Rio Contrada’s thriller Splinter makes its world premiere as well. The film, which stars Scout Tayui-Lepore and film and TV legend Debbie Allen, centers on a grad student who balances being the composed and responsible soon-to-be certified school psychologist, with her outside life as a motorcycle-riding, pill-popping thrill seeker.
Daughter and father writing/directing/ producing/acting team Scout Purdy and Doug Purdy’s heartwarming Pilgrim is the prototypical DWFLA indie. With a production budget below five figures, the film revolves around a 15-year-old girl who devises a plan to cure her teen angst: a month-long summer hiking trip with her father.
Highlights among the feature-length documentaries include Dustin Elm and David Breschel’s I Need You: 53 Years of the Band America, which examines the history of the band as founding members Gerry Beckley and Dewey Bunnell prepare to take the stage for what they have decided will be their final performance together.
Andrew Davies Gans’ Voices: The Danny Gans Story is a captivating exploration of a son’s journey to uncover the truth behind his father’s extraordinary life as a Las Vegas entertainment legend and his untimely passing.
The rockstar in Formerly Known As may be a purple muppet with a cigarette and a leather jacket—but his comeback tour is no joke.
“…the rockstar happens to be a talking purple muppet.”
Guilford Adams and Casey Pinkston’s American Clown will have its world premiere at DWFLA. The film examines the challenges faced by clowns in a country that increasingly perceives them with apprehension and disdain, as well as featuring legendary performers from past eras sharing their perspectives on the history and art of clowning. Interviews include John C. Reilly, David Arquette, Bill Irwin, David Howard Thornton, and Steve O.
Additional documentaries making their world premieres include Peter Jones’ Fortunate Sons, which examines the 1974 graduating class of the Harvard School for Boys, a private military school for the sons of the Los Angeles elite, and Janna Giacoppo’s One But Many, which reveals deep connections between the trophy hunting industry and policy decisions influenced by both the U.S. and African governments, putting communities and wildlife in grave danger.
Dances With Films will delight horror fans and genre enthusiasts with its Midnight section featuring the following films that make their world premieres: Cameron A. Tubbs’ Acolyte follows two brothers in rural Appalachia as they attempt to overcome their estrangement amid strange and disturbing occurrences around their home in the mountains.
Jake Myers’ Kombucha revolves around a man who starts to lose himself at a cult-like corporation, where a mind-altering kombucha transforms employees into productive corporate cogs. Josh Munds and Chris Alan Evans’ Peeping Todd places a young woman in a toxic triangle involving a deceitful fiancé and a stalking ex.
