Crime + Punishment (2018)

Absolutely essential and completely daring, this sprawling look at corruption in the NYPD, with remarkable access to whistleblowers, will flood you with the kind of righteous anger you didn’t think possible. While the state of New York officially banned policing quotas in 2010, the corrupt practice endures at the NYPD as a cash-grabbing method helping pad its annual budget. These quotas are met by cops patrolling “high crime” areas (read: communities of color), making arrests that only seem to get dismissed in court. It’s only due to the courage of whistleblowers like the NYPD12, a group of minority officers who’ve filed a class-action lawsuit against the force, and the hard-nose investigations of private detectives like ex-cop Manual Gomez, that light is shed on the continued injustice and its dehumanizing practices. Up-close and unnerving, Stephen Maing’s explosive documentary masterfully weaves firsthand accounts, private documents, and secret recordings to give unparalleled insight into these institutional practices of racial discrimination, while revealing the bravery of police officers willing to do anything to serve and protect their community. As citizens, it’s practically our duty to see.

Directed by Stephen Maing

Genre(s) Documentary Film

BAMcinemaFest 2018 Announces Festival Lineup, Opens with Boots Riley’s SORRY TO BOTHER YOU

[caption id="attachment_27436" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Lakeith Stanfield and Tessa Thompson appear in Sorry to Bother You by Boots Riley[/caption] BAM unveiled the lineup for the tenth annual BAMcinemaFest taking place June 20 to July 18, 2018. Opening this year’s festival on Wednesday, June 20 is the head-spinningly surreal debut from musician-turned-filmmaker Boots Riley, Sorry to Bother You. Struggling to make ends meet in Oakland, CA, Cassius Green (Lakeith Stanfield) lands a job as a RegalView telemarketer. Realizing perfecting his “white voice” is the key to his monetary success, Green soon discovers it’s not without considerable consequences. Also starring Armie Hammer as RegalView’s callous CEO and a beguiling Tessa Thompson as Green’s activist-artist love interest. This year’s Closing Night selection on Saturday, June 30 is the New York premiere of Brooklyn filmmaker Josephine Decker’s third feature, Madeline’s Madeline. It stars writer/actor/director Miranda July as single mother Regina and dazzling young newcomer Helena Howard as her daughter Madeline. The film chronicles a volatile mother-daughter relationship which slowly intensifies with Madeline’s participation in an improvisational theater class led by an unscrupulous stage director (played by Molly Parker). This year’s Centerpiece selection is Leave No Trace. Eight years after Winter’s Bone, director Debra Granik returns with an arresting portrait of a father and daughter living a transient lifestyle off the grid. Starring Ben Foster and newcomer Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie in a mesmerizing breakout performance, Leave No Trace is a Bleeker Street release. This year’s Spotlight selections are Eighth Grade and Crime + Punishment. Bo Burnham’s much talked about Sundance film Eighth Grade follows 13-year-old Kayla (a riveting portrayal by newcomer Elsie Fisher), who, just having been awarded the status of ‘Most Quiet’ by her peers, ironically finds a voice in making inspirational videos for teens on YouTube. At once unflinchingly honest and unfailingly empathetic, Burnham’s auspicious directorial debut is as relatable as it is hilarious. Eighth Grade is an A24 release. Stephen Maing’s Crime + Punishment is a galvanizing documentary chronicling 12 New York Police Department minority officers who risk everything, speaking out against the continued use of quotas that unfairly target young black and Hispanic men. With unprecedented fly-on-the-wall access, the film exposes racism, corruption, and intimidation within the NYPD. Crime + Punishment is a Film Collaborative release. Kasi Lemmons’ Eve’s Bayou (1997) has been selected as the festival’s free, outdoor screening happening on Thursday, June 28 at Brooklyn Bridge Park. Relayed through the eyes of 10-year-old Eve (Jurnee Smollett), this Southern Gothic saga transpires over the course of a Louisiana summer after Eve discovers her picture-perfect family is something else entirely. The BAMcinemaFest main slate includes 20 feature films, with three world and two North American premieres, as well as nine documentary titles. The world premieres include Chained for Life, Feast of the Epiphany, and Two Plains & a Fancy. Aaron Schimberg’s Chained for Life is a reflexive look at the making of a controversial art film, with a heartbreaking performance by Adam Pearson (Under the Skin), featuring familiar faces from BAMcinemaFest’s past. Feast of the Epiphany, by film critic Michael Koresky and BAMcinemaFest alums Jeff Reichert and Farihah Zaman (Remote Area Medical) explores metaphysical connections among guests at an urban dinner party in the wake of a loss. BAMcinemaFest alums Whitney Horn and Lev Kalman (L is For Leisure) return with Two Plains & a Fancy, a spa-Western-comedy following three hapless tourists as they encounter ghosts, time travelers, and lonesome cowboys. This year’s BAMcinemaFest includes two short film programs, one comprising six narrative short films. The second, a documentary shorts program, is paired with the North American premiere of Lizzie Olesker and Lynne Sachs’ documentary The Washing Society, about the behind-the-scenes labor involved in the laundromat industry. Penny Lane’s documentary The Pain of Others, about controversial Morgellons disease sufferers, is the festival’s second North American premiere, and screens with the short film The Water Slide (Nathan Truesdell).
2018 BAMcinemaFest Lineup
“A Boy. A Girl. A Dream” (Qasim Basir) NY Premiere Narrative The boy is Cass (Omari Hardwick), an LA nightclub promoter whose once-promising filmmaking career has been put on hold. The girl is Frida (Meagan Good), a lawyer visiting from the Midwest, whom he meets on election night 2016. The dream is what unfolds before our eyes in one seemingly continuous, hallucinatory take as the two navigate a will-they or won’t-they mutual attraction; open up to one another about their hopes and disappointments; and—along with the rest of the world—begin to process the momentous political sea change washing over America, all in the course of a single evening. More than just a dazzling technical achievement, A Boy. A Girl. A Dream. takes viewers on a profound emotional journey as it explores how everything can change in an instant. A Samuel Goldwyn Films release. “América” (Erick Stoll & Chase Whiteside) NY Premiere Documentary When we first meet Diego—the magnetic emotional center of this sunny, warmhearted family portrait— he’s unicycling around a town square, disco-strutting on stilts, and beach-bumming around Puerto Vallarta. But when his frail but sweet-natured 93-year-old grandmother, América, is suddenly left without a caretaker, Diego—along with his two equally acrobatic brothers—leaves behind his laid-back life to return to his home in Colima, Mexico. In images at once meticulously composed and bursting with vitality, filmmakers Chase Whiteside and Erick Stoll celebrate the selflessness of caregiving and the infinite love coursing between generations. “Bisbee ‘17” (Robert Greene) NY Premiere Documentary A town’s traumatic past reverberates into the present in this stirring, complex look at American struggle and resistance. In 1917, the copper mining workers of Bisbee, Arizona—many of them immigrants—went on strike to fight for safer working conditions. In response, a posse of 2,000 men rounded up 1,200 strikers, dumped them in the desert, and effectively exiled them from the town forever. One hundred years later, Bisbee’s residents prepare to reenact this dark episode—a sort of historical exorcism that brings to light contemporary tensions between labor and management, union-building and capitalism, immigrants and nationalists. Directed with rousing cinematic flair by Robert Greene (Kate Plays Christine, BAMcinemaFest 2016), Bisbee ’17 resurrects a neglected slice of American history and connects it to our own urgent political moment. Co-presented with Rooftop Films. “Chained for Life” (Aaron Schimberg) World Premiere Narrative Building on the promise of his hallucinogenic debut Go Down Death, Brooklyn filmmaker Aaron Schimberg delivers another brilliantly oddball, acerbically funny foray into gonzo surrealism. In a deft tragicomic performance, Jess Weixler (Teeth) plays Mabel, a movie star “slumming it” in an outré art- horror film being shot in a semi-abandoned hospital. Cast opposite her is Rosenthal (Under the Skin’s Adam Pearson), a gentle-natured young man with a severe facial deformity. As their relationship evolves both on and offscreen, Schimberg raises provocative questions about cinematic notions of beauty, representation, and exploitation. Tod Browning crossed with Robert Altman crossed with David Lynch only begins to describe something this startlingly original and deeply felt. “Crime + Punishment” (Stephen Maing) NY Premiere Documentary This galvanizing documentary goes behind the scenes and undercover to expose racism, corruption, and intimidation within the New York Police Department. Shot between 2014 and 2017, Crime + Punishment chronicles the efforts of the NYPD 12, a band of minority officers who speak out against the continued use of arrest and summons quotas—an officially illegally practice that overwhelmingly targets young black and Hispanic men. Putting their careers on the line, the officers mount a David vs. Goliath legal challenge—only to find themselves weathering harassment and retaliation from within their own departments. With remarkable, fly-on-the-wall access, director Stephen Maing crafts a jolting 21st-century Serpico that unfolds with the verve and style of a Hollywood policier. “Clara’s Ghost” (Bridey Elliot) NY Premiere Narrative Families don’t get much more poisonous than the one at the center of this pitch-black, disturbingly funny nightmare comedy. Casting her own family as the gruesome clan in question, Bridey Elliott chronicles one epic night of debauchery in the Reynolds household as monstrously superficial daughters Julie and Riley (former SNL cast member Abby Elliott & the filmmaker)—former child stars à la Mary-Kate and Ashley— return home to Connecticut to celebrate their dog’s birthday with ham actor father Ted (comedian Chris Elliott) and harried mother Clara (Paula Niedert Elliott). As the vodka flows, things go from scathingly hilarious to increasingly unsettling—especially when Clara begins communing with a spirit. Something like Cassavetes’ A Woman Under the Influence played as an unsparing cringe comedy, Clara’s Ghost heralds the arrival of Bridey Elliott as a bold new directorial voice. “Distant Constellation” (Shevaun Mizrahi) NY Premiere Documentary This hushed, hypnotic documentary floats ghost-like through the rooms and corridors of an Istanbul retirement home, an uncanny alternate reality where time seems to stand still as the world outside changes rapidly. Director Shevaun Mizrahi’s observant camera bears witness to the testimonies of the home’s residents: an aging roué who speaks about his sexual escapades in 1950s Paris; a hunched-over woman scarred by memories of the Armenian genocide; a former photographer now losing his sight. By turns tragic, humorous, and surreal, Distant Constellation is a meditation on time, memory, and the endless human cycle of life and death. “Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot” (Gus Van Sant) NY Premiere Narrative Joaquin Phoenix adds to his impressive roster of transformative, totally committed performances with this irresistibly offbeat charmer from Gus Van Sant. Based on the memoirs of puckishly irreverent Portland cartoonist John Callahan (Phoenix), the film traces Callahan’s journey towards self-actualization after a car accident leaves him paralyzed and forces him to confront his alcohol addiction. Aided by a uniquely colorful AA support group, he finds redemption in art and in his own brilliantly warped imagination. Boasting scene-stealing supporting performances from Jonah Hill, Jack Black, and Rooney Mara—along with memorable turns by Kim Gordon, musician Beth Ditto, and cult fave Udo Kier—Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot is as skewed, funny, and inspirational as its subject. “Eighth Grade” (Bo Burnham) NY Premiere Narrative Comedian Bo Burnham makes the leap to filmmaker with this refreshingly real, sharply observed, and devastatingly funny look at growing up in the age of Snapchat. In a naturalistic breakout performance, Elsie Fisher stars as Kayla, a social media-hooked 13-year-old who projects confidence and cool on her barely watched YouTube channel, but in real life is painfully shy, endearingly awkward, and practically invisible to her classmates. With high school just around the corner, can she reconcile her online persona with her real self? At once unflinchingly honest and unfailingly empathetic, Burnham’s auspicious directorial debut is as relatable as it is hilarious. “Feast of the Epiphany” (Michael Koresky, Jeff Reichert & Farihah Zaman) World Premiere Narrative/Documentary Two halves form a harmonious whole in this ingenious documentary-narrative shape-shifter. In part one, Abby, a 20-something Brooklynite, prepares to throw an intimate dinner party, a meticulously planned evening that takes an unexpected turn when the guest of honor shows up and raw emotions rise to the surface. Then suddenly, audaciously, we are whisked away to an altogether different reality—one that both deepens and challenges our understanding of what came before. Hinging on this daring gambit, Feast of the Epiphany blossoms into a subtly profound reminder that behind every story are a multitude of others waiting to be told. “The Gospel of Eureka” (Michael Palmieri & Donal Mosher) NY Premiere Documentary Welcome to Eureka Springs, Arkansas, a one-of-a-kind oasis in the Ozarks where Christian piety rubs shoulders with a thriving queer community. Narrated with homespun humor by Mx Justin Vivian Bond, this lushly photographed documentary spotlights the space where the town’s seemingly contradictory factions intersect: Lee and Walter, out and proud husband-owners of a local gay bar they liken to a “hillbilly Studio 54,” talk about their deep-seated faith; a Christian t-shirt designer describes his love for his gay father; and everything comes together in a show-stopping mash-up of a spectacular passion play and raucous drag show. The result is a joyously offbeat slice of Americana that breaks down the red-state-blue-state divide. “Leave No Trace” (Debra Granik) NY Premiere Narrative Eight years after Winter’s Bone, Debra Granik returns with another arresting portrait of life on the margins featuring a mesmerizing breakout performance from a young actress to watch. Will (Ben Foster), a veteran wrestling with PTSD, and his teenage daughter Tom (newcomer Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie) live in a makeshift campsite in the Oregon wilderness, cut off from nearly all human contact and surviving by their wits. When social services intervenes, their harmonious isolation—and the deep bond between them—is threatened. With clear-eyed naturalism and an unwavering compassion for her outsider subjects, Granik creates a tough, tender, and deeply moving look at a father and daughter searching for their own idea of home. “Madeline’s Madeline” (Josephine Decker) NY Premiere Narrative One of independent cinema’s most exciting new voices, Josephine Decker (Thou Wast Mild and Lovely, BAMcinemaFest 2014) continues to push boundaries with her thrillingly visceral third feature, set in New York’s experimental theater scene. This tour-de-force head trip evokes the fractured psyche of an unstable teenage girl (riveting newcomer Helena Howard), whose rocky relationship with her mother (Miranda July) splinters as the girl comes under the influence of an exploitative stage director (Molly Parker). “Minding the Gap” (Bing Liu) NY Premiere Documentary In his emotionally stunning debut feature, rising documentary talent Bing Liu reimagines the skate video as a vehicle for raw personal expression. Minding the Gap opens with Liu’s dynamic camera gliding along the streets of Rockford, Illinois, a struggling post-industrial city where the filmmaker and his longtime friends Keire and Zack find community in a close-knit band of fellow skateboarders. But skating is just a respite from their tumultuous lives at home. As Liu digs deeper into his friends’ personal demons, he hits upon a shared thread of troubled masculinity, domestic abuse, and fractured families—building powerfully towards a bracing confrontation with his own past. “The Pain of Others” (Penny Lane) North American Premiere Documentary It begins with crawling sensations beneath the skin. Sores erupt. Then wiry, multicolored fibers sprout forth from the lesions—seemingly the outgrowths of an alien parasite. It’s called Morgellons disease and thousands around the world purport to suffer from it. The problem: the medical community at large says it isn’t real, attributing the epidemic to psychosomatic delusion spread by internet-fueled paranoia. In this provocative found-footage work, director Penny Lane assembles clips from YouTube videos uploaded by people who believe they are afflicted: wrenching face-to-face encounters with anguish both physical and mental. The result is a chilling deep dive into mass hysteria in the internet age. “Polly: Recent Films and Collaborations by Kevin Jerome Everson” (Kevin Jerome Everson) North American Premiere Narrative/Documentary Journeying from 16th-century Florence to the 2017 solar eclipse, the latest films from the restlessly inventive, ultra-prolific experimentalist Kevin Jerome Everson blend past and present, documentary and reenactment to illuminate hidden fragments of black life and history. “Relaxer” (Joel Potrykus) NY Premiere Narrative Joel Potrykus (The Alchemist Cookbook, BAMcinemaFest 2016), Michigan’s greatest underground auteur, returns with another gonzo transmission from America’s heartland. Set on the eve of Y2K, Relaxer unfolds almost entirely in a squalid living room where Abbie (the Keatonesque Joshua Burge), commanded by his sadistic brother (David Dastmalchian), takes up a nigh-impossible challenge: beating the all-time Pac-Man high score without leaving the couch until he does. As Abbie’s quest devolves into a months-long absurdist nightmare, Potrykus guides this daringly demented black comedy into increasingly disturbing realms. The result is a grungy, noxiously funny vision of Gen X complacency hurtling towards oblivion. “Shirkers” (Sandi Tan) NY Premiere Documentary In 1992, Sandi Tan was a film-obsessed teenage punk when she and her two best friends made a New Wave-inspired, feminist slasher movie, shot guerrilla style on the streets of Singapore. Then Georges, her enigmatic American mentor, absconded with the footage, never to be seen again. Twenty-five years later, Tan revisits the episode, interweaving the newly rediscovered footage with her search for answers: Who was Georges? And what drove him to steal her art? Working in a charmingly lo-fi, handmade-collage style, Tan turns the central mystery of her life into a captivating essay on friendship, cinephilia, and the dashed dreams of youth. A Netflix release. “Skate Kitchen” (Crystal Moselle) NY Premiere Narrative Crystal Moselle follows up her Sundance Grand Prize-winning documentary hit The Wolfpack with her equally impressive narrative debut. Inspired by and starring real-life members of New York City’s hippest all-girl skate crew, Skate Kitchen follows the journey of Camille (Rachelle Vinberg), a Long Island teen whose fraught home life and passion for skateboarding lead her to the Lower East Side. There, she finds her Eden among a band of street-savvy fellow female shredders—but the complexities of love and friendship threaten to upset their sisterhood. Propelled by the cool girl charisma of its leads, this authentic deep-dive into a vibrant youth subculture plays like a blissed-out, female-powered Kids for today’s New York. A Magnolia Pictures release. “Sorry to Bother You” (Boots Riley) NY Premiere Narrative The audacious, deliriously inventive debut from musician-turned-filmmaker Boots Riley marks the arrival of one of American cinema’s most exhilarating new talents. “Use your white voice.” With that simple piece of advice, stuck-on-the-bottom-rung telemarketer Cassius Green (Lakeith Stanfield) goes from living in his uncle’s garage to rocketing up the corporate ladder as the company’s newest rising star “power caller.” But just what is he selling? Abetted by game performances from Stanfield, Tessa Thompson, and Armie Hammer as a crazed capitalist super-villain, Riley blends head-spinning surrealism with bomb-throwing sociopolitical satire for a cracked and brilliant anarcho-comedy that keeps topping its own craziness. An Annapurna release. “Support the Girls” (Andrew Bujalski) NY Premiere Narrative With a huge amount of heart and a healthy sprinkling of irreverent one-liners, Andrew Bujalski (Computer Chess, BAMcinemaFest 2013; Beeswax, BAMcinemaFest 2009) crafts a funny, human portrait of women banding together to get it done. Lisa (Regina Hall)—the fiercely devoted manager of Double Whammies, a Hooters-like Houston sports bar—has a seemingly superhuman ability to handle whatever life throws at her. On this particular day, that means protecting her staff from lecherous men, dealing with an attempted robbery, raising money for a waitress in trouble, and contending with Double Whammies’ unseemly owner, all while keeping the restaurant running smoothly. Buoyed by a magnificent performance from Regina Hall, this deceptively breezy comedy folds serious issues of sexism, racism, and capitalism into a generous tribute to female friendship and empowerment. “The Task” (Leigh Ledare) NY Premiere Documentary Twenty-eight strangers shuffle into a nondescript room where they sit down for day three of a radical social experiment orchestrated by taboo-breaking artist Leigh Ledare. Veering between brutal honesty, righteous indignation, manipulative caginess, and suspicion of the inscrutable “task” at hand, the participants—spread across race, age, gender, and class lines—relentlessly analyze each and every interaction that passes between them until even an act as small as changing one’s seat becomes charged with explosive tension. Provocative, at times uncomfortable, and always riveting, The Task is an unsettling mirror reflection of our societal fault lines. “Two Plains & a Fancy” (Lev Kalman & Whitney Horn) World Premiere Narrative BAMcinemaFest alums Lev Kalman and Whitney Horn (L for Leisure, 2014) return with this deliciously deadpan, lo-fi acid-western comedy. Colorado, 1893: a trio of New York city slickers—a hippy-dippy mystic (Marianna McClellan), a French geologist (Laetitia Dosch), and a foppish artist (Benjamin Crotty)— wander the desert in search of the relaxing waters of the hot springs, along the way encountering from- the-future time travelers, kinky sex ghosts, spirit cats, and a pair of surprisingly fashionable cowboys. Shot on shimmering, sun-splashed 16mm, this hallucinogenic Old West road movie meanders in a blissful stoner haze from the wryly funny to the cosmic. “The Washing Society” (Lizzie Olesker & Lynne Sachs) North American Premiere Documentary When you drop off a bag of dirty laundry, who’s doing the washing and folding? Mixing revealing interviews with poetic performance, filmmaker Lynne Sachs and playwright Lizzie Olesker go behind the scenes of New York City’s laundromats to uncover the hidden labor that goes into cleaning your clothes— a story that intersects with history, immigration, race, community, and capitalism. “Wild Nights with Emily” (Madeleine Olnek) NY Premiere Narrative According to received wisdom, Emily Dickinson was a fragile recluse who spent her life holed up in her childhood home, a shrinking violet spinster too timid to publish her poems. Forget all that. In this delightfully funny historical burlesque, Madeleine Olnek (The Foxy Merkins, BAMcinemaFest 2014) offers a refreshing, much-needed reappraisal of Dickinson (Molly Shannon) as an ambitious, vivacious rebel whose passionate, lifelong love affair with childhood friend and later sister-in-law Susan Gilbert (Susan Ziegler) fueled her creativity. Balancing irreverent humor with a tender love story, Wild Nights With Emily challenges the sexist historical record, brilliantly reclaiming the writer’s reputation as a lesbian icon and a feminist trailblazer.
Shorts
“Are You Tired of Forever?” 6min NY Premiere—Experimental Directed by Caitlin Craggs A schizoid self-portrait writ in a day-glo kaleidoscope of stop-motion cutouts, picnic food, jellified brains, and sprinkles. “Black 14” 15min NY Premiere—Documentary Directed by Darius Clark Monroe In 1969, a group of fourteen black football players at the University of Wyoming took a stand against racism in college athletics—and paid the price for speaking out. A tribute to the fearlessness of those who paved the way for today’s activist athletes. “Creature Companion” 30min North American Premiere—Narrative/Experimental Directed by Melika Bass Over the course of languorous summer days and nights, two women enter into a twitchy, sensuous symbiosis in this hypnotic performance piece. “Edgecombe” 15min World Premiere—Documentary Directed by Crystal Kayiza Three snapshots of black life in Edgecombe County, North Carolina, a place where the racial injustices of the past continue into the present. “Fucked Like a Star” 8min NY Premiere—Experimental Directed by Stefani Saintonge A poetic meditation on women’s work and the dreamlife of ants set to the words of Toni Morrison. “Hair Wolf” 12min—Narrative Directed by Mariama Diallo There’s something strange in the neighborhood salon… She’s white, she wants braids, and she will touch your black hair. “Reenactment” 8min NY Premiere—Narrative/Experimental Directed by Young Jean Lee A no-nonsense police report becomes a harrowing, flesh-and-blood encounter with domestic violence and toxic masculinity. “To Be Free” 12min NY Premiere—Narrative Directed by Adepero Oduye Nina Simone takes the stage for a defiant, soul-stirring performance. “The Water Slide” 9min NY Premiere—Documentary (screens with The Pain of Others) Directed by Nathan Truesdell News clips and promotional videos tell the chilling story of how the building of an amusement park water slide led to an American tragedy. “What We Have Built” 19min—Documentary Directed by Adrián Gutiérrez & Grace Remington A group of immigrants living in the Bronx join forces to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars to improve their hometown in Mexico. A story of community, collective action, and the meaning of home.
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2018 Berkshire International Film Festival to Showcase 80 Films, AMERICAN ANIMALS, BAD REPUTATION and More..

[caption id="attachment_26622" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] AMERICAN ANIMALS[/caption] The 13th Annual Berkshire International Film Festival (BIFF) will showcase 80 of the latest in independent feature, documentary, short and family films from 28 countries, from May 31 to June 3 in Great Barrington and June 1 to 3 in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. “Among the many things I love about the BIFF is its increasing reflection on and discovery of our global community,” notes the festival’s Founder and Artistic Director, Kelley Vickery. “The characters and stories in this year’s films are as diverse as ever—showing us unique perspectives of what life is like for a broad range of people in very different places and circumstances. BIFF always celebrates independent filmmakers and we are especially excited to honor the talented and evocative career of Rachel Weisz. We are continuing our “Tea Talks” series with engaging films and discussions and very proud to have a special event with a screenplay reading of MUMBET. We strive to bring a special festival to our vibrant community, so we truly believe there is something for everyone!” On Thursday, May 31, in Great Barrington, the festival opens this year with the Sundance hit AMERICAN ANIMALS. This docudrama is the extraordinary and thrilling true story of four friends who brazenly attempt to execute one of the most audacious art heists in US history. The following day, on June 1, In Pittsfield, BIFF will open at the Beacon in Pittsfield with the rock-and-rolling BAD REPUTATION about the one and only Joan Jett. The documentary follows her incredible, uncompromising and influential career. You will leave singing “I love rock ‘n’ roll!” The opening night begins with a party at the Beacon Cinema followed by the presentation of the NINTH annual “Next Great Filmmaker Award.” On Friday, June 1 – Tribute Night – The festival will pay tribute to the Academy Award-winning actor, Rachel Weisz for her remarkable achievement in film. Over the past 25 years, Ms. Weisz has displayed her fearlessness, intelligence and talent in over 64 roles and has won or been nominated for nearly every industry award – from a BAFTA, to a Golden Globe, to an Oscar. We celebrate the incredible body of work she has already created and the creative peaks she continues to climb. As part of the tribute, Ms. Weisz will be in conversation with David Edelstein, New York chief film critic on the stage of the Mahaiwe following by a screening of her new film DISOBEDIENCE. The festival will host the Special Event – Staged script reading of the upcoming film MUMBET and Q&A after the reading with the cast and crew. Director/Producer Alethea Root, writer Stephen Glantz, producer Kim Waltrip, executive producers Jayne Atkinson and Elizabeth Aspenlieder, co-producer Jana Laiz, Diane Pearlman and Jameelah Nuruddin, production designer Carl Sprague, and costume designer Kevin Draves, Governor Deval Patrick and State Representative Smitty Pignatelli will all be in attendance. She could neither read nor write, yet with fearless courage, Elizabeth “Mumbet” Freeman used the very words written by the men she served, “all men are created free and equal” to challenge the courts and sue for her freedom, changing the course of history 80 years before the Emancipation Proclamation. This is the true story of an unsung American hero who was truly a founding Mother of our country.” [caption id="attachment_25672" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Won’t You Be My Neighbor?[/caption] On Sunday, June 3, BIFF will close with the highly acclaimed Sundance hit, WON’T YOU BE MY NEIGHBOR? about the life and legacy of Mr. Rogers. The film was directed by Academy Award-winning director Morgan Neville and produced by Nicholas Ma who will be in attendance for a Q&A after the screening. Film courtesy of Focus Features.
THE JURY
The BIFF’s EIGHTH Annual Jury includes actors Karen Allen, Jayne Atkinson, Scott Cohen, Michel Gil and Peter Riegert, distribution guru Josh Braun, New York Film Festival director Kent Jones, past Academy president and producer Sid Ganis and producer Nancy Hult Ganis and award-winning producer Darren Dean. There will be five films in competition for feature documentaries and five films in the narrative category. The award will carry a $5,000 prize sponsored by GWFF USA to be presented on Sunday, June 4 at Allium in Great Barrington. The BIFF has become the festival of choice for filmmakers and film lovers who are seeking a unique Berkshire experience and a place to indulge their passion for film. The Festival connects audiences to compelling documentaries, award-winning international releases with incredible parties and events, all just a short drive from New York City and Boston. Films and events will be held throughout Great Barrington and Pittsfield, including the Triplex Cinema, the historic Mahaiwe Theatre, and the Beacon Cinema, as well as area restaurants. The NINTH annual “Next Great Filmmaker” Competition created and sponsored by Berkshire Bank will kick-off online on Friday, April 27. Voting will continue through to May 30 and the winner announced at the opening night presentation in Pittsfield, Friday, June 1 at the Beacon.
BIFF FILMMAKERS SUMMIT
For the SEVENTH year, the BIFF will present the annual Filmmakers Summit—a two-day talent academy offered to the 2018 film selection filmmakers. Offering a diverse, multi-dimensional program of panel discussions, lectures, special events, and breakout sessions lead by known industry professionals, the BIFF Filmmakers Summit celebrates and supports the advancement of filmmakers and recognizes film as a relevant and important medium. Beginning on Wednesday, May 31, the Filmmakers Summit is an integral part of the festival experience for filmmakers. Ensuring the freshest and most poignant dialogue in conjunction with incredibly unique events, this Summit goes way beyond networking; it will fortify the festival experience. The Summit features special effects legend Douglas Trumbull, head of CNN Documentaries, and other industry professionals.
THE LINEUP: FEATURES, DOCUMENTARIES, AND SHORTS

NARRATIVE FEATURES
AMERICAN ANIMALS, US (d. Bart Layton with: Evan Peters. Barry Keoghan, Blake Jenner, Jared Abrahamson, Ann Dowd, Udo Kier *EDIE, UK (d: Simon Hunter with: Sheila Hancock, Kevin Guthrie, Amy Manson, Paul Brannigan, Wendy Morgan) Q&A with Simon Hunter following the screening EIGHTH GRADE, US (d. Bo Burnahm with: Elsie Fisher, Josh Hamilton) HOCHELAGA, TERRA DES AMES, Canada (d: Francois Girard with: Samian, Raoul Max Trujillo, Vincent Perez) *L’INSTANT INFINI, France/Switzerland (d. Doulgas Beer with: Jennifer Rihouey, Leonard Delacroix, Mathieu Chardet) Q&A with Douglas Beer following the screening *JULIE, BLUE, US/Ukraine (d: Roxy Topoworyc with: Polina Snisarenko) Q&A with Roxy Topoworyc following the screening LOVELING, Brazil/Uruguay (d: Gustavo Pizzi with: Karine Teles, Otavio Muller, Adriana Esteves, Konstantinos Sarris, Cesar Troncoso) MAZE, Ireland (d: Stephen Burke with: Tom Vaughan-Lawlor, Barry Ward, Martin McCann,Eileen Walsh, Niamh McGrady, Ross McKinney) NO DATE, NO SIGNATURE, Iran (d: Vahid Jalilvand with: Navid Mohammadzadeh, Amir Agha’ee, Hediyeh Tehrani, Zakiyeh Behbahani, Sa’eed Dakh, Alireza Ostadi) PIEDS NUS DANS L’AUBE, Canada (d: Frederic LeClerc with: Shauna Bonaduce, Roy Dupuis, Marianne Fortier) SCAFFOLDING, Israel (d: Matan Yair with: Asher Lax, Ami Smolartchik, Yaacov Cohen, Keren Berger) SHELTER, Israel (d: Eran Riklis with: Golshifteh Farahani, Neta Riskin, orald Liddawi, Haluk Bilginer, Mark Waschke) *SILK ROAD, Denmark (d: Mark de Cloe with: Olivia Lonsdale, Gijs Blom, Jonas Smulders ) Q&A with Mark de Cloe following the screening STREAKERS, Switzerland (d: Peter Luisi with: Beat Schlatter, Doro Muggler, Bendrit Bajra, Luna Wedler) THE CHARMER, Iran/Holland (d: Milad Alami with: Ardalan Esmaili, Lars Brygmann, Stine Fischer Christensen, Austa Lee Jesperson) THE ETERNAL FEMININE, Mexico (d: Natalia Beristain with: Karina Gidi, Tessa La, Danie Gimenez Cacho, Pedro De Tavira) THE GUILTY, Denmark (d: Gustav Moller with: Jakob Cedergren, Jessica Dinnage, Johan Olsen, Omar Shargawi) THE HOUSE BY THE SEA, France (d: Robert Guediguian with: Ariane Ascaride, Jean-Pierre Darroussin, Gerard Meylan, Jacques Boudet, Anais Demoustier) THE INVISIBLES, Germany (d: Claus Rafle with Max Mauff, Alice Dwyer, Ruby O. Fee, Aaron Altaras, Victoria Schulz, Florian Lukas) THE JUNIOR LEAGUE, Canada (d: Eric Tessier with: Antoine-Olivier Pilon, Rémi Goulet, Alice Morel-Michaud) *THE LONG DUMB ROAD, US (d: Hannah Fidell with: Tony Revolori, Jason Mantzoukas, Taissa Farmiga, Grace Gummer, Ron Livingtson, Casey Wilson) THREE PEAKS, Germany/Italy (d: Jan Zabeil with: Alexander Fehling, Berenice Bejo, Arian Montgomery) UNDER THE EIFFLE TOWER, US/France (d: Archie Borders with: Matt Walsh, Judith Godrèche, Reid Scott) UNDER THE TREE, Iceland (d: Hafsteinn Gunnar Siguross with: Steinpor Hrooar Steinborsson, Edda Bjorgvinsdottir, Sigurour Sigurjonsson, Porsteinn Bachmann, Selma Bjornsdottir) WOMAN WALKS AHEAD, US (d: Susanna Wright with: Jessica Chastain, Sam Rockwell, Ciaran Hinds, Michael Nouri, David Midthunder, Michael Greyeyes, Bill Camp)
DOCUMENTARY FEATURES
*306 HOLLYWOOD, US/Hungary (d: Elan Boagarin/Jonathan Boagarin) Q&A with filmmaker following the screening *BAD REPUTATION, US (d: Kevin Karslake) Q&A with filmmaker following the screening *BREWMASTER, US (d: Douglas Tirola/Susan Bedusa) Q&A with filmmaker following the screening *GETTING NAKED: A BURLESQUE STORY, US (d: James Lester) Q&A with filmmaker following the screening RYUICHI SAKAMOTO: CODA, Japan/US (d: Stephen Nomura Schibl) CRIME + PUNISHMENT, US (d: Stephen Maing) DARK MONEY, US (d: Kimberly Reed) *DATELINE: SAIGON, US (d: Thomas Herman) Q&A with filmmaker following the screening *GRIT, US/Indonesia (d: Cynthia Wade) Q&A with filmmaker following the screening THE HUMAN ELEMENT, US/Iceland (d: Matthew Testa) *GONE IN AN INSTANT, US (d: Anthony Holt) Q&A with filmmaker after screening *IMPOSED PIECE, Belgium (d: Brecht Vanhoenacker) Q&A with filmmaker following the screening *IT WILL BE CHAOS, US (d: Lorena Luciano, Filippo Piscopo) Q&A with filmmaker following the screening *MOVING STORIES, US (d: Rob Fruchtman) Collaboration with Jacob’s Pillow with Q&A following the screening with filmmaker and dancers *LOVE, GILDA, US (d: Lisa Dapolito) ) Q&A with filmmaker following the screening OF FATHERS AND SONS, Germany/Syria/Lebanon/Qatar (d: Talal Derki) ON HER SHOULDERS, US (d: Alexandra Bombach) *OUT OF MY HEAD, US (d: Susanna Styron) Q&A with filmmaker following the screening *RESTORING TOMORROW, US (d: Aaron Wolf) *DAUGHTERS OF THE SEXUAL REVOLUTION, US (d: Dana Adam Shapiro) Q&A with filmmaker after screening STUDIO 54, US (d: Matt Tyranauer) THE GODDESSES OF FOOD, France (d: Verane Frediani) THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ANDRE, US (d: Kim Novack) THE WORKERS CUP, UK (d: Adam Sobel) THIS IS HOME, US/Jordan (d: Alexandra Shiva) THREE IDENTICAL STRANGERS, US (d: Tim Wardle) WHAT LIES UPSTREAM, US (d: Cullen Hoback) *WON’T YOU BE MY NEIGHBOR? US (d: Morgan Neville) Q&A with filmmaker following the screening
SHORTS
BIFF will present two short film programs showcasing 22 shorts. Filmmakers will be in attendance at selected screenings.
Shorts #1
*GAME (d: Jeannie Donohue), #SELFIE (d: David M. Lorenz), *DEPORTING MYSELF (d: Julie Neumann), BABS (d: Celine Hand, Logan George), *SURVIVING NEW YORK (d: Megan Miller), *FLY LADY FLY (d: Lucien Flores/Michaela Smith), COOLPOOL ( d: Zachary Myers), NIGHT (d: Christian Scales and *ADVENTURE NOT WAR (d: Max Lowe)
Shorts #2
*THE LONG RED LIGHT (d: Chris Hume), EMERGENCY (d: Carey Williams), WALLS (d: Fatmir Dolci/Maik Schuster/Max Poschke), *FEVAH (d: Randall Dottin), *HEIMLICH (d: Lisanne Santor), YOU’RE WELCOME (d: Rebecca Panian), THE SILENT (d: Karen Turner/Dom Lee), *JITTERS (d: Otoja Abit), *EVE (d: Susan Bay Nimoy) and *WITH MY TWO HANDS (d: Michael Baraocas). *denotes filmmakers in attendance.
VENUES AND TICKETS
Venues for all of the weekend-long events and screenings include the Triplex Cinema, Daniel Arts Center at Simon’s Rock and the historic Mahaiwe Theatre in Great Barrington and the Beacon Cinema and Hotel on North in Pittsfield.
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Mammoth Lakes Film Festival Announces 2018 Line-Up + Opening and Closing Films

[caption id="attachment_26511" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Mia Wasikowska, Robert Pattinson in Damsel.[/caption] The Mammoth Lakes Film Festival (MLFF) announced their feature film line-up, as well as the Opening and Closing Night films, for the fourth edition of the festival, taking place May 23 through 27 at venues across Mammoth Lakes. The 2018 Mammoth Lakes Film Festival will open with Damsel on Wednesday, May 23. Robert Pattinson and Mia Wasikowska star in a comedic homage to classic Westerns. Samuel (Pattinson), is a businessman who sets out to rescue his kidnapped fiancée Penelope (Wasikowska). The situation turns out to be more complicated than it first appears, and Penelope is no mere damsel in distress. The film from Magnolia Pictures is directed and written by David Zellner and Nathan Zellner. [caption id="attachment_26877" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Love, Gilda[/caption] The festival will close with the documentary film Love, Gilda on Sunday, May 27. In her own words, comedienne Gilda Radner reflects on her life and career. Weaving together her recently discovered audiotapes, interviews with friends (Chevy Chase, Lorne Michaels, Laraine Newman, Paul Shaffer and Martin Short), rare home movies and diaries read by modern-day comedians inspired by Gilda (Bill Hader, Melissa McCarthy, Amy Poehler, Maya Rudolph and Cecily Strong), Love, Gilda opens up a unique window into the honest and whimsical world of a beloved performer whose greatest role was sharing her story. The film from CNN Films is directed by Lisa D’Apolito. “We’re excited to bring such a dynamic and diverse lineup to this year’s festival,” said Festival Director Shira Dubrovner. “In four short years, we’ve already begun to establish MLFF as a must-attend festival thanks to our scenic and majestic backdrop of the Eastern Sierra and world-class cinema.” “MLFF focuses on films that have powerful, innovative artistic voices,” said Director of Programming Paul Sbrizzi. “We look forward to bringing our festival-goers the bold style and thought-provoking stories found in this year’s slate.”
The Mammoth Lakes Film Festival line-up

Core Competitions

Narrative Features:
Birds Without Feathers – In this pitch-black comedy, six broken individuals unable to make a human connection will give everything away in an attempt to receive love. Directed and written by Wendy McColm. West Coast Premiere Fort Maria – A sensitive, lyrical look at an agoraphobic Bulgarian woman and her adopted African-American daughter, as they each evaluate their lives and their relationship after the death of the beloved family dog. Directed and written by S. Cagney Gentry and Thom Southerland. My Name Is Myeisha – A charming, talented teenage girl crosses over into a candy-coated hip-hop-musical dreamscape on the fateful night she crosses paths with police. Directed by Gus Krieger, written by Rickerby Hinds. The Queen of Hollywood Blvd. – On her 60th birthday, the proud owner of a Los Angeles strip club finds herself in hot water, leading her on a downward spiral of violence and revenge. Directed and written by Orson Oblowitz. West Coast Premiere Rock Steady Row – A college freshman’s bike is stolen and he’s compelled to go to battle with the comic-book villain that rules the reigning fraternity using Walkmen and No. 2 pencils as weapons. Directed by Trevor Stevens, written by Bomani J. Story.
Documentary Features:
Buddha.mov – Lured by the chance of being the protagonist of a documentary film, Buddha Dev starts authorizing unrestricted access into the most private parts of his life. Directed by Kabir Mehta. West Coast Premiere Crime + Punishment – A group of brave officers risk it all to expose the truth about illegal quota practices in the NYPD. Directed by Steven Maing. Minding the Gap – The lives of three young skateboarding friends grow together and apart as they try to process childhood trauma and escape the cycle of domestic violence in their Rust Belt hometown. Directed by Bing Liu. Tourists – A disturbing and hilarious trip around the world, observed through the amateur cinematography of naïve, outspoken and judgmental middle-class tourists. Directed by Mateusz Romaszkan and Marta Wójtowicz-Wcislo. North American Premiere Vianey – New Jersey and Bronx based underground hip hop artist Vianey Otero (Icey Trap) discusses growing up on the streets, the lure of escorting, everyday life in jail, and being a female artist in the music industry. Directed by Marko Vuorinen. West Coast Premiere White Tide: The Legend of Culebra – There’s an island, there’s a map, there’s buried treasure… $2 million dollars just waiting for someone to dig it up. There’s just one slight problem: it happens to be in cocaine form. Directed by Theo Love. West Coast Premiere
Foreign Features:
Barren and Empty the Sea (Spain) – Esteban wakes up one morning and everybody accuses him of being a stranger that happens to look just like Esteban.Directed and written by Lucas Parnes Pereira and Jesus Serna. International Premiere Melodrama / Random / Melbourne! (Australia) – A feminist documentarian, a pick up artist and a virgin’s lives collide, and blood will be shed on neon-lit streets of Melbourne. Directed by Matthew Pastor, written by Celina Yuen and Matthew Victor Pastor. North American Premiere Tower. A Bright Day (Poland) Just before her daughter’s First Holy Communion, Mula’s long lost sister Kaja pays them a visit, harboring a secret. The family believes in reconciliation, but Mula has her reasons to be afraid. Directed and written by Jagoda Szelc. North American Premiere Vidar the Vampire (Norway) – The wildly hilarious adventure of a Christian farmer searching for a higher purpose to life, who falls into sin and wakes up as the Prince of Darkness in the city of Stavanger, Norway. Directed and written by Thomas Aske Berg and Fredrik Waldeland.
Spotlight Presentations:
Dyna Does Dressage – Documentary about the first mule ever to compete at the national level in the competitive equestrian sport of dressage. Directed by Sarah Crowe. Home + Away – A group of students with family on both sides of the US/Mexico border navigate academics, athletic competition, a school in need of greater funding and familial strife during the their final year at a Texas high school. Directed by Matt Ogens. West Coast Premiere On Her Shoulders – Nadia Murad, a 23-year-old Yazidi genocide and ISIS sex slave survivor, becomes the voice of her people and their best hope to spur the world to action.Directed by Alexandria Bombach. Pick of the Litter – The story of puppies from the moment they’re born through their quest to become guide dogs for the blind, the ultimate canine career. Directed by Dana Nachman and Don Hardy Jr. A Woman Captured – Director Bernadett Tuza-Ritter’s incredible document of the evolving consciousness of a Hungarian woman who has been held as a domestic slave for 10 years and decides to undertake a daring escape. Directed by Bernadett Tuza-Ritter. West Coast Premiere The festival will also feature Short Film Programs of 26 Narrative Shorts, 10 Documentary Shorts, 11 Animation Shorts and a program of classic animation from East Germany. Over $40,000 in cash and prizes will be given out in nine categories to this year’s films in competition. Winners will be announced on Sunday, May 27 at a Closing Night reception.
The 2018 Mammoth Lakes Film Festival Jurors
Allison Amon (EVP Sales & Development, Bullitt) Lindsey Bahr (Associated Press) Peter Baxter (Filmmaker; President/Co-Founder, Slamdance) Shalini Dore (Variety) Alonso Duralde (TheWrap) Tim Rhys (MovieMaker Magazine) Vincent Spano (Actor) Nicole Sperling (Vanity Fair) Rachel Winter (Producer) Ana Souza (Sundance Film Festival) Scenery Samundra (Tru Thoughts, NTS Radio)
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NashFilm Announces 2018 Feature Films Lineup for Narrative, Documentary, New Directors & Graveyard Shift Competitions

[caption id="attachment_25450" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Adventures in Public School[/caption] The Nashville Film Festival continues its lineup for the ten-day festival, running May 10 to 19, 2018, with the announcement of 48 additional feature films in Narrative, Documentary, New Directors and Graveyard Shift competitions. Capturing the essence of today’s most relevant social issues, historical stories and more, these 48 films hail from China, South Africa, Netherlands, Denmark, India, France and more, as well as 31 from the U.S. A jury of industry professionals will select the winning films that will take home up to $20,000 in cash and prizes. “We received over 6,100 film submissions and the process of determining the 48 participants was incredibly challenging as the caliber of submissions continues to astonish us each year,” said Artistic Director, Brian Owens. “We strive to always include a diverse roster of feature films that inspire, move and create meaningful conversations.” Below are the 2018 selections in the categories:
Narrative Competition
1985 (Southeast US Premiere) – A closeted young man goes home for the holidays and struggles to reveal his dire circumstances to his conservative family. Cast: Jamie Chung, Virginia Masden, Michael Chiklis, Director: Yen Tan, Producers: Hutch, Ash Christian (USA) Across the Waters (Southeast US Premiere) – ACROSS THE WATERS is the gripping tale of the Danish Jews’ escape to Sweden in October 1943. Cast: David Dencik, Danica Curcic, Director: Nicolo Donato, Producer: Peter Bech (Denmark) An Act of Defiance (Tennessee Premiere) – A South African lawyer risks his life and career to defend Nelson Mandela and his inner circle. Cast: Peter Paul Muller, Antoinette Louw, Sello Motloung, Sean Venter, Director: Jean van de Velde, Producers: Michael Auret, Richard Claus, Hugh Rogers (South Africa, Netherlands) Adventures In Public School (Southeast US Premiere) – A socially awkward home-schooled kid forces his way into public-school against his suffocating but loving mother’s wishes. Cast: Judy Greer, Daniel Doheny, Russell Peters, Grace Park, Siobhan Williams, Director: Kyle Rideout, Producer: Josh Epstein (Canada) Angels Wear White (Tennessee Premiere) – ANGELS WEAR WHITE is a powerful film noir that exposes the social injustices and difficult issues women face in contemporary China. Cast: Wen Qi, Zhou Meijun, Shi Ke, Geng Le, Liu Weiwei, Peng Jing, Director: Vivian Qu, Producer: Sean Chen (China) Bikini Moon (Tennessee Premiere) – A charismatic homeless woman captures the attention of a documentary film crew who are ready to exploit her story for their own shot at independent movie fame in this very modern, urban fairy tale set amidst a fractured ideal of family. Cast: Condola Rashad, Sarah Goldberg, Will Janowitz, Sathya Sridharan, Director: Milcho Manchevski, Producers: Anja Wedell, Munire Armstrong (USA) Craving (US Premiere) – Coco has no idea what to do with her life until she discovers her mother is terminally ill. Cast: Simone Kleinsma, Elise van ‘t Laar, Director: Saskia Diesing. Producers: Hans de Wolf, Hanneke Niens (Netherlands) Dating My Mother (Southeast US Premiere) – A single mother and her gay son navigate the world of online dating in search of their versions of Mr. Right. Cast: Kathryn Erbe, Patrick Reily, Kathy Najimy, James Le Gros, Paul Iacono, Director: Mike Roma, Producer: Ashley Hills (USA) DriverX (Tennessee Premiere) – Skidding into middle age, a “50-something” stay-at-home dad who recently lost his record store must start driving for a rideshare company to help support his working wife and two young daughters. Cast: Patrick Fabian, Tanya Clarke, Desmin Borges, Travis Schuldt, Melissa Fumero, Oscar Nunez, Director: Henry Barrial, Producers: Mark Stolaroff, Alex Cutler (USA) Fifty Springtimes (Southeast US Premiere) – A woman in her 50s loses her job, finds out she is about to become a grandmother and is given an opportunity to start life over again. Cast: Agnès Jaoui, Director: Blandine Lenoir, Producers: Fabrice Goldstein, Antoine Rein (France) Goliath (Southeast US Premiere) – When a young soon-to-be father is unable to defend in his girldfriend in an attack, he takes steps that may threaten everything he loves. Cast: Sven Schelker, Jasna Fritzi Bauer, Director: Dominik Locher. Producers: Rajko Jazbec, Dario Schoch (Switzerland) Prison Logic (Tennessee Premiere) – PRISON LOGIC is an original comedy that tracks the life of Tijuana Jackson, an ex-convict fresh out of prison, set on becoming a world renowned motivational speaker. Cast: Romany Malco Jr., Regina Hall, Tami Roman, Alkoya Brunson, Director: Romany Malco Jr., Producers: Romany Malco Jr., Josh Etting, Brian Etting (USA) Salvation (Southeast US Premiere) – Cris, a thirteen year old girl, is admitted to a hospital to undergo open heart surgery. There she meets Víctor, a boy her same age who says he’s a vampire and who proposes a different kind of salvation for her heart: immortality. Cast: Marina Botí, Laura Yuste, Alzira Gómez, Carmen Flores, Director: Denise Castro, Producer: Denise Castro (Spain) Shelter (Tennessee Premiere) – A subtle thriller set in Germany involving Mona, a Lebanese woman, and Naomi, an Israeli Mossad agent, sent to protect their informant who is recovering from plastic surgery to conceal her identity. Together for two weeks in a quiet apartment in Hamburg, the two women take us into a complex, multi-dimensional labyrinth of trust and mistrust, of honesty and deception, of loyalty and betrayal. Cast: Neta Riskin, Golshifteh Farahani, Haluk Bilginer, Director: Eran Riklis, Producers: Bettina Brokemper, Antoine de Clermont-Tonnerre, Michael Eckelt, Eran Riklis (USA) When She Runs (Tennessee Premiere) – A young mother of limited means puts everything on the line to pursue her dream of becoming a competitive runner. Cast: Kirstin Anderson, Ivan Gehring, Jonah Graham. Directors: Robert Machoian, Rodrigo Ojeda-Beck, Producer: Laura Heberton (USA)
Documentary Competition
Chef Flynn (Tennessee Premiere) – With access to a trove of personal archival footage and including new, intimate vérité footage, director Cameron Yates creates a collage of Flynn’s singular focus and distinctive path through childhood. CHEF FLYNN shares a rare view of a young man’s successful rise from the inside. Director: Cameron Yates, Producers: Laura Coxson, Cameron Yates, Philipp Engelhorn (USA) Circles (US Premiere) – A Hurricane Katrina survivor who works to keep Black teenagers in school in Oakland, California finds his personal and professional lives colliding when his 15-year-old-son goes to jail for a crime he didn’t commit. Cast: Eric Butler, Tre Thomas, Betsye Steele, Mercedes Morgan, Ted Quant, Director: Cassidy Friedman, Producer: Cassidy Friedman (USA) Crime + Punishment (Tennessee Premiere) – Meet the NYPD12: a group of minority whistleblower officers who risk everything to expose racially discriminatory policing practices and smash the blue wall of silence. Director: Stephen Maing. Producer: Stephen Maing, Ross Tuttle, Eric Daniel Metzgar (USA) Crossroads (Tennesee Premiere) – This documentary follows a team of at-risk African-American teenagers and their lacrosse coach on a most improbable and inspiring journey. Director: Ron Yassen, Producers: Lauren Griswold, John Hirsch (USA) Dark Money (Tennessee Premiere) – Kimberly Reed returns to her native state of Montana to expose the insidious reach of corporate interests into politics and to chronicle its grassroots opposition. Director: Kimberly Reed, Producers: Kimberly Reed, Katy Chevigny (USA) Every Act of Life (Southeast Premiere) – The life of Tony-winning playwright Terrence McNally: 60 years of groundbreaking plays and musicals, the struggle for LGBT rights, addiction and recovery, finding true love, and the relentless pursuit of inspiration. Cast: Rita Moreno, Meryl Streep, Bryan Cranston, Christine Baranski, Director: Jeff Kaufman, Producers: Jeff Kaufman, Marcia Ross (USA) hillbilly (World Premiere) hillbilly is a documentary film that examines the iconic hillbilly stereotype in film and television. The film explores more than a hundred years of media representation of mountain and rural people, reveals how the hillbilly icon reflects America’s aspirational self-image over the decades, and offers an urgent exploration of how we see and think about poor, white, rural America. Cast: Billy Redden, Ronny Cox, bell hooks, Michael Apted, Silas House, Crystal Good, Frank X Walker. Directors: Sally Rubin, Ashley York. Producers: Sally Rubin, Ashley York. (USA). Minding the Gap (Tennessee Premiere) – Three young men bond together to escape volatile families in their Rust-Belt hometown. As they face adult responsibilities, unexpected revelations threaten their decade-long friendship. Cast: Zack Mulligan, Keire Johnson, Bing Liu, Nina Bowgren, Director: Bing Liu, Producers: Bing Liu, Diane Quon (USA) A Murder in Mansfield (Tennessee Premiere) – In 1990, the testimony of a 12-year-old boy sealed his father’s fate. A jury convicted prominent Ohio doctor John Boyle of murdering Collier’s mother. 26 years later, the son returns determined to get an admission of guilt from his imprisoned father. Cast: Collier Landry, Director: Barbara Kopple, Producers: Barbara Kopple, David Cassidy, Ray Nowosielski (USA) On Her Shoulders (Tennessee Premiere) – Nadia Murad, a 23-year-old Yazidi, survived genocide and sexual slavery committed by ISIS. Repeating her story to the world, this ordinary girl finds herself thrust onto the international stage as the voice of her people. Away from the podium, she must navigate bureaucracy, fame and people’s good intentions. Cast: Nadia Murad, Directors: Alexandria Bombach, Producers: Hayley Pappas, Brock Williams (USA) Say Her Name: The Life and Death of Sandra Bland (Southeast US Premiere) – In 2015, Sandra Bland, a young black woman, was found hanging in a small-town Texas jail cell days after a traffic violation. Ruled a suicide, her death fueled worldwide allegations of a racially motivated police murder. The filmmakers embedded with Sandra’s family during their two-year battle to uncover the truth. Cast: Sandra Bland, Directors: Kate Davis, David Heilbroner, Producers: Nancy Knox Talcott, David Heilbroner (USA) The World Before Your Feet (Tennessee Premiere) – For over six years, and for reasons he can’t explain, Matt Green has been walking every block of every street in New York City – a journey of more than 8,000 miles. Cast: Matt Green, Director: Jeremy Workman, Producers: Jeremy Workman, Jesse Eisenberg (USA) Zero Weeks (Southeast US Premiere) – Weaving powerful stories together with insightful interviews from leading policy makers, economists, researchers and activists, ZERO WEEKS lays out a compelling argument for guaranteed paid leave for every American worker. Director: Ky Dickens, Producers: Ky Dickens, Alexis Jaworski (USA) Weed the People (Southeast US Premiere) – Cannabis has been off-limits to doctors and researchers in the US for the past 80 years, but recently scientists have discovered its anti-cancer properties. Armed with only these laboratory studies, desperate parents obtain cannabis oil from underground sources to save their children from childhood cancers. Director: Abby Epstein, Producers: Giancarlo Canavesio, Sol Tryon (USA)
New Directors Competition
3/4 (Southeast US Premiere) – Mila is a gifted pianist with a bright future, yet her father pays more attention to the rings of Saturn than to her goals, and her brother tries to distract her with his unwanted talent for the absurd. A portrait of a family, struggling to find meaning during their last summer together. Cast: Mila Mihova, Nikolay Mashalo. Director: Ilian Metev, Producers: Ilian Metev, Ingmar Trost (Bulgaria) After Louie (Tennessee Premiere) – AFTER LOUIE explores the contradictions of modern gay life and history through Sam, a man desperate to understand how he and his community got to where they are today. Cast: Alan Cumming, Zachary Booth, Sarita Choudhury. Director: Vincent Gagliostro. Producers: Lauren Belfer, Alan Cumming, Bryce Renninger (USA) Best of All Worlds (Tennessee Premiere) – The true story of a child and his life in the unusual world of his heroin addict mother and their love for one another. Cast: Verena Altenberger, Jeremy Miliker, Lukas Miko, Michael Pink, Reinhold G. Moritz, Philipp Stix. Director: Adrian Goiginger, Producers: Wolfgang Ritzberger, Nils Dünker (Austria) The Marriage (Southeast US Premiere) – Bekim and Anita are getting married, but she is unaware that he is still in love with his best friend Nol. Cast: Alban Ukah, Adriana Matoshi, Genc Salihu. Director: Blerta Zeqiri, Producer: Kreshnik Keka Berisha (Kosovo) Mountain Rest (World Premiere) – After sequestering herself to a small mountain town, an aging actress calls her estranged daughter and granddaughter home for reconciliation and one final celebration. Cast: Natalia Dyer, Frances Conroy, Kate Lynn Sheil, Shawn Hatosy, Joshua Brady, Karson Kern, Director: Alex O Eaton, Producers: Fernando Loureiro, Roberto Vasconcellos, Renata Nascimento (USA) Never Steady, Never Still (Tennessee Premiere) – A mother struggles to take control of her life in the face of advanced Parkinson’s disease, while her son battles his sexual and emotional identity amongst the violence of Alberta’s oil field work camps. Cast: Shirley Henderson, Théodore Pellerin, Mary Galloway, Nicholas Campbell, Jared Abrahamson, Hugo Ateo, Lorne Cardinal, Director: Kathleen Hepburn. Producers: James Brown, Tyler Hagan (Canada) Noblemen (Tennessee Premiere) – A 15-year-old boy, struggling with his adolescent years, is terrorized by a gang of bullies in a posh boarding school. This sets forth a chain of events that leads to a loss of life and innocence. Cast: Kunal Kapoor, Ali Haji, Director: Vandana Kataria, Producers: Siddharth Anand Kumar, Vikram Mehra (India) Still (Tennessee Premiere) – When Lily loses her way on a hike through the Appalachian wilderness, she finds rescue in the form of a peculiar married couple who have completely isolated themselves from the outside world. Cast: Lydia Wilson, Madeline Brewer, Nick Blood, Mark Ashworth, Kevin Wayne, Diesel Madkins, Director: Takashi Doscher, Producers: Alex P. Creasia, Takashi Doscher, Craig Miller, Gabrielle Pickle (USA) The Swan (Southeast US Premiere) – A wayward nine-year-old girl is sent to the countryside to work and mature, but finds herself instead deeply entangled in a drama she can hardly grasp. Cast: Thor Kristjansson, Ingvar Eggert Sigurðsson, Þuríður Blær Jóhannsdóttir, Gríma Valsdóttir, Katla M. Þorgeirsdóttir, Director: Ása Helga Hjörleifsdótirr, Producers: Birgitta Bjornsdottir, Hlín Jóhannesdóttir (Iceland)
Graveyard Shift Competition
Door In the Woods (Tennessee Premiere) – A struggling family installs a vintage door only to find it’s a portal to supernatural danger, leading to a heart wrenching choice. Cast: Jennifer Pierce Mathus, David Snell, C.J. Jones, John-Michael Fisher, Director: Billy Chase Gofort, Producers: Kerri Elder, Blake Elder, Billy Chace Goforth (USA) Found Footage 3D (Tennessee Premiere) – A group of filmmakers set out to make the first 3D found footage horror movie, but find themselves in a found footage horror movie when the evil entity from their film escapes into their behind-the-scenes footage. Cast: Carter Roy, Alena von Stroheim, Chris O’Brien, Director: Steven DeGennaro, Producers: Steven DeGennaro, Kim Henkel, Charles Mulford (USA) Get My Gun (Tennessee Premiere) – After an innocent prank leaves Amanda pregnant and out of a job, she finds herself on the verge of motherhood and the target of a psychotic stalker who will stop at nothing to get her hands on her unborn child. Cast: Kate Hoffman, Christy Casey, Rosanne Rubino, William Jousset, Director: Brian Darwas, Producer: Jennifer Carchietta (USA) Katrina’s Dream (US Premiere) – Katrina wishes to have children but her boyfriend Louis doesn’t. She falls in love with his best friend Ron, who becomes the man of her life. When the two men are involved in a car accident in which Ron loses his head and Louis his body, a drastic surgery helps them survive, but merged into one person. Cast: Dagna Vinet Litzenberger, Manfred Liechti, Adrian Furrer, Simon Esteban, Directors: Mirko Bischofberger, Dario Bischofberger. Producers: Mirko Bischofberger, Dario Bischofberger (Switzerland) The Laplace’s Demon (Nashville Premiere) – Eight people are imprisoned in a secluded mansion on an uninhabited island. After waiting in vain for the host, they find a model with eight self-propelled pawns that reproduces the movements of each group member in real time. Cast: Alessandro Zonfrilli, Carlotta Mazzoncini, Silvano Bertolin, Duccio Giulivi, Walter Smorti, Director: Giordano Giulivi, Producers: Silvano Bertolin, Ferdinando D’Urbano, Duccio Giulivi, Giordano Giulivi (Italy) Mickey Reece’s Alien (Southeast US Premiere) – Elvis Presley struggles with an existential meltdown before his TV comeback special. Spirituality, space, and divine art clash in his marriage to Priscilla and his obligations to those surrounding The King. Cast: Jacob Snovel, Cate Jones, Director: Mickey Reece, Producers: Jacob Snovel, Cate Jones, Mickey Reece. (USA) The Odds (Southeast US Premiere) – A young woman enlists in an underground game of pain endurance in the hope of winning the million dollar prize. She soon learns the real opponent is the man who’s running the game, as he employs horrific methods to manipulate and defeat her. Cast: Abbi Butler, James Fuertes, Sean Ramey, Les Parker, Katie Gunn, Director: Bob Giordano, Producers: Tom Steinmann, Kelly Frey, Alan McKenna (USA) PROTOTYPE (Southeast US Premiere) – As the deadliest natural disaster in US history strikes Galveston, Texas, taking an estimated 6,000 to 12,000 lives, a mysterious televisual device projects images of unknown origin. Director: Blake Williams, Producer: Marco Gualtieri (Canada) Zerzura (Southeast US Premiere) – ZERZURA is a feature-length ethnofiction shot in the Sahara desert. Mixing folktales and documentary, the film follows a young man from Niger who leaves home in search of an enchanted oasis. Cast: Ibrahim Affi, Zara Alhassane, Ahmoudou Madassane, Director: Christopher Kirkley, Producer: Christopher Kirkley, Rhissa Koutata, Ahmoudou Madassane, Guichene Mohamed (Niger|USA)
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2018 Sarasota Film Festival Announces Lineup, ‘1985’ EIGHTH GRADE’ ‘THE RIDER’ and More…

[caption id="attachment_27753" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] EIGHTH GRADE[/caption] The 2018 Sarasota Film Festival (SFF) announced its full line-up, including its Centerpiece, Spotlight, Narrative Feature Competition, Independent Visions Competition, Documentary Feature Competition, Narrative, Documentary, and Short Films. The Festival also announced its five SFF Focus Panels – Sports in Cinema, Environment, Science, and Sustainability, Women’s Comedic Voices, Redefining Manhood, and Musings on Musicians. “In honor of our 20th anniversary, we have programmed a lineup that celebrates the past, present, and future of the Sarasota Film Festival that is sure to delight our dedicated and passionate audiences,” said Mark Famiglio, Chairman and President of the Sarasota Film Festival. “The selection includes a diverse group of narratives and voices that will create engaging conversations about today’s most important topics.” In the Festival’s Centerpiece section is 1985, about a closeted gay man, unable to come out to his friends and family during the beginning of the AIDS crisis, staring Academy Award®-nominated actress Virginia Madsen, who will be attendance at the Festival. Also a Centerpiece selection is Bo Burnham’s feature film directorial debut, EIGHTH GRADE, a portrait of young teenagers discovering their identities online and in reality. Bo will be in attendance for a Q&A following the film’s screening during the Festival. The Spotlight section will include narrative films Brett Haley’s HEARTS BEAT LOUD, Silas Howard’s A KID LIKE JAKE, Andrew Haigh’s LEAN ON PETE, Hannah Fidell’s THE LONG DUMB ROAD, Dominic Cooke’s ON CHESIL BEACH, Chloé Zhao’s THE RIDER, and Madeline Olnek’s WILD NIGHTS WITH EMILY, and documentary films Eugene Jarecki’s THE KING, Ali Weinstein’s MERMAIDS, Barbara Kopple’s A MURDER IN MANSFIELD, and Morgan Neville’s WON’T YOU BE MY NEIGHBOR? Each year the Sarasota Film Festival focuses on social issues to highlight throughout its program. The Sports in Cinema Focus returns this year, welcoming Ben and Orson Cummings and their film KILLER BEES, produced by Shaquille O’Neill. Other films in this focus include the Closing Day Film, Jason Kohn’s LOVE MEANS ZERO and Dana Adam Shapiro’s DAUGHTERS OF THE SEXUAL REVOLUTION: THE UNTOLD STORY OF THE DALLAS COWBOY CHEERLEADERS. In consideration of sustainability of communities and the planet, films in the SFF Environment, Science, and Sustainability Focus include Susan Kucera’s LIVING IN THE FUTURE’S PAST, Chad Freidrichs’ EXPERIMENTAL CITY, Quinn Costello, Chris Metzler, and Jeff Springer’s RODENTS OF UNUSUAL SIZE, and Rory Kennedy’s ABOVE AND BEYOND: NASA’S JOURNEY TO TOMORROW. In a groundbreaking year for women, the festival presents SFF Focus: Women’s Comedic Voices, a lineup featuring all female directors. Films in the category include Wendy McColm’s BIRDS WITHOUT FEATHERS, Bridey Elliott’s CLARA’S GHOST, Caroline Golum’s A FEAST OF MAN as well as LONG DUMB ROAD and WILD NIGHTS WITH EMILY. The films in the SFF Focus: Redefining Manhood, provide a glimpse at the questions regarding masculine identities, include Bing Liu’s MINDING THE GAP, as well as 1985, THE RIDER, and WON’T YOU BE MY NEIGHBOR? The final SFF Focus: Musings on Musicians, presents an array of films exploring the relationships between music and film. Films in the category include Laura Parnes’ TOUR WITHOUT END, T.G. Herrington and Danny Clinch’s A TUBA TO CUBA, Derek Ahonen’s THE TRANSCENDENTS, Sophie Fiennes’ GRACE JONES: BLOODLIGHT AND BAMI, Jake Meginsky and Neil Young’s MILFORD GRAVES FULL MANTIS, Scott Smith’s CHASING THE BLUES, Stephen Loveridge’s MATANGI / MAYA / M.I.A, as well as THE KING and HEARTS BEAT LOUD. The Narrative Feature Competition will showcase DON’T LEAVE HOME directed by Michael Tully, I AM NOT A WITCH, directed by Rungano Nyoni, MADELINE’S MADELINE, directed by Josephine Decker, THE QUEEN OF FEAR directed by Valeria Bertuccelli and Fabiana Tiscornia, THE SEEN AND THE UNSEEN directed by Kamila Andini, SUPPORT THE GIRLS directed by Andrew Bujalski as well as CLARA’S GHOST. The Documentary Feature Competition will include GENERATION WEALTH directed by Lauren Greenfield, GENESIS 2.0 directed by Christian Frei and Maxim Arbugaev, HALE COUNTY THIS MORNING, THIS EVENING directed by RaMell Ross, OF FATHERS AND SONS directed by Talal Derki, THE SENTENCE directed by Rudy Valdez, as well as DAUGHTERS OF THE SEXUAL REVOLUTION: THE UNTOLD STORY OF THE DALLAS COWBOY CHEERLEADERS and MINDING THE GAP. The Independent Visions Competition will feature BLACK MOTHER directed by Khalik Allah, LIFE AND NOTHING MORE directed by Antonio Méndez Esparza, MAISON DU BONHEUR directed by Sofia Bohdanowicz, NOTES ON APPEARANCE directed by Ricky D’Ambrose, as well as BIRDS WITHOUT FEATHERS, A FEAST OF MAN, MILFORD GRAVES FULL MANTIS, and TOUR WITHOUT END. The jury for the competition films will consist of the following individuals: producer Autumn Bailey-Ford, Emmy®-nominated writer and producer Mark Bailey, documentary filmmaker Orson Cummings, New York Magazine film critic David Edelstein, Factory 25 film distributor Matt Grady, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Director – New York Programs and Membership Patrick Harrison, film professor Del Jacobs, Academy Award®-nominated filmmaker Penny Lane, actress Penelope Ann Miller, The Hollywood Reporter film writer Tatiana Siegel, founder and publisher of Women and Hollywood Melissa Silverstein, and Sarasota County Circuit court judge and filmmaker Charles Williams. Narrative films include: ALL YOU CAN EAT BUDDHA directed by Ian Lagarde, AMERICAN ANIMALS directed by Bart Layton, AUGUST IN BERLIN directed by Becky Smith, BIKINI MOON directed by Milcho Manchevski, BLACK KITE directed by Tarique Qayumi, CAN HITLER HAPPEN HERE? directed by Saskia Rifkin, COLD SKIN directed by Xavier Gens, COME SUNDAY directed by Joshua Marston, DELENDA directed by Ralph Moffettone, DIMINUENDO directed by Adrian Stewart, EN EL SÉPTIMO DÍA directed by Jim McKay, FIRST REFORMED directed by Paul Schrader, A FRENCHMAN IN FLORIDA directed by Dante Rhev, HOLIDAY directed by Isabella Eklof, LET THE SUNSHINE IN directed by Claire Denis, MAKTUB directed by Oded Raz, SANTA INOCENCIA directed by Maritxell Campos Olivé, SHELTER directed by Eran Riklis, TATTERDEMALION directed by Ramaa Mosley, TINKER directed by Sonny Mahrler, VIRGINIA, MINNESOTA directed by Daniel Stine, VIRUS TROPICAL directed by Santiago Caicedo, WE THE ANIMALS directed by Jeremiah Zagar, WHITE RABBIT directed by Daryl Wein, ZAMA directed by Lucrecia Martel, as well as CHASING THE BLUES and THE TRANSCENDENTS. Documentary films include: 306 HOLLYWOOD directed by Elan Bogarin and Jonathan Bogarin, ANTONIO LOPEZ 1970: SEX FASHION & DISCO directed by James Crump, ASK THE SEXPERT directed by Vaishali Sinha, BISBEE ’17 directed by Robert Greene, CHEF FLYNN directed by Cameron Yates, CRACKING ACES: A WOMAN’S PLACE AT THE TABLE directed by H. James Gilmore, CRIME + PUNISHMENT directed by Stephen Maing, DISTANT CONSTELLATION directed by Shevaun Mizrahi, FATHER’S KINGDOM directed by Lenny Feinberg, FREEDOM FOR THE WOLF directed by Rupert Russell, THE GREAT FLIP-OFF directed by Dafna Yachin, HALF THE PICTURE directed by Amy Adrion, LA FLOR DE LA VIDA directed by Adriana Leoff and Claudia Abend, LOTS OF KIDS, A MONKEY AND A CASTLE directed by Gustavo Salmerón, MAYNARD directed by Sam Pollard, OLD DOG directed by Sally Rowe, ON HER SHOULDERS directed by Alexandria Bombach, THE PAIN OF OTHERS directed by Penny Lane, RBG directed by Betsy West and Julie Cohen, SISTERS directed by Justyna Tafel, THAT SUMMER directed by Göran Hugo Olsson, THREE IDENTICAL STRANGERS directed by Tim Wardle as well as THE EXPERIMENTAL CITY, GRACE JONES: BLOODLIGHT AND BAMI, KILLER BEES, LIVING IN THE FUTURE’S PAST, MATANGI / MAYA / M.I.A., RODENTS OF UNUSUAL SIZE, and A TUBA TO CUBA. As previously announced Golden Globe®-nominated and Independent Spirit Award®-nominated Eric Stoltz’s coming-of-age comedy CLASS RANK will be the Festival’s Opening Night film and Academy Award®-nominated and Emmy®-winning Rory Kennedy’s ABOVE AND BEYOND: NASA’S JOURNEY TO TOMORROW will serve as Closing Night film. The Festival will also be honoring renowned actor Steve Guttenberg and Academy Award®-nominated actress Virginia Madsen with Career Achievement Awards during the closing weekend.
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Ashland Independent Film Festival Rolls Out 2018 Program | ‘First Reformed’, ‘On Chesil Beach’, ‘Hearts Beat Loud’ and More ..

[caption id="attachment_27690" align="aligncenter" width="1080"] On Chesil Beach[/caption] The Ashland Independent Film Festival announced its lineup for the five-day festival taking place April 12 to 16, 2018, and featuring over 120 films chosen from nearly a thousand films submitted to the festival, or specially selected by AIFF Artistic and Executive Director Richard Herskowitz. Special screenings include the upcoming features First Reformed (directed by Paul Schrader and starring Ethan Hawke), On Chesil Beach with Saoirse Ronan, Brett Haley’s Hearts Beat Loud with Nick Offerman, Andrew Haigh’s Oregon-filmed Lean on Pete, and Borg vs. McEnroe, starring Shia LeBoeuf, plus 2018 Sundance Film Festival award-winning documentaries Minding the Gap, On Her Shoulders, and Crime + Punishment.
Award Recipients
AIFF will present Rogue Awards to two special guests, Academy Award®-winning actor Chris Cooper and Seattle-based director Lynn Shelton. Cooper launched his film acting career with his role as a union organizer in Matewan, the first of five films he appeared in directed by John Sayles, and won the Academy Award in 2002 for his supporting role in Adaptation. In addition to participating in the TalkBack panel “Talking Acting with Chris Cooper,” Cooper will present on Opening Night the world premiere of a film he narrated and executive produced, Intelligent Lives, accompanied by director Dan Habib and executive producer Marianne Leone Cooper. Cooper met Marianne Leone in 1979 at an acting class in New York City. Their son, Jesse Lanier Cooper, was born three months prematurely in October 1987 and developed cerebral palsy and epilepsy. Chris and Marianne became advocates for inclusive education and champions of kids with special needs. Jesse was a mainstreamed student at Silver Lake Regional High School where he was an honor student. In 2005, Jesse died suddenly from a seizure at age 17. Intelligent Lives explores how our society’s narrow views of intelligence have led to the segregation of people with intellectual disabilities. AIFF will also present a Rogue Award to Lynn Shelton, who will present her sixth feature film, Outside In, starring Edie Falco and Jay Duplass and released by The Orchard. Shelton, proudly based in Seattle, has had a stellar career as an independent film director since winning the Grand Jury Award at the 2006 Slamdance Film Festival with her debut feature, We Go Way Back. Since then, Shelton’s films, including Humpday (2009), Your Sister’s Sister (AIFF2012), and Laggies (2012) have garnered awards and acclaim at Sundance, the Film Independent Spirit Awards, and the Gotham Independent Film Awards, as well as theatrical distribution from Magnolia and A24. Beginning with Mad Men in 2010, Lynn has directed over 25 episodes of television series including New Girl, Fresh Off the Boat, Master of None, Maron, and GLOW. The recipient of AIFF’s 2018 Pride Award, honoring filmmakers who have made significant contributions to LGBTQ media, is Zackary Drucker, an independent media artist and trans woman whose work crosses boundaries between the art world and popular culture. Drucker has performed and exhibited her work internationally in museums, galleries, and film festivals including the 2014 Whitney Biennial, MoMA PS1, Hammer Museum, and SF MoMA, among others. She is also a producer on the Golden Globe® and Emmy®-winning Amazon series Transparent. She will screen an episode of this series and two films featuring her late friend and mentor, Flawless Sabrina: Drucker’s video, She Gone Rogue and The Queen, Frank Simon’s rarely screened documentary of the 1967 Miss All-American Camp Beauty Pageant. Other special guests attending this year’s Festival include James Ivory, recipient of AIFF2017’s Lifetime Achievement Award and a 2018 Academy Award for his screenplay of Call Me By Your Name. Ivory will return to present the restored classic Shakespeare Wallah and join in a conversation after the screening with Oregon Shakespeare Festival’s Artistic Director Bill Rauch. AIFF is reafﬁrming its mission to promote independent ﬁlmmaking by honoring companies that have built the infrastructure of the independent ﬁlm movement and challenged Hollywood’s dominance. This year, tribute will be paid to Milestone Films, which has gained an international reputation for releasing classic cinema masterpieces, groundbreaking documentaries, and American independent features. Since 2007, Milestone has concentrated on the restoration and worldwide distribution of films outside the Hollywood mainstream featuring “lost” films by and about African Americans, Native Americans, LGBTQ, and women. Milestone co-founders Dennis Doros and Amy Heller will present their recent restoration of No Maps on My Taps, accompanied by its director, George Nierenberg. The screening will be followed by a live performance and “tap-in” (with all audience members who bring tap shoes) led by dancer Suzanne Seiber. The second “Indie Institution” honoree will be the Independent Documentary Association (IDA). IDA’s educational, advocacy, production support, and exhibition programs, including the Pare Lorentz and Enterprise Documentary Funds and Documentary Magazine, provide resources, create community and defend rights and freedom for documentary artists, activists, and journalists. IDA’s Director of Programming and Policy, Claire Aguilar, joined by the films’ directors and subjects, will present The Blessing (an IDA Pare Lorentz Fund grantee) and Crime + Punishment (Enterprise Documentary Fund grantee, and winner of a jury prize at Sundance). Aguilar will also moderate the TalkBack panel “Seeking Justice in Documentary.” According to Festival director Richard Herskowitz, “The tribute to Milestone Films’ restoration and distribution is part of a larger programming focus this year on classic cinema that includes Shakespeare Wallah and No Maps on My Taps. Exposure to classic films, I believe, inspires indie film audiences and filmmakers (from James Ivory to Lynn Shelton) to question and reinvent filmmaking conventions.” The emphasis on classic film is highlighted in this year’s festival posters, based on images from the animated films of Stacey Steers. Steers’ sculptural media installations will be on view at the Schneider Museum of Art as part of an exhibition, The Animated Image ( April 12 – May 12) co-curated by Herskowitz and Schneider Museum director Scott Malbaurn. Also in this exhibition are animated media installations by Chris Doyle, Rick Silva, and Matt Bollinger. Steers’ trilogy of animated films featuring collages of silent film actresses in magical settings will be presented with new scores composed by Ashland-based composers Terry Longshore and Tessa Brinckman, which they will perform live on Saturday, April 14 at SOU Music Recital Hall. Also on that program will be a live performance accompanying the Russian silent film The Dying Swan, a Milestone Films release, with a score created by Ashland-based international opera and film score composer Joby Talbot. Talbot will perform on piano, joined by cellist Michal Palzewicz and violinist Jessica Lambert. Other classic film-themed screenings include Love, Cecil, the documentary on Academy Award-winning costume and set designer and photographer Cecil Beaton that will be accompanied by its director Lisa Immordino Vreeland. Film archivist Michael Zahs, the charismatic film archivist and subject of the documentary feature film Saving Brinton, will demonstrate an early Magic Lantern, a progenitor of the film projector, following Saving Brinton’s screening at the Historic Ashland Armory. Zahs will also demonstrate the Magic Lantern to kids during AIFF’s Family Day of film presentations and hands-on filmmaking activities at ScienceWorks Hands-On Museum on Saturday, April 14.
2018Ashland Independent Film Festival Program Summary

2018 Documentary Feature Selections
América The Blessing Citizen Blue & The March Crime + Punishment Dark Money Five Seasons The Foreigner’s Home The Gospel of Eureka I Am Maris: Portrait of a Young Yogi Intelligent Lives Itzhak The King Liyana Love, Cecil Minding the Gap Modified Mr. Fish: Cartooning from the Deep End No Maps on My Taps On Her Shoulders One October The Queen The Reluctant Radical & Symphony for Nature: The Britt Orchestra at Crater Lake A River Below Saving Brinton Skid Row Marathon Sky and Ground A Tuba to Cuba Two Trains Runnin’
2018 Narrative Feature Selections
Back at the Staircase Borg v. McEnroe The Dying Swan First Reformed For Izzy Fort Maria Hearts Beat Loud The Last Hot Lick Lean on Pete On Chesil Beach Outside In People People The Rainbow Experiment Shakespeare Wallah Wild Honey
SHORTS PROGRAMS
Curated Programs CineSpace KidFlix: Best of the New York Children’s International Film Festival Animated Worlds: Stop-Motion Classics with Mark Shapiro Zackary Drucker: Trans Film Television Competition Program Short Stories 1: In the Light of Day Short Stories 2: After Hours Short Docs 1: About Work Short Docs 2: About Community Short Stories and Docs: About Family Locals Only Locals Only 1: Family Friendly – Launch Student Film Competition Locals Only 2: Ashland Roots Locals Only 3: On the River, On the Land
PERFORMANCES
Silent Scores: The Dying Swan and Stacey Steers’ Trilogy with Tessa Brinckman, Terry Longshore, and Joby Talbot Live Tap-in with Suzanne Seiber following No Maps on My Taps
FAMILY DAY AT SCIENCEWORKS
Saturday, April 14, 10am-5pm: Hands-on film activities and presentations by NASA’s Ralph Grau, archivist Michael Zahs, and LAIKA’s Mark Shapiro
AIFF MEDFORD
4 shows at Collaborative Theatre Project on March 21, April 14 and 16, and a special screening at Kids Unlimited of Dolores with Peter Bratt and Dolores Huerta (May 3)
EXHIBITION AT SCHNEIDER MUSEUM OF ART: THE ANIMATED IMAGE
Media installations by Stacey Steers, Chris Doyle, Matt Bollinger, and Rick Silva on view April 12 – May 12.
TALKBACKS
Talking Acting with Chris Cooper Seeking Justice in Documentary Composing Scores for Classic and Contemporary Films
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2018 Full Frame Documentary Film Festival Announces Lineup – “306 Hollywood” “Boom for Real” and More…

[caption id="attachment_27448" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] 306 Hollywood by Elan Bogarín and Jonathan Bogarín[/caption] The Full Frame Documentary Film Festival, today announced its lineup of features and short films. The 21st annual festival will take place April 5 to 8, 2018, in Durham, North Carolina. The NEW DOCS program includes 42 titles – 32 features and 10 shorts – selected from nearly 1,800 submissions from around the globe. These films are eligible for the Full Frame Audience Award and are shortlisted for a variety of additional juried awards offering a combined value of $40,000 in cash prizes. Award winners will be announced at the annual Awards Barbecue on Sunday, April 8. The Invited Program includes 22 feature films screening out of competition. Renowned filmmaker Joe Berlinger will curate the 2018 Thematic Program, and the festival will honor Jehane Noujaim’s illustrious body of work with the 2018 Tribute. Delving into the fascinating genre of true crime, the Thematic Program will feature films that follow individual cases and consider the ways documentary uniquely represents the complexities, and limitations, of the American judicial system. For the Tribute, Full Frame will showcase Noujaim’s lauded films exploring themes of resilience, freedom, democracy, and free speech.
NEW DOCS
306 Hollywood (Directors: Elan Bogarin, Jonathan Bogarin) When their beloved grandmother dies, two siblings embark on an imaginative exploration of her home, sifting through her belongings, and their own cherished memories, to discover her essence. América (Directors: Erick Stoll, Chase Whiteside) When their father is unexpectedly arrested, three brothers come together to care for their aging grandmother, América. This sensitive portrait delicately captures the frustrations and connections that evolve as they navigate her physical decline and their expectations of one another. The Area (Director: David Schalliol) Charismatic activist Deborah Payne tirelessly battles developers of a new multibillion-dollar freight yard that threatens to destroy Englewood, her neighborhood on Chicago’s South Side. World Premiere The Bastard (Director: Floris-Jan van Luyn) The Hoeks are united in name but severed by history: Ethiopian-born Daniel and his estranged Dutch father, Joop, each tell their story, but who can be trusted in this tangled tale of regret and misdeed? Bending Lines: The Sculpture of Robert Wiggs (Directors: Peter DeHart, Allison Bohl DeHart) Inspired by the geometry of nature—from the cracks in dried mud to the structure of pine cones to the scales on armadillos—Wiggs’s artistic process reveals the intriguing interplay between mathematics and art. World Premiere The Blessing (Directors: Hunter Robert Baker, Jordan Fein) In this stunningly and candidly shot film, Lawrence, a Navajo coal miner, wrestles with his relationship to land to which he is spiritually bound but employed to destroy, while his daughter, Caitlin, forms her own identity amid cultural pressures. World Premiere Cielo (Director: Alison McAlpine) Enter a wondrous exploration of the meeting of heaven and Earth in this dynamic exchange between humans and the starry skies of Chile’s Atacama Desert. Crime + Punishment (Director: Stephen Maing) This powerful film follows twelve brave whistleblowers who speak out against illegal policing quotas in the NYPD and the retaliation they experience after refusing to make arrests targeting minority populations. David. The Return to Land (David. El regreso a la tierra) (Director: Anaïs Huerta) Haitian, French, and adopted by Jewish parents, 34-year-old David embarks on a mission to better understand who he is in this beautifully nuanced observation of self-discovery. North American Premiere The Deminer (Director: Hogir Hirori; Co-director: Shinwar Kamal) After the fall of Saddam Hussein, Colonel Fakhir of the Iraqi army devotes his life to disarming landmines, with only a pocket knife and wire cutters, in this deeply suspenseful film that makes use of Fakhir’s own extensive video footage. North American Premiere A Friendship in Tow/Toe (Director: Atsushi Kuwayama) In the brief ascent up a flight of stairs, a pair of strangers find a rapport across languages and generations. From Parts Unknown (Director: Michael T. Workman) The poignant experience of a young man who determines an unlikely outlet for his pain and hardships: In local wrestling, he finds catharsis, community, and a sense of purpose. The Good Struggle (Director: Celia Peterson) Although few words are spoken between themselves, monks at a Greek Orthodox monastery in Lebanon provide voiceovers to their daily routines—their devout thoughts echo the beauty of their solitude. World Premiere Hale County This Morning, This Evening (Director: RaMell Ross) Observational and impressionistic, this poetic film is a humanist exploration of an Alabama community, where mostly black, working-class families live, work, dream, celebrate, and struggle together. I Am Bisha ( انا% ةش) ( Director: Roopa Gogineni) As an act of pure creative resilience, Ganja and his friends film a humorous and satirical web series, Bisha TV, starring puppets to combat the violent, genocidal regime of Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir. World Premiere Inventing Tomorrow (Director: Laura Nix) Six young scientists from around the globe compete in the largest international high school science fair—with their ingenious solutions to environmental problems, they don’t just aim to bring home the top prize, they hope to change the world. The Issue of Mr. O’Dell (Director: Rami Katz) The work of Jack O’Dell, who once worked alongside Martin Luther King, Jr., is revealed through a conversation with the 94-year-old activist, who delves into his historical involvement in the civil rights struggle as well as the movement’s contemporary incarnation under the stewardship of groups like Black Lives Matter. Lovers of the Night (Director: Anna Frances Ewert) Seven elderly monks at a Cistercian abbey in Ireland humorously muse on their spiritual experiences, way of life, and the inevitable end to it all. Maj Doris (Director: Jon Blåhed) Ever-able, 74-year-old Maj Doris Rimpi is a renowned Sámi artist who lives alone in Sweden and tends to her home and herd of reindeer, but after another long winter she wonders, is it time to consider a new way of life? North American Premiere The Mauritania Railway: Backbone of the Sahara (Director: MacGregor) In this expansive, gorgeously composed short, ride atop the railway car that serves as a 704- kilometer-long lifeline that supplies goods and iron ore to people in different cities in the Sahara Desert. World Premiere MELTING SOULS (NORILSK, L’étreinte de glace) (Director: François-Xavier Destors) This exquisitely photographed portrait documents a remote Arctic city centered around a metal refinery, where residents endure extreme, subzero temperatures to survive on the resource that lies beneath the tundra. North American Premiere Messenger on a White Horse (El mensajero) (Director: Jayson McNamara) This homage to the fearless investigative reporting of the Buenos Aires Herald during the disappearances and murders of Argentinians between 1976 and 1983, utilizes impeccable archival footage and testimonies from surviving members of the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo as well as lead newspaper editor Robert Cox. North American Premiere Minding the Gap (Director: Bing Liu) Skateboarding and strained family relationships bond three friends together in this introspective saga about the journey from youth to adulthood. Las Nubes (Director: Juan Pablo González) As a father drives through an unidentified countryside, his car becomes a space for reflection as he recounts the impact of cartel violence on his home and family. Of Fathers and Sons (Director: Talal Derki) With rare and chilling insights, this film takes us into the lives of a Syrian family, led by an Al-Nusra fighter, where we observe how swiftly the innocence of childhood can fade. Our New President (Director: Maxim Pozdorovkin) By turns provocative, disorienting, and astonishing, this feature weaves clips from Russian state-owned news coverage of the 2016 U.S. presidential election to portray the perils of bias, conspiracy theories, and manufactured narratives. Owned: A Tale of Two Americas (Director: Giorgio Angelini) This energetic film unpacks the complex history of home ownership in America to reveal the postwar housing economy’s racist underpinnings—the creation of a large middle class simultaneous with the systematic defunding and segregating of communities. World Premiere PATRIMONIO (Directors: Lisa F. Jackson, Sarah Teale) When a multinational corporation attempts to covertly develop plans to build a resort on the fishermen’s coast in Todos Santos, Mexico, the locals unite for a momentous and riveting fight for their resources and their heritage—their patrimonio. North American Premiere Personal Truth (Director: Charlie Lyne) Spurred from the fake “Pizzagate” scandal, this frenetic and provocative observational film about the power of fake news suggests that conspiracy theories may be more believable than one might like to admit. The Providers (Directors: Laura Green, Anna Moot-Levin) The El Centro Family Health system in northern New Mexico covers 22,000 square miles and suffers from a chronic shortage of health care providers. This film follows three dedicated practitioners in their daily work and private lives. World Premiere The Pushouts (Directors: Katie Galloway, Dawn Valadez) This inspiring film follows the transformative work of Dr. Victor Rios, a former gang member and high school dropout, as he works to support students, through tools for selfreflection and expression, in an educational system that is failing to reach them. World Premiere Rebuilding in Miniature (Director: Veena Rao) In this short, miniaturist Ali Alamedy, an Iraqi refugee, painstakingly creates exquisitely detailed dioramas of places he’s never been in an attempt to heal his disrupted relationship to home. The Rescue List (Directors: Alyssa Fedele, Zachary Fink) In a Ghanaian safe house, a team works to rehabilitate two young men who were trafficked into slavery to fisherman on Lake Volta. As it moves from rescue operation to healing process, this riveting film follows the men through their recovery and reveals the extraordinary dedication of their rescuer. Shirkers (Director: Sandi Tan) A film lover’s dream quickly turns to nightmare: Sandi Tan recounts making her first film in Singapore in 1992 and how she loses everything when her mentor, Georges Carandos, steals the footage. This unique diary is a bright ode to cinema, and a moving story of friendship, betrayal, and failure. A Singular Garden (Um Jardim Singular) (Director: Monica Klemz) This experimental documentary blends old and new images of the garden next to the presidential palace in Rio de Janeiro and incorporates natural sound as a way to connect past and present. World Premiere Sky and Ground (Directors: Talya Tibbon, Joshua Bennett) Incorporating a refugee family’s own footage, Sky and Ground follows a Syrian-Kurdish refugee family as they flee from a holding camp at the Greece-Macedonia border and take their chances at reaching asylum by foot on a perilous one-way trip to Berlin. Tempting Promises (Le allettanti promesse) (Directors: Chiara Campara, Lorenzo Faggi) A small town tucked quietly away in the Italian Alps is chosen to host the 2016 Wikimania conference—an annual meeting of international Wikipedia contributors—and the townspeople unite to welcome the newcomers and the new technological age. North American Premiere This Is Home (Director: Alexandra Shiva) Through brilliant observational filmmaking, This Is Home tells the story of four Syrian families on the path to self-sufficiency, and success, in a resettlement program in Baltimore, Maryland. Three Identical Strangers (Director: Tim Wardle) A chance encounter leads three teenagers to discover that they are in fact triplets. Sharing this undeniable bond, they become fast friends and embark upon living their lives together, but the roots of their separation prove to be more sinister than they could have imagined. Thy Kingdom Come (Director: Eugene Richards) A priest bears witness to the personal stories of people in a mid-American town: Heartbreak, regret, faith, resignation all resonate profoundly in this succession of exquisitely photographed scenes of intimate communion. Time Trial (Director: Finlay Pretsell) Former doper and Tour de France champion David Millar is clean and ready to win the right way. This sensory ride travels alongside him for every breath, turn, and fall, through the thrills and hardships of professional cycling. The Unafraid (Directors: Anayansi Prado, Heather Courtney) The gripping and vital stories of three DACA students unfold as they work for immigrant rights, and the future of their families, after being banned from attending Georgia’s top universities or receiving in-state tuition. World Premiere
Invited Program
12th and Clairmount (Director: Brian Kaufman) Contemporary interviews bring to life scenes from home movies, newsreels, and photographs of one of the most violent civil disturbances in U.S. history, the 1967 Detroit riot, when police brutality against African American citizens ignited a five-day standoff. Bisbee ’17 (Director: Robert Greene) In 1917, a strike in an Arizona mining town culminated in the exile of over a thousand immigrant workers. One hundred years later, a large-scale reenactment of the shocking events serves as a catalyst for remembrance and reflection. Boom for Real: The Late Teenage Years of Jean-Michel Basquiat (Director: Sara Driver) This portrait of the pop culture icon revisits the years before he took the art world by storm. Archival footage and intimate stories from a circle of friends, lovers, and neighbors recall both a singular talent and the New York City scene that influenced his career. Capturing the Flag (Director: Anne de Mare) During the 2016 U.S. presidential election, three friends travel to North Carolina to do voter protection work at the polls. This on-the-ground look at their efforts to help potential voters navigate the new laws and requirements that may prevent their vote reveals shocking accounts of voter suppression in play. World Premiere The Cleaners (Directors: Hans Block, Moritz Riesewieck) In the Philippines, a team of “cleaners” specialize in identifying and eliminating obscene content from the internet. Their personal accounts of the pressures and personal judgements inherent in their work give way to a broader examination of the global impact of manipulating content on social media. Dark Money (Director: Kimberly Reed) This modern-day political thriller follows investigative reporter John Adams into Montana’s fight against corrupt campaign financing, a struggle that could alter the devastating effects of unlimited anonymous funding on elections nationwide. Generation Wealth (Director: Lauren Greenfield) For 25 years, Lauren Greenfield has documented affluence around the world. In this fascinating overview of her immense body of work, the photographer reconnects with subjects of her images to consider their relationships to money, then and now, and her own fascination with the topic. Hal (Director: Amy Scott) Hal Ashby’s controversial films about race, sex, politics, and unconventional love made him a Hollywood rarity in the 1970s—a director who made films outside studio control. This loving remembrance by his peers celebrates the iconoclastic filmmaker. The Jazz Ambassadors (Director: Hugo Berkeley) During the Cold War, the U.S. government deployed some of its greatest jazz musicians around the world to promote democracy, even as many of them suffered Jim Crow racism in their own country. Rich archival material and powerful interviews delve into the deep conflict at the heart of the story. World Premiere The Judge (Director: Erika Cohn) Devoted to the law and unwilling to mince words, Kholoud Al-Faqih, the West Bank’s first female judge, navigates Palestine’s family court system, providing a rare glimpse into Islamic courts and gendered justice. Larger Than Life: The Kevyn Aucoin Story (Director: Tiffany Bartok) In the 1980s, Kevyn Aucoin redefined the role of the makeup artist. Home movies and recollections from family, friends, and an impressive roster of famous clients retrace his meteoric rise and his lasting impact. Love Means Zero (Director: Jason Kohn) Tennis coach Nick Bollettieri trained some of the sport’s greatest champions, but his volatility and harsh methods came at a price. Conversations between director and subject revisit moments of triumph and anguish, including Bollettieri’s infamous falling out with Andre Agassi. MAYNARD (Director: Sam Pollard) Interviews with family, friends, and political luminaries combine with archival footage and photographs in this captivating portrait of Maynard Jackson, Atlanta’s first black mayor, whose extraordinary influence spanned three terms in office. A Murder in Mansfield (Director: Barbara Kopple) Twelve-year old Collier Boyle’s testimony put his father in jail for the 1989 murder of his mother. Still imprisoned more than 25 years later, the father maintains his innocence, and Boyle returns to his Ohio hometown, in this sensitive examination of reconciling with the past. On Her Shoulders (Director: Alexandria Bombach) When ISIS devastates her Yazidi community, survivor Nadia Murad becomes the prevailing voice for her people. Following Murad as she recounts her harrowing experience time and again, this film intimately details the burden of imploring the world to intervene. The Price of Everything (Director: Nathaniel Kahn) Moving between auction houses, collectors, artists, and coveted works, this analysis of the art market questions how we determine value, the impact of purchasing art as a form of financial investment, and the cultural implications when pieces are only available to the highest bidder. RBG (Directors: Betsy West, Julie Cohen) This triumphant look at the life and career of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg revisits landmark cases and decisions, but also reveals the woman behind the robe and the personal experiences that continue to shape her legacy. The Rape of Recy Taylor (Director: Nancy Buirski) In 1944, Recy Taylor, a 24-year-old black woman, was abducted and raped by six white men in Alabama. The film centers on her unprecedented response—a fight for justice, with the aid of Rosa Parks and other black activists—whose profound influence on the civil rights movement still reverberates today. Rodents of Unusual Size (Directors: Quinn Costello, Chris Metzler, Jeff Springer) Kill them as invasive pests destroying coastal wetlands or keep them as part of the region’s culture? In this quirky account, citizens are divided on what to do about nutria, the giant 20-pound rodents with protruding orange teeth who have made southern Louisiana their home for decades. Solitary Land (Tierra Sola) (Director: Tiziana Panizza) This innovative meditation on Easter Island and its indigenous inhabitants uses historical and present-day footage to illustrate the legacy of colonial exploitation in one of the world’s most remote inhabited locales—a place of beauty, isolation, and tradition. North American Premiere Studio 54 (Director: Matt Tyrnauer) Rare footage transports us back in time and behind the velvet rope into the famed Manhattan disco, as a collection of insiders, including one of the co-founders, recall the rise and fall of the pioneering nightclub and iconic cultural landmark. Won’t You Be My Neighbor? (Director: Morgan Neville) Fred Rogers revolutionized children’s television. This remarkable portrait of the visionary behind Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood reveals the origins of the groundbreaking show, the ways it connected to current events, and its impact on the lives of children, and adults, across the country.
FULL FRAME TRIBUTE Jehane Noujaim
Control Room (Director: Jehane Noujaim) It’s 2003, and the United States is on the brink of war with Iraq. Control Room follows journalists of the Al Jazeera satellite channel—broadcasting news to some 40 million Arab viewers—as they try to cut through American rhetoric and awaken the viewers to the realities on the ground. Rafea: Solar Mama (Director: Jehane Noujaim) In this resounding global testament to the power and necessity of equal access to education, Rafea attends Barefoot College in India to become a solar engineer, learning with other women from developing areas how to create sustainable futures for their hometowns. The Square (Director: Jehane Noujaim) After the 2011 Egyptian revolution in Tahrir Square, citizens realize that former president Mubarak’s corrupt regime is still in power; they return to the streets to bring an end to the government, combatting controlled international media coverage, enduring violence, and navigating fragile relationships. Startup.com (Directors: Chris Hegedus, Jehane Noujaim) In the late 1990s, two high school friends attempt to turn the spark of an idea into a multimillion-dollar company. But when passion leads to tension, and the dot-com rush gives way to the dot-com bust, will they be able to deliver on their dream?
THEMATIC PROGRAM Crime and Punishment
Curated by Joe Berlinger Brother’s Keeper (Directors: Joe Berlinger, Bruce Sinofsky) A murder trial ignites the small farming community of Munnsville, New York, when Delbert Ward, an eccentric and uneducated man, confesses to suffocating his brother in the isolated home they shared with two other brothers. Was the killing an act of mercy? Was Delbert’s confession coerced? In Brother’s Keeper, a surprisingly complicated story emerges. The Farm: Angola, USA (Directors: Liz Garbus, Jonathan Stack) In The Farm, life at the Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola, the largest maximumsecurity prison in the United States, is seen through the eyes of both its wardens and its prisoners—many of whom will die there—with disturbing parallels to plantation life. Gone: The Forgotten Women of Ohio (Director: Joe Berlinger) After numerous women go missing, leaving their families and local law-enforcement officers with more questions than answers, this stunning series investigates whether or not a serial killer is responsible. In Cold Blood (Director: Richard Brooks) Mixing elements of reality and fiction, In Cold Blood delves into the real-life murders of the Clutter family at the hands of Perry Smith and Dick Hickock in this scripted true-crime cinematic narrative based on Truman Capote’s novel. Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills (Directors: Joe Berlinger, Bruce Sinofsky) When three young boys are brutally murdered, three teenagers are accused of committing the crime as part of a satanic ritual, and are convicted by their community before they even reach the courtroom. Paradise Lost is the first film of the groundbreaking trilogy that documented the case of the West Memphis Three. Scenes of a Crime (Directors: Grover Babcock, Blue Hadaegh) When a four-month-old boy dies, officers are convinced he was killed by his father, who after more than ten hours of questioning, confesses to the crime. Medical experts, police officers, and lawyers offer their opinions on this controversial admission of guilt, but the film’s focal point is the videotaped interrogation itself. The Thin Blue Line (Director: Errol Morris) A man is sent to prison for shooting a Dallas police officer. The documentary questions the veracity of the verdict through interviews with detectives, lawyers, and the alleged murderer, who all paint very different accounts of events, which are represented in stunning reenactments. Titicut Follies (Director: Frederick Wiseman) An intense, purely observational look at the stark conditions of inmate life in the 1960s at the Bridgewater State Hospital for the criminally insane in Massachusetts.
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2018 Sundance Film Festival Awards – “The Miseducation of Cameron Post,” “Kailash” Win Top Awards

[caption id="attachment_26747" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Forrest Goodluck, Sasha Lane and Chloë Grace Moretz appear in The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Desiree Akhavan.
Courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Jeong Park.[/caption] The 2018 Sundance Film Festival’s Awards Ceremony took place last night and presented 28 prizes for feature filmmaking. The Grand Jury Prizes was awarded to The Miseducation of Cameron Post (U.S. Dramatic), Kailash (U.S. Documentary), Of Fathers and Sons (World Cinema Documentary) and Butterflies (World Cinema Dramatic). “From the beginning, the purpose of the Sundance Film Festival has been to support artists and their stories,” said Sundance Institute President and Founder Robert Redford, “and this year, our mission seemed especially relevant. Supporting independent voices, and listening to the stories they tell, has never been more necessary.” Feature film award winners in previous years include: I don’t feel at home in this world anymore., Weiner, Whiplash, Fruitvale Station, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Twenty Feet from Stardom, Searching for Sugarman, The Square, Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, Cartel Land, The Wolf Pack, The Diary of a Teenage Girl, Dope, Dear White People, The Cove and Man on Wire.
2018 SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL FEATURE FILM AWARDS
U.S. Grand Jury Prize: Documentary Kailash / U.S.A. (Director: Derek Doneen, Producers: Davis Guggenheim, Sarah Anthony) — As a young man, Kailash Satyarthi promised himself that he would end child slavery in his lifetime. In the decades since, he has rescued more than eighty thousand children and built a global movement. This intimate and suspenseful film follows one man’s journey to do what many believed was impossible. U.S. Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic The Miseducation of Cameron Post / U.S.A. (Director: Desiree Akhavan, Screenwriters: Desiree Akhavan, Cecilia Frugiuele, Producers: Cecilia Frugiuele, Jonathan Montepare, Michael B. Clark, Alex Turtletaub) — 1993: after being caught having sex with the prom queen, a girl is forced into a gay conversion therapy center. Based on Emily Danforth’s acclaimed and controversial coming-of-age novel. Cast: Chloë Grace Moretz, Sasha Lane, Forrest Goodluck, John Gallagher Jr., Jennifer Ehle. World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Documentary Of Fathers and Sons / Germany, Syria, Lebanon, Qatar (Director: Talal Derki, Producers: Ansgar Frerich, Eva Kemme, Tobias N. Siebert, Hans Robert Eisenhauer) — Talal Derki returns to his homeland where he gains the trust of a radical Islamist family, sharing their daily life for over two years. His camera focuses on Osama and his younger brother Ayman, providing an extremely rare insight into what it means to grow up in an Islamic Caliphate. World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic Butterflies / Turkey (Director and screenwriter: Tolga Karaçelik, Producers: Tolga Karaçelik, Diloy Gülün, Metin Anter) — In the Turkish village of Hasanlar, three siblings who neither know each other nor anything about their late father, wait to bury his body. As they start to find out more about their father and about each other, they also start to know more about themselves. Audience Award: U.S. Documentary The Sentence / U.S.A. (Director: Rudy Valdez, Producers: Sam Bisbee, Jackie Kelman Bisbee) — Cindy Shank, mother of three, is serving a 15-year sentence in federal prison for her tangential involvement with a Michigan drug ring years earlier. This intimate portrait of mandatory minimum drug sentencing’s devastating consequences, captured by Cindy’s brother, follows her and her family over the course of ten years. Audience Award: U.S. Dramatic Burden / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Andrew Heckler, Producers: Robbie Brenner, Jincheng, Bill Kenwright) — After opening a KKK shop, Klansman Michael Burden falls in love with a single mom who forces him to confront his senseless hatred. After leaving the Klan and with nowhere to turn, Burden is taken in by an African-American reverend, and learns tolerance through their combined love and faith. Cast: Garrett Hedlund, Forest Whitaker, Andrea Riseborough, Tom Wilkinson, Usher Raymond. Audience Award: World Cinema Documentary This Is Home / U.S.A., Jordan (Director: Alexandra Shiva, Producers: Lindsey Megrue, Alexandra Shiva) — This is an intimate portrait of four Syrian families arriving in Baltimore, Maryland and struggling to find their footing. With eight months to become self-sufficient, they must forge ahead to rebuild their lives. When the travel ban adds further complications, their strength and resilience are put to the test. Audience Award: World Cinema Dramatic The Guilty / Denmark (Director: Gustav Möller, Screenwriters: Gustav Möller, Emil Nygaard Albertsen, Producer: Lina Flint) — Alarm dispatcher Asger Holm answers an emergency call from a kidnapped woman; after a sudden disconnection, the search for the woman and her kidnapper begins. With the phone as his only tool, Asger enters a race against time to solve a crime that is far bigger than he first thought. Cast: Jakob Cedergren, Jessica Dinnage, Johan Olsen, Omar Shargawi. Audience Award: NEXT Search / U.S.A. (Director: Aneesh Chaganty, Screenwriters: Aneesh Chaganty, Sev Ohanian, Producers: Timur Bekmambetov, Sev Ohanian, Adam Sidman, Natalie Qasabian) — After his 16-year-old daughter goes missing, a desperate father breaks into her laptop to look for clues to find her. A thriller that unfolds entirely on computer screens. Cast: John Cho, Debra Messing. Directing Award: U.S. Documentary Alexandria Bombach for her film On Her Shoulders / U.S.A. (Director: Alexandria Bombach, Producers: Hayley Pappas, Brock Williams) — Nadia Murad, a 23-year-old Yazidi, survived genocide and sexual slavery committed by ISIS. Repeating her story to the world, this ordinary girl finds herself thrust onto the international stage as the voice of her people. Away from the podium, she must navigate bureaucracy, fame and people’s good intentions. Directing Award: U.S. Dramatic Sara Colangelo, for her film The Kindergarten Teacher / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Sara Colangelo, Producers: Talia Kleinhendler, Osnat Handelsman-Keren, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Celine Rattray, Trudie Styler) — When a Staten Island kindergarten teacher discovers what may be a gifted five year-old student in her class, she becomes fascinated and obsessed with the child– spiraling downward on a dangerous and desperate path in order to nurture his talent. Cast: Maggie Gyllenhaal, Parker Sevak, Rosa Salazar, Anna Barynishikov, Michael Chernus, Gael Garcia Bernal. Directing Award: World Cinema Documentary Sandi Tan, for her film Shirkers / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Sandi Tan, Producers: Sandi Tan, Jessica Levin, Maya Rudolph) — In 1992, teenager Sandi Tan shot Singapore’s first indie road movie with her enigmatic American mentor Georges – who then vanished with all the footage. Twenty years later, the 16mm film is recovered, sending Tan, now a novelist in Los Angeles, on a personal odyssey in search of Georges’ vanishing footprints. Directing Award: World Cinema Dramatic Ísold Uggadóttir, for her film And Breathe Normally / Iceland, Sweden, Belgium (Director and screenwriter: Ísold Uggadóttir, Producers: Skúli Malmquist, Diana Elbaum, Annika Hellström, Lilja Ósk Snorradóttir, Inga Lind Karlsdóttir) — At the edge of Iceland’s Reykjanes peninsula, two women’s lives will intersect – for a brief moment – while trapped in circumstances unforeseen. Between a struggling Icelandic mother and an asylum seeker from Guinea-Bissau, a delicate bond will form as both strategize to get their lives back on track. Cast: Kristín Thóra Haraldsdóttir, Babetida Sadjo, Patrik Nökkvi Pétursson. Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award: U.S. Dramatic Christina Choe, for her film NANCY / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Christina Choe, Producers: Amy Lo, Michelle Cameron, Andrea Riseborough) — Blurring lines between fact and fiction, Nancy becomes increasingly convinced she was kidnapped as a child. When she meets a couple whose daughter went missing thirty years ago, reasonable doubts give way to willful belief – and the power of emotion threatens to overcome all rationality. Cast: Andrea Riseborough, J. Smith-Cameron, Steve Buscemi, Ann Dowd, John Leguizamo. U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award for Creative Vision Hale County This Morning, This Evening / U.S.A. (Director: RaMell Ross, Screenwriter: Maya Krinsky, Producers: Joslyn Barnes, RaMell Ross, Su Kim) — Composed of intimate and unencumbered moments of people in a community, this film is constructed in a form that allows the viewer an emotive impression of the Historic South – trumpeting the beauty of life and consequences of the social construction of race, while simultaneously a testament to dreaming. U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award for Social Impact Crime + Punishment / U.S.A. (Director: Stephen Maing) — Over four years of unprecedented access, the story of a brave group of black and Latino whistleblower cops and one unrelenting private investigator who, amidst a landmark lawsuit, risk everything to expose illegal quota practices and their impact on young minorities. U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award for Storytelling Three Identical Strangers / U.S.A. (Director: Tim Wardle, Producer: Becky Read) — New York,1980: three complete strangers accidentally discover that they’re identical triplets, separated at birth. The 19-year-olds’ joyous reunion catapults them to international fame, but also unlocks an extraordinary and disturbing secret that goes beyond their own lives – and could transform our understanding of human nature forever. U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award for Breakthrough Filmmaking Minding the Gap / U.S.A. (Director: Bing Liu, Producer: Diane Quon) — Three young men bond together to escape volatile families in their Rust Belt hometown. As they face adult responsibilities, unexpected revelations threaten their decade-long friendship. U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for Outstanding First Feature Monsters and Men / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Reinaldo Marcus Green, Producers: Elizabeth Lodge Stepp, Josh Penn, Eddie Vaisman, Julia Lebedev, Luca Borghese) — This interwoven narrative explores the aftermath of a police killing of a black man. The film is told through the eyes of the bystander who filmed the act, an African-American police officer and a high-school baseball phenom inspired to take a stand. Cast:John David Washington, Anthony Ramos, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Chanté Adams, Nicole Beharie, Rob Morgan. U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for Excellence in Filmmaking I Think We’re Alone Now / U.S.A. (Director: Reed Morano, Screenwriter: Mike Makowsky, Producers: Fred Berger, Brian Kavanaugh-Jones, Fernando Loureiro, Roberto Vasconcellos, Peter Dinklage, Mike Makowsky) — The apocalypse proves a blessing in disguise for one lucky recluse – until a second survivor arrives with the threat of companionship. Cast: Peter Dinklage, Elle Fanning. U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for Achievement in Acting Benjamin Dickey, for BLAZE / U.S.A. (Director: Ethan Hawke, Screenwriters: Ethan Hawke, Sybil Rosen, Producers: Jake Seal, John Sloss, Ryan Hawke, Ethan Hawke) — A reimagining of the life and times of Blaze Foley, the unsung songwriting legend of the Texas Outlaw Music movement; he gave up paradise for the sake of a song. Cast: Benjamin Dickey, Alia Shawkat, Josh Hamilton, Charlie Sexton. World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award Stephen Loveridge and M.I.A., for MATANGI / MAYA / M.I.A. / Sri Lanka, United Kingdom, U.S.A. (Director: Stephen Loveridge, Producers: Lori Cheatle, Andrew Goldman, Paul Mezey) — Drawn from a never before seen cache of personal footage spanning decades, this is an intimate portrait of the Sri Lankan artist and musician who continues to shatter conventions. World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award for Editing Editors Maxim Pozdorovkin and Matvey Kulakov, for Our New President / Russia, U.S.A. (Director: Maxim Pozdorovkin, Producers: Maxim Pozdorovkin, Joe Bender, Charlotte Cook) — The story of Donald Trump’s election told entirely through Russian propaganda. By turns horrifying and hilarious, the film is a satirical portrait of Russian media that reveals an empire of fake news and the tactics of modern-day information warfare. World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award for Cinematography Cinematographers Maxim Arbugaev and Peter Indergand, for Genesis 2.0 / Switzerland (Directors: Christian Frei, Maxim Arbugaev, Producer: Christian Frei) — On the remote New Siberian Islands in the Arctic Ocean, hunters search for tusks of extinct mammoths. When they discover a surprisingly well-preserved mammoth carcass, its resurrection will be the first manifestation of the next great technological revolution: genetics. It may well turn our world upside down. World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Award for Screenwriting Screenwriters Julio Chavezmontes and Sebastián Hofmann, for Time Share (Tiempo Compartido) / Mexico, Netherlands (Director: Sebastián Hofmann, Screenwriters: Julio Chavezmontes, Sebastián Hofmann, Producer: Julio Chavezmontes) — Two haunted family men join forces in a destructive crusade to rescue their families from a tropical paradise, after becoming convinced that an American timeshare conglomerate has a sinister plan to take their loved ones away. World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Award for Acting Valeria Bertuccelli, for The Queen of Fear / Argentina, Denmark (Directors: Valeria Bertuccelli, Fabiana Tiscornia, Screenwriter: Valeria Bertuccelli, Producers: Benjamin Domenech, Santiago Gallelli, Matias Roveda, Juan Vera, Juan Pablo Galli, Christian Faillace) — Only one month left until the premiere of The Golden Time, the long-awaited solo show by acclaimed actress Robertina. Far from focused on the preparations for this new production, Robertina lives in a state of continuous anxiety that turns her privileged life into an absurd and tumultuous landscape. Cast: Valeria Bertuccelli, Diego Velázquez, Gabriel Eduardo “Puma” Goity, Darío Grandinetti. World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Award for Ensemble Acting Dead Pigs / China (Director and screenwriter: Cathy Yan, Producers: Clarissa Zhang, Jane Zheng, Zhangke Jia, Mick Aniceto, Amy Aniceto) — A bumbling pig farmer, a feisty salon owner, a sensitive busboy, an expat architect and a disenchanted rich girl converge and collide as thousands of dead pigs float down the river towards a rapidly-modernizing Shanghai, China. Based on true events. Cast: Vivian Wu, Haoyu Yang, Mason Lee, Meng Li, David Rysdahl. NEXT Innovator Prize (tie) Night Comes On / U.S.A. (Director: Jordana Spiro, Screenwriters: Jordana Spiro, Angelica Nwandu, Producers: Jonathan Montepare, Alvaro R. Valente, Danielle Renfrew Behrens) — Angel LaMere is released from juvenile detention on the eve of her 18th birthday. Haunted by her past, she embarks on a journey with her 10 year-old sister that could destroy their future. Cast: Dominique Fishback, Tatum Hall, John Earl Jelks, Max Casella, James McDaniel. We the Animals / U.S.A. (Director: Jeremiah Zagar, Screenwriters: Daniel Kitrosser, Jeremiah Zagar, Producers: Jeremy Yaches, Christina D. King, Andrew Goldman, Paul Mezey) — Us three, us brothers, us kings. Manny, Joel and Jonah tear their way through childhood and push against the volatile love of their parents. As Manny and Joel grow into versions of their father and Ma dreams of escape, Jonah, the youngest, embraces an imagined world all his own. Cast: Raul Castillo, Sheila Vand, Evan Rosado, Isaiah Kristian, Josiah Gabriel. SHORT FILM AWARDS: Short Film Grand Jury Prize Matria / Spain (Director and screenwriter: Director and screenwriter: Álvaro Gago). Short Film Jury Award: U.S. Fiction Hair Wolf / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Director and screenwriter: Mariama Diallo). Short Film Jury Award: International Fiction Would You Look at Her / Macedonia (Director and screenwriter: Goran Stolevski). Short Film Jury Award: Nonfiction The Trader (Sovdagari) / Georgia (Director: Tamta Gabrichidze). The Short Film Jury Award: Animation GLUCOSE / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Jeron Braxton). Special Jury Awards without designation Emergency / U.S.A. (Director: Carey Williams, Screenwriter: K.D. Dávila), Fauve / Canada (Director and screenwriter: Jérémy Comte) For Nonna Anna / Canada (Director and screenwriter: Luis De Filippis). SUNDANCE INSTITUTE OPEN BORDERS FELLOWSHIP PRESENTED BY NETFLIX Of Fathers and Sons (Syria) / Talal Derki Untitled (India) / Chaitanya Tamhane Night On Fire (Mexico) / Tatiana Huezo Sundance Institute / NHK Award His House (United Kingdom) / Remi Weekes. SUNDANCE INSTITUTE | ALFRED P. SLOAN FEATURE FILM PRIZE The 2018 Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize, presented to an outstanding feature film about science or technology, was presented to Aneesh Chaganty and Sev Ohanian’s Search. The filmmakers received a $20,000 cash award from Sundance Institute with support from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. SUNDANCE INSTITUTE | AMAZON STUDIOS PRODUCERS AWARDS Sev Ohanian received the 2018 Sundance Institute | Amazon Studios Producers Awards. The award recognizes bold vision and a commitment to continuing work as a creative producer in the independent space, and grants money (via the Sundance Institute Feature Film Program and Documentary Film Program) to emerging producers of films at the Sundance Film Festival. Image: Forrest Goodluck, Sasha Lane and Chloë Grace Moretz appear in The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Desiree Akhavan, an official selection of the U.S. Dramatic Competition at the 2018 Sundance FIlm Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Jeong Park.
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2018 Sundance Film Festival Unveils Feature Film Lineup of 110 Films

[caption id="attachment_25705" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] The Kindergarten Teacher[/caption] The 2018 Sundance Film Festival returns to Park City, Salt Lake City and at Sundance Mountain Resort, from January 18 to 28, and today announced the feature films lineup showcasing bold, independent storytelling. For the 2018 Festival, 110 feature-length films were selected, representing 29 countries and 47 first-time filmmakers, including 30 in competition.These films were selected from 13,468 submissions including 3,901 feature-length films and 8,740 short films. Of the feature film submissions, 1,799 were from the U.S. and 2,102 were international. One-hundred feature films at the Festival will be world premieres Robert Redford, President and Founder of Sundance Institute, said, “The work of independent storytellers can challenge and possibly change culture, illuminating our world’s imperfections and possibilities. This year’s Festival is full of artfully-told stories that provoke thought, drive empathy and allow the audience to connect, in deeply personal ways, to the universal human experience.”
U.S. DRAMATIC COMPETITION
American Animals / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Bart Layton, Producers: Derrin Schlesinger, Katherine Butler, Dimitri Doganis, Mary Jane Skalski) — The unbelievable but mostly true story of four young men who mistake their lives for a movie and attempt one of the most audacious art heists in U.S. history. Cast: Evan Peters, Barry Keoghan, Blake Jenner, Jared Abrahamson, Ann Dowd, Udo Kier. World Premiere BLAZE / U.S.A. (Director: Ethan Hawke, Screenwriters: Ethan Hawke, Sybil Rosen, Producers: Jake Seal, John Sloss, Ryan Hawke, Ethan Hawke) — A reimagining of the life and times of Blaze Foley, the unsung songwriting legend of the Texas Outlaw Music movement; he gave up paradise for the sake of a song. Cast: Benjamin Dickey, Alia Shawkat, Josh Hamilton, Charlie Sexton. World Premiere Blindspotting / U.S.A. (Director: Carlos Lopez Estrada, Screenwriters: Rafael Casal, Daveed Diggs, Producers: Keith Calder, Jess Calder, Rafael Casal, Daveed Diggs) — A buddy comedy in a world that won’t let it be one. Cast: Daveed Diggs, Rafael Casal, Janina Gavankar, Jasmine Cephas Jones. World Premiere. DAY ONE Burden / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Andrew Heckler, Producers: Robbie Brenner, Jincheng, Bill Kenwright) — After opening a KKK shop, Klansman Michael Burden falls in love with a single mom who forces him to confront his senseless hatred. After leaving the Klan and with nowhere to turn, Burden is taken in by an African-American reverend, and learns tolerance through their combined love and faith. Cast: Garrett Hedlund, Forest Whitaker, Andrea Riseborough, Tom Wilkinson, Usher Raymond. World Premiere Eighth Grade / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Bo Burnham, Producers: Scott Rudin, Eli Bush, Christopher Storer, Lila Yacoub) — Thirteen-year-old Kayla endures the tidal wave of contemporary suburban adolescence as she makes her way through the last week of middle school — the end of her thus far disastrous eighth grade year — before she begins high school. Cast: Elsie Fisher, Josh Hamilton. World Premiere. I Think We’re Alone Now / U.S.A. (Director: Reed Morano, Screenwriter: Mike Makowsky, Producers: Fred Berger, Brian Kavanaugh-Jones, Fernando Loureiro, Roberto Vasconcellos, Peter Dinklage, Mike Makowsky) — The apocalypse proves a blessing in disguise for one lucky recluse – until a second survivor arrives with the threat of companionship. Cast: Peter Dinklage, Elle Fanning. World Premiere The Kindergarten Teacher / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Sara Colangelo, Producers: Celine Rattray, Trudie Styler, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Osnat Handelsman-Keren, Talia Kleinhendler) — Lisa Spinelli is a Staten Island teacher who is unusually devoted to her students. When she discovers one of her five-year-olds is a prodigy, she becomes fascinated with the boy, ultimately risking her family and freedom to nurture his talent. Based on the acclaimed Israeli film. Cast: Maggie Gyllenhaal, Parker Sevak, Rosa Salazar, Anna Barynishikov, Michael Chernus, Gael Garcia Bernal. World Premiere Lizzie / U.S.A. (Director: Craig William Macneill, Screenwriter: Bryce Kass, Producers: Naomi Despres, Liz Destro) — Based on the 1892 murder of Lizzie Borden’s family in Fall River, MA, this tense psychological thriller lays bare the legend of Lizzie Borden to reveal the much more complex, poignant and truly terrifying woman within — and her intimate bond with the family’s young Irish housemaid, Bridget Sullivan. Cast: Chloë Sevigny, Kristen Stewart, Jamey Sheridan, Fiona Shaw, Kim Dickens, Denis O’Hare. World Premiere The Miseducation of Cameron Post / U.S.A. (Director: Desiree Akhavan, Screenwriters: Desiree Akhavan, Cecilia Frugiuele, Producers: Cecilia Frugiuele, Jonathan Montepare, Michael B. Clark, Alex Turtletaub) — 1993: after being caught having sex with the prom queen, a girl is forced into a gay conversion therapy center. Based on Emily Danforth’s acclaimed and controversial coming-of-age novel. Cast: Chloë Grace Moretz, Sasha Lane, Forrest Goodluck, John Gallagher Jr., Jennifer Ehle. World Premiere Monster / U.S.A. (Director: Anthony Mandler, Screenwriters: Radha Blank, Cole Wiley, Janece Shaffer, Producers: Tonya Lewis Lee, Nikki Silver, Aaron L. Gilbert, Mike Jackson, Edward Tyler Nahem) — “Monster” is what the prosecutor calls 17 year old honors student and aspiring filmmaker Steve Harmon. Charged with felony murder for a crime he says he did not commit, the film follows his dramatic journey through a complex legal battle that could leave him spending the rest of his life in prison. Cast: Kelvin Harrison Jr., Jeffrey Wright, Jennifer Hudson, Rakim Mayers, Jennifer Ehle, Tim Blake Nelson. World Premiere Monsters and Men / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Reinaldo Marcus Green, Producers: Elizabeth Lodge Stepp, Josh Penn, Eddie Vaisman, Julia Lebedev, Luca Borghese) — This interwoven narrative explores the aftermath of a police killing of a black man. The film is told through the eyes of the bystander who filmed the act, an African-American police officer and a high-school baseball phenom inspired to take a stand. Cast: John David Washington, Anthony Ramos, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Chanté Adams, Nicole Beharie, Rob Morgan. World Premiere NANCY / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Christina Choe, Producers: Amy Lo, Michelle Cameron, Andrea Riseborough) — Blurring lines between fact and fiction, Nancy becomes increasingly convinced she was kidnapped as a child. When she meets a couple whose daughter went missing thirty years ago, reasonable doubts give way to willful belief – and the power of emotion threatens to overcome all rationality. Cast: Andrea Riseborough, J. Smith-Cameron, Steve Buscemi, Ann Dowd, John Leguizamo. World Premiere Sorry to Bother You / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Boots Riley, Producers: Nina Yang Bongiovi, Forest Whitaker, Charles King, George Rush, Jonathan Duffy, Kelly Williams) — In a speculative and dystopian not-too-distant future, black telemarketer Cassius Green discovers a magical key to professional success – which propels him into a macabre universe. Cast: Lakeith Stanfield, Tessa Thompson, Steven Yeun, Jermaine Fowler, Armie Hammer, Omari Hardwicke. World Premiere The Tale / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Jennifer Fox, Producers: Oren Moverman, Lawrence Inglee, Laura Rister, Mynette Louie, Sol Bondy, Simone Pero) — An investigation into one woman’s memory as she’s forced to re-examine her first sexual relationship and the stories we tell ourselves in order to survive; based on the filmmaker’s own story. Cast: Laura Dern, Isabel Nelisse, Jason Ritter, Elizabeth Debicki, Ellen Burstyn, Common. World Premiere TYREL / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Sebastian Silva, Producers: Jacob Wasserman, Max Born) — Tyler spirals out of control when he realizes he’s the only black person attending a weekend birthday party in a secluded cabin. Cast: Jason Mitchell, Christopher Abbott, Michael Cera, Caleb Landry Jones, Ann Dowd. World Premiere Wildlife / U.S.A. (Director: Paul Dano, Screenwriters: Paul Dano, Zoe Kazan, Producers: Andrew Duncan, Alex Saks, Oren Moverman, Ann Ruark, Jake Gyllenhaal, Riva Marker) — Montana, 1960: A portrait of a family in crisis. Based on the novel by Richard Ford. Cast: Carey Mulligan, Ed Oxenbould, Bill Camp, Jake Gyllenhaal. World Premiere
U.S. DOCUMENTARY COMPETITION
Bisbee ’17 / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Robert Greene, Producers: Douglas Tirola, Susan Bedusa, Bennett Elliott) — An old mining town on the Arizona-Mexico border finally reckons with its darkest day: the deportation of 1200 immigrant miners exactly 100 years ago. Locals collaborate to stage recreations of their controversial past. Cast: Fernando Serrano, Laurie McKenna, Ray Family, Mike Anderson, Graeme Family, Richard Hodges. World Premiere Crime + Punishment / U.S.A. (Director: Stephen Maing) — Over four years of unprecedented access, the story of a brave group of black and Latino whistleblower cops and one unrelenting private investigator who, amidst a landmark lawsuit, risk everything to expose illegal quota practices and their impact on young minorities. World Premiere Dark Money / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Kimberly Reed, Producer: Katy Chevigny) — “Dark money” contributions, made possible by the U.S. Supreme Court’s Citizens United ruling, flood modern American elections – but Montana is showing Washington D.C. how to solve the problem of unlimited anonymous money in politics. World Premiere The Devil We Know / U.S.A. (Director: Stephanie Soechtig, Producers: Kristin Lazure, Stephanie Soechtig, Joshua Kunau, Carly Palmour) — Unraveling one of the biggest environmental scandals of our time, a group of citizens in West Virginia take on a powerful corporation after they discover it has knowingly been dumping a toxic chemical — now found in the blood of 99.7% of Americans — into the local drinking water supply. World Premiere. THE NEW CLIMATE Hal / U.S.A. (Director: Amy Scott, Producers: Christine Beebe, Jonathan Lynch, Brian Morrow) — Hal Ashby’s obsessive genius led to an unprecedented string of Oscar®-winning classics, including Harold and Maude, Shampoo and Being There. But as contemporaries Coppola, Scorsese and Spielberg rose to blockbuster stardom in the 1980s, Ashby’s uncompromising nature played out as a cautionary tale of art versus commerce. World Premiere Hale County This Morning, This Evening / U.S.A. (Director: RaMell Ross, Screenwriter: Maya Krinsky, Producers: Joslyn Barnes, RaMell Ross, Su Kim) — An exploration of coming-of-age in the Black Belt of the American South, using stereotypical imagery to fill in the landscape between iconic representations of black men and encouraging a new way of looking, while resistance to narrative suspends conclusive imagining – allowing the viewer to complete the film. World Premiere Inventing Tomorrow / U.S.A. (Director: Laura Nix, Producers: Diane Becker, Melanie Miller, Laura Nix) — Take a journey with young minds from around the globe as they prepare their projects for the largest convening of high school scientists in the world, the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF). Watch these passionate innovators find the courage to face the planet’s environmental threats while navigating adolescence. World Premiere. THE NEW CLIMATE Kailash / U.S.A. (Director: Derek Doneen, Producers: Davis Guggenheim, Sarah Anthony) — As a young man, Kailash Satyarthi promised himself that he would end child slavery in his lifetime. In the decades since, he has rescued more than eighty thousand children and built a global movement. This intimate and suspenseful film follows one man’s journey to do what many believed was impossible. World Premiere. DAY ONE Kusama – Infinity / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Heather Lenz, Producers: Karen Johnson, Heather Lenz, Dan Braun, David Koh) — Now one of the world’s most celebrated artists, Yayoi Kusama broke free of the rigid society in which she was raised, and overcame sexism, racism, and mental illness to bring her artistic vision to the world stage. At 88 she lives in a mental hospital and continues to create art. World Premiere The Last Race / U.S.A. (Director: Michael Dweck, Producers: Michael Dweck, Gregory Kershaw) — A cinematic portrait of a small town stock car track and the tribe of drivers that call it home as they struggle to hold onto an American racing tradition. The avant-garde narrative explores the community and its conflicts through an intimate story that reveals the beauty, mystery and emotion of grassroots auto racing. World Premiere Minding the Gap / U.S.A. (Director: Bing Liu, Producer: Diane Quon) — Three young men bond together to escape volatile families in their Rust Belt hometown. As they face adult responsibilities, unexpected revelations threaten their decade-long friendship. World Premiere On Her Shoulders / U.S.A. (Director: Alexandria Bombach, Producers: Marie Therese Guirgis, Hayley Pappas, Brock Williams, Bryn Mooser, Adam Bardach) — A Yazidi genocide and ISIS sexual slavery survivor, 23-year-old Nadia Murad is determined to tell the world her story. As her journey leads down paths of advocacy and fame, she becomes the voice of her people and their best hope to spur the world to action. International Premiere The Price of Everything / U.S.A. (Director: Nathaniel Kahn, Producers: Jennifer Blei Stockman, Debi Wisch, Carla Solomon) — With unprecedented access to pivotal artists and the white-hot market surrounding them, this film dives deep into the contemporary art world, holding a funhouse mirror up to our values and our times – where everything can be bought and sold.World Premiere Seeing Allred / U.S.A. (Directors: Sophie Sartain, Roberta Grossman, Producers: Roberta Grossman, Sophie Sartain, Marta Kauffman, Robbie Rowe Tollin, Hannah KS Canter) — Gloria Allred overcame trauma and personal setbacks to become one of the nation’s most famous women’s rights attorneys. Now the feminist firebrand takes on two of the biggest adversaries of her career, Bill Cosby and Donald Trump, as sexual violence allegations grip the nation and keep her in the spotlight. World Premiere The Sentence / U.S.A. (Director: Rudy Valdez, Producers: Sam Bisbee, Jackie Kelman Bisbee) — Cindy Shank, mother of three, is serving a 15-year sentence in federal prison for her tangential involvement with a Michigan drug ring years earlier. This intimate portrait of mandatory minimum drug sentencing’s devastating consequences, captured by Cindy’s brother, follows her and her family over the course of ten years. World Premiere Three Identical Strangers / U.S.A. (Director: Tim Wardle, Producer: Becky Read) — New York,1980: three complete strangers accidentally discover that they’re identical triplets, separated at birth. The 19-year-olds’ joyous reunion catapults them to international fame, but also unlocks an extraordinary and disturbing secret that goes beyond their own lives – and could transform our understanding of human nature forever. World Premiere
WORLD CINEMA DRAMATIC COMPETITION
And Breathe Normally / Iceland, Sweden, Belgium (Director and screenwriter: Ísold Uggadóttir, Producers: Skúli Malmquist, Diana Elbaum, Annika Hellström, Lilja Ósk Snorradóttir, Inga Lind Karlsdóttir) — At the edge of Iceland’s Reykjanes peninsula, two women’s lives will intersect – for a brief moment – while trapped in circumstances unforeseen. Between a struggling Icelandic mother and an asylum seeker from Guinea-Bissau, a delicate bond will form as both strategize to get their lives back on track. Cast: Kristín Thóra Haraldsdóttir, Babetida Sadjo, Patrik Nökkvi Pétursson. World Premiere Butterflies / Turkey (Director and screenwriter: Tolga Karaçelik, Producers: Tolga Karaçelik, Diloy Gülün, Metin Anter) — In the Turkish village of Hasanlar, three siblings who neither know each other nor anything about their late father, wait to bury his body. As they start to find out more about their father and about each other, they also start to know more about themselves. Cast: Tolga Tekin, Bartu Küçükçağlayan, Tuğçe Altuğ, Serkan Keskin, Hakan Karsak. World Premiere Dead Pigs / China (Director and screenwriter: Cathy Yan, Producers: Clarissa Zhang, Jane Zheng, Zhangke Jia, Mick Aniceto, Amy Aniceto) — A bumbling pig farmer, a feisty salon owner, a sensitive busboy, an expat architect and a disenchanted rich girl converge and collide as thousands of dead pigs float down the river towards a rapidly-modernizing Shanghai, China. Based on true events. Cast: Vivian Wu, Haoyu Yang, Mason Lee, Meng Li, David Rysdahl. World Premiere The Guilty / Denmark (Director: Gustav Möller, Screenwriters: Gustav Möller, Emil Nygaard Albertsen, Producer: Lina Flint) — Alarm dispatcher Asger Holm answers an emergency call from a kidnapped woman; after a sudden disconnection, the search for the woman and her kidnapper begins. With the phone as his only tool, Asger enters a race against time to solve a crime that is far bigger than he first thought. Cast: Jakob Cedergren, Jessica Dinnage, Johan Olsen, Omar Shargawi. World Premiere Holiday / Denmark, Netherlands, Sweden (Director: Isabella Eklöf, Screenwriters: Isabella Eklöf, Johanne Algren, Producer: David B. Sørensen) — A love triangle featuring the trophy girlfriend of a petty drug lord, caught up in a web of luxury and violence in a modern dark gangster tale set in the beautiful port city of Bodrum on the Turkish Riviera. Cast: Victoria Carmen Sonne, Lai Yde, Thijs Römer. World Premiere Loveling / Brazil, Uruguay (Director: Gustavo Pizzi, Screenwriters: Gustavo Pizzi, Karine Teles, Producers: Tatiana Leite, Rodrigo Letier, Agustina Chiarino, Fernando Epstein) — On the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro, Irene has only a few days to overcome her anxiety and renew her strength before sending her eldest son out into the world. Cast: Karine Teles, Otavio Muller, Adriana Esteves, Konstantinos Sarris, Cesar Troncoso. World Premiere. DAY ONE Pity / Greece, Poland (Director: Babis Makridis, Screenwriters: Efthimis Filippou, Babis Makridis, Producers: Amanda Livanou, Christos V. Konstantakopoulos, Klaudia Śmieja, Beata Rzeźniczek) — The story of a man who feels happy only when he is unhappy: addicted to sadness, with such need for pity, that he’s willing to do everything to evoke it from others. This is the life of a man in a world not cruel enough for him. Cast: Yannis Drakopoulos, Evi Saoulidou, Nota Tserniafski, Makis Papadimitriou, Georgina Chryskioti, Evdoxia Androulidaki. World Premiere The Queen of Fear / Argentina, Denmark (Directors: Valeria Bertuccelli, Fabiana Tiscornia, Screenwriter: Valeria Bertuccelli, Producers: Benjamin Domenech, Santiago Gallelli, Matias Roveda, Juan Vera, Juan Pablo Galli, Christian Faillace) — Only one month left until the premiere of The Golden Time, the long-awaited solo show by acclaimed actress Robertina. Far from focused on the preparations for this new production, Robertina lives in a state of continuous anxiety that turns her privileged life into an absurd and tumultuous landscape. Cast: Valeria Bertuccelli, Diego Velázquez, Gabriel Eduardo “Puma” Goity, Darío Grandinetti. World Premiere Rust / Brazil (Director: Aly Muritiba, Screenwriters: Aly Muritiba, Jessica Candal, Producer: Antônio Junior) — Tati and Renet were already trading pics, videos and music by their cellphones and on the last school trip they started making eye contact. However, what could be the beginning of a love story becomes an end. Cast: Giovanni De Lorenzi, Tifanny Dopke, Enrique Diaz, Clarissa Kiste, Duda Azevedo, Pedro Inoue. World Premiere Time Share (Tiempo Compartido) / Mexico, Netherlands (Director: Sebastián Hofmann, Screenwriters: Julio Chavezmontes, Sebastián Hofmann, Producer: Julio Chavezmontes) — Two haunted family men join forces in a destructive crusade to rescue their families from a tropical paradise, after becoming convinced that an American timeshare conglomerate has a sinister plan to take their loved ones away. Cast: Luis Gerardo Mendez, Miguel Rodarte, Andrés Almeida, Cassandra Ciangherotti, Monserrat Marañon, R.J. Mitte. World Premiere Un Traductor / Canada, Cuba (Directors: Rodrigo Barriuso, Sebastián Barriuso, Screenwriter: Lindsay Gossling, Producers: Sebastián Barriuso, Lindsay Gossling) — A Russian Literature professor at the University of Havana is ordered to work as a translator for child victims of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster when they are sent to Cuba for medical treatment. Based on a true story. Cast: Rodrigo Santoro, Maricel Álvarez, Yoandra Suárez. World Premiere Yardie / United Kingdom (Director: Idris Elba, Screenwriters: Brock Norman Brock, Martin Stellman, Producers: Gina Carter, Robin Gutch) — Jamaica, 1973. When a young boy witnesses his brother’s assassination, a powerful Don gives him a home. Ten years later he is sent on a mission to London. He reunites with his girlfriend and their daughter, but then the past catches up with them. Based on Victor Headley’s novel. Cast: Aml Ameen, Shantol Jackson, Stephen Graham, Fraser James, Sheldon Shepherd, Everaldo Cleary. World Premiere
WORLD CINEMA DOCUMENTARY COMPETITION
A Polar Year / France (Director: Samuel Collardey, Screenwriters: Samuel Collardey, Catherine Paillé, Producer: Grégoire Debailly) — Anders leaves his native Denmark for a teaching position in rural Greenland. As soon as he arrives, he finds himself at odds with tightly-knit locals. Only through a clumsy and playful trial of errors can Anders shake his Euro-centric assumptions and embrace their snow-covered way of life. Cast: Anders Hvidegaard, Asser Boassen, Julius B. Nielsen, Tobias Ignatiussen, Thomasine Jonathansen, Gert Jonathansen. World Premiere Anote’s Ark / Canada (Director: Matthieu Rytz, Producers: Bob Moore, Mila Aung-Thwin, Daniel Cross, Shari Plummer, Shannon Joy) — How does a nation survive being swallowed by the sea? Kiribati, on a low-lying Pacific atoll, will disappear within decades due to rising sea levels, population growth, and climate change. This exploration of how to migrate an entire nation with dignity interweaves personal stories of survival and resilience. World Premiere. THE NEW CLIMATE The Cleaners / Germany, Brazil (Directors: Moritz Riesewieck, Hans Block, Screenwriters: Moritz Riesewieck, Hans Block, Georg Tschurtschenthaler, Producers: Christian Beetz, Georg Tschurtschenthaler, Julie Goldman, Christopher Clements, Fernando Dias, Mauricio Dias) — When you post something on the web, can you be sure it stays there? Enter a hidden shadow industry of digital cleaning, where the Internet rids itself of what it doesn’t like: violence, pornography and political content. Who is controlling what we see…and what we think? World Premiere Genesis 2.0 / Switzerland (Directors: Christian Frei, Maxim Arbugaev, Producer: Christian Frei) — On the remote New Siberian Islands in the Arctic Ocean, hunters search for tusks of extinct mammoths. When they discover a surprisingly well-preserved mammoth carcass, its resurrection will be the first manifestation of the next great technological revolution: genetics. It may well turn our world upside down. World Premiere MATANGI / MAYA / M.I.A. / Sri Lanka, United Kingdom, U.S.A. (Director: Stephen Loveridge, Producers: Lori Cheatle, Andrew Goldman, Paul Mezey) — Drawn from a never before seen cache of personal footage spanning decades, this is an intimate portrait of the Sri Lankan artist and musician who continues to shatter conventions. World Premiere Of Fathers and Sons / Germany, Syria, Lebanon (Director: Talal Derki, Producers: Ansgar Frerich, Eva Kemme, Tobias N. Siebert, Hans Robert Eisenhauer) — Talal Derki returns to his homeland where he gains the trust of a radical Islamist family, sharing their daily life for over two years. His camera focuses on Osama and his younger brother Ayman, providing an extremely rare insight into what it means to grow up in an Islamic Caliphate. North American Premiere The Oslo Diaries / Israel, Canada (Directors and screenwriters: Mor Loushy, Daniel Sivan, Producers: Hilla Medalia, Ina Fichman) — In 1992, Israeli-Palestinian relations reached an all time low. In an attempt to stop the bloodshed, a group of Israelis and Palestinians met illegally in Oslo. These meetings were never officially sanctioned and held in complete secrecy. They changed the Middle East forever. World Premiere Our New President / Russia, U.S.A. (Director: Maxim Pozdorovkin, Producers: Maxim Pozdorovkin, Joe Bender) — The story of Donald Trump’s election told entirely through Russian propaganda. By turns horrifying and hilarious, the film is a satirical portrait of Russian media that reveals an empire of fake news and the tactics of modern-day information warfare. World Premiere. DAY ONE Shirkers / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Sandi Tan, Producers: Sandi Tan, Jessica Levin, Maya Rudolph) — In 1992, teenager Sandi Tan shot Singapore’s first indie road movie with her enigmatic American mentor Georges – who then vanished with all the footage. Twenty years later, the 16mm film is recovered, sending Tan, now a novelist in Los Angeles, on a personal odyssey in search of Georges’ vanishing footprints. World Premiere This is Home / U.S.A., Jordan (Director: Alexandra Shiva, Producer: Lindsey Megrue) This is an intimate portrait of four Syrian families arriving in Baltimore, Maryland and struggling to find their footing. With eight months to become self-sufficient, they must forge ahead to rebuild their lives. When the travel ban adds further complications, their strength and resilience are put to the test. World Premiere Westwood / United Kingdom (Director: Lorna Tucker, Producers: Eleanor Emptage, Shirine Best, Nicole Stott, John Battsek) — Dame Vivienne Westwood: punk, icon, provocateur and one of the most influential originators in recent history. This is the first film to encompass the remarkable story of one of the true icons of our time, as she fights to maintain her brand’s integrity, her principles – and her legacy. World Premiere A Woman Captured / Hungary (Director and screenwriter: Bernadett Tuza-Ritter, Producers: Julianna Ugrin, Viki Réka Kiss, Erik Winker, Martin Roelly) — A European woman has been kept by a family as a domestic slave for 10 years – one of over 45 million victims of modern-day slavery. Drawing courage from the filmmaker’s presence, she decides to escape the unbearable oppression and become a free person. North American Premiere
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306 Hollywood / U.S.A., Hungary (Directors: Elan Bogarín, Jonathan Bogarín, Screenwriters: Jonathan Bogarín, Elan Bogarín, Nyneve Laura Minnear, Producers: Elan Bogarín, Jonathan Bogarín, Judit Stalter) — When two siblings undertake an archaeological excavation of their late grandmother’s house, they embark on a magical-realist journey from her home in New Jersey to ancient Rome, from fashion to physics, in search of what life remains in the objects we leave behind. World Premiere. DAY ONE A Boy, A Girl, A Dream. / U.S.A. (Director: Qasim Basir, Screenwriters: Qasim Basir, Samantha Tanner, Producer: Datari Turner) — On the night of the 2016 Presidential election, Cass, an L.A. club promoter, takes a thrilling and emotional journey with Frida, a Midwestern visitor. She challenges him to revisit his broken dreams – while he pushes her to discover hers. Cast: Omari Hardwick, Meagan Good, Jay Ellis, Kenya Barris, Dijon Talton, Wesley Jonathan. World Premiere An Evening With Beverly Luff Linn / United Kingdom, U.S.A. (Director: Jim Hosking, Screenwriters: Jim Hosking, David Wike, Producers: Sam Bisbee, Theodora Dunlap, Oliver Roskill, Emily Leo, Lucan Toh, Andy Starke) — Lulu Danger’s unsatisfying marriage takes a fortunate turn for the worse when a mysterious man from her past comes to town to perform an event called ‘An Evening With Beverly Luff Linn For One Magical Night Only.’ Cast: Aubrey Plaza, Emile Hirsch, Jemaine Clement, Matt Berry, Craig Robinson. World Premiere Clara’s Ghost / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Bridey Elliott, Producer: Sarah Winshall) — Set over the course of a single evening at the Reynolds’ family home in Connecticut, Clara, fed up with the constant ribbing from her self-absorbed showbiz family, finds solace in and guidance from the supernatural force she believes is haunting her. Cast: Paula Niedert Elliott, Chris Elliott, Abby Elliott, Bridey Elliott, Haley Joel Osment, Isidora Goreshter. World Premiere Madeline’s Madeline / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Josephine Decker, Producers: Krista Parris, Elizabeth Rao) — Madeline got the part! She’s going to play the lead in a theater piece! Except the lead wears sweatpants like Madeline’s. And has a cat like Madeline’s. And is holding a steaming hot iron next to her mother’s face – like Madeline is. Cast: Helena Howard, Molly Parker, Miranda July, Okwui Okpokwasili, Felipe Bonilla, Lisa Tharps. World Premiere Night Comes On / U.S.A. (Director: Jordana Spiro, Screenwriters: Jordana Spiro, Angelica Nwandu, Producers: Jonathan Montepare, Alvaro R. Valente, Danielle Renfrew Behrens) — Angel LaMere is released from juvenile detention on the eve of her 18th birthday. Haunted by her past, she embarks on a journey with her 10 year-old sister that could destroy their future. Cast: Dominique Fishback, Tatum Hall, John Earl Jelks, Max Casella, James McDaniel. World Premiere Search / U.S.A. (Director: Aneesh Chaganty, Screenwriters: Aneesh Chaganty, Sev Ohanian, Producers: Timur Bekmambetov, Sev Ohanian, Adam Sidman, Natalie Qasabian) — After his 16-year-old daughter goes missing, a desperate father breaks into her laptop to look for clues to find her. A thriller that unfolds entirely on computer screens. Cast: John Cho, Debra Messing. World Premiere. WINNER: 2018 Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize. Skate Kitchen / U.S.A. (Director: Crystal Moselle, Screenwriters: Crystal Moselle, Ashlihan Unaldi, Producers: Lizzie Nastro, Izabella Tzenkova, Julia Nottingham, Matthew Perniciaro, Michael Sherman, Rodrigo Teixeira) — Camille’s life as a lonely suburban teenager changes dramatically when she befriends a group of girl skateboarders. As she journeys deeper into this raw New York City subculture, she begins to understand the true meaning of friendship as well as her inner self. Cast: Rachelle Vinberg, Dede Lovelace, Jaden Smith, Nina Moran, Ajani Russell, Kabrina Adams. World Premiere We The Animals / U.S.A. (Director: Jeremiah Zagar, Screenwriters: Daniel Kitrosser, Jeremiah Zagar, Producers: Jeremy Yaches, Christina D. King, Andrew Goldman, Paul Mezey) — Us three, us brothers, us kings. Manny, Joel and Jonah tear their way through childhood and push against the volatile love of their parents. As Manny and Joel grow into versions of their father and Ma dreams of escape, Jonah, the youngest, embraces an imagined world all his own. Cast: Raul Castillo, Sheila Vand, Evan Rosado, Isaiah Kristian, Josiah Santiago. World Premiere White Rabbit / U.S.A. (Director: Daryl Wein, Screenwriters: Daryl Wein, Vivian Bang, Producers: Daryl Wein, Vivian Bang) —A dramatic comedy following a Korean American performance artist who struggles to be authentically heard and seen through her multiple identities in modern Los Angeles. Cast: Vivian Bang, Nana Ghana, Nico Evers-Swindel, Tracy Hazas, Elizabeth Sung, Michelle Sui. World Premiere
PREMIERES
A Kid Like Jake / U.S.A. (Director: Silas Howard, Screenwriter: Daniel Pearle, Producers: Jim Parsons, Todd Spiewak, Eric Norsoph, Paul Bernon, Rachel Song) — As married couple Alex and Greg navigate their roles as parents to a young son who prefers Cinderella to G.I. Joe, a rift grows between them, one that forces them to confront their own concerns about what’s best for their child, and each other. Cast: Claire Danes, Jim Parsons, Octavia Spencer, Priyanka Chopra, Ann Dowd, Amy Landecker. World Premiere Beirut / U.S.A. (Director: Brad Anderson, Screenwriter: Tony Gilroy) — A U.S. diplomat flees Lebanon in 1972 after a tragic incident at his home. Ten years later, he is called back to war-torn Beirut by CIA operatives to negotiate for the life of a friend he left behind. Cast: Jon Hamm, Rosamund Pike, Shea Whigham, Dean Norris. World Premiere The Catcher Was a Spy / U.S.A. (Director: Ben Lewin, Screenwriter: Robert Rodat, Producers: Kevin Frakes, Tatiana Kelly, Buddy Patrick, Jim Young) — The true story of Moe Berg – professional baseball player, Ivy League graduate, attorney who spoke nine languages – and a top-secret spy for the OSS who helped the U.S. win the race against Germany to build the atomic bomb. Cast: Paul Rudd, Mark Strong, Sienna Miller, Jeff Daniels, Guy Pearce, Paul Giamatti. World Premiere Colette / United Kingdom (Director: Wash Westmoreland, Screenwriters: Wash Westmoreland, Richard Glatzer, Producers: Pamela Koffler, Christine Vachon, Elizabeth Karlsen, Stephen Woolley) — A young country woman marries a famous literary entrepreneur in turn-of-the-century Paris: At her husband’s request, Colette pens a series of bestselling novels published under his name. But as her confidence grows, she transforms not only herself and her marriage, but the world around her. Cast: Keira Knightley, Dominic West, Fiona Shaw, Denise Gough, Elinor Tomlinson, Aiysha Hart. World Premiere Come Sunday / U.S.A. (Director: Joshua Marston, Screenwriter: Marcus Hinchey, Producers: Ira Glass, Alissa Shipp, Julie Goldstein, James Stern, Lucas Smith, Cindy Kirven) — Internationally-renowned pastor Carlton Pearson — experiencing a crisis of faith — risks his church, family and future when he questions church doctrine and finds himself branded a modern-day heretic. Based on actual events. Cast: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Danny Glover, Condola Rashad, Jason Segel, Lakeith Stanfield, Martin Sheen. World Premiere Damsel / U.S.A. (Directors and screenwriters: David Zellner, Nathan Zellner, Producers: Nathan Zellner, Chris Ohlson, David Zellner) — Samuel Alabaster, an affluent pioneer, ventures across the American Frontier to marry the love of his life, Penelope. As Samuel, a drunkard named Parson Henry and a miniature horse called Butterscotch traverse the Wild West, their once-simple journey grows treacherous, blurring the lines between hero, villain and damsel. Cast: Robert Pattinson, Mia Wasikowska, David Zellner, Robert Forster, Nathan Zellner, Joe Billingiere. World Premiere Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far On Foot / U.S.A. (Director: Gus Van Sant, Screenwriters: Gus Van Sant (screenplay), John Callahan (biography), Producers: Charles-Marie Anthonioz, Mourad Belkeddar, Steve Golin, Nicolas Lhermitte) — John Callahan has a talent for off-color jokes…and a drinking problem. When a bender ends in a car accident, Callahan wakes permanently confined to a wheelchair. In his journey back from rock bottom, Callahan finds beauty and comedy in the absurdity of human experience. Cast: Joaquin Phoenix, Jonah Hill, Rooney Mara, Jack Black. World Premiere Futile and Stupid Gesture / U.S.A. (Director: David Wain, Screenwriters: John Aboud, Michael Colton, Producers: Peter Principato, Jonathan Stern) — The story of comedy wunderkind Doug Kenney, who co-created the National Lampoon, Caddyshack, and Animal House. Kenney was at the center of the 70’s comedy counter-culture which gave birth to Saturday Night Live and a whole generation’s way of looking at the world. Cast: Will Forte, Martin Mull, Domhnall Gleeson, Matt Walsh, Joel McHale, Emmy Rossum. World Premiere The Happy Prince / Germany, Belgium, Italy (Director and screenwriter: Rupert Everett) — The last days of Oscar Wilde—and the ghosts haunting them—are brought to vivid life. His body ailing, Wilde lives in exile, surviving on the flamboyant irony and brilliant wit that defined him as the transience of lust is laid bare and the true riches of love are revealed. Cast: Colin Firth, Emily Watson, Colin Morgan, Edwin Thomas, Rupert Everett. World Premiere Hearts Beat Loud / U.S.A. (Director: Brett Haley, Screenwriters: Brett Haley, Marc Basch, Producers: Houston King, Sam Bisbee, Sam Slater) — In Red Hook, Brooklyn, a father and daughter become an unlikely songwriting duo in the last summer before she leaves for college. Cast: Nick Offerman, Kiersey Clemons, Ted Danson, Sasha Lane, Blythe Danner, Toni Collette. World Premiere Juliet, Naked / United Kingdom (Director: Jesse Peretz, Screenwriters: Tamara Jenkins, Jim Taylor, Phil Alden Robinson, Evgenia Peretz, Producers: Judd Apatow, Barry Mendel, Albert Berger, Ron Yerxa) — Annie is the long-suffering girlfriend of Duncan, an obsessive fan of obscure rocker Tucker Crowe. When the acoustic demo of Tucker’s celebrated record from 25 years ago surfaces, its release leads to an encounter with the elusive rocker himself. Based on the novel by Nick Hornby. Cast: Rose Byrne, Ethan Hawke, Chris O’Dowd. World Premiere Ophelia / United Kingdom (Director: Claire McCarthy, Screenwriter: Semi Chellas, Producers: Daniel Bobker, Sarah Curtis, Ehren Kruger, Paul Hanson) — A mythic spin on Hamlet through a lens of female empowerment: Ophelia comes of age as lady-in-waiting for Queen Gertrude, and her singular spirit captures Hamlet’s affections. As lust and betrayal threaten the kingdom, Ophelia finds herself trapped between true love and controlling her own destiny. Cast: Daisy Ridley, Naomi Watts, Clive Owen, George MacKay, Tom Felton, Devon Terrell. World Premiere Puzzle / U.S.A. (Director: Marc Turtletaub, Screenwriter: Oren Moverman, Producers: Peter Saraf, Wren Arthur, Guy Stodel) — Agnes, taken for granted as a suburban mother, discovers a passion for solving jigsaw puzzles which unexpectedly draws her into a new world – where her life unfolds in ways she could never have imagined. Cast: Kelly Macdonald, Irrfan Khan, David Denman, Bubba Weiler, Austin Abrams, Liv Hewson. World Premiere Untitled Debra Granik Project / U.S.A. (Director: Debra Granik, Screenwriters: Debra Granik, Anne Rosellini, Producers: Anne Harrison, Linda Reisman, Anne Rosellini) — A father and daughter live a perfect but mysterious existence in Forest Park, a beautiful nature reserve near Portland, Oregon, rarely making contact with the world. A small mistake tips them off to authorities sending them on an increasingly erratic journey in search of a place to call their own. Cast: Ben Foster, Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie, Jeff Korber, Dale Dickey. World Premiere What They Had / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Elizabeth Chomko) — Bridget returns home to Chicago at her brother’s urging to deal with her mother’s Alzheimer’s and her father’s reluctance to let go of their life together. Cast: Hilary Swank, Michael Shannon, Blythe Danner, Robert Forster. World Premiere
DOCUMENTARY PREMIERES
Bad Reputation / U.S.A. (Director: Kevin Kerslake, Screenwriter: Joel Marcus, Producers: Peter Afterman, Carianne Brinkman) — A look at the life of Joan Jett, from her early years as the founder of The Runaways and first meeting collaborator Kenny Laguna in 1980 to her enduring presence in pop culture as a rock ‘n’ roll pioneer . World Premiere Believer / U.S.A. (Director: Don Argott, Producers: Heather Parry, Sheena M. Joyce, Robert Reynolds) — Imagine Dragons’ Mormon frontman Dan Reynolds is taking on a new mission to explore how the church treats its LGBTQ members. With the rising suicide rate amongst teens in the state of Utah, his concern with the church’s policies sends him on an unexpected path for acceptance and change. World Premiere Chef Flynn / U.S.A. (Director: Cameron Yates, Producer: Laura Coxson) — Ten-year-old Flynn transforms his living room into a supper club, using his classmates as line cooks and serving a tasting menu foraged from his neighbors’ backyards. With sudden fame, Flynn outgrows his bedroom kitchen and mother’s camera, and sets out to challenge the hierarchy of the culinary world. World Premiere The Game Changers / U.S.A. (Director: Louie Psihoyos, Screenwriters: Mark Monroe, Joseph Pace, Producers: Joseph Pace, James Wilks) — James Wilks, an elite special forces trainer and winner of The Ultimate Fighter, embarks on a quest for the truth in nutrition and uncovers the world’s most dangerous myth. World Premiere Generation Wealth / U.S.A. (Director: Lauren Greenfield, Producers: Lauren Greenfield, Frank Evers) — Lauren Greenfield’s postcard from the edge of the American Empire captures a portrait of a materialistic, image-obsessed culture. Simultaneously personal journey and historical essay, the film bears witness to the global boom–bust economy, the corrupted American Dream and the human costs of late stage capitalism, narcissism and greed. World Premiere. DAY ONE Half The Picture / U.S.A. (Director: Amy Adrion, Producers: Amy Adrion, David Harris) — At a pivotal moment for gender equality in Hollywood, successful women directors tell the stories of their art, lives and careers. Having endured a long history of systemic discrimination, women filmmakers may be getting the first glimpse of a future that values their voices equally. World Premiere Jane Fonda in Five Acts / U.S.A. (Director: Susan Lacy, Producers: Susan Lacy, Jessica Levin, Emma Pildes) — Girl next door, activist, so-called traitor, fitness tycoon, Oscar winner: Jane Fonda has lived a life of controversy, tragedy and transformation – and she’s done it all in the public eye. An intimate look at one woman’s singular journey. World Premiere King In The Wilderness / U.S.A. (Director: Peter Kunhardt, Producers: George Kunhardt, Teddy Kunhardt) From the passage of the Voting Rights Act in 1965 to his assassination in 1968, Martin Luther King, Jr. remained a man with an unshakeable commitment to nonviolence in the face of an increasingly unstable country. A portrait of the last years of his life. World Premiere Quiet Heroes / U.S.A. (Director: Jenny Mackenzie, Co-Directors: Jared Ruga, Amanda Stoddard, Producers: Jenny Mackenzie, Jared Ruga, Amanda Stoddard) — In Salt Lake City, Utah, the socially conservative religious monoculture complicated the AIDS crisis, where patients in the entire state and intermountain region relied on only one doctor. This is the story of her fight to save a maligned population everyone else seemed willing to just let die. World Premiere RBG / U.S.A. (Directors and producers: Betsy West, Julie Cohen) — An intimate portrait of an unlikely rock star: Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. With unprecedented access, the filmmakers show how her early legal battles changed the world for women. Now this 84-year-old does push-ups as easily as she writes blistering dissents that have earned her the title “Notorious RBG.” World Premiere Robin Williams: Come Inside My Mind / U.S.A. (Director: Marina Zenovich, Producers: Alex Gibney, Shirel Kozak) — This intimate portrait examines one of the world’s most beloved and inventive comedians. Told largely through Robin’s own voice and using a wealth of never-before-seen archive, the film takes us through his extraordinary life and career and reveals the spark of madness that drove him. World Premiere STUDIO 54 / U.S.A. (Director: Matt Tyrnauer, Producers: Matt Tyrnauer, John Battsek, Corey Reeser) — Studio 54 was the pulsating epicenter of 1970s hedonism: a disco hothouse of beautiful people, drugs, and sex. The journeys of Ian Schrager and Steve Rubell — two best friends from Brooklyn who conquered New York City — frame this history of the “greatest club of all time.” World Premiere Won’t You Be My Neighbor? / U.S.A. (Director: Morgan Neville, Producers: Caryn Capotosto, Nicholas Ma) — Fred Rogers used puppets and play to explore complex social issues: race, disability, equality and tragedy, helping form the American concept of childhood. He spoke directly to children and they responded enthusiastically. Yet today, his impact is unclear. Have we lived up to Fred’s ideal of good neighbors? World Premiere. SALT LAKE CITY OPENING NIGHT FILM
MIDNIGHT
Arizona / U.S.A. (Director: Jonathan Watson, Screenwriter: Luke Del Tredici, Producers: Dan Friedkin, Bradley Thomas, Ryan Friedkin, Danny McBride, Brandon James) — Set in the midst of the 2009 housing crisis, this darkly comedic story follows Cassie Fowler, a single mom and struggling realtor whose life goes off the rails when she witnesses a murder. Cast: Danny McBride, Rosemarie DeWitt, Luke Wilson, Lolli Sorenson, Elizabeth Gillies, Kaitlin Olson. World Premiere Assassination Nation / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Sam Levinson, Producers: David Goyer, Anita Gou, Kevin Turen, Aaron L. Gilbert, Matthew J. Malek) — This is a one-thousand-percent true story about how the quiet, all-American town of Salem, Massachusetts, absolutely lost its mind. Cast: Odessa Young, Suki Waterhouse, Hari Nef, Abra, Bill Skarsgard, Bella Thorne. World Premiere Mandy / Belgium, U.S.A. (Director: Panos Cosmatos, Screenwriters: Panos Cosmatos, Aaron Stewart-Ahn, Producers: Daniel Noah, Josh Waller, Elijah Wood, Nate Bolotin, Adrian Politowski) — Pacific Northwest. 1983 AD. Outsiders Red Miller and Mandy Bloom lead a loving and peaceful existence. When their pine-scented haven is savagely destroyed by a cult led by the sadistic Jeremiah Sand, Red is catapulted into a phantasmagoric journey filled with bloody vengeance and laced with fire. Cast: Nicolas Cage, Andrea Riseborough, Linus Roache, Olwen Fouéré, Richard Brake, Bill Duke. World Premiere Never Goin’ Back / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Augustine Frizzell, Producers: Toby Halbrooks, Liz Cardenas , James Johnston, David Lowery) — Jessie and Angela, high school dropout BFFs, are taking a week off to chill at the beach. Too bad their house got robbed, rent’s due, they’re about to get fired and they’re broke. Now they’ve gotta avoid eviction, stay out of jail and get to the beach, no matter what!!! Cast: Maia Mitchell, Cami Morrone, Kyle Mooney, Joel Allen, Kendal Smith, Matthew Holcomb. World Premiere Piercing / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Nicolas Pesce, Producers: Josh Mond, Antonio Campos, Schuyler Weiss, Jake Wasserman) — In this twisted love story, a man seeks out an unsuspecting stranger to help him purge the dark torments of his past. His plan goes awry when he encounters a woman with plans of her own. A playful psycho-thriller game of cat-and-mouse based on Ryu Murakami’s novel. Cast: Christopher Abbott, Mia Wasikowska, Laia Costa, Marin Ireland, Maria Dizzia, Wendell Pierce. World Premiere Revenge / France (Director and screenwriter: Coralie Fargeat, Producers: Marc-Etienne Schwartz, Jean-Yves Robin, Marc Stanimirovic) — Three wealthy married men get together for their annual hunting game in a desert canyon. This time, one of them has brought along his young mistress, who quickly arouses the interest of the other two. Things get dramatically out of hand as a hunting game turns into a ruthless manhunt. Cast: Matilda Lutz, Kevin Janssens, Vincent Colombe, Guillaume Bouchede, Jean-Louis Tribes. Utah Premiere Summer of ’84 / Canada, U.S.A. (Directors: Francois Simard, Anouk Whissell, Yoann Whissell, Screenwriters: Matt Leslie, Stephen J. Smith, Producers: Shawn Williamson, Jameson Parker, Matt Leslie, Van Toffler, Cody Zwieg) — Summer, 1984: a perfect time to be a carefree 15-year-old. But when neighborhood conspiracy theorist Davey Armstrong begins to suspect his police officer neighbor might be the serial killer all over the local news, he and his three best friends begin an investigation that soon turns dangerous. Cast: Graham Verchere, Judah Lewis, Caleb Emery, Cory Grüter-Andrew, Tiera Skovbye, Rich Sommer. World Premiere
SPOTLIGHT
BEAST / United Kingdom (Director and screenwriter: Michael Pearce, Producers: Ivana MacKinnon, Lauren Dark, Kristian Brodie) — In a small island community, a troubled young woman falls for a mysterious outsider who empowers her to escape from her oppressive family. When he comes under suspicion for a series of brutal murders, she learns what she’s capable of as she defends him at all costs. Cast: Jessie Buckley, Johnny Flynn, Trystan Gravelle, Geraldine James, Charley Palmer Rothwell. U.S. Premiere The Death of Stalin / France, United Kingdom, Belgium (Director: Armando Iannucci, Screenwriters: Armando Iannucci, David Schneider, Ian Martin, Producers: Yann Zenou, Laurent Zeitoun, Nicolas Duval Adassovsky, Kevin Loader) — The internal political landscape of 1950’s Soviet Russia through a darkly comic lens. In the days following Stalin’s collapse, his core ministers tussle for control; some want positive change, others have more sinister motives. Their one common trait? They’re all just desperately trying to remain alive. Cast: Steve Buscemi, Jeffrey Tambor, Andrea Riseborough, Rupert Friend, Olga Kurylenko, Jason Isaacs. U.S. Premiere Foxtrot / Israel (Director and screenwriter: Samuel Maoz, Producers: Michael Weber, Viola Fügen, Eitan Mansuri, Cedomir Kolar, Marc Baschet, Michel Merkt) — Michael and Dafna are devastated when army officials show up at their home, announcing the death of their son Jonathan. While his sedated wife rests, Michael spirals into a whirlwind of anger only to experience one of life’s unfathomable twists, which rivals his son’s surreal military experiences. Cast: Lior Ashkenazi, Sarah Adler, Yonatan Shiray. I Am Not a Witch / United Kingdom (Director and screenwriter: Rungano Nyoni, Producers: Juliette Grandmont, Emily Morgan) — After a minor incident, nine-year old Shula is exiled to a witch camp where she is told that if she escapes, she’ll be transformed into a goat. As she navigates through her new life, she must decide whether to accept her fate or risk the consequences of seeking freedom. Cast: Margaret Mulubwa, Henry B.J. Phiri, Nancy Mulilo, Margaret Sipaneia. U.S. Premiere The Rider / U.S.A. (Director and screenwriter: Chloé Zhao, Producers: Chloé Zhao, Bert Hamelinck, Sacha Ben Harroche, Mollye Asher) — After a tragic riding accident, young cowboy and rising rodeo circuit star Brady Jandreau is told that his competition days are over. In an attempt to regain control of his fate, Brady undertakes a search for new identity and tries to redefine his idea of manhood in America’s heartland. Cast: Brady Jandreau, Tim Jandreau, Lily Jandreau, Lane Scott, Cat Clifford. Utah Premiere Super Size Me 2: Holy Chicken! / U.S.A. (Director: Morgan Spurlock, Screenwriters: Jeremy Chilnick, Morgan Spurlock, Producers: Keith Calder, Jessica Calder, Spencer Silna, Nicole Barton, Jeremy Chilnick, Matthew Galkin) — Muckraking filmmaker Morgan Spurlock reignites his battle with the food industry – this time from behind the register – as he opens his own fast food restaurant. U.S. Premiere
KIDS
Lu Over the Wall / Japan (Director: Masaaki Yuasa, Screenwriters: Reiko Yoshida, Masaaki Yuasa, Producer: Eunyoung Choi) — Kai is a lonely teenage boy who lives in a small fishing village. One day, he meets and befriends Lu, a fun-loving mermaid whose singing is hypnotic to all who hear it. But the townspeople have always thought that mermaids bring disaster… World Premiere Science Fair / U.S.A. (Directors: Cristina Costantini, Darren Foster, Producers: Cristina Costantini, Darren Foster, Jeffrey Plunkett) — Nine high school students from around the globe navigate rivalries, setbacks, and of course, hormones, on their journey to compete at the international science fair. Facing off against 1,700 of the smartest, quirkiest teens from 78 different countries, only one will be named Best in Fair. World Premiere White Fang / U.S.A. (Director: Alexandre Espigares, Screenwriters: Dominique Monfery, Philippe Lioret, Serge Frydman, Producers: Jeremie Fajner, Clement Calvet, Peter Saraf, Marc Turtletaub) — An updated reimagining of Jack London’s classic novel, this thrilling tale of kindness, survival and the twin majesties of the animal kingdom and mankind traces the loving and magnificent hero White Fang, whose intense curiosity leads him on the adventure of a lifetime. Cast: Rashida Jones, Nick Offerman, Eddie Spears, Paul Giamatti. World Premiere
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