MFF 2019 Festival Catalog

Films
NJ FILM COMPETITION
FICTION FEATURE
MOSSVILLE: WHEN GREAT TREES FALL
Director: Alexander Glustrom
Producers: Katie Mathews, Daniel Bennett,
Catherine Rierson
USA, 75 min.
Mossville, Louisiana was a community rich in natural
resources and history, founded by formerly enslaved
people, where neighbors lived in harmony, insulated
from the horrors of Jim Crow. Today it more closely
resembles a wasteland, and what was once lush farmland
was completely deforested once petrochemical and
industrial plants moved into the area. The newest and
biggest addition is a plant built by the apartheid-born,
South African-based chemical company Sasol. As Sasol
encroaches on citizens’ property with buyout offers,
lifelong resident Stacey Ryan is the last man standing and
the only one willing to fight for his ancestral land, but at
what cost?
Saturday, May 4, 3:45 pm, Clairidge 5
Sunday, May 5, 1:15 pm, Clairidge 4
MS. WHITE LIGHT
Director: Paul Shoulberg
Producers: Zachary Spicer, John Robert Armstrong,
Gordon Strain
Cast: Roberta Colindrez, John Ortiz, Judith Light,
Carson Meyer, Zachary Spicer
USA, 97 min.
MS. WHITE LIGHT is the story of Lex Cole (Roberta
Colindrez), a young woman who counsels terminally ill
clients who are having trouble letting go. While proving
uniquely talented in her ability to connect with the dying,
Lex is at a total loss when it comes to dealing with
everyone else. Armed with only the dubious guidance of
her father and business partner (John Ortiz), Lex struggles
to help Valerie (Judith Light), her most challenging client
yet. When Valerie refuses to play by Lex’s rules, Lex must
decide if the business of dying is truly worth it.
Saturday, May 11, 7:45 pm, Clairidge 5
Sunday, May 12, 2:45 pm, Clairidge 3
DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
OLYMPIA
Director: Harry Mavromichalis
Producers: Muriel Moraes, Andrew Ford, Keren Seol,
Harry Mavromichalis
USA, 101 min.
This revealing and unfiltered documentary explores the
life and career of Academy Award ® -winning actress (and
former Montclair resident) Olympia Dukakis. Intricately
weaving between visceral impromptu personal moments
and footage of her performances both on and off screen,
OLYMPIA provides an intimate, unfiltered look at the
legendary actress. From her greatest roles to her battles
with personal demons and her embrace of the complexity
of her history and experiences, the film is a celebration
of a life lived to the fullest, providing inspiration and
catharsis through the power of thoughtful, moving, and
often hilarious self-reflection.
Sunday, May 5, 2:30 pm, MKA Upper School
ONE CHILD NATION
Directors: Nanfu Wang, Jialing Zhang
Producers: Nanfu Wang, Jialing Zhang, Julie Goldman,
Carolyn Hepburn, Christoph Jörg, Christopher Clements
USA/China, 85 min.
Becoming a mother is always a perfect moment for
personal reflection, but for filmmaker Nanfu Wang,
motherhood comes with bigger questions: what was the
impact of China’s notorious one-child policy on the lives
of women and mothers, on families, on the nation? Her
investigation leads to new revelations about the policy,
uncovering stories of sterilization, child abandonment,
and state-sponsored kidnapping that destroyed the lives
of so many in the name of a grand social experiment.
ONE CHILD NATION is a story of loss and redemption,
of a nation turned against itself, and the silence that
followed.
Saturday, May 11, 1:00 pm, Clairidge 2
Sunday, May 12, 6:45 pm, Clairidge 2
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