Montclair Film Festival – Become a member of the fabric of Montclair (Notre Montclair)

Many thanks to Bob Feinberg (Founder and Chairman of the Board) and Bob Hall (Executive Director) of Montclair Film for taking the time to very busy week to our own Shane Paul Neil yesterday – discussing how the Montclair Festival has become an absolute institution in the Montclair arts community.

For this episode of Shane’s “Our Montclair” – which explores the arts, activism, and lived experiences of the people of Montclair – we’ve decided to forgo the usual early promotion of a “live” watch on Facebook Premiere. Montclair Film is just around the corner and we wanted to get it straight to you!

And we have another episode coming up on Tuesday, with Montclair resident Evelyn Colbert (whose famous Late Show husband Stephen will be at several Montclair Film Festival events this year). Stay tuned.

While waiting to prepare for the festival, some highlights:

• The festival kicks off Thursday, October 21 at 7:30 pm with a screening of “The French Dispatch” by Wes Anderson at the Wellmont Theater. The film stars Benicio Del Toro, Frances McDormand, Adrien Brody, Timothée Chalamet, Edward Norton, Tilda Swinton, Jeffrey Wright and Owen Wilson. It tells the story of a group working on the publication of “The French Dispatch”, a fictional magazine. The screening is co-presented by Investors Bank.
• On Friday, October 22 at 7:30 pm, the Wellmont Theater will present “The Harder They Fall” by Jeymes Samuel, the centerpiece of the festival. Netflix’s release is described as a “new school western” and stars Jonathan Majors, Idris Elba, Zazie Beetz, Edi Gathegi, RJ Cyler, Regina King and LaKeith Stanfield.
• On Friday October 22 at 6.30 p.m. there will be an outdoor screening of the animated film “The Mitchells vs. The Machines ”at Lackawanna Plaza, as the centerpiece of the festival. The film follows the Mitchell family leading their daughter to college as electronic devices attempt to take over the world.
• On Saturday October 23 at 4 pm at the Wellmont, in partnership with Out Montclair, will be “Dionne Warwick: Don’t Make Me Over”, a documentary on the life of native New Jersey artist Warwick. The documentary, the festival’s centerpiece of non-fiction, follows Warwick’s life and career, as well as his work as an advocate for AIDS research. Warwick and director Dave Wooley will be on hand for a post-screening Q&A, with the participation of Stephen Colbert.
• On Sunday, October 24 at 1 p.m., actress, screenwriter and director Maggie Gyllenhaal will appear at this year’s Montclair Film Festival alongside the star of her new film, “The Lost Daughter,” and join Stephen Colbert in the conversation. . The Storyteller Series Conversation with Gyllenhaal and Colbert (a Montclair resident who has been to several Montclair Film Festivals and related events) will take place at 1 p.m. at Académie Montclair Kimberly High School. The “Lost Girl” will follow at 4.30pm, where Gyllenhaal will present the film alongside star Dagmara DomiÅ„czy. Gyllenhaal will also receive the festival’s Breakthrough Director and Writer Award.
• On Saturday October 30 at 4:30 p.m. at Académie Montclair Kimberley High School will be “The Power of the Dogs” by Jane Campion, the closing film of the festival. It follows two brothers, played by Benedict Cumberbatch and Jesse Plemons, as they run their family ranch together in 1925 in Montana. The film is also presented in partnership with Out Montclair.
• And that night, at 9 p.m. at Clairidge, it will be “The Rocky Horror Picture Show,” with the live debut of The Ordinary Kids Floor Show, formed in 2020 at the height of the pandemic. The Ordinary Kids and Montclair Film will launch The Rocky Horror Picture Show as a monthly cinematic event at Clairidge, according to Montclair Film. Montclair Film signed a long-term deal with Clairidge building owner Dick Grabowsky to operate the six-screen arthouse cinema earlier this year. Live performances of Rocky Horror were a long-standing feature at Montclair until 2017, previously presented by the Home of Happiness group, until Bow Tie Cinemas closed the Bellevue Theater (which, too, is set to reopen under a new management).

The full program is at montclairfilm.org/festival/2021. Tickets for films and individual events can also be purchased on the site.

The festival includes in-person screenings for a fully vaccinated and masked audience, as well as a selection of virtual programs on Montclair Film Virtual Cinema platform, also at MontclairFilm.org.

– Local Montclair staff, with information provided by Montclair Film