The New Orleans Film Society (NOFS) will kick off the 26th edition of the New Orleans Film Festival at the Orpheum Theater on Wednesday, October 17th with a screening of “Born to be Blue,” a biopic based on jazz trumpeter Chet Baker.
Ethan Hawke takes on the role of Chet Baker in Robert Budreau’s “Born to be Blue,” the director’s second film revolving around the jazz trumpeter after the 2009 “The Deaths of Chet Baker.” The screening will follow closely the film’s premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival. “Born to be Blue” was produced by the Louisiana-based Plantation Village Studios, where all post-production also took place.
The New Orleans Film Festival will run through October 22nd and will take place in various theaters around the city, including the Prytania Theater, Canal Place and the newly-restored Orpheum Theater. The centerpiece film this year will be another biopic, Marc Abraham’s “I Saw the Light,” based on the life of country singer Hank Williams and shot largely in Louisiana.
The festival closes at the Prytania Theater with a screening of “Brooklyn,” a 1950s Irish immigration story starring Saoirse Ronan. Spotlight films include a documentary depicting the rise and fall of the Black Panther party, Todd Haynes’ “Carol” starring Cate Blanchett, a 1960s gangster story in “Legend” with Tom Hardy, and many more.
This year, the NOFS will also present the 2016 Create Louisiana Filmmakers Grant, a $50,000 grant to create a short film project, which will be presented to a local filmmaker on closing night. The film will have to be completed within 12 months of receiving the award, with the finished project set to screen at the 2016 New Orleans Film Festival.
Tickets will be available to the public on October 12th, New Orleans Film Society members on October 7th. More information can be found on the New Orleans Film Society’s website. See the festival’s schedule below.
Schedule:
Wednesday, October 14th, 2015
“Born to be Blue”
- Orpheum Theater, time TBA
- Director: Robert Budreau
- Stars: Ethan Hawke, Carmen Ejogo
Thursday, October 15th
“Youth”
- Prytania Theatr, time TBA
- Director: Paolo Sorrentino
- Stars: Michael Caine, Harvey Keitel
Friday, October 16th, 2015
“Carol”
- Prytania Theatre, time TBA
- Director: Todd Haynes
- Stars: Rooney Mara, Cate Blanchett
Saturday, October 17th, 2015
“I Saw the Light”
- Orpheum Theater, time TBA
- Director: Marc Abraham
- Stars: Elizabeth Olsen, Tom Hiddleston
“The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution”
- Orpheum Theater, time TBA
- Director: Stanley Nelson
“Miss You Already”
- Theatres at Canal Place, time TBA
- Director: Catherine Hardwicke
- Stars: Drew Barrymore, Toni Collette
“The Reflektor Tapes”
- Orpheum Theater, time TBA
- Director: Kahlil Joseph
- Stars: Win Butler, Régine Chassagne
- Win Butler and Régine Chassagne in attendance
Sunday, October 18th, 2015
“Legend”
- Prytania Theatre, time TBA
- Director: Brian Helgeland
- Stars: Tom Hardy, Emily Browning
Tuesday, October 20th, 2015
“Room”
- Prytania Theatre
- Director: Lenny Abrahamson
- Stars: Brie Larson, Joan Allen
Thursday, October 22nd, 2015
“Brooklyn”
- Prytania Theater, time TBA
- Director: John Crowley
- Stars: Saoirse Ronan, Domhnall Gleeson
“New Orleans, Here & Now”
- Prytania Theatre, time TBA
- Directors: John Maringouin, Darius Clark Monroe, Angela Tucker, Lily Keber, Zack Godshall and Katie Dellamaggiore
