The American Film Institute (AFI) has announced the films that will play in the Special Screenings, Cinema’s Legacy and Shorts sections at AFI Fest 2017.
This year’s Special Screenings section offers an array of engaging stories and intimate portraits of riveting individuals: Film Stars Don’t Die In Liverpool (DIR Paul McGuigan); I, Tonya (DIR Craig Gillespie); Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond–Featuring A Very Special, Contractually Obligated Mention of Tony Clifton (DIR Chris Smith); The Leisure Seeker (DIR Paolo Virzì); Molly’s Game (DIR Aaron Sorkin); Sammy Davis, Jr.: I’ve Gotta Be Me (DIR Sam Pollard); and The Shape of Water (DIR Guillermo del Toro).
Cinema’s Legacy is AFI Fest’s celebration of motion picture history, and a special opportunity to screen recent restorations of classic films. This year, to celebrate AFI’s 50th Anniversary, the program includes a selection of international classics from 1967, including Stanley Kramer’s groundbreaking masterpiece of interracial romance Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner; Juan Ibáñez’s outrageous hallmark of Mexican cinema Los Caifanes; the timeless romantic comedy Barefoot In The Park, starring Robert Redford and Jane Fonda; Eric Rohmer’s love-triangle “Six Moral Tales” installment La Collectioneuse; and Frederick Wiseman’s seminal documentary Titicut Follies. Also part of the celebration are Sergio Leone’s The Good, The Bad And The Ugly (1966; released in the U.S. in 1967), and a duo of Michelangelo Antonioni films that are emblematic of arthouse cinema in the 1960s, Blow-Up (1966) and Red Desert (1964). Finally, Tony Zierra’s documentary Filmworker (2017), which follows the collaboration between Leon Vitali and Stanley Kubrick, will screen.
The Shorts section features filmmakers from around the globe and represents various distinct international viewpoints. The Shorts jury is comprised of Jeffrey Bowers (sr. curator, Vimeo), Moira Griffin (executive director of production, Creative Labs, 21st Century Fox) and Nathan Silver (director, Actor Martinez, Thirst Street). The Grand Jury Award winners for Live-Action and Animated Short, as decided by the Shorts Jury, will be automatically eligible for the Academy Award® shortlists in the Best Live Action Short and Best Animated Short categories.
SPECIAL SCREENINGS
FILM STARS DON’T DIE IN LIVERPOOL – Annette Bening stars as Gloria Grahame and Jamie Bell as her young ex-lover in this visually sumptuous, deeply compassionate romance. DIR Paul McGuigan. SCR Matt Greenhalgh. CAST Annette Bening, Jamie Bell, Julie Walters, Vanessa Redgrave. USA
I, TONYA – Margot Robbie stars as tabloid-bait figure skater Tonya Harding in this unforgettable film that is nothing less than a Shakespearean tale of love, loss and the crushing force of poverty in America. DIR Craig Gillespie. SCR Steven Rogers. CAST Margot Robbie, Sebastian Stan, Allison Janney, Paul Walter Hauser, Julianne Nicholson, Bobby Cannavale, Mckenna Grace. USA
JIM & ANDY: THE GREAT BEYOND – FEATURING A VERY SPECIAL, CONTRACTUALLY OBLIGATED MENTION OF TONY CLIFTON – In this insightful documentary, Jim Carrey reflects on his experience playing legendary comedian Andy Kaufman in 1999’s MAN ON THE MOON. DIR Chris Smith. FEATURING Jim Carrey, Danny DeVito, Milos Forman, Judd Hirsch, Carol Kane, Paul Giamatti, Bob Zmuda. USA
THE LEISURE SEEKER – Helen Mirren and Donald Sutherland star in this unforgettable tale of love and memory in an America on the brink of an uncertain new course. DIR Paolo Virzì. SCR Stephen Amidon, Francesca Archibugi, Francesco Piccolo, Paolo Virzì. CAST Helen Mirren, Donald Sutherland, Christian McKay, Janel Moloney, Dana Ivey. Italy
MOLLY’S GAME – Oscar® nominee Jessica Chastain stars in Oscar®-winning screenwriter Aaron Sorkin’s directorial debut, set in the glamorous world of high-stakes underground poker games. DIR Aaron Sorkin. SCR Aaron Sorkin. CAST Jessica Chastain, Idris Elba, Kevin Costner, Michael Cera, Jeremy Strong, Chris O’Dowd, Bill Camp. USA
SAMMY DAVIS, JR.: I’VE GOTTA BE ME – Longtime Spike Lee collaborator Sam Pollard directs this accomplished documentary on the ups and downs of the life and career of trailblazing multi-hyphenate Sammy Davis, Jr. DIR Sam Pollard. SCR Laurence Maslon. FEATURING Billy Crystal, Whoopi Goldberg, Quincy Jones, Jerry Lewis, Kim Novak, Nancy Sinatra, Norman Lear. USA
THE SHAPE OF WATER – Set at the height of the Cold War, Guillermo del Toro’s latest stars Sally Hawkins in an otherworldly love tale between a mute cleaning lady and an Amphibian Man. DIR Guillermo del Toro. SCR Guillermo del Toro, Vanessa Taylor. CAST Sally Hawkins, Michael Shannon, Richard Jenkins, Doug Jones, Michael Stuhlbarg, Octavia Spencer. USA
CINEMA’S LEGACY
BAREFOOT IN THE PARK – This classic romantic comedy pairs Robert Redford and Jane Fonda as a young married couple with absolutely nothing in common. DIR Gene Saks. SCR Neil Simon. CAST Robert Redford, Jane Fonda, Charles Boyer, Mildred Natwick, Herbert Edelman, James Stone, Ted Hartley, Mabel Albertson. USA
BLOW-UP – A fashion photographer accidentally photographs a murder in BLOW-UP, one of Michelangelo Antonioni’s many masterpieces, and his first film in English. Restoration curated by The Criterion Collection, Cineteca di Bologna and Istituto Luce Cinecittà, in collaboration with Warner Bros. and Park Circus. DIR Michelangelo Antonioni. SCR Michelangelo Antonioni, Tonino Guerra. CAST Vanessa Redgrave, Sarah Miles, David Hemmings, John Castle, Jane Birkin, Gillian Hills, Peter Bowles. Italy
LOS CAIFANES – A wealthy couple gets an impromptu tour around Mexico City from an urban gang in this outrageous, ahead-of-its-time Mexican cinema classic. DIR Juan Ibáñez. SCR Carlos Fuentes, Juan Ibáñez. CAST Julissa, Enrique Álvarez Félix, Óscar Chávez, Ernesto Gómez Cruz, Sergio Juménez, Eduardo López Rojas, Tamara Garina, Martha Zabaleta. Mexico
LA COLLECTIONNEUSE – The third of Eric Rohmer’s “Six Moral Tales” centers on two men and a rules-breaking woman, rumored to be a “collector” of the opposite sex, staying together on the Riviera. DIR Eric Rohmer. SCR Haydée Politoff, Patrick Bauchau, Daniel Pommereulle, Eric Rohmer. CAST Haydée Politoff, Patrick Bauchau, Daniel Pommereulle, Alain Jouffroy, Mijanou, Annik Morice, Denis Berry, Seymour Hertzberg. France
FILMWORKER – The relationship between master Stanley Kubrick and his right-hand-man, actor turned “filmworker” Leon Vitali, is a moving portrait of total dedication to art and genius. DIR Tony Zierra. FEATURING Leon Vitali, Ryan O’Neal, Matthew Modine, Danny Lloyd, Stellan Skarsgård. USA
THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY (IL BUONO, IL BRUTTO, IL CATTIVO) – Starring Clint Eastwood in a career-defining performance, Sergio Leone’s best-known work follows a band of men during the American Civil War as they hunt down a stolen cache of Confederate gold. DIR Sergio Leone. SCR Luciano Vincenzoni, Sergio Leone. CAST Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, Eli Wallach, Aldo Giuffrè, Luigi Pistilli, Rada Rassimov, Enzo Petito, Claudio Scarchilli, John Bartha. Italy, Spain, West Germany, USA
GUESS WHO’S COMING TO DINNER – Anchored by powerful performances by Sidney Poitier, Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy, this Oscar®-winning, groundbreaking masterpiece centers on an interracial romance in the 1960s. DIR Stanley Kramer. SCR William Rose. CAST Spencer Tracy, Sidney Poitier, Katharine Hepburn, Katharine Houghton, Cecil Kellaway, Beah Richards, Roy Glenn. USA
RED DESERT (IL DESERTO ROSSO) – Michelangelo Antonioni’s first foray into color centers on a maladjusted woman, played by muse Monica Vitti, searching for her place in a foggy, bleak industrial town. Restoration curated by CSC-Cineteca Nazionale and Istituto Luce Cinecittà, in collaboration with RTI-Mediaset. DIR Michelangelo Antonioni. SCR Michelangelo Antonioni, Tonino Guerra. CAST Monica Vitti, Richard Harris, Carlo Chionetti, Xenia Valderi, Rita Renoir, Aldo Grotti. Italy, France
TITICUT FOLLIES – This searing debut documentary by Frederick Wiseman, centering on a facility for the criminally insane in Massachusetts, was banned for general audiences for 23 years. DIR Frederick Wiseman. USA
SHORTS
THE 6TH AMENDMENT– A jury decides the fate of one of the Boston Marathon bombers. DIR Elika Portnoy. SCR Mike Harden, Rob Tremblay. CAST Michael Bakkensen, Tony V., Shawn Fitzgibbon, Rose Weaver, Brookes Reeves, Mary Niederkorn, JP Valenti, Debbie Lewis, Melissa Schmidt, Courtland Jones, Tonya Chen, Richard Pacheco, Steve Assad. Bulgaria
AFTER SCHOOL KNIFE FIGHT – Laëtitia, Roca, Nico and Naël are in a band that soon will no longer exist. DIR Caroline Poggi, Jonathan Vinel. SCR Caroline Poggi, Jonathan Vinel. CAST Lucas Doméjean, Marylou Mayniel, Pablo Cobo, Nicolas Mias. France
ASCRIBED ACHIEVEMENTS – A failed suicide creates a new situation. DIR Samaneh Shojaei. SCR Amin Kafashzadeh. CAST Amin Kafashzadeh. Iran
BALLOONFEST – Cleveland attempts to overcome its nickname, “The Mistake by the Lake.” DIR Nathan Truesdell. SCR Nathan Truesdell. USA
THE BURDEN – An animated musical with apocalyptic undertones. DIR Niki Lindroth von Bahr. SCR Niki Lindroth von Bahr. CAST Olof Wretling, Sven Björklund, Mattias Fransson, Carl Englén. Sweden
CLOWNS – Clowns! Suddenly, they’re everywhere. DIR The Manhattan Company. USA
COIN OPERATED – Seventy years pass in the life of one naïve explorer. DIR Nicholas Arioli. SCR Nicholas Arioli. USA
COMMODITY CITY – A glimpse at the goods for sale and the humans who sell them in the largest wholesale consumer market in the world. DIR Jessica Kingdon. USA, China
COPA-LOCA – Paulina is the girl at the heart of Copa-Loca, an abandoned Greek summer resort. DIR Christos Massalas. SCR Christos Massalas. CAST Elsa Lekakou, Jenny Hiloudaki, Pavlos Iordanopoulos, Talat Iqbal, Stathis Stamoulakatos, Michalis Pitidis, Fotis Stratigos, Nadia Katsoura, Panos Iosifidis, George Ramantanis, Jon Simvonis. Greece
CUBS (UNGAR) – A single father fulfills his young daughter’s wish to throw a slumber party. DIR Nanna Kristín Magnúsdóttir. SCR Nanna Kristín Magnúsdóttir. CAST Ólafur Darri Ólafsson, Agla Bríet Gísladóttir, Anna Bíbí Wium Axelsdóttir, Ragnheiður Ugla Ocares Gautsdóttir. Iceland
DADYAA – THE WOODPECKERS OF ROTHA – Atimaley and Devi are faced with a dilemma when a friend leaves without saying goodbye. DIR Pooja Gurung, Bibhusan Basnet. SCR Pooja Gurung, Bibhusan Basnet. CAST Parimal Damai, Chham Kala Damai. Nepal, France
THE DIVER – Take a plunge with the man who excavates Mexico City’s sewage system. DIR Esteban Arrangoiz. SCR Esteban Arrangoiz, Mariana Rodríguez. FEATURING Julio César Cú Cámara. Mexico
DOLLAR KING – It’s the perfect crime: three friends in pig masks with squirt guns at the dollar store. DIR Drew Pollins. SCR D.M. Brent. CAST Jason Boggs, John Charles Meyer, Ed Mattiuzzi, Susan Berger, John McCool Bowers, Ronnie Clark, Josh Harp. USA
EDGE OF ALCHEMY – Mary Pickford and Janet Gaynor are cast into a surreal epic in this handmade film assembled from over 6,000 collages. DIR Stacey Steers. SCR Stacey Steers. USA
THE FARE – A young human trafficker must confront his morals when he’s asked to transport a girl from his hometown. DIR Santiago Paladines. SCR Santiago Paladines. CAST Johnny Ortiz, Noemi Pedraza, Eduardo Roman. USA
FISH STORY – A search for the truth behind a fishy tale. DIR Charlie Lyne. SCR Charlie Lyne. FEATURING Caspar Salmon. UK
GAZE (NEGAH) – A woman witnesses a crime on a bus. DIR Farnoosh Samadi. SCR Farnoosh Samadi, Ali Asgari. CAST Marzieh Vafamehr, Amirreza Ranjbaran, Pedram Ansari, Safoura Kazempour, Gholamreza Rahimi, Mehrdad Mohammadi, Kiana Asadi, Mehran Elhamifar, Babak Karimi. Iran, Italy
A GENTLE NIGHT (XIAO CHENG ER YUE) – A mother, with a missing daughter, refuses to stop searching. DIR Qiu Yang. SCR: Qiu Yang. CAST Li Shuxian. China
GREAT CHOICE – A woman gets stuck in a looping Red Lobster commercial from hell. DIR Robin Comisar. SCR Robin Comisar. CAST Carrie Coon, Morgan Spector. USA
HI STRANGER – It’s time to catch up with an old friend. DIR Kirsten Lepore. SCR Kirsten Lepore. CAST Garrett Davis. USA
HOT DOG HANDS – A suburban woman can’t stop growing new fingers. DIR Matt Reynolds. SCR Matt Reynolds. CAST Gillian Wallace Horvat. USA
HOUSE OF JXN – A glimpse into the dance clubs and Rainbow families of Jackson, MS. DIR Rosie Haber. USA
HOW’S YOUR PROSTATE? – A discussion between two girlfriends. DIR Jeanne Paturle, Cécile Rousset. SCR Jeanne Paturle, Cécile Rousset, Cécile Mille. CAST Cécile Mille. France
IFO – Historic UFO sightings over Mansfield, OH, are evoked through memory, report and gesture. DIR Kevin Jerome Everson. FEATURING Albert Thomas, Elijah Bailey Harris, Saveon Moore, Carmenita Higginbotham, Matilda Washington, Tre’Zhan Gamble. USA
ISLANDS (LES ÎLES) – Three characters wander through an erotic maze of love and desire. DIR Yann Gonzalez. SCR Yann Gonzalez. CAST Sarah-Megan Allouch, Thomas Ducasse, Alphonse Maitrepierre, Mathilde Mennetrier, Romain Merle, Simon Thiébaut. France
JOY JOY NAILS – Under the polish, everyone’s a victim. DIR Joey Ally. SCR Joey Ally. CAST Kahyun Kim, Yi Liu, Tae Song, Esther Moon, Shirley Kwon, Chris Yejin, Sarah Chang, Amber Sealey, Caryn West, Catherine Haena Kim, Jongman Kim. USA
LANCE LIZARDI – A young man embarks on a reptilian adventure. DIR Xander Robin, FEATURING Lance Lizardi, James Bears, Robin Robin, Michael Kefeyalew, Valerie Brooks, Michael Casper, Gary Holzapple. USA
LIFE BOAT – Six teenagers are led into a game of survival by their guidance counselor. DIR Lorraine Nicholson. SCR Lorraine Nicholson. CAST Elizabeth Gilpin, Stephen Dorff, Moises Arias, Kwame Boateng, Hopper Penn, B.K. Cannon, Chloe Bridges. USA
LUPUS – In December 2011, a security guard was killed by a pack of stray dogs prowling in a poor neighborhood in Bogota. DIR Carlos Gomez Salamanca. SCR Carlos Gomez Salamanca. France
MARE NOSTRUM – A Syrian father prepares his daughter for a dangerous journey. DIR Rana Kazkaz, Anas Khalaf. SCR Rana Kazkaz. CAST Ziad Bakri, Zayn Khalaf. France, Syrian Arab Republic
MR. YELLOW SWEATSHIRT – A man enters the New York City subway. DIR Pacho Velez, Yoni Brook. USA
NATIONAL DISINTEGRATIONS – A peek inside Swiss freeports, where many of the world’s art treasures are hidden. DIR Braden King. USA, Switzerland
NIGHTHAWK (NOČNA PTICA) – A drunk badger lies motionless on a road. DIR Špela Čadež. SCR Gregor Zorc, Špela Čadež. CAST Andrej Nahtigal, Karin Komljanec, Gregor Zorc. Slovenia, Croatia
NUTAG-HOMELAND – A hand-painted visual poem about the tragic mass deportations of the Kalmyk people during WWII. DIR Alisi Telengut. SCR Alisi Telengut. Canada
PET RITUALS – The frontwoman of a hardcore punk band struggles to cut ties with her boyfriend. DIR J. Casey Modderno. SCR Jarret Rosenblatt. CAST Sophia Dueñas, Austin Ford, Maynor Alvarado, Casey Mills. USA
SHINAAB – A young Anishinaabe man is haunted by thoughts of home. DIR Lyle Mitchell Corbine, Jr. SRC Lyle Mitchell Corbine, Jr. CAST Ajuawak Kapashesit, Brian Joyce, Zoe Corbine-Daniels, Anna Stranz, John Edel, Tyson Lietz. USA
SILICA – An exploration of territorial constructs and the boundaries of the real and the mediated in an opal mining town in the South Australian desert. DIR Pia Borg. SCR Pia Borg. FEATURING Nicolette Krebitz. Australia, UK
STILL DEVOUT – An anxious 23-year-old, still living at home, must choose between romance and the needs of her family. DIR Melissa Perez. SCR Melissa Perez. CAST Valeria Chavez, Gloria Sandoval, J. Eddie Martinez, Antonio Sagastizado, Armando Heredia, Natalie Camunas. USA
TAKEOUT NIGHT – An incident with a neighboring mom causes a couple to reevaluate a very big decision. DIR Duncan Birmingham. SCR Duncan Birmingham. CAST Rachel Sondag, Frances Chewning, Duncan Birmingham. USA
TEN METER TOWER – A 10-meter diving tower forces people to confront their fears. DIR Maximilien Van Aertryck, Axel Danielson. SCR Maximilien Van Aertryck, Axel Danielson. Sweden
THE TESLA WORLD LIGHT (TESLA: LUMIÈRE MONDIALE) – Visionary inventor Nikola Tesla makes one last appeal to J.P. Morgan, his onetime benefactor. DIR Matthew Rankin. SCR Matthew Rankin. CAST Robert Vilar. Canada
THE TOWN I LIVE IN – Artists and activists clash over the future of a rapidly gentrifying Los Angeles neighborhood. DIR Guadalupe Rosales, Matt Wolf. USA
VICTOR & ISOLINA – Victor and Isolina answer questions about their lifelong, complex and arduous relationship. DIR William Caballero. FEATURING Victor Muriel, Isolina Muriel. USA
VISIONS OF AN ISLAND – Impressions of an island in the Bering Sea. DIR Sky Hopinka. USA
