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You know you’re wasting time on a documentary when you feel the urge to Wikipedia its subject while you’re in the middle of watching an entire feature film devoted to them. And once I had finished Dana Flor’s tedious music biodoc 1-800-on-her-own, I oddly felt like I knew even less about folk-rock legend Ani Difranco than I did going into it. At a mere 80 minutes, the film should at least come across as tight and succinct (and chock full of information). Instead, the narrative mostly centers Difranco’s muted pandemic years — were they interesting for anyone? — and offers only a surface-level retelling of her rise to prominence in the 1990s, her innovations as an artist-entrepreneur and her songwriting prowess.

It’s hard not to compare 1-800-on-Her-OWN to more compelling punkumentaries about defiant female musicians of the 90s, including It’s Only Life After All...

Rock fans are in luck: This week’s digital releases involve Sonic Youth, Indigo Girls, and The Beatles. Get ready for a toe-tapping triple feature.

The contender to watch this week: “Uncropped”

A perfect companion piece to “The Freaks Came Out to Write,” Tricia Romano‘s new book about the history of The Village Voice, “Uncropped” profiles one of the iconoclastic newspaper’s signature photographers. James Hamilton captured the streets of New York, musicians like Patti Smith and the Beastie Boys, wartime conflicts in China and the Philippines, and production stills for the likes of Francis Ford Coppola and Wes Anderson. His juicy career is detailed in this unconventional documentary directed by D.W. Young (“The Booksellers”), who stages a handful of intimate conversations between Hamilton and his collaborators, including Anderson and Sonic Youth frontman Thurston Moore. Following a limited theatrical release in April, “Uncropped” is available on VOD.

Other contenders:...

Indigo Girls paid a visit to Late Night with Seth Meyers on Wednesday (May 8th) to play their new song, “What We Wanna Be,” from the soundtrack to the musical film Glitter & Doom.

The duo delivered a moving performance of their first new song in four years while standing against a simple backdrop of purple lighting. Watch a replay below.

Get Indigo Girls Tickets Here

“What We Wanna Be” was written for the Glitter & Doom end credits and was inspired by Indigo Girls member Amy Ray’s “own experience of peeling off the layers of things I have built over the years to shield me from pain or even my own truth,” as she explained in a previous statement. “It is a conversation between Glitter and Doom and their endeavor to find healing through the love they have kindled together. And as importantly, the grace that allows them...

Chicago – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com audio film review for the newly released “Indigo Girls: It’s Only Life After All,” the rise and evolution of the singer/songwriter duo Amy Ray and Emily Saliers, also know as The Indigo Girls. In select theaters and through digital download since April 10th.

Rating: 5.0/5.0

Vera Drew (she/her) wrote, directed and stars as a transgender male-to-female eventually named Joker the Harlequin. She moves from Smallville to Gotham City to find her identity and get away from her oppressive mother (Lynn Downey), and wants to establish a comedy career. With another oddball nicknamed The Penguin (Nathan Faustyn), they open a comedy club, with a goal to get a shot on Gotham’s most popular comedy show Ucb Live, produced by Lorne Michaels (voice of Maria Bramford). With the rogues gallery of lowlife villains in Gotham, plus the overhang of The Batman, they is no...

Concert film Suga – Agust D Tour ‘D-Day’ The Movie from Trafalgar Releasing took in $990k for Saturday alone, rounding out the North American box office top ten — testament to the power of concert films post-Covid and the enduring popularity of the K-Pop powerhouse. The band is currently on hiatus as members entered military service required in South Korea. But Suga, the second oldest, got in one last solo concert in Seoul last year. It was released into theaters globally for two playdates on April 10 and April 13, for a cume of $2.2 million.

The film played at 723 locations Saturday in the U.S. ($910.3k) and 64 in Canada ($80.6k). (Total screens 787.)

The showtimes were limited, mostly to one 7 pm screening, although some theaters had more than one. Additional screenings continue at select locations through April 21.

North America Imax grosses for Suga were $705k — a notable 32% of the cume to date.

Trafalgar said the...

Chicago – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com audio film review for the newly released “Indigo Girls: It’s Only Life After All,” the rise and evolution of the singer/songwriter duo Amy Ray and Emily Saliers, also know as The Indigo Girls. In select theaters and through digital download since April 10th.

Rating: 5.0/5.0

Amy Ray and Emily Saliers first met as high schoolers in Decatur, Georgia, and came together in their love for guitar playing and music. They both ended up at Emory University in Atlanta, where the Indigo Girls were born in the 1980s. After releasing singles and the album Strange Fire independently, they had major label success with the self titled Indigo Girls, containing their masterpiece song, “Closer to Fine” (used to great effect in last year’s “Barbie” movie). From there they have released 13 studios albums and four live albums, and have become ardent activists for many causes. The...

Sasquatch Sunset directors Nathan and David Zellner always wondered what these hairy giants do when they’re not walking – the only Bigfoot footage available has been a minute of a supposed Sasquatch wandering in the northern California woods. They decided to flesh that out in unique dialogue-free comedic imagining of the creatures’ daily life – eating, fighting, etc. Stars Jesse Eisenberg, Riley Keough, Christophe Zajac-Denek and Nathan Zellner are unrecognizable as the hairy tribe of four that entranced Sundance (see Deadline review). Bleecker Street is opening the film, written by David Zellner, executive produced by Ari Aster, in 9 theaters in New York, LA, San Francisco and Austin, ahead of a big jump to about 800 screens next week.

IFC Films opens Nicolas Cage-starring Arcadian on 1,100 screens. Premiered at SXSW, see Deadline review. Eying a low single-digits start. The Benjamin Brewer directed movie follows a father and his...

As much as the new documentary film Indigo Girls: It’s Only Life After All casts a light on the trailblazing history of the queer duo, it also celebrates the community that formed around them beginning in the late-Eighties. A new scene from the film, in theaters April 10 for a one-night-only viewing experience, offers a look into the tangible, human stories that extend beyond the music as fans detail their relationship with it.

“I came out in 1997 and their music helped me deal with that fact,” one fan explained. Another added...

In the new trailer for Indigo Girls: It’s Only Life After All, Amy Ray and Emily Saliers discuss the challenges of being a queer band in the late-Eighties onward, from not fitting in, to the lack of mainstream media coverage.

The trailblazing duo Indigo Girls — who released their debut album, Strange Fire, in 1987 — were one of a few bands who came out publicly at a time when marriage equality seemed an impossibility and homophobia and misogyny were prevalent.

“Something about what you had to be as a girl didn’t...

The music documentary “Indigo Girls: It’s Only Life After All,” which was critically acclaimed when it premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, will hit theaters for a one-night-only release on April 10, about a month before it becomes available for home viewing.

“It is a beautiful documentary that captures the life force of our community,” said the duo’s Emily Saliers, in a statement. “Now our community has an opportunity to see it on the big screen — we are thankful for that.”

Echoing that language, director Alexandra Bombach emphasized her belief in the power of seeing the film in cinemas with likeminded fans. “Festival audiences have embraced and celebrated this story of Amy and Emily, and now we get to bring this film to fans in theaters all over the country,” she said. “A film about community should be seen in community.”

Oscilloscope Laboratories posted a list of theaters set to show the doc,...

"They helped me understand who I was and who I wanted to be." Oscilloscope Labs has revealed an official trailer for a music documentary film titled Indigo Girls: It's Only Life After All, also known as just It's Only Life After All. This acclaimed rock doc initially premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival last year, and toured around the world to many other festivals including to SXSW, Boulder, Sarasota, Adelaide, and Vancouver. Known for stirring harmonies and socially conscious lyrics, iconic folk rock duo Indigo Girls are the subject of this intimate and insightful documentary, which tracks their decades-long career and how they've shaped the rock world. An intimate look into the lives of one of the most iconic folk-rock bands - the Indigo Girls, featuring the musicians Amy Ray and Emily Saliers. With never-before-seen archival and intimate vérité the film dives into the songwriting & storytelling of the music that transformed a generation.

The Indigo Girls documentary, Indigo Girls: It’s Only Life After All, premiered last year at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Now, its heading to theaters nation-wide for a one-night-only theatrical release.

After a special screening of the documentary in the duo’s hometown Atlanta on March 29th, It’s Only Life After All will premiere in theaters across the country on April 10th only. Then, on May 7th, its digital release will arrive.

Speaking about the documentary, its director, Alexandria Bombach, said: “Festival audiences have embraced and celebrated this story of Amy [Ray] and Emily [Saliers], and now we get to bring this film to fans in theaters all over the country. A film about community should be seen in community.”

For their part, the band has praised Bombach’s treatment of their lives. “From our earliest days at Little Five Points Community Pub in Atlanta, the ideal of ‘community’ has informed our music and activism,...

The Indigo Girls documentary, Indigo Girls: It’s Only Life After All, premiered last year at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Now, its heading to theaters nation-wide for a one-night-only theatrical release.

After a special screening of the documentary in the duo’s hometown Atlanta on March 29th, It’s Only Life After All will premiere in theaters across the country on April 10th only. Then, on May 7th, its digital release will arrive.

Speaking about the documentary, its director, Alexandria Bombach, said: “Festival audiences have embraced and celebrated this story of Amy [Ray] and Emily [Saliers], and now we get to bring this film to fans in theaters all over the country. A film about community should be seen in community.”

For their part, the band has praised Bombach’s treatment of their lives. “From our earliest days at Little Five Points Community Pub in Atlanta, the ideal of ‘community’ has informed our music and activism,...

Oscilloscope Laboratories has announced a one night only theatrical release of Indigo Girls: It’s Only Life After All, and has rolled out the documentary’s trailer.

A Sundance debut and a Tribeca selection, the film will play in theaters across the country on Wednesday, April 10. There will also be a screening and live performance with the band in their hometown of Atlanta, Georgia on Friday, March 29, and the film will have a digital release to follow on May 7.

“Festival audiences have embraced and celebrated this story of Amy and Emily, and now we get to bring this film to fans in theaters all over the country,” said filmmaker Alexandria Bombach. “A film about community should be seen in community.”

“From our earliest days at Little Five Points Community Pub in Atlanta, the ideal of ‘community’ has informed our music and activism,” adds Amy Ray of the Indigo Girls. “We feel...

It’s been almost exactly 35 years since the Indigo Girls first broke out with their eponymous second album, yet the Power of Two continues to thrive still, especially on the screen. “Barbie” recently pointed us “in a crooked line” with Margot Robbie’s rendition of “Closer to Fine”, while last year’s Sundance doc, titled “It’s Only Life After All“, brought us up close and personal with the duo themselves.

Following those movie tributes now comes another, in the form of “Glitter & Doom,” a jukebox musical that celebrates the enduring legacy that Amy Ray and Emily Saliers have crafted through their raw, passionate, and deeply personal brand of queer folk rock. But does the movie live up to their legendary talents or is it doomed to go the way of a film like “Yesterday“?

Glitter (Alex Diaz) is an improbably named Ivy League graduate who dreams of cartwheeling his...

The Indigo Girls are getting their own “Mamma Mia”-esque music-based film.

The iconic duo, who recently led 2023 documentary “It’s Only Life After All,” provide the soundtrack for fantastical queer romance film “Glitter and Doom.” Billed as a jukebox musical, the film features 25 reimagined Indigo Girls songs, produced and arranged by “The Voice” runner-up contestant Michelle Chamuel. Classics like “Galileo,” “Get Out the Map,” “World Falls,” and “Power of Two” are featured, as well as a new Indigo Girls track “What We Wanna Be.”

The official synopsis for the film reads: “‘Glitter and Doom’ follows the love at first sight journey of a circus dreamer (Alex Diaz) and struggling musician (Alan Cammish). An undeniable spark sets an epic summer romance on its course until the realities of pursuing their dreams threaten to tear them apart.”

Ming Na-Wen, Missi Pyle, Lea DeLaria, Tig Notaro, Kate Pierson, Peppermint, Beth Malone, and the Indigo Girls themselves,...

Indigo Girls are the subject of a new documentary titled Indigo Girls: It’s Only Life After All. After premiering at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival, the Alexandria Bombach-directed film is coming to North American theaters in 2024 thanks to Oscilloscope Laboratories.

It’s Only Life After All centers on Indigo Girls’ Amy Ray and Emily Saliers, and how their unique brand of folk-rock became a generation’s anthem of self-acceptance. Featuring new interviews with Ray and Saliers as well as old home videos, the documentary promises “joy, humor, and heart-warming earnestness.”

“From our earliest days at Little Five Points Community Pub in Atlanta, the ideal of ‘community’ has informed our music and activism,” Ray said in a press release. “Alexandria Bombach, Multitude Films, and TinFish Films understood this from the start, and made a documentary that pulls the threads of our career together in a profound way. We feel blessed to...

Indigo Girls are the subject of a new documentary titled Indigo Girls: It’s Only Life After All. After premiering at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival, the Alexandria Bombach-directed film is coming to North American theaters in 2024 thanks to Oscilloscope Laboratories.

It’s Only Life After All centers on Indigo Girls’ Amy Ray and Emily Saliers, and how their unique brand of folk-rock became a generation’s anthem of self-acceptance. Featuring new interviews with Ray and Saliers as well as old home videos, the documentary promises “joy, humor, and heart-warming earnestness.”

“From our earliest days at Little Five Points Community Pub in Atlanta, the ideal of ‘community’ has informed our music and activism,” Ray said in a press release. “Alexandria Bombach, Multitude Films, and TinFish Films understood this from the start, and made a documentary that pulls the threads of our career together in a profound way. We feel blessed to...

Is AVOD the solution for struggling indie doc filmmakers?

“Beyond Utopia,” “A Still Small Voice,” “Deep Rising,” “It’s Only Life After All,” “Going Varsity in Mariachi,” and “The Grab” are all documentary titles that garnered good reviews, positive audience feedback and plenty of media attention at major film festivals including this year’s Sundance and last year’s Toronto International Film Festival. But despite the high visibility, each title is still seeking distribution.

The chances of any of the six titles garnering a highly coveted distribution deal isn’t likely given the state of the entertainment industry at present. The dismal distribution landscape has forced some nonfiction filmmakers to turn to substantially less lucrative alternatives, such as ad-supported VOD, or AVOD channels, and revenue-sharing arrangements to get their work seen.

That list include filmmakers Violet Columbus and Ben Klein, who directed the 2022 Sundance grand jury prize documentary winner “The Exiles.

Frameline, the San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival concluded its 47th iteration on Saturday, June 24, with a screening of Taylor Mac’s 24-Decade History of Popular Music, directed by Oscar-winning duo Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman (The Celluloid Closet). The documentary feature about the titular performer’s singular spectacle was preceded by the Festival’s annual Award Ceremony, which reaffirmed the dynamic future of queer cinema.

This year, the 11-day Festival ran from June 14–24, 2023, with events held in theaters across San Francisco, including the historic Castro Theatre, located in the heart of the city’s LGBTQ+ cultural district, and the Roxie Theater, Frameline’s longest-running partner theater. Frameline47 also returned to Oakland this year, featuring the Festival’s first-ever Oakland Opening Night (Jac Cron’s Chestnut) and Centerpiece (Hannah Pearl Utt’s Cora Bora) films, both of which screened at The New Parkway Theater. With a full slate of upwards of 90 in-person screenings and programs,...

Outfest announced the full line up for its 41st Outfest Los Angeles LGBTQ+ Festival presented by Warner Bros. Discovery and Genesis Motor America, taking place July 13 – 23 in venues around Los Angeles and is headquartered at the Directors Guild of America in West Hollywood. Tickets and passes are available to Outfest members today, and to the general public starting Friday, June 23rd.

The festival also announced that it will be honoring Melissa McCarthy and Ben Falcone with the James Schamus Ally Award during the festival’s closing night in recognition of allies’ efforts to foster Queer and Trans moving images and to promote our communities’ stories to a broader audience. Additionally, McCarthy and Falcone are both executive producers on Relighting Candles: The Tim Sullivan Story, a short documentary directed by Zeb Newman and Michiel Thomas that will be featured at this year’s festival, about a West Hollywood candle shop owner...

NewportFILM Outdoors, a unique celebration of documentary moviemaking that is held in some of the most iconic locations in one of the most storied summer resorts in America, has unveiled its latest line-up of films for its summer season.

They include “It’s Only Life After All,” a look at the Indigo Girls; “After the Bite,” an examination of a community’s reaction to a shark attack; and “Invisible Beauty,” the story of pioneering model, agent and activist, Bethann Hardison. What makes the Newport, Rhode Island event so memorable is that these screenings take place on the lawns of mansions like Marble House and The Elms, as well as historical locations like Fort Adams, which hosts the annual Newport Jazz Festival, and the Newport Polo Grounds. It’s all very shades of Edith Wharton.

“Patrick and the Whale” will open the weekly series on the lawn of the Great Friends Meeting House.

Frameline’s 2023 festival lineup includes Pixar’s new film Elemental, the Ayo Edebiri and Rachel Sennott-starring Bottoms, a screening of Chasing Amy and its new reflective doc, Chasing Chasing Amy, and the Billy Porter and Luke Evans-led Our Son.

The 47th edition of the San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival runs June 14-24 and will feature 90 screenings of features and shorts across 11 days before offering a virtual encore between June 24 and July 2. That includes 12 world, 16 North American and nine U.S. premieres, with the opening night film Fairyland, Andrew Durham’s adaptation of Alysia Abbott’s memoir, set to feature an in-person appearance from producer Sofia Coppola.

“There is nothing like seeing a great film at the cinema — sharing an experience in the same moment as friends and strangers alike,” James Woolley, executive director of Frameline, said in a statement. “Despite the challenges that have reshaped moviegoing, we...

Frameline has announced the full program for the 47th annual San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival (Frameline47). Running June 14 through 24, with a streaming encore to follow from June 24 through July 2, Frameline47 returns with nearly 90 film screenings, including 12 world, 16 North American, and 9 U.S. premieres.

Frameline will host 47 screenings at the historic Castro Theatre and other venues throughout the Bay Area. This announcement comes on the heels of Frameline’s recent unveiling of three marquee presentations: the Opening Night film, Andrew Durham’s Sundance favorite “Fairyland,” which will feature an in-person appearance from producer Sofia Coppola; the Oakland Centerpiece, Hannah Pearl Utt’s “Cora Bora,” featuring “Hacks” scene-stealer Megan Stalter; and the Pride Kickoff film, Jordan Danger’s “God Save the Queens,” featuring RuPaul drag icon Alaska, who will perform during the afterparty at Oasis.

This year’s iteration is set to be Northern California’s largest film festival in 2023, according to Frameline.

The breakdown of the Writers Guild of America’s contract negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers could benefit the documentary industry. Especially those documentary filmmakers with projects seeking distribution.

At least that’s the hope.

Like film and television scribes worried about the survival of screenwriting as a viable profession, hundreds of nonfiction filmmakers with independently made docus are grappling with the streamers’ new distribution landscape, which, for the most part, no longer includes acquiring titles that aren’t commissioned.

If the writers strike lasts for several months, the thought is that not only broadcast networks but also streaming companies will begin to face holes in their narrative content, which could, in turn, lead to the purchase of indie docus to fill the void.

At the Hot Docs film festival in Toronto, documentary producers, programmers and filmmakers are not only celebrating independently made fare but also...

The growing amount of homeless, independently made documentaries has made film festivals like Hot Docs, arguably more important than ever before. Many docus that premiered at Sundance 2023 but have yet to find distribution are part of the Toronto-based documentary festival’s lineup, which in turn allows those titles to stay on buyers’ radars.

But corporate consolidation, along with streamers’ current mandate for nonfiction content that fits into one of three boxes – celebrity, true crime, or sports – means that many docu filmmakers will eventually have to turn to non-traditional distribution to get their films seen outside the fest circuit.

Tracy Droz Tragos’ docu “Plan C” follows a grassroots organization fighting to expand access to abortion pills across the United States. The timely film premiered at Sundance in January, but despite good reviews, Tragos hasn’t found distribution for “Plan C.”

“We are hearing things from the big buyers like, ‘The subject matter is hugely important,...

Despite a dismal documentary distribution landscape, hundreds of nonfiction filmmakers are heading to Toronto for the 30th edition of Hot Docs Canadian Intl. Documentary Festival determined to sell their independently made docus.

This year, Hot Docs’ programming director Shane Smith selected 214 films from 2848 submissions to screen in-person and online beginning April 27. The slate of nonfiction films from 72 countries will be spread across 13 programs and will feature 70 world and 33 international premieres.

“Part of our value proposition is really mining all of the corners and shining a light in all of the corners of the documentary landscape,” Smith tells Variety. “Kanopy and Tenk are going to be here as well as the bigger players like Netflix. So, we are looking to be a valuable resource for the entire landscape of documentary. Not every film is one that the streamers are going to acquire, but there’s a home for every doc that we show in the festival.

New documentaries about Biz Markie and Milli Vanilli are among the films set to screen at 2023 Tribeca Festival, which takes place June 7 through 18 in New York City.

The Sacha Jenkins-directed All Up in the Biz, a documentary on the late New York hip-hop legend Biz Markie — featuring celebrity interviews, rare film, reenactments, and animation — will get its world premiere at Tribeca. Milli Vanilli also makes its world premiere. Directed by Luke Korem, the film traces the origins and downfall of singers Rob & Fab.

Other music-oriented documentaries include the Jake Sumner-directed Ron Delsener Presents,...

The 2023 Tribeca Festival has revealed its feature narrative, documentary and animated film lineups.

The selection consists of a number of actor-directed titles, including the world premieres of David Duchovny’s Bucky F*cking Dent, Michael Shannon’s Eric Larue, Chelsea Peretti’s First Time Female Director, John Slattery’s Maggie Moore(s), Lily Rabe and Hamish Linklater’s Downtown Owl and Jennifer Esposito’s First Kill; the North American premiere of Steve Buscemi’s The Listener; and New York premiere of Randall Park’s Shortcomings.

The documentary lineup features films about Stan Lee, Biz Markie and Dan Rather, with a conversation with Rather and director Frank Marshall following the world premiere of the Rather documentary. The Rather talk is just one of the live events set to take place following screenings, which also include a performance from Gloria Gaynor after the world premiere of Gloria Gaynor: I Will Survive, a...

When “Summer of Soul” sold for $15 million out of the 2021 pandemic-virtual Sundance Film Festival, we saw the peak of the documentary boom. Questlove’s feature debut was a Sundance record, but it wasn’t alone; other Sundance docs like “Fire of Love” and “Flee” sold for high-seven figures.

Today, Sundance 2023 premiere “It’s Only Life After All,” which included its subjects the Indigo Girls performing at the festival’s Opening Night fundraiser, has yet to find a buyer. Ditto “Going Varsity in Mariachi,” “The Disappearance of Shere Hite,” or Doug Liman’s Brett Kavanaugh doc “Justice.”

Sundance also had documentaries that came with distribution, like Hulu’s “Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields,” Amazon’s “Judy Blume Forever,” and Apple’s “Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie.” However, if you’re looking for documentaries that aren’t based on high-recognition IP, or concepts that can’t be parceled into irresistible, cliff-hanging episodes — well,...

The folk music documentaries Joan Baez I Am a Noise and Alexandria Bombach’s Indigo Girls documentary It’s Only Life After All are getting international premieres as part of the Hot Docs Festival, which unveiled its 2023 lineup on Tuesday.

Co-directors Miri Navasky, Karen O’Connor and Maeve O’Boyle’s portrait of Baez, the American folk singing legend and civil rights activist, bowed in Berlin. Bombach’s film about Amy Ray and Emily Saliers, who became folk-rock duo Indigo Girls and eventually environmental activists, premiered at Sundance.

The Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival’s 30th edition will be filled with a host of films about activists, as the festival is set to open with a screening of Twice Colonized, Danish director Lin Alluna’s film about Greenlandic Inuit lawyer and protector of her ancestral lands, Aaju Peter.

The Danish film, which had a world premiere at Sundance, will also launch the Copenhagen documentary film festival Cph:dox.

As the market for independently made documentaries continues to dry up, regional film festivals have become essential to filmmakers hoping to sell their docs.

At this year’s Sarasota Film Festival, which kicks off on March 25, 36 documentaries are part of the lineup. Over 25 of them are seeking distribution. They include Luke Lorentzen’s “A Still Small Voice,” Alexandria Bombach’s “It’s Only Life After All” about the Indigo Girls, Ben Braun and Chiaki Yanagimoto “Aum: The Cult at the End of the World” and Bethann Hardison and Frédéric Tcheng’s “Invisible Beauty.” All four films premiered at Sundance in January.

“From Submarine’s point of view, we’ve always encouraged great regional festivals like Sarasota, the Berkshires, Woodstock and the Hamptons partially because there is the possibility that awards voters are there,” says Submarine Entertainment sales agent Josh Braun, who reps both “Aum: The Cult at the End of the World” and “Invisible Beauty.

Toronto’s Hot Docs, North America’s largest documentary festival, has added 12 films to its Special Presentations program. The first tranche of titles was announced March 14. The festival runs April 27 to May 7.

World premieres include Canadian journalist Michelle Shephard’s “The Man Who Stole Einstein’s Brain,” the uncovering of the story behind the pathologist who stole the genius’ brain in 1955; “The Rise of Wagner,” a chilling exposé on the collusion between Wagner Group mercenaries and the Kremlin, which has resulted in secret killings and countless human rights violations; “We Are Guardians,” the story of the Indigenous guardians of the Brazilian Amazon, struggling to protect their territories from the ravages of extractive industries, deforestation, corrupt politicians and profit hungry global corporations; “Who’s Afraid of Nathan Law?,” a chronicle of dissident Hong Kong politician and activist Nathan Law’s fight for democracy; and director Barry Avrich’s “Without Precedent: The Supreme Life of Rosalie Abella,...

It’s the hardest thing to wait to see them after hearing about the movies that debuted at Sundance. But if you live in the Southeast, there’s no better way to cut that wait short than a trip to the Sarasota Film Festival, running this year from March 24 to April 2. Want to see the moving doc “A Still Small Voice”? Or the near-future pregnancy satire “The Pod Generation” with Emilia Clarke and Chiwetel Ejiofor? Not to mention the Alexandria Bombach Indigo Girls documentary “It’s Only Life After All,” “Aum: The Cult at the End of the World,” “Judy Blume Forever,” and “Fairyland”? This festival’s got you covered.

Some titles not yet available to the public from the fall festivals will screen as well, such as Paul Schrader’s “Master Gardener,” Daniel Goldhaber’s Neon title “How to Blow up a Pipeline,” and Kelly Reichardt’s “Showing Up,” as...

The Lgbtqia+ festival takes place March 15-26.

The BFI Flare: London Lgbtqia+ Film Festival has unveiled the line-up for its 37th edition which takes place March 15 – 26.

The programme features 58 features, six of which are world premieres, spread across three thematic strands – Hearts, Bodies and Minds.

Scroll down for full line-up

World premiering at the festival is John Hay’s documentary Willem & Frieda which is presented by Stephen Fry and explores how a gay man and a lesbian woman led the anti-Nazi resistance in Holland.

The other world premieres are Timothy Harris’ documentary Kenyatta: Do Not Wait Your Turn about the...

A second wave of film and television programming has been announced for this year’s South by Southwest Conference and Festivals, with highlights including the series debuts of “Swarm” and Steven Yeun starring “Beef” on opening and closing night, respectively.

A full list of honorees in the visions, global presented by Mubi, 24 beats and festival favorites categories was also unveiled in tandem with additions to previously announced sections.

“The second wave of our lineup signals that the countdown to SXSW is on! The hype train is officially leaving the station, baby!” said Claudette Godfrey, V.P. of film and TV at SXSW. “From thought-provoking documentaries and thrilling television series, to hotly anticipated studio tentpoles and micro-budget dramas, we strive to showcase the best of a diverse range of work, and couldn’t be more proud of this year’s lineup.”

From co-creators Donald Glover and Janine Nabers comes the March 10 world premiere of “Swarm,...

Festival runs in Austin, Texas, from March 10-19.

Emma Seligman’s Shiva Baby follow-up Bottoms and Jon S. Baird’s Tetris starring Taron Egerton are among the second wave of SXSW unveiled on Wednesday.

Festival organisers announced all selections in Visions, Global presented by Mubi, 24 Beats, and Festival Favorites as well as additions to Headliners, TV Premieres, Narrative and Documentary Spotlight.

New to Headliners are world premieres of Emma Seligman’s Shiva Baby follow-up Bottoms which follows two unpopular queer high school students who start a fight club to have sex before graduation; and Jon S. Baird’s Tetris starring...

All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt

Poet-turned-filmmaker Raven Jackson uses elegantly composed vignettes, minimal dialogue and an immersive style to explore the life of a Black woman in the rural South in her eloquent feature, produced by Barry Jenkins. The story follows Mack (Charleen McClure) across several decades, the fragments of her life coming together in a risky, beautifully realized film. — Caryn James

Cassandro

Gael García Bernal nails his best role in years as groundbreaking lucha libre wrestler Saúl Armendáriz, his performance steeped in cheeky humor, resilience and radical self-belief — not to mention some amazingly nimble moves. Roger Ross Williams’ assured narrative is an exhilarating exploration of fearless queer identity in a macho environment. — David Rooney

The Deepest Breath

Filled with eye-popping visuals, thrilling competitions and a deftly presented love story, Laura McGann’s documentary feature tells of a record-breaking free diver and a heroic safety diver whose lives intersect.

Folk-rock icons Indigo Girls touched down in Sundance for the world premiere of their Alexandria Bombach-directed film It’s Only Life After All. The doc debuted the same day they were booked to perform at the fest’s opening night fundraiser, hours after the Jan. 18 death of music legend David Crosby.

“We’re still processing,” Amy Ray, standing beside Emily Saliers on the red carpet, told THR. “The last time we saw him was at the Beacon in New York for Joan Baez’s birthday [in January 2016]. He was a great mentor who had a big influence on us. David and Jackson Browne were two people we met early on in the studio that we were already huge fans of before we worked together. It’s a big loss. It’s hard to start losing your heroes, you know?”

David Crosby and the Indigo Girls

It was a whirlwind few days for the duo,...

2023 Sundance Film Festival Announces Lineup of 99 Feature Films Top L–R: Bravo, Burkina!, Girl, Polite Society, Mami Wata. Center L–R: Going Varsity in Mariachi, The Accidental Getaway Driver, Deep Rising, Cassandro. Bottom L–R: The Pod Generation, Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields, Nam June Paik: Moon is the Oldest TV, The Eternal Memory. Find Out Why All Eyes Are On Independents In-Person Ticket Packages Now On Sale; Online Ticket Package Sales Begin December 13 Park City, Utah, December 7, 2022 — Today the nonprofit Sundance Institute announced the comprehensive slate of independent films selected across the feature film categories for the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. The 2023 Festival will take place January 19–29, 2023, in person in Park City, Salt Lake City, and the Sundance Resort, along with a selection of films available online across the country January 24–29, 2023. Festivalgoers will once again return to theaters to discover this upcoming year’s most impactful independent stories. In-Person Ticket Packages are currently on sale through December 16, Online Ticket Packages go on sale December 13 at 10 a.m. Mt, and single film tickets go on sale January 12 at 10 a.m. Mt. Setting the scene, Day One Features will open the Festival in Park City: 11 features, plus a Shorts program, will illustrate the scope of Festival work across genre and form. Day One Features are birth/rebirth, L’Immensità, It’s Only Life After All, Kim’s Video, Little Richard: I Am Everything, The Longest Goodbye, The Pod Generation, Radical, Shayda, Sometimes I Think About Dying, and Run Rabbit Run. In addition, on January 19, the Institute will host the inaugural Opening Night: A Taste of Sundance presented by IMDbPro. The celebration will kick off the Festival welcoming everyone back together again while raising funds for the Institute’s critical year-round artist support. The evening will honor Ryan Coogler, Nikyatu Jusu, W. Kamau Bell, and more whose journeys have been connected to Sundance throughout the years. In addition, in-person attendees will get to experience a robust offering of talks and events during the Festival, with more details to be announced. Films will become available online during the second half of the Festival — beginning January 24 — and will include all Competition titles (U.S. Dramatic, U.S. Documentary, World Cinema Dramatic, World Cinema Documentary, and Next), as well as exciting work across other sections of the feature film program, Indie Episodic Program, and Shorts Program. Audiences can enjoy the selection of films exclusively on the Sundance Film Festival online platform — those that will be available online are noted below. The online offering reinforces the Institute’s commitment to accessibility by allowing audiences coast to coast to take part in the discovery of captivating stories. The Shorts and Indie Episodic lineups for the 2023 Sundance Film Festival will be announced on December 13. “Maintaining an essential place for artists to express themselves, take risks, and for visionary stories to endure and entertain is distinctly Sundance,” said Robert Redford, Sundance Institute Founder and President. “The Festival continues to foster these values and connections through independent storytelling. We are honored to share the compelling selection of work at this year’s Festival from distinct perspectives and unique voices.” “As a program of the Sundance Institute, the Festival provides a place for artists globally to connect with audiences around a shared and inclusive experience of discovery,” said Joana Vicente, Sundance Institute CEO. “These filmmakers reflect the world around us through bold and thrilling storytelling. It is critical for the arts to foster dialogue, especially during unprecedented times — these stories are needed to provoke discussion, share diverse viewpoints, and challenge us. We are delighted to welcome this group of passionate artists to the Festival and look forward to celebrating the films together with audiences.” “The program for this year’s Festival reiterates the relevancy of trailblazing work serving as an irreplaceable source for original stories that resonate and fuel creativity and dialogue,” said Kim Yutani, Sundance Film Festival Director of Programming. “In so many ways this year’s slate reflects the voices of communities around the world who are speaking out with urgency and finally being heard. Across our program, impactful storytelling by fearless artists continues to provide space for the community to come together to be entertained, challenged, and inspired.” The 2023 Sundance Film Festival’s Salt Lake City Opening Night Gala Film is Blueback, premiering at the Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center on January 20. The upcoming Festival will expand its presence in Salt Lake City, providing more places to take part in the thrilling experience, including at The Megaplex Theatres at The Gateway. Also announced today, The Pod Generation, screening in the Premieres section, has been named the winner of the Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize, an annual award given to an artist with the most outstanding depiction of science and technology in a feature film. The slate announced to date includes Slam and The Doom Generation, which are featured in the From the Collection section bringing archival screenings back into focus as part of the Festival. The Sundance Film Festival is an artist program of the Sundance Institute. Proceeds earned through Festival ticket sales go to uplifting and developing emerging artists on a year-round basis through focused labs, direct grants, fellowships, residencies, and more. The full slate of works announced today, along with the From the Collection films previously announced, includes 101 feature-length films representing 23 countries. The 2023 program is made up of 32 of 115 (28%) feature film directors who are first-time feature filmmakers, and 17 of the feature films and projects announced today were supported by Sundance Institute in development through direct granting or residency labs. World premieres make up 93, or 94%, of the Festival’s 99 feature films announced today. These films were selected from 15,855 submissions, including 4,061 feature-length films. Of the 4,061 feature film submissions, 1,662 were from the U.S., and 2,399 were international. Director demographics are available in an editor’s note below. U.S. Dramatic Competition Presenting 12 world premieres of fiction feature films, the Dramatic Competition offers audiences a first look at groundbreaking new voices in American independent film. Films that have premiered in this category in recent years include Nanny, Coda, Passing, Minari, Never Rarely Sometimes Always, The Farewell, Clemency, Eighth Grade, and Sorry to Bother You. The Accidental Getaway Driver / U.S.A. (Director and Screenwriter: Sing J. Lee, Screenwriter: Christopher Chen, Producers: Kimberly Steward, Basil Iwanyk, Andy Sorgie, Brendon Boyea, Joseph Hiếu) — During a routine pickup, an elderly Vietnamese cab driver is taken hostage at gunpoint by three recently escaped Orange County convicts. Based on a true story. Cast: Hiệp Trần Nghĩa, Dustin Nguyen, Dali Benssalah, Phi Vũ, Gabrielle Chan. World Premiere. Available online. All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt / U.S.A. (Director and Screenwriter: Raven Jackson, Producers: Maria Altamirano, Barry Jenkins, Adele Romanski, Mark Ceryak) – A decades-spanning exploration of a woman’s life in Mississippi and an ode to the generations of people, places, and ineffable moments that shape us. Cast: Charleen McClure, Moses Ingram, Kaylee Nicole Johnson, Reginald Helms Jr., Sheila Atim, Chris Chalk. World Premiere. Available online. Fair Play / U.S.A. (Director and Screenwriter: Chloe Domont, Producers: Leopold Hughes, Ben LeClair, Tim White, Trevor White, Allan Mandelbaum) — An unexpected promotion at a cutthroat hedge fund pushes a young couple’s relationship to the brink, threatening to unravel far more than their recent engagement. Cast: Phoebe Dynevor, Alden Ehrenreich, Eddie Marsan. World Premiere. Available online. Fancy Dance / U.S.A. (Director, Screenwriter, and Producer: Erica Tremblay, Screenwriter: Miciana Alise, Producers: Deidre Backs, Heather Rae, Nina Yang Bongiovi, Tommy Oliver) — Following her sister’s disappearance, a Native American hustler kidnaps her niece from the child’s white grandparents and sets out for the state powwow in hopes of keeping what is left of their family intact. Cast: Lily Gladstone, Isabel Deroy-Olson, Ryan Begay, Shea Whigham, Audrey Wasilewski. World Premiere. Available online. Magazine Dreams / U.S.A. (Director and Screenwriter: Elijah Bynum, Producers: Jennifer Fox, Dan Gilroy, Jeffrey Soros, Simon Horsman) — An amateur bodybuilder struggles to find human connection as his relentless drive for recognition pushes him to the brink. Cast: Jonathan Majors, Haley Bennett, Taylour Paige, Mike O’Hearn, Harrison Page, Harriet Sansom Harris. World Premiere. Available online. Mutt / U.S.A. (Director, Screenwriter, and Producer: Vuk Lungulov-Klotz, Producers: Alexander Stegmaier, Stephen Scott Scarpulla, Jennifer Kuczaj, Joel Michaely) — Over the course of a single hectic day in New York City, three people from Feña’s past are thrust back into his life. Having lost touch since transitioning from female to male, he navigates the new dynamics of old relationships while tackling the day-to-day challenges of living life in between. Cast: Lío Mehiel, Cole Doman, MiMi Ryder, Alejandro Goic. World Premiere. Available online. The Persian Version / U.S.A. (Director, Screenwriter, and Producer: Maryam Keshavarz, Producers: Anne Carey, Ben Howe, Luca Borghese, Peter Block, Corey Nelson) — When a large Iranian-American family gathers for the patriarch’s heart transplant, a family secret is uncovered that catapults the estranged mother and daughter into an exploration of the past. Toggling between the United States and Iran over decades, mother and daughter discover they are more alike than they know. Cast: Layla Mohammadi, Niousha Noor, Kamand Shafieisabet, Bella Warda, Bijan Daneshmand, Shervin Alenabi. World Premiere. Available online. Shortcomings / U.S.A. (Director: Randall Park, Screenwriter: Adrian Tomine, Producers: Margot Hand, Randall Park, Hieu Ho, Jennifer Berman, Howard Cohen, Eric d’Arbeloff) — Following Ben, Miko, and Alice as they navigate a range of interpersonal relationships and traverse the country in search of the ideal connection. Cast: Justin H. Min, Sherry Cola, Ally Maki, Debby Ryan, Tavi Gevinson, Sonoya Mizuno. World Premiere. Available online. Sometimes I Think About Dying / U.S.A. (Director: Rachel Lambert, Screenwriters: Kevin Armento, Stefanie Abel Horowitz, Katy Wright-Mead, Producers: Alex Saks, Daisy Ridley, Dori Rath, Lauren Beveridge, Brett Beveridge) — Fran likes to think about dying. It brings sensation to her quiet life. When she makes the new guy at work laugh, it leads to more: a date, a slice of pie, a conversation, a spark. The only thing standing in their way is Fran herself. Cast: Daisy Ridley, Dave Merheje, Parvesh Cheena, Marcia DeBonis, Meg Stalter, Brittany O’Grady. World Premiere. Available online. Day One The Starling Girl / U.S.A. (Director and Screenwriter: Laurel Akira Parmet, Producers: Kevin Rowe, Kara Durrett) — Seventeen-year-old Jem Starling struggles with her place within her Christian fundamentalist community, but everything changes when her magnetic youth pastor Owen returns to their church. Cast: Eliza Scanlen, Lewis Pullman, Jimmi Simpson, Wrenn Schmidt, Austin Abrams, Jessamine Burgum. World Premiere. Available online. Theater Camp / U.S.A. (Directors and Screenwriters: Molly Gordon, Nick Lieberman, Screenwriters: Noah Galvin, Ben Platt, Producers: Erik Feig, Samie Kim Falvey, Julia Hammer, Ryan Heller, Will Ferrell, Jessica Elbaum) — When the beloved founder of a run-down theater camp in upstate New York falls into a coma, the eccentric staff must band together with the founder’s crypto-bro son to keep the camp afloat. Cast: Molly Gordon, Ben Platt, Noah Galvin, Jimmy Tatro, Patti Harrison, Ayo Edebiri. World Premiere. Available online. A Thousand and One / U.S.A. (Director and Screenwriter: A.V. Rockwell, Producers: Eddie Vaisman, Julia Lebedev, Lena Waithe, Rishi Rajani, Brad Weston) — Convinced it’s one last, necessary crime on the path to redemption, unapologetic and free-spirited Inez kidnaps 6-year-old Terry from the foster care system. Holding on to their secret and each other, mother and son set out to reclaim their sense of home, identity, and stability in New York City. Cast: Teyana Taylor, Will Catlett, Josiah Cross, Aven Courtney, Aaron Kingsley Adetola. World Premiere. Available online. U.S. Documentary Competition World-premiere American documentaries that illuminate the ideas, people, and events that shape the present day. Films that have premiered in this category in recent years include Fire of Love, Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised), Boys State, Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution, Apollo 11, Knock Down the House, One Child Nation, American Factory, Three Identical Strangers, and On Her Shoulders. Aum: The Cult at the End of the World / U.S.A. (Directors and Producers: Ben Braun, Chiaki Yanagimoto, Producers: Dan Braun, Josh Braun, Rick Brookwell) — On the morning of March 20, 1995, a deadly nerve gas attack in the Tokyo subway sent the nation and its people into chaos. This exploration of Aum Shinrikyo, the cult responsible for the attack, involves the participation of those who lived through the horror as it unfolded. World Premiere. Available online. Bad Press / U.S.A (Directors: Rebecca Landsberry-Baker, Joe Peeler, Producers: Conrad Beilharz, Garrett F. Baker, Tyler Graim) — When the Muscogee Nation suddenly begins censoring its free press, a rogue reporter fights to expose her government’s corruption in a historic battle that will have ramifications for all of Indian country. World Premiere. Available online. The Disappearance of Shere Hite / U.S.A. (Director and Producer: Nicole Newnham, Producers: Molly O’Brien, R.J. Cutler, Elise Pearlstein, Kimberley Ferdinando, Trevor Smith) — Shere Hite’s 1976 bestselling book, The Hite Report, liberated the female orgasm by revealing the most private experiences of thousands of anonymous survey respondents. Her findings rocked the American establishment and presaged current conversations about gender, sexuality, and bodily autonomy. So how did Shere Hite disappear? World Premiere. Available online. Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project / U.S.A. (Directors and Producers: Joe Brewster, Michèle Stephenson, Producer: Tommy Oliver) — Intimate vérité, archival footage, and visually innovative treatments of poetry take us on a journey through the dreamscape of legendary poet Nikki Giovanni as she reflects on her life and legacy. World Premiere. Available online. Going Varsity in Mariachi / U.S.A. (Directors: Alejandra Vasquez, Sam Osborn, Producers: James Lawler, Luis A. Miranda, Jr., Julia Pontecorvo) — In the competitive world of high school mariachi, the musicians from the South Texas borderlands reign supreme. Under the guidance of coach Abel Acuña, the teenage captains of Edinburg North High School’s acclaimed team must turn a shoestring budget and diverse crew of inexperienced musicians into state champions. World Premiere. Available online. Joonam / U.S.A. (Director: Sierra Urich, Producer: Keith Wilson) — Spurred by a provocative family memory and a lifetime of separation from the country her mother left behind, a young filmmaker delves into her mother and grandmother’s complicated pasts and her own fractured Iranian identity. World Premiere. Available online. Little Richard: I Am Everything / U.S.A. (Director and Producer: Lisa Cortés, Producers: Robert Friedman, Liz Yale Marsh, Caryn Capotosto) — This celebration of Little Richard reveals the Black queer origins of rock ’n’ roll, finally exploding the whitewashed canon of American pop music. Through archival and performance footage, the revolutionary icon’s life unspools with all of its switchbacks and contradictions. World Premiere. Available online. Day One Nam June Paik: Moon is the Oldest TV / U.S.A. (Director and Producer: Amanda Kim, Producers: Amy Hobby, David Koh, Mariko Munro, Jennifer Stockman, Jesse Wann) — The quixotic journey of Nam June Paik, one of the most famous Asian artists of the 20th century, who revolutionized the use of technology as an artistic canvas and prophesied both the fascist tendencies and intercultural understanding that would arise from the interconnected metaverse of today’s world. World Premiere. Available online. A Still Small Voice / U.S.A. (Director and Producer: Luke Lorentzen, Producer: Kellen Quinn) — An aspiring hospital chaplain begins a yearlong residency in spiritual care, only to discover that to successfully tend to her patients, she must look deep within herself. World Premiere. Available online. The Stroll / U.S.A. (Directors: Kristen Lovell, Zackary Drucker, Producer: Matt Wolf) — The history of New York’s Meatpacking District, told from the perspective of transgender sex workers who lived and worked there. Filmmaker Kristen Lovell, who walked “The Stroll” for a decade, reunites her community to recount the violence, policing, homelessness, and gentrification they overcame to build a movement for transgender rights. World Premiere. Available online. Victim/Suspect / U.S.A. (Director and Producer: Nancy Schwartzman, Producers: Julie Goldman, Christopher Clements, Alice Henty, Rachel de Leon, Amanda Pike) — Investigative journalist Rae de Leon travels nationwide to uncover and examine a shocking pattern: Young women tell the police they’ve been sexually assaulted, but instead of finding justice, they’re charged with the crime of making a false report, arrested, and even imprisoned by the system they believed would protect them. World Premiere. Available online. World Cinema Dramatic Competition Fiction projects from emerging artists around the world offer fresh perspectives and inventive styles. Films that have premiered in this category in recent years include Brian and Charles, Hive, Luzzu, The Souvenir, The Guilty, Monos, Yardie, The Nile Hilton Incident, and Second Mother. Animalia / France, Morocco, Qatar (Director and Screenwriter: Sofia Alaoui, Producers: Margaux Lorier, Toufik Ayadi, Christophe Barral) — A young, pregnant woman finds emancipation as aliens land in Morocco. Cast: Oumaïma Barid, Mehdi Dehbi, Fouad Oughaou. World Premiere. Available online. Bad Behaviour / New Zealand (Director and Screenwriter: Alice Englert, Producers: Molly Hallam, Desray Armstrong) — Lucy, a former child actor, seeks enlightenment at a retreat led by spiritual leader Elon while she navigates her close yet turbulent relationship with her stunt-performer daughter, Dylan. Cast: Jennifer Connelly, Ben Whishaw, Alice Englert, Ana Scotney, Dasha Nekrasova, Marlon Williams. World Premiere. Available online. Girl / U.K. (Director and Screenwriter: Adura Onashile, Producers: Rosie Crerar, Ciara Barry) — Eleven-year-old Ama and her mother, Grace, take solace in the gentle but isolated world they obsessively create. Ama’s growing up threatens the boundaries of their tenderness and forces Grace to reckon with a past she struggles to forget. Cast: Déborah Lukumuena, Danny Sapani, Le’Shantey Bonsu, Liana Turner. World Premiere. Available online. Heroic / Mexico, Sweden (Director, Screenwriter, and Producer: David Zonana, Producers: Michel Franco, Eréndira Núñez Larios) — Luis, an 18-year-old boy with Indigenous roots, enters the Heroic Military College in hopes of ensuring a better future. There, he encounters a rigid and institutionally violent system designed to turn him into a perfect soldier. Cast: Santiago Sandoval Carbajal, Fernando Cuautle, Mónica del Carmen, Esteban Caicedo, Carlos Gerardo García, Isabel Yudice. World Premiere. Available online. Mamacruz / Spain (Director and Screenwriter: Patricia Ortega, Screenwriter: José Ortuño, Producer: Olmo Figueredo) — With the help of her newly emigrated daughter, a religious grandmother learns how to use the internet. However, an accidental encounter with pornography poses a dilemma for her. Cast: Kiti Mánver. World Premiere. Available online. Mami Wata / Nigeria (Director and Screenwriter: C.J. “Fiery” Obasi, Producer: Oge Obasi) — When the harmony in a village is threatened by outside elements, two sisters must fight to save their people and restore the glory of a mermaid goddess to the land. Cast: Evelyne Ily, Uzoamaka Aniunoh, Kelechi Udegbe, Emeka Amakeze, Rita Edochie, Tough Bone. World Premiere. Available online. La Pecera / Puerto Rico, Spain (Director, Screenwriter, and Producer: Glorimar Marrero Sánchez, Producers: Amaya Izquierdo, José Esteban Alenda) — As her cancer spreads, Noelia’s ultimate decision is to return to her native Vieques, Puerto Rico, and claim her freedom to decide her own fate. She reunites with her friends and family, who are still dealing with the contamination of the U.S. Navy after sixty years of military practices. Cast: Isel Rodríguez, Modesto Lacén, Magali Carrasquillo, Maximiliano Rivas, Anamín Santiago, Idenisse Salamán. World Premiere. Available online. Scrapper / U.K. (Director and Screenwriter: Charlotte Regan, Producer: Theo Barrowclough) — Georgie is a dreamy 12-year-old girl who lives happily alone in her London flat, filling it with magic. Out of nowhere, her estranged father turns up and forces her to confront reality. Cast: Harris Dickinson, Lola Campbell, Alin Uzun, Ambreen Razia, Olivia Brady, Aylin Tezel. World Premiere. Available online. Shayda / Australia (Director, Screenwriter, and Producer: Noora Niasari, Producer: Vincent Sheehan) — Shayda, a brave Iranian mother, finds refuge in an Australian women’s shelter with her 6-year-old daughter. Over Persian New Year, they take solace in Nowruz rituals and new beginnings, but when her estranged husband re-enters their lives, Shayda’s path to freedom is jeopardized. Cast: Zar Amir Ebrahimi, Osamah Sami, Leah Purcell, Jillian Nguyen, Mojean Aria, Selina Zahednia. World Premiere. Available online. Day One Slow / Lithuania, Spain, Sweden (Director and Screenwriter: Marija Kavtaradze, Producer: Marija Razgute) — Dancer Elena and sign language interpreter Dovydas meet and form a beautiful bond. As they dive into a new relationship, they must navigate how to build their own kind of intimacy. Cast: Greta Grinevičiūtė, Kęstutis Cicėnas. World Premiere. Available online. Sorcery / Chile, Mexico, Germany (Director and Screenwriter: Christopher Murray, Screenwriter: Pablo Paredes, Producers: Juan de Dios Larraín, Pablo Larraín, Rocío Jadue, Nicolás Celis) — On the remote island of Chiloé in the late 19th century, an Indigenous girl named Rosa lives and works with her father on a farm. When the foreman brutally turns on Rosa’s father, she sets out for justice, seeking help from the king of a powerful organization of sorcerers. Cast: Valentina Véliz, Daniel Antivilo, Sebastian Hulk, Daniel Muñoz. World Premiere. Available online. When It Melts / Belgium (Director and Screenwriter: Veerle Baetens, Screenwriter: Maarten Loix, Producers: Bart Van Langendonck, Ellen Havenith, Jacques-Henri Bronckart) — Many years after a sweltering summer that spun out of control, Eva returns to the village she grew up in with an ice block in the back of her car. In the dead of winter, she confronts her past and faces up to her tormentors. Cast: Charlotte De Bruyne, Rosa Marchant. World Premiere. Available online. World Cinema Documentary Competition Documentaries by some of the boldest global filmmakers capturing the world today. Films that have premiered in this category in recent years include All That Breathes, Flee, Honeyland, Sea of Shadows, Shirkers, This Is Home, Last Men in Aleppo, and Hooligan Sparrow. 5 Seasons of Revolution / Germany, Syria, Netherlands, Norway (Director: Lina, Producer: Diana El Jeiroudi) — An aspiring video journalist in her 20s finds herself already facing self-reckoning. Born in Damascus, Syria, Lina starts to report on the events around her until she is compelled to become a war reporter and, later, the unexpected narrator of her own destiny. World Premiere. Available online. 20 Days in Mariupol / Ukraine (Director and Producer: Mstyslav Chernov, Producers: Michelle Mizner, Raney Aronson-Rath, Derl McCrudden) — As the Russian invasion begins, a team of Ukrainian journalists trapped in the besieged city of Mariupol struggle to continue their work documenting the war’s atrocities. World Premiere. Available online. Against the Tide / India (Director and Producer: Sarvnik Kaur, Producer: Koval Bhatia) — Two friends, both Indigenous fishermen, are driven to desperation by a dying sea. Their friendship begins to fracture as they take very different paths to provide for their struggling families. World Premiere. Available online. The Eternal Memory / Chile (Director and Producer: Maite Alberdi, Producers: Juan de Dios Larraín, Pablo Larraín, Rocío Jadue) — Augusto and Paulina have been together for 25 years. Eight years ago, he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Both fear the day he no longer recognizes her. World Premiere. Available online. Fantastic Machine / Sweden, Denmark (Directors and Producers: Axel Danielson, Maximilien Van Aertryck) — From the first camera to 45 billion cameras worldwide today, the visual sociologist filmmakers widen their lens to expose both humanity’s unique obsession with the camera’s image and the social consequences that lay ahead. World Premiere. Available online. Iron Butterflies / Ukraine, Germany (Director: Roman Liubyi, Producers: Andrii Kotliar, Volodymyr Tykhyy, David Armati Lechner, Isabelle Bertolone, Trini Götze) — In summer 2014, sunflower fields and coal mines in eastern Ukraine turned into a 12 square kilometer crime scene. A multi-layered investigation into the downing of flight MH17, in which a butterfly-shaped shrapnel was found in the pilot’s body, implicated the state responsible for a war crime that remains unpunished. World Premiere. Available online. Is There Anybody Out There? / U.K. (Director: Ella Glendining, Producer: Janine Marmot) — While navigating daily discrimination, a filmmaker who inhabits and loves her unusual body searches the world for another person like her, and explores what it takes to love oneself fiercely despite the pervasiveness of ableism. World Premiere. Available online. The Longest Goodbye / Israel, Canada (Director and Producer: Ido Mizrahy, Producers: Nir Sa’ar, Paul Cadieux) — Social isolation affects millions of people, even Mars-bound astronauts. A savvy NASA psychologist is tasked with protecting these daring explorers. World Premiere. Available online. Day One Milisuthando / South Africa (Director and Screenwriter: Milisuthando Bongela, Producer: Marion Isaacs) — Set in past, present, and future South Africa — an invitation into a poetic, memory-driven exploration of love, intimacy, race, and belonging by the filmmaker, who grew up during apartheid but didn’t know it was happening until it was over. World Premiere. Available online. Pianoforte / Poland (Director: Jakub Piątek, Producer: Maciej Kubicki) — Young pianists take part in the legendary International Chopin Piano Competition. A unique chance of a lifetime, portrayed from backstage and set to Chopin’s music. World Premiere. Available online. Smoke Sauna Sisterhood / Estonia, France, Iceland (Director: Anna Hints, Producer: Marianne Ostrat) — In the darkness of a smoke sauna, women share their innermost secrets and intimate experiences, washing off the shame trapped in their bodies and regaining their strength through a sense of communion. World Premiere. Available online. Twice Colonized / Greenland, Denmark, Canada (Director: Lin Alluna, Producers: Emile Hertling Péronard, Alethea Arnaquq-Baril, Stacey Aglok MacDonald, Bob Moore) — Renowned Inuit lawyer Aaju Peter has long fought for the rights of her people. When her son suddenly dies, Aaju embarks on a journey to reclaim her language and culture after a lifetime of whitewashing and forced assimilation. But can she both change the world and mend her own wounds? World Premiere. Available online. Next Visionary works distinguished by an innovative, forward-thinking approach to storytelling populate this program. Films that have premiered in this category in recent years include A Love Song, Riotsville, USA, The Infiltrators, Searching, Skate Kitchen, A Ghost Story, and Tangerine. Next is presented by Adobe. Bravo, Burkina! / U.S.A. (Director, Screenwriter, and Producer: Walé Oyéjidé, Producers: Giulia Alagna, Heather Barnes) — A Burkinabé boy flees his village and migrates to Italy. When disillusioned by heartbreak and haunted by memories of home, he travels through time in hope of regaining all he has lost. Cast: Alain Tiendrebeogo, Mousty Mbaye, Noel Minougou, Aissata Deme, Afissatou Coulibaly. World Premiere. Fiction. Available online. Divinity / U.S.A. (Director, Screenwriter, and Producer: Eddie Alcazar, Producer: Steven Soderbergh) — Two mysterious brothers abduct a mogul during his quest for immortality. Meanwhile, a seductive woman helps them launch a journey of self-discovery. Cast: Stephen Dorff, Moises Arias, Jason Genao, Karrueche Tran, Bella Thorne, Scott Bakula. World Premiere. Fiction. Available online. Fremont / U.S.A. (Director and Screenwriter: Babak Jalali, Screenwriter: Carolina Cavalli, Producers: Marjaneh Moghimi, Sudnya Shroff, Rachael Fung, George Rush, Chris Martin, Laura Wagner) — Donya works for a Chinese fortune cookie factory in San Francisco. Formerly a translator for the U.S. military in Afghanistan, she struggles to put her life back in order. In a moment of sudden revelation, she decides to send out a special message in a cookie. Cast: Anaita Wali Zada, Jeremy Allen White, Gregg Turkington. World Premiere. Fiction. Available online. Kim’s Video / U.S.A. (Directors, Screenwriters, and Producers: David Redmon, Ashley Sabin, Producers: Deborah Smith, Dale Smith, Francesco Galavotti, Rebecca Tabasky) — Playing with the forms and tropes of various cinema genres, the filmmaker sets off on a quest to find a legendary lost video collection of 55,000 movies in Sicily. World Premiere. Documentary. Available online. Day One King Coal / U.S.A. (Director and Producer: Elaine McMillion Sheldon, Producers: Shane Boris, Diane Becker, Peggy Drexler) — The cultural roots of coal continue to permeate the rituals of daily life in Appalachia even as its economic power wanes. The journey of a coal miner’s daughter exploring the region’s dreams and myths, untangling the pain and beauty, as her community sits on the brink of massive change. World Premiere. Documentary. Available online. Kokomo City / U.S.A. (Director and Producer: D. Smith, Producers: Harris Doran, Bill Butler) — Four Black transgender sex workers explore the dichotomy between the Black community and themselves, while confronting issues long avoided. World Premiere. Documentary. Available online. To Live and Die and Live / U.S.A. (Director, Screenwriter, and Producer: Qasim Basir, Producers: Nina Yang Bongiovi, Forest Whitaker, Amin Joseph, Dana Offenbach, Samantha Basir) — Muhammad returns home to Detroit to bury his stepfather and is thrust into settling his accounts, but Muhammad’s struggles with depression and addiction may finish him before he finishes the task. Cast: Amin Joseph, Skye P. Marshall, Omari Hardwick, Cory Hardrict, Dana Gourrier, Maryam Basir. World Premiere. Fiction. Available online. The Tuba Thieves / U.S.A. (Director, Screenwriter, and Producer: Alison O’Daniel, Producer: Rachel Nederveld, Wendy Ettinger, Maida Lynn, Su Kim, Maya E. Rudolph) — From 2011 to 2013, tubas were stolen from Los Angeles high schools. This is not a story about thieves or missing tubas. Instead, it asks what it means to listen. World Premiere. Documentary. Available online. Young. Wild. Free. / U.S.A (Director: Thembi L. Banks, Screenwriters: Juel Taylor, Tony Rettenmaier, Producers: Charles D. King, James Lopez, Poppy Hanks, Tommy Oliver, Baron Davis, Tracy “Twinkie” Byrd) — High school senior Brandon is drowning in responsibilities when his world is turned upside down after being robbed at gunpoint by the girl of his dreams. Cast: Algee Smith, Sanaa Lathan, Sierra Capri, Mike Epps. World Premiere. Fiction. Available online. Midnight From horror and comedy to works that defy genre classification, these films will keep you wide awake, even at the most arduous hour. Films that have premiered in this category in recent years include Fresh, Hereditary, Mandy, Relic, Assassination Nation, and The Babadook. birth/rebirth / U.S.A. (Director and Screenwriter: Laura Moss, Screenwriter: Brendan J. O’Brien, Producers: Mali Elfman, David Grove Churchill Viste) — A single mother and a childless morgue technician are bound together by their relationship to a little girl they have reanimated from the dead. Cast: Marin Ireland, Judy Reyes, A.J. Lister, Breeda Wool. World Premiere. Fiction. Day One In My Mother’s Skin / Philippines (Director and Screenwriter: Kenneth Dagatan, Producers: Bradley Liew, Bianca Balbuena, Huang Junxiang, Stefano Centini) — Stranded in the Philippines during World War II, a young girl finds that her duty to protect her dying mother is complicated by her misplaced trust in a beguiling, flesh-eating fairy. Cast: Beauty Gonzalez, Felicity Kyle Napuli, Jasmine Curtis-Smith, James Mavie Estrella, Angeli Bayani. World Premiere. Fiction. Infinity Pool / Canada (Director and Screenwriter: Brandon Cronenberg, Producers: Karen Harnisch, Andrew Cividino, Christian Piovesan, Noah Segal, Rob Cotterill, Anita Juka) — James and Em are enjoying an all-inclusive beach vacation when a fatal accident exposes the resort’s perverse subculture of hedonistic tourism, reckless violence, and surreal horrors. Cast: Alexander Skarsgård, Mia Goth, Cleopatra Coleman. World Premiere. Fiction. My Animal / Canada (Director: Jacqueline Castel, Screenwriter: Jae Matthews, Producers: Andrew Bronfman, Michael Solomon) — Heather, an outcast teenage goalie in a small northern town, falls for newcomer Jonny, an alluring but tormented figure skater. As their relationship deepens, Heather’s growing desires clash with her darkest secret, forcing her to control the animal within. Cast: Bobbi Salvör Menuez, Amandla Stenberg, Stephen McHattie, Heidi von Palleske, Cory Lipman, Joe Apollonio. World Premiere. Fiction. Onyx the Fortuitous and the Talisman of Souls / U.S.A. (Director, Screenwriter, and Producer: Andrew Bowser, Producers: Clark Baker, Michael Mobley, Olivia Taylor Dudley) — Onyx joins a group of fellow occultists to attend a dark ritual at the mansion of their idol, Bartok. Suspecting Bartok’s nefarious intentions, Onyx is suddenly immersed in a world of monsters, mystery, and mayhem. Cast: Andrew Bowser, Olivia Taylor Dudley, Jeffrey Combs, Ralph Ineson, Rivkah Reyes, T.C. Carson. World Premiere. Fiction. Available online. Polite Society / U.K. (Director and Screenwriter: Nida Manzoor, Producers: Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Olivier Kaempfer, John Pocock) — Aspiring martial artist Ria Khan believes she must save her older sister, Lena, from her impending marriage. With the help of her friends, Ria attempts to pull off the most ambitious of all wedding heists in the name of independence and sisterhood. Cast: Priya Kansara, Ritu Arya, Nimra Bucha, Akshay Khanna, Seraphina Beh, Ella Bruccoleri. World Premiere. Fiction. Run Rabbit Run / Australia (Director: Daina Reid, Screenwriter: Hannah Kent, Producers: Sarah Shaw, Anna McLeish) — As a fertility doctor, Sarah has a firm understanding of the cycle of life. However, when she is forced to make sense of the increasingly strange behavior of her young daughter, Sarah must challenge her own beliefs and confront a ghost from her past. Cast: Sarah Snook, Lily Latorre, Damon Herriman, Greta Scacchi. World Premiere. Fiction. Available online. Day One Talk to Me / Australia (Director and Screenwriter: Danny Philippou, Director: Michael Philippou, Screenwriter: Bill Hinzman, Producers: Samantha Jennings, Kristina Ceyton) — When a group of friends discover how to conjure spirits using an ancient embalmed hand, they become hooked on the new thrill. Until one of them goes too far and opens the door to the spirit world. Cast: Sophie Wilde, Miranda Otto, Alexandra Jensen, Joe Bird, Zoe Terakes, Otis Dhanji. International Premiere. Fiction. Premieres A showcase of world premieres of some of the most highly anticipated fiction and documentary films of the coming year. Fiction films that have screened in Premieres include Good Luck to You, Leo Grande, Promising Young Woman, Kajillionaire,The Report, Late Night, and The Big Sick. Past documentary films include The Dissident, Lucy and Desi, On the Record, and Miss Americana. Cassandro / U.S.A (Director and Screenwriter: Roger Ross Williams, Screenwriters: David Teague, Julián Herbert, Producers: Gerardo Gatica, Todd Black, David Bloomfield, Ted Hope, Julie Goldman) — Saúl Armendáriz, a gay amateur wrestler from El Paso, rises to international stardom after he creates the character Cassandro, the “Liberace of Lucha Libre.” In the process, he upends not just the macho wrestling world, but also his own life. Cast: Gael García Bernal, Roberta Colindrez, Perla De La Rosa, Joaquín Cosío, Raúl Castillo. World Premiere. Fiction. Cat Person / France, U.S.A (Director: Susanna Fogel, Screenwriter: Michelle Ashford, Producers: Helen Estabrook, Jeremy Steckler) — College student Margot meets 33-year-old Robert at the movie theater where she works. After a casual flirtation at the concession stand, they carry on conversations through texts. As their perceptions of each other collide, events spiral out of control. Based on The New Yorker short story by Kristen Roupenian. Cast: Emilia Jones, Nicholas Braun, Geraldine Viswanathan, Hope Davis, Fred Melamed, Isabella Rossellini. World Premiere. Fiction. Available online. Deep Rising / U.S.A (Director and Producer: Matthieu Rytz) — The fate of the planet’s last untouched wilderness, the deep ocean, is under threat as a secretive organization is about to allow massive extraction of seabed metals to address the world’s energy crisis. Narrated by Jason Momoa. World Premiere. Documentary. The Deepest Breath / U.K, Ireland (Director and Screenwriter: Laura McGann, Producers: John Battsek, Sarah Thomson, Jamie D’Alton, Anne McLoughlin) — A champion freediver and expert safety diver seemed destined for one another despite the different paths they took to meet at the pinnacle of the freediving world. A look at the thrilling rewards — and inescapable risks — of chasing dreams through the depths of the ocean. World Premiere. Documentary. Drift / France, U.K, Greece (Director and Producer: Anthony Chen, Screenwriters: Susanne Farrell, Alexander Maksik, Producers: Peter Spears, Emilie Georges, Naima Abed, Cynthia Erivo, Solome Williams) — Jacqueline, a young refugee, lands alone and penniless on a Greek island where she tries to survive, then to cope with her past. While gathering her strength, she begins a friendship with a rootless tour guide and together they find the resilience to forge ahead. Cast: Cynthia Erivo, Alia Shawkat, Ibrahima Ba, Honor Swinton Byrne, Zainab Jah, Suzy Bemba. World Premiere. Fiction. Eileen / U.S.A (Director and Producer: William Oldroyd, Screenwriters and Producers: Luke Goebel, Ottessa Moshfegh, Producers: Anthony Bregman, Stefanie Azpiazu, Peter Cron) — Set during a bitter 1964 Massachusetts winter, young secretary Eileen becomes enchanted by the glamorous new counselor at the prison where she works. Their budding friendship takes a twisted turn when Rebecca reveals a dark secret — throwing Eileen onto a sinister path. Based on Ottessa Moshfegh’s award-winning novel. Cast: Thomasin McKenzie, Anne Hathaway, Shea Whigham, Marin Ireland, Owen Teague. World Premiere. Fiction. Fairyland / U.S.A (Director, Screenwriter, and Producer: Andrew Durham, Producers: Sofia Coppola, Megan Carlson, Siena Oberman, Greg Lauritano, Laure Sudreau) — Set against the backdrop of San Francisco’s vibrant cultural scene in the 1970s and ’80s, chronicling a father-daughter relationship as it evolves from an era of bohemian decadence to the heartbreaking AIDS crisis. Based on the best-selling memoir Fairyland: A Memoir of My Father by Alysia Abbott. Cast: Scoot McNairy, Emilia Jones, Geena Davis, Cody Fern, Adam Lambert, Maria Bakalova. World Premiere. Fiction. Food and Country / U.S.A (Director and Producer: Laura Gabbert, Producers: Ruth Reichl, Paula P. Manzanedo, Caroline Libresco) — America’s policy of producing cheap food at all costs has long hobbled small independent farmers, ranchers, and chefs. Worried for their survival, trailblazing food writer Ruth Reichl reaches out across political and social divides to uncover the country’s broken food system and the innovators risking it all to transform it. World Premiere. Documentary. Available online. Invisible Beauty / U.S.A (Directors: Bethann Hardison, Frédéric Tcheng, Producer: Lisa Cortés) — Fashion revolutionary Bethann Hardison looks back on her journey as a pioneering Black model, modeling agent, and activist, shining a light on an untold chapter in the fight for racial diversity. World Premiere. Documentary. It’s Only Life After All / U.S.A (Director and Producer: Alexandria Bombach, Producers: Kathlyn Horan, Jess Devaney, Anya Rous) — Blending 40 years of home movies, film archives, and intimate present-day vérité, a poignant reflection from Amy Ray and Emily Saliers of iconic folk rock duo Indigo Girls. A timely look into the obstacles, activism, and life lessons of two queer friends who never expected to make it big. World Premiere. Documentary. Day One Jamojaya / U.S.A (Director, Screenwriter, and Producer: Justin Chon, Screenwriter: Maegan Houang, Producers: Alan Pao, David Matheny, Joseph Dang, Alex Chi, Yama Cibulka, Shaun Sanghani) — A father-son relationship is put to the test when an up-and-coming rapper at the crossroads of his career decides to let go of his manager, who is also his father. This decision forces them to confront the past and figure out what they want of each other. Cast: Brian Imanuel, Yayu A.W. Unru, Kate Lyn Sheil, Henry Ian Cusick, Anthony Kiedis. World Premiere. Fiction. Available online. Judy Blume Forever / U.S.A (Directors and Producers: Davina Pardo, Leah Wolchok, Producers: Sara Bernstein, Justin Wilkes, Marcella Steingart) — The radical honesty of the books by young adult fiction pioneer Judy Blume changed the way millions of readers understood themselves, their sexuality, and what it meant to grow up, but also led to critical battles against book banning and censorship. World Premiere. Documentary. Landscape With Invisible Hand / U.S.A (Director and Screenwriter: Cory Finley, Producers: Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner) — When Earth is taken over by aliens who control the economy, a pair of teenagers come up with a plan to save their family. Cast: Tiffany Haddish, Asante Blackk, Kylie Rogers, Josh Hamilton, Michael Gandolfini, William Jackson Harper. World Premiere. Fiction. A Little Prayer / U.S.A (Director, Screenwriter, and Producer: Angus MacLachlan, Producers: Lauren Vilchik, Max A. Butler) — In the South, a man tests the limits of patriarchal interference to protect his daughter-in-law when he discovers that his son is having an affair. Cast: David Strathairn, Jane Levy, Celia Weston, Will Pullen, Anna Camp, Dascha Polanco. World Premiere. Fiction. Available online. Murder in Big Horn / U.S.A (Director and Producer: Razelle Benally, Director: Matthew Galkin, Producers: Ivan Macdonald, Ivy Macdonald) — The deaths of a group of Native American women in rural Montana are the focus as Native families, journalists, and local law enforcement reveal a violent crisis set in motion almost 200 years ago. World Premiere. Documentary. Available online. Passages / France (Director and Screenwriter: Ira Sachs, Screenwriter: Mauricio Zacharias, Producers: Saïd Ben Saïd, Michel Merkt) — An intimate examination of attraction and emotional abuse between men and women. Cast: Franz Rogowski, Ben Whishaw, Adèle Exarchopoulos. World Premiere. Fiction. Plan C / U.S.A (Director and Producer: Tracy Droz Tragos) — A hidden grassroots organization doggedly fights to expand access to abortion pills across the United States keeping hope alive during a global pandemic and the fall of Roe v. Wade. World Premiere. Documentary. The Pod Generation / Belgium, France, U.K (Director and Screenwriter: Sophie Barthes, Producers: Geneviève Lemal, Yann Zenou, Nadia Kamlichi, Martin Metz) — In a not-so-distant future, amid a society madly in love with technology, tech giant Pegazus offers couples the opportunity to share their pregnancies via detachable artificial wombs or pods. And so begins Rachel and Alvy’s wild ride to parenthood in this brave new world. Cast: Emilia Clarke, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Rosalie Craig, Vinette Robinson, Jean-Marc Barr. World Premiere. Fiction. Day One Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields / U.S.A (Director: Lana Wilson, Producers: Christine O’Malley, Jack Turner) — A galvanizing look at actor, model, and icon Brooke Shields as she transforms from sexualized young girl to a woman discovering her power. Holding a mirror up to a society that objectifies women and girls, her story shows the perils and triumphs of gaining agency in a hostile world. World Premiere. Documentary. Radical / U.S.A (Director and Screenwriter: Christopher Zalla, Producers: Ben Odell, Eugenio Derbez, Joshua Davis) — In a Mexican border town plagued by neglect, corruption, and violence, a frustrated teacher tries a radical new method to break through his students’ apathy and unlock their curiosity, their potential… and maybe even their genius. Based on a true story. Cast: Eugenio Derbez, Daniel Haddad, Jenifer Trejo, Mia Fernanda Solis, Danilo Guardiola. World Premiere. Fiction. Day One Rotting in the Sun / U.S.A (Director and Screenwriter: Sebastian Silva, Screenwriter: Pedro Peirano, Producer: Jacob Wasserman) — After filmmaker Sebastian Silva goes missing in Mexico City, social media celebrity Jordan Firstman begins searching for him, suspecting that the cleaning lady in Sebastian’s building may have something to do with his disappearance. Cast: Jordan Firstman, Catalina Saavedra, Sebastian Silva. World Premiere. Fiction. Rye Lane / U.K (Director: Raine Allen-Miller, Screenwriters: Nathan Bryon, Tom Melia, Producers: Yvonne Isimeme Ibazebo, Damian Jones) — Two twenty-somethings reeling from bad breakups deal with their nightmare exes and connect over the course of an eventful day in South London. Cast: David Jonsson, Vivian Oparah. World Premiere. Fiction. Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie / U.S.A (Director and Producer: Davis Guggenheim, Producers: Jonathan King, Annetta Marion, Will Cohen) — The improbable tale of a short kid from a Canadian army base who became the darling of 1980s Hollywood — only to find the course of his life altered by a stunning diagnosis. What happens when an incurable optimist confronts an incurable disease? World Premiere. Documentary. You Hurt My Feelings / U.S.A (Director and Screenwriter: Nicole Holofcener, Producers: Stefanie Azpiazu, Anthony Bregman) — A novelist’s longstanding marriage is suddenly upended when she overhears her husband giving his honest reaction to her latest book. Cast: Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Tobias Menzies, Michaela Watkins, Owen Teague, Arian Moayed. World Premiere. Fiction. New Frontier Films New Frontier champions artists who engage in experimental storytelling at the crossroads of film, art, performance, and media technology, showcasing cutting-edge work that explores and evolves cinema culture in today’s rapidly changing landscape. New Frontier is presently in a process of reimagination. This year, we return to our roots to offer a lineup of resonant experimental films. A Common Sequence / U.S.A (Directors and Producers: Mary Helena Clark and Mike Gibisser, Producer: Graciela Guerrero-Reyes) — An interconnected look at tradition, colonialism, property, faith, and science, as seen through labor practices that link an endangered salamander, mass-produced apples, and the evolving fields of genomics and machine learning. World Premiere. Documentary. Available online. Gush / U.S.A (Director, Screenwriter, and Producer: Fox Maxy) — An embodied rumination of both male and female power, healing and haunting, all within an apocalyptic world. A transformation that courses through unknown terror to untamed collective joy. Cast: Michel Sayegh, Ruth Fish, Sergio Mejia, Littlebear Sanchez, No’aash Iswut Peltier, Suavitel Paper. World Premiere. Fiction. Available online. Last Things / U.S.A, Portugal, France (Director, Screenwriter, and Producer: Deborah Stratman, Producers: Anže Peržin, Gaëlle Boucand) — Evolution and extinction from the point of view of rocks. A humid take on minerals, where sci-fi meets sci-fact. The geo-biosphere is a place of evolutionary possibility, where humans disappear but life endures. World Premiere. Documentary. Available online. Spotlight A tribute to the cinema we love from throughout the past year. Films that have played in this category in recent years include The Worst Person in the World, The Biggest Little Farm, Birds of Passage, The Rider, Ida, and The Lobster. The Eight Mountains / Italy and Belgium (Directors and Screenwriters: Felix van Groeningen, Charlotte Vandermeersch, Producers: Mario Gianani, Lorenzo Gangarossa) — Pietro spends his childhood summers in the same secluded Italian mountain village where Bruno was raised, in which they form a decades-long friendship. Over the years, their paths diverge as Bruno remains faithful to the mountain while Pietro comes and goes from the city. Cast: Luca Marinelli, Alessandro Borghi, Filippo Timi, Elena Lietti. Fiction. Available online. L’Immensità / Italy (Director and Screenwriter: Emanuele Crialese, Screenwriter: Francesca Manieri, Vittorio Moroni, Producer: Lorenzo Gangarossa, Mario Gianani — Clara has relocated to Rome with Felice and their three children. From their new apartment, Clara sees a city in transition: an old society washed away by an emerging middle class. The paint is fresh, the appliances are new, but expectations around family, desire, and gender remain traditional as ever. Cast: Penélope Cruz, Vincenzo Amato, Luana Giuliani, Patrizio Francioni, Maria Chiara Gorett, Penelope Nieto Conti. North American Premiere. Fiction. Available online. Day One Joyland / Pakistan (Director and Screenwriter: Saim Sadiq, Producers: Apoorva Guru Charan, Sarmad Sultan Khoosat, Sabiha Sumar, Lauren Mann) — As the Ranas, a happily patriarchal joint family, yearn for the birth of a baby boy to continue the family line, their youngest son secretly joins an erotic dance theater and falls for an ambitious trans starlet. Their impossible love story illuminates the entire family’s desire for a sexual rebellion. Cast: Ali Junejo, Rasti Farooq, Alina Khan, Sarwat Gilani, Sania Saeed, Salmaan Peerzada. Fiction. Available online. Other People’s Children / France (Director and Screenwriter: Rebecca Zlotowski, Producers: Frederic Jouve, Marie Lecoq — Rachel is 40 years old with no children. She loves her life: her high school students, her friends, her guitar lessons. When she falls in love with Ali, she becomes attached to Leila, his 4-year-old daughter. She loves her like her own, but to love other people’s children is risky. Cast: Virginie Efira, Roschdy Zem, Chiara Mastroianni, Callie Ferreira-Goncalves, Yamée Couture, Michel Zlotowski. U.S. Premiere. Fiction. Available online. Squaring the Circle (The Story of Hipgnosis) / U.K. (Director: Anton Corbijn, Screenwriter, and Producer: Trish D Chetty, Producers: Ged Doherty, Colin Firth) — An inside look at the studio responsible for some of the most iconic and recognizable album covers of all time. From Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side of the Moon to Led Zeppelin’s Houses of the Holy, the studio ruled the ’70s. Documentary. Available online. Kids This section of the Festival is especially for our youngest independent film fans. Films that have played in this category in recent years include The Elephant Queen, Science Fair, My Life as a Zucchini, The Eagle Huntress, and Shaun the Sheep. Aliens Abducted My Parents and Now I Feel Kinda Left Out / U.S.A. (Director and Producer: Jake Van Wagoner, Screenwriter and Producer: Austin Everett, Producers: Micah Merrill, Maclain Nelson, Jeremy Prusso) — Itsy is new in town and her life seems over until she meets her space-obsessed neighbor Calvin, who believes his parents were abducted by aliens. An aspiring journalist, Itsy decides to write an exposé on Calvin but ends up discovering much more. Cast: Emma Tremblay, Jacob Buster, Will Forte, Elizabeth Mitchell, Kenneth Cummins, Matt Biedel. World Premiere. Fiction. Available online. The Amazing Maurice / Germany, U.K. (Director: Toby Genkel, Screenwriter: Terry Rossio, Producers: Emely Christians, Andrew Baker, Robert Chandler) — A streetwise cat and his gang of rats who come up with a perfect money-making scheme. Based on the novel The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents by Sir Terry Pratchett. Cast: Hugh Laurie, Emilia Clarke, Himesh Patel, Gemma Arterton. North American Premiere. Fiction. Available online. Blueback / Australia (Director, Screenwriter, and Producer: Robert Connolly, Producers: Liz Kearney, James Grandison) — An intimate mother-daughter relationship is forged by the women’s keen desire to protect the inhabitants of the pristine blue oceans on the Australian coast where they live. Adapted from Tim Winton’s bestselling and critically acclaimed novella. Cast: Mia Wasikowska, Eric Bana, Radha Mitchell, Ilsa Fogg, Liz Alexander, Ariel Donoghue. U.S. Premiere. Fiction. Salt Lake City Opening Night Gala Film The Sundance Film Festival® The Sundance Film Festival, a program of the nonprofit, Sundance Institute, is the pre-eminent gathering of original storytellers and audiences seeking new voices and fresh perspectives. Since 1985, hundreds of films launched at the Festival have gone on to gain critical acclaim and reach new audiences worldwide. The Festival has introduced some of the most groundbreaking films and episodic works of the past three decades, including Fire of Love, Cha Cha Real Smooth, Flee, Coda, Passing, Summer Of Soul (…or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised), Clemency, Never Rarely Sometimes Always, Zola, O.J.: Made in America, On The Record, Boys State, The Farewell, Honeyland, One Child Nation, The Souvenir, The Infiltrators, Sorry to Bother You, Top of the Lake, Won’t You Be My Neighbor?, Hereditary, Call Me By Your Name, Get Out, The Big Sick, Mudbound, Fruitvale Station, Whiplash, Brooklyn, Precious, The Cove, Little Miss Sunshine, An Inconvenient Truth, Napoleon Dynamite, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Reservoir Dogs and sex, lies, and videotape. The program consists of fiction and nonfiction features and short films, series and episodic content, emerging media, and performances, as well as conversations, and other events. The Festival takes place both in person in the state of Utah and online, connecting audiences across the U.S. to bold new artists and films. The 2023 Festival takes place January 19–29. Be a part of the Festival at Sundance Film Festival and follow the Festival at Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube. The Festival is a program of the nonprofit Sundance Institute. To date, 2023 Festival sponsors include: Presenting Sponsors – Acura, AMC+, Chase Sapphire®, Adobe; Leadership Sponsors – Audible, Directv, Netflix, Omnicom Group, Shutterstock, Stacy’s Pita Chips, United Airlines, Xrm Media; Sustaining Sponsors – Canada Goose, Canon U.S.A., Inc., DoorDash, Dropbox, World of Hyatt®, IMDb, Lyft, MacRo, Rabbit Hole Bourbon & Rye, Stanley, University of Utah Health, White Claw Hard Seltzer; Media Sponsors – IndieWire, Los Angeles Times, NPR, Variety, Vulture, The Wall Street Journal. Sundance Institute recognizes critical support from the State of Utah as Festival Host State. The support of these organizations helps offset the Festival’s costs and sustain the Institute’s year-round programs for independent artists. festival.sundance.org Sundance Institute As a champion and curator of independent stories, the nonprofit Sundance Institute provides and preserves the space for artists across storytelling media to create and thrive. Founded in 1981 by Robert Redford, the Institute’s signature Labs, granting, and mentorship programs, dedicated to developing new work, take place throughout the year in the U.S. and internationally. Sundance Collab, a digital community platform, brings a global cohort of working artists together to learn from each other and Sundance Advisors and connect in a creative space, developing and sharing works in progress. The Sundance Film Festival and other public programs connect audiences and artists to ignite new ideas, discover original voices, and build a community dedicated to independent storytelling. Sundance Institute has supported and showcased such projects as Summer of Soul (…or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised), Coda, Flee, Passing, Clemency, Never Rarely Sometimes Always, Zola, On The Record, Boys State, The Farewell, Honeyland, One Child Nation, The Souvenir, The Infiltrators, Sorry to Bother You, Won’t You Be My Neighbor?, Hereditary, Call Me By Your Name, Get Out, The Big Sick, Mudbound, Fruitvale Station, City So Real, Top of the Lake, Between the World & Me, Wild Goose Dreams and Fun Home. Join Sundance Institute on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube. # # # Editor Note: Director Demographics The data we are sharing reflects information provided directly by the artists. Some artists chose not to self-identify in all data areas. U.S. Competition: Dramatic: 61% or 8 of the 13 directors in this year’s U.S. Dramatic Competition identify as women; 61% or 8 of the 13 identify as people of color; 23% or 3 of the 13 identify as LGBTQ+. Documentary: 63% or 10 of the 16 directors in this year’s U.S. Documentary Competition identify as women; 63% or 10 of the 16 identify as people of color; 13% or 2 of the 16 identify as LGBTQ+; 6% or 1 of the 16 identify as a person with a disability. World Competition: Dramatic: 58% or 7 of the 12 directors in the World Dramatic Competition identify as women; 50% or 6 of the 12 identify as people of color; 25% or 3 out of 12 directors identify as LGBTQ+. Documentary: 46% or 6 of the 13 directors in the World Documentary Competition identify as women; 38% or 5 of the 13 as people of color; 23% or 3 of the 13 identify as LGBTQ+; 8% or 1 of the 13 identify as a person with a disability. Feature Film Submissions: Of the 4,061 feature film submissions, 1,662 were from the U.S. and 2,399 were international; 1,105 (27%) were directed by one or more filmmakers who identify as women; 91 (2%) were directed by one or more filmmakers who identify as nonbinary individuals; 1,676 (41%) were directed by one or more filmmakers who identify as people of color; 547 (13%) were directed by one or more filmmakers who identify as LGBTQ+. All Features: Of the 101 feature films announced so far, 54 (53%) were directed by one or more filmmakers who identify as women; 5 (5%) were directed by one or more filmmakers who identify as nonbinary individuals; 46 (45%) were directed by one or more filmmakers who identify as people of color; 20 (20%) by one or more filmmakers who identify as LGBTQ+; 3 (3%) by one or more filmmakers who identifies as a person with a disability.

When the 2023 Sundance began on Thursday evening, there was a giddiness in the air after two years of virtual festivals. For filmmakers and audiences, it was thrilling just to be back in crowded theaters to watch movies and bask in the Sundance buzz that, let’s face it, makes a lot of indie films look better at 6,900 feet than they will at sea level.

Sustaining the giddiness is, of course, more difficult than getting there in the first place. So as the delayed-gratification Sundance’s opening weekend nears its conclusion, it’s hard not to acknowledge that the initial rejoicing also required ignoring the fact that the movie business itself has been rocked, with theaters closing and box-office numbers still far from pre-covid numbers. And, oh yes, covid is still with us.

“It is a tough time. I don’t know where these small films go,” said Bob Berney, a...

On Sunday, January 22, producers came together in person to honor 2023 festival filmmakers and their films, highlighting the role of the independent producer at the Sundance Producers Celebration.

This annual event, sponsored by Amazon Studios and hosted by the Sundance Producers Program, shined a light on the 2022-2023 Sundance Institute Producing Fellows, featured a keynote address by producers Heather Rae and Nina Yang Bongiovi, and presented the 2023 Sundance Institute | Amazon Studios Producers Awards. The award honors two producers with films at this year’s festival for their body of work. IndieWire shares the keynote exclusively below.

Jess Devaney/Multitude Films (“It’s Only Life After All” and “Milisuthando”) received the 2023 Amazon Studios Nonfiction Producers Award, while Kara Durrett (“The Starling Girl”) received the 2023 Amazon Studios Fiction Producers Award.

Nina Yang Bongiovi: We want to thank the team at Sundance – Michelle Satter, Shira Rockowitz, Kristin Feeley, for having Heather and I keynote the Producers Celebration!

Fair Play Image: Courtesy of Sundance Film Festival Snow is falling gently on Park City, Utah, in the opening days of the Sundance Film Festival. The 2023 iteration of everyone’s favorite indie fest is a particularly special one, after online-only versions in 2021 and 2022. In person and virtually, The A.V. Club...