SANTACON

NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE In 1977, television star David Carradine cast his estranged daughter Calista in Mata Hari with the ambitious intent to film over 15 years as she grew up. Following his death in 2009, David’s film remained unfinished, but he left behind a remarkable trove of footage. With Calista and David’s relationship increasingly strained throughout the process, this exploration of his bold vision highlights the struggle of navigating familial bonds while in pursuit of creative expression. - Brandon Harrison

The first screening will be followed by a Q&A with co-directors/co-producers James Smith and Joe Beshenkovsky.

The second screening will be followed by a Q&A with co-director/co-producer James Smith.

All in-person screening venues provide sound amplification headphones upon request with venue management. IFC Center can also provide a T-Coil loop for compatible devices.

WORLD PREMIERE Guided by professional hunter Marc Warnke and survival expert Callie Russell, struggling tech entrepreneur Mansal Denton sets out on an eight-day remote wilderness expedition in search of elk, along with answers to some of life's biggest questions. Shot on gorgeous 16mm, this introspective film follows our complex trio as the trials of the journey surface their foremost wounds, forcing them to grapple with the profound mysteries of mortality. - Brandon Harrison

The first screening will be followed by a Q&A with director/producer/co-editor Barlow Jacobs, director of photography Sean Webley, and film participants Marc Wanke and Callie Russell.

The second screening will be followed by a Q&A with director/producer/co-editor Barlow Jacobs and director of photography Sean Webley.

All in-person screening venues provide sound amplification headphones upon request with venue management. IFC Center can also provide a T-Coil loop for compatible devices.

Accessibility alert for November 16 screening of The Voyage Out: We have been recently informed by Village East Cinemas that the room where this screening takes place is currently only accessible via a short flight of eight stairs. We apologize for the inconvenience. However, the film is available to view at home as part of DOC NYC’s online festival. Please reach out to ticketing@docnyc.net with any questions.

WORLD PREMIERE Detroit has often been framed in a negative light, saddled with proclamations of crime and urban decay, but that isn't the city that filmmaker Jeremy Xido calls home. After his family moved to the city during his youth, an African American family “adopted” Xido and his parents as part of their clan. In this emotionally rich personal tale, Xido reconnects with an estranged “cousin” as he reckons with the social forces that pulled them apart. - Brandon Harrison

The first screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Jeremy Xido, producer Amanda Burr, co-producer Russell Stewart, and editors Elia Gasull Balada and Katharine Garrison.

The second screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Jeremy Xido, producer Amanda Burr, and co-producer Russell Stewart.

All in-person screening venues provide sound amplification headphones upon request with venue management. IFC Center can also provide a T-Coil loop for compatible devices.

WORLD PREMIERE In today's America, children are taught how to prepare for school shootings through elaborate drills. As children continue to be gunned down in the country, this smart and heartbreaking film takes an acerbic and caustic tone, perhaps aptly fitting the mood of civilians disgusted with politicians who do nothing to change the country’s gun laws. - Bedatri D. Choudhury

The first screening will be followed by a Q&A with directors Jessica Dimmock and Zackary Canepari, producers Claire Read and Gary Kout, and editor Carter Gunn.

The second screening will be followed by a Q&A with directors Jessica Dimmock and Zackary Canepari, producers Claire Read and Gary Kout, and composer Matt Joynt.

All in-person screening venues provide sound amplification headphones upon request with venue management. IFC Center can also provide a T-Coil loop for compatible devices.

Accessibility alert for November 13 screening of Thoughts & Prayers: We have been recently informed by Village East Cinemas that the room where this screening takes place is currently only accessible via a short flight of eight stairs. We apologize for the inconvenience. However, the film is available to view at home as part of DOC NYC’s online festival. Please reach out to ticketing@docnyc.net with any questions.

WORLD PREMIERE Delving into the past and not shying away from the dug-up pain, a young filmmaker speaks to her Mexican mother and Palestinian father about their trying journeys into the United States. In a society with rhetoric increasingly vilifying Mexicans and Palestinians, the filmmaker picks up her camera in a bid to address the grief at the center of the generational trauma that has underscored her relationship with her family. A meditation of loss and grief relieved, ultimately, through reconciliation. - Bedatri D. Choudhury

The first and second screenings will be followed by a Q&A with director Colette Ghunim, producer Sara Maamouri, and executive producer Dena Takruri.

All in-person screening venues provide sound amplification headphones upon request with venue management. IFC Center can also provide a T-Coil loop for compatible devices.

Accessibility alert for November 15 screening of Traces of Home: We have been recently informed by Village East Cinemas that the room where this screening takes place is currently only accessible via a short flight of eight stairs. We apologize for the inconvenience. However, the film is available to view at home as part of DOC NYC’s online festival. Please reach out to ticketing@docnyc.net with any questions.

WORLD PREMIERE A moving story of a son reconnecting with his Indigenous mother, who left him as a child to return to her tribe in the Amazon. As an adult, he seeks to rebuild their bond across distance, culture, language, and time. The story revolves around several hurdles they encounter, many of which are bureaucratic, trying to get her to the US. The heart of the film, though, lies in the tender relationship between mother and son. - Murtada Elfadl

The first screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Andrew Balcof, producers David Good and Elius Kim, and executive producers Larry Weiss and Johnny Griffith.

The second screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Andrew Balcof and executive producer Johnny Griffith.

All in-person screening venues provide sound amplification headphones upon request with venue management. IFC Center can also provide a T-Coil loop for compatible devices.

Accessibility alert for November 17 screening of Wayumi: We have been recently informed by Village East Cinemas that the room where this screening takes place is currently only accessible via a short flight of eight stairs. We apologize for the inconvenience. However, the film is available to view at home as part of DOC NYC’s online festival. Please reach out to ticketing@docnyc.net with any questions.

WORLD PREMIERE Growing up in the US, filmmaker Khoa Ha always knew her grandfather was a famous musician in her native Vietnam. What she didn’t realize was the magnitude of his popularity or the mystique that surrounded his real background. In excavating the story of the musician Y Vân, she not only discovers the man behind the persona but also unearths a part of Vietnamese music history that was lost to time. - Bedatri D. Choudhury

The first and second screenings will be followed by a Q&A with co-directors Khoa Ha and Victor Velle, producer Douglas Emerson, co-producer Mike Pham, and cinematographer Jake L. Mitchell.

All in-person screening venues provide sound amplification headphones upon request with venue management. IFC Center can also provide a T-Coil loop for compatible devices.

Accessibility alert for November 18 screening of Y Vân: The Lost Sounds of Saigon: We have been recently informed by Village East Cinemas that the room where this screening takes place is currently only accessible via a short flight of eight stairs. We apologize for the inconvenience. However, the film is available to view at home as part of DOC NYC’s online festival. Please reach out to ticketing@docnyc.net with any questions.