THE AFI Film Festival lineup has been announced for 2023. The 37th edition of the festival is set to feature an expanded selection of features and shorts compared to last year, offering 141 titles for the public to enjoy across five days. You can now buy passes here.
The World Premiere of “Leave The World Behind,” written and directed by Sam Esmail (AFI Class of 2004) and starring Julia Roberts, Ethan Hawke, and Mahershala Ali, will open AFI FEST on October 25th. The World Premiere of “Maxine’s Baby: The Tyler Perry Story” from directors Gelila Bekele and Armani Ortiz will be the Centerpiece film on October 27th, and Bradley Cooper’s “Maestro,” a towering and fearless love story chronicling the lifelong relationship between Leonard Bernstein (Cooper) and Felicia Montealegre Cohn Bernstein (Carey Mulligan), will close AFI FEST 2023 on October 29th.
Special Screenings include the World Premiere of “Albert Brooks: Defending My Life,” directed by Academy Award nominee Rob Reiner, “All Of Us Strangers” directed by Andrew Haigh, “American Fiction” directed by Cord Jefferson, “The Bikeriders” directed by Jeff Nichols, “The End We Start From” directed by Mahalia Belo, “Fingernails” directed by Christos Nikou, the World Premiere of “Freud’s Last Session” directed by Matthew Brown, “Memory” directed by Michel Franco, “Quiz Lady” directed by Academy Award winner Jessica Yu, and “Society Of The Snow” directed by J.A. Bayona.
The full program includes 3 Red Carpet Premieres, 10 Special Screenings, 15 Luminaries, 12 Discovery, 16 World Cinema, 13 Documentary, 42 Short Film Competition, and 30 films in the AFI Conservatory Showcase presented by AMC Networks. Of the official selections, 44% are directed by women, 37% are directed by BIPOC filmmakers, and 18% by LGBTQIA+ filmmakers. There are 4 World Premieres, 3 North American Premieres, and 4 U.S. Premieres. This year’s program represents 49 countries and includes 18 Best International Feature Oscar submissions, including “About Dry Grasses” (Turkey), “Io Capitano” (Italy), “Do Not Expect Too Much From The End Of The World” (Romania), “Fallen Leaves” (Finland), “Four Daughters” (Tunisia), “Inshallah A Boy” (Jordan), “The Peasants” (Poland), “Perfect Days” (Japan), “Pictures Of Ghosts” (Brazil), “The Promised Land” (Denmark), “The Settlers” (Chile), “Shayda” (Australia), “Slow” (Lithuania), “Smoke Sauna Sisterhood” (Estonia), “Society Of The Snow” (Spain), “The Taste Of Things” (France), “The Teachers’ Lounge” (Germany) and “Totem” (Mexico).
Passes are now available at FEST.AFI.com. AFI FEST 6-Ticket Bundles will be available starting October 2nd, and individual tickets for all screenings will be available starting October 3rd.
“Everyone on the AFI FEST team is proud to share this year’s selection of outstanding films from around the world with the audiences of Los Angeles,” said Todd Hitchcock, Director of AFI FEST. “Cinema is truly a global language, and the diversity of screen artistry represented here will widen the horizons for all moviegoers.”
The program will also feature a panel celebrating the greatest film books of all time moderated by The Hollywood Reporter’s Scott Feinberg. Some 300 of the world’s most noted filmmakers, film executives, authors, and cultural tastemakers have cast ballots to determine a list of the 100 greatest books about film, which The Hollywood Reporter will reveal in a special issue on October 11th. AFI FEST will gather many of them on October 28th for a historic, engaging discussion. View the festival program guide at FEST.AFI.com.
What do you think of this year’s lineup? Which films are you most excited to see? Please let us know your thoughts in the comments section below or on our Twitter account.
