North America’s Longest-Running Competitive Film Festival Presents 43 Features In Various Competitions, Including 28 World, North American, or U.S. Premieres
Chicago, Illinois (September 20, 2024) – The 60th Chicago International Film Festival, North America’s longest-running competitive film festival, today announced its International Competitions for this year’s edition, running October 16 - 27, 2024. This year’s competitive titles include three world premieres, 13 feature films making their North American premieres and another 14 holding their U.S. premieres, with titles from countries around the world including Argentina, China, Brazil, Germany, Tunisia, Australia, Japan, Italy, Sweden, France, and more, all vying for the Festival’s Gold Hugo award in the categories of International Feature, International Documentary, and New Directors, in addition to OutLook and Shorts competitions.
Several competition filmmakers are making their return to the Chicago International Film Festival, including Virpi Suutari, Max Kestner, Joshua Oppenheimer, Miguel Gomes, Mohammad Rasoulof, Maura Delpero, and Péter Kerekes, whose 107 MOTHERS won the Silver Hugo for Best Director at the 2020 edition of the Festival. Previous Chicago International Film Festival honorees have gone on to Oscar recognition, including last year’s Best Documentary nominee FOUR DAUGHTERS, 2022’s CLOSE, and 2021’s DRIVE MY CAR and THE WORST PERSON IN THE WORLD, which were all nominated for Best International Feature Film at the Academy Awards.
The full slate of films for the 60th edition of the Chicago International Film Festival, running October 16 - 27, 2024, will be announced September 23, 2024. Tickets for Opening Night’s presentation of THE PIANO LESSON are on sale now, with tickets to the rest of the Festival’s presentations going on sale September 27, 2024. Cinema/Chicago members’ pre-sale tickets go on sale September 24, 2024; memberships now available at www.chicagofilmfestival.com/membership.
International Feature Competition:
ALL WE IMAGINE AS LIGHT (France, India, The Netherlands, Luxembourg)
Dir. Payal Kapadia
THE END (Ireland, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Italy, U.K.)
Dir. Joshua Oppenheimer
GRAND TOUR (Portugal, Italy, France, Germany, Japan, China)
Dir. Miguel Gomes
HARVEST (U.K., Germany, Greece, France, U.S.)
Dir. Athina Rachel Tsangari
ON BECOMING A GUINEA FOWL (Zambia, U.K., Ireland)
Dir. Rungano Nyoni
THE QUIET SON Jouer avec le feu (France)
Dirs. Delphine Coulin, Muriel Coulin
North American Premiere
THE SEED OF THE SACRED FIG (Iran, France, Germany)
Dir. Mohammad Rasoulof
THE SPARROW IN THE CHIMNEY (Switzerland)
Dir. Ramon Zürcher
U.S. Premiere
SUÇUARANA (Brazil)
Dirs. Clarissa Campolina, Sérgio Borges
World Premiere
SUPER HAPPY FOREVER (France, Japan)
Dir. Kohei Igarashi
U.S. Premiere
TRANSAMAZONIA (France, Germany, Switzerland, Taiwan, Brazil)
Dir. Pia Marais
VERMIGLIO (Italy, France, Belgium)
Dir. Maura Delpero
WHEN THE LIGHT BREAKS Ljósbrot (Iceland, Netherlands, Croatia, France)
Dir. Rúnar Rúnarsson
U.S. Premiere
New Directors Competition:
CABO NEGRO (France, Morocco)
Dir. Abdellah Taïa
North American Premiere
GHOST TRAIL Les Fantômes (France, Germany, Belgium)
Dir. Jonathan Millet
U.S. Premiere
HANAMI (Switzerland, Portugal, Cape Verde)
Dir. Denise Fernandes
North American Premiere
HAPPY HOLIDAYS (Palestine, Germany, France, Italy, Qatar)
Dir. Scandar Copti
U.S. Premiere
LISTEN TO THE VOICES Kouté vwa (Belgium, France, French Guiana)
Dir. Maxime Jean-Baptiste
North American Premiere
MY FAVOURITE CAKE Keyke Mahboobe Man (Iran, France, Sweden, Germany)
Dirs. Maryam Moghaddam, Behtash Sanaeeha
U.S. Premiere
PEACOCK (Austria, Germany)
Dir. Bernhard Wenger
North American Premiere
RITA (Spain)
Dir. Paz Vega
North American Premiere
TOXIC Akiplėša (Lithuania)
Dir. Saulė Bliuvaitė
U.S. Premiere
TRANSPLANT (U.S.)
Dir. Jason Park
World Premiere
THE VILLAGE NEXT TO PARADISE (Austria, France, Germany, Somalia)
Dir. Mo Harawe
U.S. Premiere
WHO DO I BELONG TO Mé el Aïn (Tunisia, France, Canada)
Dir. Meryam Joobeur
U.S. Premiere
Documentary Competition:
BETWEEN GOODBYES (U.S.)
Dir. Jota Mun
North American Premiere
THE BRINK OF DREAMS Rafaat einy ll sama (Egypt, France, Denmark, Qatar, Saudi Arabia)
Dirs. Nada Riyadh, Ayman El Amir
North American Premiere
LIFE AND OTHER PROBLEMS Livet og andre problemer (Denmark, U.K., Sweden)
Dir. Max Kestner
North American Premiere
MISTRESS DISPELLER (China, U.S.)
Dir. Elizabeth Lo
MY STOLEN PLANET (Germany, Iran)
Dir. Farahnaz Sharifi
U.S. Premiere
ONCE UPON A TIME IN A FOREST (Finland)
Dir. Virpi Suutari
U.S. Premiere
THE RETURN OF THE PROJECTIONIST Le Retour du Projectionniste (France, Germany)
Dir. Orkhan Aghazadeh
North American Premiere
WISHING ON A STAR (Italy, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Austria, Croatia)
Dir. Péter Kerekes
U.S. Premiere
OutLook Competition:
BABY (Brazil, France, The Netherlands)
Dir. Marcelo Caetano
BETWEEN GOODBYES (U.S.)
Dir. Jota Mun
North American Premiere
CABO NEGRO (France, Morocco)
Dir. Abdellah Taïa
North American Premiere
DESIRE LINES (U.S.)
Dir. Jules Rosskam
FOUR MOTHERS (Ireland)
Dir. Darren Thornton
North American Premiere
MY SUNSHINE (Japan, France)
Dir. Hiroshi Okuyama
THESIS ON A DOMESTICATION Tesis sobre una domesticación (Argentina, Mexico)
Dir. Javier Van de Couter
World Premiere
THREE KILOMETRES TO THE END OF THE WORLD Trei kilometri până la capătul
lumii (Romania)
Dir. Emanuel Pârvu
U.S. Premiere
TIME PASSAGES (U.S.)
Dir. Kyle Henry
VIET AND NAM (Vietnam)
Dir. Trương Minh Quý
For more information, visit the Festival’s website at https://www.chicagofilmfestival.com.
# # #
Images available in the Chicago International Film Festival Media Center at this link.
Facebook: facebook.com/chicagofilmfestival/
Twitter: @ChiFilmFest
Instagram: @ChiFilmFest
Hashtag: #ChiFilmFest
Festival Information
Celebrating its 60th edition October 16 - 27, 2024, the Chicago International Film Festival is North America's longest-running competitive international film festival. Showcasing acclaimed and exciting new films from around the world, the 60th edition will be held in person in theaters and venues around the city, featuring a select program of films with closed captions. From dramas and thrillers to documentaries and comedies, the Festival presents a vast diversity of offerings, featuring competitive categories and programs including Black Perspectives; International Comedy; Women in Cinema; OutLook; After Dark; and the City & State program, showcasing films made in Chicago and throughout Illinois.
2024 Festival Sponsors and Partners
The 60th Chicago International Film Festival's sponsors include Festival Sponsors: Adobe, Allstate, Baker Tilly, Cinespace Studios, Illinois Production Alliance, Maison Perrier, MUBI, Panavision, Light Iron, Periscope Post & Audio, SAGindie, Tito’s Vodka, William Blair; Official Agency: Ogilvy; Publicity Agency: Acacia Consulting Group; Festival Supporters: Caption Consulting, Four Seasons Hotel Chicago, L7 Chicago by LOTTE, Make It Better Foundation, Chicago Film Office, Illinois Film Office, Revolution Brewing; With Major Support from Robert and Penelope Steiner Family Foundation, John and Jacolyn Bucksbaum Family Foundation, and Cynthia Stone Raskin. This program is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, a grant from the Illinois Arts Council Agency, and a CityArts Grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events.
About Cinema/Chicago
Cinema/Chicago, the presenting organization of the Chicago International Film Festival, is a year-round nonprofit arts and education organization dedicated to fostering better communication between people of diverse cultures through the art of film and the moving image. Cinema/Chicago's programs include the Chicago International Film Festival, Summer Screenings Program, CineYouth Festival, and year-round Education Program. Celebrating its 60th edition October 16 - 27, 2024, the Chicago International Film Festival is North America's longest-running competitive film festival. For more information, please visit www.chicagofilmfestival.com or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTubeand Twitter.
Comments