AFI FEST 2026 PRESENTED BY CANVA UNVEILS FULL LINEUP
New Works from Lee Chang-dong, Quentin Dupieux, Asghar Farhadi, Ryûsuke Hamaguchi, Werner Herzog, Marie Kreutzer, Mike Leigh, Hong Sang-soo and Céline Sciamma
Impressive Lineup Includes 157 Films from 50 Countries with 10 Best International Feature Oscar® Submissions
The American Film Institute (AFI) today announced the complete lineup for AFI FEST 2026 presented by Canva, taking place in Hollywood from October 21 to 25. Passes are available at FEST.AFI.com.
This year’s festival presents 157 films across 5 Red Carpet Premieres, 12 Special Screenings, 13 Luminaries selections, 18 Discovery titles, 16 World Cinema selections, 17 documentaries, 3 After Dark films, 4 Guest Artistic Director presentations, 45 films in the Short Film Competition, and 24 films from the AFI Conservatory Showcase presented by AMC Global Media. Of the official selections, 45% are directed by women and 32% are directed by BIPOC filmmakers.
Rounding out the impressive slate of already announced titles are highlights including Lee Chang-dong’s Venice Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize winner POSSIBLE LOVE; Ryûsuke Hamaguchi’s Cannes prize-winning ALL OF A SUDDEN, starring Virginie Efira and Tao Okamoto; Werner Herzog’s highly anticipated BUCKING FASTARD, starring Kate Mara and Rooney Mara; Andrew Haigh’s A LONG WINTER, starring Fred Hechinger, Kit Connor, Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Caitríona Balfe; Małgorzata Szumowska and Michał Englert’s THE IDIOT(S) starring Johnny Flynn and Aimee Lou Wood; Mike Leigh’s San Sebastián Golden Shell winner TENDER LOVING CARE; and the North American Premieres of Asghar Farhadi’s PARALLEL TALES, starring Isabelle Huppert, Vincent Cassel and Virginie Efira; and Céline Sciamma’s TUTTI FRUTTI, which premiered earlier this year at the Centre Pompidou in Paris.
Additional highlights include several eagerly anticipated award winners, including İlker Çatak’s Berlinale Golden Bear winner YELLOW LETTERS; Markus Schleinzer’s ROSE, starring Sandra Hüller, winner of the Berlinale Silver Bear for Best Leading Performance; Sandra Wollner’s EVERYTIME, winner of Cannes’ Un Certain Regard top prize; Marine Atlan’s Cannes’ Critics’ Week Grand Prize winner LA GRADIVA; Louis Clichy’s IRON BOY, winner of Cannes’ Un Certain Regard Special Jury Prize; Stephanie Ahn’s BEDFORD PARK, winner of the Sundance U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for Debut Feature; and Lance Hammer’s QUEEN AT SEA starring Juliette Binoche alongside Tom Courtenay and Anna Calder-Marshall, who shared the Berlinale Silver Bear for Best Supporting Performance.
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I PLAY ROCKY
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This year’s edition will also include new works from top auteurs such as Ali Asgari (A BIT OF LIGHT), Clio Barnard (I SEE BUILDINGS FALL LIKE LIGHTNING), Anna Biller (THE FACE OF HORROR), Anthony Chen (WE ARE ALL STRANGERS), Quentin Dupieux (FULL PHIL), Fernando Eimbcke (FLIES), Radu Jude (DIARY OF A CHAMBERMAID), Barbara Kopple (UNION TOWN), Marie Kreutzer (GENTLE MONSTER), Hong Sang-soo (THE DAY SHE RETURNS and NOWHERE TO LAY MY EYES) and Rodrigo Sorogoyen (THE BELOVED).
Among the other high-profile documentary selections screening at this year’s festival are Pegah Ahangarani’s REHEARSALS FOR A REVOLUTION, winner of Cannes’ L’Œil d’Or Prize; Joss Crowley’s Toronto-premiered PRETENDERS; Ahmed Hassouna’s Venice-debuted CITIZEN OSAMA; Rachel Mason’s MY BROTHER’S KILLER; Ayden Mayeri’s SXSW Grand Jury award-winning SUMMER 2000: THE X-CETRA STORY; plus Sundance award winners ONE IN A MILLION (Jack MacInnes and Itab Azzam), NUISANCE BEAR (Jack Weisman and Gabriela Osio Vanden) and SOUL PATROL (J.M. Harper).
The lineup represents 50 countries and includes 10 official submissions for Best International Feature at the 99th Academy Awards®: 9 TEMPLES TO HEAVEN (Thailand); ALL OF A SUDDEN (Japan); CITIZEN OSAMA (Palestine); ELEPHANTS IN THE FOG (Nepal); EVERYTIME (Germany); THE MELTDOWN (Chile); NINA ROZA (Canada); POSSIBLE LOVE (South Korea); ROSE (Austria) and WE ARE ALL STRANGERS (Singapore).
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WE ARE ALL STRANGERS
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“Our 40th edition of AFI FEST celebrates the cinematic artistry of bold, inspiring filmmakers from around the world,” said Todd Hitchcock, Director of AFI FEST and the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center. “With more than 80 features and nearly 70 shorts, AFI FEST 2026 will once again light up the screen of the iconic TCL Chinese Theatre with a wide-ranging slate of films that includes highly anticipated awards favorites and a few surprises as well.”
“We’re thrilled to share some of the year’s most compelling films with the film lovers of Los Angeles at the 40th edition of AFI FEST — from red carpet premieres and major works by established auteurs to exciting debuts from emerging talents, this year’s lineup invites audiences to spend five days experiencing worlds beyond their own and making the connections that great art can spark,” said Abbie Algar, Director of Programming, AFI FEST and AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center.
Canva is the exclusive Presenting Sponsor of AFI FEST. FIJI Water is the festival’s Official Water Sponsor. American Airlines is the Official Airline of the festival.
As previously announced, the 40th edition of AFI FEST will run October 21 to 25 at the TCL Chinese Theatres in the heart of Hollywood. The festival will open with the U.S. premiere of WILDWOOD and close with BEING HEUMANN. Additional Red Carpet Premieres include the World Premiere of THE MOSQUITO BOWL, I PLAY ROCKY and RAY GUNN. Special Screenings include 14th, ASHES, BEHEMOTH!, BITTER CHRISTMAS, BUNKER, CLARISSA, ELSINORE, JOSEPHINE, THE MAN I LOVE, MOUSE, TANGLES and WILD HORSE NINE.
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LA GRADIVA
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This year’s Guest Artistic Directors are Academy Award®-winning filmmakers Phil Lord and Chris Miller. The Guest Artistic Director Program will include “An Evening with Lord and Miller” which will feature a Q&A with the directors followed by a screening of 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY (1968) as well as screenings of HAROLD AND MAUDE (1971), THE MUPPET MOVIE (1979) and RIFIFI (1955).
Passes to AFI FEST 2026 are now available for purchase online at FEST.AFI.com. Festivalgoers can choose from the Star Pass, Patron Pass and the new Marquee Pass. The AFI FEST Star Pass features access to all screenings (excluding Red Carpet Premieres), early screening selection and theater access, access to the AFI FEST Festival Lounge, AFI FEST merch and free rush access. The Patron Pass features all the benefits of the Star Pass, plus access to Red Carpet Premieres and priority screening selection and theater access.
AFI FEST is recognized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as a qualifying festival for the Live Action, Animated and Documentary Short Film categories for the annual Academy Awards®. AFI FEST is also a qualifying festival for consideration for the British Short Film categories of both the BAFTA Film Awards and the British Independent Film Awards (BIFA).
AFI is a nonprofit, donor-powered organization. Join AFI’s Premiere Circle to support the American Film Institute and enjoy access to exclusive one-of-a-kind opportunities at AFI events, including AFI FEST. To learn more, email Advancement@AFI.com.
Canva, the all-in-one visual communication and collaboration platform, returns as the exclusive Presenting Sponsor of AFI FEST 2026. Built to empower everyone across the entertainment industry, from screenwriters and directors to producers, production teams and studios, Canva helps bring ideas from early concept to screen. Entertainment professionals use Canva to pitch projects and secure buy-in, develop storyboards and mood boards, plan productions, collaborate with cast and crew, create marketing campaigns and promotional assets, and build presentations that bring creative visions to life.
Canva will be integrated throughout AFI FEST including hosting industry networking events and hands-on training workshops for filmmakers, while powering the festival’s digital and printed materials. Entertainment professionals can explore resources to pitch projects, plan shoots and bring creative visions to life at canva.com/entertainment.
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| WILDWOOD |
Red Carpet Premieres
AFI rolls out the red carpet for some of the biggest films of the festival. Sure to be an exciting celebration of the best in film, the section delivers world-class filmmakers and artisans and a dose of Hollywood magic that can only be found at the iconic TCL Chinese Theatre.
BEING HEUMANN
Directed by Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Siân Heder (AFI DWW+ Class of 2005) and based on true events, BEING HEUMANN is the revolutionary, irreverent and deeply human story of the least likely people trying to pull off the impossible and change the lives of millions. DIR Siân Heder. SCR Siân Heder, Rebekah Taussig. CAST Ruth Madeley, Madeline Delp, Mark Ruffalo, Dylan O’Brien, Rob Delaney, Daniel Durant, Roberta Colindrez, Antwan Tolliver, Jon Beavers, Ray Fisher, Andrew Pilkington, Michael Patrick Thornton, Russell Harvard, Charlie Rush-Reese, Rio Finnegan, D’Arcee Charrington Neal, Will Brill, Matthew August Jeffers, Sienna Rafter, Rein Barcel. USA
I PLAY ROCKY
Academy Award®-winning director Peter Farrelly (GREEN BOOK, AFI FEST 2018) tells the electrifying true story of an unknown actor with an unshakable belief that he wasn’t just meant to write 1976’s ROCKY. He was meant to be Rocky Balboa. DIR Peter Farrelly. SCR Peter Gamble. CAST Anthony Ippolito, AnnaSophia Robb, P.J. Byrne, Toby Kebbell, Tracy Letts, Jay Duplass, Matt Dillon, Stephan James, Kiki Seto. USA
THE MOSQUITO BOWL
After the attack on Pearl Harbor, four of America’s greatest college football stars, John McLaughry (Nicholas Galitzine), Bob Baumann (Bill Skarsgård), Tony Butkovich (Ray Nicholson) and David Schreiner (Tom Francis), set fame aside to enlist in the Marines. Directed by Peter Berg from a book by Buzz Bissinger. DIR Peter Berg. SCR Peter Berg, Mark L. Smith. CAST Nicholas Galitzine, Bill Skarsgård, Ray Nicholson, Tom Francis. USA
RAY GUNN
A decades-in-the-making passion project from Oscar® winner and visionary Brad Bird, RAY GUNN is a retro-futuristic neo-noir mystery, featuring the voice talents of Sam Rockwell, Scarlett Johansson and Tom Waits. DIR Brad Bird. SCR Brad Bird, Matthew Robbins. CAST Sam Rockwell, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Waits. USA
WILDWOOD
From Oscar®-nominated and BAFTA-winning studio LAIKA (CORALINE), WILDWOOD is a sweeping adventure about love, sacrifice and the magic that reveals itself when we dare to look beyond the familiar. DIR Travis Knight. SCR Chris Butler. CAST Peyton Elizabeth Lee, Jacob Tremblay, Carey Mulligan, Mahershala Ali, Angela Bassett, Awkwafina, Jake Johnson, Charlie Day, Jemaine Clement, Tom Waits, Maya Erskine, Tantoo Cardinal, Richard E. Grant. USA
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| BITTER CHRISTMAS |
Special Screenings
Highlighting the most acclaimed films of the season from both master filmmakers and emerging talents, these films stand apart for their artistry and unforgettable stories, characters and performances.
14th
From one of the most influential filmmakers of our time, Ava DuVernay, comes an urgent confrontation with a shattered America and its unfinished promise. DIR Ava DuVernay. USA
ASHES (CENIZA EN LA BOCA)
Multi-hyphenate director, producer and actor Diego Luna adapts Mexican writer Brenda Navarro’s acclaimed novel for his fourth feature, a powerful and unconventional immigration drama about a young Mexican woman who journeys to Spain with her brother to join the mother who left them behind as children. DIR Diego Luna. SCR Abia Castillo, Diego Rabasa, Diego Luna. CAST Anna Díaz, Adriana Paz. Mexico, Spain
BEHEMOTH!
With this time-hopping tale of a gifted cellist and former child prodigy (Pedro Pascal) who returns to Los Angeles and the world of film scoring after two decades on the road, Tony Gilroy (MICHAEL CLAYTON) crafts a complex character study, a story of artistic reinvention and a love letter to the mysterious alchemy between moving images and the music that makes us feel their emotional heft. DIR Tony Gilroy. SCR Tony Gilroy. CAST Pedro Pascal, Olivia Wilde, Eva Victor, Hank Azaria, Will Arnett. USA
BITTER CHRISTMAS (AMARGA NAVIDAD)
Eye-popping sweaters and interiors, the dramatic effect of a Chavela Vargas song, the sizzling screen presence of Rossy de Palma. Spanish auteur Pedro Almodóvar plays the hits before smashing his own playbook in this brilliant piece of autofiction, following the parallel stories of two self-obsessed filmmakers who contemplate the limits of inspiration. DIR Pedro Almodóvar. SCR Pedro Almodóvar. CAST Bárbara Lennie, Leonardo Sbaraglia, Aitana Sánchez-Gijón, Victoria Luengo, Patrick Criado. Spain
BUNKER
Oscar® winners Javier Bardem and Penélope Cruz square off in this marital thriller from Oscar®-winning filmmaker Florian Zeller. Renowned architect Miguel (Bardem) and editor Sofia (Cruz) find their 17-year marriage in jeopardy when a tech billionaire offers Miguel a Faustian bargain: design a bunker for the mogul and his oligarch friends to survive the inevitable social upheaval that will target them first. DIR Florian Zeller. SCR Florian Zeller. CAST Javier Bardem, Penélope Cruz, Stephen Graham, Paul Dano, Patrick Schwarzenegger. France, Spain
CLARISSA
With a star-studded ensemble cast, Arie and Chuko Esiri (EYIMOFE, AFI FEST 2020) relocate Virginia Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway to contemporary Lagos, turning its meditation on memory, desire, class and privilege into a distinctly Nigerian story. DIR Arie Esiri, Chuko Esiri. SCR Chuko Esiri. CAST Sophie Okonedo, David Oyelowo, India Amarteifio, Toheeb Jimoh, Ayo Edebiri. Nigeria, USA
ELSINORE
Andrew Scott gives a bravura performance as Ian Charleson, a gifted actor best known for his roles in CHARIOTS OF FIRE and GANDHI, who played Hamlet in a legendary 1989 National Theatre production before dying of AIDS in 1990. DIR Simon Stone. SCR Stephen Beresford. CAST Andrew Scott, Olivia Colman, Billie Piper, Johnny Flynn, Luke Thompson, David Dawson. UK, USA, Italy
JOSEPHINE
Winner of the Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award in the 2026 Sundance U.S. Dramatic Competition, Beth de Araújo’s remarkable sophomore feature is a profound examination of childhood innocence lost, the cascading effects of violence and the limits of parental protection. DIR Beth de Araújo. SCR Beth de Araújo. CAST Mason Reeves, Channing Tatum, Gemma Chan, Philip Ettinger, Syra McCarthy. USA
THE MAN I LOVE
In Ira Sachs’ 1980s NYC musical drama, self-proclaimed theater artist Jimmy George (Rami Malek) draws lovers, friends and family into his orbit but leaves them spinning as his larger-than-life personality diminishes before their eyes. DIR Ira Sachs. SCR Mauricio Zacharis, Ira Sachs. CAST Rami Malek, Tom Sturridge, Rebecca Hall, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Luther Ford. USA
MOUSE
When her world is turned upside down, high-school senior Minnie (Katherine Mallen Kupferer) forms a complicated relationship with her best friend’s mother (Sophie Okonedo), who presents a stark and dreamy contrast to Minnie’s own working-class, single-parent household. DIR Kelly O’Sullivan, Alex Thompson. SCR Kelly O’Sullivan. CAST Sophie Okonedo, Katherine Mallen Kupferer, Chloe Coleman, Tara Mallen, Iman Vellani, David Hyde Pierce. USA
TANGLES
Leah Nelson, in her feature directorial debut, adapts Sarah Leavitt’s acclaimed graphic memoir Tangles: A Story About Alzheimer’s, My Mother and Me into one of this year’s most heartfelt animated films, by turns moving and surprisingly mirthful. DIR Leah Nelson. SCR Leah Nelson, Sarah Leavitt, Trev Renney. CAST Abbi Jacobson, Bryan Cranston, Seth Rogen, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Beanie Feldstein, Wanda Sykes, Pamela Adlon, Sarah Silverman. USA, Canada
WILD HORSE NINE
Director Martin McDonagh continues his exploration of the complexities of male friendship, this time between two CIA agents who are stationed in Chile shortly before Pinochet’s coup. The stellar cast includes Sam Rockwell, Steve Buscemi, Tom Waits and an excellent John Malkovich, who delivers a nuanced, humorous turn of existential dread. DIR Martin McDonagh. SCR Martin McDonagh. CAST John Malkovich, Sam Rockwell, Steve Buscemi, Mariana di Girolamo, Ailín Salas, Tom Waits, Parker Posey. Chile
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| ALL OF A SUDDEN |
Luminaries
The latest films from world-renowned filmmakers whose work continues to challenge and inspire.
ALL OF A SUDDEN
Co-winners of the Best Actress Award at Cannes, Virginie Efira and Tao Okamoto star in Ryûsuke Hamaguchi’s (DRIVE MY CAR, AFI 2021) Paris-set tale of friendship and the resilience required to truly care for another human being. DIR Ryusuke Hamaguchi. SCR Ryusuke Hamaguchi, Léa Le Dimna. CAST Virginie Efira, Tao Okamoto, Kyôzô Nagatsuka, Kodai Kurosaki. Japan
BUCKING FASTARD
Werner Herzog’s singular new film, which stars Kate Mara and Rooney Mara in their first film together, takes inspiration from the extraordinary real-life story of British sisters Freda and Greta Chaplin, twins whose unusual bond and shared life became the subject of public fascination in the 1980s. DIR Werner Herzog. SCR Werner Herzog. CAST Kate Mara, Rooney Mara, Orlando Bloom, Domhnall Gleeson. USA
DIARY OF A CHAMBERMAID (FEMME DE CHAMBRE)
Enfant terrible of the Romanian New Wave, filmmaker Radu Jude returns with another scathing satire, loosely adapting Octave Mirbeau’s novel into a metatextual and even more provocative treatise on class and immigration in modern-day Europe. DIR Radu Jude. SCR Radu Jude. CAST Ana Dumitrascu, Mélanie Thierry, Vincent Macaigne. Romania, France
DOUBLE FEATURE: HONG SANG-SOO X 2
THE DAY SHE RETURNS
Swapping soju for German beer, Hong Sang-soo’s 34th feature is a playful triptych following middle-aged actress Jeong-su as she does a series of interviews about her latest film, finding profundity in repetition and revealing truths about identity, memory and privacy. DIR Hong Sang-soo. SCR Hong Sang-soo. CAST Song Seon-mi, Cho Yun-hee, Park Mi-so, Kim Sun-jin, Kang So-yi.
Followed by: NOWHERE TO LAY MY EYES
Prolific Korean filmmaker Hong Sang-soo returns with this intimate family drama which finds subtle humor and deep meaning in an experimental filmmaker reuniting with her estranged mother and new stepfather after ten years. Winner of the Best Director and Best Actress (Kim Min-hee) prizes at the 2026 Locarno Film Festival. DIR Hong Sang-soo. SCR Hong Sang-soo. CAST Kim Min-hee, Choi Myeong-gil, Kwon Hae-hyo, Shin Seok-ho, Park Mi-so.
GENTLE MONSTER
With her searing Cannes-debuted sixth feature, starring Léa Seydoux, Laurence Rupp, Jella Haase and Catherine Deneuve, Austrian filmmaker Marie Kreutzer turns personal experience and ripped-from-the-headlines stories into a bold study of trust, denial and the unsettling truth that monsters lurk in the most ordinary of places. DIR Marie Kreutzer. SCR Marie Kreutzer. CAST Léa Seydoux, Catherine Deneuve, Laurence Rupp, Jella Haase. Austria, Germany, France
I SEE BUILDINGS FALL LIKE LIGHTNING
A group of five friends in their late twenties navigate adulthood, broken hearts and the class divide in Clio Barnard’s (ALI & EVA, AFI FEST 2021) wickedly crowd-pleasing, social realist denunciation of late-stage capitalism. DIR Clio Barnard. SCR Enda Walsh. CAST Anthony Boyle, Joe Cole, Jay Lycurgo, Daryl McCormack, Lola Petticrew. UK
PARALLEL TALES (HISTOIRES PARALLÈLES)
Iranian auteur Asghar Farhadi reworks aspects of Krzysztof Kieślowski’s A SHORT FILM ABOUT LOVE and A SHORT FILM ABOUT KILLING into a metafictional maze, mixing voyeurism, deceit and illusion into a twisty tale of competitive fictions. Isabelle Huppert leads a starry cast, including Vincent Cassel, Virginie Efira, Pierre Niney, Adam Bessa, India Hair and Catherine Deneuve. DIR Asghar Farhadi. SCR Asghar Farhadi, Saeed Farhadi. CAST Isabelle Huppert, Virginie Efira, Vincent Cassel, Pierre Niney, Adam Bessa. France, Belgium, Italy
POSSIBLE LOVE
Two couples cross paths while making a documentary about recent layoffs at a South Korean industrial complex. Lee Chang-dong’s first film in eight years is a sophisticated examination of social and gender inequality, labor, trauma and the ethics of filmmaking that unfolds through engaging storytelling, powerful performances and intense cinematic atmospheres. DIR Lee Chang-dong. SCR Lee Chang-dong, Oh Jung-mi. CAST Jeon Do-Yeon, Sul Kyung-Gu, Zo In-Sung, Cho Yeo-Jeong. South Korea
TENDER LOVING CARE
Acclaimed auteur Mike Leigh returns in top form with another astutely observed study on the resilience and compassion of ordinary people, this time centering on the enduring friendship between two NHS social workers, Amy (Kate O’Flynn) and Rosie (Alice Bailey Johnson). DIR Mike Leigh. SCR Mike Leigh. CAST Kate O’Flynn, Marion Bailey, Paul Jesson, Alice Bailey Johnson. UK
TUTTI FRUTTI
Expanding on a solitary filmmaking practice from her 2023 short THIS IS HOW A CHILD BECOMES A POET, TUTTI FRUTTI sees Céline Sciamma at her most personal yet liberated, documenting a visual diary from pro-Palestine marches to Adèle Haenel’s sexual abuse trial, while also reflecting on the preservation of lesbian identity. DIR Céline Sciamma. CAST Céline Sciamma, Adèle Haenel. France
Preceded by: THIS IS HOW A CHILD BECOMES A POET
Céline Sciamma explores the documentary form for the first time in her 2023 Venice-premiered short film, in which she pays posthumous tribute to Italian poet Patrizia Cavalli by surveying Cavalli’s house shortly before it was to be cleared after her death in 2022. DIR Céline Sciamma. France, Italy.
UNION TOWN
Fifty years after HARLAN COUNTY, USA, two-time Oscar® winner Barbara Kopple completes her landmark labor trilogy with UNION TOWN. Following UPS workers, Amazon subcontractors and the mostly immigrant deliveristas organizing across New York City, Kopple captures the risks, victories and everyday solidarity fueling a new chapter in the American labor movement. DIR Barbara Kopple. USA
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| GOODBYE CRUEL WORLD |
Discovery
A showcase for exciting new voices that push the boundaries of contemporary cinema with cutting-edge themes and original visions.
9 TEMPLES TO HEAVEN (9 วัด สู่สวรรค์)
The narrative feature debut from Thai filmmaker Sompot Chidgasornpongse, a frequent collaborator of Thai auteur Apichatpong Weerasethakul, finds a family wrestling with Buddhist traditions and practices in this meditative travelogue. DIR Sompot Chidgasornpongse. SCR Sompot Chidgasornpongse. CAST Amara Ramnarong, Surachai Ningsanond, Jirawut Chiwaruck, Yaneenan Jiraphatjittrin, Klaichan Phunman. Thailand, Singapore, France, Norway
AT NIGHT
British filmmaker Beatrice Gibson’s feature debut is a mesmerizing work of autofiction exploring personal malaise and communal dialogue among six women over a single night in Paris. Drifting between fiction, reality and dream, Gibson boldly articulates a refreshingly honest and sometimes difficult conversation on identity, solidarity, sexuality, race and class privilege. DIR Beatrice Gibson. SCR Beatrice Gibson. CAST Diocouda Diaoune, Kátia Belo Cardoso, Sophie Robinson, Amy Gwatkin, Lily Mcmenamy, Beatrice Gibson. UK
BEDFORD PARK
An incredible South Korean cast grounds Stephanie Ahn’s deeply affecting Sundance award-winning feature debut, a nuanced and emotionally layered portrait of two lost souls and a connection that emerges in the most unexpected of places. DIR Stephanie Ahn. SCR Stephanie Ahn. CAST Moon Choi, Son Sukku, Jefferson White, Won Mi Kyung, Kim Eung Soo. USA
BEN’IMANA
Set in a rural Rwandan village, eighteen years after the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi, Marie-Clémentine Dusabejambo’s exceptional Cannes Caméra d’Or-winning feature debut is a powerful portrait of the complex personal and societal dynamics of a nation still coming to terms with the horrors of its painful past. DIR Marie-Clémentine Dusabejambo. SCR Marie-Clémentine Dusabejambo, Delphine Agut. CAST Clémentine U. Nyirinkindi, Isabelle Kabano, Kesia Kelly Nishimwe. Rwanda, Gabon, France, Norway
CHRONICLES FROM THE SIEGE
Winner of the Best First Feature Award in the Perspectives section of the Berlinale, Palestinian-Syrian filmmaker Abdallah Alkhatib’s striking debut weaves interconnected stories of life under siege, where bombardment and displacement are met with resilience, humor and humanity. DIR Abdallah Alkhatib. SCR Abdallah Alkhatib. CAST Nadim Rimawi, Saja Kilani, Ahmed Zitouni, Ahmad Kontar, Kassem Alkhoja. Algeria, France, Palestine
ELEPHANTS IN THE FOG
Surrounded by wild elephants, a remote Nepalese village is home to a sacred Kinnar community of transgender women in writer-director Abinash Bikram Shah’s empathetic and atmospheric thriller, winner of the Un Certain Regard Jury Prize at Cannes. DIR Abinash Bikram Shah. SCR Abinash Bikram Shah, Sandeep Badal. CAST Pushpa Thing Lama, Sahab Din Miya, Jasmin Bishwokarma, Aliz Ghimire. Nepal, Brazil, France, Germany, Norway
FLESH AND FUEL
A casual hookup between veteran French trucker Étienne and Bartosz, a Polish driver working for cheaper wages, unexpectedly deepens into something more. Sexually frank and disarmingly tender, Pierre Le Gall’s unconventional romance follows two solitary men navigating borders, punishing schedules and an industry that keeps them perpetually in motion. DIR Pierre Le Gall. SCR Pierre Le Gall, Camille Perton, Martin Drouot. CAST Alexis Manenti, Julian Świeżewski. France, Poland
FOREST HIGH
Belgian filmmaker Manon Coubia spent 10 years working seasonally as a mountain refuge keeper in the French Alps, a wealth of experience which imbues her debut feature film, a triptych of tales set in a mountain refuge across three seasons, with the greatest authenticity. DIR Manon Coubia. SCR Manon Coubia. CAST Salomé Richard, Aurélia Petit, Anne Coesens, Arthur Marbaix, Yoann Zimmer. Belgium, France
FOREVER YOUR MATERNAL ANIMAL (SIEMPRE SOY TU ANIMAL MATERNO)
Winner of the 2026 Cannes Un Certain Regard Best Actress Awards for the tempestuous performances of its three leads, Valentina Maurel’s lyrical sophomore feature traces the knotty threads of an unraveling Costa Rican family. DIR Valentina Maurel. SCR Valentina Maurel. CAST Daniela Marín, Mariangel Montero, Marina de Tavira, Reinaldo Amién. Belgium, France, Mexico
THE FRIEND’S HOUSE IS HERE
Pari and Hanna are artist friends in Tehran whose lives unfold within a bubble of freedom and creativity, even as the oppressive conditions beyond that fragile space loom over them. Shot in secret, the film offers an intimate portrait of contemporary Tehran from the perspectives of its young, defiant female protagonists. DIR Hossein Keshavarz, Maryam Ataei. SCR Maryam Ataei, Hossein Keshavarz. CAST Mahshad Bahram, Hana Mana, Mahshad Bahraminejad, Haniyeh Khosravani, Zorheh Piran. USA, Iran
GOODBYE CRUEL WORLD (ADIEU MONDE CRUEL)
Félix de Givry (the lead of Mia Hansen-Løve’s EDEN, AFI FEST 2014) makes his directorial debut with this enchanting, fable-like teen romance that harkens back to the French New Wave and stars Milo Machado-Graner, known for his seismic performance as the blind son in the Academy Award®-winning ANATOMY OF A FALL. DIR Félix de Givry. SCR Félix de Givry, Marie-Stéphane Imbert. CAST Milo Machado-Graner, Jane Beever, Françoise Lebrun, Maïa Sandoz, Emmanuelle Destremau. France
IVÁN & HADOUM
Winner of the Teddy Award at the Berlinale, IVÁN & HADOUM offers a positive and complex story on queer love set in a fruit packing facility in Almería. Ian de la Rosa’s feature debut is an exploration of the transformative power of desire and love as a path toward self-acceptance. DIR Ian de la Rosa. SCR Ian de la Rosa. Spain, Germany, Belgium
LA GRADIVA
A high school trip to Naples and Pompeii becomes a defining passage into adulthood in César-nominated cinematographer-turned-director Marine Atlan’s remarkable first feature, in which the dormant emotions of a group of Parisian teenagers are stirred by an ancient landscape marked by desire, loss and tragedy. DIR Marine Atlan. SCR Marine Atlan, Anne Brouillet. CAST Colas Quignard, Suzanne Gerin, Mitia Capellier, Antonia Buresi. France
THE MELTDOWN (EL DESHIELO)
In Manuela Martelli’s (CHILE ’76) new feature set in the post-Pinochet era, a lonely child staying at her grandparents’ southern resort befriends a teenage German ski champion and witnesses her family’s dealings with foreign investors, as well as the ways they cope with potentially damaging truths. DIR Manuela Martelli. SCR Manuela Martelli. CAST Maya O’Rourke, Saskia Rosendahl, Maia Domagala. Chile, USA, Spain, Mexico
PROSECUTION (STAATSSCHUTZ)
Faraz Shariat returns to the realm of queer, post-migrant cinema with this propulsive, gritty procedural about a state prosecutor in East Germany. When she is targeted in a racist attack, her rogue investigation draws her into the malevolent web of neo-Nazi networks, challenging both her belief in the judicial system and her personal integrity. DIR Faraz Shariat. SCR Faraz Shariat, Claudia Schaefer. CAST Chen Emilie Yan, Julia Jentsch, Alev Irmak, Arnd Klawitter, Sebastian Urzendowsky. Germany
THE STATION (AL MAHATTAH)
In war-torn Yemen, Layal runs a women-only petrol station and café, a fragile sanctuary from the conflict outside. When her 12-year-old brother is targeted for enlistment, Layal seeks help from her estranged sister to save him before it’s too late. DIR Sara Ishaq. SCR Sara Ishaq, Nadia Eliewat. CAST Abeer Mohammed, Amal Ismail, Manal Al-Mulaiki. Jordan
TRIAL OF HEIN (DER HEIMATLOSE)
In this timeless and strikingly original parable, Hein returns to the windswept, fiercely insular island he left behind as a teenager, determined to reunite with his first love. But after a 14-year absence, the eccentric villagers no longer recognize him, and insist he stand trial to prove his identity. DIR Kai Stänicke. SCR Kai Stänicke. CAST Paul Boche, Philip Froissant, Emilia Schüle, Stephanie Amarell. Germany
WE ARE ALIENS
Kōhei Kadowaki’s 2D animated feature debut is an astonishingly layered, heart-wrenchingly tender diptych of a tumultuous, life-changing friendship between two boys, as a cruel accusation one afternoon at school irrevocably splinters the trajectory of their lives in unimaginable ways. DIR Kohei Kadowaki. SCR Kohei Kadowaki. CAST Ryota Bando, Amane Okayama. Japan, France
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| IRON BOY |
World Cinema
The best in global cinema comes to the movie capital of the world, celebrating the diversity of cultures through the shared language of cinema.
THE BELOVED (EL SER QUERIDO)
In Rodrigo Sorogoyen’s (THE BEASTS) latest, Javier Bardem gives a frightening performance as a legendary filmmaker who casts his estranged daughter (a fantastic Victoria Luengo) in his newest venture. On set, the two get close and reopen old wounds that threaten not only their reconciliation but the entire production. DIR Rodrigo Sorogoyen. SCR Isabel Peña, Rodrigo Sorogoyen. CAST Javier Bardem, Victoria Luengo, Raúl Arévalo. Spain, France
A BIT OF LIGHT
A disillusioned Iranian doctor methodically prepares to end his life after being arrested and banned from practicing medicine. Ali Asgari’s new film avoids sentimentality by alternating moments of deadpan humor with references to oppressive realities, while Misagh Zare delivers an outstanding performance filled with subtlety and vulnerability. DIR Ali Asgari. SCR Ali Asgari, Shadmehr Rastin. CAST Misagh Zare, Sadaf Asghari, Foroozan Jamshidnezhad, Ramtin Daghigh, Mina Rahimzadeh. Iran, Switzerland, Italy, Canada, Turkey
BLACK MONEY FOR WHITE NIGHTS
When a dream vacation goes disastrously awry, a middle-aged Bulgarian couple accustomed to working the angles finds the tables suddenly turned. Darkly funny and unexpectedly moving, BLACK MONEY FOR WHITE NIGHTS transforms their misfortune into a mordant morality tale about corruption, complicity and the price of ill-gotten gains. DIR Kristina Grozeva, Petar Valchanov. SCR Kristina Grozeva, Petar Valchanov, Decho Taralezhkov. CAST Ivan Savov, Tanya Shahova, Margita Gosheva, Ivan Barnev, Sibila Petrova. Bulgaria, Greece
EVERYTIME
A woman becomes the emotional anchor for her daughter and daughter’s boyfriend in the wake of an unimaginable tragedy. On the sunny beaches during a family vacation, each of the trio’s preferred retreat into the past begins to merge and transform into a surreal new present around them. DIR Sandra Wollner. SCR Sandra Wollner. CAST Birgit Minichmayr, Lotte Shirin Keiling, Tristan López, Carla Hüttermann. Austria, Germany
FLIES (MOSCAS)
Returning to the nostalgia-laden black-and-white form of his breakthrough debut DUCK SEASON, Mexican filmmaker Fernando Eimbcke crafts a delicate yet wry exploration of grief in his bittersweet new feature following an uncompromising retiree who rents her spare room to a father and his precocious nine-year-old son. DIR Fernando Eimbcke. SCR Vanessa Garnica, Fernando Eimbcke. CAST Teresa Sánchez, Bastian Escobar, Hugo Ramírez, Enrique Arreola. Mexico
THE IDIOT(S)
The latest film from co-directors Małgorzata Szumowska and Michał Englert takes an irreverent look at the messy life of one of the world’s great literary icons, Fyodor Dostoyevsky (Johnny Flynn), who honeymoons in Baden-Baden with new wife Anna (Aimee Lou Wood), and does his best to avoid working on The Idiot, his follow-up to Crime and Punishment. DIR Małgorzata Szumowska, Michał Englert. SCR Małgorzata Szumowska, Michał Englert, Kasper Bajon, Brid Arnstein. CAST Aimee Lou Wood, Johnny Flynn, Vicky Krieps, Christian Friedel. Poland, Germany
IRON BOY
Winner of the Special Jury Prize in Cannes’ Un Certain Regard, IRON BOY is the tender tale of a young boy whose life is upended when he’s forced to wear a corrective iron brace, told through beautiful watercolor animation, a superb voice cast and enveloping classical music. DIR Louis Clichy. SCR Louis Clichy, Frank Salomé. CAST Gary Clichy, Rod Paradot, Dimitri Colas, Aurélie Vassort, Brune Moulin. France, Belgium
THE LONELIEST MAN IN TOWN
The Italian-Austrian directing duo of Tizza Covi and Rainer Frimmel (LA PIVELLINA) return with this fictionalized portrait of real-life Austrian blues musician Al Cook (aka Alois Koch), who, inspired by Elvis Presley and legendary blues musicians like Robert Johnson and Blind Lemon Jefferson, has dedicated his life and career to honoring this musical tradition. DIR Tizza Covi, Rainer Frimmel. SCR Tizza Covi. CAST Alois Koch, Brigitte Meduna, Alfred Blechinger, Flurina Schneider, Sarah Morrissette. Austria
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| A LONG WINTER |
A LONG WINTER
Award-winning British filmmaker Andrew Haigh (45 YEARS, AFI FEST 2015; ALL OF US STRANGERS, AFI FEST 2023) adapts Irish writer Colm Tóibín’s eponymous novella for this mysterious and beguiling film about grief, desire, queer awakening, self-discovery and the elusive structures that hold a family together. DIR Andrew Haigh. SCR Andrew Haigh, Colm Tóibín. CAST Fred Hechinger, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Caitríona Balfe, Kit Connor, D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai. USA, Canada, UK
A MAN OF HIS TIME (NOTRE SALUT)
Writer-director Emmanuel Marre takes an unconventional approach in this Cannes prize-winning biopic on an opportunist bureaucrat (Swann Arlaud) in the Vichy Regime whose career ambitions help oil the machinery of the Nazi occupation. DIR Emmanuel Marre. SCR Emmanuel Marre. CAST Swann Arlaud, Sandrine Blancke, Mathieu Perotto. Belgium, France
NINA ROZA
Geneviève Dulude-de Celles’ sophomore narrative feature is a poetic contemplation on the dualities of fatherhood and heritage, art and commodification through the lens of post-Soviet diaspora, as Canadian art curator Mihail returns to his native Bulgaria on a mission to confirm the authenticity of an eight-year-old art prodigy, Nina. DIR Geneviève Dulude-De Celles. SCR Geneviève Dulude-De Celles. CAST Galin Stoev, Ekatarina Stanina, Sofia Stanina, Chiara Caselli, Christian Bégin. Canada, Italy, Bulgaria, Belgium
QUEEN AT SEA
Juliette Binoche plays a daughter concerned that her stepfather (Tom Courtenay), the primary carer for her dementia-afflicted mother (Anna Calder-Marshall), is abusing her sexually. Lance Hammer’s sensitive and devastating drama explores the complexities of elder care, and how good intentions may yield bad results. Courtenay and Calder-Marshall shared the Silver Bear for Best Supporting Performance at the Berlin Film Festival. DIR Lance Hammer. SCR Lance Hammer. CAST Juliette Binoche, Tom Courtenay, Anna Calder-Marshall, Florence Hunt. UK, USA
ROSE
Academy Award® nominee Sandra Hüller (ANATOMY OF A FALL) delivers another showstopping performance in Austrian filmmaker Markus Schleinzer’s (MICHAEL, AFI FEST 2011) captivating third feature, a transfixing, strikingly original folk tale about a woman who poses as a male soldier in 17th-century Germany. DIR Markus Schleinzer. SCR Markus Schleinzer, Alexander Brom. CAST Sandra Hüller, Caro Braun, Marisa Growaldt. Austria, Germany
SALVATION
Emin Alper’s provocative allegory examines how long-simmering grievances can be stoked by a charismatic leader into hatred and violence, where religion gives way to madness, and a struggle for political leadership gives way to authoritarianism. DIR Emin Alper. SCR Emin Alper. CAST Caner Cindoruk, Berkay Ateş, Feyyaz Duman, Naz Göktan, Özlem Taş. Turkey, France, Netherlands, Greece, Sweden, Saudi Arabia
WE ARE ALL STRANGERS
Noodle hawker Boon Kiat and his son grapple with new love, responsibilities and economic survival in Anthony Chen’s (ILO ILO, WET SEASON) panoramic multi-generational tableau and love letter to working-class Singapore, marking the ambitious final chapter of his Growing Up trilogy. DIR Anthony Chen. SCR Anthony Chen. CAST Yeo Yann Yann, Koh Jia Ler, Andi Lim, Regene Lim. Singapore
YELLOW LETTERS (GELBE BRIEFE)
Turkish German filmmaker İlker Çatak (THE TEACHERS LOUNGE, AFI FEST 2023) returns with this thought-provoking allegory about art and authoritarianism, winner of the Golden Bear at the 2026 Berlin Film Festival. DIR İlker Çatak. SCR İlker Çatak, Ayda Meryem Çatak, Enis Köstepen. CAST Özgü Namal, Tansu Biçer, Leyla Smyrna Cabas, İpek Bilgin. Germany, France, Turkey
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| TOO MANY BEASTS |
After Dark
Take a walk on the wild side and tune in to the late-night vibes of these adventurous selections, celebrating the pleasures of genre cinema and uncategorizable originality.
THE FACE OF HORROR
Anna Biller (THE LOVE WITCH, AFI FEST 2016) continues her streak of pulpy, technicolor macabre with this reimagined feminist folktale inspired by the Japanese ghost story, Yotsuya Kaidan. Redressed in medieval England, we follow the beautiful, innocent Eleanor and the handsome but deceitful knight Edward in a tale of betrayal and revenge. DIR Anna Biller. SCR Anna Biller. CAST Jonah Hauer-King, Kristine Frøseth, Ellie Bamber, Ben Radcliffe, Bella Heathcote. UK
FULL PHIL
Woody Harrelson and Kristen Stewart star as a father and daughter attempting to reconcile on a Parisian vacation. Quentin Dupieux (SMOKING CAUSES COUGHING, AFI FEST 2022) returns to the English language but keeps his trademark absurdist humor intact in this tale of arguments, copious amounts of food and meddling hotel employees. DIR Quentin Dupieux. SCR Quentin Dupieux. CAST Woody Harrelson, Kristen Stewart, Charlotte Le Bon. France, Belgium, Luxembourg
TOO MANY BEASTS (L’ESPÈCE EXPLOSIVE)
Things go deliriously hog-wild in Swiss-Italian filmmaker Sarah Arnold’s wonderfully unpredictable, delightfully deadpan debut, which won the Europa Cinemas Label for Best European Film at this year’s Cannes Directors’ Fortnight. DIR Sarah Arnold. SCR Sarah Arnold, Mehdi Ben Attia, Jérémie Dubois, Olivier Seror, Romain Winkler. CAST Alexis Manenti, Ella Rumpf, Vincent Dedienne, Jean-Louis Coulloc’h. France
Documentary
Powerful real-life stories bravely told: the subjects and themes explored in documentary filmmaking are profound, and these insightful works are sure to enlighten, educate and entertain.
THE BEST SUMMER
Revisiting unedited performance and interview footage from the 1995-1996 Summersault tour in Australia that featured the Beastie Boys, Sonic Youth, Beck, Pavement, Bikini Kill, Rancid and the Foo Fighters, filmmaker Tamra Davis crafts a fascinating tour document capturing part music festival, part summer camp of artists in the prime of their careers. DIR Tamra Davis. CAST Kathleen Hanna, Dave Grohl, Kim Gordon, Beastie Boys, Sonic Youth. USA
CITIZEN OSAMA (AL MOWATEN OSAMA)
In CITIZEN OSAMA, Palestinian photographer turned citizen journalist Osama Al-Ashi documents life in northern Gaza while struggling to keep his young family safe. Amid devastation and the targeting of fellow journalists, his camera bears witness to the devastation while asking what it means to call a place home when that home is being erased. DIR Ahmed Hassouna. CAST Osama Al-Ashi. Palestine, France
EDWARD SAID: BETWEEN WORLDS
The legacy and indomitable voice of Palestinian activist and scholar Edward Said are revitalized in documentarian Maiken Baird’s sweeping profile, moving from his childhood in Jerusalem to his foundational academic texts including Orientalism and The Question of Palestine, as well as his lifelong advocacy for Palestinian freedom. DIR Maiken Baird. CAST Edward Said. USA
I DESERVE A LOVER WHOSE EVERY RISE SETS FIERY DOOMS RAGING ACROSS THE SKIES
An unorthodox documentary about Nasser Bakhshi and Roghayeh Najdi, married artists in Iran who curate an archive of found ephemera and personal belongings to help preserve the culture of their people. DIR Mani Haghighi. SCR Mani Haghighi. Iran
JAIL TIME RECORDS
Winner of Best Documentary at the Tribeca Film Festival, JAIL TIME RECORDS mixes verité documentary with raucous music videos for a guided tour through the densely populated New Bell Prison in Cameroon to reveal the beating heart at its center: a recording studio where inmates can find a creative outlet and publish their music to the outside world. DIR Dione Roach, Steve Happi. CAST Belgie Ludrovic Abantsia, Hamadou Daibou, Josue Aristide Ticky Moulende, Dilan Nyamsi. Cameroon, USA
THE MATCH
The infamous World Cup match between Argentina and England in 1986, where Diego Maradona scored the controversial Hand of God goal, is recounted in this exhilarating documentary that uses rare archival footage, narration by footballers Gary Lineker and Jorge Valdano and new interviews with other players who were there on the pitch that fateful day. DIR Juan Cabral, Santiago Fraco. SCR Juan Cabral, Santiago Fraco. CAST Gary Lineker, Jorge Valdano, Oscar Ruggeri, Peter Shilton, John Barnes. Argentina, Spain
MAVERICK: THE EPIC ADVENTURES OF DAVID LEAN
Barnaby Thompson’s masterful documentary convincingly makes the case for David Lean as a filmmaker’s filmmaker, one whose body of work continues to inspire directors ranging from Steven Spielberg to Wes Anderson to Denis Villeneuve to Greta Gerwig. DIR Barnaby Thompson. CAST David Lean, Cate Blanchett, Kenneth Branagh, Wes Anderson, Francis Ford Coppola. UK
MY BROTHER’S KILLER
Documentarian Rachel Mason (CIRCUS OF BOOKS, AFI FEST 2019) investigates the gruesome and long-unsolved 1990 murder of William Arnold Newton, whose mutilated body was found in a dumpster near La Brea Avenue and Santa Monica Boulevard. Mason’s efforts help lead to the case being solved more than 30 years later. DIR Rachel Mason. SCR Rachel Mason, Dion Labriola, James Cude. CAST Wendi Berndt, Kevin Clarke, Krystal DeLight, Sabin Gray, John Lamberti. USA
NUISANCE BEAR
A nuisance bear, a polar bear that’s lost its fear of people, encroaches on the town of Churchill, Manitoba in this soulful exploration of the tensions between humans and wildlife, told through beautiful widescreen photography of the Arctic landscape and incredible close-ups of these apex predators. DIR Gabriela Osio Vanden, Jack Weisman. CAST Mike Tunalaaq Gibbons, Saad Kassis-Mohamed. Canada, USA, UK
ONE IN A MILLION
Winner of the Audience Award and the Directing Award in the Sundance Film Festival’s World Cinema Documentary section, this sweeping and intimate 10-year chronicle follows a Syrian family and their spirited eldest daughter, Isra’a, as they make the perilous journey to Europe, then navigate the joys and heartaches of assimilation. DIR Itab Azzam, Jack MacInnes. UK, USA
PRETENDERS
Joss Crowley’s immersive, insightful and in-depth documentary traces the journey of rock legend Chrissie Hynde across more than five decades, from her Ohio upbringing and early London years to the formation of the Pretenders, their explosive breakthrough at the dawn of the 1980s and beyond. DIR Joss Crowley. SCR Joss Crowley. CAST Chrissie Hynde, Martin Chambers, Pete Farndon, Jimmy Honeyman Scott, Elvis Costello. UK
REHEARSALS FOR A REVOLUTION
A deeply personal account of Iran’s history since the 1979 Revolution, this Cannes Golden Eye-winning documentary reflects on successive waves of political and social upheaval repeatedly crushed by walls of oppression, while preserving a sense of hope for the Iranian people and their ongoing fight for freedom. DIR Pegah Ahangarani. SCR Pegah Ahangarani. Czech Republic, Spain
REVOLUTIONARIES NEVER DIE
Structured as a cinematic letter to the late Lebanese filmmaker Jocelyne Saab (1948-2019), Palestinian filmmaker and archivist Mohanad Yaqubi explores Saab’s daring and dynamic documentary work from 1973-1983, when she brought her trenchant insight to the complexities of Lebanon’s civil war, as well as events in Egypt, Western Sahara and Iran. DIR Mohanad Yaqubi. SCR Mohanad Yaqubi, Mathilde Rouxel. Palestine, Belgium, Norway, Qatar
SOUL PATROL
The travails of the Soul Patrol, the U.S. Army’s first all-Black Long-Range Reconnaissance Patrol deployed during the Vietnam War, are recounted in this documentary adaptation of Vietnam veteran Ed Emanuel’s memoir. Utilizing a mixture of archival footage, contemporary interviews and reenactments, SOUL PATROL recounts the harrowing experiences of Black teens who fought a war for a country that struggled to give them their own civil rights back home. DIR J.M. Harper. SCR J.M. Harper. CAST Barbara Branch, Emerson Branch, Teresa Brown. USA
STEALING MAGIC
When a group of professional magicians discover their original tricks are being stolen and sold online, they launch a globe-spanning investigation into the shadowy world of cybercrime and extortion. This riveting documentary reveals the extraordinary lengths artists will go to defend their life’s work. DIR Matthew Testa. CAST Andi Gladwin, George Luck, Joshua Jay, Penn Jillette, Teller, Julie Eng. USA
SUMMER 2000: THE X-CETRA STORY
In her SXSW Grand Jury Award-winning directorial debut, filmmaker Ayden Mayeri revisits the improbable story of X-Cetra, the band she formed with three childhood friends in the summer of 2000. When their music resurfaces online two decades later, becoming a cult phenomenon, Mayeri captures the friends’ reunion, crafting a joyful, nostalgic and moving portrait of female friendship and coming of age. DIR Ayden Mayeri. SCR Barry Rothbart, Ayden Mayeri. CAST Ayden Mayeri, Janet Kariuki, Mary Washburn, Jessica Hall, Robin O’Brien. USA
SUMO: SPIRIT WEIGHS NOTHING (SUMO: 魂を鍛え抜く)
Returning eleven years after THE BIRTH OF SAKE, Erik Shirai delivers another insightful look into a rich and storied tradition of Japanese culture with SUMO: SPIRIT WEIGHS NOTHING, following four professional wrestlers in various stages of their careers across a year of trials and tribulations. DIR Erik Shirai. CAST Terunofuji Haruo, Hiradoumi Yuki, Yonezawaryu Daiki, Kosei Motomura. Japan, UK, Denmark, USA
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| HAROLD AND MAUDE |
Guest Artistic Director
In a special Spotlight section, Guest Artistic Directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller (PROJECT HAIL MARY, THE LEGO MOVIE) present four films that shaped their cinematic vision — 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY, HAROLD AND MAUDE, THE MUPPET MOVIE and RIFIFI.
AN EVENING WITH PHIL LORD AND CHRIS MILLER: 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY
Stanley Kubrick’s dazzling, Academy Award®-winning achievement is a compelling drama of man vs. machine, a stunning meld of music and motion. Kubrick (who co-wrote the screenplay with sci-fi author Arthur C. Clarke) first visits man’s prehistoric ape-ancestry past, then leaps millennia into colonized space and ultimately whisks astronaut David Bowman (Keir Dullea) into uncharted territory, perhaps even into immortality. DIR Stanley Kubrick. SCR Stanley Kubrick, Arthur C. Clarke, from his story The Sentinel. CAST Keir Dullea, Gary Lockwood, William Sylvester, Daniel Richter, Douglas Rain. UK, USA
HAROLD AND MAUDE
When Harold (Bud Cort), a wealthy young man obsessed with staging fake suicides and attending funerals, meets the free-spirited septuagenarian Maude (Ruth Gordon), their unconventional romance challenges Harold’s sheltered life and his mother’s indifference. Initially overlooked, Hal Ashby’s HAROLD AND MAUDE became a defining cult classic of the 1970s. DIR Hal Ashby. SCR Colin Higgins. CAST Ruth Gordon, Bud Cort, Vivian Pickles, Cyril Cusack, Charles Tyner, Ellen Geer. USA
THE MUPPET MOVIE
In their first foray onto the silver screen, Kermit the Frog and his Muppet cohort, Fozzie Bear, Gonzo, Miss Piggy and the gang, sing their way to Hollywood, hoping to make it big. But Charles Durning’s evil Doc Hopper, a frog-leg restaurant magnate, has other plans for Kermit. DIR James Frawley. SCR Jack Burns, Jerry Juhl. CAST Jim Henson, Frank Oz, Jerry Nelson, Richard Hunt, Dave Goelz, Charles Durning, Austin Pendleton, Edgar Bergen, Milton Berle, Mel Brooks. UK, USA
RIFIFI (DU RIFIFI CHEZ LES HOMMES)
Considered one of the best international translations of American film noir, Jules Dassin’s beloved heist film RIFIFI follows an unconventional narrative arc, with a meticulous and silent 28-minute safe-cracking scene that is the center of the film, not its climax. While the action takes place in Paris, a particularly American tenacity adds the bite necessary to make this a perfectly balanced film noir. DIR Jules Dassin. SCR Jules Dassin, René Wheeler, Auguste Le Breton, from his novel. CAST Jean Servais, Carl Möhner, Jules Dassin. France
