“He Bled Neon”
Directed by Drew Kirsch, this Las Vegas thriller stars Joe Cole, Rita Ora, Marshawn Lynch, Ismael Cruz Córdova, Paul Wesley, and Josh Holloway in a story about a man who returns home after his brother’s death and gets pulled back into the city’s criminal underworld. (Narrative Spotlight—World Premiere.)
“Chili Finger”
A small-town lawyer finds a severed finger in her chili and blackmails the restaurant for a payout—then everything spirals into chaos. Directed by Edd Benda and Stephen Helstad, starring Judy Greer, Sean Astin, Bryan Cranston, John Goodman, Madeline Wise, Paul Stanko, Sarah Herrman, Sara Sevigny, and Dann Florek. (Narrative Spotlight—World Premiere.)
“Margo’s Got Money Troubles”
Showrunner/screenwriter David E. Kelley, with Dearbhla Walsh and Kate Herron directing, brings Elle Fanning, Michelle Pfeiffer, Nick Offerman, Nicole Kidman, Greg Kinnear, Marcia Gay Harden, Thaddea Graham, Michael Angarano, Rico Nasty, and Lindsey Normington to a comic family drama about a recent college dropout and aspiring writer trying to stay afloat with a new baby, a stack of bills, and fewer and fewer ways to pay them. (TV Premiere—World Premiere.)
“The Sun Never Sets”
Directed by Joe Swanberg, this bruised-romance drama stars Dakota Fanning, Jake Johnson, Cory Michael Smith, Debby Ryan, Anna Konkle, Lamorne Morris, and Karley Sciortino in a story about a woman thrown into a volatile triangle after her older boyfriend asks for space and her ex reenters her life. (Narrative Spotlight—World Premiere.)
“The Rise of the Red Hot Chili Peppers: Our Brother, Hillel”
A music-doc centerpiece that goes straight to the band’s origin story by focusing on Hillel Slovak’s life and legacy, with Anthony Kiedis, Flea, Chad Smith, and John Frusciante featured. Directed by Brian Tetsuro Ivie and produced by Nick Kneedler and Zander Schloss. (24 Beats Per Second—World Premiere.)
“Hokum”
Grief, folklore, and a remote inn collide in Damian McCarthy’s horror film, which follows novelist Ohm Bauman as he travels to scatter his parents’ ashes and becomes consumed by stories of a witch haunting the honeymoon suite. As visions intensify and a disappearance rattles the place, the movie starts to sound like intimate folk-horror with a strong midnight pulse. Adam Scott, Peter Coonan, David Wilmot, Florence Ordesh, Will O’Connell, Michael Patric, Siox C, Brendan Conroy, Austin Amelio, and Ezra Carlisle round out the cast.
Honorable Mentions:
“Family Movie” has Kevin Bacon directing a meta-slasher with Kyra Sedgwick, Sosie Bacon, and Scoot McNairy; “Crash Land” gives Dempsey Bryk a movie-about-movies setup with Gabriel LaBelle, Finn Wolfhard, and Billy Bryk; “Pizza Movie” lets Brian McElhaney and Nick Kocher run wild with Gaten Matarazzo, Sean Giambrone, and Lulu Wilson; “The Pirate King” puts Josh Plasse behind Rob Riggle, Jordana Brewster, and Matt Barr; “Same Same But Different” gives Lauren Noll a green-card wedding comedy with Medalion Rahimi, Logan Miller, and Danielle Pinnock; “The Saviors” pairs Kevin Hamedani with Adam Scott, Danielle Deadwyler, and Daveed Diggs; “Drag” has Raviv Ullman and Greg Yagolnitzer turning Lizzy Caplan, Lucy DeVito, and John Stamos loose in a burglary-gone-wrong Midnighter; “Buddy” brings Casper Kelly’s nightmare-kid-show premise to Cristin Milioti, Topher Grace, Keegan-Michael Key, and Michael Shannon.
“Chasing Summer” has Josephine Decker directing Iliza Shlesinger, Tom Welling, and Megan Mullally; “Erupcja” teams Pete Ohs with Charli xcx, Lena Góra, and Jeremy O. Harris; “Leviticus” puts Adrian Chiarella and Mia Wasikowska inside a queer supernatural chase story; “See You When I See You” gives Jay Duplass a grief-and-PTSD family drama with Cooper Raiff, David Duchovny, and Kaitlyn Dever; “The Shitheads” has Macon Blair steering Dave Franco, O’Shea Jackson Jr., and Peter Dinklage through rehab-transfer chaos; “Rock Springs” brings Vera Miao together with Kelly Marie Tran, Benedict Wong, and Jimmy O. Yang for grief wrapped in monster-movie dread; “Paralyzed by Hope: The Maria Bamford Story” has Judd Apatow and Neil Berkeley centering the singular comic voice of Maria Bamford; and “We Are The Shaggs” brings Ken Kwapis to the story of outsider-rock legends Dorothy Wiggin and Betty Wiggin.
