The USA Film Festival Announces Schedule of Events for USAFF52

The USA Film Festival Announces Schedule of Events for USAFF52 In-Theater Program April 20-24, 2022

DALLAS – The USA Film Festival announces the schedule of events for the 52nd Annual USA Film Festival, April 20 - 24, 2022. The in-theater program will be held at the Angelika Film Center, 5321 E. Mockingbird Lane, Dallas, Texas.

One of the oldest festivals in the U.S., the USA Film Festival celebrates its 52nd year. The first festival to devote itself to the American filmmaker back in 1970, today presents over 50 days of diverse programs every year.

“We are so pleased to be able to celebrate Dallas Arts Month and bring our program to the community with filmmaker guests in attendance again.” USAFF Managing Director Ann Alexander says. “And with support from our Sponsors, this year’s program will be presented as all-free-admission.”

This year, the Festival is also pleased to expand its program partnership with Juno Films to present four critically-lauded new films including the Southwest premiere of A Song for Cesar, As In Heaven, Calendar Girls and The Pact.

This year’s program highlights and guests include:

● Salute to actress Sally Struthers in conjunction with a special 50th Anniversary screening of the Sam Peckinpah classic action thriller The Getaway (1972), shot in Texas, featuring Struthers’ memorable performance, and starring Steve McQueen and Ali MacGraw. An on-stage conversation with Ms. Struthers and film historian Foster Hirsch will follow the screening.

● Co-writers/directors Andres Alegria and Abel Sanchez will present A Song for Cesar, a rich documentary which portrays the previously untold story of the musicians and artists who dedicated their time, creativity and reputations to peacefully advance Cesar Chavez’s movement to gain equality and justice for America’s struggling farmworkers. The film will be followed by an on-stage conversation with Andres Alegria, Abel Sanchez, Arturo Rodriguez President of United Farm Workers, and Texas son and legendary American tejano performer Little Joe Hernandez.

● Salute to DFW journalist Bob Ray Sanders featuring a conversation and clip compilation program including clips from some of his early journalism work in the 1970s (from The KERA Collection). Fort Worth Star-Telegram Columnist Bud Kennedy will host the conversation with Sanders. The program is curated by the G. William Jones Film and Video Collection, SMU Libraries. (Sample video clip may be viewed here: https://youtu.be/4vNQ3N5A3QU

● USAFF alumni Dale Dickey will attend the Festival to present A Love Song, featuring her critically-acclaimed performance. The film weaves a spare, lyrical and ultimately joyful refrain out of the wondrous and transformative act of being alone. The film stars Dickey, Wes Studi, Michelle Wilson, Benja K. Thomas, John Way, and Marty Grace Dennis, and marks the feature debut for Max Walker-Silverman.

● Omar Sosa in person! Director Soren Sorensen will present Omar Sosa’s 88 Well-Tuned Drums, a fascinating documentary on the life and music of Cuban-born pianist and composer Omar Sosa – a multiple Grammy-nominee who has a career spanning 25 plus years as a solo artist and over 30 albums. An on-stage conversation with Sorensen and jazz pianist Omar Sosa will follow the screening. This program will be presented in partnership with Sammons Jazz and the Sammons Center for the Arts in celebration of D’JAM (Dallas Jazz Appreciation Month).

● Actor Theo Rossi and writer/director John Patton Ford will present Ford’s gripping feature debut Emily the Criminal. The film follows Emily (Aubrey Plaza) -- a woman saddled with student debt desperate for income who finds herself seduced by the quick cash and illicit thrills of black-market capitalism with an increasing interest in her mentor Youcef (Rossi).

● Director Barry Avrich and producer Mark Selby will present Oscar Peterson: Black + White, a ground-breaking “docu-concert” exploring the life and legacy of jazz icon and composer, Oscar Peterson: his sound, his stardom, and staggering virtuosity. This program will be presented in partnership with Sammons Jazz and the Sammons Center for the Arts in celebration of D’JAM (Dallas Jazz Appreciation Month).

● Writer/director Tea Lindeburg will present her accomplished feature debut As in Heaven, a hypnotic and visually arresting coming-of-age drama based on Marie Bregendahl’s 1912 novel “A Night of Death.”

● Calendar Girls Katherine Shortlidge and Donna Allio will present Maria Loohufvud and Love Martinsen’s life-affirming documentary Calendar Girls, a film that captures the challenges of being a woman over 60 and the delicate balance of family, home and dance.

● Double feature of short Texas documentary films including The Portal and the Park which looks back at the history and evolution of an important piece of public artwork by Robert Irwin located in Downtown Dallas. Originally known as “Portal Park Piece (Slice)” the film explores the reimagining of public land and the Irwin sculpture to serve as a “portal” into Downtown for a new generation of Dallasites when Carpenter Park reopens to the public on May 3, 2022. Texas Wines is Robert Burk’s short documentary about the history of Texas-grown wines and the industry today encompassing over 600 wineries.

● Jurors for the USAFF’s International Short Film Competition include actress/director Karen Allen, actor Jim Beaver, actress/producer/documentarian Diane Baker, artist/cinematographer Bill Butler, actor/writer/director Stephen Tobolowsky, actress Dale Dickey, actor/producer/musician Courtney Gains, manager/writer/producer/director Chris Roe, and animator/director Bill Haller.

Other highlights include: the comedy drama The Duke directed by Roger Michell, written by Richard Bean and Clive Coleman, starring Jim Broadbent and Helen Mirren; the uplifting The Phantom of the Open directed by Craig Roberts, written by Simon Farnaby and based on the book by Farnaby and Scott Murray, starring Mark Rylance, Sally Hawkins, and Rhys Ifans; the tense, thrilling drama 892 directed by Abi Damaris Corbin, written by Kwame Kwei-Armah, starring John Boyega, Michael K. Williams (in his final screen role), Nicole Beharie, Connie Britton, Olivia Washington, and Selenis Leyva; the delightful romantic comedy Our Almost Completely True Story directed by Don Scardino, written by Mariette Hartley and Jerry Sroka, starring Hartley, Sroka, Bernie Kopell, Tess Harper, Morgan Fairchild, John Rubinstein, Peter MacNicol, and Sam McMurray; the charming Loren & Rose directed by Russell Brown, starring Jacqueline Bisset and Kelly Blatz; Billie August’s The Pact, a sterling adaptation of Thorkild Bjørnvig's bestselling memoir “The Pact: My Friendship with Isak Dinesen;” the charming documentary The United States of Fashion Designer Elie Tahari directed by David Serero; Kigawa Tsuyoshi’s fascinating Yokosuka1953, a documentary that follows the search for Yoko Kigawa’s mother sixty-six years after they were separated in Japan (Yoko is now Barbara Mountcastle, a Fort Worth resident); and several compilation programs of short films as well as Texas-made works.

For more details and to view the full schedule of programs, visit www.usafilmfestival.com

Tickets for all programs are FREE (quantities are limited).

Tickets may be reserved in advance by calling The Festival office at 214-821-6300 beginning April 18th.

Day-of-Show Tickets will also be available at the Angelika Film Center upstairs sales desk beginning ONE HOUR prior to EACH showtime.

OFFICIAL SPONSORS
USA Film Festival 52 is supported in part by the City of Dallas Office of Arts & Culture, the Texas Commission on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts. This project is generously funded by Mid-America Arts Alliance, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the state arts agencies of Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Texas. Presenting Sponsors include Sidley Austin LLP, Dave Perry-Miller Real Estate, Gaedeke Group, Carol and Alan J. Bernon Family Charitable Foundation, Moody Fund for the Arts, Headington Company, Dallas Tourism Public Improvement District, Mary Fox and Laura Fox, Dallas Film & Creative Industries, and the Angelika Film Center.

ABOUT THE USA FILM FESTIVAL
A year-round film festival featuring 50 days of programs The USA Film Festival is a 52-year-old Dallas-based 501c3 non-profit organization dedicated to the recognition and promotion of excellence in the film and video arts. Year-round events include the annual KidFilm® Festival; monthly screenings; special programs and premieres; and the USA Film Festival, held each Spring. Throughout the year, the Festival presents a variety of membership, exhibition, educational, and cultural programs designed to promote equity and equality, and to bring together audiences and artists for a “live cinema” experience.

DALLAS ARTS MONTH
USAFF52 is pleased to be a part of Arts Month! Dallas Arts Month is designed to build awareness and appreciation for the work of Dallas artists and organizations and foster creative learning and activity throughout the city. We encourage you to participate in the many events and programs offered by art and cultural institutions representing all disciplines. For more information, please visit www.dallasartsmonth.com

DALLAS JAZZ APPRECIATION MONTH
USAFF52 is proud to once again partner with the Sammons Center for the Arts and Sammons Jazz to present screenings celebrating the rich history of jazz. Dallas Jazz Appreciation Month (D’JAM) is a special month-long celebration of all things jazz, including the amazing jazz artists, past and present, legends and rising stars, who call North Texas home. Held each April as part of the national program called Jazz Appreciation Month (JAM), D’JAM presents a variety of events highlighting and showcasing jazz in the greater Dallas area. The local initiative is coordinated by a volunteer collective of jazz presenters, jazz educators, and jazz supporters that includes nonprofit arts groups, universities, festivals, high schools, cultural centers, jazz clubs, and museums.

G. WILLIAM JONES FILM AND VIDEO COLLECTION AT SMU LIBRARIES
USAFF52 is pleased to partner with the archives to present the Salute to Bob Ray Sanders and other programs throughout the year. The G. William Jones Film and Video Collection at SMU Libraries supports the communities of the Meadows School of the Arts, the University, and global moving image preservation and research. Its primary purpose is to support education and research through the study, preservation, and presentation of moving images. To this end, the Collection maintains moving images in a wide variety of formats, examples of related equipment, print materials associated with moving images, and a climate-controlled storage facility.

ABOUT JUNO FILMS
Juno Films is a boutique film distributor and world sales agent. Its founder Elizabeth Sheldon has over 20 years of experience in the distribution of documentary and feature films for both North American all-rights releases, international festivals and sales. Recent acquisitions include the Sundance films Calendar Girls, The Pact by Palm d’Or winning director Bille August, the critically-acclaimed A Song for Cesar and award-winning As In Heaven.

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