The fall season brings a whole lot of wonderful things to the fore: spectacular sunsets, the end of air conditioning, apples and gourds galore. But in the Hamptons, autumn also means it’s time for the powerhouse Mecca of movies, the Hamptons International Film Festival.
This year, the festival runs from Oct. 2 to 12, and offers an outstanding roster of great film, along with its requisite talent roster of directors, writers and actors.
It’s hard to believe HIFF is in its 34th year. What started as a weekend-long toe-dip (albeit an auspicious one, with Steven Spielberg and Martin Scorcese helming that first opening-night presentation) has become an 11-day mission of movies, with screenings like the SummerDocs series, educational offerings and more happening all year long.
Highlights of the festival this year include opening film (and East Coast premiere) I Play Rocky starring Anthony Ippolito in this story of Sylvester Stalone’s plight to make and break through with Rocky, Bunker starring Javier Barden and Penelope Cruz, The Life and Deaths of Wilson Shedd starring Amanda Seyfried, The only Living Pickpocket in New York with John Turtorro, (both Seyfried and Turturro will also be on hand and take the stage to talk about their respective films) and The Debut written and directed by Jesse Eisenberg and starring Julianne Moore and Paul Giamatti.
There are also five world premieres (Hamptons-centered Barbizon, cell phone-questioning documentary The Drug in Our Pocket, mycology-meets-the-movies Kingdom Fungi, French flick Maman Bibi Coco which examines the not always pretty side of parenting and its struggles, second-act-encouraging charmer Not Dead Yet co-starring longtime Hamptons dweller Kelly Bensimon, and the documentary feature Avedon which brings its director Ron Howard to the Hamptons for a special post-screening conversation.
Closing night will be the romantic-comedy Wicker starring the inimitable Olivia Coleman alongside Steven Skarsgård (who, apologies to the talented star, will forever be a hot vampire to us). The actor Bob Balaban will be awarded with HIFF’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
Dozens of other films will be shown as well, from shorty shorts and new-talent debuts to star turns with names you know in films that may well take the biggest honors during the 2027 awards season (and you can say you saw them here first!). Official festival venus include the Regal UA East Hampton Cinema, Guild Hall, Sag Harbor Cinema, Southampton Playhouse and East Hampton Middle School.
Tickets to films go on sale this weekend, with HIFF Benefactor an Movie Buff members getting a day’s jump on Sept. 19. All others can purchase tickets individually starting at $20 and up to $45 for opening night. Senior citizens get 20% off general and spotlight-designated movies in the line-up. Festival packages start at $180. The Hampton Jitney will be offering shuttle service between Southampton and Montauk during the festival and if you show your package badge or ticket stub, you ride for free. Get your seat for your favorite flick picks here.
