Narrative Feature
Narrative Competition
129 min
New York Premiere
In this heartwarming story of gender identity and self-discovery, 8-year-old Aitor (Sofía Ortera), nicknamed Coco, favors long hair and feminine clothes, aggravating tensions between Coco’s mother Ane (Patricia López) and family members who disapprove of this behavior in a young boy. Coco’s only solace is with Aunt Lourdes (Ane…
Directed By Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren
Narrative Feature
Spotlight
89 min
New York Premiere
In A LITTLE PRAYER, an extraordinary ensemble cast brings empathy and witty charm to a deeply personal tale of complex family dynamics. In a small Southern town in North Carolina, Bill (Academy Award® nominee David Strathairn) begins to suspect his son is having an affair. He is caught between an urge to protect his…
Directed By Angus MacLachlan
Narrative Feature
World Cinema Narrative
99 min
While worshiping at a temple, soft-spoken doctor Naveen (Karan Soni) meets Jay (Tony Award winner Jonathan Groff), a white man adopted by Indian parents. When Naveen finally brings Jay home to meet his family as his fiancé, they must contend with accepting his white artist boyfriend and help the couple plan the Indian wedding…
Directed By Roshan Sethi
Narrative Feature
Spotlight
105 min
On a lonely night in contemporary London, Adam (Emmy® nominee Andrew Scott) has a chance encounter with mysterious neighbor Harry (Academy Award® nominee Paul Mescal). As a relationship develops between them, Adam finds himself drawn back to the suburban town where he grew up, and to the childhood home where his parents (Claire…
Directed By Andrew Haigh
Narrative Feature
World Cinema Narrative
115 min
Winner of this year’s Cannes Grand Prix, director Payal Kapadia’s mesmerizing second feature follows Mumbai nurse Prabha (Kani Kusruti), whose routine is interrupted when she receives an unexpected gift from her estranged husband. Meanwhile, her younger roommate Anu (Divya Prabha) tries in vain to find a clandestine spot in the…
Directed By Payal Kapadia
Narrative Short
Short Films
20 min
Larissa, a trans woman, and Cláudio, a cis man, meet one night in the streets of Lisbon, dancing their differences away till morning…
Directed By Ary Zara
Narrative Feature
World Cinema Narrative
152 min
When Samuel (Samuel Theis) falls to his death in a remote town in the French Alps, his wife Sandra (Sandra Hüller, 2006 HIFF Rising Star) becomes the main suspect and their young son Daniel (Milo Machado Graner) is the only witness.
Directed By Justine Triet
Narrative Feature
Spotlight
138 min
HIFF alum Sean Baker (THE FLORIDA PROJECT, 2017) returns with the story of a young sex worker (Mikey Madison) from Brooklyn who gets her chance at a Cinderella story when she meets and impulsively marries the son of an oligarch (Mark Eydelshteyn). Once the news reaches Russia, her fairytale is threatened as his parents set out for New York to get the marriage annulled. Winner of the Cannes Palme d’Or, ANORA is a whirlwind ride through clashing class worlds, featuring Baker’s signature humor and empathy and a fantastic breakthrough lead performance from Madison. A Neon release.
Directed By Sean Baker
Narrative Feature
Narrative Competition
117 min
North American Premiere
When defamed actress Elisabeth (Renate Reinsve, THE WORST PERSON IN THE WORLD) is abruptly called into a parent-teacher meeting after hours, she is presented with scathing allegations against her son that trigger a tangled web of accusations between parents and faculty. As Elisabeth struggles to uncover the truth amid the empty…
Directed By Halfdan Ullman Tøndel
Narrative Feature
Spotlight
102 min
World Premiere
Herbert Heller (Stephen Lang, AVATAR) carries a traumatic secret: now the beloved owner of a toy store in Northern California, Herbert is a Holocaust survivor. The Nazis forced him into the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp at age 12, but he managed to escape and kept the secret from everyone—including his own children—for…
Directed By Finn Taylor