Terrifier, Damien Leone[/caption]
Scary Movies X, New York’s top horror festival returns to the Film Society of Lincoln Center from July 14 to 20, 2017, opening with the New York Premiere of Damien Leone’s aptly named Terrifier, the follow-up to his earlier All Hallow’s Eve, which finds creepy cult killer Art the Clown back on the prowl. The screening will be followed by the fest’s “Cake, Clowns & Corpses”– themed 10th birthday party.
Scary Movies X closes with a double dose of dread: the New York premieres of Brandon Christensen’s Overlook Film Festival prizewinner Still/Born, serving up heaps of new mommy trauma; and Colin Minahan’s It Stains the Sand Red, an inventive zombie picture set in the blistering desert.
Other highlights include Damien Powers’s Killing Ground, a “straight-up, stripped-down suspenser” (Variety) about a camping trip gone wrong in the Australian bush; Caught, Jamie Patterson’s subtle, otherworldly home-invasion pic starring Mickey Sumner; Pavan Kirpalani’s Hindi head-trip Phobia; and Daniel Castro Zimbrón’s The Darkness, a highly atmospheric post-apocaylptic thriller lensed by Diego García (Neon Bull, Cemetery of Splendor).
Continuing the fest’s 10th anniversary celebrations are a quartet of delightfully nasty party-themed flicks from the 1970s and ’80s: Ed Hunt’s Bloody Birthday, George McCowan’s Frogs, J. Lee Thompson’s Happy Birthday to Me, and William Fruet’s Killer Party. And to top it all off, Scary Movies X presents an evening with comedy legend and horror maestro Bob Balaban in person, featuring screenings of his Parents and My Boyfriend’s Back, both films ripe for rediscovery.
FILMS & DESCRIPTIONS
All films screen digitally at the Walter Reade Theater unless otherwise noted.
Opening Night
Terrifier
Damien Leone, USA, 2016, 82m
Coulrophobics beware! It’s Halloween night and Art the Clown, the cold-blooded killer who also stalked Damien Leone’s previous short of the same name and his 2013 omnibus feature All Hallow’s Eve, is not wearing a creepy costume just for show. He’s as evil as he looks—seriously, the scariest clown to ever hit movie screens—and, after an evening of partying, two young women unluckily enter his sights. At first they’re mildly amused by his presence (the ditzier of the two even dares take a selfie with him), but soon they understand the true danger he presents, as he proceeds to terrorize them, as well as anyone else who crosses his path. Lean and oh so mean, Terrifier is grittier, and more jarringly depraved, than most horror movies these days, oozing ’80s slasher–style gore. New York Premiere
Friday, July 14, 7:30pm (Q&A with Damien Leone)
Closing Night
Still/Born
Brandon Christensen, Canada, 2017, 84m
Young couple Mary and Jack are about to become proud first-time parents to a set of twins. But something goes wrong in the delivery room and only one baby makes it out alive. Mary, feeling somewhat displaced, living in a new home and neighborhood, begins to exhibit paranoid tendencies—is she dealing with postpartum depression or are demons in fact trying to steal her newborn as she vigorously claims? Winner of a special jury prize for “scariest film” at the recent inaugural edition of the Overlook Film Festival and co-produced and -written by Colin Minahan, director of the other closing-night selection, It Stains the Sand Red, the film is indeed chockful of frights. And as everything continues to spiral further out of control, Still/Born stays grounded thanks to the intense, dedicated performance of Christie Burke as the mother who means business in keeping her baby safe no matter what forces are against her. New York Premiere
Thursday, July 20, 7:00pm
Closing Night
It Stains the Sand Red
Colin Minahan, USA, 2016, 92m
The solo feature directorial debut of Colin Minahan, one half of the Vicious Brothers (Grave Encounters, Extraterrestrial), makes his strongest impression yet with this engaging, visually striking film, set during apocalyptic times, about a woman, Molly (a fearless Brittany Allen), who finds herself stranded in the desert after her dumbass boyfriend is killed by a zombie. As she’s pursued by the threatening yet slow-moving creature, who relentlessly trails her close behind, the film becomes something of a character study of victims, both monster and human—a zombie humanized with a happy past, and a woman desensitized by a more troubled one. The mortals that pop up in the story, as per usual, are often just as bad as the monsters; Molly herself is flawed, a drug addict who has abandoned her young daughter, but who throughout a series of terrible incidents remains strong because hardship is nothing new for her. A Dark Sky Films release. New York Premiere
Thursday, July 20, 9:30pm (Q&A with Colin Minahan and Brittany Allen)
Better Watch Out
Chris Peckover, USA/Australia, 2016, 89m
Encompassing three great traditions of horror—the Christmas, home-invasion, and babysitting subgenres—Better Watch Out is a twisted and twisty mash-up of dark delights as filtered through the lens of an ’80s teen comedy. Cheeky 12-year-old Luke (Levi Miller) has long crushed on his super-cute, and of course already taken, babysitter Ashley (Olivia DeJonge) and decides that while under her watch on Christmas Eve he will finally make his move. But the big night is disrupted by the arrival of a menacing masked intruder, setting the scene for a chain reaction of progressively disturbing events. Virginia Madsen and Patrick Warburton appear as Luke’s parents, who, along with audiences, are in for a truly chilling holiday surprise. A Well Go USA release. New York Premiere
Tuesday, July 18, 7:00pm
Bloody Birthday
Ed Hunt, USA, 1981, 85m
“Just because you all have the same birthday doesn’t mean you’re special,” a teacher informs tight-knit trio Steven, Curtis, and Debbie as they turn 10. She’s right—it’s that their simultaneous births in 1970 Southern California occurred during a solar eclipse that makes their situation out of the ordinary. Apparently, Saturn, which is known to control the emotions, was blocked, leaving the astrologically ill-timed children cold-hearted. And, for some unexplained reason, a decade into their lives, the little maniacs set out to wreak some bloody havoc, sparing no one, not even their own families, in their murder spree, on which they put to use a wide array of weapons, including guns, ropes, cars, and arrows. With inspired direction, loads of nudity, and a moody score, this is pure ’80s trash cinema, and evil-kid horror, at its finest.
Saturday, July 15, 3:15pm
Caught
Jamie Patterson, UK, 2017, 85m
One afternoon, married journalists Julie and Andrew (Mickey Sumner and Ruben Crow) residing in the remote English countryside are paid a visit by an impeccably styled couple, whose odd manner of communication suggest there’s a disconnect, to say the least. Roles are reversed—the journalists become the interview subjects as they are questioned about their current research—and it begins to look like they may have stumbled upon something sinister. The behavior of the unwelcome guests (played perfectly by Cian Barry and April Pearson) becomes increasingly bizarre, and that Julie and Andrew have a tiny baby at home and a young son due back from school any moment only adds to the tension. Like its title, so succinct, even generic, until its meaning is put into clearer focus, Caught is a stellar example of what can be accomplished with little means but a whole lot of imagination, while also reminding us that it’s often the unknown that can be the most terrifying. North American Premiere
Sunday, July 16, 7:00pm
The Darkness / Las tinieblas
Daniel Castro Zimbrón, Mexico/France, 2016, 94m
After a mysterious apocalypse, Gustavo (Brontis Jodorowsky, who channels an intensity worthy of his family name) is left to care for his two sons, adult Marcos and teenage Argel, and his sickly young daughter, Luciana. The family has made their stand in a cabin in the woods, bathed in an eternal twilight and perpetually surrounded by toxic fog that may hide monsters. Gustavo keeps the children locked in the basement for their safety, but when early in the film he and Marcos venture outside to hunt for food, Marcos didn’t come back—and Argel is left to discover the secrets that his father and the woods are hiding. Claustrophobic, and exquisitely shot by Diego García (Neon Bull, Cemetery of Splendor), The Darkness transcends the horror tropes it gets its bones from, and becomes something beautiful, fantastical, and truly unnerving. New York Premiere
Sunday, July 16, 5:00pm
An Evening with Bob Balaban
Parents
Bob Balaban, Canada/USA, 1989, 35mm, 82m
As supremely black as a comedy can be, Bob Balaban’s brilliantly subversive feature directorial debut is deranged in all the right ways. Ten-year-old Michael, a socially awkward only child living in 1950s suburbia with his doting mom and emotionally abusive dad (Mary Beth Hurt and Randy Quaid, both great), is plagued by bizarre nightmares—which are about as terrifying as his reality: he suspects his picture-perfect parents to be cannibalistic, while not having a taste for meat himself. Recently relocated to a new town, Michael finds comfort in school through an equally oddball friend, who claims she’s from the moon, while figuring out how to survive his home life, and more specifically mealtime. You’ll never think of “leftovers” in the same way.
Monday, July 17, 7:00pm (Q&A with Bob Balaban)
My Boyfriend’s Back
Bob Balaban, USA, 1993, 35mm, 85m
At the start of this horror-comedy for the highest of lowbrow tastes—produced by Sean S. Cunningham, written by Dean Lorey (who went on to Arrested Development), and directed by the great comic actor Bob Balaban—geeky teen protagonist Johnny Dingle (Andrew Lowery) announces in voiceover: “This day was the beginning of the end of my life.” And, yes, after a severely botched attempt to play hero for Missy (Traci Lind), the girl he has forever lusted after, he gets shot by a masked robber at the deli where she works, but not before making his dying request that she go to the prom with him. When she says yes, he will do whatever it takes to make that a reality—decomposing body be damned!—much to the annoyance of Missy’s jock boyfriend (Matthew Fox) and his bullyish sidekick (Philip Seymour Hoffman), who nicknames Johnny “Dead Boy.” Unfairly maligned by many, this film is a delight due for a serious revisiting.
Monday, July 17, 9:30pm (Introduction by Bob Balaban)
Frogs
George McCowan, USA, 1972, 35mm, 90m
It’s Jason Crockett’s birthday weekend and a group of family members have assembled on his Florida island plantation to celebrate. Environmentally unfriendly, the cranky, wheelchair-bound old man (Ray Milland) finds the growing masses of frogs inhabiting his space to be a menace and has no second thoughts about poisoning the waters to get rid of them. So when “nature” begins taking revenge, it’s easy to root against “man,” even if Crockett’s guests, as well as a photographer researching the area (played by a totally hunky Sam Elliott, in one of his first screen appearances), are unfairly caught in the path of destruction. Despite the film’s ludicrously misleading title—the killer creatures featured actually encompass a wide range from mainly toads to snakes, turtles, spiders, gators, and beyond—the gloriously campy B-movie provides a darn good creepy-crawly time.
Sunday, July 16, 1:00pm
Happy Birthday to Me
J. Lee Thompson, Canada, 1981, 35mm, 111m
Recovering from a highly traumatic event that took place around the time of her birthday many years past, pretty and popular Virginia (Melissa Sue Anderson) appears to have made some real progress. But as she approaches her 18th year, there’s a black-leather-gloved killer on the loose, knocking off her elite-private-school friends, which brings her stability into question. Giallo-like in its plot convolutions as well as its stark, shadowy visual style, this rare foray into strict horror by dark crime thriller master J. Lee Thompson is perhaps best known for its infamous shish-kebab murder scene, but the underappreciated slasher film has much more to offer, with a whole slew of show-stopping death set pieces and a stellar supporting cast, including Glenn Ford as Virginia’s doctor.
Saturday, July 15, 1:00pm
Killer Party
William Fruet, USA/Canada, 1986, 35mm, 91m
In 1986, a pair of April Fool’s Day–themed horror-comedies opened in theaters. The wider release of the two, April Fool’s Day, was a hit and remains a genre favorite, while the other was overlooked and lives in semi-obscurity. But today, Killer Party looks better than ever. It kicks off with a clever, awesomely cheesy pre-credits prologue that sums up the ’80s in just under 10 minutes, before shifting the focus to a group of friends eager to join a sorority, who prepare for a raging initiation party at a long-off-limits—for good reason!—frat house. Twenty-four hours of gags, hazing rituals, and demonic possessions ensue in this genuine treat of a slasher film—no surprise coming from William Fruet, the director responsible for The House by the Lake, Spasms, and Funeral Home.
Sunday, July 16, 3:00pm
Killing Ground
Damien Power, Australia, 2016, 89m
The story starts like so many others: a couple are en route to a campsite. But unlike most survival thrillers, instead of the standard idiotic chatter, the relaxation-seekers here actually engage in intelligent conversation—revealing right away that this isn’t going to be the usual ride. On arrival, they find an eerily empty tent pitched nearby, its presence casting a dark shadow over their lovely spot as well as a sense of mystery about the whereabouts of its inhabitants. And as the action progresses, with an intriguing turn of the cinematic clock we begin to go back and forth in time so it can be revealed what happened to the other family—made up of a mom, dad, teenage daughter, and little baby. Expertly constructed and strongly acted—the two sadistic villains are truly skin-crawling and their prey authentic and sympathetic—Damien Power’s feature debut is at times excruciatingly cruel, yet always positively stunning. An IFC Midnight release.
Saturday, July 15, 7:15pm (Q&A with Damien Power)
The Limehouse Golem
Juan Carlos Medina, UK, 2016, 105m
In Victorian London, Scotland Yard inspector John Kildare (a great Bill Nighy, in a role originally meant for Alan Rickman, to whom the film is dedicated) takes a special interest in the well-being of Lizzie Cree (Olivia Cooke), a young stage performer accused of murdering her husband. She seems an unlikely killer and he becomes obsessed with proving her innocence, all while the title “monster” is leaving behind a string of mutilated corpses à la Jack the Ripper—a case that may just be connected to Lizzie’s. This jam-packed, handsome, highly literate film—adapted from Peter Ackroyd’s 1994 novel Dan Leno & the Limehouse Golem and featuring real-life historical figures (such as Karl Marx, novelist George Gissing, and theater actor Dan Leno) woven into the fictional narrative—satisfies as a gothic murder mystery and an inside look into the lively world of the music halls so popular at the time, while also offering its fair share of bloodletting. An RLJ Entertainment release. U.S. Premiere
Saturday, July 15, 5:00pm
The Night of the Virgin / La noche del virgen
Roberto San Sebastián, Spain, 2016, 117m
Spanish with English subtitles
Every developing boy has sex on the brain and his “first time” is a momentous occasion. So when a sexy older woman at a New Year’s Eve party shows interest in Nico, an awkward and unfortunate-looking late bloomer at 20, the offer to go home with her is one he can’t refuse. That her name is Medea is only the first of many red flags, and it becomes rapidly clear that Nico would have been way better off holding on to his virginity a bit longer. The insanity that unfolds that evening in Medea’s cockroach-infested apartment is better witnessed than described, because nobody would believe the half of it. Audacious, inventive (featuring some spectacular practical effects), sometimes hilarious and jaw-droppingly disgusting, and always totally bonkers, the film has more on its mind than pure gross-out—though it succeeds in that too. In any case, we promise you have never seen anything like it… New York Premiere
Tuesday, July 18, 9:00pm
Offensive
Jon Ford, UK, 2016, 105m
After his father passes away, Bernard (Russell Floyd) inherits a sprawling home in the French countryside—but on the condition that he and his wife Helen (Lisa Eichhorn) actually live there for a designated period of time. The retired urbanites decide that a more idyllic existence might do them some good, but sadly it’s not peace that awaits them, as a pack of barbaric local teens promptly begin tormenting them. With no one to turn to (the neighbors are all terrified and the cops corrupt) a war rages between the feral youth and the more civilized older folks as they’re pushed to their limits. Rough and raw (visually as well as thematically), the ultra-tense film is painfully cruel yet purely satisfying, and, with the introduction of some revelations about Bernard’s father, it also serves as an intriguing exploration of three generations of violence. New York Premiere
Sunday, July 16, 9:00pm
Phobia
Pavan Kirpalani, India, 2016, 111m
Hindi with English subtitles
Mehak (Radhika Apte) is a talented, vivacious painter, but after a horrific attack she becomes afflicted with post-traumatic agoraphobia. Her condition overwhelms her sister Anusha’s hospitality and sympathy when it starts affecting her young nephew, and she soon finds herself living alone in an apartment lent to her by an old friend. She’s too afraid to even approach the door and unwilling to accept anyone’s offers for help, while strange neighbors and even stranger images begin to appear before her. And as the hallucinations become increasingly violent, she falls deeper and deeper into madness. Or is she in fact haunted? Are those severed fingers real? Phobia is the strongest Hindi horror outing in ages, anchored by a fiery performance by Apte, who absolutely rivets the screen. North American Premiere
Saturday, July 15, 9:30pmIt Stains the Sands Red (2016)
On a lonely, two-lane highway, a young couple have put Las Vegas—and the encroaching zombie apocalypse—in their rearview mirror. But when a lone traveler stumbles into view their troubles are only beginning.
Directed by Colin Minihan
Starring Brittany Allen, Juan Riedinger
Genre(s) Horror Film
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NY Horror Film Fest “Scary Movies X” Returns to FSLC, to Open with TERRIFIER
[caption id="attachment_22746" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Terrifier, Damien Leone[/caption]
Scary Movies X, New York’s top horror festival returns to the Film Society of Lincoln Center from July 14 to 20, 2017, opening with the New York Premiere of Damien Leone’s aptly named Terrifier, the follow-up to his earlier All Hallow’s Eve, which finds creepy cult killer Art the Clown back on the prowl. The screening will be followed by the fest’s “Cake, Clowns & Corpses”– themed 10th birthday party.
Scary Movies X closes with a double dose of dread: the New York premieres of Brandon Christensen’s Overlook Film Festival prizewinner Still/Born, serving up heaps of new mommy trauma; and Colin Minahan’s It Stains the Sand Red, an inventive zombie picture set in the blistering desert.
Other highlights include Damien Powers’s Killing Ground, a “straight-up, stripped-down suspenser” (Variety) about a camping trip gone wrong in the Australian bush; Caught, Jamie Patterson’s subtle, otherworldly home-invasion pic starring Mickey Sumner; Pavan Kirpalani’s Hindi head-trip Phobia; and Daniel Castro Zimbrón’s The Darkness, a highly atmospheric post-apocaylptic thriller lensed by Diego García (Neon Bull, Cemetery of Splendor).
Continuing the fest’s 10th anniversary celebrations are a quartet of delightfully nasty party-themed flicks from the 1970s and ’80s: Ed Hunt’s Bloody Birthday, George McCowan’s Frogs, J. Lee Thompson’s Happy Birthday to Me, and William Fruet’s Killer Party. And to top it all off, Scary Movies X presents an evening with comedy legend and horror maestro Bob Balaban in person, featuring screenings of his Parents and My Boyfriend’s Back, both films ripe for rediscovery.
FILMS & DESCRIPTIONS
All films screen digitally at the Walter Reade Theater unless otherwise noted.
Opening Night
Terrifier
Damien Leone, USA, 2016, 82m
Coulrophobics beware! It’s Halloween night and Art the Clown, the cold-blooded killer who also stalked Damien Leone’s previous short of the same name and his 2013 omnibus feature All Hallow’s Eve, is not wearing a creepy costume just for show. He’s as evil as he looks—seriously, the scariest clown to ever hit movie screens—and, after an evening of partying, two young women unluckily enter his sights. At first they’re mildly amused by his presence (the ditzier of the two even dares take a selfie with him), but soon they understand the true danger he presents, as he proceeds to terrorize them, as well as anyone else who crosses his path. Lean and oh so mean, Terrifier is grittier, and more jarringly depraved, than most horror movies these days, oozing ’80s slasher–style gore. New York Premiere
Friday, July 14, 7:30pm (Q&A with Damien Leone)
Closing Night
Still/Born
Brandon Christensen, Canada, 2017, 84m
Young couple Mary and Jack are about to become proud first-time parents to a set of twins. But something goes wrong in the delivery room and only one baby makes it out alive. Mary, feeling somewhat displaced, living in a new home and neighborhood, begins to exhibit paranoid tendencies—is she dealing with postpartum depression or are demons in fact trying to steal her newborn as she vigorously claims? Winner of a special jury prize for “scariest film” at the recent inaugural edition of the Overlook Film Festival and co-produced and -written by Colin Minahan, director of the other closing-night selection, It Stains the Sand Red, the film is indeed chockful of frights. And as everything continues to spiral further out of control, Still/Born stays grounded thanks to the intense, dedicated performance of Christie Burke as the mother who means business in keeping her baby safe no matter what forces are against her. New York Premiere
Thursday, July 20, 7:00pm
Closing Night
It Stains the Sand Red
Colin Minahan, USA, 2016, 92m
The solo feature directorial debut of Colin Minahan, one half of the Vicious Brothers (Grave Encounters, Extraterrestrial), makes his strongest impression yet with this engaging, visually striking film, set during apocalyptic times, about a woman, Molly (a fearless Brittany Allen), who finds herself stranded in the desert after her dumbass boyfriend is killed by a zombie. As she’s pursued by the threatening yet slow-moving creature, who relentlessly trails her close behind, the film becomes something of a character study of victims, both monster and human—a zombie humanized with a happy past, and a woman desensitized by a more troubled one. The mortals that pop up in the story, as per usual, are often just as bad as the monsters; Molly herself is flawed, a drug addict who has abandoned her young daughter, but who throughout a series of terrible incidents remains strong because hardship is nothing new for her. A Dark Sky Films release. New York Premiere
Thursday, July 20, 9:30pm (Q&A with Colin Minahan and Brittany Allen)
Better Watch Out
Chris Peckover, USA/Australia, 2016, 89m
Encompassing three great traditions of horror—the Christmas, home-invasion, and babysitting subgenres—Better Watch Out is a twisted and twisty mash-up of dark delights as filtered through the lens of an ’80s teen comedy. Cheeky 12-year-old Luke (Levi Miller) has long crushed on his super-cute, and of course already taken, babysitter Ashley (Olivia DeJonge) and decides that while under her watch on Christmas Eve he will finally make his move. But the big night is disrupted by the arrival of a menacing masked intruder, setting the scene for a chain reaction of progressively disturbing events. Virginia Madsen and Patrick Warburton appear as Luke’s parents, who, along with audiences, are in for a truly chilling holiday surprise. A Well Go USA release. New York Premiere
Tuesday, July 18, 7:00pm
Bloody Birthday
Ed Hunt, USA, 1981, 85m
“Just because you all have the same birthday doesn’t mean you’re special,” a teacher informs tight-knit trio Steven, Curtis, and Debbie as they turn 10. She’s right—it’s that their simultaneous births in 1970 Southern California occurred during a solar eclipse that makes their situation out of the ordinary. Apparently, Saturn, which is known to control the emotions, was blocked, leaving the astrologically ill-timed children cold-hearted. And, for some unexplained reason, a decade into their lives, the little maniacs set out to wreak some bloody havoc, sparing no one, not even their own families, in their murder spree, on which they put to use a wide array of weapons, including guns, ropes, cars, and arrows. With inspired direction, loads of nudity, and a moody score, this is pure ’80s trash cinema, and evil-kid horror, at its finest.
Saturday, July 15, 3:15pm
Caught
Jamie Patterson, UK, 2017, 85m
One afternoon, married journalists Julie and Andrew (Mickey Sumner and Ruben Crow) residing in the remote English countryside are paid a visit by an impeccably styled couple, whose odd manner of communication suggest there’s a disconnect, to say the least. Roles are reversed—the journalists become the interview subjects as they are questioned about their current research—and it begins to look like they may have stumbled upon something sinister. The behavior of the unwelcome guests (played perfectly by Cian Barry and April Pearson) becomes increasingly bizarre, and that Julie and Andrew have a tiny baby at home and a young son due back from school any moment only adds to the tension. Like its title, so succinct, even generic, until its meaning is put into clearer focus, Caught is a stellar example of what can be accomplished with little means but a whole lot of imagination, while also reminding us that it’s often the unknown that can be the most terrifying. North American Premiere
Sunday, July 16, 7:00pm
The Darkness / Las tinieblas
Daniel Castro Zimbrón, Mexico/France, 2016, 94m
After a mysterious apocalypse, Gustavo (Brontis Jodorowsky, who channels an intensity worthy of his family name) is left to care for his two sons, adult Marcos and teenage Argel, and his sickly young daughter, Luciana. The family has made their stand in a cabin in the woods, bathed in an eternal twilight and perpetually surrounded by toxic fog that may hide monsters. Gustavo keeps the children locked in the basement for their safety, but when early in the film he and Marcos venture outside to hunt for food, Marcos didn’t come back—and Argel is left to discover the secrets that his father and the woods are hiding. Claustrophobic, and exquisitely shot by Diego García (Neon Bull, Cemetery of Splendor), The Darkness transcends the horror tropes it gets its bones from, and becomes something beautiful, fantastical, and truly unnerving. New York Premiere
Sunday, July 16, 5:00pm
An Evening with Bob Balaban
Parents
Bob Balaban, Canada/USA, 1989, 35mm, 82m
As supremely black as a comedy can be, Bob Balaban’s brilliantly subversive feature directorial debut is deranged in all the right ways. Ten-year-old Michael, a socially awkward only child living in 1950s suburbia with his doting mom and emotionally abusive dad (Mary Beth Hurt and Randy Quaid, both great), is plagued by bizarre nightmares—which are about as terrifying as his reality: he suspects his picture-perfect parents to be cannibalistic, while not having a taste for meat himself. Recently relocated to a new town, Michael finds comfort in school through an equally oddball friend, who claims she’s from the moon, while figuring out how to survive his home life, and more specifically mealtime. You’ll never think of “leftovers” in the same way.
Monday, July 17, 7:00pm (Q&A with Bob Balaban)
My Boyfriend’s Back
Bob Balaban, USA, 1993, 35mm, 85m
At the start of this horror-comedy for the highest of lowbrow tastes—produced by Sean S. Cunningham, written by Dean Lorey (who went on to Arrested Development), and directed by the great comic actor Bob Balaban—geeky teen protagonist Johnny Dingle (Andrew Lowery) announces in voiceover: “This day was the beginning of the end of my life.” And, yes, after a severely botched attempt to play hero for Missy (Traci Lind), the girl he has forever lusted after, he gets shot by a masked robber at the deli where she works, but not before making his dying request that she go to the prom with him. When she says yes, he will do whatever it takes to make that a reality—decomposing body be damned!—much to the annoyance of Missy’s jock boyfriend (Matthew Fox) and his bullyish sidekick (Philip Seymour Hoffman), who nicknames Johnny “Dead Boy.” Unfairly maligned by many, this film is a delight due for a serious revisiting.
Monday, July 17, 9:30pm (Introduction by Bob Balaban)
Frogs
George McCowan, USA, 1972, 35mm, 90m
It’s Jason Crockett’s birthday weekend and a group of family members have assembled on his Florida island plantation to celebrate. Environmentally unfriendly, the cranky, wheelchair-bound old man (Ray Milland) finds the growing masses of frogs inhabiting his space to be a menace and has no second thoughts about poisoning the waters to get rid of them. So when “nature” begins taking revenge, it’s easy to root against “man,” even if Crockett’s guests, as well as a photographer researching the area (played by a totally hunky Sam Elliott, in one of his first screen appearances), are unfairly caught in the path of destruction. Despite the film’s ludicrously misleading title—the killer creatures featured actually encompass a wide range from mainly toads to snakes, turtles, spiders, gators, and beyond—the gloriously campy B-movie provides a darn good creepy-crawly time.
Sunday, July 16, 1:00pm
Happy Birthday to Me
J. Lee Thompson, Canada, 1981, 35mm, 111m
Recovering from a highly traumatic event that took place around the time of her birthday many years past, pretty and popular Virginia (Melissa Sue Anderson) appears to have made some real progress. But as she approaches her 18th year, there’s a black-leather-gloved killer on the loose, knocking off her elite-private-school friends, which brings her stability into question. Giallo-like in its plot convolutions as well as its stark, shadowy visual style, this rare foray into strict horror by dark crime thriller master J. Lee Thompson is perhaps best known for its infamous shish-kebab murder scene, but the underappreciated slasher film has much more to offer, with a whole slew of show-stopping death set pieces and a stellar supporting cast, including Glenn Ford as Virginia’s doctor.
Saturday, July 15, 1:00pm
Killer Party
William Fruet, USA/Canada, 1986, 35mm, 91m
In 1986, a pair of April Fool’s Day–themed horror-comedies opened in theaters. The wider release of the two, April Fool’s Day, was a hit and remains a genre favorite, while the other was overlooked and lives in semi-obscurity. But today, Killer Party looks better than ever. It kicks off with a clever, awesomely cheesy pre-credits prologue that sums up the ’80s in just under 10 minutes, before shifting the focus to a group of friends eager to join a sorority, who prepare for a raging initiation party at a long-off-limits—for good reason!—frat house. Twenty-four hours of gags, hazing rituals, and demonic possessions ensue in this genuine treat of a slasher film—no surprise coming from William Fruet, the director responsible for The House by the Lake, Spasms, and Funeral Home.
Sunday, July 16, 3:00pm
Killing Ground
Damien Power, Australia, 2016, 89m
The story starts like so many others: a couple are en route to a campsite. But unlike most survival thrillers, instead of the standard idiotic chatter, the relaxation-seekers here actually engage in intelligent conversation—revealing right away that this isn’t going to be the usual ride. On arrival, they find an eerily empty tent pitched nearby, its presence casting a dark shadow over their lovely spot as well as a sense of mystery about the whereabouts of its inhabitants. And as the action progresses, with an intriguing turn of the cinematic clock we begin to go back and forth in time so it can be revealed what happened to the other family—made up of a mom, dad, teenage daughter, and little baby. Expertly constructed and strongly acted—the two sadistic villains are truly skin-crawling and their prey authentic and sympathetic—Damien Power’s feature debut is at times excruciatingly cruel, yet always positively stunning. An IFC Midnight release.
Saturday, July 15, 7:15pm (Q&A with Damien Power)
The Limehouse Golem
Juan Carlos Medina, UK, 2016, 105m
In Victorian London, Scotland Yard inspector John Kildare (a great Bill Nighy, in a role originally meant for Alan Rickman, to whom the film is dedicated) takes a special interest in the well-being of Lizzie Cree (Olivia Cooke), a young stage performer accused of murdering her husband. She seems an unlikely killer and he becomes obsessed with proving her innocence, all while the title “monster” is leaving behind a string of mutilated corpses à la Jack the Ripper—a case that may just be connected to Lizzie’s. This jam-packed, handsome, highly literate film—adapted from Peter Ackroyd’s 1994 novel Dan Leno & the Limehouse Golem and featuring real-life historical figures (such as Karl Marx, novelist George Gissing, and theater actor Dan Leno) woven into the fictional narrative—satisfies as a gothic murder mystery and an inside look into the lively world of the music halls so popular at the time, while also offering its fair share of bloodletting. An RLJ Entertainment release. U.S. Premiere
Saturday, July 15, 5:00pm
The Night of the Virgin / La noche del virgen
Roberto San Sebastián, Spain, 2016, 117m
Spanish with English subtitles
Every developing boy has sex on the brain and his “first time” is a momentous occasion. So when a sexy older woman at a New Year’s Eve party shows interest in Nico, an awkward and unfortunate-looking late bloomer at 20, the offer to go home with her is one he can’t refuse. That her name is Medea is only the first of many red flags, and it becomes rapidly clear that Nico would have been way better off holding on to his virginity a bit longer. The insanity that unfolds that evening in Medea’s cockroach-infested apartment is better witnessed than described, because nobody would believe the half of it. Audacious, inventive (featuring some spectacular practical effects), sometimes hilarious and jaw-droppingly disgusting, and always totally bonkers, the film has more on its mind than pure gross-out—though it succeeds in that too. In any case, we promise you have never seen anything like it… New York Premiere
Tuesday, July 18, 9:00pm
Offensive
Jon Ford, UK, 2016, 105m
After his father passes away, Bernard (Russell Floyd) inherits a sprawling home in the French countryside—but on the condition that he and his wife Helen (Lisa Eichhorn) actually live there for a designated period of time. The retired urbanites decide that a more idyllic existence might do them some good, but sadly it’s not peace that awaits them, as a pack of barbaric local teens promptly begin tormenting them. With no one to turn to (the neighbors are all terrified and the cops corrupt) a war rages between the feral youth and the more civilized older folks as they’re pushed to their limits. Rough and raw (visually as well as thematically), the ultra-tense film is painfully cruel yet purely satisfying, and, with the introduction of some revelations about Bernard’s father, it also serves as an intriguing exploration of three generations of violence. New York Premiere
Sunday, July 16, 9:00pm
Phobia
Pavan Kirpalani, India, 2016, 111m
Hindi with English subtitles
Mehak (Radhika Apte) is a talented, vivacious painter, but after a horrific attack she becomes afflicted with post-traumatic agoraphobia. Her condition overwhelms her sister Anusha’s hospitality and sympathy when it starts affecting her young nephew, and she soon finds herself living alone in an apartment lent to her by an old friend. She’s too afraid to even approach the door and unwilling to accept anyone’s offers for help, while strange neighbors and even stranger images begin to appear before her. And as the hallucinations become increasingly violent, she falls deeper and deeper into madness. Or is she in fact haunted? Are those severed fingers real? Phobia is the strongest Hindi horror outing in ages, anchored by a fiery performance by Apte, who absolutely rivets the screen. North American Premiere
Saturday, July 15, 9:30pm
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LA Film Festival Unveils 2017 Competition Lineup
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Izzy Gets the Fuck Across Town[/caption]
The 2017 LA Film Festival unveiled a diverse slate of 48 feature films, 51 short films, 15 high school short films and 10 short episodic works representing 32 countries in the U.S. Fiction, Documentary, World Fiction, LA Muse and Nightfall sections. Across the competition categories 42% of the films are directed by women and 40% are directed by people of color.
Previously announced, the Opening Night Film is the World Premiere of Colin Trevorrow’s The Book of Henry.
The 2017 LA Film Festival takes place June 14 – June 22, 2017 headquartered at ArcLight Cinemas Culver City, with additional screenings at ArcLight Hollywood, ArcLight Santa Monica and more.
U.S. Fiction Competition
20 Weeks – USA (DIRECTOR/WRITER Leena Pendharkar PRODUCER Jane Kelly Kosek CAST Anna Margaret Hollyman, Amir Arison, Sujata Day, Michelle Krusiec, Jocelin Donahue, Richard Riehle) – During a routine scan, a young couple navigating their first pregnancy discover a health condition that could gravely impact their baby, forcing them to re-examine their relationship and their future. World Premiere And Then I Go – USA (DIRECTOR Vincent Grashaw WRITERS Brett Haley, Jim Shepard PRODUCERS Laura D. Smith, Rebecca Green CAST Arman Darbo, Sawyer Barth, Melanie Lynskey, Justin Long, Tony Hale, Carrie Preston, Melonie Diaz, Royalty Hightower, Sean Bridgers, Michael Abbott Jr.) – Two teenaged outsiders are demoralized daily at school, until an idea for vengeance offers them a terrifying release in this film that is based on the acclaimed novel Project X by Jim Shepard. World Premiere Beauty Mark – USA (DIRECTOR/WRITER Harris Doran PRODUCERS Harris Doran, Penny Edmiston, Gill Holland, Kiley Lane Parker CAST Auden Thornton, Catherine Curtin, Laura Bell Bundy, Jeff Kober, Madison Iseman, Deirdre Lovejoy) – Inspired by true events, when a poverty-stricken young mother and her three-year-old son are evicted, she turns to the only person she knows with any money—the man who abused her as a child. World Premiere Becks – USA (DIRECTORS Elizabeth Rohrbaugh, Daniel Powell WRITERS Elizabeth Rohrbaugh, Daniel Powell, Rebecca Drysdale PRODUCERS Alex Bach, Elizabeth Rohrbaugh, Daniel Powell CAST Lena Hall, Mena Suvari, Christine Lahti, Dan Fogler, Rebecca Drysdale, Hayley Kiyoko, Michael Zegen) – After a crushing breakup, an aimless singer-songwriter moves in with her ultra-Catholic mother and strikes up an unexpected friendship with the wife of an old nemesis. World Premiere Don’t Come Back From the Moon – USA (DIRECTOR Bruce Thierry Cheung WRITERS Bruce Thierry Cheung, Dean Bakopoulos PRODUCERS Lauren Hoekstra, Jay Davis CAST Jeffrey Wahlberg, Alyssa Elle Steinacker, Zachary Arthur, James Franco, Rashida Jones) – The men of a small town on the edge of nowhere mysteriously disappear, one by one, leaving women and children behind to fend for themselves in a desolate and dreamlike world. World Premiere Everything Beautiful Is Far Away – USA (DIRECTORS Andrea Sisson, Pete Ohs WRITER Pete Ohs PRODUCERS Saul Germaine, Andrea Sisson, Pete Ohs CAST Julia Garner, Joseph Cross, C.S. Lee) – This arthouse science fiction fable is set on an isolated desert planet, where a man who is looking for parts to repair his robotic companion teams up with a young woman who is searching for an imaginary lake. World Premiere Izzy Gets the Fuck Across Town – USA (DIRECTOR/WRITER Christian Papierniak PRODUCERS Meghan Lennox, Christian Papierniak, Mackenzie Davis, Melissa Panzer CAST Mackenzie Davis, Alex Russell, Lakeith Stanfield, Carrie Coon, Haley Joel Osment, Alia Shawkat, Annie Potts, Brandon T. Jackson, Rob Huebel, Sheldon Bailey, Meghan Lennox, Dolly Wells) – A hungover riot grrrl discovers that her ex-boyfriend is getting hitched to her ex-best friend and throwing a bougie engagement party across town. With no car and tons of energy, she embarks on a cross-city quest to break that shit up before it’s too late. World Premiere Moss – USA (DIRECTOR/WRITER Daniel Peddle PRODUCER John Solomon CAST Mitchell Slaggert, Christine Marzano, Billy Ray Suggs, Dorian Cobb) – While roaming around on his eighteenth birthday, an isolated young man encounters a mysterious and beautiful hiker who guides him through a psychedelic rite of passage. World Premiere Never Here – USA (DIRECTOR/WRITER Camille Thoman PRODUCERS Julian Cautherley, Radium Cheung, Bronwyn Cornelius, Corey Moosa, Camille Thoman, Elizabeth Yng-Wong CAST Mireille Enos, Sam Shepard, Goran Visnjic, Vincent Piazza, Nana Arianda, Ana Nogueira, Desmin Borges) – An installation artist follows and photographs strangers for her art until disturbing events lead her to suspect that someone out there is watching her. World Premiere Village People – USA (DIRECTOR Paul Briganti WRITERS Dan Schoenbrun, Paul Briganti PRODUCER Jon Cohen, Rosie Kaller CAST Aya Cash, George Basil, Brandon Scott, Echo Kellum) – When a man’s wife flakes on a last-ditch effort to save their marriage, his overeager brother-in-law joins him on a trip to a hipster resort in Nicaragua, where they meet a free-spirited American ex-pat and their friendship takes an unexpected turn. World PremiereDocumentary Competition
Abu – CANADA (DIRECTOR Arshad Khan WRITERS Arshad Khan, Matt Jones PRODUCERS Arshad Khan, Sergeo Kirby) – Using family archives and animation, Arshad Khan shares a deeply personal story of migration from Pakistan to Canada, self-discovery and familial reconciliation. World Premiere Dalya’s Other Country – USA (DIRECTOR Julia Meltzer PRODUCERS Julia Meltzer, Mustafa Rony Zeno) – A 12-year-old girl and her mother flee war-torn Aleppo, Syria, and a broken marriage, to begin a new life in Los Angeles. As the only hijabi in her all-girls Catholic school, Dalya navigates Syrian traditions while forging her own identity as an American. World Premiere Liyana – SWAZILAND / USA / QATAR (DIRECTORS Amanda Kopp, Aaron Kopp PRODUCERS Amanda Kopp, Aaron Kopp, Sakheni Dlamini, Daniel Junge, Davis Coombe ANIMATION Shofela Coker EXECUTIVE PRODUCER Thandie Newton) – The epic tale of a young Swazi girl on a dangerous quest to save her twin brothers is brought to life with captivating animation from the imaginations of five talented orphan children in Swaziland. World Premiere Mankiller – USA (DIRECTOR Valerie Red-Horse Mohl PRODUCERS Valerie Red-Horse Mohl, Gale Anne Hurd, Charlie Soap, Stacy Mahoney) – Wilma Mankiller defied all odds to become one of the most influential leaders in the US: advocating for women, organizing and championing American Indians, and becoming the Cherokee Nation’s first female principal chief. World Premiere Monkey Business: The Adventures of Curious George’s Creators – USA (DIRECTOR Ema Ryan Yamazaki PRODUCERS Ema Ryan Yamazaki, Emily Harrold) – With rare archival footage and animation, this is the unbelievable true story of a couple who escaped the Nazi encroachment on Paris with few belongings, including a manuscript featuring what would become the beloved children’s character, Curious George. World Premiere Opuntia – USA / MEXICO / SPAIN (DIRECTOR/PRODUCER David Fenster) – Historical fiction and documentary collide in this poetic visual essay based on the diaries of Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca, a 16th-century Spanish conquistador, written during his treacherous expedition from Florida to Texas to Chihuahua. World Premiere Out of State – USA (DIRECTOR Ciara Lacy PRODUCERS Beau Bassett, Jeff Consiglio) – After a cultural transformation at an Arizona prison, two native Hawaiian men return to Hawaii in the hopes of starting anew. As they wrestle with inner demons and outside pressures, they wonder: Can you ever truly go home again? World Premiere Stella Polaris Ulloriarsuaq – GERMANY / GREENLAND (DIRECTOR Yatri N. Niehaus PRODUCERS Yatri N. Niehaus, Laali Lyberth, Nomi Baumgartl, Sven Nieder) – The Kalaallit people of Greenland have been connected to the ice for millennia. Under the guidance of a shaman, people from all walks of Greenlandic life gather to illuminate glaciers and icebergs on star-lit nights while the foundation of their traditions literally melt beneath their feet. World Premiere Thank You for Coming – USA (DIRECTOR Sara Lamm PRODUCERS Sara Lamm, Kim Bica) – It takes 11 years, 12 DNA tests, five ancestry databases, one potential half-sister and 900 sixth-cousins to (maybe) find filmmaker Sara Lamm’s biological father. World Premiere Two Four Six – RUSSIA / USA / HAITI (DIRECTOR/PRODUCER Leyla Nedorosleva) – These kids are not stars. Not yet. For these extremely tall Haitian teenagers, the stakes involved in coming to the United States for a basketball scholarship are higher than the possibility of a slim shot at the pros. World PremiereWorld Fiction Competition
Butterfly Kisses – GREAT BRITAIN (DIRECTOR Rafael Kapelinski WRITER Greer Taylor Ellison PRODUCER Merlin Merton CAST Theo Stevenson, Byron Lyons, Liam Whiting, Rosie Day, Elliot Cowan, Thomas Turgoose) – A teenager harboring a secret tries to fit in and be normal until a betrayal sends him down a path of no return in this moody, black and white portrait that blurs the line between victim and abuser. North American Premiere Catching Feelings – SOUTH AFRICA (DIRECTOR/WRITER Kagiso Lediga PRODUCERS Tamsin Andersson, John Volmink CAST Kagiso Lediga, Pearl Thusi, Akin Omotoso, Andrew Buckland, Precious Makgaretsa, Kate Liquorish, Tessa Jubber, Loyiso Gola) – The lives of a once-celebrated writer and his beautiful wife are turned upside down when they allow a self-indulgent famous author to reside with them temporarily. World Premiere Dark Blue Girl – GERMANY / GREECE (DIRECTOR/WRITER Mascha Schilinski PRODUCERS Anne Schmidt, Ruben Steingrüber CAST Helena Zengel, Karsten Antonio Mielke, Artemis Chalkidou) – When a seven-year-old’s separated parents unexpectedly fall in love again, she uses all her wits and charms to regain her place in her father’s life. International Premiere In This Corner of the World – JAPAN (DIRECTOR/WRITER Sunao Katabuchi PRODUCERS Taro Maki, Masao Maruyama CAST Rena Nounen, Yoshimasa Hosoya, Minori Omi, Natsuki Inaba, Daisuke Ono, Megumi Han, Mayumi Shitani, Shigeru Ushiyama) – Set in the small town of Kure, Hiroshima, this dreamlike anime tells the story of an imaginative and artistic young woman whose life becomes increasingly difficult as World War II escalates. North American Premiere Moko Jumbie – TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO / USA (DIRECTOR/WRITER Vashti Anderson PRODUCERS Vashti Anderson, Shlomo Godder, Maite Artieda, Richard Kim, Patricia Ramdeen CAST Vanna Vee Girod, Jeremy Thomas, Dino Maharaj) – A young woman visiting her family’s coconut plantation in Trinidad falls for a fisherman despite political turmoil, mysterious hauntings from ancestral spirits and her family’s disapproval. World Premiere The Night Guard – MEXICO (DIRECTOR/WRITER/PRODUCER Diego Ros CAST Leonardo Alonso, Ari Gallegos, Lilia Mendoza, Héctor Holten) – A security guard at a construction site learns about a crime that took place the night before and becomes entangled in a series of mysterious events that unravel over the course of a single night. North American Premiere Nocturne – MEXICO (DIRECTOR/WRITER Luis Ayhllón PRODUCERS Victor Machiavelo CAST Irela de Villers, Juan Carlos Colombo, Ari Brickman, Laura de Ita, Mauricio Isaac, Arturo Vinales) – When a mysterious nurse is hired to take care of an old sick man in his last days, their relationship is awkward and strained, but as they spend more time together it becomes evident that her placement is no accident. North American Premiere On the Beach at Night Alone – SOUTH KOREA (DIRECTOR/WRITER/PRODUCER Hong Sangsoo CAST Kim Minhee, Seo Younghwa, Kwon Haehyo, Jung Jaeyoung, Song Seonmi, Moon Sungkeun, Ahn Jaehong, Park Yeaju, Karl Feder, Mark Peranson, Bettina Steinbrügge) – Younghee is an actress who is stressed by a relationship with a married man in Korea. On the beach she wonders: Is he missing me, like I miss him? North American PremiereLA Muse
And Then There Was Eve – USA (DIRECTOR Savannah Bloch WRITERS Savannah Bloch, Colette Freedman PRODUCERS Jen Prince, Jhennifer Webberley CAST Tania Nolan, Rachel Crowl, Mary Holland, Karan Soni, Anne Gee Byrd, John Kassir) – After the sudden disappearance of her husband, a woman enlists the help of his coworker to fill in the missing pieces. World Premiere Anything – USA (DIRECTOR/WRITER Timothy McNeil PRODUCRES Louise Runge, Ofrit Peres, Micah Hauptman CAST John Carroll Lynch, Matt Bomer, Maura Tierney, Margot Bingham, Micah Hauptman) – After the death of his wife, a man moves from Mississippi to a run-down Hollywood apartment, where he meets someone new. World Premiere Built to Fail – USA (DIRECTORS Bobby Kim, Alexis Spraic, Scott Weintrob PRODUCERS Samantha Laidlaw, Josh Greenberg, Matti Leshem, Mark Rowen) – The founder of The Hundreds sets out to define and document one of the most elusive fashion phenomena of our times: streetwear. World Premiere The Classic – USA (DIRECTOR Billy McMillin PRODUCERS Christopher Leggett, Rafael Marmor, Timm Oberwelland, Billy McMillin) – Two predominantly Latino high schools square off annually in one of the oldest and most heated football rivalries in the country: the East LA Classic. It doesn’t get more American than this. World Premiere Fat Camp – USA (DIRECTOR Jennifer Arnold WRITER Chuck Hayward PRODUCERS Tatiana Kelly, Jim Young, William B. Macomber, Eleanor Nett CAST Chris Redd, Anabelle Acosta, Michael Cienfuegos, Mel Rodriguez, Vivica A. Fox, Bre-Z) – A foul-mouthed 27-year-old with the maturity of a preteen is forced to take a summer job at his uncle’s fitness camp for youth in Malibu. World Premiere A Midsummer Night’s Dream – USA (DIRECTOR/WRITER Casey Wilder Mott PRODUCERS Joshua Skurla, Fran Kranz, Casey Wilder Mott, Douglas Matejka CAST Lily Rabe, Hamish Linklater, Finn Wittrock, Rachael Leigh Cook, Avan Jogia, Fran Kranz, Ted Levine, Paz De La Huerta, Saul Williams) – This stylish update of Shakespeare’s classic play reimagines the story as a modern Hollywood fairy tale of mistaken identity, unrequited love and supernatural mishaps. World Premiere Mighty Ground – USA (DIRECTOR Delila Vallot PRODUCERS Aimee Schoof, Isen Robbins, Natalie Irby) – A gifted singer who is struggling with addiction on the streets of Skid Row sets out on a journey to transform his life. World Premiere Roller Dreams – USA/AUSTRALIA (DIRECTOR Kate Hickey PRODUCERS Cecilia Ritchie, Diana Ward) – It’s 1984 and Venice Beach is the epicenter of roller dancing, a pop culture sensation that draws massive crowds and influences Hollywood, until gentrification sets in. International Premiere Skid Row Marathon – USA (DIRECTOR Mark Hayes PRODUCER Gabriele Hayes CAST Judge Craig Mitchell, Ben Shirley, Rafael Cabrera, Rebecca Hayes, David Askew) – On LA’s Skid Row, a criminal court judge organizes a running club comprised of homeless, recovering and paroled men and women who seek to rediscover their sense of self-worth and dignity. World Premiere What We Started – USA (DIRECTOR Bert Marcus, Cyrus Saidi PRODUCERS Cassandra Hamar, Bert Marcus, Cyrus Saidi CAST Martin Garrix, Carl Cox, Erick Morillo, Moby, David Guetta, Steve Angello, Afrojack, Tiesto, Paul Oakenfold, Usher, Ed Sheeran, Sasha, Louie Vega, Richie Hawtin, Pasquale Rotella, Russell Faibisch, James Barton, Seth Troxler) – This is the history of electronic dance music—from its beginnings as an underground movement in the 1980’s to its popularization throughout Europe, told through the stories of some of its most revered personalities. World Premiere The Year of Spectacular Men – USA (DIRECTOR Lea Thompson WRITER Madelyn Deutch PRODUCER Damiano Tucci, Daniel Roth, Howard Deutch, Gordon Gilbertson CAST Madelyn Deutch, Zoey Deutch, Melissa Bolona, Lea Thompson, Avan Jogia, Nicholas Braun, Brandon T. Jackson, Cameron Monaghan, Zack Roerig, Jesse Bradford) – A woman struggles to navigate the seemingly incessant failures of post-college adulthood, leaning on her equally complicated mother and sister for support. World Premiere Your Own Road – USA (DIRECTOR/WRITER Brandon Buczek PRODUCERS Brandon Buczek, Roxy Shih CAST Ashton Moio, Cortney Palm, Kym Jackson, Amir Malaklou) – An idealistic recent film school graduate with few local professional options takes a road trip from Ohio to Los Angeles with his anxious best friend, his troubled high school sweetheart and a hitchhiker hippie, to chase his dream of becoming a filmmaker. World PremiereNightfall
Desolation – USA (DIRECTOR Sam Patton WRITERS Matt Anderson, Michael Larson-Kangas PRODUCERS Kim Patton, Lauren Bates, Mara Barr CAST Jaimi Paige, Alyshia Ochse, Claude Duhamel, Toby Nichols) – On a trip into remote wilderness to scatter her late husband’s ashes, a mother, her son, and her best friend must confront their deepest fears when a lone hiker begins following them. World Premiere The Housemaid – USA / VIETNAM (DIRECTOR/WRITER Derek Nguyen PRODUCER Timothy Linh Bui CAST Nhung Kate, Jean-Michel Richaud, Kim Xuan, Rosie Fellner, Phi Phung, Kien An) – After an orphaned Vietnamese girl is hired to be a housemaid at a haunted rubber plantation in 1953 French Indochina, she unexpectedly falls in love with the French landowner and awakens the vengeful ghost of his dead wife. North American Premiere It Stains the Sands Red – USA (DIRECTOR Colin Minihan WRITERS Stuart Ortiz, Colin Minihan PRODUCERS Brandon Christensen, Bic Tran, Stuart Ortiz, Colin Minihan CAST Brittany Allen, Juan Riedinger) – On a lonely, two-lane highway, a young couple have put Las Vegas—and the encroaching zombie apocalypse—in their rearview mirror. But when a lone traveler stumbles into view their troubles are only beginning. North American Premiere Midnighters – USA (DIRECTOR Julius Ramsay WRITER Alston Ramsay PRODUCERS Alston Ramsay, Julius Ramsay CAST Alex Essoe, Perla Haney-Jardine, Dylan McTee, Ward Horton) – A couple’s strained marriage faces the ultimate test after they cover up a terrible crime and find themselves entangled in a Hitchcockian web of deceit and madness on New Year’s Eve – the perfect night to get away with murder. World Premiere The Neighbor – MEXICO (DIRECTOR/WRITER Giancarlo Ruiz PRODUCERS Pablo Llana, Carlos Cortez B, Giancarlo Ruiz, Rodrigo Alvarez Flores, Fernando Guzman CAST Paco Mufote, Isabel Orizaga, Sergio Valdez, Joseph J. Stephen) – A man’s obsession with his downstairs neighbors escalates as he moves from voyeur to tormentor to kidnapper in this intense, experimental character study. World Premiere Replace – GERMANY / CANADA – (DIRECTOR Norbert Keil WRITERS Norbert Keil, Richard Stanley PRODUCER Felix Von Poser CAST Rebecca Forsythe, Lucie Aaron, Barbara Crampton, Sean Knopp) – Afflicted with a dermatological disease, Kira discovers that she can replace her skin with that of another girl, but this short-term solution only leads to more victims. North American Premiere Serpent – SOUTH AFRICA (DIRECTOR/WRITER Amanda Evans PRODUCER Greig Buckle CAST Sarah Dumont, Tom Ainsley) – When a young couple take a getaway aimed at reviving their romance, they find themselves trapped in a tent with a venomous snake and a backlog of secrets, and they come to the realization that only one of them can make it out alive. World Premiere Thread – GREECE (DIRECTOR/WRITER The Boy PRODUCER Eleni Bertes CAST Sofia Kokkali) – This feverish fantasy thriller explores the world of a revolutionary woman and her son, oscillating amongst political aggression, sexual nightmares and violence as protest. North American PremiereShort Films:
From over 2,700 submissions, the 51 short films selected represent 13 countries, 47% are directed by women and 51% are directed by people of color. Short films are shown before features and as part of six short film programs. Shorts will compete for juried prizes for fiction and documentary shorts, as well as an Audience Award for Best Short Film.Future Filmmakers Showcase: High School Shorts:
Made by incredibly accomplished high school filmmakers from across the country and globe, 60% of the short films in this diverse slate are directed by young women and 20% are directed by people of color.Episodes: Indie Series from the Web
BKPI, dir. Hye Yun Park, USA Danny the Manny, dir. Mike Roma, USA High & Mighty, dir. Carlos Lopez Estrada, USA My America, dir. Anna Jones, Asaad Kelada, USA People Of…, dir. lamia Alami, SWITZERLAND The F Word, dir. Nicole Opper, USA The Show about the Show, dir. Caveh Zahedi, USA Two Sentence Horror Stories, dir. J.D. Dillard, USA Very Animated People, dir. Joseph Bennet, USA Steps, dir. Fernando Sanchez, Pascual Sisto, USA