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Banner: the 60th Chicago International Film Festival

Genre: Family Affairs


Two men sit in a car, one looking down at a map, and the other holding binoculars.

After the Storm (2016) (Umi yori mo mada fukaku)

Kore-eda Hirokazu  |   Japan
Japanese  
Drama, Family Affairs

A deadbeat dad is trapped with his family waiting out a typhoon. There, the fractured clan reckons with their past as they look to an uncertain future.

Two women sit in a laundromat, a camera on a tripod between them.

Alberta Number One

Alexander Carson  |   Canada
English  
Family Affairs, Film on Film, Road Movie

An eccentric film crew tours the monuments, museums, and roadside curios of Alberta in this hilarious, heartfelt Canadian road trip.

Two men, bundled in hats and sweaters, sit back to back in a snowy landscape.

Alpha

Jan-Willem van Ewijk  |   Netherlands, Slovenia, Switzerland
Dutch  
Drama, Family Affairs, Thriller

A father and son’s reunion in the Swiss Alps turns from tense to perilous when they embark on a backcountry ski day.

A woman stands profile, a red wall and another woman out of focus behind her.

Armand

Halfdan Ullmann Tøndel  |   Norway, Netherlands, Germany, Sweden
Norwegian  
Drama, Family Affairs, Women Centered

A mother (Renate Reinsve) is called to school to account for her six-year-old’s behavior. But who can say with certainty what really happened?

A Korean family stares at camera with fairly neutral expressions on their faces.

Between Goodbyes

Jota Mun  |   United States
Dutch, English, Korean  
Family Affairs, LGBTQ, Women Centered

A beautifully conceived and profoundly multilayered portrait of a Korean-born Dutch adoptee who reconnects with her birth parents after years of separation.

A person lies on their back in muddy water.

Bird

Andrea Arnold  |   United Kingdom, France
English  
Coming of Age, Family Affairs, Fantasy

As her family and friend group slide into chaos around her, teenaged Bailey finds solace in an improbable stranger in this tough but tender fairy tale.

A couple in a tiled pool. She holds him tendely as he floats on his back.

Bliss (Hemda)

Shemi Zarhin  |   Israel
Arabic, Hebrew  
Drama, Family Affairs, Romance

The delicate emotional balance of a married couple is put to the test when the past bursts back into their lives, in this perceptive, finely drawn drama.

A blonde woman wearing red lipstick and a red polka-dot dress stands agains a leaf-print papered wall.

Blitz

Steve McQueen  |   United Kingdom
English  
Drama, Family Affairs, Historical

London, WWII. 9-year-old George, sent to the countryside by his mother, embarks on an epic journey to return home and reunite with his family.

A tailor surrounded by spools of thread works on a pair of pants with a sewing machine.

Broker (2022)

Kore-eda Hirokazu  |   South Korea
Korean  
Crime, Drama, Family Affairs

An overwhelmed new mother partners with two baby traffickers to find the perfect well-paying parents for her infant in this heartbreaking human story.

A black man and a young boy sit at a dining table, pencils in hand working on something in front of them.

Color Book

David Fortune  |   United States
English  
Drama, Family Affairs, Social Commentary

In this intimate and affecting neorealist drama, a father takes his son to his first baseball game. But a series of obstacles will test him along the way.

A woman peers over a model set containing a ski hill, Mount Rushmore, a rocketship, and a roller coaster

The End

Joshua Oppenheimer  |   Ireland, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Italy, United Kingdom
English  
Family Affairs, Music, Science Fiction

In this Golden Age musical about one of the last families on earth, the sudden arrival of a stranger threatens the equilibrium of their seemingly perfect existence.

An older man wearing goggles and blue swimtrunks floats on his back in crystal blue water.

Faruk

Aslı Özge  |   Germany, Turkey, France
Turkish  
Drama, Family Affairs, Social Commentary

An elderly widower tries to fight the urban redevelopment scheme threatening his Istanbul condo building. With nostalgia, he navigates a changing world.

4 older women and 1 young man look at an ipad screen together.

Four Mothers

Darren Thornton  |   Ireland
English  
Comedy, Family Affairs, LGBTQ

A writer is torn between his burgeoning career in another country and caring for his aging mother at home in this charming Irish comedy.

Glancing over his shoulder, a perspiring man observes a room with his mother by his side

Go in Peace [short film] (Al nan la paix)

Jean Gaspa  |   France
French, Haitian creole  
Drama, Family Affairs, Social Commentary

When Evens and his mom planned a trip to the consulate office, they were hoping for a quick errand. They end up waiting hours to learn the status of Evens’ travel documents, and everyone in the overcrowded waiting room grows more aggravated — and interconnected — with each other.

A man and a woman, he looks down at her with kindness in his eyes.

Happy Holidays

Scandar Copti  |   Palestine, Germany, France, Italy, Qatar
Arabic, Hebrew  
Drama, Family Affairs, Social Commentary

A minor car accident triggers a cascading chain of events exposing lies and unspoken truths in this panoramic portrait of a patriarchal society.

A woman holds a phone to her ear, her face lined with concern.

Hard Truths

Mike Leigh  |   United Kingdom, Spain
English  
Drama, Family Affairs, Social Commentary

Legendary British filmmaker Mike Leigh directs this fierce, compassionate, and darkly humorous study of family and the thorny ties that bind us.

In a restaurant, an old woman cross-stitching sits across from a younger a woman, who is drinking boba tea.

Have I Swallowed Your Dreams [short film]

Clara Chan  |   Canada
English  
Animation, Family Affairs, Family Friendly

An immigrant mother and daughter have a heartfelt conversation about the ways their hopes and dreams have changed over time, growing beyond their wildest imaginations. This compassionate story, told with boundless color and creativity, brings to life the power of intergenerational understanding.

A young man holds a young woman lovingly, their livingroom behind them.

Here

Robert Zemeckis  |   United Kingdom, United States
English  
Drama, Family Affairs

The director, writer and stars of Forrest Gump reunite for an emotional journey through generations of human experience.

A person crouches on a stool within a dark room that is filled with different kinds of lamps.

I Can No Longer See [short film]

Raine Yung  |   United States
English  
Art, Coming of Age, Family Affairs

A self-portrait of trauma, dilemma, objectification, and relief told through a collection of experimental shorts.

A Giraffe stares straight at camera thoughtfully.

Life and Other Problems (Livet og andre problemer)

Max Kestner  |   Denmark, United Kingdom, Sweden
Danish, English  
Environmental, Family Affairs, Social Commentary

The killing of a giraffe in a Copenhagen Zoo is the launching pad for this wry, provocative essay film about life, death, biology, and human and animal consciousness.

A father looks proudly at his son in a children's playroom.

Like Father, Like Son (2013) (Soshite chichi ni naru)

Kore-eda Hirokazu  |   Japan
Japanese  
Drama, Family Affairs

A couple learns that, due to a hospital mix-up years ago, they must welcome their unknown biological son — and bid farewell to the boy they’ve long loved.

A boy, backlit by the sun, stares out a window.

Listen to the Voices (Kouté vwa)

Maxime Jean-Baptiste  |   Belgium, France, French Guiana
French, Guianese Creole  
Coming of Age, Family Affairs, Music

Melrick, 13, summers with his grandmother in French Guiana. After discovering his family’s tragic past, he searches for ways to connect to his history.

A well manicured woman in a sequin jacket holds her cell phone out in front of her, contemplating.

Mistress Dispeller

Elizabeth Lo  |   China, United States
Chinese  
Family Affairs, Romance, Women Centered

In this real-life docudrama, a woman in China desperate to save her marriage hires a professional “mistress dispeller” to break up her husband’s affair.

Two young girls and two young boys sit on a bed. The oldest boy looks serious while the others are smiling.

Nobody Knows (2004) (Daremo shiranai)

Kore-eda Hirokazu  |   Japan
Japanese  
Coming of Age, Drama, Family Affairs

When their mother disappears, a young boy and his three siblings must figure out how to get by on their own in this at once heartfelt and heartbreaking drama.

Close-up on a woman and a man in black and white. She is looking at him concerned as he looks down at the ground.

O [short film]

Rúnar Rúnarsson  |   Iceland, Sweden
Icelandic  
Drama, Family Affairs, Social Commentary

A lonely man struggles to hide his alcohol addiction during an important reunion with an estranged loved one. A naturalistic and unflinching glimpse into one man’s inner turmoil, this stark and intimate portrait is told with profound humanity.

A man and woman sit before a bookshelf, looking at each other.

The Other Way Around (Volveréis)

Jonás Trueba  |   Spain, France
Spanish  
Comedy, Family Affairs, Romance

A couple decides to throw a party to celebrate their amicable breakup. Their loved ones are skeptical, but they say it’s what they want. Is it really?

Black and White image of a woman pointing a film camera towards the viewer, she adjsuts the focus.

A Photographic Memory

Rachel Elizabeth Seed  |   United States
English  
Art, Family Affairs, Women Centered

A filmmaker pieces together a picture of her mother, a renowned Chicago-born photojournalist, attempting to close the gap between herself and the woman she never knew.

4 black men around a dining table looking off camera left.

The Piano Lesson

Malcolm Washington  |   United States
English  
Drama, Family Affairs, Literary Adaptation, Social Commentary

A family clash over an heirloom piano explodes. The battle between brother and sister — one hopes to sell it, the other refuses to give it up — unleashes haunting truths about how the past is perceived and who defines a family legacy.

An old man smiles, in the background two boys laugh.

The Quiet Son (Jouer avec le feu)

Delphine Coulin & Muriel Coulin  |   France
French  
Drama, Family Affairs, Social Commentary

When his sons’ paths begin to radically diverge, a father must figure out how to love and support them both in this intimate, urgent family drama.

A man in a red hoodie and a man in a blue hoodie stare up at something behind camera together.

A Real Pain

Jesse Eisenberg  |   United States, Poland
English  
Comedy, Family Affairs, Religion

This emotional comedic journey follows mismatched cousins David (Jesse Eisenberg) and Benji (Kieran Culkin) on a tour through Poland to honor their grandmother.

Two kids sit together and smile at eachother in a dirty, tiled hallway.

Rita

Paz Vega  |   Spain
Spanish  
Coming of Age, Drama, Family Affairs, Women Centered

Seen through the eyes of 7-year-old Rita, a mother (Paz Vega) struggles to protect her children in this poignant look at innocence and violence in the home.

A man stands looking into camera wearing a superman shirt and cape with a superman action figure in the background.

Saving Superman [short film]

Adam Oppenheim, Samuel-Ali Mirpoorian  |   United States
English  
Family Affairs, Social Commentary

57-year-old Jonathan is a staple of the Glen Ellyn community, thriving thanks to the support of his mother and friends as he navigates life with Autism Spectrum Disorder. When a new landlord increases his rent twice over, locals rally to raise the cost difference and his story goes global.

A woman stands in the foreground, two women stand behind her. They all look somewhat concerned.

The Seed of the Sacred Fig

Mohammad Rasoulof  |   Germany, Iran, France
Farsi  
Drama, Family Affairs, Social Commentary, Thriller

When Iman’s handgun mysteriously goes missing, he reaches a breaking point in this tense domestic drama crossed with a paranoid political thriller.

A closely knit, multigenrational family smile together

Shoplifters (2018) (Manbiki kazoku)

Kore-eda Hirokazu  |   Japan
Japanese  
Drama, Family Affairs, Social Commentary

A tight-knit unit of petty thieves and outsiders comes together to shelter an abandoned child, but an unforeseen incident threatens to tear apart their newfound family.

A raccoon stares into a dumpster, where a decorated box lies amongst the trash.

So Long Memories [short film]

Ruihan Zhang, Wenzi Shan, Xingyi Chen  |   China
Chinese  
Animation, Family Affairs, Family Friendly

An old man accidentally throws away a precious item as he is moving out of his home. An observant raccoon rescues the memento, and the two share a special moment upon its return.

Black and white image of houses with snowy mountains behind them.

Songs of Love and Hate [short film]

Saurav Ghimire  |   Nepal, Belgium
Nepali  
Family Affairs, Romance

The heartbroken host of a love advice radio show traverses through the mountains of Nepal. Testimonies from his audience about their problems haunt his journey in this deeply contemplative work that overflows with sadness and yearning.

Three teenaged friends sit next to each other. One girl stares at another, unbeknownst to them.

Space Coast [short film]

Caroline Bates  |   United States
English  
Coming of Age, Drama, Family Affairs

A group of friends come to terms with the end of childhood in a dying tourist town home to the former space program.

A family of 5 in the kitchen. The father talks to the young boy while the two girls look at their mother.

The Sparrow in the Chimney

Ramon Zürcher  |   Switzerland
German  
Drama, Family Affairs

Still grieving the death of her overbearing mother, Karen hosts a family gathering that turns fiery as the ghosts of her past reveal themselves.

A young man and a female nurse look down with concerned expressions, fluorescent hospital lights in the ceiling behind them.

Terminally Ill [short film]

Chris Cole  |   United States
English  
Comedy, Family Affairs, Music

In a hospital room, a grandson sits beside his declining grandmother. With seemingly no other options, he makes a final effort to save her life by performing a freestyle rap, and is soon joined by some unlikely performers.

Two young women peer curiously into a fish tank.

The Damp Season [short film]

Olivia Huilin Gao  |   United States
Chinese  
Drama, Family Affairs, Women-Centered

In this drama about family ties, a young girl comes across the teenaged version of her immigrant mother from whom she has long been estranged. A newfound empathy for her mother leads them to reconnect.

A woman looks in with disapproval, in the mirror next to her a man with a black eye is reflected.

Three Kilometres to the End of the World (Trei kilometri până la capătul lumii)

Emanuel Pârvu  |   Romania
Romanian  
Family Affairs, LGBTQ, Religion

In a conservative village, a brutal attack on a closeted gay teen sparks a moral panic that upends a seemingly tranquil rural community.

A photo of a woman smiling, with other images of family photos refelcted on her face.

Time Passages

Kyle Henry  |   United States
English  
Family Affairs, LGBTQ

In a moving, playful testament to the bond between mother and son, a filmmaker journeys into his past during an especially challenging year.

A woman stands with her arms out and her mouth open as if to sing.

Toni Erdmann (2016)

Maren Ade  |   Germany, Austria
German  
Comedy, Family Affairs, Women Centered

A prickly corporate consultant is at her wit’s end after her hippie father disguises himself as a life coach in an effort to reconnect in this offbeat comedy.

A doctor dressed for surgery looks at anoher doctor.

Transplant

Jason Park  |   United States
English, Korean  
Coming of Age, Drama, Family Affairs

Whiplash meets Grey’s Anatomy in this intense psychological drama about an ambitious Korean-American resident training under a notorious heart surgeon.

An older man, in a home lit by sunlight, with a young child haning over his shoulders.

The Village Next to Paradise

Mo Harawe  |   Austria, France, Germany, Somalia
Somali  
Drama, Family Affairs, Social Commentary

The humble dreams of a group of Somali misfits form the backbone of this gentle, gorgeously realized ode to the persistence of life in the face of death.

A woman tighly hugs her young son in a filed of yellow flowers

Who Do I Belong To (Mé el Aïn)

Meryam Joobeur  |   Tunisia, France, Canada
Arabic  
Drama, Family Affairs, Religion, Social Commentary

An isolated village in northern Tunisia is beset by strange events when matriarch Aicha’s son returns from war with a mysterious pregnant bride.

Two people stand in a living room watching a monitor of a long-haired woman talking to camera wearing a blue striped apron.

Winter Portrait [short film]

Fernando Saldivia Yáñez  |   United States
Mapudungun, Spanish  
Family Affairs, Romance, Social Commentary

A misty afternoon returns a Mapuche couple to their wedding video. In their civil ceremony, they are noted as one of only two couples married in the indigenous language of Mapudungun.