SLIFF offers a film-and-music combo with a screening of “Blue Note Records: Beyond the Notes” and a jazz performance by St. Louis’ Adam Maness Trio. The documentary explores the vision behind the iconic American jazz label. Since 1939, Blue Note artists have been... Read more
Women in Film Spotlight
An American Story: Norman Mineta and His Legacy
Sunday, November 11 at 4:00pm
A first-rate film biography of 10-term congressman Norman Mineta, “An American Story” is also a well-wrought indictment of the woeful treatment of persons of Japanese ancestry by our country. In early 1942, along with tens of thousands of other Japanese Americans... Read more
An American Tragedy
Sunday, November 11 at 4:00pm
In 1989, 17-year-old Kelli Hall was kidnapped, raped, and murdered in St. Charles by Jeffrey Ferguson and an accomplice. Ferguson was eventually caught and convicted, receiving a death sentence; he was executed nearly 25 years after the crime, in 2014. During the... Read more
Ask for Jane
Sunday, November 11 at 3:30pm
Based on a true story — and set less than 50 years ago, in 1969 Chicago — “Ask for Jane” might seem hard to believe for those who have grown up in the U.S. after Roe v. Wade. But in the world of “Ask for Jane,” abortion is punishable by prison, and getting birth... Read more
Bathtubs Over Broadway
Friday, November 2 at 7:30pm
When he started as a comedy writer for the “Late Show with David Letterman,” Steve Young had few interests outside of his day job. But while gathering material for a segment on the show, Steve stumbled onto a few vintage record albums that would change his life... Read more
Becoming Astrid
Saturday, November 3 at 12:00pm
Friday, November 9 at 2:35pm
“Becoming Astrid” tells the moving true story of the formative years of world-renowned children’s author Astrid Lindgren, creator of Pippi Longstocking. A nuanced exploration of parenthood, empathy, and artistry, the film follows the teenaged Astrid as she... Read more
The Best of Us: 100 Seasons of Muny Magic
Saturday, November 3 at 5:30pm
The Municipal Theatre of St. Louis, affectionately known as The Muny, has been a part of St. Louis life for generations. This summer marked the 100th season that The Muny has presented top-notch musical theater outdoors in St. Louis’ Forest Park, and “The Best of... Read more
Blue Note Records: Beyond the Notes
Sunday, November 11 at 6:00pm
“Blue Note Records” explores the vision behind the iconic American jazz label. Since 1939, Blue Note artists have been encouraged to push creative boundaries in search of uncompromising expressions. Through current recording sessions, rare archival footage, and... Read more
Boom for Real: The Late Teenage Years of Jean-Michel Basquiat
Thursday, November 8 at 7:00pm
“Boom for Real” tells the story of how New York City in the late 1970s formed the artist that the teenage Jean-Michel Basquiat eventually became. Using never-before-seen works, writings, and photographs, director Sara Driver, who was herself part of the same New... Read more
Capernaum
Sunday, November 11 at 5:30pm
A politically charged fable, “Capernaum” — Lebanese director/co-writer Nadine Labaki’s Cannes Jury Prize-winning drama — revolves around Zain (Zain Al Rafeea), a 12-year-old boy who decides to sue his mother and father. When the judge asks Zain why he’s bringing... Read more
Capturing the Flag
Saturday, November 10 at 7:30pm
“Capturing the Flag” chronicles the efforts of three old friends — Laverne Berry, Steven Miller, and Claire Wright — who in the fall of 2016 travel from New York to North Carolina to do voter-protection work at the polls. Laverne and Steve have been volunteering... Read more
Chasing Portraits
Friday, November 9 at 7:15pm
Moshe Rynecki’s body of work reached close to 800 paintings and sculptures before his life came to a tragic end in the Holocaust. In “Chasing Portraits,” great-granddaughter Elizabeth seeks to rediscover his legacy. The everyday lives of the Polish-Jewish... Read more
The City That Sold America
Saturday, November 10 at 5:30pm
At the threshold of the 20th century, a melting pot of adventurous immigrants, creative mavericks, and freedom-seeking African Americans shaped consumerism as we now know it. “The City That Sold America” explores how Chicago introduced ground-breaking, behavior-... Read more
The Color of Medicine: The Story of Homer G. Phillips Hospital
Saturday, November 3 at 7:30pm
“The Color of Medicine” traces the rise and fall of St. Louis’ premier black hospital, Homer G. Phillips, which at one point in time trained the largest number of black doctors and nurses in the world. The film chronicles the unique history of the medical training... Read more
Day One
Saturday, November 3 at 7:00pm
“Day One” follows a group of teens from war zones in the Middle East and Africa as they are resettled in St. Louis and enrolled at Nahed Chapman New American Academy, a unique school in the St. Louis Public Schools system for refugees only. Traumatized on their... Read more
Dede
Friday, November 2 at 2:15pm
Monday, November 5 at 2:05pm
Based on true events that took place at the outset of Georgia’s civil war, “Dede” takes place in the high-mountain community of Svaneti, where the people live far removed from the modern world. A purely patriarchal society that revolves around forced marriages,... Read more
Destroyer
Thursday, November 1 at 8:00pm
Directed by native St. Louisan Karyn Kusama (“Girlfight,” “The Invitation”) — who receives SLIFF’s Charles Guggenheim Cinema St. Louis Award — “Destroyer” follows the moral and existential odyssey of LAPD detective Erin Bell (Oscar® winner Nicole Kidman, who also... Read more
Doc Shorts: Animated Lives
Friday, November 2 at 5:00pm
A collection that demonstrates animation isn't just for fiction. 
Doc Shorts: Black Voices
Sunday, November 11 at 6:30pm
A diverse chorus of black voices addresses subjects both local and national. 
Doc Shorts: Complicated Families
Monday, November 5 at 5:00pm
A program that focuses on interpersonal conflict and the harrowing situations that families often face. 
Doc Shorts: Coping with Hardship
Friday, November 9 at 5:00pm
Despite the challenges of disability or illness, the subjects of these films carry on and thrive. 
Doc Shorts: Gay Elders
Sunday, November 11 at 6:30pm
A look back at those who dared to be out and proud in the past and who fought for LGTBQ lives. 
Doc Shorts: International Sampler
Tuesday, November 6 at 5:00pm
A look at lives and events far from home. 
Doc Shorts: Method M Films
Wednesday, November 7 at 5:00pm
A collection of films from graduates of the Jonathan B. Murray Center for Documentary Journalism at the University of Missouri. 
Doc Shorts: Women Around the Globe
Thursday, November 8 at 5:00pm
A program that spotlights women who stand up and help other women. 
Double Bill: Hal and Shampoo
Sunday, November 4 at 6:00pm
Although Hal Ashby directed a remarkable string of acclaimed, widely admired classics throughout the 1970s — “Harold and Maude,” “The Last Detail,” “Shampoo,” “Coming Home,” “Being There” — he’s often overlooked amid the crowd of luminaries from his generation.... Read more
Double Bill: I, Douglas Fairbanks and The Half Breed
Saturday, November 10 at 7:00pm
During the peak of the silent era, the dashing Douglas Fairbanks was the first “King of Hollywood,” ruling the box office in a series of epic adventures — swashbuckling in “The Mark of Zorro,” dueling in “Robin Hood,” and soaring in “The Thief of Bagdad.” Using... Read more
Double Bill: Searching for Ingmar Bergman and Persona
Friday, November 2 at 7:00pm
Internationally renowned director Margarethe von Trotta (“The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum,” “Hannah Arendt”) takes a close look at Ingmar Bergman’s life and work on the occasion of his centennial year. Von Trotta explores Bergman’s film legacy with some of his... Read more
Farmer of the Year
Saturday, November 10 at 3:40pm
When Hap Anderson (Barry Corbin, “Northern Exposure”), a widowed 83-year-old Minnesota farmer, sells his family farm, he finds himself adrift. Motivated by the possibility of showing up with an old flame and impressing his old Army buddies — Hap still still... Read more
Fiddlin'
Saturday, November 3 at 7:30pm
If you’re a fan of Appalachia’s “good old-timey music” featured in “O Brother, Where Art Thou?,” “Fiddlin’” will exert a strong appeal. Largely focused on the 2015 Old Fiddlers’ Convention in Galax, Va. — which is billed as the “world’s oldest and largest” and... Read more
General Magic
Sunday, November 4 at 6:30pm
The side of Silicon Valley you never see, “General Magic” is a tale of how great vision and epic failure can change the world. Spun out from Apple in 1990 to create the “next big thing,” General Magic shipped the first handheld wireless personal communicator in... Read more
A Girl Named C
Saturday, November 3 at 1:00pm
“A Girl Named C” addresses one of the most pervasive and taboo subjects in the United States — child sexual assault. One in three girls before the age of 18 is sexually assaulted in America, and experts estimate up to 50 percent of their perpetrators are other... Read more
Good Manners
Friday, November 2 at 9:30pm
Sunday, November 11 at 8:20pm
“Good Manners” — from the filmmakers of the acclaimed “Hard Labor” — deftly melds art-house and genre cinema to create a darkly thrilling gothic fable. Set in São Paulo, the film follows Clara, a lonely nurse from the outskirts of the city, who is hired by... Read more
Hal
Sunday, November 4 at 6:00pm
Although Hal Ashby directed a remarkable string of acclaimed, widely admired classics throughout the 1970s — “Harold and Maude,” “The Last Detail,” “Shampoo,” “Coming Home,” “Being There” — he’s often overlooked amid the crowd of luminaries from his generation.... Read more
The Heat: A Kitchen (R)Evolution
Monday, November 5 at 7:00pm
From grassroots cooking to haute cuisine, “The Heat” is a timely and illuminating journey into the culinary world from a female perspective. Restaurant kitchens are a pressurized stew of brutal hours, high stress, and sleep deprivation, and acting out goes with... Read more
Heaven Will Wait
Monday, November 5 at 4:20pm
Thursday, November 8 at 4:15pm
“Heaven Will Wait” tells the story of two young women tempted by radical Islam. At 17, born-again Muslim Sonia intends to leave her family to join ISIS in Syria. At first convinced that jihad is the only way for her and her family to go to heaven, Sonia appears to... Read more
I Am Not a Witch
Tuesday, November 6 at 2:00pm
Saturday, November 10 at 5:00pm
When 8-year-old Shula turns up alone and unannounced in a rural Zambian village, the locals are suspicious. A minor incident escalates to a full-blown witch trial, where she is found guilty and sentenced to life on a state-run witch camp. There, she is tethered to... Read more
I, Douglas Fairbanks
Saturday, November 10 at 7:00pm
During the peak of the silent era, the dashing Douglas Fairbanks was the first “King of Hollywood,” ruling the box office in a series of epic adventures — swashbuckling in “The Mark of Zorro,” dueling in “Robin Hood,” and soaring in “The Thief of Bagdad.” His... Read more
Inventing Tomorrow
Saturday, November 3 at 12:00pm
“Inventing Tomorrow” follows six young scientists from Indonesia, Hawaii, India, and Mexico as they tackle some of the most complex environmental issues facing humanity today — right in their own backyards. The student are preparing original scientific research... Read more
Larger Than Life: The Kevyn Aucoin Story
Monday, November 5 at 7:30pm
The late Kevyn Aucoin arguably still stands as the highest-profile makeup artist of all time. One of the few makeup artists to become a celebrity in his own right, Aucoin was the sort of invaluable corner man whom models and stars insisted accompany them on shoots... Read more
Lemonade
Friday, November 2 at 12:10pm
Sunday, November 4 at 12:10pm
In “Lemonade” — produced by Palme d’Or winner Christian Mungiu (“Four Months, Three Weeks, and Two Days”) — 30-year-old Mara, a single mother from Romania working as a caretaker in the U.S. on a temporary visa, marries Daniel, an American she met only a few months... Read more
Little Woods
Saturday, November 10 at 3:00pm
A modern Western, “Little Woods” tells the story of two sisters, Ollie (Tessa Thompson, “Creed,” “Sorry to Bother You”) and Deb (Lily James, “Downton Abbey”), who are driven to work outside the law to better their lives. For years, Ollie has illicitly helped the... Read more
The Long Shadow
Sunday, November 4 at 6:00pm
When filmmaker and investigative journalist Frances Causey, a daughter of the South, set out to explore the continuing racial divisions in the U.S., what she discovered was that the politics of slavery didn’t end with the Civil War. In an astonishingly candid look... Read more
Mapplethorpe
Monday, November 5 at 8:15pm
Robert Mapplethorpe — arguably one of the most important artists of the 20th century — discovered himself both sexually and artistically in New York City in the ’70s and ’80s. This biopic from Ondi Timoner (“Dig!,” “We Live in Public”) explores Mapplethorpe’s life... Read more
Modified
Sunday, November 4 at 4:00pm
In “Modified” — a celebration of the love of food, cooking, and gardening — filmmaker Aube Giroux and her mother embark on an investigative journey to find out why genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are not labeled on food products in the United States and... Read more
The Most Dangerous Year
Saturday, November 10 at 1:00pm
“The Most Dangerous Year” intimately chronicles the struggle for transgender rights, specifically focusing on the 2016 fight in Washington state over “bathroom bills” that would force transgender individuals, including children, to use their “birth gender”... Read more
Mr. Soul!
Friday, November 9 at 7:30pm
On the heels of the civil-rights movement, one fearless black pioneer — Ellis Haizlip — reconceived a Harlem Renaissance for a new era, ushering giants and rising stars of black American culture onto the national television stage. Haizlip contained Whitman-esque... Read more
My Country No More
Friday, November 9 at 5:00pm
Between 2011 and 2016, drilling for oil in America reached an unprecedented peak, setting off a modern-day gold rush in one of the most rural communities in the country: Trenton, N.D. Kalie Rider and her older brother Jed are both striving to rebuild farming in... Read more
My Name Is Batlir, Not Butler
Saturday, November 3 at 2:40pm
Sunday, November 4 at 7:25pm
The unusually named Batlir — emphatically not Butler — has an even more prominent distinguishing characteristic: a vastly oversized head. Bullied and made a figure of fun because of his immense noggin, Batlir has spent most of his life alone in his room. In one of... Read more
Naila and the Uprising
Saturday, November 10 at 4:00pm
Using evocative animation, intimate interviews, and exclusive archival footage, “Naila and the Uprising” brings out of anonymity the courageous women who shook the Israeli occupation and put Palestinians on the map for the first time. “Naila and the Uprising”... Read more
Narrative Shorts: Animation 1
Friday, November 2 at 9:40pm
Animated selections that will warm your heart and blow your mind. 
Narrative Shorts: Animation 2
Sunday, November 4 at 9:10pm
An animated sampler with a specific focus on international creations. 
Narrative Shorts: Baring It All
Saturday, November 3 at 8:45pm
A program that exposes, both literally and figuratively, tenderness and vulnerability seldom seen onscreen. 
Narrative Shorts: Comedy
Monday, November 5 at 7:30pm
Laughter is the universal language in this collection of comedies from around the globe. 
Narrative Shorts: Dark Comedy
Sunday, November 11 at 9:00pm
A selection of dark and demented — but also funny — films. 
Narrative Shorts: Drama
Sunday, November 11 at 3:00pm
A program in which things take a decided turn toward the dramatic. 
Narrative Shorts: Experimental
Tuesday, November 6 at 9:15pm
Take a walk on the wild side in this program of mind-bending shorts. 
Narrative Shorts: Fantasy
Thursday, November 8 at 9:15pm
A compendium of classic yarns and modern parables. 
Narrative Shorts: Horror
Wednesday, November 7 at 9:15pm
A selection of blood-curdlingly scary stories. 
Narrative Shorts: Music & Musicals
Tuesday, November 6 at 7:30pm
Music plays an integral part in this collection of note-perfect shorts. 
Narrative Shorts: Sci-Fi
Thursday, November 8 at 7:30pm
Exceptional tales of the future that portend a dark destiny for humanity. 
Narrative Shorts: Stars in Shorts
Wednesday, November 7 at 7:30pm
Big names in small films that feature Lisa Edelstein, Emily Mortimer, George Takei, and more. 
On Her Shoulders
Saturday, November 10 at 1:00pm
At only 23 years old, Nadia Murad’s life is a dizzying array of important undertakings — from giving testimony before the U.N. Security Council to visiting refugee camps to soul-bearing media interviews, emotionally draining speeches, and an endless succession of... Read more
One Toke Over the Line and Still Smokin'
Saturday, November 3 at 8:00pm
“One Toke Over the Line and Still Smokin’” by St. Louis filmmaker Kathy Corley celebrates the folk-rock duo Brewer & Shipley, whose Top 10 song “One Toke Over the Line” was a constant presence on the radio in the 1970s. The pair’s other hits include “Tarkio... Read more
Opening-Night Reception with Destroyer
Thursday, November 1 at 6:30pm
SLIFF’s opening night features “Destroyer,” directed by native St. Louisan Karyn Kusama (“Girlfight,” “The Invitation”), who receives SLIFF’s Charles Guggenheim Cinema St. Louis Award. “Destroyer” follows the moral and existential odyssey of LAPD detective Erin... Read more
Parallel Chords
Saturday, November 10 at 1:00pm
The feature version of a short that first screened at the St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase in 2015, “Parallel Chords” chronicles the struggles of young violinist Jacqueline (Rachel Ann) to assert her individuality despite the intense pressure of her controlling... Read more
Patrimonio
Friday, November 2 at 5:00pm
In 2015, a mega-development is poised to engulf a small Mexican fishing village with a vast hotel/condo complex called Tres Santos. Although marketed to wealthy Americans as “green” and “mindful,” Tres Santos threatens to transform and overwhelm the idiosyncratic... Read more
Personal Statement
Friday, November 9 at 7:30pm
Karoline, Christine, and Enoch are Brooklyn high-school students who are determined to get their entire senior class to college, even though they aren't sure they’re going to make it there themselves. “Personal Statement” follows this inspirational trio through... Read more
Point of No Return
Thursday, November 8 at 7:00pm
“Point of No Return” chronicles one of the most suspenseful and pioneering scientific adventure stories of the 21st century, following two pilots in their attempt to circumnavigate the globe in an airplane fueled exclusively by sunlight. Their mission: to prove... Read more
Presley Barker Performance with Fiddlin'
Saturday, November 3 at 7:30pm
If you’re a fan of Appalachia’s “good old-timey music” featured in “O Brother, Where Art Thou?,” “Fiddlin’” will exert a strong appeal. Largely focused on the 2015 Old Fiddlers’ Convention in Galax, Va. — which is billed as the “world’s oldest and largest” and... Read more
Primas
Saturday, November 10 at 12:05pm
“Primas” begins obliquely, with scenes of dreamily abstract imagery, a young woman’s whispered narration, and vérité snippets of her family life in a small Argentinian town. Only over time is it revealed that the young woman was the victim of a horrific rape when... Read more
The Providers
Sunday, November 11 at 6:30pm
Set against the backdrop of the physician shortage and opioid epidemic in rural America, "The Providers" follows three healthcare providers in northern New Mexico. They work at El Centro, a group of safety-net clinics that offer care to all who walk through the... Read more
The Pushouts
Saturday, November 10 at 4:00pm
“I was in prison before I was even born.” So begins the story of Dr. Victor Rios, who, by 15, was a high-school dropout and gang member with three felony convictions and a death wish. But when a teacher's quiet persistence, mentor Martin Flores' moral conviction,... Read more
Rafiki
Saturday, November 3 at 4:45pm
Monday, November 5 at 4:20pm
Despite a political rivalry between their families, Kena and Ziki remain close friends, supporting each other as they pursue their dreams. But when love blossoms between them, the two girls are forced to choose between happiness and safety in a highly conservative... Read more
The Rainbow Experiment
Saturday, November 10 at 9:00pm
Sunday, November 11 at 3:15pm
Things spiral out of control in a high school in Manhattan when a terrible accident involving a science experiment permanently injures a teen. A whodunit that features a multiplicity of perspectives, “The Rainbow Experiment” — directed by New Filmmakers Forum alum... Read more
Say Her Name: The Life and Death of Sandra Bland
Sunday, November 4 at 4:30pm
In 2015, Sandra Bland, a politically active 28-year-old black woman from Chicago, was arrested for a traffic violation in a small Texas town. Three days later, Sandra was found hanging from a noose in her jail cell. Though ruled a suicide, her death sparked... Read more
Searching for Ingmar Bergman
Friday, November 2 at 7:00pm
Internationally renowned director Margarethe von Trotta (“The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum,” “Hannah Arendt”) takes a close look at Ingmar Bergman’s life and work on the occasion of his centennial year. Von Trotta explores Bergman’s film legacy with some of his... Read more
SLIFF/Kids Family Shorts 1
Saturday, November 3 at 11:00am
A delightful program geared toward kids ages 3-8. 
SLIFF/Kids Family Shorts 2
Sunday, November 4 at 3:00pm
A children's program with a sophisticated touch that's perfect for kids ages 8-12. 
Snapshots
Saturday, November 3 at 6:50pm
When a grandmother’s hidden past collides with her granddaughter’s secret future and her daughter's angry present, can the love of three generations be enough to surmount decades of deceit? The story “Snapshots” tells is set in motion when a single roll of... Read more
The Sower
Friday, November 2 at 4:30pm
Tuesday, November 6 at 4:30pm
Based on Violette Ailhaud’s autobiographical “The Seed Man” — celebrating its centennial in 2019 — “The Sower” centers on Violette (Pauline Burlet), who’s just old enough to get married when her village in the Lower Alps is cruelly deprived of all its men by the... Read more
St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase Sampler
Tuesday, November 6 at 7:00pm
A selection of the best films from the 2018 St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase. 
Stroop: Journey Into the Rhino Horn War
Sunday, November 4 at 1:00pm
In “Stroop,” two first-time filmmakers explore the war for rhino horn. Initially setting out on a six-month project, the duo leave their jobs, sell their homes, move in with their mothers, and give up nearly four years of their lives to document not just the... Read more
This Changes Everything
Saturday, November 3 at 8:00pm
A fleet and comprehensive review of the issue of gender discrimination in Hollywood, “This Changes Everything” takes an incisive look into the male-dominated film industry to examine those forces — both conscious and unconscious — that continue to foster the... Read more
Time for Ilhan
Sunday, November 4 at 4:00pm
On Nov. 8, 2016, a young, hijab-wearing mother of three named Ilhan Omar made history, becoming the first Somali Muslim woman to be elected to state office in America. She was hailed by the New York Times as “one of the bright lights in the post-election darkness... Read more
The Unafraid
Sunday, November 11 at 1:00pm
“The Unafraid” follows three Dreamers — Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) recipients — in Georgia, a state that has banned them from attending their top state universities and disqualified them from receiving in-state tuition at any other public college... Read more
United Skates
Saturday, November 3 at 8:00pm
For more than a half-century, African Americans have gathered at roller rinks to perfect elaborate dances on skates, with cities across the U.S. developing styles unique to their communities. The roller rinks were especially vital to the growth of hip-hop. As Pepa... Read more
Where the Pavement Ends
Saturday, November 3 at 2:30pm
“Where the Pavement Ends” explores the charged relationship between the historically all-black town of Kinloch and its formerly all-white neighbor Ferguson. Kinloch is now essentially a ghost town, emptied of almost all of its residents when the nearby Lambert... Read more
Zama
Tuesday, November 6 at 9:00pm
Friday, November 9 at 9:30pm
“Zama” — the latest from acclaimed director Lucretia Martel (“The Headless Woman,” “The Holy Girl”) — is based on a novel by Antonio Di Benedetto. Don Diego de Zama, a 17th-century Spanish officer born in South America, eagerly waits for a letter from the king... Read more