Friday, October 17 — Opening Night

7:00 PM My Father’s Shadow at Film House 

A semi-autobiographical tale set over the course of a single day in the Nigerian capital Lagos during the 1993 Nigerian election crisis. The story follows a father, estranged from his two young sons, as they travel through the massive city while political unrest threatens their journey home. 

Saturday, October 18

12:00 PM Walk With Me at Film House 

Heidi Levitt directs a personal documentary set around her and her husband, Charlie Hess’s, journey through navigating his early-onset Alzheimer’s diagnosis.

12:15 PM Promised Sky at Black Box 

Marie, an Ivorian pastor and former journalist, has lived in Tunisia for ten years. Her home becomes a refuge for Naney, a young mother seeking a better future, and Jolie, a strong-willed student carrying her family’s hopes. The arrival of a little orphan girl challenges their sense of solidarity in a tense social climate, revealing both their fragility and strength. 

2:30 PM Peter Hujar’s Day at Film House 

A conversation in 1974 between photographer Peter Hujar and Linda Rosenkrantz takes the viewer on an introspective journey of an artist’s life, shedding light on New York’s vibrant downtown art world.

2:45 PM Cutting through Rocks at Black Box 

As a biker, feminist, and the first elected councilwoman, Sara Shahverdi defies traditions in a conservative Iranian village. A hopeful documentary that captures Sara as she fights to dismantle the patriarchy from within while empowering young girls.  

4:30 PM Miroirs No. 3 at Film House 

A woman is taken in by a mysterious family in the countryside after surviving a car crash. Over time, she begins to question her relationship with the family. 

4:45 PM Four Mothers at Black Box 

After finding himself caring for four elderly women, one of whom is his mother, a reclusive writer must learn to let go of excuses and start living. 

7:00 PM It Was Just an Accident at Film House 

What begins as a minor accident sets in motion a series of escalating consequences. 

7:15 PM Renoir at Black Box 

Suburban Tokyo, 1987. 11-year-old Fuki’s father, Keiji, is battling a terminal illness and is in and out of the hospital. Her mother, Utako, is constantly stressed out from caring for Keiji while holding down a full-time job. Left alone with her rich imagination, Fuki becomes fascinated by telepathy and falls ever deeper into her own fantasy world… 

9:30 PM Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie at Film House 

In this absurd but sweet comedy, using a bottle of Orbitz and a time-traveling RV, two best friends try to play the same gig 17 years apart. 

Sunday, October 19

12:00 PM DJ Ahmet at Film House 

In this joyful dramedy, Ahmet finds an escape from grief and traditions as a shepherd by becoming a rave-fueled viral star, showing how music can transform lives. 

12:15 PM Khartoum at Black Box 

In a moving portrait of human resilience, what started as a documentary about life in Sudan’s capital transforms into a powerful story of survival when a civil war erupts. 

2:00 PM A Body to Live In at Film House 

Using body modifications as radical art, Fakir Musafar blends ritual, rebellion, and identity in this visceral documentary that honors his legacy through insight from icons he inspired and archival footage.  

2:15 PM The Things You Kill at Black Box 

Spiraling into a brutal cycle of vengeance after suspecting his father played a part in his mother’s death, a college professor enlists unlikely allies and unravels buried secrets. 

4:30 PM Heads or Fails at Black Box 

A scrappy hustler named Armande Pigeon wins a high-stakes card game, while on the brink of eviction, and, fueled by this luck, continues to chase larger scores.

4:45 PM Omaha at Film House 

This portrait of a man on the edge, fleeing with his kids under mysterious circumstances, is mainly told through the guise of the back seat of a station wagon  

7:00 PM A Poet at Film House 

Finding hope in mentoring a young, gifted student, Oscar, a washed-up poet, exposes her to the world of poetry; however, this may be unwise based on his own failures. 

7:15 PM Battleship Potemkin at Black Box 

Sergei Eisenstein’s silent masterpiece about an uprising in Odessa, Russia, sparked by a naval mutiny.