After a two-year hiatus because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the New Hampshire Film Festival is back in action and marking its 20th anniversary.Filmmakers and film lovers are descending on Portsmouth for the four-day event that began Thursday."We have our largest program ever," said Nicole Gregg, executive director of the film festival. "We have 140-plus films this year, which is amazing."From short films to features and documentaries, the locally and internationally made films will be screened in six venues across the city."We love it because we love movies, and there's such a big choice," said Joanne Kaley, of Rye.Seventeen special events are planned over the four days, from ceremonies to panels and parties."I'm doing my first short this year, and I'm just kind of here to learn and meet some cool people," said Michelle Lee, who was visiting from Connecticut.Organizers said everyone involved has a lot of catching up to do since the last festival in 2019."We missed each other," said filmmaker and festival co-founder Dan Hannon. "We missed the camaraderie. We missed seeing all the filmmakers. We missed the creativity. We missed the buzz."Thursday was dedicated to promoting films, filmmakers and actors from the Granite State. Organizers said the festival has made an impact over the years."Filmmakers that were starting out making their first short films, we played them," Hannon said. "Now, they're in Hollywood making feature films with A-listers and stuff like that."Tickets can be picked up at the festival headquarters at the Museum of New Art on Congress Street.