The Greenwich International Film Festival (GIFF) today announced its Opening Night Films and Closing Night Films in addition to its full film slate, and special programs for its second edition, taking place June 9-12. The festival previously announced its Centerpiece Film Program, including THE FUNDAMENTALS OF CARING, MY BLIND BROTHER, and NEWTOWN as well as this year’s Changemaker Honorees, Trudie Styler and Abigail Breslin.

GIFF will kick off on June 9th with Opening Night screenings of LITTLE BOXES and the Connecticut Premiere of THE ANTHROPOLOGIST. LITTLE BOXES follows Clark, the new-in-town biracial kid in a sea of white. Discovering that to be cool he needs to act ‘more black,’ he fumbles to meet expectations, while his urban intellectual parents Mack and Gina also strive to adjust to small-town living. The Opening Night Documentary Feature, THE ANTHROPOLOGIST explores indigenous communities that are hit hardest by climate change.

On Sunday, June 12th the festival will close with screenings of CLAIRE IN MOTION and SINCE: THE BOMBING OF PAN AM FLIGHT 103. CLAIRE IN MOTION follows Claire, whose husband has mysteriously disappeared. On her journey to find him, she meets an alluring and manipulative graduate student and uncovers a world of secrets that threaten to shatter her family. In 1988 the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, killed over 200 innocent people; the Documentary Feature SINCE: THE BOMBING OF PAN AM FLIGHT 103 explores the victims’ relatives and their fight for justice.

“We are truly delighted by how quickly GIFF has grown over the last year,” said Colleen deVeer, Founder and Director of Programming. “We wanted our festival to reflect the diverse interests of our community, and we are impressed by the team’s success in exceeding our expectations to achieve this goal.”

The Festival’s Narrative Features include the Connecticut Premieres of LONELY BOYS and MY KING (MON ROI). Additional Narrative Features include COMPLETE UNKNOWN, THE DUEL, EQUALS, HUNT FOR THE WILDERPEOPLE, THE INNOCENTS, INTO THE FOREST, THE JUNGLE BOOK, LITTLE MEN, SPA NIGHT and TEENAGE COCKTAIL.

Documentary Features include the Connecticut Premieres of AUTHOR: THE JT LEROY STORY and LEARNING TO SEE, as well as the East Coast Premieres of HIT IT HARD and TONY ROBBINS: I AM NOT YOUR GURU. Additional Documentary Features include AFTER SPRING, THE BAD KIDS, GERMANS AND JEWS, HARRY BENSON: SHOOT FIRST, HOOLIGAN SPARROW, LIFE, ANIMATED, THE NATURE OF THE BEAST, ROBERT KLEIN STILL CAN’T STOP HIS LEG, SONITA, TICKLED, UNCLE HOWARD, and UNSEEN.

The Shorts program will include Narrative Shorts BEFORE THE BOMB, DON’T WATCH ME DANCING, HUX, THE MULBERRY BUSH, MUSCLE, PONY, SOLITARY, SUPER SEX, and WIFEY REDUX. The program will also include Documentary Shorts ANOTHER KIND OF GIRL, FERGUSON 365, THE LAST MILE, OSPREY: MARINE SENTINEL, PUPS and the Connecticut Premiere of BACON AND GOD’S WRATH.

The Festival is proud to present a retrospective on documentary filmmaker, Ondi Timoner on Friday, June 10th at the Cole Auditorium at Greenwich Library. Ondi has the rare distinction of winning the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival twice, her latest work includes BRAND: A SECOND COMING which follows Russell Brand’s transformation from addict, self-proclaimed narcissist and hollywood star living in the fast-lane to his ‘second coming’ as a political disruptor & newfound hero to the underserved. The Retrospective will include a screening of Ondi’s 1994 film, THE NATURE OF THE BEAST, about Bonnie Foreshaw, the woman who served the longest prison sentence in Connecticut. The film will be preceded by THE LAST MILE, Ondi’s short film about an incubator inside San Quentin prison that works to turn hard criminals into entrepreneurs. The retrospective will be followed by a conversation with Ondi about the justice and prison systems, with a focus on Connecticut.

GIFF is expanding into Stamford, CT by partnering with the Avon Theatre Film Center for a Special Screening of ROBERT KLEIN STILL CAN’T STOP HIS LEG. The screening, being held June 10th, will be followed by a Q&A with Director, Marshall Fine and Actor/Comedian Robert Klein. Additionally, GIFF will host a Jewish Film Series on Thursday, June 9th, featuring The World Premiere of GERMANS & JEWS, the East Coast Premiere of MOON IN THE 12TH HOUSE, the Connecticut Premiere of NORMAN LEAR: JUST ANOTHER VERSION OF YOU, and THE TENTH MAN (EL REY DEL ONCE).

This year’s Opening Night Party, following screenings of CLAIRE IN MOTION and THE ANTHROPOLOGIST, will take place Thursday, June 9th at the Boys & Girls Club in Greenwich, CT. The star-studded party will include live musical entertainment by John Popper (Blues Travelers) who will perform a concert to help celebrate the festival’s human rights focus. Dar Williams, whose music is featured in GIFF’s Opening Night Documentary Feature THE ANTHROPOLOGIST, will also perform. GIFF’S Opening Night Party is sponsored by Betteridge.

The Opening Night Party will also feature the festival awards presentation. As part of the ceremony, Kristin Davis will present the award for Best Social Impact Film. Other awards will include Best Narrative & Documentary Features and Shorts.

FULL LIST OF AWARDS AND PRIZES:

Best Social Impact Film – $10,000 Bresnan Award, Artist In Residence Prize from Jacob Burns Film Center

Best Narrative Feature – $10,000

Best Narrative Short – $2,500

Best Documentary Feature – $10,000

Best Documentary Short – $2,500

Tickets go on sale May 12 at 9 a.m. and will be available for purchase at greenwichfilm.org or at our Box Office, designed by Lillian August, located at 19 West Elm Avenue, Greenwich CT.