The 26th Austin Film Festival is gearing up to kick off October 24th and today the second wave of films have been announced, including Chinonye Chukwu‘s Clemency, Céline Sciamma‘s Portrait of a Lady on Fire, and Trey Edward Shults‘ Waves, which was chosen as the Centerpiece Film.
Take a look below for the full list and click here to check out the previously announced titles. The Austin Film Festival will run through October 31. For more information, head over to austinfilmfestival.com.
CLEMENCY
Writer/Director: Chinonye Chukwu
Starring: Alfre Woodard, Aldis Hodge, Wendell Price, Richard Schiff, Danielle Brooks
Years of carrying out death row executions have taken a toll on prison warden, Bernadine Williams. The emotional wedge in her marriage grows. Memories of a recently botched execution plague her daily. As she prepares to execute another inmate, Bernadine must confront the psychological and emotional demons her job creates, ultimately connecting her to the man she is sanctioned to kill.
PORTRAIT OF A LADY ON FIRE
Writer/Director: Céline Sciamma
Starring: Noémie Merlant, Adèle Haenel
France, 1760. Marianne is commissioned to paint the wedding portrait of Héloïse, a young woman who has just left the convent. Because she is a reluctant bride-to-be, Marianne arrives under the guise of companionship, observing Héloïse by day and secretly painting her by firelight at night. As the two women orbit one another, intimacy and attraction grow as they share Héloïse’s first moments of freedom. Héloïse’s portrait soon becomes a collaborative act of and testament to their love.
PEACE (World Premiere)
Writer/Director: Robert Port
Starring: Alexander Ludwig, Sam Keeley, Chris Brochu, Franco Nero, Lochlyn Munro, Tyler Hynes, RJ Fetherstonhaugh
A thriller set in the mountains of Italy at the close of the Second World War. Adapted from the critically acclaimed New York Times best seller by famed author Richard Bausch, and based on a true event – PEACE tells the story of four American soldiers in WW2, who after they witness a vicious murder of an innocent civilian at the hands of their platoon Sergeant, are sent on a reconnaissance/suicide mission lead by a local partisan, an elderly man whose indeterminate loyalties add to the terror and confusion that engulfs the Americans as they are hunted by an unseen enemy.
RATTLESNAKE (World Premiere)
Writer/Director: Zak Hilditch (in attendance)
Starring: Carmen Ejogo, Theo Rossi, Emma Greenwell
Katrina (Carmen Ejogo) is a single mother driving cross country to start a new life with her young daughter Clara (Apollina Pratt) when their car breaks down in the middle of nowhere. As Katrina changes the tire, Clara wanders off the desert road and is bitten by a venomous rattlesnake. Desperate to save her daughter’s life, Katrina accepts the help of a mysterious woman, but after she miraculously heals Clara, Katrina is asked to repay the good deed by killing a stranger in exchange for the life saved. Without time to lose, she must wrestle with the morality of who deserves to live and who should die, before her daughter’s life is once again put in peril at sundown.
SKYMAN (World Premiere)
Writer/Director: Daniel Myrick (in attendance)
Starring: Michael Selle, Nicholette Sweeny, Faleolo Alailima
Is self-proclaimed alien “experiencer”, Carl Merryweather, on the path to filming his own alien abduction? Or, is he just another crackpot looking for fame and fortune? Carl himself may not be completely sure, but he is determined to take us on a journey in search of the answer. And that journey ends at the very spot in the desert where it all began almost 30 years ago…a chance meeting with an alien he calls the “Skyman”.
THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT (1999) PRESENTED BY DANIEL MYRICK
Writer(s): Eduardo Sánchez, Daniel Myrick
Director(s): Eduardo Sánchez, Daniel Myrick
Starring: Heather Donahue, Michael C. Williams, Joshua Leonard, Bob Griffith, Jim King
Three filmmakers disappear in a forest.
THE KILL TEAM
Writer/Director: Dan Krauss
Starring: Nat Wolff, Alexander Skarsgård, Adam Long, Jonathan Whitesell, Brian “Sene” Marc, Rob Morrow
When Andrew Briggman (Nat Wolff), a young soldier in the US invasion of Afghanistan, witnesses other recruits killing innocent civilians under the direction of a sadistic leader, Sergeant Deeks (Alexander Skarsgård), he considers reporting them to higher-ups — but the heavily-armed, increasingly violent platoon becomes suspicious that someone in their ranks has turned on them, and Andrew begins to fear that he’ll be the next target.
WAVES
Writer/Director: Trey Edward Shults (in attendance)
Starring: Kelvin Harrison, Jr. (in attendance), Lucas Hedges, Taylor Russell, Alexa Demie, Neal Huff, Clifton Collins, Jr., with Renée Elise Goldsberry and Sterling K. Brown
Set against the vibrant landscape of South Florida, and featuring an astonishing ensemble of award-winning actors and breakouts alike, Waves traces the epic emotional journey of a suburban African-American family— led by a well-intentioned but domineering father—as they navigate love, forgiveness and coming together in the aftermath of a loss. From acclaimed director Trey Edward Shults, Waves is a heartrending story about the universal capacity for compassion and growth even in the darkest of times.
WHAT DREAMS MAY COME (1998) PRESENTED BY RONALD BASS
Writer: Ronald Bass
Director: Vincent Ward
Starring: Max Von Sydow, Robin Williams, Annabella Sciorra , Cuba Gooding Jr., Jessica Brooks Grant, Josh Paddock
A Doctor dies in a car accident and ends up in the afterlife which is very beautiful. His wife, overcome with grief at his death and the previous deaths of their two children, commits suicide. An adventurous search for his wife ensues.
