East Hampton, NY (September 18, 2014) – The Hamptons International Film Festival (HIFF) is pleased to announce that Academy award nominee Jean-Marc Vallée’s WILD will have its East Coast Premiere as the Southampton opener on Friday, October 10^th. Academy Award-nominated actress Laura Dern will be in attendance for the Kaufman Astoria Studios sponsored premiere and will also participate in HIFF’s signature program “A Conversation With…” on Saturday, October 11^th at Bay Street. Vallée will attend the festival on behalf of the film as well. Academy Award^® winner Reese Witherspoon stars in this superb adaptation of Cheryl Strayed's best-selling 2012 memoir. Devastated by the death of her mother (Laura Dern), Strayed spirals toward self-destruction, ending her marriage and eventually becoming addicted to heroin. Four years later, seeking to leave her scars behind, she embarks on a life-changing journey: a solo, 1,000-mile plus hike along the Pacific Crest Trail. Vallée's follow-up to DALLAS BUYERS CLUB is an inspiring voyage of pain and discovery, anchored by Witherspoon’s great performance and aided by a terrific supporting cast that includes Laura Dern. The film will be released by Fox Searchlight on December 5, 2014.

Bennett Miller’s FOXCATCHER is Saturday’s Centerpiece Film, playing at Guild Hall in East Hampton on Saturday, October 11^th. The film’s star Mark Ruffalo will attend the festival premiere along with taking part in “A Conversation With…” on Sunday, October 12^th at 2pm at Bay Street, which will be sponsored by NYU Langone Medical Center. Based on true events, the film follows Olympic Gold Medal-winning wrestler Mark Schultz (Channing Tatum) and his revered brother Dave (Mark Ruffalo) as they fall into the orbit of an eccentric multi-millionaire, John du Pont (Steve Carell), with the ambiguous goal of pushing Mark to fame and glory. Nothing quite prepares you for FOXCATCHER, as this riveting stranger-than-fiction tale turns dark and tragic. Sony Pictures Classics will release the film on November 14, 2014.

WILD and FOXCATCHER join the previously announced Sunday Centerpiece Film THE HOMESMAN, which will mark its East Coast premiere at HIFF.

“Bennett Miller and Jean-Marc Vallée are two of the most exciting filmmakers working today, each of whose last films were nominated for the Academy Award® for Best Picture,” said HIFF Artistic Director David Nugent. “Their latest films continue their evolution as artists and we are so proud to share their work with our audiences.”

Now entering its 15^th year at HIFF, this year’s Films of Conflict & Resolution (C&R) program consists of a fantastic lineup of four documentaries and a narrative film. The C&R program recognizes and celebrates films that, in creative and enlightening ways, deal with the complex issues and the human dramas associated with war and violence. It also recognizes one of the films in the series with a cash prize of $5,000 and a panel discussion after its screening, encouraging dialogue about the topic and providing a platform to learn, react and engage in worthy causes and issues.

Along with the Brizzolara family, HIFF is pleased to announce that the 2014 Brizzolara Family Foundation Award will be presented to Ross Kauffman and Katy Chevigny’s E-TEAM. The film profiles members of the Emergency Team (E-Team) of a respected international human rights organization, who are the first people on the scene when there is suspicion of human rights abuses. Award-winning filmmakers Kauffman and Chevigny take us behind the scenes and on the ground with these very different, yet fearlessly committed individuals as they balance their personal and family life with their intense work life in the field.  

"You've seen Human Rights Watch quoted in the news, but you seldom see those brave civilians -- the human rights workers, journalists and the documentary filmmakers -- who often provide the only eyewitness reports and documents to atrocities around the world.  The E-Team is a vivid, personal behind the scenes look at some of the remarkable people who work on the Human Rights Watch emergency teams, dropping into war zones and collecting that vital information -- often at the risk of their own lives," said HIFF board member Kim Brizzolara about the winning film.

For the second year, REACT to FILM (RtF) will again partner with HIFF for the C&R program and will provide the winning film with an exclusive screening in their popular “Public Screening Series” in Fall 2014 at a high-profile cultural organization, as well as the opportunity to be featured across RtF’s College Action Network, comprised of over 40 campuses nationwide.  RtF is an educational nonprofit focused on exposing students to critical social issues through documentary film.

FULL LIST OF FILMS OF CONFLICT & RESOLUTION

VIRUNGA

Director: Orlando Von Einsiedel

The breathtaking Virunga National Park, a UNESCO world heritage site in eastern Congo, is under attack from many sides. With its rich bio-diversity, Virunga is home to the last mountain gorillas and holds a wealth of natural resources. From sweeping vistas to pixelated images of secret meetings, Orlando von Einsiedel fashions together a thrilling first feature documentary, introducing us to the brave people protecting the park: a Belgian conservationist leading the army of park rangers; an ex-child soldier and a young French journalist who covertly film local politicians and international businessmen; and a ranger who has become a surrogate parent to orphaned gorillas. The film is also the winner of the Zelda Penzel Giving Voice to the Voiceless Award, recognizing a film in the Festival that brings attention to the suffering of animals.

E-TEAM

Director: Ross Kauffman and Katy Chevigny

Anna, Ole, Fred and Peter, members of the Emergency Team (E-Team) for a respected international human rights organization, are the first people on the scene when there is suspicion of human rights abuses. Entering areas of conflict like Syria or post-Qaddafi Libya, they gather evidence to determine if further investigation is warranted, and often what they find challenges decision makers, holding them accountable. Award-winning filmmakers Ross Kauffman and Katy Chevigny take us behind the scenes and on the ground with these very different, yet fearlessly committed individuals as they balance their personal and family life with their intense work life in the field.

CHARLIE'S COUNTRY

East Coast Premiere
Director: Rolf de Heer

Tired of the constant policing, Charlie – portrayed by the regally gray-maned David Gulpilil – stubbornly copes with the encroaching “white man’s laws” into his remote Aboriginal community in Australia’s Northern Territory. He goes back to his roots to live the “old way,” only to set off a chain of events he didn’t see coming. Director Rolf de Heer crafts a subtle portrait of a man caught between two cultures and creates an exquisite showcase for his co-writer, veteran actor Gulpilil (WALKABOUT, RABBIT PROOF FENCE), winner of the Un Certain Regard Best Actor Prize at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival.

THE LOOK OF SILENCE

Director: Joshua Oppenheimer

While Joshua Oppenheimer’s groundbreaking documentary, THE ACT OF KILLING, cast a light on the victors of the mid-1960s Indonesian genocide, his equally devastating follow-up, THE LOOK OF SILENCE, focuses on one family’s struggle to understand the horrific murder of their loved one. Adi, a humble optometrist in a rural village, stoically stares at clips from the first film before deciding to confront his brother’s executioners, many of whom are still in power. Opening old wounds, asking the hard questions, and receiving veiled threats, he attempts to start a dialogue between victims and killers who for generations have lived side-by-side in silence.

THIS IS MY LAND

US Premiere
Director: Tamara Erde

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world," said Nelson Mandela, and artist-filmmaker Tamara Erde’s first feature length film examines how the shared, complex and charged history of Israel and Palestine is taught to the next generation in this volatile region. Does it fuel conflict or encourage peace? How much freedom does the Ministry of Education give teachers? Through dialogues, debates, celebrations and field trips at six independent schools, this fascinating documentary observes how young minds are shaped by what is said and, just as importantly, by what is unspoken.

The 22^nd Annual Hamptons International Film Festival, which will be held over Columbus Day Weekend, October 9-13, 2014, greatly appreciates the support from their corporate sponsors, including Delta Airlines, Altour International, Silvercup Studios, Showtime Networks, A&E Indie Films, Kaufman Astoria Studios, NYU Langone Medical Center, The Wall Street Journal, and WNBC New York.

ABOUT THE HAMPTONS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
The Hamptons International Film Festival (HIFF) is a year-round 501(c)3 non-profit organization with events, screenings, film workshops, comprehensive summer programs and an annual film festival each October. The Festival is the premiere film event on New York State's east end, and is an intimate showcase of some of the year's best offerings in contemporary cinema from around the world. With cash and in-kind prizes handed out totaling more than $190,000, HIFF continues to attract some of the best films of the year. Selections from all of our programs continue to play an important role during awards season. 2013 marked the 5th time in the last 6 years that a film at the Festival has become the eventual Best Picture winner at the Oscars, making HIFF the only Festival on the East Coast with such a distinction. In those 6 years, films screened in the festival have received 150 Oscar nominations.