Matt Damon & More Added to Palm Springs International Film Fest Q&A Panels

The 27th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival (PSIFF) has announced additional screenings and panels in its Talking Pictures program. Matt Damon, Ridley Scott and Will Smith will participate in moderated Q&A's following screenings of their films. Additionally, all nine films selected to advance to the next round of voting in the Best Foreign Language Film category of the 88th Academy Awards® will also screen at the festival with the directors participating in a panel. Held from January 1-11, 2016, the Festival will screen 40 of the 80 films that had originally qualified in this category.

The shortlisted films, listed in alphabetical order by country, are:

The Brand New Testament (Belgium), Director Jaco Van Dormael

Embrace of the Serpent (Colombia), Director Ciro Guerra

A War (Denmark), Director Tobias Lindholm

The Fencer (Finland), Director Klaus Härö

Mustang (France), Director Deniz Gamze Ergüven

Labyrinth of Lies (Germany), Director Giulio Ricciarelli

Son of Saul (Hungary), Director László Nemes

Viva (Ireland), Director Paddy Breathnach

Theeb (Jordan), Director Naji Abu Nowar

The directors will also participate in "Oscar®-Shortlisted Foreign Filmmakers in Conversation," an illuminating discussion which will encompass their films, what drives them thematically and creatively and the concurrent blessing and curse of "Oscar buzz." The discussion will be preceded by a presentation of clips from each of the directors' films. Scott Feinberg from The Hollywood Reporter will moderate the panel, taking place on Wednesday, January 6 at 6:00 p.m. at the Palm Canyon Theatre.

A special jury of international film critics will review all 40 of the foreign language Oscar® submissions selected by the Festival and determine the FIPRESCI Award for Best Foreign Language Film of the Year, Best Actor and Best Actress. The jurors are: Derek Malcolm (UK), Jon Asp (Sweden), and José Teodoro (Canada).

The Festival's Talking Pictures program will now include a screening of The Martian on Saturday, January 2 with Golden Globe nominees and National Board of Review winners Matt Damon and Ridley Scott participating in an onstage Q&A. Damon will receive the Chairman's Award at the Festival's Award Gala. On Sunday, January 3 Golden Globe nominee and Variety's Creative Impact in Acting Award honoree Will Smith will join a Q&A following the screening of Concussion.

The two films join the lineup of previously announced Talking Pictures screenings and conversations including Golden Globe nominee Lily Tomlin with the film Grandma and Director Asif Kapadia and Amy Winehouse's friend and former manager Nick Shymansky with the Oscar® shortlisted documentary Amy.

For a complete schedule visit www.psfilmfest.org.

About The Palm Springs International Film Festival The Palm Springs International Film Festival (PSIFF) is one of the largest film festivals in North America, welcoming 135,000 attendees last year for its lineup of new and celebrated international features and documentaries. The Festival is also known for its annual Black Tie Awards Gala, honoring the best achievements of the filmic year by a celebrated list of talents who, in recent years, have included Ben Affleck, Javier Bardem, Cate Blanchett, Sandra Bullock, Bradley Cooper, George Clooney, Daniel Day-Lewis, Leonardo DiCaprio, Clint Eastwood, Tom Hanks, Matthew McConaughey, Julianne Moore, Brad Pitt, Eddie Redmayne, Julia Roberts, David O. Russell, Meryl Streep, and Reese Witherspoon. The presenting sponsor of the Awards Gala is BIGHORN and major sponsors are ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT and Mercedes-Benz.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride / WM Photos

To post a comment, you must register and login.