Tickets are on sale for the 19th annual Bushwick Film Festival, which brings nearly 100 independent films, series and podcasts to venues across Brooklyn from October 7 to 11. It is the biggest lineup in the festival’s 19 years, and passes are listed on the festival’s ticket page from $60 to $495.
Opening night is at Lot 45 on Wednesday, October 7 from 6:30 to 11 p.m., with filmmakers, artists and industry guests. The bulk of the screenings run at Williamsburg Cinemas from Thursday through Sunday, with award-winner encores there on Monday, October 12. Around them: a Made in New York Industry Panel and Connections Mixer at LilliStar at Moxy Williamsburg on Thursday, October 8 from 5 to 7 p.m.; Film Trivia and Game Night at Tiny Cupboard on Friday, October 9 from 7:30 to 10 p.m.; an Eckhart Beer Co. event on Saturday, October 10 from 6 to 8 p.m. and a Saturday Night Social at New York Distilling Co. that evening; and the Festival Awards Ceremony at Lovejoys on Sunday, October 11 from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m.
Recognizable names run through the program. Appearances across the lineup include Ice-T, Taylor Schilling, Laurie Hernandez, Alec Baldwin, Lucie Arnaz, Lois Smith, Anna Baryshnikov, Josh Hamilton, Kara Young, Chinaza Uche, Alex Moffat, Greta Titelman and Julie Ann Emery.
A few of those names anchor specific films. Ice-T stars alongside John Ventimiglia in “Wet Under Blue Sky,” a psychological boxing drama that marks the feature directorial debut of Octavio Pisano, who also stars in it. It gets its U.S. premiere at the festival. Laurie Hernandez, the Olympic gold-medalist gymnast, makes her short-comedy debut in Sophie ReVeal’s “Crikey,” a “gloriously specific ex-girlfriend/T-shirt mission” that world premieres. On the New York premiere side, Taylor Schilling appears in “After the Funeral,” Alec Baldwin and Lucie Arnaz feature in “Dr. Sam,” and “Intimité” brings together Alex Moffat, Greta Titelman, Julie Ann Emery and Ajay Naidu.
A run of the lineup was set or produced in New York. Those titles include “1981,” “A Slice of Home,” “A Score in Absence,” “Ayan,” “BEATsTABLE,” “Big Nose,” “Bindings,” “Codependent,” “Crab Diane,” “Crib Club” and “Love New York.” That last one is from Bushwick filmmaker Anthony DiMieri, whose two-camera shooting style this paper profiled in July for its role in Zohran Mamdani’s mayoral campaign videos; it screens October 9.
The program itself counts 17 world premieres, 23 New York premieres, one North American premiere and one U.S. premiere. The festival added three new tracks. Animation becomes an official competitive category with a 13-film showcase on Saturday, October 10. A Podcast Program brings selected podcasts into the official lineup for the first time, staged as a theatrical listening experience. A live Screenplay Reading on Sunday, October 11 moves five selected scripts from page to stage. The returning Series/Episodic showcase rounds out the categories.
The lineup reaches well beyond New York. Colombian filmmaker Christian Mejía Carrascal makes his feature debut with the cosmic-horror film “Symbionts” (Simbiontes), written with Andrés Vélez Cuervo, which world premieres. The project drew support from Colombia’s Film Development Fund and was selected for Sitges Coming Soon, the Blood Window Screenings at Ventana Sur, the Brussels Genre Film Market and Bolivia Lab’s Finaliza Lab, where it took the Dolby Institute Award. The North American premiere slot goes to M. Tayfur Aydın’s “Far Away,” which returns to interviews the director began with children in Şırnak in 2007 to confront what war has meant for a generation.
Kweighbaye Kotee founded the festival in 2007, starting it in her early 20s while finishing a degree in media, culture and communication at NYU, and has run it ever since. Nearly two decades on it draws thousands of people during festival week, has taken submissions from more than 60 countries and has become a fixture of the Brooklyn independent film scene. Netflix returns as opening night sponsor.
Passes come in eight tiers. A Thursday Pass or a Friday Pass is $60 and covers that day’s screenings plus filmmaker Q&As. The BFF Pass, $85, is built for two people with screening reservations and a special event. A Weekend Pass is $150 and covers Saturday and Sunday screenings plus the Awards Ceremony. The Group Chat, $175, bundles eight screening tickets for up to four people. An Industry Badge is $250 and adds industry programming and mixer access. The All Festival Pass, $349, covers Thursday through Sunday screenings, special events, awards, podcasts and screenplay readings. The VIP Festival Pass, $495, adds Opening Night and priority benefits. Advance reservations are required for passholders, and admission and priority seating are subject to availability.
BFF also dropped discount code BFFSOCIALS for their social media followers, good for 20 percent off tickets and select special events during the week (make sure to follow them at @bushwickfilmfest).
This year’s theme is “Make Time for Your Dreams.” Passes and single tickets are on sale now.
Featured image: Courtesy of the Bushwick Film Festival
