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What kind of film fester are you?

We understand, film festing is hard. With over 100 films to choose from at this year’s film festival, it can seem a little overwhelming.  That’s why we devised this handy guide to help you along the path of independent film enlightenment! So whether you are interested in checking out the international shorts, rubbing elbows with a celebrity filmmaker, experiencing the virtual reality films or hitting up the after parties, we have plenty of suggestions to make this your best film festival ever!

Lab Coats and Science Beakers Excite You!
(And…..Bill Nye, the Science Guy is your hero)

NCFF Special Guests Bill Nye plus directors Jason Sussberg & David Alvarado
Monday, September 11th, 8:30 PM
Miners Foundry, Osborn Woods HallBUY TICKETSNevada City native son, director Jason Sussberg returns to the Nevada City Film Festival with his acclaimed documentary film “Bill Nye: Science Guy.”In the film, Nye – the Emmy Award-winning host of the popular late-nineties PBS series “Bill Nye, the Science Guy” and now host of the Netflix series “Bill Nye Saves the World” – embarks on a quest to change the world through science advocacy and education. With intimate and exclusive access this is a behind-the-scenes portrait of “the Science Guy”, as he inspires millennials to participate in STEM. With wonder and whimsy, the film follows Bill’s journey to change the world…with science.

You Want To Be Inspired

Matters of Spirit – Short Docs
Saturday, September 9, 3:00 PM
Miners Foundry, Osborn Woods Hall
BUY TICKETSThese four films examine compassion and an abiding sense of the sacred in a material world.

Defend the Sacred dir. Kyle Bell
A short documentary that attempts to capture the spirit of Indigenous people at Standing Rock. Seattle International Film Festival Best Short Film

Ram Dass: Going Home dir. Derek Peck
A profound and poetic encounter with cultural and spiritual icon Ram Dass, at his home on Maui toward the end of his life.

The Good Fight dir. Ben Holman
Following a personal tragedy, Alan Duarte opens his own boxing gym to offer salvation and hope to others in the notorious gun violence ridden favela in Rio de Janeiro where he was born and lives. Tribeca Film Festival Best Documentary Short 

Refuge dir. Matthew K. Firpo
Refuge is a multimedia project chronicling human stories in the European Refugee Crisis, focused on humanity and hope. Shot on location in Greece, January 2016. Santa Barbara International Film Festival Best Documentary Short; San Luis Obispo International Film Festival Best Documentary Short; Oxford Film Festival Best Documentary Short

Shadows of Paradise 
Friday, September 8, 7:30 PM
Miners Foundry, Osborn Woods Hall
BUY TICKETSWith intimate access to two of Transcendental Meditation’s leaders – filmmaker David Lynch and dedicated disciple Bobby Roth – Shadows of Paradise documents the Movement’s metamorphosis following the death of founder Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Having grown up within the Movement, director Sebastian Lange approaches his subject through an essayistic lens, seeking personal meaning amidst TM’s transformative global growth.
Shadows of Paradise TRAILER

You’re a Rocker and Need Some Rock

NCFF After Dark – Gimme Danger: A Film + Music Tribute to Iggy Pop
Friday, September 8, 7:00 PM
The Stone House
BUY TICKETSJoin us opening night as we pay homage to one of rock’s ultimate provocateurs, Iggy Pop, with a screening of director Jim Jarmusch’s documentary Gimme Danger – presenting the compelling context of The Stooges’ emergence.  Followed with live music form local good time rockers Beautiful Dudes, Chat Room, My Dallas Teens, and Blake Severn & Broken Spoke.
Gimme Danger Official Trailer dir. Jim Jarmusch

You Love It When A Movie Give You Goosebumps

Music in the Mountains & InConcert Sierra present
Score: A Film Music Documentary

Saturday, September 9, 7:00 PM
Nevada Theatre
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What makes a film score unforgettable? Score: A Film Music Documentary brings Hollywood’s elite composers together to give viewers a privileged look inside the musical challenges and creative secrecy of the world’s most international music genre: the film score. A film composer is a musical scientist of sorts, and the influence they have to complement a film and garner powerful reactions from global audiences can be a daunting task to take on. The documentary contains interviews with dozens of film composers who discuss their craft and the magic of film music while exploring the making of the most iconic and beloved scores in history: “James Bond”, “Star Wars”, “Indiana Jones”, “Pirates of the Caribbean”, “Titanic”, “E.T.” and “Psycho”.

SCORE: A Film Music Documentary Trailer

You’re On A Quest To Discover The Meaning of Life

Lives Well Lived
Sunday, September 10, 7:00 PM
Miners Foundry, Osborn Woods Hall
BUY TICKETSLives Well Lived celebrates the incredible wit, wisdom, and experiences of seniors aged 75 to 100 years old. Through their intimate memories and inspiring personal histories encompassing over 3000 years of experience, 40 people share their secrets and insights to living a meaningful life.
Lives Well Lived – Trailer

You Want To Laugh and Don’t Mind If Things Get A Little Weird

NCFF After Dark: An Evening With Eric Wareheim & Friends
Thursday, September 14, 8:00 PM
The Stone House
BUY TICKETSEric Wareheim is BACK! And the writer, comedian, director and musician is bringing his friends with him for an evening of comedy shorts, a brand new episode of Bedtime Stories, and something so special we can’t tell you! Best known as one half of the comedy duo Tim & Eric, alongside Tim Heidecker, Wareheim is responsible for producing such comedy cult favorites as the Adult Swim sketch show Tim & Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!, Check It Out! with Dr. Steve Brule starring John C. Reilly, Comedy Bang! Bang!, The Eric Andre Show, and Nathan for You. He currently stars with Aziz Ansari in Netflix’s Master of None.

You’re Not Afraid To Walk On The Wild Side

Late Night Popcorn – Shorts
Saturday, September 9, 9:00 PM
Nevada Theatre
BUY TICKETSPart Walk on the Wild side, partly a stroll through the Collective Unconscious.

Native dir. Travis Champagne
While on a ceremonial walkabout a young boy must defend his tribe against a mysterious forces.

Angeltown dir. Nancy Liu
A Korean Marilyn Monroe wanders the City of Angels and confronts her past.

Hexed dir. Sarah Poynter, Rain Valdez
A woman is “kiss-hexed” by a homeless person and must find another person to kiss by midnight or she expires – an unlikely love story.

Onere dir. Kevin Pontiuti
A young woman bears a strange burden. A film about self acceptance and resilience.

This Isn’t Me dir. Manfred Lopez
This short film explores the harrowing consequences of what we swear will never happen to us.

Tango dir. Pedro Giongo, Francisco Gusso
After years of drought, a mystic potato sprouts in the remote springs of the Aiatak River. Soon, everything will be ready for the great ritual of Tango. Inspired by the short story “A Hunger Artist” by Franz Kafka, Tango is a plunge into human nature and its contradictions.

Ai dir. Laura Nutti
Ayaka’s life is spiraling out of control. She is starting to lose touch with reality and distance herself from her only friend Saki.  Something needs to change.

You Believe It Is Never Too Early To Expose Kids To Art

Children’s Program – Shine On!
The Best Animated Films from Children’s Film Festival Seattle 2017

Saturday, September 9, 1:00 PM
Miners Foundry, Osborn & Woods Hall
Children free when accompanied by an adult
BUY TICKETSWhat makes you shine? The characters in these sweet and funny films have special things that make them glow and grow. Join them as they play with their friends and families, discover new things about themselves, and take journeys to near and far. If you close your eyes and make a wish, you might even be able to join them on a trip to the moon! For all-ages.

You’ve Heard About Virtual Reality But Haven’t Tried It …. Yet! 

VR & Multimedia Pavilion 
Friday & Saturday, September 8 & 9
Miners Foundry, Stone Hall
BUY TICKETS Last year, to rave reviews, we launched a VR Festival within the Film Festival. People traveled across the state to see the very best in VR. This year we’ve raised the bar and are bringing VR to all of Nevada County (well, most of it!).We’ve partnered with Exit Reality VR to have their VR trucks stopping throughout Nevada County before and during the festival for individuals to experience VR for the first time. We are also excited to have Exit Reality VR join us at the VR Pavilion at Festival HQ, Miners Foundry to showcase the best in cinematic, story driven VR.

The VR Pavilion features VR experiences from the world’s top VR creators on Facebook/Oculus VR and HTC Vive, plus live Tilt Brush demonstrations on the HTC Vive by visual artists, workshops and panel discussions, DJs and a common area for creatives to meet up, hang out, and talk about their next project!

You’re A NCFF Purist and Short Films Are Your Jam

Animation Short Films
Saturday, September 9, 7:00 PM
Miners Foundry, Osborn Woods HallEclectic and no-holds-barred-creative, our Animation Program tends to challenge everyone’s expectations, even ours! Disclaimer: These animations are NOT meant for young children.Documentary Short Films 1
Saturday, September 9, 1:00 PM
Nevada TheatreFive intimate portraits of real people in singular circumstance. Seeing is believing.Documentary Short Films 2
Saturday, September 9, 5:00 PM
Miners Foundry, Osborn Woods HallSix finely wrought samples of non-fiction storytelling. Institutions and traditions by turn created, honored, exposed, and challenged.

Fiction Short Films 1 
Friday, September 8, 5:30 PM
Miners Foundry, Osborn Woods Hall

Five short films depicting encounters that alter how we see and who we are.

Fiction Short Films 2
Saturday, September 9, 3:00 PM
Nevada Theatre

Cinematic short stories (including one adapted from the master of the form, Raymond Carver), with a focus on love, and the choices it often requires.

Journeys & Vistas
Friday, September 8, 7:30 PM
Miners Foundry, Osborn Woods Hall

These films take us to new places and other cultures, while challenging our assumptions along the way.

Social Change/Political Justice Shorts
Friday, September 8, 5:30 PM
Nevada Theatre

A local election in an industrial Bay Area town sheds light on America’s shifting political landscape, and the fate of military vets deported from the nation they served gives pause.  Bernie Sanders makes a cameo in both films.

BUY TICKETS

You and Ken Burns Have A Lot In Common…You Love History, Culture and Documentary Films!

Olancho
Saturday, September 9, 5:00 PM
Nevada Theatre
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Olancho is the story of the most lawless province in Honduras, the most murderous country in the world.It is the story of a group of musicians who perform for the powerful drug cartels there.  Their songs glorify the traffickers who have destroyed their country, and who sometimes threaten the lives of their loved ones.  But in a world where the cartels wield the most power, do the musicians have any other choice?

You Want to Nosh From A Food Truck, Drink Beer and Watch A Movie at the Same Time

Best of the Fest
Friday, September 15, 6:00 PM
Pioneer Park
BUY TICKETS

Nevada City Film Festival wraps this year’s festivities with an outdoor “Best of the Fest” screening at Pioneer Park.  Enjoy delicious eats from local and regional food trucks, live music from Strictly Business, award-winning beer from Ol Republic Brewery, and the winners of this year’s festival including the highly coveted Audience Choice Award.  Music and general merriment starts at 6pm, with the films beginning at 7pm.  Bring a low back chair and/or blanket.
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