Regal UA Midway Forest Hills (Photo: Festival of Cinema NYC)
Aug. 27, 2021 By Michael Dorgan
A 10-day film festival will return to Forest Hills next month featuring more than 120 films.
Festival of Cinema NYC will bring independent movies from around the world and will run from Sept. 24 through Oct. 3 at the Regal UA Midway.
The festival will screen movies, documentaries, short films, web series and animation. Two world premieres are among the films that will be shown at the decades-old movie theater, located at 108-22 Queens Blvd.
The festival, now in its fifth year, will return as an in-person event after organizers switched the 2020 edition to a drive-in movie format due to the pandemic. Last year’s festival took place at St John’s University campus in Jamaica, where the films were projected on a 5-story outdoor screen.
“We could not be more excited to return to our home at the Regal and see these amazing films on screen,” said Jayson Simba, the executive director of the festival.
“We pride ourselves on bringing world cinema to the many film lovers here in Queens and this year’s lineup really delivers on that front.”
The festival will open with the screening of Drunk Bus, a comedy-drama directed by John Carlucci and Brandon Laganke. The movie features actor Charlie Tahan – who is known for his role in the Netflix series Ozark.
Actors Charlie Tahan and Pineapple Tangaroa in a scene from Drunk Bus. The movie will open the festival on Sept. 24 (Photo provided by Festival of Cinema NYC)
The two world premiers being shown at the festival are the Brazilian thriller A Cisterna (The Well) and the American-made 3D movie Leda.
A Cisterna tells the story of a popular television host’s fight for survival when she is kidnapped and held inside a well, while Leda is about a woman who descends into madness while living alone in a large family estate.
Cinema-lovers can also look forward to movies from Canada, Russia, the United Kingdom, Turkey and the Netherlands.
Organizers will host a charity night on Sept. 28 to raise funds for relief efforts in Cuba, given the recent political turmoil there.
An animated short film called Esperanza vs. the U.S. Embargo of Cuba will be screened on the night of the fundraiser along with a documentary called The Singular Story of Unlucky Juan. The screenings will be followed by a 60-minute discussion with guest speakers and activists.
An LGBTQ-themed film called Moon Manor will close out screenings on Oct. 2, while an award ceremony will wrap up the festival on Oct. 3.
Tickets to the Festival of Cinema cost $17 for regular daily screenings. Opening and closing nights are $30 and include entry into the after-parties following those screenings.
Tickets can be purchased by clicking on this link. For more information on the festival visit http://www.festivalofcinemanyc.com/.
A scene from the movie Moon Manor which will be shown at the Festival of Cinema NYC (Photo provided by Festival of Cinema NYC)
A poster for the Festival of Cinema NYC
