(Photo courtesy of Netflix)
Although the three most important fall film festivals – TIFF, Venice Film Festival and Telluride Film Festival – ended in mid-September, this is really just the start of a season of busy festivals that sees most of this year’s awards hopefuls travel across the country (and beyond). Over the next few months, several leading film festivals will bring the most acclaimed films of the season to enthusiastic regional audiences, as the whirlwind of buzz, tributes and word of mouth continues to work its strange alchemy. .
The first notable festival on record after Toronto (TIFF) was Fantastic Fest, a beloved genre showcase in Austin, Texas, held September 22-29, and played many top award contenders. unique and transgressive of the year. movies like The Banshees of Inisherin, Decision to leave, triangle of sadnessand The menu all performed well at Fantastic Fest, and are each making several additional stops on the busy fall schedule – and there’s even more to come!
Here’s our timeline breakdown of what’s on offer at seven other major festivals leading up to the Oscars, and how they may influence how the season unfolds.
New York Film Festival (Lincoln Center, September 30-October 16)
(Photo by NYFF/Dia Dipasupil for Getty Images)
First, the New York Film Festival, which celebrates its 60th anniversary and kicked off last week with the North American premiere of Noah Baumbach White noise. Baumbach is also one of many great filmmakers to give a free talk at the festival in support of their latest work, a list that also includes Paul Schrader, Park Chan-wook, Frederick Wiseman, Alice Diop, Joanna Hogg, Kelly Reichardt and Mia Hansen. . -To like. Tilda Swinton will also receive a special spotlight at the festival, newly restored classics by artists including Edward Yang, Claire Denis and Pedro Costa will be unveiled, and the 50th anniversary of the Soviet sci-fi classic Solaris will be celebrated with a screening accompanied by a new live score.
But the big stories from this year’s NYFF are a handful of world premieres that could have a big impact on the awards landscape. The first was Until, which premiered a few days ago. This portrait of Emmett Till’s mother by filmmaker Chinonye Chukwu (Clemency) received rave reviews for Danielle Deadwyler’s star performance and appears to be a major factor in the Oscar race. And She saysby director Maria Schrader (Unorthodox, i am your man) dramatization of the Harvey Weinstein investigation, may have a similar effect when it debuts on October 13. On the documentary side, NYFF will also present a preview of two portraits of legendary characters: that of Martin Scorsese personality crisisabout New York Dolls frontman David Johansen and A cooler climateabout filmmaker James Ivory as a young man in the 1960s.
(Photo by BFI – Dave J Hogan/Getty Images)
BFI London Film Festival (October 5-16)
The British Film Institute has hosted one of Europe’s most important film festivals since 1957 (a year in which they screened Akira Kurosawa’s film throne of blood and Ingmar Bergman The seventh sealamong other all-time classics), and this year’s edition will host a treasure trove of the season’s most acclaimed dishes, including Glass onion: a mystery at loggerheads, The Banshees of Inisherin, The whale, Living, bones and all, women who talkand The triangle of sadness. Also at the festival will be She says and Untilboth came to London after their NYFF premieres a few days before.
BFI London also has an impressive list of Screen Talks, including conversations with Jennifer Lawrence, Bill Nighy, Janelle Monáe, Aubrey Plaza, Noah Baumbach, Mia Hansen-Løve and Alejandro G. Iñárritu. But perhaps the most talked about event at this year’s festival will be the world premiere of Pinocchio by Guillermo del Toroa long-awaited reimagining of the classic tale.
Mill Valley Film Festival (Mill Valley, California, October 6-16)
(Photo by Mill Valley – C Flanigan/FilmMagic for Getty Images)
Festival season is finally coming to the West Coast thanks to the Mill Valley Film Festival, which has been a Bay Area staple since the late 1970s. Mill Valley is known for its selection of tributes and spotlights, which presage often the success of awards season, and this year looks no different, as tributes will be paid to Brendan Fraser and James Gray, while the spotlight will be on Noah Baumbach (who will clock impressive miles this month), Nikyatu Jusu (writer/director of Nanny), Daniel Giménez Cacho (star of bardo), and all of the women who talk.
In addition to the latest works from this immensely talented list, other notable films on tap at Mill Valley this year include Broker, Pavement, Bodice, Decision to leave, Empire of Light, HEY, Glass Onion (the movie Opening Night), holy spider, Living, She says, TAR, The Banshees of Inisherin, The good nurse (the movie Closing Night), The Grab, wondermentand Until (the film Centerpiece of the festival).
Middleburg (Middleburg, Virginia, October 13-16)
One of the new darlings of the festival circuit is the Middleburg Film Festival, which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year by bringing exciting new cinema to the DC area. Most of the big titles of the season will be there, including White noise (Opening Night)Glass Onion (Centerpiece), and Empire of Light (Closing Evening), as well as After Sun, In the west, nothing is new, Decision to leave, The good nurse, Living, She says, TAR, Until, triangle of sadnessand women who talk.
Middleburg will also host many exciting events, celebrating the recent works of Gina Prince-Bythewood, Brendan Fraser, Ray Romano, Rian Johnson, Ryan White and JD Dillard, as well as events hosted by prominent journalists like Ann Hornaday (from Washington Post) and Jazz Tangcay (variety), as well as our very own editor Jacqueline Coley.
SCAD Savannah Film Festival (Savannah, GA, October 22-29)
(Photo by Paras Griffin/WireImage for Getty Images)
Celebrating its 25th edition this year, this beloved festival is hosted by the Savannah College of Art and Design. This year’s In Conversation series is sure to delight audiences, with distinguished guests Ron Howard, Miles Teller and three-time Oscar-winning costume designer Sandy Powell. There’s also a busy lineup of panels covering nearly every aspect of women in the film industry, and panel guests include Maria Schneider and independent film super-producer Christine Vachon.
Other confirmed guests include several potential Oscar contenders, such as Kerry Condon, Janelle Monáe, Jeremy Pope, Eddie Redmayne and Sadie Sink, and in addition to their new films, the festival lineup also includes titles like triangle of sadness, Bodice, Empire of Light, Broker, Pavement, holy spider, Until, The menu, armageddon time, women who talk, After Sun, Decision to leave, She saysand Living.
AFI Fest (Los Angeles, CA, November 2-6)
(Photo by AFI – David Livingston/FilmMagic for Getty Images)
Noticeably absent from all of the above lineups, Steven Spielberg The Fabelmans, which won the coveted People’s Choice Award in Toronto, but opts to sit idle for the entire month of October before finally making its long-awaited U.S. premiere at AFI Fest in November. Also on hand in the range of this end-of-season essential are bardo, Living, She says, bones and all, Nanny, Sr., women who talk, HEY, The Eternal Daughter, Godland, no bear, A nice morning, Pinocchio by Guillermo del Toroand Saint Omeramong many others.
But perhaps the main story behind AFI Fest this year is its equitable celebration of women in film. 53% of the films in the official selection are directed by women, Ava DuVernay is this year’s guest artistic director, and the festival will also host the world premiere of the documentary Selena Gomez: My Mind and Me.
Santa Barbara International Film Festival (Santa Barbara, California, February 8-18, 2023)
One of the final stops on each year’s awards calendar is this beloved Southern California festival, which was founded in 1986. Since then, Santa Barbara has become a crucial spot on the awards circuit as it has often takes place just before – or sometimes during – Oscar voting, so it’s the last chance for nominees to shine in front of an audience that’s often packed with Academy members.
Although this year’s festival is still four months away and the lineup has yet to be announced, we do know two things: the festival is hosting a Black Tie fundraising event on December 9 where Michelle Yeoh will receive the Kirk Douglas, and Brendan Fraser will be the recipient of a major honor at the festival on February 14. Either of these events, both centering on the presumed Oscar favorites, could be a major factor in tipping the capricious balance of Oscar fortune.
Thumbnail image Courtesy of Getty Images/AFI.
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