‘BEFORE YOU’ (2025) Emotional short leaves a lasting impact

Posted on October 24, 2025 by Liz Whittemore — Leave a reply

BEFORE YOU

Filmmaker Lauren Melinda‘s extraordinary short film BEFORE YOU is an emotional rollercoaster you must ride. The film follows a young couple’s journey in early pregnancy, including their undesired outcome.

I am intentionally being vague because BEFORE YOU should be vital viewing. In just under 13 minutes, Melinda taps into the visceral trauma connected to pregnancy. There exists a collective fear, anxiety, and guilt the moment you discover they are growing a life, and that is something that never fades with time.

From a filmmaking and technical perspective, the augmented sound pulses in your core. The editing is magnificent; a whirlwind of motion and time that feels outerbody and assaulting all at once. It is a subconscious deep dive into the psyche of a pregnant person’s brain and societal expectations. Actress Tala Ashe captures every emotion, often with little to no dialogue.

A physical manifestation of emotional trauma and a simultaneous catharsis, BEFORE YOU flips the narrative of abortion on its head, revealing the truth behind necessary health care access without ever mentioning politics. Women’s lives are at stake. Autonomy and family planning are at stake. This short film speaks volumes.

Inspired by writer-director Lauren Melinda’s own experience, Before You follows a couple in the aftermath of a decision they never imagined making: ending a planned pregnancy. Told with restraint and emotional clarity, the film explores the quiet, often invisible grief that can accompany reproductive loss.

Created in collaboration with Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Before You moves away from polarizing narratives and toward a more personal lens. It invites audiences to sit with the nuance, silence, and complexity of a choice that is so often politicized, yet deeply human.

Starring Tony nominee Tala Ashe (English on Broadway), the film gives voice to an experience many carry privately. Across from her, Adam Rodriguez (Criminal Minds) brings depth and warmth to a role that balances strength and uncertainty. Together, their performances anchor the film in something intimate and real.

Before You has been selected by several notable festivals, including the Oscar-qualifying St. Louis International Film Festival, Cleveland International Film Festival, deadCenter, and Film Independent’s Artist Development Showcase. During its run, Melinda received the Chaz Ebert Phenomenal Person in Film Award, and the film was recognized for Best Cinematography and Excellence in Editing.

In addition to screenings, Melinda and her team have partnered with Planned Parenthood chapters in Missouri, Idaho and Birmingham to host post-film conversations and panels. More are planned this fall, including upcoming screenings in Los Angeles, Catalina, Breckenridge and New York. Simbelle Productions, Melinda’s nonprofit production company, continues to support female-led narrative films with bold emotional stakes and meaningful social reach.

Simbelle’s recent projects include Sarah Friedland’s Familiar Touch, winner of the Orizzonti Best Director and Best Actress at the 2024 Venice Film Festival; Sophy Romvari’s Blue Heron, recipient of Locarno’s Swatch First Feature Award; and Alex Burunova’s Satisfaction, which premiered at SXSW. Before You marks Simbelle’s first in-house production.

Melinda is also developing a photography project alongside Before You, inviting individuals to visually express their experiences with abortion or reproductive loss, whether through portraiture or more abstract means. The goal is to create space for healing, connection, and storytelling.

For more short film coverage, click here!

‘V/H/S/HALLOWEEN (2025) Another franchise hit filled with tricks and treats.

Posted on October 4, 2025 by Liz Whittemore — Leave a reply

V/H/S/HALLOWEEN

Another glorious notch in the V/H/S/ franchise, Shudder presents the Halloween version.

Previously, each film played out in a single time period. Based on the reference in Coochie Coochie Coo, that segment takes place in the aughts, but KidPrint specifies 1992, and Home Haunt must occur in the 80s. That’s a nice departure from the rest of the films. Sticking to tradition, each movie features a homebase framework to work around. In V/H/S/HALLOWEEN, it’s a lab that disguises itself as a focus group company in a segment called “Diet Phantasma.” Ghost-infused soda wreaks havoc on its tasters. Bryan M. Ferguson strings us along for a gore-tastic good time.

In “Coochie Coochie Coo,” two high school seniors celebrate their final Halloween together with utter shenanigans. After entering a particularly creepy house, the girls find themselves trapped and tormented. Filmmaker Anna Zlokovic brings a local urban legend to life. With touches of Barbarian, it is undeniably disturbing.

Paco Plaza‘s “Ut Supra Sic Infra” follows the aftermath of a Halloween party massacre at a nightclub. We find a rattled Enrivo, the only survivor in the interrogation room of a police station. Officers take him back to the crime scene for a recreation. Editing is king in this segment. Slow clap for Plaza’s structure and the back-and-forth lens style. It is relentless dread and intrigue.

“Fun Size” finds filmmaker Casper Kelly following two couples trying to find the best treats on the block. When a lone bowl filled with candy they’ve never heard of sucks them into a portal. This one is captured via a GoPro camera attached to the couple dressed as found footage characters, literally. Now, in some demented candy factory, Fun Size is the most campy, laugh-out-loud mindfuck.

Alex Ross Perry‘s “KidPrint” tells the tale of a small town with a child serial killer. Tim, the electronic store owner and KidPrint consenesuer (short videos identifying kids in case they go missing), always has a camcorder running. This year, festivities are run by the police in the town square. In an effort to find the latest victim, Tim runs back to the store in search of her video, only to discover the gruesome footage taken on the floor. This segment is by far the most upsetting. Children in peril is always a bold choice, and Perry goes there.

Home Haunt” is our only filmmaking double team. Micheline Pitt and R.H. Norman recount a crumbling father-son relationship. Keith and Zack used to connect over their annual, elaborate haunted house builds, but time and cruel kids kill the Halloween spirit for Zack. Desperate for a dazzling theme, Keith swipes a record from a local oddities shop. The house takes on a life of its own, and mayhem and blood are real this time. This fast-paced, coordinated chaos is genre magnificence. Zack acts as videographer, capturing every wild kill as he, his parents, and neighbors wander from room to room. Home Haunt is nonstop, devilish delight.

V/H/S/HALLOWEEN reigns supreme. Fx and creature builds, across the board, are spectacular. Performances rule. Writing, directing, and cinematography have no loose threads. The anthology format lets fans get an annual take that is equal parts trick and treat.

Thank you, Brad Miska.

V/H/S/HALLOWEEN Trailer:

V/H/S/HALLOWEEN is now Exclusively Streaming on Shudder

DIET PHANTASMA directed by Bryan M. Ferguson

FUN SIZE directed by Casper Kelly

HOME HAUNT directed by Micheline Pitt-Norman and R.H. Norman

KIDPRINT directed by Alex Ross Perry

UT SUPRA SIC INFRA directed by Paco Plaza

COOCHIE COOCHIE COO directed by Anna Zlokovic

V/H/S/HALLOWEEN Synopsis: A collection of Halloween-themed videotapes unleashes a series of twisted, blood-soaked tales, turning trick-or-treat into a struggle for survival.

Directors: Anna Zlokovic, Paco Plaza, Casper Kelly, Alex Ross Perry, Micheline Pitt-Norman & R.H. Norman, Bryan M. Ferguson

Writers: Anna Zlokovic, Paco Plaza & Alberto Marini, Casper Kelly, Alex Ross Perry, Micheline Pitt-Norman & R.H. Norman, Bryan M. Ferguson

Producers: Roy Lee, Steven Schneider, Derek Dauchy, Josh Goldbloom, Michael Schreiber, Brad Miska

Music: Nick Chuba

Genre: Horror

Country: United States

Languages: English, Spanish

Runtime: 115 minutes

For more horror coverage, click here!

‘THE CRAMPS: A Period Piece’ (Fantastic Fest 2025) Tangible taboo with a horror twist

Posted on September 23, 2025 by Liz Whittemore — Leave a reply

THE CRAMPS: A Period Piece

Brooke H. Cellars’ campy new horror comedy THE CRAMPS: A Period Piece comes to Fantastic Fest 2025 to leave audiences in a state of giggling discomfort. The story follows Agnes, a young woman from a strict household who gets a job at the local salon. When her period cramps manifest into monsters, life gets a lot more complicated than a little menstrual conversation.

Agnes navigates her monthly tormentor as she starts a new job as a shampoo girl with big dreams. Defying her weirdly fanatical widowed mother, Agnes goes on her first date, visits a gynecologist, and helps the gals at the shop enter a hair show against their salon nemesis. All while her cramps come to life and wreak havoc on those most deserving.

The Hairbrained Salon’s owner is a bawdy broad named Laverne. Martini Bear is one hell of a force, slinging f-bombs on top of the already kitschy, 60s-inspired dialogue. John Waters and Mario Bava are all over this film; think Cry Baby or Hairspray meets Blood and Black Lace. There’s no doubt Teddy is inspired by Grease’s Beauty School Dropout herself, Frenchy, except that in The Cramps, Teddy is a satanist. She (a fabulous Wicken Taylor) and fellow forgetful stylist, Holiday, played by hilarious Michelle Malentina, have the best chemistry. I would watch an entire spinoff about Laverne, Teddy, and Holiday.

Lauren Kitchen gives Agnes an authentic awkwardness and pure heart that we need to fall in love with her. Diving headfirst into this role and trusting Cellars’ vision, Kitchen captures your heart and grosses you out, all while making a cultural point.

The costumes, hair, and makeup are spectacular. The vivacious colors and sparkles pop on the 35mm film. The hyper-augmented sound editing will make you cringe. The script cleverly weaves in menstruation shame, medical gaslighting, and consent, while also playing into the adage that a period is a monthly curse. The ending is perfection. THE CRAMPS: A Period Piece has midnight madness cult classic written all over it.

THE CRAMPS: A Period Piece (Warped Witch Cinema) Teaser Trailer:

Feature Film
(World Premiere, 89 mins)

Directed by: Brooke H. Cellars
Producers: Brooke H. Cellars, Madeleine Yawn, Wicken Taylor, Michelle Malentina, Levi Porter and Vincent Stalba
Starring: Lauren Kitchen, Brooklyn Woods, Harlie Madison, Martini Bear, Wicken Taylor, Michelle Malentina

A blossoming young woman, Agnes Applewhite (Lauren Kitchen), gets a job as a shampoo girl at a lively beauty salon, which goes against the wishes of her traditional family including her sanctimonious mother and tightly wound sister. As she begins this newfound journey to find her true self, she suffers from debilitating menstrual cramps, which blur the line between reality and nightmare for her and those around her.

Part comedy, part fantastical horror and wholly unforgettable, Brooke H. Cellars’ THE CRAMPS: A Period Piece takes the audience on a mesmerizing trip where John Waters’ irreverence meets the macabre stylings of Mario Bava, all wrapped in the dreamlike allure of Federico Fellini.

Brooke H. Cellars (she/they) is a multifaceted filmmaker. She has directed 8 short films since 2018. Her adoration for all things horror started when she was a kid. Her father was a children’s book writer and starting early on has been writing stories that were always horror themed. Her first screenplay, which she turned into a short film called THE CHILLS, won Best Screenplay at Houston Horror Fest in 2020. Her most recent short film VIOLET BUTTERFIELD: MAKEUP ARTIST FOR THE DEAD has screened in over 30 film festivals worldwide and has won multiple awards including the Abby Normal Award at Portland Horror Fest, the Audience Award at Final Girls Berlin, and both the Jury and Audience awards at Overlook Film Festival.

USA, Feature Film, 35mm, 89 Minutes, Not Rated, 2025

For more Fantastic Fest coverage, click here!

‘MEADOWLARKS’ (TIFF 50) A meditation on collective grief and healing

Posted on September 8, 2025 by Liz Whittemore — Leave a reply

MEADOWLARKS

Based in part on her 2017 film BIRTH OF A FAMILY, Tasha Hubbard brings her scripted narrative debut to TIFF 50. MEADOWLARKS stars Michael Greyeyes, Carmen Moore, Alex Rice, and Michelle Thrush as four Cree siblings who were separated by the Sixties Scoop, who are meeting for the first time as adults.

Human complexity, set against a stunning backdrop, never overshadows the tragedy in their collective truth. Hubbard dives headfirst into the Scoop’s hideous history, but never shoves our faces in it. Her approach is gentle. For any viewer who somehow has zero knowledge, you’re about to learn the hard way. You will feel compelled to go down a Google search rabbit hole.

Performances are fantastic. Each character is incredibly nuanced. Four siblings with varying goals for the trip and vastly different personalities. But what links them is far deeper than the ways in which they were raised by white families.

Each sibling chooses connection in small ways. Hubbard taps into the unconscious need for space when emotionally overstimulated, and it is awe-inspiring. MEADOWLARKS is an experiment in empathy and grief through shared trauma. The quiet compassion will undoubtedly take you on a journey through sadness and hope.

Director:

Tasha Hubbard is a Cree filmmaker from Peepeekisis Cree Nation, Saskatchewan. She is a director and writer, known for Two Worlds Colliding (04), nîpawistamâsowin: We Will Stand Up (19), and Singing Back the Buffalo (24). Meadowlarks (25) is her feature debut.

Cast

Michael Greyeyes

Carmen Moore

Alex Rice

Michelle Thrush

Cinematography

James Klopko

Editing

Simone Smith

Executive Producer

Betty Ann Adam

Producers

Tyler Hagan

Julia Rosenberg

Production Companies

Experimental Forest Films

January Media

Production Designer

Louisa Birkin

Costume Designer

Carmen Thompson

Screenplay

Tasha Hubbard

Emil Sher

Sound

Coby DeGroot

Original Score

Todor Kobakov

Publicist

Star PR

Canadian Distributor

Mongrel Media

For more TIFF coverage, click here!

TIFF 50 is here and it’s bigger and better than ever.

Posted on September 5, 2025 by Liz Whittemore — Leave a reply

TIFF 50

This year’s lineup is on fire. Outside the hotly anticipated Colin Hank’s doc, John Candy: I Like Me, and Rian Johnson’s latest, Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery, here are 5 films we’re keeping our eyes on in the festival’s 50th year!

Honorary Chair and Award Winners: Actor Brendan Fraser is this year’s Honorary Chair. Other award winners include Idris Elba, Jodie Foster, Guillermo del Toro, and Channing Tatum.
The 50th Toronto International Film Festival, presented by Rogers, will run September 4–14, 2025. Celebrate with the best of Canadian and global cinema, special events and talks with stars, plus TIFF’s Industry Conference. TIFF 50

DUST BUNNY

SYNOPSIS: In visionary creator Bryan Fuller’s (Hannibal, Pushing Daisies) fantastical and wickedly inventive feature directorial debut DUST BUNNY, a 10 year-old girl who joins forces with her hitman neighbor to confront each other’s monsters.

Ten year-old Aurora has a mysterious neighbor (Mads Mikkelsen) who kills real-life monsters; he’s a hitman for hire. So when Aurora needs help killing the monster that she believes ate her entire family, she procures his services. Suspecting that Aurora’s parents may have fallen victim to assassins gunning for him, the neighbor guiltily takes the job. To protect her, he’ll need to battle an onslaught of assassins and accept that some monsters are real.

IN THEATERS: December 5, 2025

DIRECTOR: Bryan Fuller

WRITER: Bryan Fuller

CAST: Mads Mikkelsen, Sigourney Weaver, David Dastmalchian, Sophie Slone

RUN TIME: 106 minutes TIFF 50

CAROLINA CAROLINE

In his latest slice of anarchic Americana, writer-director Adam Carter Rehmeier first introduces us to the always effervescent Samara Weaving (Guns Akimbo, TIFF ’19) as Caroline. Listless and living a small life in a small town, she dutifully cares for her single father (Jon Gries) though she longs to break from her dusty and dull world. But when she observes a handsome drifter (Kyle Gallner) pull a sly con for a few bucks, her curiosity sparks an introduction that ignites an apprenticeship. Before long, their lucrative, if untenable, criminal enterprise dovetails into a passionate romance.

DIRECTOR: Adam Carter Rehmeier

WRITER: Tom Dean

CAST: Samara Weaving, Kyle Gallner, Kyra Sedgwick, Jon Gries

RUNTIME: 105m TIFF 50

CALIFORNIA SCHEMIN’

Actor James McAvoy makes his directorial debut with this irresistible, feel-good underdog tale about two Scottish men pretending to be Americans to achieve their dreams of hip-hop stardom. It’s based on a true story that’s stranger than fiction.

DIRECTOR: James McAvoy

CAST: Séamus McLean Ross, Samuel Bottomley, Lucy Halliday, Rebekah Murrell, James McAvoy

WRITERS: Archie Thomson, Elaine Gracie

RUNTIME: 107m TIFF 50

LILITH FAIR: Building a Mystery

This galvanizing documentary from director Ally Pankiw (I Used To Be Funny) takes us behind the scenes of Sarah McLachlan’s legendary all-women music festival and features interviews with performers including Bonnie Raitt, Erykah Badu, Olivia Rodrigo, and Emmylou Harris.

DIRECTOR: Ally Pankiw

FEATURING: Sarah McLachlan, Sheryl Crow, Erykah Badu, Paula Cole, Jewel, Bonnie Raitt, Natalie Merchant, Indigo Girls, Emmylou Harris, Brandi Carlile, Olivia Rodrigo

RUNTIME: 99 Mins TIFF 50

TUNER

A talented piano tuner’s meticulous skills for tuning pianos lead him to discover an unexpected aptitude for cracking safes, turning his life upside down.

DIRECTOR: Daniel Roher

WRITERS: Robert Ramsey, Daniel Roher

CAST: Leo Woodall, Dustin Hoffman, Havana Rose Liu, Lior Raz, Tovah Feldshuh, Jean Reno TIFF 50

For TIFF coverage from years past, click here!

TIFF 50

‘SOMNIUM’ (2025) Where dreams coming true is a double entendre.

Posted on August 30, 2025 by Liz Whittemore — Leave a reply

SOMNIUM

Aspiring actress Gemma leaves behind her small town and moves to LA. Upon discovering the harsh reality of pounding the pavement in Hollywood, from failed auditions to a dwindling bank account, Gemma desperately takes a position at a dream studies lab, Somnium. After accidentally meeting a producer, things are looking up. Until her graveyard shift, severe lack of sleep, and the discovery of questionable lab practices, cause her new life to shift into a waking nightmare. Read More →

‘LUCID’ (Fantasia 2025) A short gets a long, dizzying, drug-fueled feature.

Posted on July 22, 2025 by Liz Whittemore — Leave a reply

LUCID

Directors Deanna Milligan and Ramsey Fendall‘s 2022 short film LUCID gets the feature treatment, and Fanatsia 2025 audiences are its first test subjects. The film follows Mia, a misunderstood art student who delivers more performance art than quality visual art. She’s stressed and overly dramatic, but that’s pretty much a requirement for us artsy folk. At risk of being ousted from her program, Mia turns to a lucid dream elixer to inspire her work.

The consequences of going down that rabbit hole, sometimes literally, are a barrage of repressed childhood memories and the instability of her mother’s treatment. Mia’s trips reveal a trauma monster, more specifically, one made of mom’s blond locks. This hair monster torments Mia throughout her jacked-up journey.

Determining between trip and reality becomes increasingly dizzying, but filmmakers utilize 35mm and 16mm film to keep it gritty and keep you guessing. If I have one complaint, the runtime could use a trim, but the soundtrack is life.

Caitlin Acken Taylor is everything. Mia Sunshine Jones is no easy role, but Taylor lives it. She even creates Mia’s paintings and sculptures. Her fourth wall break, and the precise moment at which it occurs, is jarring and genius.

If Jennifer Kent and Alice Maio Mackay had a movie baby, it might look something like LUCID. The entire film feels like a 90s music video, or a punk version of Jacob’s Ladder. LUCID is an exploration of generational trauma through art and original music. It won’t be for everyone, but there is undeniable confidence in style.

LUCID Teaser Trailer:

After coming to Fantasia as a short film selected for the Frontierés Market Shorts to Features Lab in 2022 and Sitges Fanpitch that same year, directing duo Deanna Milligan and Ramsey Fendall expand the world of Mia Sunshine Jones in their darkly trippy feature, LUCID. Mia is a rebellious art student who struggles to create the ultimate project for a demanding professor. Desperate to find her artistic voice, she takes Lucid, a candy elixir, to access her creativity, but taps into something much darker. Starring Caitlin Acken Taylor, who reprises her role from the short, and Georgia Acken (star of the 2023 Fantasia hit THE SACRIFICE GAME), Milligan and Fendall create a surreal nightmare with a vintage look that fully embraces the 90s grunge era with a punk art aesthetic. Using live on-set music, an eclectic cast, and loads of experimental and haunting visuals, the World Premiere of LUCID will be a nightmare-come-true.

Team: The film is co-written and directed by actor turned filmmaker Deanna Milligan (21 Jump Street, The X-Files) and cinematographer turned director/writer Ramsey Fendall (Ethan Hawke’s Seymour: An Introduction).

Cast: Caitlin Acken Taylor (Pistol) and Georgia Acken (Under the Bridge, The Sacrifice Game), Vivian Vanderpuss from RuPaul’s Drag Race is in the film and also designed the Hair Monster and Ayla Tesler Mabe one of the Goth Girls a is a real life guitar god! She has been featured in Rolling Stone and formerly part of the band Calpurnia with Finn Wolfhard.

Soundtrack features: Marta Jaciubek McKeever (Fan Death), James Wollam (Tears for Fears), Ayla Tesler Mabe (Calpurnia). Recording sessions were hosted at James Wollam’s Salt Spring Island studio. Wollam also co-wrote “If You Love Me”, a recurring folk-rock theme woven through the film as a relic of the fictional 1970s band Sweetbird, tied to the protagonist’s family mythology.

For all things Fantasia 2025, click here!

‘THE BEARDED GIRL’ (Fantasia 2025) An equally quirky and authentic coming-of-age tale.

Posted on July 20, 2025 by Liz Whittemore — Leave a reply

THE BEARDED GIRL

Jody Wilson delivers a special film to Fantasia 2025 audiences with THE BEARDED GIRL. Cleo is the heir to a sideshow as the next Bearded Woman. Feeling conflicted about her future, Cleo rejects familial expectations to find herself.

Inheriting a legacy from an overbearing and proud mother, Cleo wants to choose her path. After discovering a secret about her past, Cleo abandons her assigned responsibilities and heads out into the world, much to the chagrin of her bitter mother.

After a bus ride on her way out of town gets cut short by a sighting of her local crush, Cleo’s infatuation becomes a way of life that maybe isn’t what she intended. Her mother, Lady Andre, comes looking for her and mistakes a passing moment for the end of her legacy.

There’s a subplot involving the sale of sideshow land to a greedy developer. If the heir apparent does not sign papers, Andrea loses the land. Cleo begins to understand cyclical trauma, and it doesn’t feel good.

Jessica Paré delivers a vivacious performance as Lady Andre. She is eccentric and demanding, but is undoubtedly battling unresolved wounds. Skylar Radzion is Josephine, the hairless sibling in the bearded family. She is a spitfire and a slick foil for Cleo.

Anwen O’Driscoll is magnificent. She owns her sass, nails the angsty comedy, and commands your attention in every scene. It helps that she is surrounded by a fantastic ensemble of fully fleshed-out characters. O’Driscoll attacks the role with a beautiful balance between quirk, awkwardness, and authentic innocence.

The production design, from Danny Vermette, deserves all the accolades. The circus tents, trailers, and stages all boast vintage jewel-toned draperies and props. In the outside world, the repeated pops of yellow are striking.

The dialogue is hilarious, particularly set against the nostalgic sweetness of the score. It reminds me of Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure. There is a timeless feeling about the entire film. You can’t pin down a year, and that somehow makes everything more satisfying.

THE BEARDED GIRL is a one-of-a-kind coming-of-age tale. The story is a fantastic metaphor for superficiality and a fierce feminist anthem for self-love.

The Bearded Girl Teaser Trailer:

Director

Jody Wilson

Producer

Amber Ripley

Writer

Jody Wilson

Cast

Anwen O’Driscoll, Jessica Paré

Cinematographer

François Dagenais

Composer

Cayne McKenzie

Editor

Fredrik Thorsen

Production Designer

Danny Vermette

For all things Fantasia, click here!

‘SAINT CLARE’ (2025) Good vs Evil vs Structure.

Posted on July 15, 2025 by Liz Whittemore — Leave a reply

SAINT CLARE

Mitzi Peirone gives audiences a mashup of ideas in SAINT CLARE. The film follows a college student who has a penchant for taking out bad guys in her sphere. A story of the morally gray, good vs evil, it’s something entirely different.

Girls keep going missing in her new town, and Clare wonders why no one seems to be focusing on the clues. Dealing with heavy childhood trauma, she discovers some seedy photos featuring her friends and one of the missing girls. This Nancy Drew on mushrooms narrative will have your head spinning.

Visually and technically stunning, if not a touch confusing storytelling-wise. The script has a Freighteners and Civil Dead meets The Sixth Sense vibe. The camerawork suggests potential mental illness in Clare. The audience constantly questions what is real.

Ryan Phillipe makes the best of a weird situation. Rebecca De Mornay is a fantastic addition. Frank Whaley made my heart skip a beat. He deserved way more screentime!

More Dexter than Joan of Arc, Bella Thorne‘s spitfire attitude makes SAINT CLARE compelling through the confusion. I could easily see her captivating in a role similar to Jennifer Garner in ALIAS. Honesty, Thorne could easily slot into a new season of Marvel’s Jessica Jones alongside Krysten Ritter. They would kick major ass together.

The film doesn’t know what genre it wants to be. There is comedy akin to Idol Hands (which is some of the strongest), drama like Pretty Little Liars, and mystery that is as whirlwind as Memento. It feels like a YA graphic novel with panels missing. If anything, SAINT CLARE does make me want to read Don Roff‘s source material, “Clare At Sixteen,” if only for some potential clarification.

OFFICIAL SAINT CLARE TRAILER:

SAINT CLARE will be in theaters and on demand and on digital on July 18, 2025.

For more thrillers, click here!

Fantasia 2025 is on its way to slay.

Posted on July 13, 2025 by Liz Whittemore — Leave a reply

Fantasia 2025

The literal moment a certain NYC festival closes, I begin to get hyped for Fantasia. If you are a genre nerd like I am, this is the festival that I’m talking about all year. Home of upcoming filmmakers that ultimately become household names, Fantasia boasts some of the coolest, scariest, weirdest, goriest, and most shocking films of the year. At least three consistently make it into my annual Top 10. The Adams Family‘s latest bit of macabre magic, MOTHER OF FLIES, Michel Gondry‘s animated feature MAYA, GIVE ME A TITLE, and filmmaking team Deanna Milligan and Ramsey Fendall return, having expanded their 2022 short LUCID into a feature. If you want a guaranteed good time filled with new and inventive films, Fantasia 2025 has more than you can handle. Here are just a few films we’ve got our eyes on this year. Fantasia 2025

TOUCH ME Fantasia 2025

Writer/director Addison Heinmann follows up his 2022 Fantasia hit HYPOCHONDRIAC with Touch Me.

The path to peace and happiness is an arduous one for Joey (Olivia Taylor Dudley of THE MAGICIANS, SHE DIES TOMORROW and CRAWLSPACE), as she also needs to navigate her shitty best friend Craig (Jordan Gavaris of HACKS and ORPHAN BLACK) and her cosmically problematic ex-boyfriend Brian (Lou Taylor Pucci of the 2013 EVIL DEAD and SPRING). To make matters worse, Joey and Craig are forced back into the grasp of the openly alien-jumpsuit-wearing ex who dispenses a euphoric toxin to all those he touches. The two dysfunctional slackers descend into a strange love triangle filled with dependence, violence, intoxication, and tentacles. But once the narcissistic alien’s motives take shape, a web of lies is revealed and a nefarious, Earth-threatening plan may be on the horizon.

MOTHER OF FLIES

When a young woman faces a deadly diagnosis, she seeks dark magic from a witch in the woods… but every cure has costs. Written and directed by John and Zelda Adams and Toby Poser (The Adams Family), who also star, shot, edited, and scored, MOTHER OF FLIES is the latest creation from the filmmaking family behind such singular landmarks as THE DEEPER YOU DIG, HELLBENDER, and WHERE THE DEVIL ROAMS, each of which has World Premiered at Fantasia. Described by the filmmakers as their fairytale manipulation of the darkly shadowed, yet love-lined pathways between a human life and death, MOTHER OF FLIES is an extraordinary work of personal genre storytelling, gestated through the family’s own experiences battling and surviving cancer. It stands with the strongest of their work, a poetic, haunting, and moving film that glows with otherworldly imagination, exploring the concept of necromancy in connection with two women who have very intimate relationships with death.

World Premiere. Fantasia 2025

IT ENDS

In one of 2025’s major genre breakouts, four college friends find themselves on an infinite, unending road, forcing each of them to decide how to confront their fate in an unnerving journey into the unknown. Writer/director Alex Ullom and his gifted cast work miracles and offer a compelling, constantly intriguing, and often terrifying road trip into adulthood. Official Selection: SXSW 2025, Overlook 2025.

International Premiere. Fantasia 2025

REDUX REDUX Fantasia 2025

Desperate to avenge her daughter’s murder, Irene Kelly (Michaela McManus) journeys through parallel dimensions to repeatedly track down and annihilate her killer (Jeremy Holm). A tense sci-fi vengeance thriller unlike any other, REDUX REDUX is the latest creation by Kevin and Matthew McManus, the Peabody award-winning writers and producers of AMERICAN VANDAL and COBRA KAI, and writers/directors of FUNERAL KINGS (Fantasia 2012) and THE BLOCK ISLAND SOUND (Fantasia 2020). Official Selection: SXSW 2025. Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival 2025.

Canadian Premiere. Fantasia 2025

MAYA, GIVE ME A TITLE Fantasia 2025

In high demand for his cleverness and creativity, French director Michel Gondry (THE SCIENCE OF SLEEP, BE KIND REWIND, and legendary music videos for the likes of Björk, Daft Punk, and the White Stripes) is often away from home for work. To keep connected with his beloved daughter Maya, he made nightly calls with requests for story titles, to prompt quick, rough little animations crafted with colored paper, markers, and scissors, always starring Maya herself, with MAYA, GIVE ME A TITLE assembling an assortment of these little vignettes. Whether she’s a mermaid, a ship’s captain, an earthquake investigator, or just herself shrunk by “cucumber-reducing solution”, Maya’s tales are told in true Gondry style—wry, inventive, and tactile, favoring the excitement of process over polished final product. Oh, and it’s all voiced and narrated by Pierre Niney, star of last year’s Fantasia hit THE COUNT OF MONTE-CRISTO!

My First Fantasia and Animation Plus Sections. North American Premiere. Fantasia 2025

NESTING Fantasia 2025

A familiar name to Fantasia audiences, Chloé Cinq-Mars returns to the festival with her debut feature, NESTING (PEAU À PEAU). Delving into the quiet horrors of early motherhood, the film opens with a scream in the night. Pénélope (Rose-Marie Perreault, FAKE TATTOOS), a new mother grappling with sleep deprivation and postpartum depression, finds herself unable to separate dream from reality. After witnessing a violent hold-up in a convenience store, her already fragile psyche begins to crack. Sensitive and haunting, NESTING offers an intimate, unsettling portrait of a mother unraveling. Perreault delivers a career-defining performance, capturing Pénélope’s disintegration and tender attempts at self-reclamation. Denied the idealized “glow” of new motherhood, she’s left to drift in darkness, slowly losing her grip on reality. What emerges is a chilling and deeply human exploration of identity, isolation, and the aching silence surrounding maternal mental health.

Les Fantastiques Week-Ends du Cinéma Québécois Section. World Premiere. Fantasia 2025

ANYTHING THAT MOVES Fantasia 2025

80 mins | 2025 | USA | English Fantasia 2025

Synopsis: An avant-gutter psychedelic dream, ANYTHING THAT MOVES is an erotically charged, blood-soaked thriller set in the sticky corridors of Chicago. Shot on fleshy Super 16mm, director Alex Phillips’ rust belt giallo continues on his trajectory of taboo-shattering horror cinema with this tense, funny, and absolutely twisted murder mystery. The film follows nubile sex worker Liam who bikes with his girlfriend—his partner in both business and pleasure—through the city delivering snacks and divine satisfaction to his love-hungry clients. Meanwhile, a serial killer’s gory murders are piling up and all the evidence seems to point back to the lover’s bed… Produced in collaboration with cult home video outfit Vinegar Syndrome, the film features stand-out supporting performances from erotic film legends Ginger Lynn (The Devil’s Rejects) and Nina Hartley (Boogie Nights). With an original instrumental score by Chicago-based artists Cue Shop calling to mind the lush orchestrations of Bruno Nicolai and lurid visuals by acclaimed cinematographer Hunter Zimny (The Scary of Sixty-First, Funny Pages), ANYTHING THAT MOVES provides an immersive throwback to 70s exploitation flicks.

World Premiere: Fri July 25, 9:30pm, Salle J.A. De Seve

Tue July 29, 11:45am, Salle J.A. De Seve

Written and Directed By: Alex Phillips

Introducing: Hal Baum, Jeremy Everett, Andrea Huber, Maxton Koc, Jiana Nicole, Jade Perry and Cooper Whittlesey

Featuring: Ginger Lynn Allen, Trevor Dawkins, Jack Dunphy, Paul Gordon, Nina Hartley and Frank V. Ross

LUCID Fantasia 2025

After coming to Fantasia as a short film selected for the Frontierés Market Shorts to Features Lab in 2022 and Sitges Fanpitch that same year, directing duo Deanna Milligan and Ramsey Fendall expand the world of Mia Sunshine Jones in their darkly trippy feature, LUCID. Mia is a rebellious art student who struggles to create the ultimate project for a demanding professor. Desperate to find her artistic voice, she takes Lucid, a candy elixir, to access her creativity, but taps into something much darker. Starring Caitlin Acken Taylor, who reprises her role from the short, and Georgia Acken (star of the 2023 Fantasia hit THE SACRIFICE GAME), Milligan and Fendall create a surreal nightmare with a vintage look that fully embraces the 90s grunge era with a punk art aesthetic. Using live on-set music, an eclectic cast, and loads of experimental and haunting visuals, the World Premiere of LUCID will be a nightmare-come-true.

World Premiere at Fantasia, feature debut, July 31

The film is co-written and directed by actor turned filmmaker Deanna Milligan (21 Jump Street, The X-Files) and cinematographer turned director/writer Ramsey Fendall (Ethan Hawke’s Seymour: An Introduction).

Cast: Caitlin Acken Taylor (Pistol) and Georgia Acken (Under the Bridge, The Sacrifice Game), Vivian Vanderpuss from RuPaul’s Drag Race is in the film and also designed the Hair Monster and Ayla Tesler Mabe one of the Goth Girls a is a real life guitar god! She has been featured in Rolling Stone and formerly part of the band Calpurnia with Finn Wolfhard.

FOREIGNER Fantasia 2025

For her debut feature film, FOREIGNER, Ava Maria Safai (Zip) expertly harnesses the power of identity, social acceptance, horror, and comedy. It’s 2004, and Iranian immigrant Yasamin, or Yasi, is the new girl. Her high school experience is daunting, as she tries to improve her English by watching her favorite sitcom and befriends a trio of pastel-clad girls who feed Yasi’s need to fit in. Desperate for acceptance, she dyes her hair blonde and, in doing so, also attracts a demonic force. With a fun retro setting, great performances by Rose Dehgan as Yasi, Chloë MacLeod as the creepy high school “Queen Bee” Rachel, and a blend of our favorite teen horrors, FOREIGNER takes up space as a new entry to “bubblegum horror,” bringing a fresh narrative to the Canadian immigrant experience. The film has been referred to by some as Mean Girls meets The Exorcist and Ava is definitely a young director to watch.

World Premiere at Fantasia, feature debut, July 21

Writer/director Ava Maria Safai is a Canadian-Iranian multidisciplinary artist from Vancouver, known for her work in acting, music, writing, and directing. She is a Dean’s List graduate from UBC’s BFA in Acting program and the artistic director of The Harlequin Theatre Society. She is also an accomplished musician and songwriter, with over 40 original songs and a Canada Council-funded musical. Her short film Zip won numerous awards on the festival circuit and her debut single “Finding Hope” was picked up on Lifetime’s Dance Moms. Ava Maria has released three albums and five singles and she co-wrote music for Unmasked (which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival). Ava Maria recently shadowed directors Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein on Final Destination Bloodlines.

Cast: Rose Dehgan (Musician & TikTok star), Chloë MacLeod, Ashkan Nejati (Director of Tonight’s Homework which premiered at IDFA)

HELLCAT Fantasia 2025

A woman (Dakota Gorman) wakes in the back of a moving camper trailer. A voice (Todd Terry) from the truck towing it tells her they must reach a mysterious doctor within the hour. Thus begins HELLCAT, the feature debut of writer/editor/director Brock Bodell, who previously cut the mind-bending ULTRASOUND (Fantasia 2021), among others. Bodell doesn’t take a wrong turn, delivering a twisty thrill ride of strong characters, shredding tension, and real surprises that takes viewers deep into unexpected places. Featuring SNL’s James Austin Johnson as the voice of a late-night DJ on a supernatural call-in show, and gripping performances from supporting cast Jordan Mullins and Liz Atwater.

World Premiere. Fantasia 2025

HOLD THE FORT Fantasia 2025

A HOA turns out to be more troublesome than usual in this wildly amusing, FX-heavy freak-out about newly minted suburbanites unexpectedly forced to take part in a struggle against monstrous forces. Narratives about motley groups of ill-equipped characters battling forces of evil are a staple of the modern horror/comedy world, but HOLD THE FORT, from writer/director William Bagley, is many yuks above the norm. With very funny dialogue, outrageous circumstances, and plenty of stylish splatstick as both the human and inhuman are dispatched in gruesome, sometimes giggle-worthy ways, with heaps of spurting, splashing gore and a nonstop parade of practically-created creatures and zombies. Starring Chris Mayers (OZARK), Haley Leary, sketch comic YouTube creator Julian Smith, and Tordy Clark (GLORIOUS), and featuring a charismatic turn from veteran stunt performer Hamid-Reza Benjamin Thompson (BLACK PANTHER, AVENGERS: ENDGAME).

World Premiere. Fantasia 2025

The 29th edition of the Fantasia International Film Festival is presented by MELS in collaboration with Concordia University and made possible by the financial support of Telefilm Canada, the Société́ de développement des entreprises culturelles (SODEC), the Ministère du Tourisme, the Ministère des Affaires municipales et de l’Habitation, the city of Montreal, the Conseil des arts de Montréal, Tourisme Montréal, and the Directors Guild of Canada (DGC).

The festival would like to thank all its private partners, friends of the event, as well as official suppliers, venues, and all participating filmmakers, sales agents, and distributors for their invaluable support.

Fantasia 2025

Tickets to the festival can be found here!

For all things Fantasia 2025, click here!

‘FIRE AT WILL’ (Tribeca 2025) Authentic familial chaos

Posted on June 16, 2025 by Liz Whittemore — Leave a reply

FIRE AT WILL

Morgan Gruer‘s Tribeca 2025 short FIRE AT WILL is one of the most relatable films to come out of this year’s program. In nine minutes, we witness a mother and father attempting to prepare their four children to sign their will with a notary who will soon be arriving at the house. Blindsided at every turn, the conversation does not go as anticipated.

FIRE AT WILL looks fantastic. Jared Levy‘s camerawork is most immersed and intimate. Kyle Moriarty‘s quick-take editing is perfect. The fast-paced dialogue filled with self-absorbed personalities is every kitchen table conversation featuring adult children and their parents. As the firstborn of four loud children in an Irish Italian household, I can attest to the authenticity in the chaos of Gruer’s script, right down to the mother storming out in emotionally exhausted dramatics and the unspoken connection between father and artistic daughter. The cast nails each ping-pong match beat. FIRE AT WILL is a spectacular treatment for a feature. I need to know what happens next.

Director: Morgan Gruer
Producer: Sandra Tan
Screenwriter: Morgan Gruer
Cinematographer: Jared Levy
Editor: Kyle Moriarity
Executive Producer: Kerri Mandelbaum, Rob Neft, Morgan Gruer
Associate Producer: Wendy Neft-Sanda, Sarah Zaccardo, Donald Milsten, Teddy Gruer, Hannah Gruer
Co-Producer: Justin Lacob, Nicola Smith, Sam Gruer, Naomi Milsten Gruer
Production Manager: Beatriz Barbieri
Production Company: Prom Creative
Sound Design & Mix: Calvin Pia, Felt Sound

1st Assistant Director: Darcy Thompson
Color Grade: Jared Rosenthal
Cast: Scott Cohen, Amy Stiller, Ellie Sachs, Lucas Zelnick, Rebecca Gever, Julia DiCesare

For all things Tribeca, click here!

‘JIMMY & THE DEMONS’ (Tribeca 2025) A dazzling career of creation.

Posted on June 16, 2025 by Liz Whittemore — Leave a reply

JIMMY & THE DEMONS

Cindy Meehl brings the life of larger-than-life artists to Tribeca 2025 audiences in JIMMY & THE DEMONS. James Grashow‘s work has been seen by millions, even if his name is unknown. From album art to 30 years of weekly drawings in The New York Times, his massive installations of cardboard sculptures appear around the world. Jimmy’s work can best be described as if Tim Burton’s stop-motion creations were life-sized and brimming with color.

In Meehl’s documentary, one of Jimmy’s prominent collectors commissions a piece based on his deep connection to religion. Having never worked with wood in this way, Jimmy is winging it. You’d never know. The intricacy of the work is astounding. The piece evolved over the years into a one-of-a-kind sculptor of demons, tortured souls, and Christ carrying a Cathedral on his very back. Each piece is mocked up in cardboard and then hand-carved.

All the while, Meehl features intimate sitdowns with Jimmy and his wife, Guzzy, as they talk about his work. During Jimmy’s in-school cardboard workshops over the years, he says you can pinpoint the moment an artist is born and how the entire class lights up at the realization of talent.

Jimmy’s art is immersive and brimming with joy. Scott Ruderman does a beautiful job capturing the minute details and the wonder of Jimmy’s creations. The film culminates in a grand retrospective of his pieces, and the result is like being transported to a living storybook. Grashow’s ability to manifest pure wonder is breathtaking. JIMMY & THE DEMONS simultaneously feels like a nostalgic hug and a whimsical journey.

Jimmy & The Demons: World Premiere – 2025 Tribeca Festival – Spotlight Documentary

SYNOPSIS
A magical journey into the artistic life and inner mind of celebrated sculptor James Grashow, who, at age 79, devotes four years to creating his magnum opus.

DIRECTED BY
Cindy Meehl (“Buck”, “The Dog Doc”)

PRODUCED BY
Elizabeth Westrate

ASSOCIATE PRODUCER
Jennifer Wastrom

CINEMATOGRAPHY BY
Scott Ruderman

FEATURING
James Grashow, Guzzy Grashow

RUN TIME: 93 Minutes

For all things Tribeca, click here!

‘HORSEGIRLS’ (Tribeca 2025) Heartfelt dramedy.

Posted on June 12, 2025 by Liz Whittemore — Leave a reply

HORSEGIRLS

Representation Matters. Filmmaker Lauren Meyering brings Tribeca 2025 audiences a unique and yet wholly relatable story with HORSEGIRLS. The film follows Margarita, a 25-year-old woman with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Margarita lives with her ailing mother at her wits’ end, as her daughter seems entirely unmotivated to find a job. Margarita navigates adulthood, friendship, and stepping out of her comfort zone in a whirlwind of tumultuous circumstances.

Margarita’s energy is infectious. She is lovable, curious, and the perfect amount of sass. Begrudgingly, she gets a job at a Halloween store, but her passion for hobby horses becomes a bit of a distraction when she stumbles upon a competitive troupe of girls in town. Trying her best to juggle her hours at the store, choreography, her mother, and social-emotional dynamics in the group, Margarita must come to terms with this moment in time, for better or worse.

HORSEGIRLS shines in its authentic performances. Iqbal Theba and Matthew Schwab are pure delight as Margarita’s boss and co-worker. Jerod Haynes plays Coach with genuine passion and kindness.

Gretchen Mol delivers a heartfelt turn as a cancer-stricken mother, Sandy. She exemplifies the unconditional love, burnout, and relentless fear that special needs parents experience every minute of the day. We worry about how our kids fare when they are out of our sight, how others treat them, and most heavily, who will care for them when we are gone. In truth, our most impossible challenge is letting them go. Mol walks that delicate line of exhaustion and support like a pro. It’s a lived-in performance.

Lillian Carrier nails the lead role. She steals every second of screen time with her fierce energy, whether through excitement, frustration, or earnest innocence. Margarita is a star-making moment for Carrier. You will not be able to take your eyes off of her. She is pure joy.

Margarita displays all the same ASD traits as my 9-year-old son: unfiltered honesty, sensitivity to loud sounds, difficulty with figurative language, a fervent work ethic, and empathy that surpasses the average neurotypical individual. Based on the film’s description, HORSEGIRLS might feel like an overwhelming mashup of ideas. In reality, it is an accurate depiction of daily chaos. Cancer has managed to infiltrate every family I know in some way. Grief is universal. The battle over neurodivergence acceptance rages on. I’ll repeat it- Representation Matters.

Natalie Kingston‘s beautifully thoughtful camerawork perfectly encapsulates the spirit of the film. Erin Orr‘s costumes are delightful. “The Fastest Girl In The World” is an uplifting original song you will fall in love with. With stunning moments of magical realism, Meyering creates an undeniable gem. HORSEGIRLS captures the essence of finding your people. If you aren’t crying by the end of this film, check your humanity. Tribeca 2025 audiences are lucky to see it first.

Director

Lauren Meyering

Producer

Michael Sherman, Alix Madigan-Yorkin, Mackenzie Breeden

Screenwriter

Lauren Meyering

Cinematographer

Natalie Kingston

Editor

Stephanie Filo

Composer

Dan Romer

Executive Producer

Rachael Moton, Corie Adjmi, Betsy Sherman

Co-Producer

Blair Skinner

Cast

Gretchen Mol, Jerod Haynes, Lillian Carrier, Tony Hale, Matthew Schwab, Iqbal Theba Horsegirls

For all things Tribeca, click here!

‘HONEYJOON’ (Tribeca 2025) Mother, daughter, mayhem.

Posted on June 9, 2025 by Liz Whittemore — Leave a reply

HONEYJOON

On the anniversary of the family patriarch, mother-daughter team Lela and June find themselves on a vacation together. Lilian T. Mehrel‘s HONEYJOON arrives at Tribeca 2025 with humor, heart, and healing.

Persian-Kurdish Lela longs to connect in the wake of her grief. American June wants some no strings attached vacation ass. Lela remains deeply connected to her heritage and global events. June is self-absorbed. After booking a private tour, each woman forms a different bond with their guide, João. Lela and June relive their long goodbye through the experiences of his dementia-ridden grandmother. Their relationship organically evolves through sadness, miscommunication, honesty-drenched barbs, and heartfelt laughter.

José Condessa creates a vibrant and charming character. He is sensitive and caring, everything a woman desires in a man. Condessa is dazzling. Ayden Mayeri gives June a true egocentric millennial with an unresolved emotional trauma vibe, which is precisely what Lilian T. Mehrel intended. Mayeri effortlessly glides into June’s arc. Amira Casar takes on Lela with a lived-in authenticity and passion. She holds each frame with her powerful presence. These two women share gorgeous chemistry.

Cinematographer Inés Gowland delivers thoughtful framing and takes full advantage of natural light. The work heightens the overall feeling of the film.

HONEYJOON is perfect for adult children and their parents. It is a gorgeous example of generational nuance and the unspoken turmoil within every mother-daughter relationship. Tribeca audiences will undoubtedly connect on every level.

Written & Directed by Lilian T. Mehrel
Producers: Andreia Nunes, Lilian T. Mehrel, Wonder Maria Filmes, Bärli Films
Production Companies: Wonder Maria Filmes, Bärli Films
Screenwriter: Lilian T. Mehrel

Director of Photography: Inés Gowland

Starring Ayden Mayeri & Amira Casar, José Condessa

Tribeca AT&T Untold Stories Award 2024 Winner

HONEYJOON is a sexy, emotional comedy about… a mother-daughter trip.

Persian-Kurdish Lela (Amira Casar) and her sensual American daughter June (Ayden Mayeri) travel to a romantic Azorean island, for the one-year anniversary of Dad’s death. They planned this trip to be together, but Lela & June have opposite views about why they’re there, how to grieve, and June’s tiny bikini. Surrounded by honeymooners, doom-scrolling for Woman Life Freedom, and taken on a tour by their hot philosophical guide, João (José Condessa); Lela and June find each other… coming back to life.

Supported by the SFFILM Rainin Grant.

Script developed at the TorinoFilmLab and Cine Qua Non Lab.

For all things Tribeca, click here!

‘PORELESS’ (Tribeca 2025 short) Representation honey!

Posted on June 8, 2025 by Liz Whittemore — Leave a reply

PORELESS

Filmmaker Harris Doran delivers Tribeca 2025 audiences a laugh-out-loud short about embracing authenticity and finding your place in this messy but beautiful world. In PORELESS, a fabulous, queer beauty entrepreneur is selected as a finalist in a Shark Tank-style competition to be part of an elite global brand. A last-minute allergic reaction threatens to end his career before it takes flight, but fate steps in, shenanigans ensue, and this tongue-in-cheek short speaks volumes.

Fawzia Mirza and Doran write the script from a lived-in perspective filled with humor and truth. In a landscape of social media influencer excess, our protagonist, Akram, narrowly escapes the trap of a fake persona with the help of his friends and family. Akbar Hamid is hilarious. Yes, yes, yes. The ease with which he owns the frame makes it feel longer than the 13-minute runtime in all the best ways.

PORELESS is cleverly titled. It is a metaphorical masterpiece about visibility and culture. Doran is no stranger to funny and smart shorts. F^¢K ‘€M R!GHT B@¢K and The Ivanka Diaries absolutely kill. It is no wonder PORELESS is equally joy-filled and sharp. I would watch these siblings in long-form and/or series comedy in a heartbeat. I’m buying whatever they are selling.

Short | United States | 13 MINUTES | English

STARRING: Akbar Hamid, Diane Guerrero (Orange Is The New Black, Jane The Virgin), Parvesh Cheena (Outscored)Allyce Beasley (hit series Moonlighting), Sophie Von Haselberg (Give Me Pity, Pose), Sureni Weerasekera (comedian), Gia Crovatin (House of Darkness) Lucy Owen (Miss Sloane), Joey Zauzig (TV personality, influencer and actor) Jillian Gottlieb (beauty influencer and actress), Joel Perez (Odd Mom Out, Tick Tick Boom)

Fawzia Mirza – Producer & Co-Writer, Harris Doran Director & Co-Writer, Akbar Hamid – Producer, Rabia Sultana – Producer

The comedic short had its NY Premiere at the upcoming 2025 TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL on Sat June 07 – 8:00 PM at the Shorts Theater at Spring Studios in NYC

Co-written by Fawzia Mirza and Harris Doran, and starring Hamid as a queer Muslim beauty founder navigating a high-stakes pitch competition after an untimely allergic reaction, the film is both hilarious and healing. It’s a story rooted in lived experience – and a powerful reclamation of joy, identity, and visibility.

A passionate advocate for queer, Muslim, and intersectional representation in media, Akbar also launched Finding SafeTea Productions – a creative studio and production company devoted to storytelling at the intersection of identity, transformation, and culture.

Remaining Screenings of Poreless:

Wed June 11 – 9:00 PM

Shorts Theater at Spring Studios

Sat June 14 – 2:15 PM

AMC 19th St. East 6

Sun June 15 – 8:45 PM

AMC 19th St. East 6

For all things Tribeca, click here!

‘BIRD IN HAND’ (Tribeca 2025) Generational trauma and family secrets.

Posted on June 6, 2025 by Liz Whittemore — Leave a reply

BIRD IN HAND

Melody C. Roscher’s incredible feature debut comes to Tribeca 2025 audiences. BIRD IN HAND follows a newly engaged young woman returning to her Mom’s house to view a local wedding venue. But, it quickly becomes apparent that Bird has ulterior motives.

Carlotta treats her as an inconvenience, constantly criticizing Bird and being openly hostile if things do not go her way. She controls the narrative. Bird tries her best to connect and longs for an ounce of compassion. But the truth is more complicated than fiction.

An accidental meeting with her mother’s new neighbors sparks a unique relationship and a quest to confront the past. Will hiring a wedding band be the answer to all her childhood hurt?

James Le Gros nails Dennis’ wildly erratic arc. Jeffrey Nordling is entirely charming as Carlotta’s longtime boyfriend, Dale.

Christine Lahti plays Bird’s mother. Self-described as “woo woo,” pretty much covers her untraditional take on life. It’s sort of a miracle Bird survived emotionally with such a kooky narcissist at the helm. Lahti is a force of nature. You have to love/hate her. Alisha Wainwright is spectacular in the titular role. Her vulnerability and ability to slide from wounded creature to absolute badass are impeccable.

Roscher dives headlong into racism, beginning with small-town microaggressions, then boldfaced offensive moments surrounding plantation history, all barreling towards her mother’s heart-shattering feelings. But, deep momma bear instincts and Bird’s unwieldy plan flip the script.

BIRD IN HAND is about healing, identity, and the messy path there and back. Tribeca 2025 audiences are lucky to see it first.

Directed by: Melody C. Roscher

Starring: Alisha Wainwright, Christine Lahti, James Le Gros, Annabelle Dexter-Jones, Jeffrey Nordling, K. Todd Freeman

Written by: Melody C. Roscher

Produced by: Craig Shilowich, Alex Schepsman, Danielle Massie, Cody Ryder, Sam Bisbee, Saba Zerehi

Executive Produced by: Jackie Kelman Bisbee, Lance Acord, John Craighead, Muwaffaq Salti

Bird in Hand follows Bird Rowe, a biracial bride-to-be who arrives unannounced at her charismatic hippie mother Carlotta’s rural home, to plan her wedding. As the two scout wedding venues, their attempts at bonding quickly unravel as buried truths surface, revealing an emotionally complex and fraught relationship. Bird enlists the help of the new neighbors who have recently bought a nearby plantation, sparking an unlikely connection. A darkly comedic and emotionally raw exploration of race, family, and identity, Bird in Hand is a sharp portrait of a young woman’s desperate search for connection—no matter how messy it gets.

RT: 87 Minutes

For all things Tribeca, click here!

‘CUERPO CELESTE’ (Tribeca 2025)

Posted on June 6, 2025 by Liz Whittemore — Leave a reply

CUERPO CELESTE

Filmmaker Nayra Ilic Garcia brings Tribeca 2025 audiences CUERPO CELESTE, a film about the inevitability of change, for better or worse.

The film opens on New Year’s Eve on an isolated coastal beach with 15-year-old Celeste, her parents, family, and friends. A warm, lazy day of swimming, lounging, learning to drive, exploring the Atacama Desert landscape for fossils, songs by firelight, and stolen moments with a crush. It is a core childhood memory. The following morning, 1990 begins with a sudden tragedy, and Celeste’s path alters forever.

The story moves through time to almost a year later. An eclipse is coming. Celeste’s now estranged mother plans to sell the house, has given away her father’s life’s work, and thinks she can step back into parenting without the consequences of near abandonment. Celeste challenges the rules, discovering that her mother is not the only vastly different thing since she was last there.

Helen Mrugalski gives Celeste a lived-in maturity. To understand that she was only 14 during filming makes her performance all the more impressive. She is a star.

Cinematographer Sergio Armstrong‘s distinctive style is breathtaking. It is both a celebration of the desert topography and yet maintains stunning intimacy. Roberto Espinoza‘s sound design is revelatory. There is patience in Valerie Hernandez‘s editing. In a post-Pinochet nation, CUERPO CELESTE is a microcosm of the national Chilean political shift. It is a clever parallel. Nayra Ilic Garcia delivers an examination of time, grief, healing, secrets, and change. It is a moving coming-of-age story.

ABOUT THE FILM
Summer, 1990. As Chile’s dictatorship draws to a close, fifteen-year-old Celeste spends the holidays with her family on a remote beach by the Atacama Desert. When an event shatters her adolescence and sends her mother into a downward spiral, their world begins to shift.

Months later, drawn by the promise of a solar eclipse, Celeste returns to that same place, but nothing is the same. In a country on the brink of transformation, she must navigate her own path forward.

WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY Nayra Ilic García
STARRING Helen Mrugalski, Daniela Ramírez, Néstor Cantillana, Mariana Loyola. Nicolás Contreras, Clemente Rodríguez. Erto Pantoja
PRODUCED BY Fernando Bascuñán & Úrsula Budnik
CO-PRODUCED BY Luigi Chimienti, Alessandro Amato, Dominga Ortúzar, Florencia Rodríguez
CINEMATOGRAPHY BY Sergio Armstrong A.C.C.
EDITING BY Valentina Hernández
MUSIC BY David Tarantino

For all things Tribeca, click here!

‘SUNLIGHT’ (2025) A twisted rom-com you’ll go bananas for!

Posted on June 3, 2025 by Liz Whittemore — Leave a reply

SUNLIGHT

I became familiar with Nina Conti through Instagram. Her hilarious ventriloquism act has me doubled over with each new clip. She improvises each live show in multiple voices and unpredictable audience member volunteers, and it will blow you away. Monkey is her original creation, and in her directorial debut, SUNLIGHT, Nina uses him as a vessel to mask incredibly dark trauma. The result is emotional brilliance and endless laughter.

Roy hates his life. He brings some serious childhood baggage, and his job as a radio interviewer sucks the life out of him. As he attempts suicide in a motel room, he catches a glimpse of a life-sized Monkey through his window. As he comes to, Roy finds said Monkey driving his airstream down the empty roads. The audience quickly comes to realize this is not a hallucination but a woman dressed in a costume and putting on a voice.

The woman in the suit is Jane. She uses Monkey as a coping mechanism to flee her stepfather, and the root of all her sadness. Both Roy and Jane have specific plans that are so outrageous that they agree to accompany one another on their journeys. Roy plans to dig up his abusive cop father and steal the watch he thought he had inherited. Jane wants to find a way to buy a pontoon boat and run banana boat rides as Monkey.

SUNLIGHT launches headfirst into one of the weirdest narratives I’ve ever seen. But simply calling it weird is a disservice to the complexity behind these characters. Conti and Allen co-wrote the story. It is easy to see why Christopher Guest executive produces. This creative pairing perfectly slots in with Guest’s brand of humor. The chemistry between Conti and Allen is instantaneous, even with the added physical barrier of Monkey. These are two pros bouncing weirdness off of each other.

Shenoah Allen gives Roy a lived-in exhaustion. There is a gentleness that pulls you into his sphere. Conti is phenomenal as she navigates comedy through the suit, but also manages to rip your heart out. She uses humor to convey the hurt. It is a love story between two deeply wounded adults. Allen and Conti do not hold back in the dialogue. They take risks in every beat.

SUNLIGHT is a wonderfully unique road movie that delves into the reality that most of us idle in our loneliness. Finding your people is essential for truly living. Packed with profound revelation and shocking twists and turns, SUNLIGHT is one of the most heartwarming and funniest films ever.

Sunlight Trailer:

A darkly comic love story between a man and a woman who doesn’t want to come out of a monkey suit

Coming To Theaters June 6, 2025

Sunrise Films is excited to announce the U.S. theatrical release of SUNLIGHT, the darkly hilarious and unconventional love story from acclaimed British actress, comedian, and ventriloquist Nina Conti, presented by Christopher Guest. Following its opening at the Edinburgh Film Festival, SUNLIGHT will debut in New York City theaters on June 6, followed by a Los Angeles premiere on June 13. Additional markets are to be announced.

Marking Conti’s feature directorial debut, SUNLIGHT reimagines “Monkey”—the iconic character from her renowned ventriloquist act—as the human-sized alter ego of a woman on the run from a toxic relationship. Conti, who began her career with the Royal Shakespeare Company before becoming an inventive comedy performer, co-wrote, directed, and stars in the film, delivering a bold dual performance as both the woman and the monkey.

Conti stars alongside her longtime creative collaborator Shenoah Allen, who also co-wrote the screenplay. Allen, a Barry Award-winning comedian and one half of the cult comedy duo Pajama Men, plays Roy, a suicidal radio host who becomes Jane’s unlikely companion.

Set against the quirky backdrop of Albuquerque, New Mexico, SUNLIGHT is a road movie with heart, humor, and absurdist flair. Jane (Conti) meets Roy (Allen) at a low point in both their lives. Disguised in a full-body monkey suit and eager to escape her past, Jane hits the road with Roy in his Airstream trailer. As they chase a fresh start—and hatch a risky scheme to fund it—Jane’s possessive ex looms close behind. Equal parts eccentric and emotionally resonant, SUNLIGHT is a natural, inspired extension of Conti’s sell-out stage act.

SUNLIGHT is produced by Sam Parker for Anyway Content, Will Machin for Metro International, Keagan Karnes for Inspirado, Tabitha McDonald and Conti, with Christopher Guest serving as executive producer. Cinematography is by James Kwan, with editing by Riaz Meer, composition by Christoph Bauschinger and music by Radiohead, Aphex Twin & The Pixies.

“We are delighted to bring Nina and Shenoah’s wonderfully funny and charming road trip movie to audiences in the U.S. and Canada,” said Andrew Nerger, Head of U.S. & International Distribution at Sunrise Films. “It’s a laugh-a-minute ride. We fell in love with the film from the very first screening and can’t wait for audiences to meet the mischievous Monkey and the world-weary Roy this summer.”

The U.S. distribution deal was negotiated by Andrew Nerger on behalf of Sunrise Films and Will Machin, CEO of Metro International.

ABOUT SUNRISE FILMS
Sunrise Films is a new, internationally focused production, distribution, and sales company launched by Rupert Preston and Nigel Williams.

The company produced high-stakes thriller THE ACCUSED, directed by BOILING POINT and ADOLESCENCE’S Philip Barantini, which debuted on Netflix in the UK, ANZ, and Canada in 2023. Sunrise also produced George Amponsah’s GASSED UP, which released theatrically in the UK through Vertigo Releasing in early 2024 and debuted afterwards on Amazon Prime.

On the distribution side, Sunrise has released a multitude of titles across North America including Luna Carmoon’s BAFTA-nominated debut HOARD featuring rising star Joseph Quinn, action thriller SUNRAY: FALLEN SOLDIER, which was created by and stars former Royal Marines Commandos, Julia Jackman’s coming of age queer rom-com BONUS TRACK, BAFTA-winning drama AFTER LOVE, and César-nominated Iranian crime drama LAW OF TEHRAN. Sunrise next plans to release Freddy Macdonald’s buzzy SXSW debut SEW TORN and coming of age drama LAST SWIM which premiered at the Berlin Film Festival in 2024 to wide acclaim.

Rupert Preston is also the CEO of Vertigo Releasing and he has produced over 25 films including BRONSON, THE SWEENEY, PUSHER, HORRID HENRY: THE MOVIE, and MONSTERS. Nigel Williams is the Chairman of Vertigo Releasing and Protagonist Pictures.

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Tribeca 2025 is almost here. Get ready for the buzz to get loud with world premieres galore.

Posted on June 1, 2025 by Liz Whittemore — Leave a reply

Tribeca 2025

Tribeca is back with a vengeance. This year, the festival features new and exciting storytellers who break barriers, make us laugh, and spark conversations. This year’s fest runs from June 4th to the 15th.

ABOUT THE TRIBECA FESTIVAL
The Tribeca Festival, presented by OKX, brings artists and diverse audiences together to celebrate storytelling in all its forms, including film, TV, music, audio storytelling, games, and immersive. With strong roots in independent film, Tribeca is synonymous with creative expression and entertainment. Tribeca champions emerging and established voices, discovers
award-winning talent, curates innovative experiences, and introduces new ideas through exclusive premieres, exhibitions, conversations, and live performances.

The Festival was founded by Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal, and Craig Hatkoff in 2001 to spur the economic and cultural revitalization of lower Manhattan following the attacks on the World
Trade Center. The annual Tribeca Festival will celebrate its 24th year from June 4–15, 2025, in New York City.

In 2019, James Murdoch’s Lupa Systems bought a majority stake in Tribeca Enterprises, bringing together Rosenthal, De Niro, and Murdoch to grow the enterprise.

ABOUT THE 2025 TRIBECA FESTIVAL PARTNERS
The 2025 Tribeca Festival is presented by OKX and with the support of our partners: AT&T, Audible, Bulleit Frontier Whiskey, Canva, CHANEL, City National Bank, Don Julio Tequila, Indeed, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, NBC4 and Telemundo 47, NYC Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment, National CineMedia, New York Magazine, Spring Studios New York, The Wall Street Journal, Variety, Vulture, and Whalar.

Take a look at a few Tribeca 2025 films, long and short, and pilots we’re keeping our eyeballs peeled for. For the entire lineup, click here!

THE BEST YOU CAN – World Premiere – Spotlight Narrative Tribeca 2025

Directed & written by: Michael J. Weithorn
Starring: Kyra Sedgwick, Kevin Bacon, Judd Hirsch, Brittany O’Grady

Reuniting Kyra Sedgwick and Kevin Bacon on screen for the first time in twenty years, THE BEST YOU CAN is a sharp, touching, and laugh-out-loud exploration of change, losing our bearings, and finding connection in the most unexpected places. This character-driven comedy is a reminder that sometimes the people who understand us best are the ones who are nothing like us.

RT: 103 Minutes

ARE WE GOOD? – New York Premiere – Spotlight+ Tribeca 2025

Directed by: Steven Feinartz
Starring: Marc Maron

An intimate portrait of comedian and podcast pioneer Marc Maron, following the sudden loss of his partner and filmmaker Lynn Shelton. Maron struggles with grief, disillusionment, and a shifting comedy landscape.

RT: 95 Minutes Tribeca 2025

OUR HERO, BALTHAZAR -Viewpoints

Director: Oscar Boyson

Cast: Jaeden Martell, Asa Butterfield, Chris Bauer, Jennifer Ehle, Anna Baryshnikov, Noah Centineo, Becky Ann Baker, Avan Jogia, Pippa Knowles

Wealthy New York City teenager Balthazar “Balthy” Malone (Jaeden Martell) has a crush on a classmate who organizes gun control protests. To gain her attention, he creates dramatic social media videos pleading for stricter gun laws. When an online troll (Asa Butterfield) begins mocking his videos, Balthy becomes convinced that he is communicating with a potential mass shooter and impulsively decides to travel to Texas to confront him in person. What starts as a misguided hero’s journey evolves into a complex encounter between two young men from vastly different worlds, each struggling to find their place in a divided America.

91 MINUTES Tribeca 2025

BIRD IN HAND – World Premiere – US Narrative Competition Tribeca 2025

Directed by: Melody C. Roscher
Starring: Alisha Wainwright, Christine Lahti, James Le Gros, Annabelle Dexter-Jones, Jeffrey Nordling, K. Todd Freeman

Bird in Hand follows Bird Rowe, a biracial bride-to-be who arrives unannounced at her charismatic hippie mother Carlotta’s rural home, to plan her wedding. As the two scout wedding venues, their attempts at bonding quickly unravel as buried truths surface, revealing an emotionally complex and fraught relationship. Bird enlists the help of the new neighbors who have recently bought a nearby plantation, sparking an unlikely connection. A darkly comedic and emotionally raw exploration of race, family, and identity, Bird in Hand is a sharp portrait of a young woman’s desperate search for connection—no matter how messy it gets.

RT: 87 Minutes Tribeca 2025

HORSEGIRLS – World Premiere – US Narrative Competition Tribeca 2025
Directed by: Lauren Meyering
Starring: Lillian Carrier, Gretchen Mol, Jerrod Haynes
Produced by: Alix Madigan, Michael Sherman, Mackenzie Breeden

After her mother’s illness returns, 22-year-old Margarita, a young woman with autism, discovers the world of hobbyhorsing and sets out to prove her independence to her mother—stick horse and all.

RT: 101 Minutes

“As a mother of neurodivergent children, this film’s authenticity screams off the screen. It is a must-see.”

JIMMY & THE DEMONS – World Premiere – Spotlight Documentary Tribeca 2025

Directed by: Cindy Meehl

A magical journey into the artistic life and inner mind of celebrated sculptor, James Grashow, who, at age 79, devotes four years to creating his magnum opus.

RT: 93 Minutes

DEAD LANGUAGE – Viewpoints

While waiting at the airport for her husband, Aya (Sarah Adler) is mistaken for someone else. Intrigued, she decides to pick up a complete stranger (Ulrich Thomsen) on a whim. Their encounter sparks an unexpected intimacy that unsettles Aya’s sense of certainty and awakens a yearning she neither fully understands nor knows how to fulfill. Her quiet search for meaning unfolds in a hotel room, a customer service chat and in subtle disruptions to her daily routine, as we are taken through a woman’s delicate and honest search for something meaningful.

Director: Mihal Brezis, Oded Binnun

Cast: Sarah Adler, Ulrich Thomsen, Yehezkel Lazarov, Lars Eidinger

110 MINUTES Tribeca 2025

RE-CREATION – World Premiere – Spotlight Narrative
Directed by: Jim Sheridan & David Merriman
Starring: Vicky Krieps, Jim Sheridan, Aidan Gillen, and Colm Meaney

In a fictitious trial, twelve members of a jury must decide whether British journalist Ian Bailey is guilty of the murder of French filmmaker Sophie Toscan Du Plantier in 1996. Based on real events, the film reconstructs, through the discussions between these twelve people, a case that ultimately invites the viewer to draw their own conclusions.

RT: 89 Minutes

SHE DANCES – World Premiere – Spotlight Narrative Tribeca 2025
Directed by: Rick Gomez
Starring: Steve Zahn, Audrey Zahn, Mackenzie Ziegler, Ethan Hawke, Sonequa Martin-Green, Rosemarie DeWitt

Forced to reconnect on the road to her final dance competition, a father and daughter must confront their fractured relationship. As they navigate a shared tragedy, the whirlwind of the Young Miss Southeast Regional Dance Finals becomes the backdrop for their journey toward healing. She Dances is a story about rediscovering family and finding yourself—about accepting what is, letting it shape you, and recognizing who you are through the memories of those you love most.

RT: 93 Minutes

LEMONADE BLESSING (Section: US Narrative Competition) Tribeca 2025

WORLD PREMIERE

Directed and written by: Chris Merola

Starring: Jake Ryan, Jeanine Serralles, Skye Alyssa Friedman, Miles J. Harvey, Michael Oloyede, Todd Gearhart, and Keith William Richards

Freshly tossed into a private Catholic high school by his devout mother, John (Jake Ryan) falls head over heels for a devious classmate ready to push his faith (and morals) to the brink with a series of increasingly uncomfortable actions, all in the name of love. ‘

100 MINS

“This former Catholic school product approves of all the messaging and coming-of-age authenticity!”

DEEP COVER – Spotlight Narrative

Directed by Tom Kingsley

Cast: Bryce Dallas Howard, Orlando Bloom, Nick Mohammed, Paddy Considine, Sonoya Mizuno, with Ian McShane and Sean Bean

DEEP COVER is a fast-paced action comedy starring Bryce Dallas Howard as Kat, an improv comedy teacher beginning to question if she’s missed her shot at success. When an undercover cop (Sean Bean) offers her the role of a lifetime, she recruits two of her students (Orlando Bloom and Nick Mohammed) to infiltrate London’s gangland by impersonating dangerous criminals.

Coming to Prime Video June 12, 2025

109 MINUTES Tribeca 2025

THE WOLF, THE FOX AND THE LEOPARD (International Narrative Competition)

A film by David Verbeek

Starring: Jessica Reynolds, Nicholas Pinnock, Marie Jung and Naomi Kawase

A feral young woman raised by wolves is captured and thrust into modern society, only to be rescued by a radical couple who isolate her on an abandoned oil rig. As she uncovers the lies of her new “parents”, she is forced to stand on her own two feet and ultimately decide whether to integrate into society or return to the wild.

124 MINUTES

“This hybrid fairytale about trauma is not to be missed.”

WIZKID: LONG LIVE LAGOS – Spotlight+

Director: Karam Gill

Subjects: Femi-Anikulapo Kuti, Ayodeji Balogun, Jada Pollock, Julie Adenuga, Seni Saraki, Sunday Are, Matthew Temitope Solomon, Karen Binns, Adosu Segan, Tops Bademosi

From Lagos to London, this powerful documentary follows Wizkid’s rise as a global icon reshaping how Africa is seen — and heard — around the world. Blending intimate moments, explosive performances, and cultural commentary, the film captures how Wizkid is using his platform to change perceptions, reclaim African identity, and inspire a new generation. Directed by Karam Gill. Produced by Karam Gill, Daniel Malikyar. An HBO Documentary Films Release.

83 MINUTES Tribeca 2025

HONEYJOON (Viewpoints)

Written & Directed by Lilian T. Mehrel

Starring Ayden Mayeri & Amira Casar, José Condessa

HONEYJOON is a sexy, emotional comedy about… a mother-daughter trip.

Persian-Kurdish Lela (Amira Casar) and her American daughter June (Ayden Mayeri) take a trip to a romantic Azorean island, for the one-year anniversary of Dad’s death. They planned this trip to be together, but Lela & June have opposite views about why they’re there, how to grieve, and June’s tiny bikini. Surrounded by honeymooners, doom-scrolling for Woman Life Freedom, and taken on a tour by their hot philosophical guide, João (José Condessa); Lela and June find each other… coming back to life.

75 minutes Tribeca 2025

AN EYE FOR AN EYE (Documentary Competition)

Directors: Tanaz Eshaghian, Farzad Jafari

Convicted of murdering her husband, Tahereh served her sentence and now faces a ticking clock to negotiate with her in-laws who, under Sharia law in Iran, have the legal right to either execute her or forgive her- for a price.

84 MINUTES

THE END OF QUIET (Documentary Competition)

Directors: Kasper Bisgaard, Mikael Lypinski

A meditative documentary that offers a glimpse into one of the few inhabited places on Earth where Wi-Fi and phone signals are not allowed to reach.

83 MINUTES

TAKE THE MONEY AND RUN- Spotlight Documentary

Director/Producer: Ole Juncker

Brilliance or bold-faced theft? In 2021, the Kunsten Museum got more than it bargained for when Danish artist Jens Haaning borrowed $83,000 for a commissioned piece—then delivered an empty frame. Titled with brazen wit, Take the Money and Run ignited a global firestorm: was it a scathing critique of capitalism, or the slickest art-world heist in history?

82 MINUTES

COUNTING CROWS: HAVE YOU SEEN ME LATELY? – Spotlight Documentary

Director: Amy Scott

Subjects: Adam Duritz, Cyndi Lauper, Steve Kerr, Chris Martin, Jeff Ross, Mary-Louise Parker

Catapulted into overnight fame by their massively successful debut album, San Francisco indie rock band Counting Crows and their introspective frontman Adam Duritz were suddenly the biggest rockstars in the world, defiantly facing whatever came next. Counting Crows: Have You Seen Me Lately? captures this pivotal crossroads through revealing interviews and evocative 1990’s archival to craft a rare story of artistic integrity in the spotlight. Directed by Amy Scott. Produced by Brian Morrow, Jonathan Lynch. An HBO Documentary Films Release.

90 MINUTES Tribeca 2025

YANUNI (Closing Night Gala)

Directed by RICHARD LADKANI

Produced by ANITA LADKANI, RICHARD LADKANI, JUMA XIPAIA, LEONARDO DICAPRIO, JENNIFER DAVISSON, PHILLIP WATSON

Executive Producers include JOANNA NATASEGARA, LAURA NIX, ERIC TERENA, DAX DASILVA, MARTIN CHOROBA, PHILIPP SCHALL

YANUNI is a cinematic portrait of Juma Xipaia, an Indigenous chief from the Brazilian Amazon who rises from a remote village to the frontlines of climate justice. After surviving six assassination attempts, she is appointed Brazil’s first Secretary of Indigenous Rights—while her husband, a federal IBAMA agent, leads dangerous operations against illegal gold miners. As Juma navigates political power, growing threats, and impending motherhood, she is forced to confront the personal cost of resistance. At once intimate and epic, YANUNI is a powerful story of Indigenous sovereignty, love, and the urgent fight to protect the planet we call home.

112 MINUTES

SEASONED (World Premiere — Indie Episodic (NOW)

Directed by Ewen Wright

Written by Gideon Grody-Patinkin, Ewen Wright

Starring Mandy Patinkin, Kathryn Grody

Synopsis: Based on the real lives of Mandy Patinkin and Kathryn Grody, “Seasoned” follows the delightfully tumultuous relationship and life of this successful, gregarious, deeply committed, slightly insane married couple. They’re each other’s greatest cheerleaders and harshest critics. The source of their unending magic is the same as their unending woe: that they’ve stayed together all these years. They struggle, they fail, they forgive, they learn, they remain bewildered, and most importantly, they hold everything together through love. As they navigate a society that feels as if it’s crumbling around them, will they remain standing?

Pilot Episode “Hangry” Synopsis: When Mandy and Kathryn miss their anniversary dinner reservation, they’re forced to try and find a new place to eat. Wandering New York City in an effort to salvage the occasion, 40 years of marital dynamics are laid bare as everything falls short – first with the food, then with each other.

96 MINUTES

84 MINUTESbeca 2

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(NYAFF 2025) The New York African Film Festival, now underway at Film at Lincoln Center

Posted on May 13, 2025 by Liz Whittemore — Leave a reply

(NYAFF 2025)

The New York African Film Festival

The New York African Film Festival (NYAFF), now underway at Film at Lincoln Center, lands in Harlem on Thursday with a focus on documentaries.

The Opening Night film, Ebrohimie Road: A Museum of Memory by Kọ́lá Túbọ̀sún, is an insightful documentary about the role of a small university bungalow on the life of esteemed Nigerian author, playwright and Nobel Prize in Literature awardee Wole Soyinka.

Of the 29 films coming to Maysles, three are world premieres, three are North American premieres, six are U.S. premieres, and three are New York premieres. Highlights include: French films; a Spanish film; films about art and music including the U.S. Premieres of Maurice Pellosh, Capturing Memory about the photographer-portraitist; one about the Bronx-based African Jazz-Art Society and Studios and the North American premiere of a film about artists in Haiti resisting the chaos; the New York premiere of a film about Nobel Prizewinner in Literature Wole Soyinka; fashion and beauty films; a film about Haiti; and another about child marriage. The Last Shore, a film about a young Gambian man’s viral drowning death in Venice to shouts of abuse rather than offers of help will have its North American premiere. Shorts Program #2: Ever Rising includes The Adventures of Angostat, a unique one-shot fiction film of urban artists, some with disabilities, about Angola’s first satellite launch; and a film about John Coltrane.

NYAFF runs in Harlem through Sunday, May 18, and then heads to BAM for FilmAfrica during the popular DanceAfrica series. See a trailer for the festival here:

You can find the schedule here: https://nyaff32.eventive.org/schedule

Film at Lincoln Center (FLC) and African Film Festival, Inc. (AFF) will partner to present the 32nd edition of the New York African Film Festival (NYAFF). NYAFF features more than 30 contemporary and classic films from Africa and its diaspora screening at FLC May 7 through May 13, with 100 films in total as the festival continues at other esteemed New York City cultural venues throughout the month of May, with many filmmakers in attendance for post-screening Q&As. Since its inception in 1993, the festival has been at the forefront of showcasing African and diaspora filmmakers’ unique storytelling through the moving image.

This year’s theme, “Fluid Horizons: A Shifting Lens on a Hopeful World,” honors the resilience of African youth and the forebearers who paved the way for them. As cinema was an integral part of the African continent’s struggle for independence and the triumph of its liberation, this edition of the festival celebrates the African youth who have turned to their cameras to document their experiences and the influence of those who came before them. With a multitude of genres ranging from comedies to experimental films, the 32nd New York African Film Festival offers a multidimensional take on African culture, history, and cinema.

BEFORE YOU

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V/H/S/HALLOWEEN

V/H/S/HALLOWEEN is now Exclusively Streaming on Shudder

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This year’s lineup is on fire. Outside the hotly anticipated Colin Hank’s doc, John Candy: I Like Me, and Rian Johnson’s latest, Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery, here are 5 films we’re keeping our eyes on in the festival’s 50th year!

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SOMNIUM

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SAINT CLARE

SAINT CLARE will be in theaters and on demand and on digital on July 18, 2025.

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Fantasia 2025

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Remaining Screenings of Poreless:

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SUNLIGHT

A darkly comic love story between a man and a woman who doesn’t want to come out of a monkey suit

Coming To Theaters June 6, 2025

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