On Thursday June 12, residents and visitors of the Island are invited to relax by Sengekontacket Pond and enjoy a festival of short films at the Rod and Gun Club in Edgartown.

The event is called Lunafest and it showcases and celebrates the work of female filmmakers. It is part of a national fundraising initiative sponsored by Luna, makers of The Whole Nutrition Bar for Women. Through this touring festival, Luna partners with local organizations dedicated to women’s issues to help raise money for their causes. The host for the Edgartown Lunafest is the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments (ANHE), which works to call attention to the correlation between chemicals and illness.

This year’s lineup includes nine films, each one no longer than 20 minutes. The films span many genres and topics, ranging from an animated exploration of the interaction between sound and space to a documentary about a senior women’s basketball team.

Though none of the films explicitly address the environment, Mary Jane Williams, a member of ANHE and host of the Edgartown Lunafest, said ANHE decided to partner with Luna because women’s groups are some of the most involved with their efforts.

To help educate the audience, Ms. Williams and ANHE invited Dr. Barbara Sattler, a professor in the Public Health department at the University of San Francisco, to give a lecture prior to the screening. Dr. Sattler has distinguished herself in the field of environmental health for more than 40 years.

Dr. Sattler’s lecture will begin at 5 p.m. and will be preceded by a cocktail hour at 4. After the talk, the films will run continuously, with one intermission. Throughout the evening, a silent auction will take place, snacks will be served and prizes will be given out to random members of the audience.

Those wishing to attend the cocktail hour, lecture and screening can purchase tickets for $100. General admissions tickets, granting access to the screening alone, are $25. Tickets can be purchased online at lunafest.org/Edgartown, but checks will also be accepted at the door.

Eighty five per cent of all proceeds will be donated to ANHE, while the remaining 15 per cent, as per tradition, will go to the Breast Cancer Fund, a beneficiary selected by the Luna company.

All films are appropriate for a teenage audience. Though the event is advertised as a festival “by, for, and about women,” gentlemen are encouraged to attend.