IFC Films will release the searing police reform documentary Hold Your Fire by Emmy-nominated director Stefan Forbes (Boogie Man: The Lee Atwater Story). Hold Your Fire puts a spotlight on the longest hostage siege in NYPD history and the people instrumental in an event that birthed modern hostage negotiation and that could provide hope for repairing America’s broken policing system.
Kenneth Branagh’s critically acclaimed drama Belfast took home the Best Feature Film prize at the 2021 Twin Cities Film Fest. A semi-autobiographical portrait of childhood and working class family life in Northern Ireland during the tumultuous period of the late 1960s, the film stars Jamie Dornan and Caitriona Balfe.
Four Journeys, the lyrical and intensely personal debut feature by Louis Hothothot (Louis Yi Liu) will open the 34th edition of the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA). A first-person narrative of a filmmaker born in China in 1986 as an “illegal” second child, Louis and his family suffered devastating consequences at the hands of the authorities, with painful reverberations still felt to this day. After relocating to Amsterdam in his twenties, the filmmaker returns home to reunite with his parents and sister after a five-year hiatus, where he attempts to disentangle his densely knotted family history. Unfolding as a soft and sorrowful stream of memories, absences, and lingering shadows, Four Journeys premieres at IDFA bearing the mark of a new documentary poetics to come—one laden with wonder, nuance, and spirit.
Turkey has selected Commitment Hasan (Bağlılık Hasan) directed by Semih Kaplanoğlu, to compete as the country’s candidate for Best International Feature Film at the the 94th Academy Awards.
The 2021 Asian World Film Festival (AWFF) unveiled its Competition, Centerpiece, and Special Screenings slate. The closing night film will be South Korea’s official submission to the 2022 Academy Awards, Escape from Mogadishu. The AWFF, now in its seventh year, will take place November 1 – 11, 2021 at the Landmark Theater, West Pico Blvd., Los Angeles.
Following its theatrical run, the documentary Simple as Water, from Academy Award winning filmmaker Megan Mylan (“Lost Boys of Sudan,” “Smile Pinki”), debuts Tuesday, November 16 (9:00-10:40 p.m. ET/PT) on HBO. The critically acclaimed film celebrated its world premiere on closing night of the 2021 Tribeca Film Festival.
From award-winning directors Peter Middleton and James Spinney (Notes on Blindness) and narrated by Pearl Mackie (Doctor Who), the new documentary The Real Charlie Chaplin, described as a kaleidoscopic portrait of a man who became an immortal legend, whose life was as extraordinary as his art, begins its theatrical run at Cinema Village (New York) and Laemmle Monica (Los Angeles) on Friday, November 19. Following its theatrical run, the documentary will premiere on Showtime on Saturday, December 11, at 8 p.m. ET/PT.
Shout Studios! released the official trailer for Castle Falls, the action film starring Scott Adkins, Dolph Lundgren, Kevin Wayne, Jim E. Chandler, Luke Hawx, Scott Hunter and Kim DeLonghi. Directed by Dolph Lundgren, the film opens In Theaters, On Demand and Digital on December 3rd.
Napa Valley Film Festival (NVFF) revealed the recipients of the the “Napa Valley Filmmaker Awards” honoring some of this year’s leading talent at this year’s event taking place virtually November 10-14. Also, a new series of “Culinary Cinema Awards” will make its debut at this year’s festival paying tribute to remarkable achievements in storytelling devoted to food, wine, and spirits.
Magnet Releasing debuted the new official trailer for Agnes, the horror film starring Hayley McFarland, Molly Quinn, Jake Horowitz, Sean Gunn, Chris Browning, Ben Hall, Mary Buss, Chris Sullivan that premiered at the 2021 Tribeca Film Festival. Directed by Mickey Reece, Agnes will be released in theaters and on demand on December 10, 2021.
The Savannah College of Art and Design announced the award winners for the 24th annual SCAD Savannah Film Festival. In the professional competition, Best Documentary Feature went to Medicine Man: The Stan Brock Story, directed by Paul Michael Angell; and Best Narrative Feature went to The Falconer, directed by Adam Sjöberg and Seanne Winslow in addition to the Best Director honors.
IFC Films released the official trailer for Benedetta, the drama directed by Paul Verhoeven based on the true story of Benedetta Carlini, a 17th-century nun in Tuscany who believed she saw visions of Christ and engaged in a lesbian affair with a fellow sister.