The Mauch Chunk Opera House will soon roll out its red carpet for the second annual Jim Thorpe Independent Film Festival.

Starting April 12 and running through April 15, the four-day festival will take over the historic venue, playing 93 films from around the world, such as Nigeria, Greece and Iran, all the way to Carbon County’s own backyard.

“We wanted to raise the bar this year,” said festival co-producer Jocelyn O’Neil.

“We feel we succeeded,” said co-producer Todd Morris.

“We have films from all over the world. There are 15 world premieres and eight are from the U.S. There are 16 films from the East Coast, 30 from Pennsylvania and eight films from the Lehigh Valley,” said O’Neil.

The couple have partnered with PBS39 for this year’s festival.

“JTIFF is honored to join forces with PBS39 — one of the most important conduits of culture, education and entertainment for millions throughout Eastern Pennsylvania and beyond,” Morris said. “The theme of JTIFF is ‘Eyes and minds wide open,’ and PBS39 totally gets that.”

PBS39 Chief Content Officer, Yoni Greenbaum, was also excited to announce the partnership.

“Community partnerships such as this align with our strategic plan while allowing PBS39 to showcase the very talented work of the region’s independent film community,” Greenbaum said.

PBS will be on hand filming both opening night and Sunday’s closing night award ceremony.

“We were really pleased last year with the word of mouth that got out about the festival,” said O’Neil.

“People are taking us more seriously now that they know we’re the real deal, and we are here to stay,” said Morris.

As proof of that statement, this year’s festival was able to score a large full-length feature for Thursday’s opening night.

“We were shocked to get ‘Blaze,’” said Morris.

“Blaze,” co-written and directed by Ethan Hawke, stars Ben Dickey, Alia Shawkat, Josh Hamilton and Charlie Sexton, and is inspired by the life of Blaze Foley, the unsung songwriting legend of the Texas outlaw music movement that spawned the likes of Merle Haggard and Willie Nelson.

According to promotional material, “The film weaves together three different periods of time, braiding re-imagined versions of Blaze’s past, present and future. The different strands explore his love affair with Sybil Rosen; his last, dark night on earth; and the impact his songs and death had on his fans, friends and foes. The braided storyline terminates in a bittersweet ending that acknowledges Blaze’s profound highs and lows, as well as the impressions he made on the people who shared his journey.”

The film is based on “Living in the Woods in a Tree: Remembering Blaze,” a memoir written by Rosen, who co-wrote the screenplay. It premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January.

“It’s a huge coup that a second annual film fest could get this film,” said Morris.

According to Morris, Dickey, “Blaze” lead actor, will be at the film’s premiere and will perform with his Louisiana based-band at the opera house following the showing.

The art doesn’t stop there; each night a feature film will roll. On Friday, the Australian film “Top Knot Detective,” a documentary, will have audiences fascinated and entertained.

According to the synopsis, the film documents “Top Knot Detective,” a 1980s Japanese television series that became a cult hit.

“I was really working to this year to try to get some bigger films,” said Morris.

Saturday night will feature a French action-thriller homage to spaghetti westerns titled “Let the Corpses Tan.”

“It’s a perfect Saturday night film,” Morris said.

Closing night will feature a haunting and beautifully shot film titled “Indiana.”

“It deals with people who are left behind and searching for meaning while looking for the supernatural,” O’Neil said.

“It’s really heartfelt and beautiful,” said Morris.

The directors for all three feature films will attend the festival weekend.

Highlights of the festival are so numerous it’s almost impossible to name just a few standouts. Here are a few to consider.

The Experimental block will feature local filmmaker Eric Szollosy’s “Snow King.”

“Snow King” is a prequel of sorts to the stark black-and-white stream of consciousness of last year’s “Fool’s Chair.”

“The Toothmans,” of the Local Hero block, deals with a conservative farm family whose son identifies as a girl and the struggle the family faces to embrace their daughter.

“It’s very touching to watch the father come to terms with it,” said O’Neil.

“Still Waters Run Deep,” is a Nigerian film created by a female director.

“It’s a beautiful tragic story of a father who’s very stoic and dealing with the loss of his firstborn son. It’s heart-wrenching,” O’Neil said.

“Chasing Sunshine” is an odd-couple buddy film playing Friday night along with “After Hours Trading,” a dark-comedy about human trafficking.

Though the subject matter isn’t a humorous topic, Morris assures the film is “legitimately funny.”

“Stay Woke,” is a “very slick and well put together film,” said Morris.

“I don’t program stuff because it’s politically correct. It has to be well done,” he said.

The festival will follow last year’s two-hour block scheduling with tickets available for either block or a full day.

According to Morris, 14 Acre Farm will sell snacks and sandwiches throughout the weekend, while Somersault Press has created all of the artwork for the event.

“The Jim Thorpe Inn has been the biggest sponsor,” said Morris.

The producers tell attendees to “dress for the occasion,” on opening night as cameras will be rolling.

For more information, to buy tickets or find the schedule visit www.jimthorpeindiefilmfest.com