US PREMIERE In the 1960s and ‘70s, Joe Sarno was a master of softcore porn, known as the Ingmar Bergman of 42nd Street for his striking B&W photography and focus on women’s desire in films like Sin In The Suburbs, Young Playthings, and Confessions of a Young American Housewife. While his career faded as sexploitation […]
2013 METROPOLIS COMPETITION WINNER NYC PREMIERE A pioneer in music criticism, Nat Hentoff has spent more than six decades championing jazz in the pages of the Village Voice, The Wall Street Journal, Down Beat, and numerous other publications. Mirroring music’s free flow, he has also been an outspoken civil libertarian and free speech advocate, often […]
WORLD PREMIERE Patrolman P reopens a controversial case from the 1970s era of corruption scandals in the New York Police Department. Investigators leaned on a flamboyant detective named Bill Phillips who, after being caught taking bribes from an infamous madam, agreed to go undercover. Phillips secured the indictments of dozens of cops, shattering the Blue […]
NYC PREMIERE In 2003, it was revealed that New York Times reporter Jayson Blair was a plagiarist, regularly cobbling together his articles from others found on the Internet or otherwise fabricating facts. This precipitated the lowest point in the Grey Lady’s history, leading to an editorial regime change, resignations, and a review of hiring practices. […]
US PREMIERE The World Famous *BOB*, Dirty Martini, Tigger!, Mat Fraser, Julie Atlas Muz, Bunny Love, Bambi the Mermaid, James Habacker and Rose Wood use satire and their own bodies to send up conventional notions of body image, gender, and sexuality in their modern burlesque performances. New York underground filmmaking legend Beth B enters their […]
NYC PREMIERE After Nina Leichter committed suicide, her daughter, Kathy, returned to the New York City apartment in which she was raised and found a hidden box of audiotapes. Nearly two decades later, she is finally ready to listen to the messages her mother left behind, which provide frank insight into a strong and beloved […]
NYC PREMIERE At the International High School at Lafayette, a Brooklyn public high school dedicated to newly arrived immigrants from all over the world, five teenagers strive to master English, adapt to families they haven’t seen in years, and create a future of their own while coming of age in a new land. Their journey […]
NYC PREMIERE New Yorker Lucky Torres hides a lifetime of abuse and abandonment behind an angry, tattooed exterior. Growing up in foster care after their mother left them, Lucky and her sister Fantasy have struggled with stability all their lives. While her sister has settled down, Lucky still hasn’t found her way. But despite being […]
NYC PREMIERE The Shooting Gallery was a fabled New York film company responsible for art-house hits such as Sling Blade and You Can Count On Me. It rose to the heights of the ’90s independent film scene before financial risk-taking caused its spectacular crash. Misfire is a universal story about young men with dreams who […]
WORLD PREMIERE Building Babel tells the story of Sharif El-Gamal, developer of the ‘Ground Zero mosque’ in Lower Manhattan. With unfettered access to Sharif’s life and family over the course of two years, the film tracks his struggle to bring his idea of Park51, a controversial Muslim community center two blocks from the site of Ground Zero, […]