Full Slate Announced for the 30th HIFF

HamptonsFilm has announced the full slate of programming for the 2022 edition of the Hamptons International Festival (HIFF). The 30th edition of HIFF will run as an extended 10-day event from October 7 to 16, and features a lineup of films that are 54 percent female-directed and represent 34 countries from around the world.

Oliver Hermanus’s “Living,” will open the festival on October 7. The film, distributed by Sony Pictures Classics, follows an ordinary man, reduced by years of oppressive office routine to a shadow existence, who at the 11th hour makes a supreme effort to turn his dull life into something wonderful. Making its East Coast premiere at HIFF, it stars Bill Nighy, Aimee Lou Wood, Alex Sharp and Tom Burke.

The festival’s Closing Night Film “Sr.,” directed by Chris Smith, will screen on Saturday, October 15, at 7:15 p.m. The film is a tender yet fittingly irreverent portrait of the life and career of Robert Downey Sr., the fearless, visionary American director who set the standard for counterculture comedy in the 1960s and 1970s. It is an inspired collaboration between celebrated documentarian Chris Smith, the subject’s son, Robert Downey Jr., and the man himself, who died in July 2021.

“We are thrilled to have the opportunity to close this year’s edition of the Hamptons International Film Festival with Chris Smith’s moving tribute to the late Robert Downey Sr.,” said David Nugent, artistic director of HamptonsFilm. “With this year’s inspiring and dynamic selection of films, we cannot wait to commemorate our milestone anniversary with our film-loving community out East.”

The festival has also announced that it will host Sarah Polley’s “Women Talking” as a Centerpiece Film, set to screen at 8 p.m. on October 11. The film, distributed by MGM and based on the novel by Miriam Toews, follows a group of women, part of an isolated religious community, who grapple with reconciling their reality with their faith, starring Claire Foy, Rooney Mara, Jessie Buckley, Judith Ivey, Ben Whishaw and Frances McDormand.

HIFF will also be hosting director, screenwriter and producer Chris Columbus to lead the Signature Program “Rowdy Talks,” where he will discuss his groundbreaking career in the film industry. On Monday, October 10, at 10 a.m., Among his many films are “Gremlins,” “Home Alone,” and “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.”

On Monday, October 10, HIFF will host a special screening of Apple TV+’s new documentary series “Gutsy” followed by an “A Conversation With …” discussion with the series host and executive producer Chelsea Clinton. The eight-part docuseries, based on The New York Times best-selling book “The Book of Gutsy Women,” features Hillary and Chelsea Clinton as they embark on a thought-provoking journey to speak with pioneering women artists, activists, community leaders and everyday heroes who show us what it truly means to be gutsy. Joining the Clintons in the series are some of their personal heroes including Glennon Doyle, Dr. Jane Goodall, Mariska Hargitay, Goldie Hawn, Kate Hudson, Kim Kardashian, Megan Thee Stallion, Amber Ruffin, Amy Schumer, Gloria Steinem, Wanda Sykes, Symone (aka Reggie Gavin), Abby Wambach, Natalie Wynn (aka ContraPoints) and many more.

HIFF has also announced additional Spotlight selections at this year’s event, including the East Coast Premiere of Tobias Lindholm’s “The Good Nurse,” and presentations of Rian Johnson’s “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” and Rodrigo Garcia’s “Raymond & Ray.” Alice Diop’s “Saint Omer” will also screen as part of the World Cinema Narrative section.

“We are delighted to be able to host a diverse class of talented filmmakers and actors from around the world at this year’s festival,” said Anne Chaisson, executive director of HamptonsFilm. “It is with great excitement that we can finally share the well-rounded selection of Centerpiece films, Spotlight screenings, and beyond that we are proud to program as part of the 30th anniversary of HIFF.”

For a full schedule and list of HIFF films, visit.hamptonsfilmfest.org.