Cucalorus Festival in Wilmington is big boost to local economy

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) – Lots of people from across the country and from around the world are coming to Wilmington for the 28th Annual Cucalorus Film Festival, and that’s a big boost to local businesses.

Not only are festival goers spending on hotels, restaurants, and retail, but so are the filmmakers, organizers, and vendors.

The pandemic halted the progress of many businesses, causing a drastic dip in profits for entrepreneurs, promoters, and hotel owners but that’s changing.

Tickets to upcoming festivals and concerts scheduled months in advance have already sold out.

According to Cucalorus board member Peter Sweyer, events like these are making a comeback.

“Things have definitely come roaring back, we’ve got close to 20,000 people who will attend this festival, and that has far-reaching impacts on our city,” he said. “It brings attention downtown, not just for people coming out of the area, but it also gets people who live in Wilmington to go see different parts of their city, it’s kind of a multiplier effect.”

Restaurants like Seaside and Manna Bar have seen an influx of people patronizing their establishments, especially after the pandemic.

Businesses have seen visitors from other counties come to the downtown area, get a room and stay the night, just to have the opportunity to get the full festival experience.

According to Seaside Restaurant Owner Dean Neff, the festival brings life to downtown Wilmington.

“Festivals like Cucalorus, they always just bring good energy into downtown and were excited that it’s happening,” he said.  “It’s one of those festivals that we really love downtown because it brings people out, they are having a good time. They are wanting to eat, and they are wanting to drink. ”

According to Bartender Matthew Brinker, foot traffic has picked up since the start of the festival.

“Cucalorus seems to have brought a lot of people into town and venturing out-and-about to different places they might not go, including the Manna Bar and the Bourgie Nights, into places like that,” he said.

Tickets are still available for the festival, for tickets and view the lineup by clicking here.