Examine two of the films listed in this module. One must be a foreign film from the M6 Foreign Films Selections (18 films) and the other an independent film from the M6 New Independent Cinema Selections (20 films). You will find many options if you scroll down each page, or you could select movies that you have cleared with the instructor in advance. Write a short (1000 words) essay focused on the following question: What are the characteristics of independent film with particular regard to performance beyond the basic definition? In other words, how do your films EXPAND the basic definition? The presentation and readings will help you understand the basic definition. You must do more than merely show how each of your movies meet the basic criteria as an independent film. The movies in this section are easily identified as meeting the basic definition, but you need to go further in your analysis for your essay. Please avoid extensively summarizing the plot at the expense of analyzing the actor's performance. Please place this information in your header:NameWord CountIndependent Film Title (date)International Film Title (date)Give your essay a title and center it below the header information. if you are still wondering what to do, I’ll try to simplify it for you as much as possible here:You know the basic definition of an independent film from the presentations, readings and videos.You know that independent and foreign films both fit the basic definition (e.g., budget, produced outside the big studio, cast, story, etc.).As you know from watching the presentation in this module, when you watch movies today with strong ensemble casts or art films with international actors made independently outside the dominance of the corporate studios, you are witnessing the effect of foreign films on the Hollywood film industry.Therefore, do not merely describe how your independent and international films meet the basic definition, but focus on how they expand the definition. Find elements in the films that you recognize as being unique and influential. Consider how your films might affect the way big-budget films are made. Some examples include camera techniques, storyline, personal issues that concern a director, a role that a celebrity might not usually perform.This assignment is the culmination of the course, pushing you to think for yourself and try to find elements that distinguish your independent and foreign film from the mainstream. You can’t merely say ”budget under $20M” or “premiered at Sundance” and leave it at that. As an example, the producers of the big-budget ($110+M) big-studio bomb Ghost in the Shell could have learned a lot from the independent film Ex Machina ($16M). A good essay on Ex Machina would focus on the elements in the film that make it important and meaningful other than its budget and foreign origin (UK). I might also bring in examples from the film Her, which has an independent feel to it (what does that mean?), released by a small U.S. studio and had a relatively low budget. A simple way to look at this assignment is to ask whether your chosen films could teach Hollywood and the money machine of CGI-driven movies. Many students seem to think this assignment is about identifying why their choice is independent when the basic definition is clear in the presentation and readings. This assignment requires higher levels of critical thinking. The best papers are very specific in saying how these films EXPAND the basic definition. What can Hollywood learn from Indies? Why are independent film festivals like Sundance so important? Why do top actors do indies when they can make more money doing television or a CGI feature? What do your selected films have that could enhance major studio film making?Film Response Hints:-Here are some hints that may help clarify the direction for your independent film essay. The presentation and readings list the basic elements along with other features that characterize independent films. A basic definition of independent film is:A film that is produced outside the studio system. This means there are limitations to the budget, funding sources, cast, story and distribution. That distinction has been rendered moot with the rise of the “independent” labels of the major studios, such as Lionsgate, Castle Rock, The Weinstein Company, Paramount Vantage and Fox Searchlight. You could find many films that move fluidly between "studio" and "indie" when it comes to the production and distribution aspects. Also, consider that George Lucas made the last three Star Wars films independently, yet these are not considered “indie” films. For example, independent films might focus on personal issues that the director thinks are important (e.g., race, gender, relationships, politics, society). It could also mean that it was made with a hand-held camera or without a big corporate studio breathing down the director’s neck. Independent films may also feature relatively unknown actors giving extraordinary performances, or a big-name celebrity actor performing a gritty role that might not be possible in a blockbuster.We are looking for you to identify characteristics of the performance on film that distinguish it from mainstream blockbuster studio films. For instance, the films that appear at the Sundance Festival feature performances with more emphasis on acting, or more personal approaches by director and cast as compared with larger films with big stars, big budgets and spectacular special effects. A better definition would be that an independent film is one that makes the most of very little to produce a unique, moving film while using unconventional techniques to expose audiences to topics they didn’t realize they cared about such as an issue that the director addresses such as racism,, gender or politics. Describe the elements that you think expand the definition in the independent or foreign films that you choose to analyze. Foreign Film selection:-The King's Speech (2010)England's Prince Albert (Colin Firth) must ascend the throne as King George VI, but he has a speech impediment. Knowing that the country needs her husband to be able to communicate effectively, Elizabeth (Helena Bonham Carter) hires Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush), an Australian actor and speech therapist, to help him overcome his stammer. An extraordinary friendship develops between the two men, as Logue uses unconventional means to teach the monarch how to speak with confidence.Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Available on YouTube for $2.99 My Left Foot (1989)No one expects much from Christy Brown (Daniel Day-Lewis), a boy with cerebral palsy born into a working-class Irish family. Though Christy is a spastic quadriplegic and essentially paralyzed, a miraculous event occurs when, at the age of 5, he demonstrates control of his left foot by using chalk to scrawl a word on the floor. With the help of his steely mother (Brenda Fricker) -- and no shortage of grit and determination -- Christy overcomes his infirmity to become a painter, poet and author.Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Available on YouTube for $2.99 Roma (2018)Written and directed by Academy Award winner Alfonso Cuarón, director of "Gravity" & "Children of Men." This film is in Spanish with English subtitles. It is also in black and white. Focusing on the life of Cleo, a maid in Sofia's household, who cleans and takes care of the family while both of them struggle with their personal lives against the context of social turmoil in Mexico in the 1970s. It has a rich cinematic texture that bristles with emotional impact. The director clearly loves the medium of film as a way to tell stories of real lives. Available on NetflixPink (2016)This Hindi-language courtroom drama directed by Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury focuses on the trial of a woman who is implicated in a crime. A retired lawyer steps forward to help her and her two friends clear their names.Available on NetflixThe Farewell (2019)Billi's family returns to China under the guise of a fake wedding to stealthily say goodbye to their beloved matriarch -- the only person that doesn't know she only has a few weeks to live. Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Available on Amazon Prime for freeCentral Station (Central do Brasil) (1998)Bitter former schoolteacher Dora (Fernanda Montenegro) supports herself by taking dictation from illiterate people in Rio de Janeiro who want to write letters to their families and then pocketing their money without ever mailing the envelopes. One day, Josue (Vinicius De Oliveira), the 9-year-old son of one of her clients, is left alone when his mother is killed in a bus accident. Reluctantly taking him in, Dora joins the boy on a road trip to find his long-missing father.Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Available on iTunesCity of God (2002)In the poverty-stricken favelas of Rio de Janeiro in the 1970s, two young men choose different paths. Rocket (Alexandre Rodrigues) is a budding photographer who documents the increasing drug-related violence of his neighborhood. José "Zé" Pequeno (Leandro Firmino da Hora) is an ambitious drug dealer who uses Rocket and his photos as a way to increase his fame as a turf war erupts with his rival, "Knockout Ned" (Seu Jorge). The film was shot on location in Rio's poorest neighborhoods.Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Wadjda (2012)A rebellious Saudi girl (Waad Mohammed) enters a Koran recitation competition at her school and hopes to win enough money to buy her own bicycle.Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)The Seven Samurai (1954)A samurai answers a village's request for protection after he falls on hard times. The town needs protection from bandits, so the samurai gathers six others to help him teach the people how to defend themselves, and the villagers provide the soldiers with food. A giant battle occurs when 40 bandits attack the village.Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Neerja (2016)Neerja is an Indian film directed by Ram Madhvani and written by Saiwyn Quadras and Sanyuktha Chawla Shaikh. This biographical thriller features Sonam Kapoor as the title character, Neerja Bahnot, a model and purser for Pan Am on a flight hijacked in Karachi, Pakistan. Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Available on NetflixThe Lobster (Greece) (2015)In a dystopian near future, single people, according to the laws of The City, are taken to The Hotel, where they are obliged to find a romantic partner in forty-five days or are transformed into beasts and sent off into The Woods.Ex Machina (UK) (2014)Caleb, a 26 year old programmer at the world's largest internet company, wins a competition to spend a week at a private mountain retreat belonging to Nathan, the reclusive CEO of the company. But when Caleb arrives at the remote location he finds that he will have to participate in a strange and fascinating experiment in which he must interact with the world's first true artificial intelligence, housed in the body of a beautiful robot girl./span>Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)In 19th century Qing Dynasty China, a warrior (Chow Yun-Fat) gives his sword, Green Destiny, to his lover (Michelle Yeoh) to deliver to safe keeping, but it is stolen, and the chase is on to find it. The searchleads to the House of Yu where the story takes on a whole different level. Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Cinema Paradiso (1988)Young Salvatore Di Vita (Salvatore Cascio) discovers the perfect escape from life in his war-torn Sicilian village: the Cinema Paradiso movie house, where projectionist Alfredo (Philippe Noiret) instills in the boy a deep love of films. When Salvatore grows up, falls in love with a beautiful local girl (Agnese Nano) and takes over as the Paradiso's projectionist, Alfredo must convince Salvatore to leave his small town and pursue his passion for filmmaking. Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Available on Netflix streaming (Links to an external site.)The Forest (2016)A monk turned teacher befriends a bullied young student, whose life changes when she bonds with a mysterious boy who dwells in a haunted forest. Thai language with English subtitles. Directed by Paul Spurrier. Note: This is not the film with Natalie Dormer with the same title about the Japanese suicide forest. You may find it at this link on Vimeo. (Links to an external site.) Password: commercialfilmsRetrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Available on VimeoThe Unbearable Lightness of Being (1988)Successful surgeon Tomas (Daniel Day-Lewis) leaves Prague for an operation, meets a young photographer named Tereza (Juliette Binoche), and brings her back with him. Tereza is surprised to learn that Tomas is already having an affair with the bohemian Sabina (Lena Olin), but when the Soviet invasion occurs, all three flee to Switzerland. Sabina begins an affair, Tom continues womanizing, and Tereza, disgusted, returns to Czechoslovakia. Realizing his mistake, Tomas decides to chase after her. Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Available on YouTube for $2.99 Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001)The year is 1893 and India is under British occupation. In a small village, the tyrannical Captain Russell (Paul Blackthorne) has imposed an unprecedented land tax on its citizens. Outraged, Bhuvan (Aamir Khan), a rebellious farmer, rallies the villagers to publicly oppose the tax. Russell offers a novel way to settle the dispute: he challenges Bhuvan and his men to a game of cricket, a sport completely foreign to India. If Bhuvan and his men can defeat Russell's team, the tax will be repealed. Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Available on Amazon (Links to an external site.)A Touch of Sin (China) (2013)Steeped in violence and sorrow, this is an astonishing movie from the Chinese director Jia Zhangke. Divided into four chapters, it was inspired by a series of widely reported violent conflicts in China that haunted him. Together the vignettes allow Mr. Jia – as he put it to me in an interview – to “paint the face” of contemporary China.Zhao Tao, Mr. Jia’s wife and frequent star, plays Xiao Yu, a young receptionist at a sauna. It’s immediately clear that she’s having a rough go of it. She’s in an affair with a married man and his wife not only knows it, but one evening assaults Xiao Yu with the help of two thugs. Like all the sections, this one is largely a slice of brute naturalism spiked with beguilingly surrealistic moments, many involving animals. The overall mood is one of escalating, palpable unease.Yi Yi (Taiwan) (2000)A packed, enthralling three-hour chronicle of modern Taiwanese family life, “Yi Yi” has the heft and density of a great novel. Its point of view is shared among Yang-Yang, his older sister, Ting-Ting, and their father, N.J., a video-game designer in the grip of a quiet but intense midlife crisis. (Links to an external site.)Roger Ebert (Links to an external site.) described “Yi Yi” as “a movie in which nobody knows more than half the truth, or is happy more than half the time,” something that could also be said (optimistically) of life itself. And “Yi Yi” is one of those movies that you remember less as something you saw than as something you experienced, as if you were one of the Jians’ Taipei neighbors.Timbuktu (Mauritania) (2015)Not far from the ancient Malian city of Timbuktu, proud cattle herder Kidane (Ibrahim Ahmed aka Pino) lives peacefully in the dunes with his wife Satima (Toulou Kiki), his daughter Toya (Layla Walet Mohamed), and Issan (Mehdi Ag Mohamed), their twelve-year-old shepherd. In town, the people suffer, powerless, from the regime of terror imposed by the Jihadists determined to control their faith. Music, laughter, cigarettes, even soccer have been banned. The women have become shadows but resist with dignity. Every day, the new improvised Shariah law courts issue tragic and absurd sentences. Kidane and his family are being spared the chaos that prevails in Timbuktu. But their destiny changes abruptly. Cemetery of Splendour (Thailand) (2016)Soldiers with a mysterious sleeping sickness are transferred to a temporary clinic in a former school. The memory-filled space becomes a revelatory world for housewife and volunteer Jenjira, as she watches over Itt, a handsome soldier with no family visitors. Jen befriends young medium Keng who uses her psychic powers to help loved ones communicate with the comatose men. Doctors explore ways, including colored light therapy, to ease the mens' troubled dreams. Jen discovers Itt's cryptic notebook of strange writings and blueprint sketches. There may be a connection between the soldiers' enigmatic syndrome and the mythic ancient site that lies beneath the clinic. Magic, healing, romance and dreams are all part of Jen's tender path to a deeper awareness of herself and the world around her.Dheepan (France) (2016)Dheepan is a Tamil freedom fighter, a Tiger. In Sri Lanka, the Civil War is reaching its end, and defeat is near. Dheepan decides to flee, taking with him two strangers - a woman and a little girl - hoping that they will make it easier for him to claim asylum in Europe. Arriving in Paris, the 'family' moves from one temporary home to another until Dheepan finds work as the caretaker of a run-down housing block in the suburbs. He works to build a new life and a real home for his 'wife' and his 'daughter', but the daily violence he confronts quickly reopens his war wounds, and Dheepan is forced to reconnect with his warrior's instincts to protect the people he hopes will become his true family.Under the Same Moon (La misma luna) (Mexico) (2007)Tells the parallel stories of nine-year-old Carlitos and his mother, Rosario. In the hopes of providing a better life for her son, Rosario works illegally in the U.S. while her mother cares for Carlitos back in Mexico. Unexpected circumstances drive both Rosario and Carlitos to embark on their own journeys in a desperate attempt to reunite. Along the way, mother and son face challenges and obstacles but never lose hope that they will one day be together again.Mountains May Depart (China) (2016)The life of Tao, and those close to her, is explored in three different time periods: 1999, 2014, and 2025.Sing Street (Ireland) (2016)A boy growing up in Dublin during the 1980s escapes his strained family life by starting a band to impress the mysterious girl he likes.Girlhood (France) (2014)A girl with few real prospects joins a gang, reinventing herself and gaining a sense of self confidence in the process. However, she soon finds that this new life does not necessarily make her any happier. Oppressed by her family setting, dead-end school prospects and the boys law in the neighborhood, Marieme starts a new life after meeting a group of 3 free-spirited girls. She changes her name, her dress code, and quits school to be accepted in the gang, hoping that this will be a way to freedom.The Death of Mr. Lazarescu (Romania) (2006)The title is a spoiler. When we first meet Dante Lazarescu, a retired Bucharest resident in his early 60s (though he looks older), he is complaining of stomach pains. A little more than two and a half hours later – more or less in real time – he has left this world, unmourned and all but unnoticed. Why should we care? That is the question – not at all rhetorical – posed by Cristi Puiu’s bleak, gripping, weirdly funny second feature. At the Cannes Film Festival, “The Death of Mr. Lazarescu (Links to an external site.)” was a word-of-mouth sensation. “Did you see that three-hour Romanian movie? Oh, man. You’ve gotta see it.” And that’s still true. Mr. Puiu’s film was an early sign of the flowering of Romanian cinema that would bring international acclaim to young auteurs like Cristian Mungiu (“4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days”) and Corneliu Porumboiu (“Police, Adjective”). Like his colleagues (and sometime rivals), Mr. Puiu uses long takes and minimal camera movement to create a sense of lived reality that is absorbing almost to the point of claustrophobia. He zeroes in remorselessly on the petty absurdities and large iniquities that define life in Romania more than a decade after the fall of Nicolae Ceausescu’s Communist dictatorship.New Independent cinema movies selection:-This is Spinal Tap (1984)"This Is Spinal Tap" shines a light on the self-contained universe of a metal band struggling to get back on the charts, including everything from its complicated history of ups and downs, gold albums, name changes and undersold concert dates, along with the full host of requisite groupies, promoters, hangers-on and historians, sessions, release events and those special behind-the-scenes moments that keep it all real.Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Waiting for Guffman (1996)When the town of Blaine, Mo., approaches its sesquicentennial, there's only one way to celebrate: with a musical revue called "Red, White and Blaine." Hoping the show will be his ticket back to Broadway, impresario Corky St. Clair (Christopher Guest) rounds up a cast of enthusiastic but untalented locals (Eugene Levy, Fred Willard, Catherine O'Hara) to perform his masterwork. But, when Corky reveals that theater agent Mort Guffman will attend the opening, things really kick into high gear.Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Reservoir Dogs (1992)A group of thieves assemble to pull of the perfect diamond heist. It turns into a bloody ambush when one of the men turns out to be a police informer. As the group begins to question each other's guilt, the heightening tensions threaten to explode the situation before the police step in.Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Eighth Grade (2018)Thirteen-year-old Kayla endures the tidal wave of contemporary suburban adolescence as she makes her way through the last week of middle school -- the end of her thus far disastrous eighth-grade year. Retrieved from GoogleTrust (1990)High school dropout Maria Coughlin (Adrienne Shelly) is having a rough time of it on Long Island. Her father recently died of a heart attack, her boyfriend has left her and she's pregnant. To make matters even worse, her mother has now kicked her out of the house. But when electronics genius Matthew Slaughter (Martin Donovan) comes into her life, things start to brighten up for Maria. Sure, he's unemployed and a little unhinged, but together they just might have a chance.Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Hold Me Thrill Me Kiss Me (1992)A burglar (Max Parrish) on the run courts a porn star's innocent sister (Adrienne Shelly) in a trailer park full of oddballs.Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Waitress (2007)Jenna (Keri Russell) works in a diner in a small Southern town and is a genius at creating luscious desserts, but her marriage to an overbearing lout (Jeremy Sisto) makes happiness impossible. When she discovers she is pregnant, she makes plans to skip town before her condition is obvious. However, she begins an affair with the new town doctor (Nathan Fillion), who is the only one who knows her secret.Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Lost in Translation (2003)A lonely, aging movie star named Bob Harris (Bill Murray) and a conflicted newlywed, Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson), meet in Tokyo. Bob is there to film a Japanese whiskey commercial; Charlotte is accompanying her celebrity-photographer husband. Strangers in a foreign land, the two find escape, distraction and understanding amidst the bright Tokyo lights after a chance meeting in the quiet lull of the hotel bar. They form a bond that is as unlikely as it is heartfelt and meaningful.Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Sideways (2004)Struggling writer and wine enthusiast Miles (Paul Giamatti) takes his engaged friend, Jack (Thomas Haden Church), on a trip to wine country for a last single-guy bonding experience. While Miles wants to relax and enjoy the wine, Jack is in search of a fling before his wedding. Soon Jack is sleeping with Stephanie (Sandra Oh), while her friend Maya (Virginia Madsen) connects with Miles. When Miles lets slip that Jack is getting married, both women are furious, sending the trip into disarray.Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Babel (2006)An accident connects four groups of people on three different continents: two young Moroccan goatherds, a vacationing American couple (Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett), a deaf Japanese teen and her father, and a Mexican nanny who takes her young charges across a border without parental permission. Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Birdman (2014)Former cinema superhero Riggan Thomson (Michael Keaton) is mounting an ambitious Broadway production that he hopes will breathe new life into his stagnant career. It's risky, but he hopes that his creative gamble will prove that he's a real artist and not just a washed-up movie star. As opening night approaches, a castmate is injured, forcing Riggan to hire an actor (Edward Norton) who is guaranteed to shake things up. Meanwhile, Riggan must deal with his girlfriend, daughter and ex-wife.Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Boyhood (2014)The joys and pitfalls of growing up are seen through the eyes of a child named Mason (Ellar Coltrane), his parents (Patricia Arquette, Ethan Hawke) and his sister (Lorelei Linklater). Vignettes, filmed with thesame cast over the course of 12 years, capture family meals, road trips, birthday parties, graduations and other important milestones. Songs from Coldplay, Arcade Fire and other artists capture the time period. Directed by Richard Linklater. Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Blue Jasmine (2013)After her marriage to a wealthy businessman (Alec Baldwin) collapses, New York socialite Jasmine (Cate Blanchett) flees to San Francisco and the modest apartment of her sister, Ginger (Sally Hawkins). Although she's in a fragile emotional state and lacks job skills, Jasmine still manages to voice her disapproval of Ginger's boyfriend, Chili (Bobby Cannavale). Jasmine begrudgingly takes a job in a dentist's office, while Ginger begins dating a man (Louis C.K.) who's a step up from Chili. Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Available on YouTube for $9.99American Hustle (2013)Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale) dabbles in forgery and loan-sharking, but when he falls for fellow grifter Sydney Prosser (Amy Adams), things change in a big way. Caught red-handed by FBI agent Richie DiMaso (Bradley Cooper), Irv and Sydney are forced to work under cover as part of DiMaso's sting operation to nail a New Jersey mayor (Jeremy Renner). Meanwhile, Irv's jealous wife (Jennifer Lawrence) may be the one to bring everyone's world crashing down. Based on the 1970s Abscam case.Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)In the 1930s, the Grand Budapest Hotel is a popular European ski resort, presided over by concierge Gustave H. (Ralph Fiennes). Zero, a junior lobby boy, becomes Gustave's friend and protege. Gustave prides himself on providing first-class service to the hotel's guests, including satisfying the sexual needs of the many elderly women who stay there. When one of Gustave's lovers dies mysteriously, Gustave finds himself the recipient of a priceless painting and the chief suspect in her murder. Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Silver Linings Playbook (2012)After losing his job and wife, and spending time in a mental institution, Pat Solatano (Bradley Cooper) winds up living with his parents (Robert De Niro, Jacki Weaver). He wants to rebuild his life and reunite with his wife, but his parents would be happy if he just shared their obsession with the Philadelphia Eagles. Things get complicated when Pat meets Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence), who offers to help him reconnect with his wife, if he will do something very important for her in exchange.Retrieved from Google (Links to an external site.)Additional Options: The Hurt Locker (USA) (2009)Kathryn Bigelow made history when she became the first woman to win the Oscar for best director, for this film. At long last, a brilliant female director was recognized for her art by a male-dominated industry that remains pathologically resistant to equality. It was a cinematic and political milestone then; it still is. And while it may seem paradoxical that Ms. Bigelow was honored for a war movie in which women are largely physically absent, masculinity – with its discontents, rituals, enigmas and staggering, annihilating capacity for violence – has long been her great subject.That this violence is also self-annihilating is an anguished truth in The Hurt Locker, which is set in and around Baghdad during the war in Iraq the year after the American invasion. The story tracks three members of an army explosive ordnance disposal squad that disarms roadside bombs. The story’s axis point is the squad’s volatile team leader, Staff Sgt. William James (Jeremy Renner), whose expertise has morphed into a ghastly mania. He doesn’t just take avoidable risks – sweat cascading off him, an exasperated James removes his protective bomb suit while trying to disarm an explosive – he rushes right at them.Inside Llewyn Davis (USA) (2013)Follow a week in the life of a young folk singer as he navigates the Greenwich Village folk scene of 1961. Guitar in tow, huddled against the unforgiving New York winter, he is struggling to make it as a musician against seemingly insurmountable obstacles -- some of them of his own making. Watch for the cat and the melancholy performance of Oscar Issac. Krisha (USA) (2016)Krisha returns for Thanksgiving dinner after ten years away from her family, but past demons threaten to ruin the festivities.The Witch (USA) (2016)New England, 1630: William and Katherine try to lead a devout Christian life, homesteading on the edge of an impassible wilderness, with five children. When their newborn son mysteriously vanishes and their crops fail, the family begins to turn on one another. 'The Witch' is a chilling portrait of a family unraveling within their own sins, leaving them prey for an inescapable evil.The Invitation (USA) (2016)Will and Eden were once a loving couple. After a tragedy took their son, Eden disappeared. Two years later, out of the blue, she returns with a new husband... and as a different person, eerily changed and eager to reunite with her ex and those she left behind. Over the course of a dinner party in the house that was once his, the haunted Will is gripped by mounting evidence that Eden and her new friends have a mysterious and terrifying agenda. But can we trust Will's hold on reality? Or will he be the unwitting catalyst of the doom he senses?Burning Sands (USA) (2017)Deep into Hell Week, a favored pledgee is torn between honoring his code of silence or standing up against the intensifying violence of underground hazing.Mississipi Damned (USA) (2009)In the years 1986 and 1998 three black children living in Mississippi deal with poverty, violence and abuse. Young Kari the main character, is a talented pianist who hopes to pursue a career in it one day. Her sister Leigh is struggling to hide her lesbian relationship with her girlfriend, Paula. Their cousin Sammy, is a star basketball player. Each child deals with their dysfunctional family, including gambling, alcoholism, and poverty.