Awards Announced For 2018 San Diego International Film Festival

The San Diego International Film Festival (SDiFF), produced by the San Diego Film Foundation, announced today that they have honored Alex Wolff, from the Spotlight presentation "Stella's Last Weekend," with the Auteur Award and Dominique Fishback, from the Gala Presentation "The Hate U Give," with the Rising Star Award. The awards will be presented October 11th at The Night of the Stars Tribute at the Pendry San Diego in Downtown San Diego, CA.

Additionally, the festival announced its full line up of films, including Gala, Spotlight, Competition and Short Film sections. Now in its 17th year, the San Diego International Film Festival will run from October 10th through October 14th in San Diego, CA. The most up to date festival information is available at www.sdfilmfest.com

Actor/musician Alex Wolff, recipient of this year's Auteur Award, is one of the most sought after young actors in Hollywood. Most recently, Wolff received immense buzz from his lead role in A24's horror film "Hereditary," which critics are calling "the scariest movie of 2018." He also received great praise for his work in Peter Livolsi's "House of Tomorrow," and also appeared in the Netflix indie dramedy "Dude," opposite Lucy Hale and Awkwafina. Next up, Wolff will star in the Polly Draper directed "Stella's Last Weekend," alongside brother, Nat Wolff. Wolff recently wrapped production on his feature film directorial debut, "The Cat & The Moon," in which the budding filmmaker also stars. Previously, Wolff appeared opposite Dwayne Johnson in Sony's "Jumanji: Welcome to The Jungle," and starred in "My Friend Dahmer," based on the acclaimed graphic novel by John Backderf. Also in 2017, Wolff starred in The New Group's off-Broadway play, All The Fine Boys, opposite Abigail Breslin and Isabelle Fuhrman. In late 2016, Wolff received critical acclaim in Peter Berg's" Patriots Day," and that same year, Wolff starred in "Coming Through the Rye," produced by Emmy-winning TV director Jim Sadwith, opposite Chris Cooper.

As the recipient of Rising Star Award, Fishback is an actress and playwright who is best known for playing Darlene on HBO's "The Deuce" and Billie Rowan on "Show Me a Hero." She currently stars in the indie film "Night Comes On," which premiered at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival and was the winner of the Next Innovator Award. Next up, Dominique can be seen in FOX 2000 Pictures' "The Hate U Give," opposite Amandla Stenberg, Anthony Mackie, Common, Algee Smith and Regina King. Earlier this year, Dominique appeared as a younger version of Jay-Z's mother, Gloria Carter, in his music video for SMILE. The part earned her a Webby Award for best individual performance.

"We couldn't be more excited to honor Alex and Dominique for their roles as emerging talent in the industry. These awards are merely an indication of all the fine work they have already done, and will continue to do in the future," said Tonya Mantooth, CEO and Artistic Director of the San Diego International Film Festival.

Leading the program at this year's festival are the Gala Features screenings, which include 7 titles of various genres.

In addition, the San Diego International Film Festival is proud to screen narrative, documentary and short films, both in and out of competition, vying for top award honors. The lineup below includes 115 films total, 7 Narrative Spotlight Competition films, 17 Narrative Competition films, 13 Documentary Competition films, and 72 Short films.

Screenings will be held in the historic Balboa Theater and Regal Theaters in Downtown San Diego, and ArcLight Cinemas in La Jolla. The complete list of 2018 San Diego Film Festival titles including descriptions will soon be available at www.sdfilmfest.com

Passes are currently on sale to VIP members and the general public. In addition to screenings and events, VIP passes provide access to the official festival lounge and parties where pass holders interact with Festival filmmakers and professionals in the film community. Individual tickets will go on sale beginning August 31st.

For more information regarding passes/tickets, press accreditation, industry passes, or sponsorship opportunities, please visit www.sdfilmfest.com

2018 SAN DIEGO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL LINE-UP

Gala Features ( 7 )

· Can You Ever Forgive Me?, Dir. Marielle Heller, USA, So. California Premiere

· The Favourite, Dir. Yorgos Lanthimos, USA, So. California Premiere

· Boy Erased, Dir. Joel Edgerton, USA, So. California Premiere

· Everybody Knows, Dir. Asghar Farhadi, USA, So. California Premiere

· Widows, Dir. Steve McQueen, USA, So. California Premiere

· Wildlife, Dir. Paul Dano, USA, So. California Premiere

· The Hate U Give, Dir. George Tilman Jr., USA, So. California Premiere

Spotlight Competition ( 7 )

· Little Woods, Dir. Nia DaCosta, USA, California Premiere

· Tiger, Dir. Alister Grierson, USA, World Premiere

· Stella's Last Weekend, Dir. Polly Draper, USA, West Coast Premiere
· Mosul, Dir. Daniel P. Gabriel, USA, World Premiere
· Soufra, Dir. Thomas Morgan, USA, California Premiere
· Under the Eiffel Tower, Dir. Archie Borders, USA, California Premiere

· Prospect, Dir. Chris Caldwell, USA, California Premiere

Narrative Competition ( 17 )
· Electric Love, Dir. Aaron Fradkin, USA, World Premiere
· I May Regret, Dir. Graham Streeter, USA, North American Premiere
· Indian Horse, Dir. Stephen Campanelli, Canada, California Premiere
· Astral, Dir. Chris Mul, UK, World Premiere

· One Last Night, Dir. Anthony Sabet, USA, World Premiere
· Susu, Dir. Yixi Sun, China, California Premiere

· Are You Glad I'm Here, Dir. Noor Gharzeddine, USA, West Coast Premiere
· Eternal Winter, Dir. Attila Szász, Hungary, West Coast Premiere

· Rust Creek, Dir. Jen McGowan, USA, San Diego Premiere

· Wild Nights with Emily, Dir. Madeleine Olnek, USA, San Diego Premiere

· The Drummer and the Keeper, Dir. Nick Kelly, UK, San Diego Premiere

· Supa Moda, Dir. Likarion Wainaina, Germany/Kenya, San Diego Premiere
· The Samuel Project, Dir. Marc Fusco, USA, San Diego Premiere

· Degenerates, Dir. Callum Crawford, England, United States Premiere

· My Name is Batlir, Not Butler, Dir. Stare' Yildirim, Turkey, California Premiere

· The Butterfly Tree, Dir. Priscilla Cameron, Australia, California Premiere

Documentary Competition ( 13 )

· The Interpreters, Dir. Andres Caballero/ Sofian Khan, USA, California Premiere
· California's Forgotten Children, Dir. Melody Miller, USA, West Coast Premiere
· Talking to the Air: The Horses of the Last Forbidden Kingdom, Dir. Sophie Dia Pegrum, Nepal, San Diego Premiere

· Golden Genes, Dir. Annette van Trigt, Holland, West Coast Premiere

· Storied Streets, Dir. Thomas Morgan/Jack Robbins, USA, San Diego Premiere

· Mary Janes: The Women of Weed, Dir. Windy Borman, USA, San Diego Premiere

· Constructing Albert, Dir. Laura Collado/ Jim Loomis, USA, United States Premiere

· Warrior Women, Dir. Elizabeth Castle/Christina King, USA, San Diego Premiere

· When Lambs Become Lions, Dir. Jon Kasbe, USA, California Premiere
· Transecting Borneo, Dir. Scott Sporleder, USA, North American Premiere

· STROOP - Journey Into the Rhino Horn War, Dir. Susan Scott, USA, So. California Premiere

· The Push, Dir. Grant Korgan/Geoff Callan, USA, California Premiere

· Blue, Dir. Karina Holden, Australia, So. California Premiere

Shorts Tracks Competition ( 72 )
Shorts Screening in Front of Features:

· Keepers of the Wild, Dir. Adam McClelland, West Coast Premiere

· My Paintbrush Bites, Dir. Joel Pincosy, USA, San Diego Premiere

· Cole, Dir. David Call, USA, West Coast Premiere

Global Consciousness:

· Diwa, Dir. Bru Muller/Aina Dumlao, USA, San Diego Premiere

· AKEDA, Dir. Dan Bronfeld,USA, San Diego Premiere

· Newborn, Dir. Ray Savaya, Canada, West Coast Premiere

· Lalo's House, Dir. Kelley Kali, USA, San Diego Premiere

· Masks, Dir. Mahaliyah Ayla O, USA, San Diego Premiere

Twisted Humor:

· Must Kill Karl, Joe Kicak, Canada, San Diego Premiere

· A Funny Thing Happened to Kelly and Ted, Dir. Jason Manella, USA, United States Premiere

· Your Call is Important to Us, Dir. TJ Power, Australia, West Coast Premiere

· Tuesday Crowd, Dir. Will Kioultzopoulos, USA, West Coast Premiere

· The Arrival, Dir. Dawn Luebbe/Jocelyn DeBoer, USA, San Diego Premiere

· End of the Line, Dir. Jessica Sanders, USA, San Diego Premiere

For Shorts and Giggles:

· Dim Sum, Dir. Freddie Waters, UK, San Diego Premiere

· Sac de Merde, Dir. Greg Chwerchak, USA, San Diego Premiere

· Sam Did It, Dir. Dominic Burgess, USA, San Diego Premiere

· Hero, Dir. Andrew Garcia/Nate Garcia, USA, San Diego Premiere

· Have it All, Dir. Katie Locke O'Brien, USA, San Diego Premiere

· Takeout Night, Dir. Duncan Birmingham, USA, San Diego Premiere

· The Wedding Scene, Dir. Dan Levy Dagerman, USA, San Diego Premiere

· Deep Dish Apocalypse, Dir. David Codeglia, USA, San Diego Premiere

A Stranger in a Stranger Land:

· Laboratory Conditions, Dir. Jocelyn Stamat, USA, Southern California Premiere

· Baghead, Dir. Alberto Corredor, UK, California Premiere

· Lucy, Dir. Roberto Gutiérrez, Venezuela, California Premiere

· The Light Refracts into the Shadows, Dir. Tsung Hsuan Yeh, UK/Taiwan, United States Premiere

· Wake the Riderless Horses, Dir. Michael Langman, USA, San Diego Premiere

Illusion:

· Miscreant, Dir. Rocky Ramsey, USA, San Diego Premiere

· It's a Match, Dir. Ron Najor, USA, San Diego Premiere

· Sweetheart, Dir. Jérémie Seguin, France, West Coast Premiere

· Heart's Ease, Dir. Jassa Ahluwalia, UK, San Diego Premiere

· Asset Management, Dir. Ewan Fletcher, UK, California Premiere

· From Life, Dir. Uli Meyer, UK, West Coast Premiere

· These Broken Wings, Dir. James Schlesinger, UK, United States Premiere

When Worlds Collide:

· The Dishwasher, Dir. Jordan Jacinto, USA, World Premiere

· Marguerite, Dir. Marianne Farley, Canada, California Premiere

· Bless Me Father, Dir. Paul M. Horan, Ireland, San Diego Premiere

· Leader, Dir. Katia Priwieziencew/Igor Priwieziencew, Poland, United States Premiere

· Green (Good Immigrants), Dir. Suzanne Andrews Correa, USA, California Premiere

Internal Combustion:

· White Horse, Dir. Ludovic Littee, USA, World Premiere

· Three Pages, Dir. Roger Gariépy, Canada, San Diego Premiere

· Fauve, Dir. Jeremy Comte, Canada, San Diego Premiere

· Running Eagle: Pitamakan, Dir. Konrad Th? Fiedler, USA, San Diego Premiere

· Veterane, Dir. Pier-Philippe Chevigny, Canada, United States Premiere

Indie Stories:

· Bumper, Dir. Nirina Ralantoaritsimba, France, World Premiere

· The Outer Circle, Dir. Adam Baroukh, UK, San Diego Premiere

· Quantum, Dir. Ryan Willard, USA, California Premiere

· Too Long at the Fair, Dir. Jessie Barr/Lena Hudson, USA, San Diego Premiere

· March Fool, Dir. Pierre-Marc Drouin/Simon Lamarre-Ledoux, Canada, San Diego Premiere

· Boy Boy Girl Girl, Dir. Ross Kauffman, USA, West Coast Premiere

Independent Animation Filmmaking:

· Fire in Cardboard City, Dir. Phil Brough, New Zealand, San Diego Premiere

· Weekends, Dir. Trevor Jimenez, USA, San Diego Premiere

· The Driver is Red, Dir. Randall Christopher, USA, San Diego Premiere

· The Hermit, Dir. Raúl Díez, Spain, San Diego Premiere

· Two Balloons, Dir. Mark C. Smith, USA, San Diego Premiere

· Rebooted, Dir. Sagar Arun/Rachel Kral, USA, World Premiere

· First Comes Love, Dir. Daniel Ceballos, USA, San Diego Premiere

· One Small Step, Dir. Shaofu Zhang, USA/China, San Diego Premiere

The San Diego Scene:

· Behind Greatness, Dir. Garrett Marks, USA, World Premiere

· Romance is Dead, Dir. Todd Jackson, USA, West Coast Premiere
· The Ride, Dir. Eric Addison, USA San Diego Premiere

· Daisy Belle, Dir. William Wall, USA, San Diego Premiere

· Alana Nichol's Story, Dir. Eli Benson, USA, San Diego Premiere

· Real Connection, Dir. Thierry Denis, USA, World Premiere

· Wake, Dir. David Clark, USA, United States Premiere

Student Filmmaking:

· Fathom, Dir. Alessio Morello, USA, World Premiere

· Learning to Swim, Dir. Krystal Dawkins, USA, World Premiere

· Bee Conscious, Dir. Reed Martin, USA, World Premiere

· Change is in the Water, Dir. Reed Martin, USA, World Premiere

· Queen, Dir. Gabrielle Shepard, USA, World Premiere

About the San Diego International Film Festival?

The San Diego International Film Festival is the region's premier film event and one of the leading stops on the independent festival circuit. The San Diego International Film Festival offers a totally unique film experience; including world premieres, never before seen studio releases, the best in independent filmmaking and a full schedule of glamorous parties and intimate events with filmmakers.