Eliza Hittman’s debut feature, IT FELT LIKE LOVE, has set an early 2014 U.S. theatrical release date via Variance Films. IT FELT LIKE LOVE was written and directed by Eliza Hittman, and stars Gina Piersanti, Giovanna Salimeni, and Ronen Rubinstein. Debuting at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival, the film has gone on to a festival run including stops at Rotterdam, BAMcinemaFEST, London BFI, Maryland, Viennale, Melbourne and more.  The film was awarded the Special Jury Prize at the Sarasota Film Festival, and Gina Piersanti won the prize for Best Actress at the Nashville Film Festival.

 IT FELT LIKE LOVE tells the story of Lila (Gina Piersanti), a fourteen-year-old spending a hot summer in a blue-collar Brooklyn neighborhood far removed from the bustling city.  Awkward, lonely, and often playing the third wheel, Lila is determined to emulate the sexual exploits of her more experienced best friend.  She fixates on Sammy, a tough older guy, when she hears that “he’ll sleep with anyone.”  Deluded in her romantic pursuit, Lila tries desperately to insert herself into Sammy’s gritty world, but in doing so she puts herself into a dangerously vulnerable situation.

http://youtu.be/c0jufr-ed5Y