The 6th Annual Louisiana Film Festival announced its main slate. The festival will feature 50 feature films, include a mentorship program and a music lineup in Baton Rouge, LA starting April 19 and ending April 22. The festival will also have a special preview screening of Alex Shebanow’s FAIL STATE at LSU on Wednesday, April 18.
Opening night will feature the Louisiana premiere of Ethan Hawke’s BLAZE, a biopic of the late singer-songwriter Blaze Foley that stars Ben Dickey, Alia Shawkat, Josh Hamilton Sam Rockwell, Charlie Sexton, Wyatt Russell, Steve Zahn and Kris Kristofferson. BLAZE won a Special Jury Prize at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival for Dickey’s performance. Finally, the festival will close with the Louisiana premiere of Michael Berry’s STUCK, starring Giancarlo Esposito, Amy Madigan, Ashanti, Arden Cho, Omar Chaparro, Gerard Canonico, and Tim Young.
This year will feature the second edition of the Dan Ireland New Voices/New Visions competition, named after filmmaker and founding LIFF artistic director Dan Ireland, who passed away suddenly in 2016. Renée Zellweger starred in Ireland’s 1996 award-winning THE WHOLE WIDE WORLD and attended last year’s fest to present the inaugural award.
“Dan Ireland was indispensable to the creation and success of this festival,” said LIFF executive director Chesley Heymsfield. “We are so proud to be able to honor his legacy and vision by presenting this exceptional lineup of films and I look forward to welcoming audiences to this year’s festival.”
Dan Ireland New Voices/New Visions competition lineup includes: AND THEN I GO (USA, directed by Vincent Grenshaw): BRIMSTONE & GLORY (USA/Mexico, directed by Viktor Jakovleski); THE GUILTY (Denmark, directed by Gustav Möller), THE LIGHT OF THE MOON (USA, directed by Jessica M. Thompson); MONTPARNASSE BIENVENUE (France, directed by Léonor Serraille) and STEALING RODIN (Chile, directed by Cristóbal Valenzuela Berríos). The winner will receive a $3,000 cash award.
“One of the great joys of programming is the ability to bring a selection of great films from all over the word to an audience that might not otherwise get a chance to see this incredible work in a theater,” said program director Ian Birnie. “This year’s event showcases some of the best recent work from Louisiana filmmakers as well as a sampling of exceptional work from around the world and we’re delighted to bring them to Baton Rouge.”
SOUTHERN PERSPECTIVES is this year’s selection of films from or focusing on the southern United States. The ten films include narratives, documentaries, and three world premieres, including Lauren Durr’s documentary 1000 YEAR FLOOD, chronicling the aftermath of the 2016 flood that inundated huge swaths of Louisiana, Teddy Smith’s URBAN COUNTRY, starring Lou Diamond Phillips, Jason London, C. Thomas Howell and Brighton Sharbino, and Jowan Carbin’s drama CUT OFF, starring Brad Dourif, William Baldwin, Laura Cayouette. Also featured are Rankin Hickman’s DARK MERIDIAN; Stephen Sepher’s DEAD ON ARRIVAL, Josh Freund’s DO U WANT IT?; Jonathan Evans’ ON OUR WATCH, RANCHER FARMER FISHERMAN from director Susan Froemke (Oscar® nominee for LALEE’S KIN: THE LEGACY OF COTTON); TWO TRAINS RUNNIN’ from Oscar nominee Samuel D. Pollard (4 LITTLE GIRLS) and Sonny Marler’s TINKER.
This year’s festival also features two gala presentations: AMERICAN ANIMALS from director Bart Layton and starring Evan Peters, Barry Keoghan, Blake Jenner, Udo Kier and Ann Dowd, and Brett Haley’s HEARTS BEAT LOUD, starring Nick Offerman, Kiersey Clemons, Ted Danson, Blythe Danner and Toni Collette.
The festival will have a special presentations that include Alex Shebanow’s FAIL STATE (USA), MARY AND THE WITCH’S FLOWER (Japan, directed by Hiromasa Yonebayashi), OFF THE MENU (USA, dir. Jay Silverman), OUTSIDE IN (USA, dir. Lynn Shelton, starring Edie Falco and Jay Duplass), PICK OF THE LITTER (USA, dir. Don Hardy Jr.) and WHERE IS KYRA? (USA, dir. Andrew Dosunmu, starring Michelle Pfeiffer and Kiefer Sutherland).
The CELEBRITY SPOTLIGHT section will feature six documentaries from some of the most recognized documentary filmmakers working today who have turned their lenses on some legendary personalities in the world of music, the arts and government, including violin virtuoso Itzhak Perlman, US Supreme Court justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg and legendary makeup artist Kevyn Aucoin. This year’s selection includes: SAMMY DAVIS JR: I GOTTA BE ME (USA, dir: Samuel D. Pollard); ITZHAK (USA/Israel, dir. Alison Chernik); GRACE JONES: BLOODLIGHT AND BAMI (Ireland/UK, dir. Sophie Fiennes); RBG (USA, dirs. Julie Cohen, Betsy West), THE KING (USA, dir: Eugene Jarecki) and LARGER THAN LIFE: THE KEVYN AUCOIN STORY (USA, dir. Tiffany Bartok).
The six American documentaries that make up THE REAL REEL, including Kief Davidson and Pedro Kos’ BENDING THE ARC, Jon Dunham’s BOSTON, Kevin Hines’ SUICIDE: THE RIPPLE EFFECT, Maya Washington’s THROUGH THE BANKS OF THE RED CEDAR, James Lester’s GETTING NAKED: A BURLESQUE STORY and Harriet Hirshorn’s NOTHING WITHOUT US: THE WOMEN WHO WILL END AIDS.
The WORLD CINEMA World Cinema section includes Cédric Klapisch’s Back to Burgundy (France), Ross Whittaker’s Between Land and Sea (Ireland), Xavier Legrand’s Custody (France), Francois Ozon’s Double Lover (France), Fellipe Barbosa’s Gabriel and the Mountain (Brazil), Koki Shigeno’s Ramen Heads (Japan), Bavo Defurne’s Souvenir (Belgium) and Peter Luisi’s Streaker (Switzerland).
LIFF’s non-film offerings include a musical performance from country music star Ben Dickey, who stars as Blaze Foley in BLAZE with others to be announced, as well as mentoring sessions for aspiring and established filmmakers, led by Sam Claitor (MAZE RUNNER) and Carol Bidault de L’Isle (CUT OFF) among others. A full lineup of parties, musical performances, mentors and other special guests will be announced closer to the festival dates.
You can now purchase passes and individual tickets for LIFF. Visit https://www.lifilmfest.org for tickets, passes, and all other film festival information.
