Features

FLIFF (Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival)

October 28, 2020

Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival

To Feature Films of Interest to the LGBTQ Community

The 35th Annual Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival (FLIFF) announces several films of interest to the LGBTQ community, throughout the festival, scheduled November 5 – November 22, 2020. More than 170 American Indie and international narrative features, documentaries and short films representing 37 countries will be premiered during the 18-day event.

“If there has been a silver lining to come out of the COVID pandemic, it has made us more resourceful and creative,” commented Gregory von Hausch, President and CEO of FLIFF. “This year, FLIFF has come up with some clever ways to bring the community together while maintaining safety precautions and social distancing. The diverse selection of films and viewing options will be a welcome diversion for everyone.”

In partnership with Coral Ridge Yacht Club in Fort Lauderdale, FLIFF will present showcase a film via a “Boat-In Movie on the Bay”, along with a drive-in option for landlubbers. FLIFF will be hosting six additional drive-in movie events at other locations, to be announced.

Another feature this year is Dinner & a Movie at a variety of area restaurants, including Tipsy Boar, Jimmy’s Sand Bar, GG’s Waterfront in Hollywood, and Westin Ft. Lauderdale Beach.

The festival’s two arthouse theaters, Savor Cinema in Fort Lauderdale and Cinema Paradiso in Hollywood, will also present films with limited seating to ensure safe social distancing.

For those who prefer to stay at home, most films will also be available to view via Eventive Virtual Cinema. Filmmaker and celebrity Q&A’s will be live-streamed in all formats, and some will take place in person from local venues.

Advance tickets and a complete listing of films, Q&A’s, events and venues are available at www.fliff.com

The Comeback Trail – 120 minutes / Comedy

FLIFF’s Opening Night Film with special guest, actress Kate Katzman is on Thursday, November 5 & Friday, November 6, 7:00pm at Savor Cinema and Cinema Paradiso, and then opens theaters everywhere November 13.

Two movie producers who owe money to the mob set up their aging movie star for an insurance scam to try and save themselves. But, they wind up getting more than they ever imagined. Director: George Gallo, and cast: Robert DeNiro, Zach Braff, Tommy Lee Jones, Morgan Freeman and actress Kate Katzman (a South Florida resident).

Francesco – 118 minutes/Documentary/English subtitles

FLIFF’s Centerpiece Film & Reception with special guest, Oscar and Emmy-nominated director Evgeny Afineevsky is scheduled for Friday, Nov 13th, 7:45 PM @ Savor Cinema Fort Lauderdale and Sat, Nov 14th, 6:45 PM @ Cinema Paradiso Hollywood.

With Pope Francis as our guide, FRANCESCO takes an unsparing look at the most pressing issues of the 21st Century: Economic disparity, race and gender inequality, the climate crisis, COVID-19, immigration, peace and religious tolerance, shining a light on the challenges and consequences that have led us to this moment in time. As we embark on this journey, we discover a leader who demonstrates humility, wisdom and generosity towards all, and whose ideals can help us build a bridge to a better future and thrive as a global community. As a result, the film portrays Pope Francis as a leader who provides hope and inspiration during one of the most unprecedented moments in our lives.

Ancient Caves – 40 minutes/Documentary

FLIFF’S Closing Day Film offers three screenings at AutoNation IMAX 3D at the Museum of Discovery and Science, on November 22 at 1pm, 3pm, and 5:00pm with special guest, director and cinematographer Jonathan Bird.

FLIFF closes with the East Coast Premiere of Ancient Caves, narrated by Bryan Cranston (The Upside). Made for IMAX and giant screens, the film brings science and adventure together as the film follows a young paleoclimatologist from the United Kingdom, Dr. Gina Moseley, on a mission to unlock the secrets of the Earth’s climate in the most unlikely of places: caves. Moseley and her team of cave explorers travel the world exploring vast underground worlds in search of stalagmite samples—geologic “fingerprints”—that reveal clues about the planet’s climate history over the last 500,000 years. Their quest leads them to some of the world’s most remote caves, both above and below the water, in France, Iceland, the Bahamas, the U.S. and Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula, where they study how rapidly Earth’s climate can change, and how it has affected human civilization. Together, they go where very few humans will ever go, revealing the incredible lengths scientists will go to study the unknown. During the past billion years, the Earth’s climate has experienced great fluctuations between warm and cold periods. Ice ages have caused giant glaciers to cover much of the Earth, only to recede, and then come back again.

FILMS WITH LGBTQ CONTENT

Beautiful Dreamer – USA/94 min/Drama

Ways to Watch: at Home via Virtual Festival now through – November 22, 11:59pm; at Savor Cinema Fort Lauderdale – Friday, Nov 20th, 7:45pm; and at Cinema Paradiso Hollywood – Sat, Nov 21st, 8pm

Beautiful Dreamer is a contemporary dramedy about a group of Bay Area friends in their early 40s navigating life’s moments together: Expecting a surrogate baby, a long and deep friendship in jeopardy, two women finally decide to marry after years of living together, capturing this next uncharted chapter of their extended family, Beautiful Dreamer explores the messy secrets and complicated nature of parenthood and the modern family, all the while testing the boundaries of love and friendship and the bioethics of surrogacy. Directed by Amy Glazer, and stars Wendie Malick (Hot In Cleveland), Erin Daniels (The L Word), and Louis Ozawa.

The Dog Snatch (Il Colpo Del Cane) Italy/93 min/dark comedy

Ways to Watch: at Home via Virtual Festival now through – November 22, 11:59pm; at Cinema Paradiso Hollywood, Wed, Nov 11th, 1:45pm, and at Savor Cinema Fort Lauderdale, Sat, Nov 21st, 3:30pm.

On their first day as dog sitters, Rana and Marti lose a rich lady’s French bulldog in their care. The girls realize the dog has been stolen by a phony vet who calls himself Dr. Mopsi. Who is this man, and why has he kidnapped the dog? Join amateur sleuths Rana and Marti as they investigate this man’s mysterious past to recover the stolen pooch. Directed by Fulvio Risuleo, and stars Edoardo Pesce, Silvia D’Amico (The Guest),and Daphne Scoccia (Fiore).

How To Make Out – France/98 min/Coming of Age Comedy

Ways to Watch: at home via Virtual Festival now through – November 22, 11:59pm; at Savor Cinema Fort Lauderdale Sun, Nov 8th, 5:30pm; and Cinema Paradiso Hollywood Wed, Nov 11th, 7:45pm.

Director Adeline Picault’s coming of age comedy, How To Make Out, is about 15-year-old Arthur who has the hots for Ouassima, who ignores him. He’s never made out with a girl, and she’s going out with Matt, the hottest guy in school. Arthur decides to get closer to her by getting a bunch of single losers together so she can teach them how to make out, paying 10 euros per lesson. And so begins a long, intimate learning process in the local pool’s changing rooms: group tutoring on “Girls and Love: A Manual for Dummies”.

La Dea Fortuna – Italy/114m/ Drama with humor/English subtitles

Watch it at Home via Virtual Festival now through – November 22, 11:59pm.

Just as their 15-year relationship appears to have hit a lull, gay partners Arturo and Alessandro find their lives thrown for a loop when their friend (and Alessandro’s ex-girlfriend) asks them to look after her two adolescent children. A trio of Italy’s brightest stars lead a stellar cast in the latest film from Turkish-Italian auteur Ferzan Ozpetek (Facing Windows; Steam: The Turkish Bath, Frameline22)—a warm, engaging tale about the true meaning of “chosen family,” which juggles interpersonal drama with a healthy dose of humor and heart. The film stars: Stefano Accorsi, Edoardo Leo, Jasmine Trinca, Serra Yilmaz, Barbara Alberti, Sara Ciocca, Edoardo Brandi, Cristina Bugatty, Pia Lanciotti and Filippo Nigro,

Open Dialogues: Stories From The LGBTQ Community – Documentary/LGBTQ/20 minutes

Watch it at Home via Virtual Festival now through – November 22, 11:59pm.

Through a series of candid testimonials, Open Dialogues reveals the diverse coming-out narratives of seven Broward County residents who share their insights about love and family, threats and safe havens, being intimate in public, and the role of religion in the LGBTQ experience. Directed by Freddy Rodriguez, the film features poetry by Julie Marie Wade from her book When I Was Straight. The cast includes Julie Marie Wade, Dan Bassett, Christine Walters, Gary Keating, Franchesca d’Amore, Omar Morales, and Michael Goodman.

Couples: An LGBTQ Short Film Program

91 minutes

Watch it at Home via Virtual Festival now through – November 22, 11:59pm

On The Ride

USA / 13 min / English

On his morning bike ride, Scott grapples with the memories of a trauma he experienced with his husband Todd. When his route suddenly takes an unexpected turn, Scott finds himself on the doorstep of a stranger intimately connected to the past he can’t shake.

I Know Her

USA / 3 min / English

In the afterglow of a seemingly fated hookup, two women realize that perhaps they have a little too much in common.

Fabiu

Austria / 30 min / German w/English sub-titles

80-year-old retiree Arthur lives in a modest home in Vienna. For quite some time he has lovingly been caring for his seriously ill wife Martha, with only female nurses assisting him. When the new male Hungarian care worker Fabiu enters the picture, his routine is broken. But soon the two men become closer and inside Arthur feelings of desire and suppressed longing start to rise.

Aurora

USA / 28 min / English

A young composer moves to NY after graduation, feels insecure about singing in public. When a former singer-songwriter classmate visits her, she finds herself unexpectedly smitten, but she is soon devastated by the discovery that her feelings are unrequited.

Smells Right

USA / 28 min / English

Ocean, a gay man with an extraordinary sense of smell has a fleeting acquaintance with a man who smells perfect to him and falls obsessively in love by recreating the scents. However, he starts to doubt his talent when he finds out the person who carries the scent is different from his imagination.

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