Screenings, dramatic readings, and other special events are on tap for the 27th annual Columbia University Film Festival, co-sponsored for the third year by the Film Society of Lincoln Center. Writer/director Jennifer Lee (Frozen) will receive this year’s Andrew Sarris Award.

The festival, taking place May 2-8, showcases the premieres of over 40 thesis short films and feature screenplays by MFA students at Columbia’s Arts Film Program. Many of the films premiered during the event have gone on to win top awards festivals worldwide. The Lunch Date, Adam Davidson’s thesis film, was recently added to the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress. Un Mundo Para Raul (A World for Raul), directed by Mauro Mueller (’13), won the Bronze Medal in the Narrative category at the Student Academy Awards in 2013. Mark Raso’s Under received a Gold Medal in the Narrative category at the 2012 Student Academy Awards, while I Am John Wayne, by Christina Choe, was awarded the Grand Jury Sparky Award for Short Film at the 2012 Slamdance Film Festival. Bora Kim’s The Recorder Exam took the 2012 DGA Best Woman Student Filmmaker Award, and High Maintenance, written and directed by Shawn Wines, won a Silver Medal at the 2011 Student Academy Awards.