7 MUST SEE MOVIES: 4/8 Sarasota Film Festival

If a film is marked "Artist in Attendance" that means you are in for an incredible experience. One or more of the filmmakers (director/producer/writer/etc.) will be in the theater to do a Q&A with the audience after the movie. Actors sometimes appear as well.MARIA THE KOREAN BRIDE

Artist in Attendance

Maria Yoon is a Korean-born artist who lives and works in New York City. After receiving endless questions about her relationship status, Yoon created a new art project to address the issues she was experiencing. Maria the Korean Bride was a multi-media performance, a character designed to bring attention to the social pressure that she has endured as a first generation Korean-American unmarried woman. In her document of her performance, Yoon challenges and re-examines marriage in America. The film includes interviews with various participants and mock wedding ceremonial performances with random strangers that she met along the way.

Mon, 4/8 8:15 PM

Tue, 4/9 8:00 PM

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FIRST COMES LOVE

Artist in Attendance

First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes baby in the baby carriage. For filmmakerNina Davenport, that old playground song didn’t go as planned. Single at age forty-one, she decides to have a baby on her own, never minding the odds stacked against her or the extra hurdles of living in New York City. Filming the whole process, she excels at candour and comedy, revealing the joys and pains of becoming a parent while confronting her own family history. Filled with the emotional substance of real life, FIRST COMES LOVE is an intimate look at the modern condition of parenthood.

Mon, 4/8 7:15 PM

Tue, 4/9 5:30 PM

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GREAT CHICKEN WING HUNT

Artist in Attendance

THE GREAT CHICKEN WING HUNT is a comedic documentary about Buffalo Wings and their place in American culture, directed by American journalist Matt Reynolds, in collaboration with Slovak director Zuza Piussi. It follows a ragtag cast of characters searching for the best Buffalo wing, including a Hawaiian chef, a competitive eater, a Slovak film crew and Reynolds' girlfriend, Lucie. The film documents the wing phenomenon and explores the popularity of hot wings and the nature of perfection. The team travels 2,627 miles, tries 284 types of wings, and deliberates for two days before picking a winner.

Mon, 4/8 1:15 PM

Tue, 4/9 9:15 PM

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MAIDENTRIP

Artist in Attendance

youthFEST

After winning a protracted legal battle that captivated her home nation of The Netherlands, 14-year-old Laura Dekker was able to set out on a two-year voyage in pursuit of her dream to become the youngest person ever to sail around the world alone. In Jillian Schlesinger’sMAIDENTRIP, Dekker’s autobiographical footage from Dekker’s journey is edited into a portrait of a confident, complicated young woman. Facing numerous challenges on board her ship Guppy, Dekker’s perseverance is an inspirational story for people of all ages, a reminder that believing in yourself and your abilities can allow you to make history.

Mon, 4/8 7:30 PM

Tue, 4/9 5:00 PM

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WHEN I WALK

In 2006, the 25-year-old, vital, handsome, talented Jason DaSilva was on a beach with his family when he suddenly fell down and couldn’t get back up. When doctors diagnosed DaSilva with multiple sclerosis, he decided to exercise more in the hope of warding off the disease, which only worsened his condition. At a loss, DaSilva turned to his mother, who reminded him of his talents as an artist and filmmaker. So, Da Silva picked up the camera and turned it on himself, documenting his entire journey with this crippling disease over the past 8 years.

Mon, 4/8 1:45 PM

Tue, 4/9 3:00 PM

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LAND OF HOPE

LAND OF HOPE depicts one family’s struggle to stay together in extraordinary circumstances. The action takes place in the Nagashima prefecture (a fictional location), a small town butted up against a nuclear power plant. Yoichi Ono (Jun Murakami) and his wife Izumi (Megumi Kagurazaka) lead a peaceful existence tending to the farm run by Yoichi’s parents, Yasuhiko (Isao Natsuyagi) and Chieko (Naoko Otani). One day, an earthquake disrupts the reactor at the nearby nuclear power plant and their lives are suddenly and forever changed. The story has an incredible realism and was filmed in the deserted Fukushima.

Mon, 4/8 2:15 PM

Tue, 4/9 7:45 PM

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DEFLOWERING OF EVA VAN END

This ironic tragicomedy follows an apparently picture-perfect middle class family as they fall apart when confronted by actual perfection, a German exchange student. A handsome young stranger, Veit (Rafael Gareisen) throws everyone else's imperfect ways into high relief and tests each character’s sanity. His arrival into the dysfunctional van End family exposes the clan to their true desires and inner selves, while also highlighting how the lack of communication among them makes cohabitation practically impossible. His presence reveals the submissiveness of the father, the desperation of the mother in her quest for inner peace and the children’s unhappiness.

Mon, 4/8 3:15 PM

Wed, 4/10 2:00 PM

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