2018 PFF SpringFest
PFF SpringFest
Every fall, the Philadelphia Film Festival brings Philly film lovers the best of the year-end slate of cinematic offerings. But what about the films hitting theaters throughout the spring and summer? With PFF SpringFest, the Philadelphia Film Society presents a mid-year survey of the freshest cinematic marvels from the international festival circuit–from American indie darlings and eye-opening documentaries to acclaimed foreign titles. Each film will be having its Philadelphia premiere, ensuring that SpringFest attendees will have an early jump on the films destined to dominate cinephile conversations in the months to come.
Congratulations to PFF SpringFest Audience Award Winner
RBG
At 85, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is more beloved than ever. This fascinating documentary delves deep into her trailblazing career and a legacy that is far longer than most of her admirers realize.
CLICK HERE FOR INFORMATION ON BADGES & TICKETS
See the Full Line Up Below! Click HERE to see the full PFF SpringFest Program Guide.
OPENING NIGHT FILM
BLINDSPOTTING
CARLOS LÓPEZ ESTRADA | 2018 | USA | ENGLISH | 95 MIN
Friday, April 27 | 8:30 PM | Prince Theater
One of the breakout hits of this year’s Sundance Film Festival, Blindspotting is the brainchild of real-life friends Rafael Casal and Tony-winner Daveed Diggs (Hamilton), who drew upon their own experiences of coming of age in the Bay Area to write this intense, hip-hop influenced drama about lifelong buddies whose friendship is tested when a violent incident dredges up long-simmering conflicts of race and class in rapidly-gentrifying Oakland.
Writers and stars of the film, Daveed Diggs and Rafael Casal, are scheduled to attend and participate in a Q&A following the screening.
OPENING NIGHT PARTY
Following the Opening Night screening of Blindspotting, PFS will toast to the first-ever PFF SpringFest and celebrate a weekend of new and acclaimed indies fresh off the festival circuit. The Opening Night Party will feature light bites and complimentary drinks.
CLOSING NIGHT FILM
TULLY
JASON REITMAN | 2018 | USA | ENGLISH | 94 MIN
Sunday, April 29 | 8:30 PM | Prince Theater
In this hilarious and insightful look at motherhood, Academy Award-winner Charlize Theron stars as Marlo, an exhausted mom of three whose hectic routine is upended by an enigmatic young night nurse named Tully.
Director Jason Reitman is scheduled to attend and participate in a Q&A following the screening.
AMERICAN ANIMALS
BART LAYTON | 2018 | USA, UK | ENGLISH | 116 MIN
Saturday, April 28 | 8:45 PM | Prince Theater
In this nail-biting drama, director Bart Layton tells strange-but-true story of four inexperienced young criminals who attempted to pull off one of the most brazen art heists of the 21st Century.
AVA
LÉA MYSIUS | 2017 | FRANCE | FRENCH | 105 MIN
Friday, April 27 | 8:30 PM | PFS Roxy
Determined to make the most of a sleepy summer vacation, a 13-year-old girl who’s slowly going blind joins a troublemaking runaway on a series of rebellious adventures in this striking coming-of-age drama.
BELIEVER
DON ARGOTT | 2018 | USA | ENGLISH | 101 MIN
Sunday, April 29 | 6:25 PM | Prince Theater
In this moving documentary, Imagine Dragons frontman Dan Reynolds works against the clock to put together an ambitious concert in Utah aimed at bridging the gap between the Mormon church and the LGBTQ community.
THE CHARMER
MILAD ALAMI | 2017 | DENMARK | DANISH, ENGLISH, FARSI | 100 MIN
Sunday, April 29 | 4:05 PM | PFS Roxy
A disquieting look at the immigrant experience, this stylish mix of psychological thriller and erotic drama tells the story of a young Iranian desperate to secure Danish citizenship by seducing a string of women.
CLOSE-KNIT
NAOKO OGIGAMI | 2017 | JAPAN | JAPANESE | 127 MIN
Saturday, April 28 | 12:00 PM | PFS Roxy
Left alone by her negligent mother, a little girl forms an unconventional but loving family unit with her uncle and his transgender girlfriend in this warm-hearted, sensitive drama from Japan.
DISOBEDIENCE
SEBASTIÁN LELIO | 2018 | UK | ENGLISH | 114 MIN
Sunday, April 29 | 2:00 PM | Prince Theater
Rachel Weisz and Rachel McAdams star as women rekindling a passionate romance despite the rigid views of their Orthodox Jewish community in this sensitive drama from A Fantastic Woman helmer Sebastián Lelio.
EIGHTH GRADE
BO BURNHAM | 2018 | USA | ENGLISH | 93 MIN
Saturday, April 28 | 4:30 PM | Prince Theater
In comedian Bo Burnham’s sweet, funny, and painfully honest directorial debut, a shy 13-year-old girl tries to overcome her insecurities as she makes her way through her last week of eighth grade.
THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ANDRÉ
KATE NOVACK | 2017 | USA | ENGLISH | 94 MIN
Sunday, April 29 | 2:00 PM | PFS Roxy
This insightful documentary follows former Vogue editor and style icon André Leon Talley, who rose from humble origins to become one of the most influential figures in the Paris and New York fashion scenes.
JUPITER’S MOON
KORNÉL MUNDRUCZÓ | 2017 | HUNGARY | HUNGARIAN, ENGLISH | 128 MIN
Sunday, April 29 | 8:30 PM | PFS Roxy
After being near-fatally shot while attempting to cross into Hungary, a Syrian refugee is graced with mysterious powers of levitation in this topical, supernatural thriller from White God director Kornél Mundruczó.
KILLING JESUS
LAURA MORA | 2017 | COLOMBIA, ARGENTINA | SPANISH | 99 MIN
Saturday, April 28 | 8:45 PM | PFS Roxy
This gritty revenge thriller follows a young woman who must decide how to act when a chance encounter brings her face to face with the young man who may have killed her father.
LEAVE NO TRACE
DEBRA GRANIK | 2018 | USA | ENGLISH | 108 MIN
Friday, April 27 | 6:00 PM | Prince Theater
Winter’s Bone director Debra Granik delivers another powerful portrait of characters in the margins of society in this heartbreaking story of a teenage girl living off the grid with her loving but deeply troubled father.
LOTS OF KIDS, A MONKEY AND A CASTLE
GUSTAVO SALMERÓN | 2018 | SPAIN | SPANISH | 91 MIN
Sunday, April 29 | 12:00 PM | PFS Roxy
Filmmaker Gustavo Salmerón captures his family matriarch Julita as she attempts to sort through a lifetime’s worth of knick-knacks, bringing up colorful memories, hilarious anecdotes, and surprising revelations.
MR. FISH: CARTOONING FROM THE DEEP END
PABLO BRYANT | 2017 | USA | ENGLISH | 70 MIN
Saturday, April 28 | 2:40 PM | PFS Roxy
This insightful doc explores the career of Philly area-based political cartoonist Mr. Fish, an artist known for challenging propriety with his hilariously subversive brand of humor and penchant for gleefully shocking images.
NO DATE, NO SIGNATURE
VAHID JALILVAND | 2017 | IRAN | FARSI | 104 MIN
Sunday, April 29 | 6:15 PM | PFS Roxy
When a seemingly minor car accident leads to unexpected tragedy, two men from different levels of Iranian society find their paths inextricably linked by grief, guilt, and recrimination.
ON BORROWED TIME
YASIR AL YASIRI | 2018 | UNITED ARAB EMIRATES | ARABIC | 97 MIN
Saturday, April 28 | 4:20 PM | PFS Roxy
Four bored nursing home residents go for a rolicking adventure when one of them receives an unexpected inheritance in this hilarious, touching exploration of friendship and getting older.
ON CHESIL BEACH
DOMINIC COOKE | 2018 | UK | ENGLISH | 110 MIN
Saturday, April 28 | 12:00 PM | Prince Theater
Saoirse Ronan and Billy Howle star as a pair of love-struck newlyweds who fumblingly attempt to consummate their marriage in the socially repressed England of 1962 in this adaptation of Ian McEwan’s best-seller.
ON THE SEVENTH DAY
JIM MCKAY | 2018 | USA | SPANISH, ENGLISH | 92 MIN
Friday, April 27 | 6:15 PM | PFS Roxy
Director Jim McKay’s intimate character study follows a group of undocumented workers from Puebla, Mexico as they strain to make ends meet in Brooklyn through the week, but let loose every weekend on the soccer field.
RBG
BETSY WEST, JULIE COHEN | 2018 | USA | ENGLISH | 97 MIN
Saturday, April 28 | 2:20 PM | Prince Theater
At 85, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is more beloved than ever. This fascinating documentary delves deep into her trailblazing career and a legacy that is far longer than most of her admirers realize.
THREE IDENTICAL STRANGERS
TIM WARDLE | 2018 | USA | ENGLISH | 100 MIN
Saturday, April 28 | 6:35 PM | Prince Theater
In 1980, three strangers discovered that they were identical triplets separated at birth. This riveting doc tells the story of the triplets’ stranger-than-fiction saga of overnight fame, sudden tragedy, and a bizarre conspiracy.
WON’T YOU BE MY NEIGHBOR?
MORGAN NEVILLE | 2018 | USA | ENGLISH | 94 MIN
Sunday, April 29 | 4:20 PM | Prince Theater
Generations of Americans grew up with cardigan-wearing TV host Fred Rogers. In this affectionate documentary, director Morgan Neville explores the surprisingly radical man behind the public persona.
WOODPECKERS
JOSÉ MARÍA CABRAL | 2017 | DOMINICAN REPUBLIC | SPANISH | 107 MIN
Saturday, April 28 | 6:25 PM | PFS Roxy
This high-octane drama follows new prison inmate Julián as he risks his life for a perilous romance with an inmate at the adjacent women’s prison using a complex sign language called “woodpecking.”
BADGES & TICKETS
ALL ACCESS BADGE
$150 | $125 PFS Members
The ideal way to experience the first-ever PFF SpringFest! All Access Badges grant holders priority admission for one (1) to all events and film screenings, plus reserved seating!
TICKETS ON SALE
Friday, April 6 | PFS Member Pre Sale
Monday, April 9 | Public On Sale
Members Save More!
PFS Members get $25 off All-Access Badges
Not a member? PFS Members get the Festival experience all year long with special invitations, sneak preview screenings, discounts, and free tickets! Interested in an additional discount today and perks year-round?
Join today!
>Badge holders receives priority admission to all screenings and Opening Night Film & Party.
>Badge holders receive reserved seating in theaters.
> Badge does not guarantee admission; badge line admission is first come, first served.
> Priority admission is granted via the Badge Holder Line until fifteen minutes before the screening start time.
> Badge Holders arriving less than fifteen minutes before the screening start time may be required to wait for admission until after ticket holders have been seated.
>Reseverd seats will be held until film’s scheduled start time. Any badge holders admitted after the scheduled start time will be reponsilble for finding seats independently.
> No Refunds or Exchanges
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Applications for press accreditation to the 2018 PFF SpringFest are now closed.