US PREMIERE Newlyweds Natasha and Sasha are living a fairy tale until they decide to start Dozhd, the only independent TV station in Russia. Armed with charm, naivité, determination, and a team of doe-eyed journalists, Natasha embarks on a ten-year journey of growth and resistance that will make them all a government target. Dozhd’s coverage […]
NYC PREMIERE In Dorset, England, local bus drivers decide to stage an ambitious adaptation of Ridley Scott’s Alien for their annual fundraiser. The whole community comes together to create an ingenious DIY production. After an opening weekend flop, the production generates a surprising fan base, which leads to an invite to London’s West End. Will […]
Filmmaker Kirsten Johnson (Cameraperson, DOC NYC 2016) creates an inventive and emotional portrait of her widowed father, Dick, an 86-year-old psychiatrist. When he shows early signs of losing memory, Kirsten enlists him in a playful project to confront his mortality with a sense of humor. They stage fictional scenarios with a macabre sense of humor […]
On John Belushi’s 30th birthday, he had the top TV show in Saturday Night Live, the top film in Animal House, and the top record with The Blues Brothers. But his insatiable appetites and anarchic energy were fraught with danger. Filmmaker R.J. Cutler (The September Issue) combines footage of Belushi’s legendary acts with rare footage […]
NYC PREMIERE How did you first learn about sex? Before the Internet put a shocking amount of sexually explicit information at our fingertips, generations of Americans first encountered the birds and the bees at school, usually through educational films. Brenda Goodman assembles an eye-opening array of these well-intentioned but often funny teaching tools to reveal […]
OPENING NIGHT FILM US PREMIERE After a breakup with his boyfriend, journalist David Thorpe embarks on a hilarious and touching journey of self-discovery, confronting his anxiety about “sounding gay.” Enlisting acting coaches, linguists, friends, family, total strangers and celebrities, he quickly learns that many people—both gay and straight—often wish for a different voice. What starts […]
CLOSING NIGHT FILM US PREMIERE Fans of comic documentaries can rejoice. If you’ve never heard of the Yes Men, you’re in for a treat; if you’ve followed their antics in earlier films, you’ll delight in a new barrage. Either way, you’ll find in this film a fresh reflection on the question: How does one sustain a […]
2014 VIEWFINDERS COMPETITION WINNER NYC PREMIERE Cairo Drive expertly balances humor, frustration and a distinctive sense of fatalistic irony to offer a view of Egypt unseen in recent documentaries about the Arab Spring. Shot before, during and after the revolution, Sherief Elkatsha’s entertaining film explores Cairo from the street level through the perspectives of its […]
NYC PREMIERE Nearing 30, first-generation Indian-American Ravi Patel breaks up with his secret white girlfriend to seek the Indian woman of his parents’ dreams—who should also be named Patel, keeping with tradition. Eliciting the matchmaking skills of his hilarious, unforgettable parents, Ravi—with sister Geeta behind the camera—subjects himself to delightfully awkward blind dates across North […]
The Chaperone tells the previously untold, true story of a lone teacher chaperoning a school dance in 1970s Montreal, when a menacing motorcycle gang invades. The Chaperone recreates the scene using hand drawn animation, miniatures, puppets, Kung Fu and explosions. This film screens before the film RUBBLE KINGS.