SummerDocs - Hamptons International Film Festival (original) (raw)
Our beloved SummerDocs series was created by Artistic Director David Nugent and HIFF Board Member (and Chair Emeritus) Alec Baldwin, who together expertly curate the lineup each summer.
SummerDocs was back for a 16th season with a stellar selection of films, screening in East Hampton and followed by conversations with acclaimed filmmakers and guests.
Directed by Jeff Zimbalist and co-directed by Maria Bukhonina
Part romance, part thriller, this film follows a daredevil couple as they take their relationship to terrifying new heights in a wild scheme to climb the world’s last great skyscraper and perform a death-defying stunt on the spire.
A daredevil couple risk it all to go where no one has gone before: the top of the world’s last great skyscraper. Angela and Vanya are Russia’s preeminent rooftoppers who defy the odds (and death) to scale the globe’s tallest buildings. As their acrobatic stunts go viral and rack up millions of online views, they form a dynamic duo and create a new artform that they call “skywalking.” Filmed over six years across six countries, SKYWALKERS: A LOVE STORY captures extreme climbing in harrowing detail and is directed and written by Emmy-winning filmmaker Jeff Zimbalist (MOMENTUM GENERATION), and co-directed by Maria Bukhonina. A Netflix release.
A Q&A with co-director Maria Bukhonina and producer Tamir Ardon followed the screening.
Presented in partnership with
Directed by Jesse Moss and Tony Gerber
A real-life political thriller set on January 6, 2025, WAR GAME imagines a nation-wide insurrection in which members of the US military defect to support the losing Presidential candidate, while the winning candidate and his advisors—played by an all-star roster of senior officials from the last five administrations—war games the crisis in the White House situation room. They have 6 hours to save democracy as the country teeters on the brink of civil war.
A Q&A with directors Tony Gerber and Jesse Moss followed the screening.
Directed by Ian Bonhôte and Peter Ettedgui
SUPER/MAN: THE CHRISTOPHER REEVE STORY tells of Reeve’s astonishing rise from unknown actor to iconic movie star, and his definitive portrayal of Clark Kent/Superman set the benchmark for the superhero cinematic universes that dominate cinema today. Reeve portrayed the Man of Steel in four SUPERMAN films and played dozens of other roles that displayed his talent and range as an actor before being injured in a near-fatal horse-riding accident in 1995 that left him paralyzed from the neck down. After becoming a quadriplegic, he became a charismatic leader and activist in the quest to find a cure for spinal cord injuries, as well as a passionate advocate for disability rights and care—all while continuing his career in cinema in front of and behind the camera and dedicating himself to his beloved family.
From the directors of McQUEEN, Ian Bonhôte and Peter Ettedgui, this film includes never-before-seen intimate home movies and an extraordinary trove of personal archive material, as well as the first extended interviews ever filmed with Reeve’s three children about their father, and interviews with the A-list Hollywood actors who were Reeve’s colleagues and friends. The film is a moving and vivid cinematic telling of Reeve’s remarkable story.
Alec Baldwin and David Nugent moderated a Q&A with Christopher Reeve’s son Will Reeve and executive producer Connor Schell following the screening.
Distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, SUPER/MAN: THE CHRISTOPHER REEVE STORY is a presentation of DC Studios, HBO Documentary Films, CNN Films and Words+Pictures, and a production of Passion Pictures, Misfits Entertainment and Jenco Films.
Presented in partnership with
SummerDocs is supported by Rumor Rosé.
Joan Baez and Laurie Anderson in conversation following JOAN BAEZ I AM A NOISE in the 2023 SummerDocs series.
Many past SummerDocs Series selections have continued down the awards path and have gone on to be shortlisted, receive a nomination, and even win an Academy Award® for Best Documentary Feature Film, including THE ETERNAL MEMORY (2024), NAVALNY (2023), FIRE OF LOVE (2023), SUMMER OF SOUL (2021), ICARUS (2017), TWENTY FEET FROM STARDOM (2013), SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN (2012), and THE COVE (2009).
The series has also featured films from filmmakers including Maite Alberdi, Sara Dosa, Fisher Stevens, Rory Kennedy, Rachel Grady, Heidi Ewing, Davis Guggenheim, Andrew Rossi, Daniel Roher, Chiemi Karasawa, Morgan Neville, Marina Zenovich, Louie Psihoyos, and Steve James.
What will audiences discover this year?