NYC PREMIERE The brutal murder of a young investigative journalist and his fiancée in 2018 ignited one of the biggest protests in Slovakia since the fall of communism. As colleagues and family search for answers, a source leaks a secret case file of the murder that reveals corruption at the highest level of government. Filmmaker […]
WORLD PREMIERE Filmed inside California’s oldest state prison, 26.2 to Life explores the transformative power of San Quentin’s 1000 Mile Club, in which incarcerated men train for and run a marathon on the dirt and concrete path circling the prison yard. Through intimate access behind the walls of the infamous correctional facility, the film confronts […]
WORLD PREMIERE In the dangerously overcrowded California State prison system, 50 men serving life sentences are given the opportunity to become substance abuse counselors. As the first-ever participants in the Offender Mentor Program, the group reckons with their own demons as they excavate the deep trauma of their fellow inmates. An intimate study on the […]
Filmmaker Sierra Pettengill begins with footage filmed by the US military in the 1960s of dress rehearsals for show-of-force responses to the domestic unrest that was unnerving America at the time. The material’s horrifying implications quickly settle in, however, as Pentengill digs deep into other archival material to answer the question of how these large-scale […]
Ramin Bahrani (99 Homes; The White Tiger) directs his first feature documentary with all the nuance and artistry that he’s brought to his fiction work. In this reckoning with America’s gun culture, Bahrani profiles Richard Davis, who created a bulletproof vest that saved hundreds of lives. Davis mythologized his work by producing his own low-budget […]
Oppressed (un)intentionally by the hands of the state, this special focus examines migration, status and citizenship in the Americas. (Total Running Time: 101 MIN) Elena | Director: Michèle Stephenson Following up on her film STATELESS, Director Michèle Stephenson chronicles one woman’s journey fighting the Dominican Republic’s anti-Black laws revoking citizenship for people with Haitian ancestry. […]
Throw yourself into the story with vivid scores in this selection of sonically driven films. (Total Running Time: 82 MIN) Cowboy Poet | Director: Jared Jakins A young man continues the tradition of cowboy poetry, using his performances to navigate his emotions, family and the modern world. -Dewitt Davis (USA, 5 MIN) Load Cycle | […]
Stories about born and chosen families. (Total Running Time: 87 MIN) Descended from the Promised Land: The Legacy of Black Wall Street | Director: Nailah Jefferson An intimate look at the lingering economic, psychological, and emotional impacts of the Tulsa Massacre through the lens of descendants. – Elyse Wang (USA, 22 MIN) Freedom Swimmer | […]
US PREMIERE Despite imprisonment, journalist Khadija Ismayilova courageously exposes the intricate corruption tactics of the families ruling Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, and Kazakhstan. Their dictatorships violate multiple human rights and launder public funds. Ismayilova strips the regimes of their democratic veneers to reveal their use of “caviar diplomacy”—e.g. American pop stars, six-figure cash gifts, and five-star hotel […]
US PREMIERE An experimental portrait of Ilhan Mimaroglu, the legendary Turkish pioneer of electronic music who passed away in 2012. Through a multilayered structure that mirrors Ilhan Mimaroglu’s music, the film also tells the story of his vibrant wife Güngör, who migrated to the USA from Turkey in the early 1960s and became an activist […]