Hamptons International Film Festival Announces 2025 Lineup

The Hamptons International Film Festival is rolling out the red carpet for its 33rd edition with an expansive slate of premieres, tributes and conversations that highlight both established and emerging voices in world cinema. Running Oct. 3 to 13, the 2025 festival will present 85 features and 57 shorts from around the globe, including 12 world premieres and dozens of other U.S., East Coast and New York debuts.

Presented by the Artemis Rising Foundation, the 2025 lineup underscores HIFF’s reputation as a launchpad for awards contenders and a showcase for adventurous storytelling.

“This year’s program reflects the creativity and diversity that continue to make cinema such a vital art form,” said Artistic Director David Nugent. “From powerful premieres and career-spanning conversations to bold new voices breaking through, we can’t wait to welcome filmmakers and audiences back to the Hamptons.”

Honors and Tributes

Among the most notable events, the festival will inaugurate its Achievement in Casting Award with a tribute to Bernard Telsey, whose career has shaped Broadway and Hollywood. Telsey, known for his work on Across the Universe, Mary Poppins Returns and Rachel Getting Married, will be recognized for redefining the role of casting in storytelling. He will accept the honor Oct. 4 at a screening of Kiss of the Spider Woman, joined by director Bill Condon and actor Tonatiuh, this year’s UBS Breakthrough Performer.

Tonatiuh’s rising profile is among several emerging talents celebrated this year. Eva Victor has been named UBS Breakthrough Director, while Sydney Sweeney will receive the Achievement in Acting Award in connection with the U.S. premiere of David Michôd’s Christy. Ethan Hawke is also set to appear in a “Conversation With” series event.

Major Premieres

The festival opens Oct. 3 with the U.S. premiere of David Freyne’s Eternity, starring Elizabeth Olsen, who will also participate in an onstage conversation. The closing night will feature the world premiere of Maria Friedman’s Merrily We Roll Along, headlined by Jonathan Groff, Daniel Radcliffe and Lindsay Mendez.

Other highlights include the East Coast premiere of Kristen Stewart’s directorial effort The Chronology of Water, presented in the Spotlight section and sponsored by Audi.

Narrative Competition

The Narrative Competition lineup, sponsored by Fox Rothschild, brings together new international storytellers. Among them:

The U.S. premiere of Mehmet Akif Büyükatalay’s Hysteria, which delves into a film set thrown into chaos after a burned Quran is discovered.

Cole Webley’s Omaha, a road-trip drama about siblings reeling from family tragedy.

Simón Mesa Soto’s A Poet, a satire about mentorship gone awry.

Hasan Hadi’s The President’s Cake, which follows a young girl tasked with baking for Saddam Hussein’s birthday.

Mascha Schilinski’s Sound of Falling, a generational story of four girls on a German farm.

Documentary Competition

On the nonfiction side, the Documentary Competition will premiere Anthony Benna’s André Is an Idiot, chronicling one man’s irreverent battle with terminal cancer; Josefine Exner and Sebastian Gerdes’ The Nicest Men on Earth, exploring masculinity in Denmark; Paige Bethmann’s Remaining Native, following a Native American runner’s pursuit of college athletics; and David Bim’s To the West, in Zapata, about a Cuban father’s unusual hunt to feed his family.

Signature Programs

HIFF’s signature series continue to anchor the lineup.

Films of Conflict and Resolution, sponsored by Naturopathica, will feature Laura Poitras and Mark Obenhaus’ Cover-Up, which traces the career of journalist Seymour Hersh; Ben Proudfoot’s The Eyes of Ghana; and The Voice of Hind Rajab, telling the story of a Palestinian girl trapped in war.

Air, Land, and Sea, sponsored by Luminara Napa Valley, includes A Life Illuminated, about marine biologist Edie Widder’s quest to study bioluminescence; Turtle Walker, following Satish Bhaskar’s sea turtle conservation; and Yanuni, spotlighting Indigenous climate activism in the Amazon. Other selections include Ghost Elephants and Trade Secret, both examining endangered wildlife.

World Cinema Highlights

The World Cinema Documentary program will debut Ivy Meeropol’s Ask E. Jean, chronicling the life of E. Jean Carroll; Orlando von Einsiedel’s The Cycle of Love, about an Indian street artist’s epic journey; and Kim A. Snyder’s The Librarians, which positions library workers as frontline defenders of democracy.

Also featured are Jennifer Ash Rudick and Amanda M. Benchley’s Marilyn Minter: Pretty/Dirty; Suzannah Herbert’s Natchez, exploring the legacy of slavery in Mississippi; Marshall Curry’s The New Yorker at 100; and Robert Gordon’s Newport & the Great Folk Dream, on the famed music festival.

In narrative world cinema, standouts include Fatih Akin’s Amrum, set in 1945 Germany; Maryam Touzani’s Calle Malaga, about an elderly Spanish woman in Tangier; Richard Linklater’s Nouvelle Vague, a tribute to Jean-Luc Godard; and László Nemes’s Orphan, set in 1957 Budapest. Jafar Panahi, Christian Petzold and the Dardenne brothers also bring new works to the Hamptons stage.

Views From Long Island

Regional filmmaking takes the spotlight in Views From Long Island, which features the world premiere of Warren Elgort’s Arthur Elgort: Models & Muses; Ari Selinger’s On the End, about a Montauk mechanic’s unexpected romance; Patricia E. Gillespie’s The Secrets We Bury, a true-crime exploration; and Halina Krystyna Dyrschka’s Thoughts of Infinity, highlighting painter James Howell.

Shorts and Juries

Eleven short film programs will screen, covering themes from environmental issues to children’s programming. Categories include Air, Land and Sea Shorts, Conflict and Resolution, Narrative Competition and Views From Long Island, among others.

Jury members include Variety editor Matt Donnelly, Tony Award-winning actor John Benjamin Hickey and Sundance executive Jody Arlington on the narrative side, with Agnes Chu and Loren Hammonds serving on the documentary panel.

Festival Sponsors

Sponsors for the 2025 edition include presenting sponsor Artemis Rising Foundation, premier sponsor Audi, and signature sponsors UBS, Il Buco and Redbreast Irish Whiskey. Media partners include WNBC, The Atlantic and Variety.

The Hamptons International Film Festival begins Oct. 3 and ends Oct. 13. Visit hamptonsfilmfest.org