The Heartland International Film Festival (HIFF) is back for another exciting round of programming, including an array of new and familiar venues! In this 31st year of the festival, there are virtual options in addition to events being held in-person at Newfields, Living Room Theaters, Kan-Kan Cinema & Brasserie, Landmark’s Glendale 12, and the Historic Artcraft Theatre. The festival runs from Oct. 6-16th, 2022.
This year, I am most excited about the following screenings:
Butterfly in the Sky
Fri, Oct 14th, 2:15 PM @ Living Room Theaters – Theater 2
Sat, Oct 15th, 3:30 PM @ The Toby Theater at Newfields
Sun, Oct 16th, 7:30 PM @ Living Room Theaters – Theater 2
“Butterfly in the Sky” tells the story of the beloved PBS children’s series “Reading Rainbow,” its iconic host LeVar Burton, and the challenges its creators faced in cultivating a love of reading through television.
Corsage
Mon, Oct 10th, 7:45 PM @ Kan Kan Cinema – Theater 2
Empress Elizabeth of Austria is idolized for her beauty and renowned for inspiring fashion trends. But in 1877, ‘Sisi’ celebrates her 40th birthday and must fight to maintain her public image by lacing her corset tighter and tighter. While Elizabeth’s role has been reduced against her wishes to purely performative, her hunger for knowledge and zest for life makes her more and more restless in Vienna. Special presentation of IFC Films. 2023 Academy Awards Best International Feature entry, Austria.
Girl Talk
Available October 6, 12:00 PM – October 16, 11:59 PM, 2022 for streaming
Sun, Oct 9th, 12:15 PM @ Kan Kan Cinema – Theater 2
Mon, Oct 10th, 5:30 PM @ Living Room Theaters – Theater 1
Girl Talk tells the timely story of five girls on a diverse, top-ranked Massachusetts high school competitive debate team. They are often talked over, under-represented and judged differently than their male counterparts, but each girl faces these challenges and shows us the value of speaking up and finding your true voice.
Good Night Oppy
Sun, Oct 16th, 4:45 PM @ Living Room Theaters – Theater 1
“Good Night Oppy” tells the inspirational true story of Opportunity, a rover that was sent to Mars for a 90-day mission but ended up surviving for 15 years. The film follows Opportunity’s groundbreaking journey on Mars and the remarkable bond forged between a robot and her humans millions of miles away.
The Lost King
HIFF Premium Event: Centerpiece
Wed, Oct 12th, 7:00 PM @ The Toby Theater at Newfields
An amateur historian defies the stodgy academic establishment in her efforts to find King Richard III’s remains, which were lost for over 500 years. Special presentation of IFC Films.
Louis Armstrong’s Black & Blues
HIFF Premium Event: Opening Night
Thu, Oct 6th, 7:00 PM @ The Toby Theater at Newfields
Louis Armstrong’s Black & Blues offers an intimate and revealing look at the world-changing musician, presented through a lens of archival footage and never-before-heard home recordings and personal conversations. This definitive documentary, directed by Sacha Jenkins, honors Armstrong’s legacy as a founding father of jazz, one of the first internationally known and beloved stars, and a cultural ambassador of the United States. The film shows how Armstrong’s own life spans the shift from the Civil War to the Civil Rights movement, and how he became a lightning rod figure in that turbulent era. Special presentation of Apple Original Films. Celebrate Opening Night of HIFF31 with Apple Original Films’ latest documentary “Louis Armstrong’s Black & Blues”! The evening will include a live performance by the Cliff Ratliff Quartet, featuring some of Armstrong’s greatest hits. Doors open & performance begins at 6 PM.
Objects
Available October 6, 12:00 PM – October 16, 11:59 PM, 2022 for streaming
Fri, Oct 7th, 7:45 PM @ Living Room Theaters – Theater 6
Wed, Oct 12th, 5:30 PM @ The Historic Artcraft Theater
Thu, Oct 13th, 7:15 PM @ Deboest Lecture Hall at Newfields
A fifty-year-old clump of grass, a sweater that once belonged to a French actress, and a forty-year-old sugar egg have become emotional treasures for the unique characters in Vincent Liota’s endearing, entertaining, and existential film. An NPR correspondent, a literary author, and a graphic designer let us in on the secret life of the special objects they keep to preserve memories, conjure experiences, and find meaning in their lives.
Scrap
Sat, Oct 8th, 3:00 PM @ Kan Kan Cinema – Theater 2
Mon, Oct 10th, 3:15 PM @ Living Room Theaters – Theater 2
Discover the vast and strangely beautiful places where things go to die and meet the people who collect, restore, and recycle the world’s scrap. SCRAP scratches beneath the flaking paint and rusting metal to reveal the beauty and pathos in the ugliness we leave behind.
The Whale
HIFF Premium Event: Closing Night
Sun, Oct 16th, 7:30 PM @ The Toby Theater at Newfields
From Darren Aronofsky comes “The Whale,” the story of a reclusive English teacher living with severe obesity who attempts to reconnect with his estranged teenage daughter for one last chance at redemption. Starring Brendan Fraser and based on the acclaimed play by Samuel D. Hunter.
Hometowns to Hollywood 