Synopsis: Fresh out of foster care at age 18, a young drifter turns to petty crime to survive, and discovers an impossible love in an unlikely friend.
Country: USA
Synopsis: Caleb Landry Jones (Get Out, Three Billboards) and Eleonore Hendricks star in Peter Brunner’s Psychological thriller. Set in New York, the film explores the dark mind of Norman (Jones), an installations artist, as he attempts to piece together his tormented past and the fire in which his parents died.
McKinnon and Hendricks give captivating supporting performances and Christos Haas is the best he’s ever been. The film is carried by Jones who perhaps gives the best acting performance of the year in this film.
‘To the Night’ ties together its dark protagonist with some of the most beautiful cinematography of the year in a film that will remain with you for days and weeks after viewing. Not since Martin Scorsese’s ‘Taxi Driver’ has a film taken such risks to get into the head of its complex protagonist.
Country: Austria, USA
Synopsis: Despite boasting rich friendships and a creative job, young filmmaker Ann is consumed by the fantasy of finding true love. Just when she thinks she’s found it, she is friend-zoned and the disappointment of rejection shoots her down a deep rabbit hole of unrequited love. Looking for a way to climb out, Ann picks up a camera and sets her sights inward. She confronts multiple characters within her conscious, from a maniacal game show host to a glamorous cabaret performer, that guide her through her investigation of the relationship and her own neuroses. Blending docu-style interview with comedy, drama and hyperbolic fantasies, Ann creates an elaborate, eccentric world that manages to be as intensely relatable as it is one of a kind.
Country: USA
Synopsis: A non-romantic true love story between a child in crises, addicted to graffiti, on the brink of destruction, losing faith in integrity, and a humble teacher who believes there is no such thing as a bad kid, only a bad situation.
Country: USA
Naoum has quite a bit of experience both in front of and behind the camera over the past decade. She has acted in dozens of projects and began directing with her debut film ‘Laissez agir cinq minutes’ in 2010. This experience shows in her latest project L’Amazone, which is truly a brilliant exploration of one woman’s (Elie played by Naoum herself)personal battle with breast cancer.
This is not a typical film by any means, and it takes perspectives and turns in its delivery that other films attempting to tackle the same subject matter simply do not. Having screened Curfew, and spoken to Shawn about the challenges of directing and acting in the same project, I have a great deal of respect for anyone who tries it. But doing it well is something else entirely, and L’Amazone is true to tone, beautifully shot and acted, and an important story that I’m glad was told.
Synopsis: Elie, 30, lost her left breast fighting cancer and decided not to replace it. At a party, a random encounter with an ex-lover she thought she’d never see again forces her to confront doubts and insecurities regarding her new femininity.
Country: France
Ever wondered what you might have become had you done things differently? Ever wish you could clone yourself and just change small things with each of them? Maybe one would be a lawyer? Another a crack addict? Maybe… one might become president.
That’s the idea behind this revolutionary and brilliant film ‘The Replacement’, our latest selection to Pendance 2019.
This is one of the most technically complex, and mind-blowing films I’ve probably ever seen given the limitations of the budget. Sean’s a world-class director, having worked on a zillion projects.
Synopsis: Election night, 2036: As clones roam among us, a disgruntled janitor must confront reality when one of his clones is elected President of the United States.
Country: USA
How far are we willing to go for fame, followers, likes, clicks, and relevance in 2018? However far you’re willing to go, one Youtuber is willing to go even further.
Katsimiris approaches this film with a nuanced discipline which is clear from the first frame. The film works well for many reasons; performances, cinematography, smart writing etc. But the film as a whole works because it is the result of much thought and research into its dark and disturbing subject matter.
There’s something unfiltered and almost vintage about ‘Fake News’. It’s unapologetically real and puts the mirror not only to the lead character but to all of us.
Who are we? What are we becoming?
Synopsis: A Youtuber and her partner have gotten their hands on an anonymous video which shows the disturbing rape of a white woman by two masked men. The means by which they got this video is a bit more complicated.
Country: Greece
Botanica is edgy and very original filmmaking. It takes a look at the relationship between a couple unable to conceive a child, growing old and unsatisfied until one of them decides to make the ultimate sacrifice.
Synopsis: A garden-center employee fears his possible infertility and realizes that sometimes you have to swallow your pride to let love overcome.
Country: the Netherlands
Announcing our ninth Official selection to Pendance 2019.
‘ON MY OWN’ (Mogu Sam) by one of the brightest young Yugoslavian filmmakers, Nikola Polic will have its North American premiere at Pendance this winter.
This film is so methodically paced in its slow-burning execution. It’s current and yet timeless. It’s uncomfortable, satisfying, compellingly human, heartbreaking, and above all else, honest. Not everyone will understand it immediately–but if you give this film your full attention, it’s the type of film that you’ll carry with you for the rest of your life.
Synopsis: Stimulated by a series of seemingly irrelevant events, Marko finally confronts himself.
Country: Serbia
All these Creatures, the 2018 Palme D’Or winner at Cannes, is cinema at the height of its powers. Everything is maximized for complete emotional impact. The acting is brutally honest, the writing perhaps even more so. It’s the type of film that stays with you for months or years, and perhaps shifts your awareness of yourself and life as a whole so dramatically that it becomes a life-changing experience altogether.
This isn’t merely a film about a father and son, domestic violence, or mental illness. This is a film about the essence of life, struggle, and the pursuit of happiness.
Synopsis: An adolescent boy attempts to untangle his memories of a mysterious infestation, the unravelling of his father, and the little creatures inside us all.
Country: Australia
