SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS
Director: Sally Aitken
Valerie Taylor is a maverick who forged her way as a fearless diver, cinematographer, and marine conservationist. Her life’s work has become the basis for much of what we know about sharks today. Using stunning underwater archival footage, along with interviews with Taylor, filmmaker Sally Aitken follows her trajectory from champion spearfisher to advisor on the blockbuster classic JAWS to passionate shark protector.
Director: Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson
The untold story of the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival, featuring never-before-seen performances from Stevie Wonder, Nina Simone, Sly & The Family Stone, and scores of others. The unreleased footage that was shot that summer sat in a basement for over 50 years, keeping this incredible event in America’s history lost–until now. Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson’s film is a joyous musical celebration and the rediscovery of a nearly erased historical event that celebrated Black culture, pride, and unity.
NFF NOW: AT HOME - A to Z
Click on each title to read more about each film.
Director: Morgan Neville
It’s not where you go. It’s what you leave behind... Chef, writer, adventurer, provocateur: Anthony Bourdain lived his life unabashedly. Past NFF honoree and Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Morgan Neville (20 Feet from Stardom, Won’t You Be My Neighbor?) offers an intimate, behind-the-scenes look at how an anonymous chef became a world-renowned cultural icon. This unflinching portrait of Bourdain reverberates with his presence, in his own voice, and in the way he indelibly impacted the world around him.
*Streaming Starting June 26
Director: Sally Aitken
Valerie Taylor is a maverick who forged her way as a fearless diver, cinematographer, and marine conservationist. Her life’s work has become the basis for much of what we know about sharks today. Using stunning underwater archival footage, along with interviews with Taylor, filmmaker Sally Aitken follows her trajectory from champion spearfisher to advisor on the blockbuster classic JAWS to passionate shark protector.
Director: Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson
The untold story of the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival, featuring never-before-seen performances from Stevie Wonder, Nina Simone, Sly & The Family Stone, and scores of others. The unreleased footage that was shot that summer sat in a basement for over 50 years, keeping this incredible event in America’s history lost–until now. Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson’s film is a joyous musical celebration and the rediscovery of a nearly erased historical event that celebrated Black culture, pride, and unity.
Writer/Director: Zoe Lister-Jones, Daryl Wein
On the last day on Earth, one woman goes on a journey through LA to make it to her last party before the world ends, running into an eclectic cast of characters along the way. Cast: Zoe Lister-Jones, Cailee Spaeny, Olivia Wilde, Fred Armisen, Helen Hunt, Lamorne Morris.
Director: Peter Nicks
Oakland High School’s class of 2020 confronts the developing pandemic while fighting to eliminate the school district’s police force amidst nationwide demands for systemic change.
Directors: Danielle Kummer, Lucy Harvey
When a British bus driver’s amateur stage adaptation of Ridley Scott’s ALIEN somehow makes it to a famous London theatre, will the homemade homage win over the crowd?
Director: Giedrė Žickytė
Lithuanian sailor Simas Kudirka tells the legendary tale of his desperate jump to freedom from a Soviet ship to a US Coast Guard vessel near Martha’s Vineyard in 1970—an act that drew international media attention.
Writer/Director: Jay Craven
Shot on Nantucket, this adaptation of Jack London’s autobiographical 1909 novel tells the story of a poor and unschooled sailor, whose unconventional relationship with a magnetic young woman of means and education upends both their lives. Cast: Andrew Richardson, Hayley Griffith, Annette Mahendru, Jeff Adler.
Director: Sonia Kennebeck
A state of secrets and a ruthless hunt for whistleblowers–this is the story of 25-year-old NSA contractor Reality Winner, who disclosed one document about Russian election interference to the media and became the number one leak target of the Trump administration.
Director: Stephanie Soechtig
This immersive look at ADHD debunks harmful myths and re-frames our understanding of this deeply misunderstood condition, providing much needed insight and hope.
Director: Debbie Lum
This humorous and heartfelt look at the reality of the American college application process focuses on San Francisco’s top public high school and its majority Asian American student body, where the seniors are stressed out, keenly aware of the intense competition for the few open spots in their dream colleges.
Writer/Director: Mei Makino
Teenage artist Angie turns to secret hookups with the heartthrob of her private school after her parents’ sudden divorce. Cast: Emma Galbraith, William Magnuson, Emily Garrett, Lizabeth Waters, KaiChow Lau, Thanh Phuong Bui, Shanshan Jin, Kelsey Buckley.
Director: Keith Maitland
A psychedelic journey into the heart (and bank account) of Michael Brody, Jr, the hippie-millionaire who, in 1970, offered the world peace for the price of a postage stamp.
Directors: Rintu Thomas, Sushmit Ghosh
In a cluttered news landscape dominated by men emerges India's only newspaper run by Dalit (untouchable) women. Armed with smartphones, Chief Reporter Meera and her journalists break traditions, be it on the frontlines of India's biggest issues or within the confines of their homes, redefining what it means to be powerful.
Director: Nafu Wang
This deeply personal film by acclaimed US-based Chinese filmmaker Nanfu Wang recounts the origin and impact of COVID-19, exploring the parallel campaigns of misinformation waged by leadership of both China and the US.
Director: Ursula Macfarlane
In 1960s Chicago, a newborn baby boy is kidnapped from a hospital. Fifteen months later, a toddler is abandoned in New Jersey. Could he be the stolen baby?
Director: Hogir Hirori
With just a mobile phone and a gun, Mahmud, Ziyad, and their group risk their lives trying to save Yazidi women and girls being held by ISIS as sex slaves in the most dangerous camp in the Middle East, Al-Hol in Syria.
Director: Joshua Zeman
In this fascinating story about isolation and interconnection, the filmmaker and a team of intrepid scientists set out on a wild quest to find the 52 Hertz Whale, which has spent its entire life calling out at a frequency that is different from any other whale.
Writer/Director: Natalie Morales | Writer: Mark Duplass
When Adam's husband surprises him with weekly Spanish lessons, he's unsure about where or how this new element will fit into his already structured life. But when tragedy strikes, his Spanish teacher, Cariño, becomes a lifeline he didn’t know he needed. Cast: Natalie Morales, Mark Duplass.
Writer/Director: Todd Stephens
An aging hairdresser escapes his nursing home and embarks on an odyssey across his small town to style a woman's hair for her funeral, rediscovering his sparkle along the way. Cast: Udo Kier, Jennifer Coolidge, Linda Evans, Michael Urie, Ira Hawkins, Stephanie McVay.
Writer/Director: Kate Tsang
A teenage delinquent forms an unlikely friendship with a surly magician who helps her navigate her inner demons and dysfunctional family with sleight of hand magic. Cast: Miya Cech, Rhea Perlman, Leonardo Nam, Kannon Omachi, Paulina Lule, Keith Powell.
Writer/Director: Chase Palmer | Writer: David Matthews
An idealistic public defender burned out by the system and seeing signs of the universe collapsing around him decides to rob a multi-million drug deal. Based on the critically-acclaimed novel A Naked Singularity by Sergio De La Pava. Cast: John Boyega, Olivia Cooke, Bill Skarsgård, Ed Skrein.
Director: T.C. Johnstone
A group of young pilots attempts to carry on the legacy of the Tuskegee Airmen while struggling to overcome racism and prejudice in today's world.
Director: David Baram
Three elderly guys search for the world's greatest hot Texas weiner, but, along the way, they discover what happened to their hometown of Paterson, New Jersey.
Writer/Director: Alex Camilleri
A struggling Maltese fisherman—whose traditional livelihood is imperiled by diminishing harvests, a ruthless fishing industry, and a stagnating ecosystem—considers an illicit black-market fishing operation in order to provide for his family. Cast: Jesmark Scicluna, Michela Farrugia.
Director: Daniel Byers
In the remote Darién Gap, the Emberá tribe of Playa Muerto finds an unlikely ally in protecting their rainforest when a rare harpy eagle nest is discovered near their community.
Writer: Johan Fasting | Director: Yngvild Sve Flikke
When Rakel finds out, way too late, that she’s six months pregnant after a not-so-romantic one-night stand, her world changes. Cast: Kristine Thorp, Arthur Berning, Nader Khademi, Tora Christine Dietrichson.
An exploration of relationships of all kinds.
Mark Duplass talks about climbing up the ladder as a writer, director, and actor from indie films to Hollywood and back down again.
Alice Hoffman discusses the creative journey she took in her Practical Magic series of novels, which focus on the treatment of women across the ages.