Galas and Centerpiece Screenings
AFI DALLAS International Film Festival is proud to present films from acclaimed actors, directors and producers. These are works that will inspire conversation, spark imagination and encourage contemplation from some of the most respected individuals in cinema.
OPENING NIGHT SCREENING
Then She Found Me
U.S.A., 2007, 100 min., color, 35mm
April (Helen Hunt) is 39-year-old with a ticking biological clock. Her charming but immature husband, Ben (Matthew Broderick), decides their recent marriage is a mistake; and her ailing adoptive mother, whom April has been nursing through her illness, dies. As if this weren’t enough, a brassy, overbearing local talk-show host named Bernice Graves (Bette Midler) shows up out of the blue, announcing herself as April’s biological mother. And she has incredible news: April is the result of a one-night stand Bernice had with Steve McQueen nearly 40 years ago.
Director: Helen Hunt
Screenwriters: Helen Hunt, Vic Levin, Alice Arlen, based on the novel by Elinor Lipman
Cast: Helen Hunt, Colin Firth, Matthew Broderick
Producers: Pamela Koffler, Katie Roumel, Christine Vachon, Connie Tavel, Helen Hunt
Thursday, March 27, 7:00 p.m. | Majestic
CLOSING NIGHT SCREENING
Battle in Seattle
U.S.A., 2007, 100 min., color, 35mm
Stuart Townsend’s provocative and heartfelt directorial debut follows multiple fictional story lines about people affected by the riots during the World Trade Organization’s 1999 meeting in Seattle. He crosses the spectrum of debate and confrontation to examine what was going on inside and outside the Seattle convention space. Terrific performances from a wonderful ensemble cast come from Charlize Theron, Ray Liotta and Woody Harrelson.
Director: Stuart Townsend
Screenwriter: Stuart Townsend
Cast: Martin Henderson, Michelle Rodriguez, Chalize Theron, Woody Harrelson, Ray Liotta, Andre’ Benjain Rade Sherbedzija, Connie Nielsen
Producers: Mary Aloe, Kirk Shaw, Maxime Remillard
Saturday, April 5, 7:30 p.m. | Northpark 8
CENTERPIECE SCREENING 1
Snow Angels
U.S.A., 2007, 106 min., color, 35mm
Snow Angels opens on a high school band rehearsing in what could be Anywhere, U.S.A. when the sound of a gunshot rings out. The film interweaves the stories of high school sweethearts that have recently separated (Sam Rockwell and Kate Beckinsale). Each attempt to pick up the threads when they are dealt a further blow. And a young man (Michael Angarano) in the throes of discovering a first romance must also learn to deal with his parent’s separation.
Director: David Gordon Green
Screenwriter: David Gordon Green
Cast: Sam Rockwell, Kate Beckinsale, Michael Angarano, Griffin Dunne, Amy Sedaris, Olivia Thirlby
Producer: Dan Lindau, Paul Miller, Lisa Muskat, Cami Tayler
Tuesday, April 1, 7:30 p.m. | Northpark 8
CENTERPIECE SCREENING 2
What Just Happened?
U.S.A., 2007, 107 min.
The vision that Academy Award–winning director Barry Levinson’s sometimes-mordant, often-penetrating, and fiercely comic chronicle brings to the screen is as human and universal as any insider’s tale, a story about a man at the top of his game who has to deal with prima donnas, crazy artists, shameless egotists, and difficult marriages. Because it’s personal and detailed and virtuously enacted by Robert De Niro and a spectacular supporting cast, it’s even touching.
Director: Barry Levinson
Exectutive Producers: Todd Wagner, Mark Cuban, Eric Kopeloff
Producers: Robert De Niro, Art Linson, Jane Rosenthal, Barry Levinson
Cast: Robert De Niro, Bruce Willis, Sean Penn, Catherine Keener, Stanley
Thursday, April 3, 7:30 p.m. | Inwood
Friday, April 4, 1:00 p.m. | Inwood
