Official Selection
FEATURE FILMS
All Happy Familes
Narrative | 90 min | Dir. Haroula Rose
Chicago native Haroula Rose directs this delightful dysfunctional family comedy about Graham Landry, an eternally aspiring actor in Chicago who’s stuck in a funk and living in his family’s crumbling two-flat. When an old college crush comes looking to rent the first floor apartment at the same time as his TV star brother Will’s return home, Graham must finally grow up — if he can get out of his own way.
The Arc of Oblivion
Documentary | 94 min | Dir. Ian Cheney
Set against the backdrop of the filmmaker's quixotic quest to build an ark in a field in Maine, the film heads far afield -- to salt mines in the Alps, fjords in the Arctic, and ancient libraries in the Sahara -- to illuminate the strange world of archives, record-keeping, and memory. Weaving stop-motion animation, spellbinding cinematography and fascinating interviews from the director's inner circle and experts in the fields of science, culture and art 'The Arc of Oblivion' reveals how nature inspires the human drive behind filmmaking.
The Crime is Mine
Narrative | 95 min | Dir. Francois Ozon
In 1930s Paris, Madeleine, a pretty, young, penniless and talentless actress, is accused of murdering a famous producer. Helped by her best friend Pauline, a young unemployed lawyer, she is acquitted on the grounds of self-defense. A new life of fame and success begins, until the truth comes out..
Ghostlight — OPENING NIGHT FILM!
Narrative | 115 min | Dir. Alex Thompson and Kelly O’Sullivan
Alex Thompson and Kelly O'Sullivan’s moving, gently comic collaboration is about the power of live theater to make sense of our offstage dramas and personal narratives. Ghostlight centers on Dan (Keith Kupferer), a melancholic middle-aged construction worker grieving a family tragedy. Cut off from his devoted wife, Sharon (Tara Mallen), and talented but troubled daughter, Daisy (Katherine Mallen Kupferer), Dan finds comfort and community in a misfit company of amateur actors. While moonlighting in a low-rent production of Shakespeare’s most protean tragedy, Dan is forced to confront his buried emotions. Real-life family Mallen, Kupferer, and Mallen Kupferer bring tenderness and authenticity to this poignant portrait, while Dolly de Leon — last seen stealing the scene in Triangle of Sadness — is hilarious as Dan’s irascible, improbable co-star.
‘Ghostlight’
The Gullspang Miracle
Documentary | 108 min | Dir Maria Fredricksson
A divine premonition leads two sisters to buy an apartment in the small Swedish town of Gullspång. To their surprise, the seller looks identical to their older sister who died by suicide 30 years earlier. What begins as an eerie story of family reunification soon becomes a Pandora's Box as all three women's lives spiral out of control.
Indigo Girls: It’s Only Life Anyway
Documentary | 123 min | Dir. Alexandria Bombach
With forty years of making music as the iconic folk-rock band Indigo Girls, Amy Ray and Emily Saliers have made their mark as musicians, songwriters, and dedicated activists. They have represented radical self-acceptance to many, leading multiple generations of fans to say, “the Indigo Girls saved my life.” Still, Amy and Emily battled misogyny, homophobia, and a harsh cultural climate chastising them for not fitting into a female pop star mold. With joy, humor, and heart-warming earnestness, Sundance award-winning director Alexandria Bombach brings us into a contemporary conversation with Amy and Emily—alongside decades of the band’s home movies and intimate present-day verité.
Wildcat
Narrative | 108 min | Dir. Ethan Hawke
Directed and co-written by four-time Academy Award nominee Ethan Hawke, WILDCAT invites the audience to weave in and out of celebrated Southern Gothic writer Flannery O’Connor’s mind as she ponders the great questions of her writing: Can scandalous art still serve God? Does suffering precede all greatness? Can illness be a blessing? In 1950, Flannery (Maya Hawke) visits her mother Regina (Laura Linney) in Georgia when she is diagnosed with lupus at twenty-four years old. Struggling with the same disease that took her father’s life when she was a child and desperate to make her mark as a great writer, this crisis pitches her imagination into a feverish exploration of belief. As she dives deeper into her craft, the lines between reality, imagination, and faith begin to blur, allowing Flannery to ultimately come to peace with her situation and heal a strained relationship with her mother.
SHORT FILMS
Be Mine, Mime
Narrative (STUDENT SHORT) | 9 min | Mathew Sharifi
In this mixed media silent film, a hopeless romantic comedically attempts to woo a Mime at the park.
The Big Wait
Documentary | 14 min | Dir. Yannick Jamey
A remote desert town, with a population of two, is kept in pristine condition waiting for visitors that never seem to arrive.
Bogota Story
Narrative | 15 min | Dir. Esteban Pedraza
In 1992, as Colombia faces an era of drug violence, car bombs, and daily power outages, a young mother in Bogotá receives an internship opportunity in the US and eventually must decide between her dreams and her family.
Handle With Care
Narrative | 8 min | Michael Glover Smith
A devilishly charming retiree and his thirtysomething friend find comfort, happiness and mutual enlightenment in spending time together navigating the human condition.
Purebred Passion
Documentary | 19 min | Dir. Sam Powell
A documentary profiling two teams of competitors during the Great American Dog Show in Chicago.
A Real One
Narrative | 16 min | Dir. McKenzie Chinn
Lauren and Keisha, tight-knit best friends living on the south side of Chicago, find their friendship tested when one reveals a harmful secret. Energetic and sometimes humorous, A Real One depicts the fundamental relationships that help girls navigate the complicated transition into young adulthood.
Walking on Clouds
Documentary | 7 min | Dir. Renan Kamizi
This short film shows the highline crossing between two hot air balloons, performed at the end of 2021, in the city of Praia Grande, Santa Catarina, Brazil, by athlete Rafael Bridi.
Xiaohui and His Cows
Narrative | 15 min | Dir. Xingying Lao
Except for mountain landscapes, magical rocks and a few other kids, the village where Xiaohui lives with his grandfather and two cows has nothing to offer. The nine-year-old sorely misses his parents who work in the city. When grandpa has to sell a calf, the clever grandson tries everything to prevent the separation of mother and child. A soulful cry for love in times of capitalism.