New York’s NewFest Sets Lineup For 30th Edition: ‘Boy Erased’, ‘Mapplethorpe’, More

NewFest, the New York-set LGBTQ film festival that is celebrating its 30th year, has unveiled its full linuep of movies ahead of its run October 24-30. As previously announced, the fest opens with Yen Tan’s AIDS drama 1985 starring Gotham‘s Cory Michael Smith, The Gifted‘s Jamie Chung, Aidan Langford, Virginia Madsen and Michael Chiklis.

This year’s slate includes the New York Centerpiece screening of the Matt Smith-starring Mapplethorpe; the Telluride-bowing Boy Erased starring Nicole Kidman, Russell Crowe and Lucas Hedges as the U.S. Centerpiece; and the International Centerpiece Rafiki, Wanuri Kahiu’s pic that has been banned in its native Keyna for centering on a relationship between two women.

Also on tap is the Documentary Centerpiece film Dykes, Camera, Action. The fest will close with Robert Clift and Hillary Demmon’s Making Montgomery Clift.

This year’s lineup features programming from 32 countries, with 46 feature films, 89 shorts and nine episodic series in sections including U.S. Narrative, International Narrative and Documentary Feature lineups.

Check out the lineup below.

OPENING NIGHT GALA
1985

INTERNATIONAL CENTERPIECE
Rafiki

U.S. CENTERPIECE
Boy Erased

NEW YORK CENTERPIECE
Mapplethorpe

CLOSING NIGHT GALA
Making Montgomery Clift

DOCUMENTARY CENTERPIECE
Dykes, Camera, Action!

U.S. NARRATIVE

Fish Bones
Dir. Joanne Mony Park, USA, 2017, 82 mins

Lez Bomb
Dir. Jenna Laurenzo, USA, 2018, 90 mins

Two in the Bush
Dir. Laura Madalinski, USA, 2018, 97 mins

Jules of Light and Dark
Dir. Daniel Laabs, USA, 2018, 85 mins

Bitter Melon
Dir. H.P. Mendoza, USA, 2018, 95 mins

Solace
Dir. Tchaiko Omawale, USA, 2018, 88 min

For Izzy
Dir. Alex Chu, USA, 2018, 84 mins

The Skin of the Teeth
Dir. Matthew Wollin, USA, 2018, 80 min

Daddy
Dir. Jonah Greenstein, USA, 2018 75 mins

Devil’s Path
Dir. Matthew Montgomery, USA, 2018, 87 mins

INTERNATIONAL NARRATIVE FEATURES

Hard Paint
Dir. Filipe Matzembacher and Marcio Reolon, Brazil, 2017, 117 mins

A Moment in the Reeds
Dir. Mikko Makela, Finland, United Kingdom, 2017, 107 mins

Retablo
Dir. Alvaro Delgado Aparicio, Peru/Germany/Norway, 2018, 95 mins

Mario
Dir. Marcel Gisler, Switzerland, 2018, 124 mins

Eva + Candela
Dir. Ruth Caudeli, Colombia, 2018, 90 mins

Tucked
Dir. Jamie Patterson, United Kingdom, 2018, 80 mins

Canary (Kanarie)
Dir. Christiaan Olwagen, South Africa, 2018, 124 mins

Reinventing Marvin
Dir. Anne Fontaine, France, 2017, 116 mins

The Heiresses
Dir. Marcelo Martinessi, Paraguay, Germany, Brazil, Uruguay, Norway, France, 2018, 97 mins

The Marriage
Dir. Blerta Zeqiri, Kosovo/Albania, 2018, 97 mins

DOCUMENTARY FEATURES

Coby
Dir. Christian Sonderegger, France, 2017, 78 mins

Man Made
Dir. T Cooper, USA, 2018, 98 mins

Cherry Grove Stories
Dir. Michael Fisher, USA, 2018, 72 mins

I Hate New York
Dir. Gustavo Sánchez, Spain, 2018, 75 mins

Every Act of Life
Dir. Jeff Kaufman, USA, 2018, 92 mins

Silvana
Dir. Mika Gustafson, Olivia Kastebring, and Christina Tsiobanelis, Sweden, 2017, 94 mins

Room to Grow
Dir. Matt Alber and Jon Garcia, USA, Canada, 2018, 87 mins

Love, Scott
Dir. Laura Marie Wayne, Canada, 2018, 75 mins

Bixa Travesty
Dir. Kiko Goifman and Claudia Priscila, Brazil, 2018, 75 mins

Sidney & Friends
Dir. Tristan Aitchison, Scotland/Kenya, 2018, 75 mins

EPISODIC SIDEBAR

Episodic Showcase

Some of the most well-crafted LGBTQ characters these days can be found in episodic content. This sampler platter of seven new shows gives an authentic, unfiltered look at our community, without the censorship of the networks. Catch them here first, and decide which series to add to your must-binge list. Total run time: 87 mins

Q&A with filmmakers and select cast to follow

HALLOKWEEN

Knife+Heart
Dir. Yann Gonzalez, France, 2018, 110 mins

Killer Unicorn
Dir. Drew Bolton, USA, 2018, 74 mins

The Carmilla Movie
Dir. Spencer Maybee, Canada, 2017, 94 mins

SHORTS PROGRAMS

Boys Shorts

From a fast-paced chase to a lazy summer day, this year’s Boys Shorts explore what it means to bring your full self to both the mundane and the extraordinary moments in life. In cities across the globe, these films capture the contemporary lives of a panoply of gay men from many different backgrounds in 2018. Total run time: 89 mins

Girls Shorts

From friendship to dating to marriage, these shorts look at love and intimacy through many different lenses and paint a picture of strong, vulnerable, funny, and stubborn women who shine on the big screen. The heartbreak and joy of everyday life weave together in this collection of stories that span cultural and generational gaps too often overlooked in film. Total run time: 94 mins

Drawn This Way 2.0

Intimate and inspiring, this collection encapsulates the complexity of the queer experience in all of its brilliance. Both narrative and non-fiction stories utilize the illusion of movement to reveal personal truths, explore new boundaries, and create connections with one another. An inventive and eclectic array of perspectives and forms come together in moving ways. Total run time: 94 mins

Feminist Shorts “The F Word”

When you think about feminism, do you think about subverting gender stereotypes assigned to female bodies, female athletes succeeding at the top of their game, or small town societal structures being reshaped? Do you think about women and young girls coming into their own? The beauty of the F word is that it means many different things to each of us, and in a post #MeToo world, we have the power to continue to explore feminism through art, reinterpreting and redefining it for ourselves. Total run time: 85 mins

HalloKween Shorts

Real and mental demons plague our protagonists in this Halloween-focused line-up. From a hospital psych ward to high school hallways, and from online conversations to inner-monologues, we cover the scariest grounds on earth in this program of horror shorts. Total run time: 95 mins

Hip to be Queer: Youth Shorts

Through an inclusive and vibrant collection of short films from around the world, the program provides access and empowerment for LGBTQ+ youth to see themselves on screen while promoting media literacy and encouraging self-expression. The collection of short films will range from comedies to dramas, and vary in topics that cut across the youth experience, including interpersonal relationships, bullying, family, gender, identity, self-care, and cultural divides. Open to all students and staff within The New York City Department of Education, this event will be a specially-curated film program of Youth Shorts at NewFest’s 30th Annual New York LGBTQ Film Festival. Presented by the New York City Department of Education and in Partnership with Partnership with the Mayor’s Office of Media & Entertainment. Total run time: 91 mins

Trans and Non-Binary Shorts

A blend of documentary and fiction films showing an inclusive array of protagonists facing personal obstacles and experiencing universal life lessons. These endearing films show us the humanity within our community and the various ways we can transcend gender. Total run time: 86 mins

Wigged Out: Drag Shorts

In celebration of Emmy-winning show “RuPaul’s Drag Race” and its tenth year of taking the untucked revolution to TV, we exalt the art of drag and the fearless queens who inspire and wow us with their jaw-dropping talents and vital stories on and off the runway. By turns hysterical and moving — and starring beloved queens such as Bob the Drag Queen and Latrice Royale — these films add up to one enormous eleganza extravaganza that will leave you gagged. Total run time: 78 mins

Three’s Company

Enjoy the experience of polyamory without all the drama in this queer collection of threesomes. As relationships evolve, so must our art. And this collection of powerful films about modern dating is an example of how to use art to push back on societal norms and redefine the lives we want to live. Total run time: 86 mins

Queer Jewish Shorts

From the U.S. to Israel, this program brings together six short films that examine what it is to be queer and Jewish, and how religion can be a guide for some but an obstacle for others. Total run time: 98 mins

Our Queer History

Histories are reconstructed then deconstructed in magnificent textures and styles to celebrate and reflect on the narratives of lives on the fringes: from Italian exiles on a remote island in the 1930s, to British farmers in the early 21st century, to families and spaces intimately shaped over years by HIV/AIDS. As we celebrate the 30th anniversary of NewFest, we look back on the past three decades and further not only to remember but also to discover. Total run time: 101 mins

SPOTLIGHT SCREENING & PANEL

Transmilitary
Dir. Gabriel Silverman and Fiona Dawson, USA, 2017, 93 mins
Writer: Jamie Coughlin, Gabriel Silverman

SPECIAL EVENTS

GIA (20th Anniversary Screening)
Dir. Michael Cristofer, USA, 1998, 123 min.

CONVERSATIONS WITH GAY ELDERS: Daniel Maloney (partner event with Generations Project)
Dir. David Weissman, USA, 2017, 67 min

LOOKING FOR?
Dir. Tung-Yen Chou, Taiwan, 2017, 61 mins