25th Provincetown Film Festival (PIFF) announces lineup; Bruce LaBruce, Billy Porter, Meg Stalter, Julio Torres named honorees

The 25th Provincetown International Film Festival (PIFF) announced today its lineup of narrative, documentary, and short films, as well as honorees for this year’s Filmmaker on the Edge, Excellence in Acting, and Next Wave Awards. This year’s fest runs June 14-18, 2023.

Award-winning filmmaker, photographer, writer Bruce LaBruce will be named 2023’s “Filmmaker on the Edge.” In addition to numerous shorts and three theater works at the Hau Theater in Berlin, LaBruce has written and directed 14 feature films including Gerontophilia, L.A. Zombie and Saint-Narcisse. He is currently working on an art/porn experimental film executive produced by a/political called The Visitor in London, UK. LaBruce will be in Provincetown to receive the award in conversation with resident artist John Waters.

“If anybody deserves the Filmmaker on Edge Award, it’s this year’s honoree Bruce LaBruce,” said John Waters. “He’s been pushing the limits of gay correctness, punk attitude, and political mayhem for about forty years and has somehow managed to keep his celluloid troublemaking spirit intact both above and below the limits of underground and commercial filmmaking. Filth followers everywhere – we honor you, Bruce LaBruce.”

It was also announced that Billy Porter, the Emmy, Tony and Grammy Award-winning and Golden Globe-nominated actor, singer, director, writer and producer will be honored with this year’s Excellence in Acting Award. The Pose star, most recently seen on screen in the comedy 80 for Brady alongside Jane Fonda, will next star in and co-write a biopic on James Baldwin. In addition to receiving the award in conversation with film scholar and critic B. Ruby Rich, Porter will be in town to support Our Son, his latest film also starring Luke Evans. It follows a couple divorcing and navigating custody of their son and will screen in Provincetown on June 16 at Town Hall.

“Billy Porter is a boundary breaking talent,” said Anne Hubbell, PIFF’s Executive Director. “Whether on the screen or on stage, Billy’s performances captivate and stay with you. We’re so thrilled to honor him and share his new film Our Son with audiences.”

Writer, director and actor Julio Torres (Problemista, Los Espookys) and writer, actress, and comedian Megan Stalter (Cora Bora, Hacks) will both be in attendance to receive the festival’s “Next Wave Award” this year. The honor recognizes those who have exciting and distinctive voices, take artistic risks, and have a passionate commitment to independent film.

Torres’ feature directorial debut, Problemista, which he also wrote, produced and starred in, will screen as a Spotlight Selection at the festival. The film follows an aspiring toy designer from El Salvador who struggles to bring his unusual ideas to life in New York and is running out of time on his work visa. He takes on the job of assisting an erratic art-world outcast (Tilda Swinton) in hopes to stay in the country. Also produced by Emma Stone, Dave McCary and Ali Herting, Problemista will be released by A24 later this year.

Stalter, who appears in the film, will also present PIFF’s opening night film, Cora Bora, in which she stars. Directed by Hannah Pearl Utt and written by Rhianon Jones, Cora Bora follows the story of Cora, a messy millennial and struggling musician. When she goes home to Portland to win her girlfriend back, Cora realizes there’s a lot more than her love life that needs salvaging.

“The fresh, unparalleled artistry of Julio Torres and Megan Stalter embodies the spirit and energy of our Next Wave Award,” said PIFF’s Director of Programming, Andrew Peterson. “We are so thrilled to share their innovative talents and films with the Provincetown Film Festival audience this year.”

Theater Camp from directors Molly Gordon and Nick Lieberman is set to close the festival. It tells the story about staff members of an upstate New York theater camp who must band together when their beloved founder falls into a coma. In addition to Problemisa, Vuk Lungulov-Klotz’s debut feature MUTT, and Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman’s new documentary Taylor Mack’s 24-Decade History of Popular Music will be Spotlight Selections.

“In celebrating 25 years of PIFF, we are beyond excited to present a fantastic slate of over 100 films that include wildly talented first-time filmmakers, BIPOC and LGBTQIA voices, and our longstanding commitment to gender parity,” said PIFF Artistic Director Lisa Viola. “Opening the festival with the new queer comedy Cora Bora from PIFF alum Hannah Pearl Utt, and featuring a breakout performance from Megan Stalter, we are thrilled to share this milestone with both the filmmakers and our filmgoing community together in Provincetown.”

Here is the full lineup of the 25th Provincetown Film Festival:

OPENING NIGHT

CORA BORA – directed by Hannah Pearl Utt

CLOSING NIGHT

THEATER CAMP – directed by Molly Gordon, Nick Lieberman

SPOTLIGHT SELECTIONS

MUTT – directed by Vuk Lungulov-Klotz

TAYLOR MAC’S 24-DECADE HISTORY OF POPULAR MUSIC – directed by Rob Epstein, Jeffrey Friedman

PROBLEMISTA – directed by Julio Torres

NARRATIVE FEATURES

ART THIEF – directed by Arthur Egeli

AUGUST AT TWENTY-TWO – directed by Sophia Castuera

BIG BOYS – directed by Corey Sherman

BLUE JEAN – directed by Georgia Oakley

EARTH MAMA – directed by Savanah Leaf

EGOIST – directed by Daishi Matsunaga

FAIRYLAND – directed by Andrew Durham

HANGDOG – directed by Matt Cascella

JOY RIDE – directed by Adele Lim

THE LESSON – directed by Alice Troughton

A LITTLE PRAYER – directed by Angus MacLachlan

MAMACRUZ – directed by Patricia Ortega

OUR SON – directed by Bill Oliver

PASSAGES – directed by Ira Sachs

PLAYLAND – directed by Georden West

THE POD GENERATION – directed by Sophie Barthes

ROTTING IN THE SUN – directed by Sebastián Silva

SCRAPPER – directed by Charlotte Regan

SUMMER SOLSTICE – directed by Noah Schamus

WILL-O’-THE-WISP – directed by João Pedro Rodrigues

DOCUMENTARY FEATURES

AFTER THE BITE – directed by Ivy Meeropol

BOSTON SCHOOL BATTLE – directed by Sharon Grimberg, Cyndee Readdean

CHASING CHASING AMY – directed by Sav Rodgers

THE DEEPEST BREATH – directed by Laura McGann

DESPERATE SOULS, DARK CITY AND THE LEGEND OF MIDNIGHT COWBOY – directed by Nancy Buirski

THE DISAPPEARANCE OF SHERE HITE – directed by Nicole Newnham

HIDDEN MASTER: THE LEGACY OF GEORGE PLATT LYNES – directed by Sam Shahid

IN THE WHALE – directed by David Abel

INVISIBLE BEAUTY – directed by Bethann Hardison, Frédéric Tcheng

IT’S BASIC – directed by Marc Levin

IT’S ONLY LIFE AFTER ALL – directed by Alexandria Bombach

KOKOMO CITY – directed by D. Smith

LAKOTA NATION VS. UNITED STATES – directed by Jesse Short Bull, Laura Tomaselli

QUEENDOM – directed by Agniia Galdanova

ROCK HUDSON: ALL THAT HEAVEN ALLOWED – directed by Stephen Kijak

THE SPACE RACE – directed by Lisa Cortés, Diego Hurtado de Mendoza

THE STROLL – directed by Kristen Lovell, Zackary Drucker

SUNDAY BEST – directed by Sacha Jenkins

ᏓᏗᏬᏂᏏ (WE WILL SPEAK) – directed by Schon Duncan, Michael McDermit

WHO I AM NOT – directed by Tünde Skovrán

SPECIAL SCREENINGS

John Waters Presents: ANTICHRIST – directed by Lars von Trier

I AM A TOWN – directed by Mischa Richter

NEVER LET HIM GO (episodic series) – directed by Jeff Dupre, Jacob Hickey

SHORT FILMS

NARRATIVE SHORTS

A REAL ONE – directed by McKenzie Chinn

AFTER CLOSING – directed by Carley Byers

BI THE WAY – directed by Amir Ovadia Steklov

BREAKUP TEXT – directed by Elizabeth Baudouin

CAMPFIRE – directed by Austin Lee Bunn

CUXBALL – directed by Dave Paige

EVERY OTHER KID – directed by Patrick Godino

FAMILY AFFAIR – directed by Julio Dowansigh

FANATIC – directed by Taran Killam

GORKA – directed by Joe Weiland

HONEY TO THE MOON – directed by Rob Woodcox, Eduardo Cifuentes

INCOMPLETE – directed by Sasha Korbut

INSTA GAY – directed by Simon Paluck

KNOW YOU TWICE – directed by Andrew Chan Gladstone

MOLES – directed by Vanja Victor Kabir Tognola

MOTHERLAND – directed by Christina Yoon

MY DEAR BOY – directed by Leaf Lieber

READ’EM AND WEEP – directed by Jeffery Hoyt

REST – directed by Joan Cassin

SAFE AS HOUSES – directed by Mia Mullarkey

SAFE WORD – directed by Christopher Cunetto

SWIPE NYC – directed by Sue Zarco Kramer

THE DALLES – directed by Angalis Field

THE PRINCIPAL’S ASSEMBLY – directed by Jordan Ancel

THIRSTYGIRL – directed by Alexandra Qin

TO MY NEXT LOVER – directed by Kieran Charnock

TOE TAG – directed by Jordon Bolden

DOCUMENTARY SHORTS

A CALL TO ACTION: THE FREEDOM BUDGET OF 1966 – directed by Jenny Alexander

AMERICAN SANTA – directed by Avi Zev Weider

DAUGHTER OF RUBENS – directed by Sarah Hachey

EMPRESS NICOLE THE GREAT – directed by Dara Bratt

FOOT PRINT SHOP – directed by Gina Kamentsky

GRASS-FED CAPITALISM – DEF-SSARG MSILATIPAC – directed by Jay Critchley

GUERRILLA HABEAS – directed by Betsy Hershey, Emma Wall

HELEN PASHGIAN : VISIBLE INVISIBLE – directed by Anika Kan Grevstad

I (HEART) JACK LALANNE: A CARTOON MEMOIR – directed by LeAnn Erickson

JACK AND SAM – directed by Jordan Matthew Horowitz

LESBIANS ON THE LOOSE – directed by Steph Jowett, Tilly Robba

MNM – directed by Twiggy Pucci Garçon

PAINTING TIME … AND THE TOWN – directed by Lise Balk King

PARKER – directed by Catherine Hoffman, Sharon Liese

PROJECTIONIST – directed by Deniz Akyurek, Noah Matalon

RESTORING AN ICON: TOM TOWNSEND AND CIRRUS – directed by Durier Ryan

THE SCRIPT – directed by Brit Fryer, Noah Schamus

ANIMATED SHORTS

AIKĀNE – directed by Daniel Sousa, Dean Hamer, Joe Wilson

BLUEBERRY – directed by Stephanie Glover

BREATHE – directed by Loi Huynh, Jordan Waterworth

MY DEAR MR. WHITMAN – directed by Jeremiah Dickey

REGULAR RABBIT – directed by Eoin Duffy

Y – directed by Matea Kovač