ALL DIRT ROADS TASTE OF SALT

Raven Jackson's feature debut is a richly-layered ode to generations of people and places, tracing decades of a woman's life in Mississippi. With the luxuriating pace of a summer evening, the film allows audiences to linger on ideas of grief, longing, and memory all while gazing on luminously lensed visuals. Jackson is one to watch.

Why this pick?

Gorgeously lensed and told poetic ode to family and home and memory in the American South. One of my favorites of Sundance 2023, finally on the big screen in Milwaukee.

ALL DIRT ROADS TASTE OF SALT

THELMA

When 93-year-old Thelma Post gets duped by a phone scammer pretending to be her grandson, she sets out on a treacherous quest across the city to reclaim what was taken from her. Inspired by a real-life experience of writer-director Josh Margolin’s own centenarian grandmother. Shining a spotlight on an elderly grandmother as an unlikely action hero, THELMA puts a clever and humorous spin on movies like MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE.

Why this pick?

Rollicking comedy with heart. Intergenerational tale about a grandma gone vengeful action hero and the foibles that ensue.

THELMA

CONFESSIONS OF A GOOD SAMARITAN

When MFF alum director Penny Lane (NUTS!, HAIL SATAN) decides to become a “Good Samaritan” by giving one of her kidneys to a stranger, she launches on an unexpectedly funny, intimate, and provocative documentary quest to understand why everyone seems to think she’s crazy. With a humor and whimsy Lane fans will recognize, the film tackles large questions of altruism and humanity artfully.

Why this pick?

Light hearted doc about “altruistic” organ donation that explores the nature of altruism and humanity through the director’s own story of kidney donation.

CONFESSIONS OF A GOOD SAMARITAN

SUMMER QAMP

At Camp fYrefly in rural Canada, queer, non-binary, and trans teens get to just be kids in a supportive space, surrounded by counselors who can relate to their experience ― and help them toast the perfect marshmallow. With an upbeat ease, SUMMER QAMP has the special touch that evokes other feel-great, coming-of-age docs like MFF alum SCIENCE FAIR. A must-see for anyone with a young person in their lives - queer or not.

Why this pick?

Another warm doc - this time taking us to a Canadian summer camp for queer and gender diverse teens. Essential viewing for anyone who cares about young people or who ever could have used a respite from middle or high school.

SUMMER QAMP

EVERY LITTLE THING

Amid the bustle of Hollywood, a Wisconsin-raised woman finds herself on a transformative journey as she nurtures wounded hummingbirds, unraveling a visually captivating and magical tale of love, fragility, healing, and the delicate beauty in tiny acts of greatness. Through Terry's eyes, each bird becomes memorable, mighty and heroic. The film challenges us to ask: when we choose to save another, can we find a blueprint to save ourselves?

Why this pick?

One of my faves at Sundance 2024 - doc about a woman (from Wisconsin!) who rescues and rehabilitates hummingbirds in Los Angeles. Tender look at nature and humanity’s intersections and incredible closeup bird cinematography.

EVERY LITTLE THING

RICHLAND

A government company town built to house the Hanford workers manufacturing weapons-grade plutonium for the Manhattan Project, Richland, WA is proud of its heritage and of the atomic bomb it helped create. RICHLAND offers a prismatic, placemaking portrait of this community as it moves between archival past and observational present; featuring encounters with a wide range of individuals, the film blooms into an expansive and lyrical meditation on home, safety, whiteness, land, and deep time.

Why this pick?

Like MANZANAR DIVERTED (MFF2021), this doc starts with a fairly simple topic - here, Richland, WA, the government “company town” for the Hanford Nuclear site - and sensitively deepens thinking about that place with interviews and observation allowing a viewer to consider land use, the Manhattan Project, labor, displacement of people to and from a place, etc. A thinker, but worth the challenge!

RICHLAND

ANOTHER BODY

ANOTHER BODY follows American college student Taylor’s quest for justice after discovering deepfake pornography of herself circulating online. Diving headfirst into the underground world of this technology she discovers a growing culture of men terrorizing women. More than just a cautionary tale about misused technology and the toxicity of the online world, this documentary uses the very deepfake technology weaponized against Taylor to allow her to tell her story and reclaim her identity.

Why this pick?

Closest thing to a documentary horror film you can find – uses the technology of AI and deepfakes to veil the identity of the film’s protagonist - a victim of deepfake revenge porn seeking justice. Important film about technology and rights.

ANOTHER BODY

SEEKING MAVIS BEACON

One of the most influential Black women in technology is a figment of our collective imagination. Mavis Beacon was invented by the co-founder of Myspace to sell the world’s most popular typing software, but the real woman she was modeled after disappeared in 1995. SEEKING MAVIS BEACON poses critical questions regarding anthropomorphism and the consumption of marginalized bodies in the tech industry, while reimagining the afro-futurist legacy of a missing historical figure.

Why this pick?

Archeological excavation of the figure of Mavis Beacon that ultimately takes on the interstices of afro-futurism and techno-futurism - will wow you with the research and unexpected turns the film takes.

SEEKING MAVIS BEACON

WITHOUT ARROWS

Filmed over the course of thirteen years, the meditative and intimate documentary WITHOUT ARROWS chronicles the vibrancy and struggle of a Lakȟóta family. Delwin Fiddler Jr., a champion grass dancer from the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, left his reservation and built a new life in Philadelphia. A decade later he abandons it all and returns home to fulfill his mother’s ambition and carry on the legacy of their thiyóšpaye (extended family).

Why this pick?

Intimate documentary made over a decade about a Lakota family and Indigenous cultural evolution and land. Co directed by Jonathan Olshefski (QUEST, MFF2017)

WITHOUT ARROWS

GREEN BORDER

When a family of Syrian asylum seekers is left stranded in the forest, Belarusian border guards shepherd them into Poland, but when they encounter the Polish military, they're forced back into Belarus. Activists try to rectify this cyclical, inhumane back-and-forth, meeting some futility. This harrowing, urgent drama from veteran Polish director Agnieszka Holland (SPOOR, MFF2018) constructs an intricate account of the contemporary global humanitarian crisis.

Why this pick?

Brilliant dramatic look at life along Poland’s borders - for those seeking asylum, for those where this patrol is a job and for activists trying to help save lives. MFF alum Agnieszka Holland has made political waves with this one - rightfully so.

GREEN BORDER

Jack Feria - GenreQueer and Shorts Programmer

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Ernie Quiroz – Cine Sin Fronteras Programmer

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