The second annual Montclair Film Festival in Northern New Jersey runs from April 29 to May 5 and will screen more than 80 films — many of them directed by women. Here’s just a sample of what not to miss:
Begin your festival week on Tuesday with Gideon’s Army. Directed by NYWIFT member Dawn Porter, the documentary follows three young, idealistic public defenders in the Deep South. Thursday evening, enjoy the grown-up rom-com Love Is All You Need by Oscar-winning director Susanne Bier. It’s back to docs on Friday, with Shola Lynch’s Free Angela and All Political Prisoners about Angela Davis’ struggles in the 1970s.
Saturday afternoon, see Best Kept Secret, chronicling teacher Janet Mino as she prepares students who have autism for life after high school; directed by Samantha Buck. That evening, explore movie trailer-making with Lake Bell’s comedy In a World… Late night, head to NJ Shorts: Passions, which includes Gillian K. Willman’s The New Woman: Annie “Londonderry” Kopchovsky, the story of an extraordinary bicycle journey in 1894; and Elissa Pellegrino’s Photo-Journal-Isms, a profile of Ed Kashi.
Sunday morning, catch Oscar-nominated director Deepa Mehta’s Midnight’s Children, “intertwining magic realism with the history of modern India.” End a splendid festival week with Sundance hit Concussion, directed by Stacie Passon, which follows a married, lesbian housewife who, after a blow to the head, searches for adventure.
For a full schedule and tickets, go to montclairfilmfest.org. (Tickets are now on sale for the general public. Member tickets went on sale Friday, so some films are already sold out. However, tickets to sold-out shows will become available on April 15.)
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