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Cinemafile

Mike Kaspar

Cinemafile showcases the very best in independent, documentary and foreign films through our conversations with the more than 2,000 filmmakers who made them. Through Cinemafile we will do our best to bring the most interesting and accomplished filmmakers from around the world to your attention.

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S1 · E263
Yesterday · 13 min
The Incomer - Director Louis Paxton
Sundance Award winning comedy, The Incomer is a modern folk fairy tale set on a remote Scottish island, where two siblings survive by hunting seabirds, retelling the stories of their ancestors, and defending the isle from dreaded Incomers'. Their world is upended with the arrival of an awkward council worker who has come to uproot them from their homeland on behalf of the government. Director Louis Paxton joins us for a lively conversation the making of his beautiful and heartwarming film. About the filmmaker - Louis Paxton is a writer and director from Edinburgh, Scotland. After studying at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, he completed an MA in Directing at the National Film and Television School in London. His award-winning short films-spanning comedy, drama, horror, and musical-have screened at festivals including Flickerfest, Glasgow Short Film Festival, LOCO Film Festival, and London Short Film Festival. His debut TV project, the sci-fi comedy The Spare Room, was selected for the BAFTA Rocliffe Drama Forum. In 2021, Louis directed the BBC Three comedy-drama Ladybaby, which was nominated for Best Comedy at the Broadcast Awards. In 2022, he received a BAFTA Scotland nomination for his short film Neville Is Dead, and was also nominated for Best Director at the New Voice Awards. His RTS- and Digital Broadcast-nominated BBC comedy short Calamity James followed in 2024. Louis has since directed episodes of the BBC One prime-time crime drama Shetland, as well as the BBC Three horror-comedy Wreck. He is developing original comedy series including Shearlings with BBC Comedy and Breadwinner with Birdie Pictures. His feature debut, The Incomer-an offbeat comedy supported by BFI and Screen Scotland, starring Domhnall Gleeson, Gayle Rankin and Grant O’Rourke, shot in 2025 and will have its premiere in 2026.
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Saturday · 13 min
Occupational Hazard: The First Coral Reefers - Director John H. Cunningham
OCCUPATIONAL HAZARD: THE FIRST CORAL REEFERS is a feature documentary that journeys back to the 1970s and early 1980s to tell the origin story of Jimmy Buffett’s original Coral Reefer Band. Set against the creative backdrop of Key West, the film explores the musicians, friendships, touring years, and studio sessions that helped shape Buffett’s legendary sound. Through rare, never-before-seen archival footage and deeply personal interviews with founding members, tour managers, producers and music legends, OCCUPATIONAL HAZARD captures the camaraderie, chaos, and magic of an era that thrived on freedom and lived without a rulebook. Narrated by Academy-award winner Jeff Bridges, OCCUPATIONAL HAZARD offers fans a deeper look at the people behind the music and the era that helped define Jimmy Buffett’s lasting legacy. Directed by John H. Cunningham, award-winning festival favorite OCCUPATIONAL HAZARD: THE FIRST CORAL REEFERS features Kenny Chesney, Mac McAnally, songwriter Keith Sykes, and The Coral Reefer Band. About the filmmaker - John H. Cunningham is a filmmaker and USA TODAY bestselling author of the twelve- book Buck Reilly adventure series and The Last Raft, a reimagining of the Cuban embargo. Before film and fiction, he spent 35 years in commercial real estate, serving as an Executive Vice President and Regional Director in New York City for Alexandria Real Estate Equities (NYSE symbol ARE), where he was pivotal in developing a multi- billion dollar portfolio and establishing the city’s life science industry. Now splitting his time between Virginia, and Key West, John is focused on producing, directing, and writing. His unique background brings a fresh perspective to film, combining business acumen with a passion for compelling storytelling.
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Friday · 23 min
Teenage Wasteland - Co-directors Amanda McBaine & Jess e Moss
Set in 1991 in upstate New York, Teenage Wasteland follows a group of teenage misfits, inspired by a renegade English teacher, who embark on a student film project and uncover a vast conspiracy that is poisoning the ground beneath their feet. Banding together to confront the indifferent adults, corrupt politicians and a violent criminal organization threatening their small town, they produce an investigative documentary that causes shockwaves in their community. Teenage Wasteland is a coming-of-age story based on exclusive access to hundreds of hours of candid, humorous and nostalgic video outtakes, and the cooperation of Fred Isseks and his intrepid students as they reckon – thirty years later – with a defining event in their lives and a remarkable story of civic courage. Co-director Jesse Moss and Amanda McBaine stop by to talk about their harrowing true story of teenagers growing into fearless truth tellers. Teenage Wasteland is now available on NETFLIX. About the filmmaker - Director, Producer, Writer Jesse Moss’ directing work includes Girls State and Boys State (winner, 2020 Sundance Grand Jury Prize), both with Amanda McBaine, War Game (with Tony Gerber), The Overnighters (winner of the Sundance Special Jury Prize), The Mission and Mayor Pete. He won Primetime Emmy® Awards for Girls State (directing) and Boys State (Outstanding Documentary). He has twice been nominated by the Directors Guild of America (DGA) for his work, and twice shortlisted for the Academy Award for Feature Documentary. About the filmmaker - Director, Producer, Writer Amanda McBaine’s directing work includes Girls State, Boys State (winner, 2020 Sundance Grand Jury Prize) and The Mission, with Jesse Moss. She produced The Overnighters, winner of the Sundance Special Jury Prize, Mayor Pete and The Bandit. She won Primetime Emmy® Awards for Girls State (directing) and Boys State (Outstanding Documentary). She is a Directors Guild of America (DGA) nominee for Boys State and twice shortlisted for the Academy Award for Feature Documentary.
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Wednesday · 12 min
The Cycle of Love - Director Orlando von Einsiedel
Orlando von Einsiedel's THE CYCLE OF LOVE begins in 1977, PK, with a 23-year-old street artist from a marginalized “untouchable” family in Delhi as he sets out on an extraordinary 6,000-mile journey across continents with little more than a handful of paintbrushes and a secondhand bicycle. Driven by an unwavering desire to reunite with Lotta, the Swedish woman who had captured his heart, he travels through unfamiliar landscapes, navigating borders, language barriers, and the limits imposed by class and circumstance. What begins as a deeply personal quest unfolds into a remarkable story of resilience, chance, and human connection. Along the way, PK encounters strangers who offer kindness, skepticism, and support, revealing the unpredictable ways in which lives intersect across cultures. Director Director Orlando von Einsiedel joins us for a spirited conversation on his own journey and what the story of P.K. and Lotta taught him about the power of love. About the filmmaker - The Cycle of Love Director Orlando von Einsiedel is an Academy Award–winning director and founder of the UK-based creative studio Grain Media. His work includes the Academy Award–winning THE WHITE HELMETS and the Academy Award–nominated VIRUNGA, as well as the BIFA-winning EVELYN, the Emmy-nominated LOST AND FOUND and CONVERGENCE: COURAGE IN A CRISIS, the Platino-nominated THE LOST CHILDREN, and the critically acclaimed Netflix series HEART OF INVICTUS. His latest project, THE CYCLE OF LOVE, is forthcoming. As an executive producer, his credits include the Academy Award–winning LEARNING TO SKATEBOARD IN A WAR ZONE (IF YOU’RE A GIRL), the Emmy-nominated SCOUTS HONOR, and the Emmy Award–winning BUY NOW!.
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August 24 · 15 min
The Sun Never Sets - Director Joe Swanberg
Wendy (Dakota Fanning) believes she's perfectly happy in her relationship, until her older boyfriend, Jack (Jake Johnson), who is divorced with children, insists they take a break to make sure she's truly okay giving up on the idea of marriage and babies. During this time, Wendy unexpectedly runs into her ex, Chuck (Cory Michael Smith), who reignites her carefree and spontaneous side, and suddenly seems to want a family. The three of them navigate a chaotic, confusing, and often funny relationship triangle, reminding us that the pursuit of love is beautiful and messy all at once. The film was shot on 35mm on location in Alaska. One of the greatest truly independent filmmakers Director, Writer, and Editor Joe Swanberg joins us to talk about his latest film, The Sun Never Sets. About the filmmaker - Joe Swanberg is the director of over 20 features, including HANNAH TAKES THE STAIRS, DRINKING BUDDIES and HAPPY CHRISTMAS. He co-starred in and co-directed NIGHTS AND WEEKENDS with Greta Gerwig and AUTOEROTIC with Adam Wingard, in addition to acting in and directing one of the segments of the original V/H/S film. He has directed episodes of television for HBO, 20th Century Studios and Netflix, where he created the series EASY and wrote, directed, produced and edited all 25 episodes over three seasons. As an actor he has appeared in lead roles for Josephine Decker, Ti West, Mickey Keating and Adam Wingard, and he has produced features for Lynn Shelton, Alex Ross Perry, Dustin Defa and Zach Clark, amongst many others. He lives in Chicago.
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August 24 · 21 min
Hanging by a Wire - Director Mohammed Ali Naqvi
Hanging by a Wire recounts the true story of a routine school commute that turned terrifying when a makeshift cable car's wire snapped, leaving eight passengers — including six schoolboys — suspended hundreds of feet above a ravine in the remote foothills of the Pakistani Himalayas. With the clock ticking before the remaining cable was expected to fail, an unlikely band of local rescuers raced against time to bring them home safely. Drawing on firsthand testimony and remarkable on-the-ground footage, the film is a tense, true-life portrait of courage, community, and the class divides that complicated the rescue effort. Hanging by a Wire premiered on opening day of the 2026 Sundance Film Festival in the World Cinema Documentary Competition, where it played to sold-out crowds. Abramorama will release the film in North American theaters in August 2026, with the film arriving for its streaming debut in late 2026. About the filmmaker - Mohammed Ali (Mo) Naqvi is an award-winning director, producer, and writer, and a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the Television Academy. His latest film, Hanging by a Wire, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in the World Cinema Documentary Competition. Mo produced two seasons of the Netflix Original Top 10 docu-series Turning Point and received the inaugural Emmy's Television Academy Honor for the Showtime Original Shame. His acclaimed directorial work includes the Emmy-nominated Among the Believers (PBS/Netflix), Insha'Allah Democracy (Lionsgate/STARZ/BBC), the Emmy-nominated and Asian Media Award–winning The Accused: Damned or Devoted? (BBC/PBS/ARTE), and Pakistan's Hidden Shame (Channel 4 UK), which won the Grand Jury Prize at the United Nations Association Film Festival. As a producer, his fiction credits include Big River (Berlin Film Festival), produced by legendary Japanese filmmaker Takeshi Kitano's Office Kitano, and I Will Avenge You Iago, starring Giancarlo Esposito. Naqvi has received two Amnesty International Awards and earned nominations for an Independent Spirit Award, a Cinema Eye Honor, and the UNESCO–Fellini Prize. Beyond filmmaking, Mo is a founding member of the Crescent Collective at the Cannes Film Market and has served as Chairman of Pakistan's Academy Awards Selection Committee (2023–2025) and as the former Artistic Director of the Tasveer Film Market, part of Tasveer, North America’s only Oscar-qualifying South Asian film festival. Originally from Karachi, his work and collaborations span the US, Europe, and Japan.
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August 23 · 14 min
Finding Emily - Director Alicia MacDonald
From the producers of Bridget Jones’s Diary and Love Actually comes the heartfelt new romantic comedy FINDING EMILY. Sensitive musician Owen (Spike Fearn) meets the woman of his dreams during a late shift at the Manchester City University Student Union. They flirt, they drink, they dance, then suddenly, she’s whisked off into the night by her friends, heading out to the next party. Thinking quickly, Owen asks for her name and number, but when he texts her the next morning, he discovers one digit is missing. Determined to reconnect, Owen sets out to find her using the only information he has - her first name. A cynical, headstrong American psychology student Emily Raine (Angourie Rice), who sees in Owen the makings for a perfect case study for her thesis on the futility of romantic attachment. Together, they inadvertently spark a hilarious campus-wide frenzy that turns the lovesick Owen’s world upside down, forcing Emily to question her own choices as each half of the unlikely duo ponders what the future might hold. About the filmmaker - Known for her distinctive brand of comedy, character-focused narratives and stellar cinematic visuals, director Alicia MacDonald has joined The Corner Shop roster for commercial representation in the UK and US. From the very beginning Alicia excited audiences with her well-observed short films (‘Otherwise Engaged and Domestic Policy’) and popular sketches (‘Bad News and Taxing’) that demonstrated her impressive ability to balance comedic satire with grounded emotional depth. She went on to work with comedy giants Stephen Merchant (‘The Outlaws’ for BBC) and Lena Dunham (‘Too Much’ on Netflix) in which she provided the same level of confidence and care in capturing nuanced and honest performances for high-end tv. Her hotly anticipated debut feature film ‘Finding Emily’ (made with Working Title Films and Focus Features) is released in UK cinemas on 22nd May and in the US on 29th August.
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August 23 · 14 min
Learning to Fly - Director Max Lowe
LEARNING TO FLY follows former competitive runner turned photographer Aisha McAdams as she embarks on a journey to document the triumphs and struggles of some of the biggest names in ultra running, such as Jim Walmsley, Eszter Csillag and Vincent Bouillard, as they compete at the Western States Endurance Run in the Mountains of Eastern California and the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB) in the French Alps. While photographing and interviewing these elite runners, Aisha confronts her own painful and complex past, and the reasons why she had to step away from racing, a pursuit that had once brought her a much-needed sense of freedom, joy and belonging. LEARNING TO FLY had its world premiere at last year's Telluride Film Festival and will be released in theaters in the US beginning August 21 including the Angelika Film Center in New York and the Laemmle Monica Film Center in Los Angeles. About the filmmaker - Director / Producer Max Lowe is known for his ability to capture deeply human stories on some of the most exposed edges of the world, Max Lowe has honed his skill as a director and photographer in his search of narratives unheard. From his home in the mountains of Montana to now countless countries and landscapes across the globe, Max has been witness to stories spanning the gap of the human experience. Max directed his first feature doc “Torn” which premiered at Telluride Film Festival in 2021 and is now available on Disney+ and Hulu with National Geographic Docs, and followed that with the short documentary "Camp Courage" which is available on Netflix and was shortlisted for the 95th Academy Awards for best short doc. Max has since partnered with Academy Award winning producer Evan Hayes on his follow up feature doc “Learning to Fly.” With a background in observational journalistic style storytelling honed over years of telling human driven narratives around the globe. Max has emerged with a distinct style by which he crafts his narratives unheard.
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August 22 · 20 min
MOOCH - Director Jeff Ryan
Set against the backdrop of suburban New Jersey golf courses, MOOCH is about Shane, played by Jeff Ryan, at nearly thirty and still the oldest caddy at his local golf club, he has mastered the art of getting by without ever quite growing up. When a botched theft of four hundred dollars unexpectedly lands him a job digging up dirt for a charismatic New Jersey nightclub owner, he finds himself navigating amateur investigations, broken relationships, and increasingly questionable decisions. Equal parts heartfelt and absurd, MOOCH is an offbeat golf crime comedy about friendship, ambition, and the long road toward adulthood. MOOCH showcases a wide variety of wild characters with terrific acting. Director, writer and lead actor joins us for a spirited conversation on the challenges and the rewards of a debut feature film and working with a slew of talented collaborators.
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August 22 · 22 min
*2026 Sundance Award Winner - American Doctor - Director Poh Si Teng
From Oscar®-nominated and Emmy® Award-winning filmmaker Poh Si Teng, AMERICAN DOCTOR follows three American physicians— Palestinian, Jewish, and Zoroastrian—united by a single oath to save lives. American Doctor is a vérité documentary following three prominent physicians-Palestinian, Jewish, and Zoroastrian-friends who couldn't be more different but are bound by the shared oath to save lives. Dr. Thaer Ahmad is measured and strategic, Dr. Mark Perlmutter is blunt and wears his heart on his sleeve, and Dr. Feroze Sidhwa is media-savvy and prolific. Filmed in unfolding, on-the-ground scenes, the story follows them from a Gazan hospital under siege, to the halls of Congress. Together they fight to keep a promise to their Palestinian colleagues and patients, to continue the struggle where it matters most: the United States. Upon returning home, they make a determined effort to fight for the patients and colleagues they left behind, taking their battle from the front lines of war to the halls of Congress. About the filmmaker - Poh Si Teng is the producer of the Oscar®-nominated ST. LOUIS SUPERMAN and Emmy® Award–winning executive producer of PATRICE: THE MOVIE. She is a former creative executive for ABC/Disney, documentary commissioner for Al Jazeera, IDA grants director, and New York Times journalist. She is the founder of Tiny Boxer Films, which produces non- fiction feature docs, and docu- and unscripted-series for the US and global majority markets. AMERICAN DOCTOR marks her debut as a feature documentary director.
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August 20 · 21 min
How To Divorce During the War - Director Andrius Blaževičius
Vilnius, 2022. High-flying executive Marija (Zygimante Elena Jakstaite) chooses the worst possible moment to inform her husband Vytas (Vee-tus) (Marius Repsys) she wants a divorce: just one day before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Suddenly the couple must navigate the process of separation as it collides with a refugee and mid-life crisis. A struggling film director, Vytas is put into a tight spot by having to move in with his Russophile parents, while Marija struggles to find her footing as the war affects both her business and home life. Packed with surprises along with much heartache and soul searching, Andrius Blaževičius’ nuanced and timely family drama skillfully depicts the fallout of a marriage against the backdrop of extraordinary events with humor and compassion. already a 2026 Sundance Award-Winner, How To Divorce During the War, was selected as 2026 Lithuania's Oscar entry for this year's Best International Feature Film. About the filmmaker - Director Andrius Blaževičius was born in Vilnius, June 26, 1985, studied Culture History and Anthropology at Vilnius University. After a while, Andrius switched to Film Directing studies at KIMO, Lithuanian National Film School, where he graduated with an MA in 2011. Blaževičius’ debut feature film THE SAINT (2016) premiered at Warsaw IFF and Busan IFF, won six national awards and became one of the most appreciated Lithuanian independent films at the national box office with 47K admissions in total. His sophomore film RUNNER (2021) premiered at Karlovy Vary IFF with the main actress Žygimantė Elena Jakštaitė being awarded as a Shooting Star by European Film Promotion. RUNNER received two Lithuanian Film Academy awards - for the main and the supporting actresses. His third feature fom HOW TO DIVORCE DURING THE WAR (2026) premiered at Sundance Film Festival's, World Dramatic Competition.
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August 14 · 17 min
Never Stop Chasing - Director Ken Cole & Subject Reed Timmer
In the immersive documentary Never Stop Chasing, legendary storm chaser Reed Timmer pursues a life hunting the world’s most violent weather. Haunted by the tragic death of his mentor, Tim Samaras, in the historic 2013 El Reno tornado, and the sudden loss of his best friend and long-time chase partner, Joel Taylor, Reed’s life on the edge takes a severe emotional toll. Driven by an unshakeable compulsion, he pushes his mind and body to the absolute limit in pursuit of the perfect storm. Operating the custom-built, armored "Dominator 3," Reed and his eclectic crew—Connor, Mike, Edgar, and "Local Man"—plunge directly into the impact zones of apocalyptic supercells. Despite holding a Ph.D. in meteorology, Reed’s highly aggressive intercept tactics constantly put him at odds with a traditional scientific establishment that frequently dismisses his controversial approach. The film captures the duality of their extreme lifestyle: the euphoric highs of intercepting a tornado alongside an embedded New York Times reporter, and the terrifying lows of being overtaken by a massive wedge tornado inside their vehicle. About the filmmaker -Reed Timmer is one of the world's most recognized and accomplished storm chasers, known for pioneering extreme intercepts with his armored vehicle, the Dominator 3. A meteorologist with over 8.6 million social media followers, Timmer, who has a Ph.D. in meteorology, rose to global fame on Discovery Channel's “Storm Chasers “and has since set records in close-range tornado intercepts. His work and persona directly inspired the Tyler Owens character in the 2024 blockbuster Twisters. About the filmmaker - Ken Cole is a documentary filmmaker who holds a degree in meteorology and has spent more than two decades chasing severe weather alongside Reed Timmer. His prior films include the PBS documentary Tornado Glory (2003) and the hit independent documentary series 'Tornado Chasers' (which streamed across Hulu, Prime Video, and Tubi), drawing on two decades of footage, friendship, and firsthand experience inside the world's most dangerous storms.
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August 13 · 14 min
To Use a Mountain - Director Casey Carter
In 1982, six rural communities across the United States were notified that all of the nation’s nuclear waste might be buried beneath them forever. Faced with a mandate to isolate the waste for 10,000 years, the Department of Energy mapped, analyzed, and assembled its assessments, while the unsuspecting stewards of sacrificial territory found themselves fighting for their homes, health, history and dignity. Against the impassive logic of government analysis and archives, TO USE A MOUNTAIN assembles a people’s history of resistance and stewardship through a visceral journey across the landscapes, ecologies, and personal histories of the candidate sites. Farmers, miners, citizen scientists, Native American leaders, and activists—each with a story bound to this enduring threat—stand in stark contrast to the cold, silent machinery of bureaucracy, in a meditation on resistance, memory, and the timeless struggle between power and place. About the filmmaker - Casey Carter is a filmmaker and interdisciplinary designer whose work engages nonfiction storytelling in film and video, photography, data visualization, and cartography. His work centers on themes of governmentality, geography, environmentalism, and personal subjectivities. His short films, TWO BOYS AND A DREAM (2023), TWO PRISONS (2020), and THE RIGHTS OF NATURE (2019), have screened at festivals including Revolutions Per Minute, SF Shorts, Salem, Ashland Independent, and Hong Kong Film Art. He holds a B.S. in Physics and B.S. in Photography from Middle Tennessee State University and a Master of Architecture from the University of Michigan. His work has been supported through grants and fellowships from institutions including Sundance Documentary Film Program, IDA, UnionDocs Center for Documentary Art, New York Foundation for the Arts, The Marble House Project, Monson Arts, The Redford Center, SFFILM, Flies Collective, and others. He is the director, cinematographer, and editor of his first feature film, TO USE A MOUNTAIN, which premiered at the prestigious Visions du Réel, where it won a Special Jury Award, and has gone on to collect accolades at film festivals across the globe.
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August 12 · 23 min
Our Hero, Balthazar - Director Oscar Boyson & Co-screenwriter Ricky Camilleri
The audacious coming-of-age story that expertly balances pitch-black humor with a sense of creeping menace, Our Hero, Balthazar is an engrossing modern fable about the influence of social media, isolation, and glorified violence on modern adolescence. Showcasing “the superb acting” (Deadline) of Jaeden Martell (St. Vincent, It) and “transformative” (Deadline) Asa Butterfield (“Sex Education,” Ender’s Game), the directorial debut of Oscar Boyson (producer of Safdie Brothers’ Uncut Gems and Good Time) is a must-see conversation-starter that will be available for digital rental and purchase on all major platforms on August 11, 2026 from WG Pictures and Radial Entertainment. About the filmmaker - Oscar Boyson is a director and producer whose work explores the intersections of culture, technology, and urban life. He is known for his creative collaborations and innovative approach to storytelling. As a producer, his credits include several acclaimed films with directors like the Safdie Brothers and Noah Baumbach. In addition to his film work, Oscar has directed numerous short films and documentaries that investigate global trends and the future of cities. Our Hero, Balthazar marks a significant entry in his directorial career, blending his unique visual sensibility with a deeply human story. Boyson is a writer, director, feature film producer, and co-founder of Elara Pictures, NY. Having produced for Casey Neistat in the early days of YouTube he went on to produce iconic indie hits ‘Frances, Ha!’ And ‘Mistress America’ for Noah Baumbach and the acclaimed ‘Good Time’ and ‘Uncut Gems’ for The Safdie Brothers with 2022’s ‘Funny Pages’ on this years festival circuit. A true cinephile with an encyclopaedic knowledge of film and art, Oscar is able to pivot between documentary and scripted narrative. About the filmmaker - Ricky Camilleri is a host of HuffPost Live, The Huffington Post's award-winning live streaming network, where he specializes in leading conversations with members of the TV and film community. As a filmmaker, Ricky co-founded CamLin Productions in 2010 and his work has been showcased at film festivals around the world. When he's not on HuffPost Live, Ricky can be seen on CBS, NBC and various other TV networks discussing Hollywood and entertainment news.
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August 11 · 16 min
Union County - Director Adam Meeks
Will Poulter and Noah Centineo give pitch perfect performances in Adam Meeks's Sundance hit, Union County. Playing brothers Cody and Jack Parsons, each navigating a court-mandated drug rehabilitation program in a pocket of rural Ohio hit hard by the opioid epidemic. Provided with hope for the first time since their struggles began and with the support of a tireless counselor (Annette Deao), the brothers work toward a brighter, sober future. Poulter and Centineo blend seamlessly with a supporting cast composed predominantly of non-professional actors as they share their actual experiences, pain, and optimism as they, themselves, navigate the program. Ohio-born director and screenwriter Adam Meeks creates a film imbued with realism for an honest, compassionate portrait of a battle being fought across America and the solidarity that flowers on its front lines. About the filmmaker - Writer & Director Adam Meeks is a Brooklyn-based filmmaker. His short film Union County (2020) premiered at the 70th Berlinale and screened at festivals worldwide. He is a 2023 Film Independent Screenwriting Lab Fellow, a 2021 Yaddo Artist-in-Residence, and a graduate of NYU Tisch. Union County (2025) is his first feature film.
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August 7 · 25 min
Winter Hymns - Director Nathan Deming
WINTER HYMNS takes shape in a single hospital room on a gray winter day, Dr. Linda Vobernik (Colleen Madden) meets a series of patients and families confronting the end of life. Among them are a farmer who refuses to accept his failing body, an English teacher clinging to her students’ futures, and a young electrical line worker whose cancer has stolen his own. As the day unfolds, the room itself feels suspended - somewhere between hospital and afterlife - while Dr. Vobernik’s encounters grow increasingly intimate, testing her faith in the work and revealing the strange beauty that can emerge when life narrows to its final moments. Director and screenwriter Nathan Deming joins us for a lively conversation on casting Colleen Madden and how he was able to bring together the cinematic elements needed to actualize his superbly empathetic and probing film on the inevitable. About the filmmaker - Director, screenwriter Nathan Deming is a filmmaker from Wisconsin, based in Los Angeles. A graduate of the London Film School where he studied with British filmmaker Mike Leigh, his work blends European and American influences with a focus on character and place. His feature “Speaking in Tongues” premiered at the Austin Film Festival and is available on Amazon and Apple TV. Alongside other features, he is in the midst of a decade-long film series called The Year Project, exploring life in Wisconsin month by month, most recently with “February”.
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August 6 · 30 min
Awake, My Soul: The Story of the Sacred Harp, Co-directors Matt Hinton & Erica Hinton
Erica and Matt Hinton's are the filmmaking team behind this endlessly fascinating documentary Awake, My Soul: The Story of the Sacred Harp. It is the first feature documentary to explore the history, music, and traditions of Sacred Harp singing, the oldest distinctively American form of music. This haunting music has survived over 200 years tucked away from sight in the rural deep South and occurs mostly at community singing events, which typically include anywhere from a dozen to a couple of hundred singers. The events, called “singings," emphasize participation over consumption since they are not generally performed for an audience. Sacred Harp singers begin each song by intoning syllables which are represented by specific “shapenotes” in their hymnal. To the casual observer, it is some foreign, unintelligible language, but to the Sacred Harp singers, it is the key that unlocks mysteries: songs of both beauty and sorrow, of life and of death, songs that cause feet to stomp and tears to flow, often at the same time. What is Sacred Harp Singing? Sacred Harp singing is a form of a cappella shape-note hymn singing that preserves some of the earliest distinctively American music. Sacred Harp has persisted for almost two centuries in the Deep South, particularly in the context of community singing events that emphasize participation over consumption, as it is not generally performed for an audience. The tradition uses shape notes, in which triangle, circle, square, and diamond shapenote heads are paired with the syllables fa, sol, la, and mi to represent the notes in the scale. Sacred Harp is one of the open secrets of American music. A New Revision - Awake, My Soul originally aired nationwide on PBS in 2008 and was been featured in TIME, Paste Magazine, NY Times, Pitchfork, SPIN and on NPR. Awake, My Soul, the 2025 Revision, is the result of the long-term desire to make the film available again for a new generation. “The original film was released at precisely the best time and worst time," according to co-director/ editor, Matt Hinton. “It was the best time because there was still a strong monoculture: if a film aired on PBS, lots of people saw it. It was also a period of physical media, so we sold tons of DVDs. But on the other hand, it was the worst time to have made a film– from the time we began production to the end of post-production, the culture was moving from standard definition to high definition, so within a year of its release, very many people owned high definition TVs. Nothing makes a standard definition film look standard like high definition.
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August 4 · 23 min
A Paradise Lost - Director Laurie Sumyie
A PARADISE LOST is the enchanting, yet harrowing tale of the yellow finch of Palila v. Hawaii, a landmark case where nature took humanity to court to stave off extinction. The film unfolds through the POV of the animated Palila called Anuenue who stood as the client in 1979 court trials. The legal battle leveraged the Endangered Species Act to protect mamane forests where 2,500 Palila competed with introduced sheep & goats. He explains how they won in court, but are still in jeopardy; in 2024, only 300 Palila remain. Today, a Native Hawaiian conservationist struggles to save them amidst escalating threats of climate change, wildfires, introduced predators, diseases, and governmental neglect. Through interviews, archival, vérité, nature footage, and animation created by artist and director, Laurie Sumiye, the film artfully weaves non-human perspectives, science, myth, and indigenous conservation insight collected over the last decade into a spellbinding fable of hope & survival. Directed by Hawaiian nature artist Laurie Sumiye, A PARADISE LOST sweeps audiences to a Pacific island wilderness straight into the struggle of Palila on Hawaii Island, journeying into misty sub-alpine forests. About the filmmaker - Laurie Sumiye is a Japanese-American artist, animator and filmmaker born and raised in Mililani, Hawaiʻi. She was selected as an inaugural Jackson Wild Multicultural Alliance Fellow in 2021, Firelight Documentary Lab Fellow in 2018-20, Sundance Institute/Women in Film Documentary Fellow in 2020, and UnionDocs Collaborative Fellow in 2010. Her short animated documentaries, STRUGGLE FOR EXISTENCE, about endangered Hawaiian birds, and OF MEMORY & LOS SURES, an oral history of a Latinx neighborhood in Brooklyn, have won awards and screened at festivals DOCNYC, BAMcinemaFest, and DOCUTAH. The film was part of an acclaimed transmedia documentary produced by UnionDocs, LIVING LOS SURES, which premiered at NYFF and exhibited at PS1MoMA. She started her career in documentary media creating artwork for PROJECT KASHMIR by Geeta V. Patel & Senain Kheshigi and MY BROOKLYN by Kelly Anderson. A PARADISE LOST is her first feature, which received funding and support from Pacific Islanders in Communications, Firelight Media, Doc Society and Blue Mountain Center, receiving their 2021 Harriet Barlow Commons Award. Laurie has an MFA in Integrated Media Arts from CUNY Hunter College and a BA in Art and BS in Communications from Bradley University, and studied art at Istituto Lorenzo de Medici in Italy. She has exhibited her artwork internationally in galleries, art fairs and museums, and been commissioned for business, nonprofit and private collections. Laurie was selected as an Artist-in-Residence at Digital Artist Studios (N. Ireland), Sacatar Institute (Brazil), Artfunkl (UK), A Studio in the Woods (New Orleans) and Bishop Museum (Hawaii). She taught filmmaking as Assistant Professor at the University of Hawaiʻi-West Oʻahu. Laurie was awarded a Sony Camera Grant and Honorable Mention at IF/Then Shorts x The Redford Center Nature Access Pitch at DOCNYC for animated short doc, MAKANA.
S1 · E246
August 4 · 19 min
A Sad and Beautiful World - Director Cyril Aris
A SAD AND BEAUTIFUL WORLD is a sweeping love story that spans three decades of friendship, passion, heartbreak, and hope. Nino, an eternal optimist, and Yasmina, an impulsive pragmatist, drawn together by a magnetic relationship. Struggling with universal choices of adult life in the extraordinary circumstances of a country constantly ravaged by war, they are confronted with an impossible choice between love and survival. They must decide if they can build a family and chart a path to happiness in Lebanon, despite the tragedies ravaging their country, or if they should seize the opportunity for reinvention far from home. “A Sad and Beautiful World” premiered at the 2025 Venice film Festival where it won the Giornate Degli Autori Audience Award, and went on to play at the BFI London Film Festival, SF International Film Festival, Sydney Film Festival, Sao Paolo FF, Red Sea Film Festival, Marrakech International Film Festival among others. It was Lebanon’s entry for the Academy Awards Best International Feature Film. About the filmmaker - Lebanese writer-director, Cyril Aris’s feature documentary The Swing (2018) premiered in Karlovy Vary. His second feature documentary Dancing on the Edge of a Volcano (2023), recipient of a grant from the Sundance Institute, premiered in the main competition of Karlovy Vary, won a special jury mention, and played in BFI, CPH DOX, DOC NYC and over 80 festivals. His short film The President’s Visit (2017) premiered at TIFF and played in over 100 festivals. He holds an MFA from Columbia University and is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
S1 · E245
August 2 · 22 min
Wetiko - Director Kerry Mondragon
Director Kerry Mondragon takes us deep in the dense jungles of the Yucatan, where the air hums and the ground seems alive. A film that is destined for Midnight Movie acclaim, WETIKO follows Aapo, a young Mayan man trying to survive the modern hustle without losing his roots. When he takes a quick-cash job for his family-owned pet store delivering hallucinogenic bufo toads to a remote jungle ceremony, it feels like an easy score. One trip in, one trip out. What begins as a promise of transcendence inside a shady eco-village quickly reveals itself as something far more dangerous. Led by Zake Zezo (Neil Sandilands), a smooth-talking, bloodthirsty shaman who feeds on belief, fear and control, the ceremony peddles enlightenment to Western spiritual tourists and new age seekers. But as the powerful drugs kick in, reality fractures -- time bends, the jungle pulses, and Aapo is trapped in a hallucinatory war zone. As paranoia spikes and alliances collapse, Aapo realizes WETIKO isn’t a myth but a sickness -- greed, consumption, and spiritual rot spreading fast. Hunted, high and unraveling, he must choose whether to become another casualty -- or break the cycle before the jungle swallows him whole. About the filmmaker - Kerry Mondragon is a writer, director, and producer known for Tyger Tyger (2020) and Meet Me at a Funeral (2015). Mondragon was born and raised in the ancient haunts of the Sonoran barrios and borderlands of the Mexican desert, a landscape populated by wild poets, peyote roadmen, and saintly Mexican grandmothers. He wrote poetry at an early age and corresponded with Allen Ginsberg at age ten, until Allen's death. After his biological father left, he was raised by his mother and step-father (turned-father,) they relocated to Marin County, California where he was blasted by the culture shock of a very different world. He discovered the dark shadow side of the wealthy county - a youth scene of bullying, trauma, drugs, alcohol – and was disgusted by the spiritual pretense of their culture. Bullied out of middle school and unable to adjust to high school, he lived the life of the youth underworld of one of the nation’s wealthiest towns. Throughout, he honed his artistic skills, he dropped out of college, worked at an ad agency and used that money to jump onto a crowd-funded Spike Lee feature film where he assisted the legendary director in prep and principal photography. This served as his film school. Upon returning to California and after significant life experiences, he resolved to make something pure, honest, and true - something stripped of all Hollywood illusions that was recognizable to those still lost in the pain of addiction - something to give hope to the hopeless.

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