From the Inside: Chief Creative Officer David Nugent on What To Watch at HIFF 2025

Fall is in the air. And while this time of year may be calmer and quieter for most residents of the East End, for David Nugent, things are heating up in a big way.

Nugent is the chief creative officer of HamptonsFilm. It’s a job he’s been in for just a little more than a year, having previously served as the organization’s artistic director since 2012.

With the new title comes a wider array of responsibilities.

“It means having a greater hand in all elements in what’s going on creatively,” Nugent explained of his position during a recent phone interview. “It’s the Screenwriter Lab, the SummerDocs series, outdoor screenings. My hands are busy in all the creative goings on.”

That includes the biggest “going on” of the year — the annual Hamptons International Film Festival (HIFF) which will returns in its 33rd iteration from October 3 to 13 at venues in East Hampton, Sag Harbor and Southampton.

While as artistic director, Nugent has long been closely involved in the selection process for the festival lineup, but his responsibilities have changed somewhat with the new title.

“It means I’m watching less of the films ahead of time because my job is like many people’s jobs,” Nugent said. “There are emails and meetings, Zoom calls, traveling — all these things – but also programming.”

And while he still sees the films that are screening at this year’s festival, he’s not seeing many of them until much later in the process.

“We’re in the frantic period now. The program is locked, the films chosen and my colleagues and I are now watching the films,” he said. “Different programmers take the lead on different films. We’re all watching the films that our colleagues programmed that we haven’t seen. I started watching one at 6:45 this morning. So, I’m watching the same number of movies, but after they have been programmed.”

And in terms of numbers, that means there is quite a large volume of films for Nugent to see. This year’s HIFF slate was drawn from a total of 3,000 films. Some were submitted and some were screened by programmers at other festivals. Between features and shorts, there are 146 films in total in the festival.

“Last year, we had 65 to 70 features in the festival. This year, it’s 89 — so when you have more features, it’s harder by the volume to keep up with them,” he admitted. “Some of these films I saw 11 months ago. Some I saw 11 hours ago. Some are fresher in my mind than others and I’m catching up. It’s fun to do that before we meet the filmmakers.”

With that in mind, because there is such a huge array of films to choose from, Nugent agreed to offer his take on a few notable movies that ticket buyers might want to consider at this year’s HIFF.

“One that jumps out is ‘The Eyes of Ghana,’” Nugent said. “I watched it two days ago, we’ll have a panel with the director, Ben Proudfoot. He’s won two Oscars for shorts, but this is his first feature and it’s produced by Michelle and Barack Obama.”

The film tells the story of documentary filmmaker Chris Hesse, now 93 years old, who was the personal cinematographer for Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana’s first democratically elected leader. When Nkrumah was overthrown in a military coup in 1966, all film records documenting his leadership were destroyed. But Hesse secretly preserved the negatives of the footage he shot.

“It’s a fascinating story of a documentary filmmaker who filmed the end of colonial rule and the dawning of a new time in that continent,” Nugent said. “This footage thought to be lost has been rediscovered and digitized. It’s a fascinating look at this time in Africa in the late ’60s and the building of a country. Chris is still alive, and it shows the value of preserving the history of the time. It’s such a beautiful film. Kris Bowers did the composing for it, and incredible musicians perform the score.

“One of the other films I would mention is called ‘The Voice of Hind Rajab.’ It premiered at Venice a couple weeks ago and received a 23-minute ovation,” Nugent said. “It’s a narrative film built around an audio file. A six-year-old girl in Gaza is riding in a car with her family when they are shot upon by tanks and the IDF. The rest of the family was killed, she survived and called the Red Crescent for help.”

The film, which won the Silver Lion Grand Jury prize at the Venice International Film Festival, is directed by Kaouther Ben Hania, who blends fiction with documentary by incorporating the actual audio of Hind’s voice from the phone call with a fictional reenactment of the Red Crescent volunteers on the other end of the line struggling to devise a plan to reach her by ambulance.

“They dramatize what the ambulance workers would have been debating, if they were to rescue her or not,” Nugent said. “It’s incredibly moving.”

Another interesting documentary mentioned by Nugent is “Cover-Up” by directors Laura Poitras and Mark Obenhaus. It focuses on the career of Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter Seymour Hersh. As a journalist, Hersh was recognized in 1969 for exposing the My Lai massacre during the Vietnam War and its subsequent cover-up, which won the 1970 Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting.

“A journalist breaking controversial stories is very relevant now, and he’s been on the forefront of trying to expose American controversies at highest level,” Nugent said. “We’re excited we have the filmmaker coming.”

Also coming to speak at this year’s HIFF will be E. Jean Carroll, who is the subject of Ivy Meeropol’s documentary “Ask E. Jean.”

“She’s the woman who successfully sued Trump twice,” Nugent said of Carroll. “She has won her lawsuit against him for sexual abuse and also defamation. Trump owes her $85 million, she’s going to come here and we’re excited.

“Another one I love, ‘Underland,’ is a documentary about a group of different people with different jobs who all work underground,” he said. “A Mexican woman explores cenotes. One is a group of people who work in particle accelerators, another is a person who photographs abandoned sewers underground. It’s a lyrical look and a fascinating movie about all the things that take place underground. I loved it and hope people come to it.”

One final feature documentary that Nugent recommends is “The Perfect Neighbor” by Geeta Gandhbir which took home the Directing Award for U.S. Documentary at Sundance and was bought by Netflix after the premiere.

“A couple years ago, a white woman in Florida complained about African American children playing near her yard. One day it escalated to gunshots. Someone shot and killed,” Nugent said. “This movie looks back at what happened to make this woman get so upset to shoot someone. The movie is told through police body cam footage who captured the aftermath of this crime. This woman argued with the stand your ground law, you can legally kill someone.

“It’s riveting and infuriating and like nothing you’ve never seen before,” added Nugent, noting that the screening will include a panel discussion.

In terms of narrative films in this year’s lineup, one that mirrors current events is “Rebuilding,” a film written and directed by Max Walker-Silverman, who took part in the HamptonsFilm Screenwriter’s Lab four years ago. It stars Josh O’Connor as Dusty, a divorced father whose Colorado ranch burns down in a wildfire, and Meghann Fahy as his ex-wife, Ruby. Living in a government-run trailer, he looks to move forward by finding common ground with his new neighbors and reconnecting with Ruby and his young daughter.

“This movie screened at Sundance two weeks after the L.A. fires,” Nugent noted. “I love this movie, and we have the director coming.”

Another narrative film that Nugent loves, this one with a somewhat local angle, is “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You,” directed by Mary Bronstein. It stars Rose Byrne as Linda, a Montauk therapist and overwhelmed mother whose life is crashing down around her.

“Rose Byrne gives one of the best performances of the year,” Nugent said. “Linda’s husband is in the military, so he’s not present. She has to take care of her daughter who has an unspecified illness. Conan O’Brien plays her therapist in the most serious way possible.

“This movie is really good, though it’s a hard one to describe,” Nugent continued. “It sounds simple, but it’s not what you’re imagining. At times, it’s an uncomfortable watch. It’s funny and also absolutely terrifying in equal ways. It’s a challenging film, in a good way. Mary will be here.”

Another of Nugent’s narrative festival picks is Charlie Polinger’s “The Plague,” which he saw at Cannes earlier this year.

“It’s an American film about an all-boys water polo summer camp,” Nugent said. “It’s a group of 12- or 13-year-olds who show up and joke that one kid has the plague. If you touch him, you’ll get it. It deals with puberty and social anxiety among kids in America. It’s funny and smart and creepy. There are not a lot of American films at Cannes. This is the kind of good, smart American film we don’t see enough of these days.”

In terms of Spotlight films, Nugent likes Jafar Panahi’s “It Was Just an Accident,” which took home the Palme d’Or at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. Panahi is an Iranian filmmaker who has been arrested in Iran because of his work, and this new narrative film tells the story of car mechanic Vahid (Vahid Mobasseri) who believes he has encountered the government interrogator who tortured him, but he’s not sure because he never saw his torturer’s face. The film was shot in secret in Iran, where Panahi’s films are banned.

“It won the biggest prize at the biggest film festival in the world. It’s a fascinating film,” Nugent said.

Finally, in the shorts category, Nugent recommends a documentary from HIFF’s Conflict and Resolution program — a 33-minute film directed by Joshua Seftel called “All the Empty Rooms.” The film follows CBS correspondent Steve Hartman and photographer Lou Bopp as they embark on a seven-year project to document the empty bedrooms of children who have been killed in school shootings.

“This is one of the best shorts I’ve seen in years,” Nugent said. “It’s also current.”

In addition to the many film screenings, HIFF will offer four free morning talks at Village Bistro at 10 Main Street in East Hampton. The talks take place on Saturday and Sunday of the festival’s two weekends and will center on the business and logistics of making movies.

Tickets, passes and full schedule for the 33rd Annual Hamptons International Film Festival are available at hamptonsfilmfest.org. Screening venues include Regal UA East Hampton Cinema, 30 Main Street, East Hampton; Sag Harbor Cinema, 90 Main Street, Sag Harbor; East Hampton Middle School, 76 Newtown Lane, East Hampton; Guild Hall,158 Main Street, East Hampton; Southampton Playhouse, 43 Hill Street, Southampton.