WAVES directed by Trey Edward Shults, presents the lives of a suburban African-American family as they navigate life following a tragic loss. The film stars Emmy Award-winning actor Sterling K. Brown, Tony Award-winning actress Renée Elise Goldsberry, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Academy Award nominee Lucas Hedges, Taylor Russell, and Alexa Demie will close the 2019 Hamptons International Film Festival.
The festival will also continue its eighteen-year tradition of recognizing up and coming talent through its annual Breakthrough Artists signature program. This year’s recipients include actress Camila Morrone of MICKEY AND THE BEAR, which will screen in the World Cinema Narrative section, actor Aldis Hodge from CLEMENCY, previously announced in this year’s Spotlight section, and Lulu Wang, director of the summer indie darling THE FAREWELL. Since 2002, HIFF has honored distinguished talent in early stages of their careers, including award-winning actors Emily Blunt, Brie Larson, Adam Driver, Jessica Chastain, Mahershala Ali, Riz Ahmed, Alicia Vikander, Lupita Nyong’o, Emma Stone, Elisabeth Moss,
Rooney Mara, Oscar Isaac, and more.
The films in this year’s signature Conflict & Resolution program, which spotlight stories that creatively deal with complex issues and societal effects of war and violence, and engage audiences surrounding the causes, will include the following: Hans Pool’s BELLINGCAT: TRUTH IN A POST-TRUTH WORLD, Feras Fayyad’s THE CAVE, Waad al-Khateab and Edward Watts’s FOR SAMA, Ben Lawrence’s HEARTS AND BONES, and Dror Moreh’s THE HUMAN FACTOR. This year, FOR SAMA will be the recipient of the section’s Brizzolara Family Foundation Awards for Films of Conflict & Resolution and following the screening, Alec Baldwin will be hosting a live-taping of the NPR show Here’s The Thing with the filmmakers
For the 17th year, the festival will partner with New York Women in Film & Television, a non-profit dedicated to supporting, celebrating and advocating for women in mediato present their annual shorts “NYWIFT: Women Calling the Shots,” to support achievements in female filmmaking. This year’s shorts will include Remington Long’s ALCHEMY, Grace Kim’s AN INTERLOPER’S KISS, Sini Anderson’s CATHERINE OPIE B. 1961, Lizzy Hogenson’s DANI, Faren Humes’ LIBERTY, Celine Held and Logan George’s LOCKDOWN, and Farida Zahran’s YOUTH. The Women Calling the Shots showcase will be preceded by NYWIFT’s brunch at Mulford Farm celebrating the women filmmakers at the festival.
The festival also previously announced JUST MERCY as the Opening Night Film, along with THE IRISHMAN as the Friday Centerpiece, FORD v FERRARI as the Saturday Centerpiece, THE TWO POPES as the Sunday Centerpiece, “A Conversation With…” with Alfre Woodard and a screening of CLEMENCY, as well as the World Premieres CONSCIENCE POINT, IN MEMORIAM, SCANDALOUS, and FLINT.
Additional films in this year’s lineup include Spotlight films A HIDDEN LIFE, JOJO RABBIT, and MARRIAGE STORY, along with PORTRAIT OF A LADY ON FIRE in the World Cinema Narrative Section. Films in the narrative competition are Mati Diop’s ATLANTICS, Anke Blonde’s THE BEST OF DORIEN B., Jan Ole Gerster’s LARA, Andrew Patterson’s THE VAST OF NIGHT, and Hlynur Pálmason’s A WHITE, WHITE DAY. Films in the documentary competition include Alexander Nanau’s COLLECTIVE, Alla Kovgan’s CUNNINGHAM, Sung-a Yoon’s OVERSEAS, Patrick Bresnan & Ivete Lucas’ PAHOKEE, and Suhaib Gasmelbari’s TALKING ABOUT TREES.
The 27th annual Hamptons International Film Festival will take place Columbus Day Weekend: October 10 to 14, 2019.
2019 Hamptons International Film Festival Lineup
Additional Films
WAVES
*Closing Night
East Coast Premiere
Director: Trey Edward Shults
Set against the vibrant landscape of South Florida, and featuring an astonishing ensemble of awardwinning actors and breakouts alike, WAVES traces the epic emotional journey of a suburban AfricanAmerican family—led by a well-intentioned but domineering father—as they navigate love, forgiveness and coming together in the aftermath of a loss. From acclaimed director Trey Edward Shults (KRISHA, HIFF 2015), WAVES is a heartrending story about the universal capacity for compassion and growth even in the darkest of times.
Conflict & Resolution
BELLINGCAT: TRUTH IN A POST-TRUTH WORLD
Director: Hans Pool
Director Hans Pool tracks the story of several civilians who came together as Bellingcat, a collective of “citizen investigative journalists” dedicated to combating the spreading of misinformation online and working as a single unit to deploy open source investigations. Using every imaginable resource at their disposal, ranging from social media, video footage, and audio analysis, the collective has uncovered several global stories—including the identification of ISIS agents as well as those responsible for the poisonings of two Russian civilians in the UK. Focusing on the team of dedicated volunteers at the group’s center and the means through which they are redefining modern journalism, BELLINGCAT sheds light on those attempting to keep journalistic integrity alive in a post-truth world.
THE CAVE
Director: Feras Fayyad
New York Premiere
Coming off his Academy Award-nominated documentary LAST MEN IN ALEPPO, director Feras Fayyad returns to his native Syria, a country still ravaged by an unrelenting war that has spared nothing in its destructive wake, not even the local hospitals. In his new documentary, Fayyad covers a hidden, underground hospital called The Cave, where a dedicated team of mostly female doctors and civilians is led by Dr. Amani, a young female pediatrician. Together, they risk their lives to provide medical care to the besieged local population, ignoring the entrenched conservative and patriarchal pressures in their way. Fayyad’s tender, observation a documentary captures not only the tragedy surrounding the doctors, but also the beautiful moments of generosity, compassion, and kindness that glimmer brightly among the turmoil.
FOR SAMA
Director: Waad al-Khateab, Edward Watts
Working with her co-director Edward Watts, 26-year-old Syrian filmmaker Waad al-Kateab documents the story of her life over five years during the uprising in Aleppo, as she falls in love and gives birth to her daughter Sama while cataclysmic conflict rises around her. As she is faced with the decision between leaving the city to protect her daughter’s life or continuing in her country’s struggle for freedom, al-Kateab continues to keep her camera rolling on the daily lives of her and her family. Winner of the Best Documentary and Audience Awards at SXSW and the Golden Eye Award at the Cannes Film Festival, FOR SAMA is a harrowing depiction of one woman’s fight for survival in one of the world’s most dangerous war zones.
HEARTS AND BONES
U.S. Premiere
Director: Ben Lawrence
War photographer Daniel Fisher (Hugo Weaving) returns home to Sydney from his latest assignment to begin preparations for an upcoming retrospective of his work within many of the world’s most dangerous combat zones. As he prepares for both the opening and, much to his partner’s discomfort, his next assignment abroad, he’s greeted by a surprise visitor: Sebastian Aman (Andrew Lury), a South Sudanese refugee urging Daniel to exclude photographs from a massacre in his village 15 years ago. As the two men come together, a friendship blossoms through the shared trauma they’ve worked so hard to move beyond, in this timely and affecting look at the difficulty of facing years of repression.
NYWIFT: WOMEN CALLING THE SHOTS
ALCHEMY
Director: Remington Long
A community comes together for friendship, poetry, and some handcrafted sourdough baked in the old world tradition.
AN INTERLOPER’S KISS
World Premiere
Director: Grace Kim
A voyeuristic look at one woman’s daily routine, from the perspective of an unlikely love interest
CATHERINE OPIE B. 1961
East Coast Premiere
Director: Sini Anderson
Acclaimed photographer Catherine Opie shares the emotional and political motivations behind her provocative and influential work.
DANI
New York Premiere
Director: Lizzy Hogenson
Feeling obligated to put on a brave face, a daughter calls her mother to share some difficult news.
LIBERTY
Director: Faren Humes
As their community faces redevelopment, Alex and Milagros find their longtime friendship tested by their impending separation.
LOCKDOWN
New York Premiere
Directors: Celine Held and Logan George
Struggling with feelings for her best friend, 14-year-old Marie stages an almost perfect plan.
YOUTH
East Coast Premiere
Director: Farida Zahran
Over the course of one eventful night out in Cairo, a teenage girl takes a step toward adulthood.