital Hall as well as outdoors at the ScienceWorks Hands-on Museum.

The film festival is set for Thursday through Sunday, Oct. 3-6, and a preview night is scheduled for 7 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 18, at SOU’s Music Recital Hall, located at 450 S. Mountain Ave. in Ashland.

The preview night will announce all of the films for this year’s lineup and provide further details and schedules for the four-day event. Admission to the preview night is free.

AIFF members receive first dibs on screening tickets and other packages for the festival, and interested parties can sign up to become a member or purchase tickets and passes at aiff.eventive.org/passes/buy.

“There’s definitely a sense of things having been growing and building to this point — there’s just a lot of excitement and energy and we’re all digging in and working,” said Maylee Oddo, festival director. “We know we’re bringing something special and great back to the community, and I believe people who come are really going to have the same feeling; even though it’s scaled back (from previous festivals), it’ll be exciting and the programing’s fantastic and the events are nearly all lined up.”

While organizers couldn’t share specifics on which films were selected for showings, they will announce all the details during the Sept. 18 preview event.

“I will be explaining the programs and helping people steer through the large number of films and find films that intrigue them,” said Richard Herskowitz, festival director of programming. “The festival is composed of about 30 feature films and another 30 to 40 short films.”

This year’s films were selected for their diversity of styles, themes and stories for a well-rounded mix of fact and fiction.

“We have some incredible and outstanding films — it’s really been exciting — I didn’t know what to expect coming in,” said Aura Johnson, director of programming and film submissions. “I was so pleasantly surprised. The films are really really top notch.”

The films featured will include some works of local directors and regional stories.

“We do have a number of short films in our program and some longer form films as well made by locals and featuring regional stories that are outstanding. It’s a pleasant surprise with high-quality stories to showcase,” Johnson said.

Another factor considered by Johnson was to bring in unique media that strays from the style of mainstream blockbuster films.

“Independent cinema is inherently rebellious, creative and wild,” Johnson said. “Filmmakers can go wild with their imaginations and I really like to showcase that variety of styles and storytelling approaches.”

Organizers are excited to bring the festival back for the community and to celebrate cinematic art and the effort it takes to make daring and transcendent films.

“We’re really committed to the personal expressions of independent filmmakers, and really, a lot of the films we show are passion projects, films that are often made by filmmakers who took years off their life to make films with an artistic urgency, trying to address issues they feel need to be addressed,” Herskowitz said. “Getting those to the public is something AIFF strives to do.”

“It goes deeper, to see the world and other people in a different way, that transformative quality, and even when it can seem so tough and hard, it’s a shared experience and it actually can grant a sense of optimism and understanding and real empathy,” Oddo said, adding, “this really transcends the typical movie experience.”

The film festival can always use volunteers, and those interested in helping are advised to visit ashlandfilm.org/volunteers.

For more information on the festival, visit ashlandfilm.org.