RiverRun Festival Archive

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• 2020 RiverRun Gala presented by PNC Bank

  Please join us for the 22nd RiverRun Gala and help us celebrate and honor our filmmakers and industry guests from around the world. The festivities…

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• Abe's Story

  Abe, an overworked writer, gets an idea for a bloody brilliant novel in Victorian London. He toils on the manuscript for seven long years, only…

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• Actually, Iconic: Richard Estes

  Admired by artists ranging from Salvador Dali to Chuck Close, Richard Estes avoided media attention throughout his career but has been called the “king of…

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• Adam

  Abla runs a modest bakery from her home in Casablanca, where she raises a young daughter. Their routine is interrupted by Samia, a pregnant woman…

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• Ai Weiwei: Yours Truly

  Human rights become profoundly personal when Ai Weiwei, China’s most famous artist, transforms Alcatraz Island prison into an astonishing expression of socially-engaged art focused on…

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• All the Possibilities...

  All the Possibilities… is a documentary meditation on artist Vernon Pratt’s 1,450 square foot systematic abstraction painting, All The Possibilities of Filling in Sixteenths (65,536),…

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• Alley Rats

  As Ralph tries to reconnect with his childhood best friend, Jay, the two are thrust into their town’s unforgiving nightlife, turning a night of parties,…

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• American Trial: The Eric Garner Story

  American Trial: The Eric Garner Story is an unprecedented film event, an unscripted courtroom drama that presents the trial that never happened against the NYPD Officer who…

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• Anbessa

  In this coming-of-age tale set in changing Ethiopia , a young boy, Asalif, finds himself caught between the ancient and the new as he attempts…

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• Animated Shorts 1

  Films in this program of short animated works include: Blieschow Embraced I Bleed The Kite The Masque of Blackness Pace Petty Thing Saguaro When the…

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• Animated Shorts 2

  Films in this program of short animated works include: Abe’s Story Cats Can’t Swim Fata Morgana Grandad Was A Romantic If Anything Happens I Love…

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• April Eighty-Nine

  A woman recalls a fateful road trip taken thirty years earlier with her first love. This short screens as part of the NC Shorts 1…

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• Arab Blues

  After 10 years of living in Paris, Selma returns home to Tunis and, despite the bewilderment of everyone in town, she’s steadfast in her resolve…

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• The Arbors

  A lonely locksmith longing to reconnect with his distant younger brother fears a string of mysterious killings in his small town may be his fault,…

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• Ashes to Ashes

  Winfred Rembert, the only living survivor of a lynching, a Star Wars fanatic and leather artist, develops a friendship with Dr. Shirley Jackson Whitaker, who…

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• Asymmetry

  The summer is boiling hot, and the streets of Belgrade are empty as we watch the lives of three seemingly random couples gradually intertwine. As…

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• August (Agosto)

  In the midst of the período especial, one of the greatest crises in the nation’s history, thousands of Cubans try to flee to the US…

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• Automatic

  Two girls think they are under threat after they accidentally photograph something they’re not supposed to. This short screens as part of the Narrative Shorts…

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• Bastards' Road

  An Audience Award winner at the 2020 Slamdance Film Festival, this documentary follows Marine Veteran Jonathan Hancock as he walks over 6,000 miles around the…

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• Between a Rock and a Hard Place

  A woman’s lifelong relationship with her disabled daughter is changed forever when she receives an unwanted letter. This short screens as part of the Narrative…

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• Big House

  Two sisters, two boyfriends, one simple birthday weekend getaway. Or it would have been, if not for the threesome, the love affair, the unexpected arrival…

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• Blieschow

  Vast plains, colorful sceneries and a red dog that seems to reach into the sky bring to life the summer one boy spends on his…

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• Blue & Gold Marching Machine

  Follow along as 200 musicians and dancers celebrate the 100th year of the North Carolina A&T marching band, from band camp to the “Greatest Homecoming…

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• Blue & Hues

  Blue and Hues are a tight-knit duo in thievery. When they set their sights on a powerful man with a diamond lodged in his eye,…

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• The Booksellers

  The Booksellers is a behind-the-scenes look at the rare book world and the fascinating people who inhabit it, brought about by executive producer Parker Posey…

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• Bulls and Saints

  Bulls and Saints is a lyrical documentary short based on a love letter written by an immigrant bull rider to his wife back home in…

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• Bully. Coward. Victim. The Story of Roy Cohn

  Offering an unflinching look at the infamous attorney who prosecuted director Ivy Meeropol’s grandparents, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, the film examines Cohn’s life as chief…

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• Burning Ghost

  In the streets of Paris, Juste collects the last memory of people only he can see, before helping them into the afterlife. Juste is a…

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• The Butterfly

  Kota Ishijima spent most of her life hiding from who she is. Finding the strength to live that truth drove a wedge between her and…

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• Bygone Billy

  R. Keith Harris stars as Billy, a troubled ex-cop working to rebuild a failing marriage. But when his wife bumps into his ex-wife and invites…

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• Call Center Blues

  Call Center Blues is a lyrical portrait of an unlikely community of U.S. deportees and their loved ones struggling to rebuild their lives in Tijuana,…

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• Camilla, Keep Your Word

  Camilla, Keep Your Word offers a love story where you’d least expect it–right in the middle of an emergency evacuation caused by Hurricane Katrina. This…

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• Cat's Can't Swim

  In an anthropomorphic world, a young cat boy wants to win his school swimming contest with the support of his mother. This short screens as…

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• Chèche Lavi (Looking for Life)

  Two Haitian migrants find themselves stranded at the US-Mexico border, strangers in a strange land. With no way forward and no one to depend on…

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• Con Amore

  A little toy pianist falls in love with a music box ballerina who is sealed beneath a glass bell in this tiny, desktop fairy tale.…

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• Corporate Clueless

  Everything comes crashing down when a corporate team-building activity goes from bad to worse. This short screens as part of the NC Shorts 2 block…

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• Corpus Christi

  Poland’s nominee for Best Foreign Language film at the Academy Awards, this mesmerizing film follows Daniel, a Detention Center inmate who experiences a spiritual transformation…

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• Coup 53

  While making a documentary about the 1953 coup in Iran, director Taghi Amirani and editor Walter Murch uncover archival material hidden for decades. The discovery…

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• The Credits Movie

  After decades of announcing the casts and crews of countless movies, the end credits finally get to tell their own story. This short screens as…

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• Dafa Metti (Difficult)

  Under Paris’ glittering Eiffel Tower, illegal Senegalese migrants sell miniature souvenirs of the monument to support their families back home. Far from their families and…

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• De Lo Mio

  Two “ride or die” sisters raised in NYC reunite with their estranged brother in the Dominican Republic to clean out their late father’s childhood home.…

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• Dead in the Water

  Dead in the Water exposes the stories, science, and solutions behind the over 2,000 industrial hog and poultry CAFOs (Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations) throughout southeastern…

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• Dead in the Water / Original Body of Pain (short film block)

  Dead in the Water exposes the stories, science, and solutions behind the over 2,000 industrial hog and poultry CAFOs (Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations) throughout southeastern…

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• The Deep End

  Beau wants to be “just like the boys”, but most of his middle school peers won’t make room for a kid with Down syndrome. When…

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• Digging for Weldon Irvine

  Weldon Irvine’s socio-culturally evocative work in music and theater drew appreciation from the likes of Freddie Hubbard and Nina Simone to Mos Def and Q-Tip.…

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• Disclosure

  Disclosure is an eye-opening look at transgender depictions in motion pictures, revealing how Hollywood simultaneously reflects and manufactures our deepest anxieties about gender. Leading trans…

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• Documentary Shorts 1

  Films in this program of short documentary works include: Call Center Blues Dafa Metti (Difficult) Follow the Sun Greykey Mr. Somebody Filmmaker in attendance for…

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• Documentary Shorts 2

  Films in this program of short documentary works include: Ashes to Ashes Elvers Exit 12 Flower Punk Still Plays With Trains Filmmaker in attendance for…

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• Dragon Recipes

  A young apprentice witch dreams of becoming like her mentor, so she decides to create her own dragon, using an old recipe and magic spells.…

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• Drought

  In anticipation of National Autism Awareness Day, we present this exclusive opportunity to see the film Drought, a homegrown, NC-based film originally selected to screen…

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• Elvers

  In late winter along the coast of Maine, millions of baby freshwater eels called “elvers” float up tidal rivers and propel a highly lucrative international…

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• Embraced

  Standing still in front of the open window, a woman stares at the dark clouds that obscure the sky. Immobile, she fights against the remembrances…

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• Exit 12

  After two tours in Fallujah during the Iraq War, US Marine and Combat Veteran Roman Baca came home ravaged with depression, anxiety, and anger. With…

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• Fata Morgana

  Three women live their lives as nomads. One travels the world, another takes her daughter wherever she goes, and a third has made her home…

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• Frederick Douglass Boulevard aka Food & Drink Boulevard aka F.D.B.

  Armed with little more than white Americans’ conditioned fear of black violence, Malcolm concocts a ludicrous scheme to de-gentrify Harlem. This short screens as part…

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• Fever Dreams

  In this playful, Creepshow-esque horror anthology from RiverRun alum Rob Underhill, four eerie tales are bound to give you fever dreams. Director Rob Underhill and…

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• Films With Class Shorts

  This collection of animated short films shows how many great films we get for young audiences.  This program is being screened for area students during…

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• Finster

  Finster illustrates the life of legendary folk artist Howard Finster, who demonstrated that art can thrive outside of museums and galleries, in ordinary places and…

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• Flower Punk

  Japanese artist Azuma Makoto has sent his floral sculptures into space and sunk them to the bottom of the ocean, but most of the time,…

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• Fly Me to the Moon -- Free Family Day Screening

  The year is 1969 and three young houseflies are looking for adventure and hatch a plan to stowaway aboard Apollo 11 in homemade space suits.…

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• Folding Fur

  In a small paper forest lived a small paper fox who loved playing with all the animals, no matter how they were folded. When he…

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• Follow the Sun

  Follow The Sun captures the liminal moments of Central American men who find themselves in between grave danger and the hopes of a better life…

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• Freeland

  An aging pot farmer finds her world shattered as she brings in what could be her final harvest, fighting against the threat of eviction as…

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• From Wounded Knee to Standing Rock: A Reporter's Journey

  A rookie NPR reporter, covering the armed 1973 occupation of Wounded Knee, is arrested by the FBI for defying a government news blackout. Years later,…

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• Function

  A recently activated robot discovers it looks and functions a lot differently than the robots around him, and is unable to understand his purpose until…

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• Godspeed

  Poetry, music, and visuals converge to lead us through the life of a Black girl as she becomes a Black woman. As she is forced…

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• The Goonies--Free Family Day Screening at Bailey Park

  Starting early in the afternoon this year, RiverRun is excited to host family fun in Bailey Park in the Wake Forest Innovation Quarter with Paper…

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• Grandad Was a Romantic

  A child documents the love life of her grandfather, a man who has a reputation for being a passionate romantic. This short screens as part…

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• The Great Green Wall

  We are thrilled to be able to screen this new film from Jared Scott, who brought our audiences The Age of Consequences in 2017, just…

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• The Great Toilet Paper Scare

  The untold story of a notorious incident involving Johnny Carson, a lot of toilet paper, and millions of fearful Americans. This short film precedes the…

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• Greykey

  Fear and fascination arise in Muriel Grey when she remembers the figure of her father, who passed away when she was still very young. Thirty…

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• Guard Dog

  Louise, 14, keeps a look-out while her sister is having a relationship with a married man. This short screens as part of the Narrative Shorts…

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• He Dreams of Giants

  Fifteen years after making their successful documentary Lost in la Mancha, Keith Fulton and Louis Pepe revisit their subject, director Terry Gilliam, as he once…

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• Hebo

  Hebo explores the work of Sam Ezell, an outsider folk artist in Hillsborough, North Carolina. Sam has been a maintenance worker at the Daniel Boone…

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• Henry Glassie: Field Work

  From Brazil to Turkey to right here in the American South, the worldwide travels and unique cultural finds of renowned American folklorist Henry Glassie are…

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• Hoops Africa: Ubuntu Matters

  Hoops Africa: Ubuntu Matters is a collection of stories that celebrate the past, present, and future of basketball in Africa. From the dreams of a…

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• House of Cardin

  Millions know the iconic logo and ubiquitous signature but few know the man behind the larger-than-life fashion label. This film is a rare peek into…

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• Hungry to Learn

  This film by Soledad O’Brien and Geeta Gandbhir introduces the faces behind an American crisis–college students so strapped to pay tuition that they can’t afford…

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• I Am Not Alone

  On Easter 2018, a man puts on a backpack and begins to walk across Armenia. His mission: to inspire a velvet revolution and topple the…

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• I Bleed

  Inspired by a true story, I Bleed is the intimate confession of a person living with HIV and seeks to demystify issues that, to this…

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• The Ice Climber

  Hailing from the mountains of North Carolina, Anthony is no stranger to elevation. He lives for the winter time when he can climb the frozen…

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• If Anything Happens I Love You

  Two bereaved parents are comforted by a supernatural visit from the daughter they lost, ushering them through a waltz of their once happy life. This…

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• I'm No Holiday

  This comical mockumentary portrait chronicles renowned fireworks photographer Lawrence Sendass, played by Steve Zahn, as he attempts to reframe his work through the memory of…

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• Immortal Beloved

  This biography chronicles the life of legendary composer Ludwig van Beethoven (Gary Oldman) and details his transformation from passionate young man to troubled genius. Following…

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• In a Lonely Place

  Part of our 2020 Film Noir Friday series, this thriller was helmed by Nicholas Ray and stars Humphrey Bogart as a potentially violent screenwriter who…

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• Infinite Scroll

  A man catches a virus–a computer virus. This short screens as part of the Late Night Shorts block of films

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• Inoculation

  A woman faces an ultimatum from her husband, rooted in his desperate drive to protect them from impending environmental catastrophe. This short screens as part…

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• Inside Blue

  A pathological man needs all of his home decorations to be placed inside of square frames of adhesive tape in order to maintain peace of…

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• Interstate 8

  In the southern US, two young women meet by chance in a police car and, without speaking a word to each other, are confronted with…

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• I've Got Issues

  Calling to mind the work of Swedish surrealist Roy Andersson, Steve Collins’ deadpan comedy I’ve Got Issues features the likes of Jim Gaffigan and Macon…

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• The Keeper

  The Keeper tells the incredible true story of a German soldier and POW who, amid British post-war protests, secures the position of goalie for Manchester…

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• The Kite

  Told with enchanting, richly-textured images, this tale of a man, his grandson and a kite is about remembering those who are no longer with us.…

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• Kitty's Naughty Knickers

  An aspiring law student resorts to selling her dirty underwear online, accidentally balancing the scales of justice with her ex at the same time. This…

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• Late Night Shorts

  Thursday, July 16, 2020 7:30 pm gates open, show begins at dusk Marketplace Cinemas Drive-In 2095 Peters Creek Parkway Winston-Salem, NC 27127 Buy tickets Join…

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• Lina from Lima

  In this collision of social realism with fantastical, Busby Berkeley-inspired musical sequences, Peruvian domestic aide Lina works for a wealthy Chilean family. With Christmas around…

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• Little Chief

  Against the landscape of a rural reservation in Oklahoma, the lives of a Native woman and nine-year-old boy intersect over the course of a school…

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• Long Drive to Yadkin

  A man walks into a barber shop for one last haircut. This short screens as part of the NC Shorts 2 block of films

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• Lost Bayou

  In this hauntingly evocative Southern Gothic mystery, a struggling addict ventures into the Louisiana swampland to reconnect with her faith healer father, only to discover…

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• Love Sarah

  A young woman wishes to fulfill her mother’s dream of opening a bakery in Notting Hill, London. To do this, she enlists the help of…

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• Love Type D

  Sasha Collington returns to RiverRun with her debut feature, developed from the short Lunch Date, a 2013 festival selection. Love Type D introduces us to…

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• Love You Tyler

  When Luke starts to talk about his new girlfriend, Tyler, who happens to have the same name and career as his roommate, things get a…

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• Lulu DotAway

  In a town where everybody has dots, Lulu is the natural center of attention, as she has the most beautiful dots. When she suddenly starts…

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• Making Apes: The Artists Who Changed Film

  Making Apes takes a look back at the makeup artists, led by Tom Burman and John Chambers, who were behind one of the most groundbreaking…

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• The Masque of Blackness

  The Masque of Blackness is a hand drawn animation re-imagining Ben Jonson’s 1605 play of the same name and Joseph Conrad’s 1899 novella Heart of…

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• Master Moley By Royal Invitation

  A young mole picks a rose from the Queen’s Garden, not knowing that this simple act will change not only his life, but the life…

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• The Match

  An OkCupid date leads to love, marriage, and an organ transplant. This short film precedes the feature Love Type D

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• Medium Rare

  Medium Rare is a whimsical stop-motion survey of functional and aesthetic values in recurrent, yet questionable, domestic scenarios. This short screens as part of the…

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• Military Wives

  With their partners away serving in Afghanistan, a group of women on the home front form a choir and quickly find themselves at the center…

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• Misguided

  Tom, a clumsy guide retriever, take his eye off his blind master, Albert, when a tennis ball distracts him, putting his owner in danger. This…

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• The Moon's Not that Great

  After an astronaut returns from her lunar mission to find that the public no longer cares about the moon, the stories of the astronaut, a…

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• The Most Magnificent Thing

  This inspirational story is about a little girl with a creative spirit, determined to make great things. When she receives a toolkit as a present,…

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• Mr. Somebody

  A former Crip gang member searches for redemption after fourteen years behind bars. This short screens as part of the Documentary Shorts 1 block of…

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• Mum

  After 15 years of averting the source of her anxiety, Mariam at last walks the journey of voicing her avoided emotions regarding her non Emirati…

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• My Brother Luca

  When an imaginative little girl discovers that her older brother might have superpowers, she sets out on a quest to make sure everyone else sees…

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• My Darling Vivian

  This film recently premiered at the 2020 SXSW Film Festival, and for the first time tells the story of Vivian Liberto–Johnny Cash’s first wife. A…

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• Narrative Shorts 1

  Films in this program of short narrative works include: I’m No Holiday Nighty Night Nowhere to Nun Quiet Carriage Sales Ready Star or Pound Sunday…

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• Narrative Shorts 2

  Films in this program of short narrative works include: Automatic Frederick Douglass Boulevard aka Food & Drink Boulevard aka F.D.B. Room 264 ShoeGazer Suze Tattoo…

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• Narrative Shorts 3

  Films in this program of short narrative works include: Between a Rock and a Hard Place Guard Dog Pura Vida Terminal Tree #3

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• Narrowsburg

  Narrowsburg, NY was poised to become the “Sundance of the East”–or so the Castellanos would have locals believe. When a glamorous French movie producer and…

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• Navigating Thru

  Tuesday, July 21, 2020 7:30 pm gates open, show begins at dusk Marketplace Cinemas Drive-In 2095 Peters Creek Parkway Winston-Salem, NC 27127 Buy tickets Every…

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• NC Shorts 1

  Once again this year, we are proud to feature several fantastic films from talented filmmakers working right here in our own backyard. Click the links…

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• NC Shorts 2

  Once again this year, we are proud to feature several fantastic films from talented filmmakers working right here in our own backyard. Click the links…

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• Nighty Night

  A nervous man (comedian Chris Gethard) struggles to fall asleep during an in-office sleep study and enlists the overnight technician to help. This short screens…

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• Nowhere to Nun

  Two nuns go on the run when they discover they are about to be sent to a retirement home. This short screens as part of…

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• On a Magical Night

  After twenty years of marriage, Maria (Chiara Mastroianni) decides to leave her husband. She moves into room 212 of a nearby hotel, where she has…

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• On Broadway

  An all-star cast tells the inside story of Broadway’s return to prominence thanks to innovative work, inclusivity, and a savvy balance between art and commerce.…

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• Once Upon a River

  It’s 1978 and Margo Crane, a fifteen year-old part-Native teen, must take to Michigan’s Stark River on an odyssey reminiscent of Huck Finn after a…

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• One Wing in the Fire

  Hiking the nearly 2,200-mile Appalachian Trail is a mammoth undertaking. Those up to the task could use a little help from this benevolent, chain-smoking Trail…

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• Original Body of Pain

  Original Body of Pain captures the intense and often generational nature of addiction through portraits of two women trying to escape its clutches. But as these…

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• The Other Lamb

  Life with Shepard (Game of Thrones‘ Michiel Huisman) is the only life Selah (Raffey Cassidy) has ever known. Their self-sufficient community possesses no modern technology,…

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• Pace

  A man tries to keep pace in front of the hand of a clock, turning ever faster, until he’s overtaken by time itself in this…

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• Panel -- As I Knew Him: My Dad, Rod Serling

  Come hear Anne Serling’s presentation about the life of her famous father, and the subject of our Spotlight this year, Rod Serling. Based on her…

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• Panel -- Citizen Canine: Dogs in the Movies

  Wendy Mitchell, a Winston-Salem native who is now a London-based film journalist and author of the new book Citizen Canine: Dogs in the Movies, will…

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• Panel: From Page to Screen

  Join North Carolina authors Charlie Lovett and Jason Mott as they discuss the process of adapting books for the screen.  Both are New York Times…

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• Panel: The State of North Carolina Filmmaking

  Come and hear from Rebecca Clark, the Executive Director of the Piedmont Triad Film Commission, and a panel of filmmaker and legislative guests talk about…

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• Patterns

  Fierce and corrosive competition exists in the executive branch of Ramsey & Co., a New York industrial colossus headed by Walter Ramsey, its cold, designing…

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• The Perfect Candidate

  When Maryam, a young Saudi doctor, is prevented from attending a conference without a male guardian’s approval, she seeks help from a relative but inadvertently…

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• Petty Thing

  The summer afternoon was nothing special, until the kids in the village, playing war games, found a replica pistol. As the trigger was pulled, the…

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• Pigeon Kings

  Pigeon Kings takes us through the backyards of South Central Los Angeles, where men are devoted to tumbling pigeons. We watch as enthusiasts train birds…

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• Pitch Fest and Panel

  Pitch Fest invites student filmmakers to pitch their ideas for new documentaries to a panel of expert judges in the hopes of being awarded a cash…

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• Planet of the Apes

  George Taylor and two other astronauts come out of deep hibernation to find that their ship has crashed on what they believe to be a…

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• Pre-film Presentation -- Bogart and Grahame in 4K: Restoring the Classics in the Digital Age

  Join Grover Crisp, Executive Vice President of Asset Management, Film Restoration & Digital Mastering at Sony Pictures Entertainment, as he discusses the process and challenges…

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• Pressure

  Pressure follows a boy as he faces a slew of obstacles throughout the school day. He’s dealing with what feels like the weight of the…

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• Pura Vida

  Two adolescent brothers rebel against their father, a factory foreman, who becomes a scapegoat for the financially frustrated community. This short screens as part of…

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• Queen of Lapa

  A proud transgender sex worker since the age of eleven, Luana Muniz, now fifty-nine, shapes a new reality in her “hostel” by housing a new…

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• Quiet Carriage

  A man must decide whether to intervene and stop a casual commuting rule breaker, or live with a lifetime of regret. This short screens as…

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• Quilt Journeys

  Journeys can be transformative. And while most begin as a single step towards a known destination, for a community of African-American women anchored in the…

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• Remembering Shakespeare

  Remembering Shakespeare asks the simple question–what lines of Shakespeare do you remember and why? This documentary film engages participants in a dialogue about memory, memorization…

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• Requiem for a Heavyweight

  Like Patterns before it, this film began as a teleplay. The original production aired on Playhouse 90 and earned a Peabody Award for Rod Serling,…

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• Resistance

  Jesse Eisenberg stars as a nascent Marcel Marceau, still a struggling actor when the Nazis seize France during World War II. Based on the true…

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• Room 264

  A woman arrives in an unfamiliar environment and reflects on how she got to be there. As the room comes to life she reaches for…

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• Rope-a-Dope

  A janitor is forced to defend his honor against a high school bully. This short screens as part of the Late Night Shorts block of…

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• Runaway Radish

  One day, a small Daikon radish comes to life in a suburban farmer’s market. A rambunctious terrier is determined to catch it, and chases it…

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• Saguaro

  The loneliest Saguaro cactus in the world spends his time collecting garbage that blows across the desert and sticks to his body. Then in the…

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• Sales Ready

  Lost in a multilevel marketing scheme and misguided by his self-involved father, Alister must find a way to end the manipulative cycle he has perpetuated.…

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• Saturday Morning Cartoons

  Each year RiverRun presents our own version of Saturday Morning Cartoons to our young audiences. We search high and low for the best new animated…

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• The Seer and the Unseen

  Against a spectacular Icelandic landscape, this film follows a “seer” who communicates with a parallel realm of huldufólk–invisible spirits of nature that much of Iceland…

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• Seven Days in May

  At the height of the Cold War, U.S. President Jordan Lyman manages to get a nuclear disarmament treaty with the Soviet Union through the Senate;…

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• Shadow on the Wall

  Part of our Film Noir Series, this classic features Master of Cinema Honoree Gigi Perreau as a child who witnesses a murder, but enters a…

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• ShoeGazer

  26 year-old Sydney musters up the courage to ask her ex what went wrong, and the answer isn’t one she was quite prepared for. This…

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• Sixteen Thousand Dollars

  A struggling black college grad wakes up to find that reparations have finally been paid to descendants of slaves in America–but will the $16,000 checks…

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• Slay the Dragon

  It influences elections and sways outcomes–gerrymandering has become a hot-button political topic and symbol for everything broken about the American electoral process. But there are…

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• Smiles

  This short animated film is an amusing look into the world of sharks, with interviews from the majestic creatures themselves. They have been portrayed as…

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• Sound and Sole

  Arthur Grimes was born and raised in the Appalachian mountains and is the only professionally working, African-American buck dancer in Boone, North Carolina. Here, Arthur…

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• Sous la Glace

  On a lake, a heron is fishing while winter arrives. This short screens as part of the Animated Shorts 2 block of films

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• Standing Up, Falling Down

  Billy Crystal and Ben Schwartz star in this comedy about an unlikely friendship between a struggling young stand-up comedian and a flawed but charismatic dermatologist.…

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• Star or Pound

  As coworkers Megan and Eric sit in a conference room waiting for a conference call to start, they discuss the status of their romantic relationship.…

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• Still Plays with Trains

  Still Plays with Trains captures one man’s passion to share the joy of childhood. By recreating his 10th birthday with a 3,000 square foot replica…

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• Straight Up

  Todd is an obsessive-compulsive gay twentysomething whose fear of dying alone leads him to a baffling conclusion: he might not be gay after all. When…

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• Sunday Dinner

  After the recent death of their parents, a passionate Italian-American family reunites to enjoy their customary Sunday dinner. But one of them has a major…

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• Suze

  After their passionate night, Suze will find out she is allergic to her new friend. This short screens as part of the Narrative Shorts 2…

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• The Swallows of Kabul

  This arresting animated feature premiered at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival and is set in Kabul, Afghanistan during the summer of 1998. In love despite…

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• Tattoo

  A young Iranian woman runs into complications when she attempts to renew her driver’s license. This short screens as part of the Narrative Shorts 2…

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• Teenage Badass

  A recent premiere at the 2020 SXSW Film Festival, Teenage Badass takes us back to the mid-2000s and follows a band that has just won…

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• Terminal

  An eighty year-old woman spends her time at a bus station. She’s waiting for the right moment to leave this place forever. This short screens…

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• This Little Land of Mines

  This Little Land of Mines is about the resilience of the Lao people as they live among and work to clear yet unexploded bombs from…

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• Three Summers

  Over a trio of summers, a caretaker for luxury condominiums (played by the peerless Regina Casé of RiverRun 2015 award-winner The Second Mother) relies on her…

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• Tom Sax in a Clone Pit

  A man goes completely !!*$@%^ whilst trying to write an e-mail. This short screens as part of the Late Night Shorts block of films

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• Too Much Rain

  Winston-Salem’s own Out of Our Minds Studios created this animated short to take a look at overwhelming circumstances through the eyes of a little girl.…

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• Tree #3

  Cast for the second time as a background tree in the school play, an ambitious and imaginative immigrant boy leads a revolution on stage that…

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• The Truth

  Fabienne (Catherine Deneuve) is a French cinema icon. When she publishes her memoirs, her daughter Lumir (Juliette Binoche) returns to Paris with her husband (Ethan…

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• Unfinished Business

  A male stripper has an unusual experience on the job. This short screens as part of the Late Night Shorts block of films

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• Untamed Heart

  Director Tony Bill and producer Helen Bartlett, two of RiverRun’s 2020 Master of Cinema honorees, explore romance, sentimentality, and dying young with Untamed Heart. The…

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• Ups & Downs

  Public space and architecture surrounds us, influencing our everyday life in subtle ways. Stairs in particular tend to be primarily transitional spaces; we don’t tend…

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• VHYes

  A bizarre retro comedy shot entirely on VHS, VHYes takes us back to a simpler time, when twelve-year-old Ralph mistakenly records home videos and late…

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• Wander

  An energetic kid loves nature but does not know how to interact with it respectfully, which becomes a problem when she encounters a family of…

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• Washed

  A couple enlists the aid of a mysterious figure to help them with their seemingly insurmountable laundry problem. This short screens as part of the…

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• When the Light Comes

  Time streams away and influences numerous relationships in this animated short about life’s continuous journey. This short screens as part of the Animated Shorts 1…

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• Wonder

  An eleven year-old kid growing up in the inner city secretly dreams of trick-or-treating as Wonder Woman for Halloween. This short screens as part of…

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• Workshop: Seed and Spark Crowdfunding

  Most people think about crowdfunding simply as a fundraising tool, but it’s a great way to start (or continue) developing a direct connection with your…

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