A bigger fest returns Sept. 28

This year’s festival opens with the world premiere of Joshua Caldwell’s “Mending the Line,” in which a young wounded Marine (Sinqua Walls) forms a bond with a Vietnam vet (Brian Cox) over fly-fishing. The closing night film is “Empire of Light,” a love story set in a seaside English town in the 1980s, directed by Sam Mendes and starring Olivia Colman, Micheal Ward and Colin Firth.

Other headliners include the New York premieres of “Raymond and Ray” (directed by Rodrigo Garcia and starring Ewan McGregor and Ethan Hawke); Martin McDonagh’s “The Banshee of Inisherin” (Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson); and “Triangle of Sadness” by the Swedish filmmaker Ruben Östlund.

Highlights among the documentaries include “The Quiet Epidemic,” about two Lyme disease survivors’ pursuit to understand the tick-borne disease; and “Living In Delusionville,” which follows Ron English, the “Godfather of Street Art,” who’s currently based in the Hudson Valley.

Find the complete list of films and premieres here.

The festival has also taken these couple years to grow professionally. This year’s attendee list includes Ethan Hawke, Awkwafina and Amanda Seyfried. What’s more, short films that win in the animation, documentary and narrative categories are immediately eligible for Academy Award nominations.

“I can’t tell you how many people tell me this is the weekend they look forward to the most in the Hudson Valley,” said Blaustein. “There are few events in the year that are very beloved and have people who look forward to them all year, and I’m happy to know that the festival is very much one of them.”

The nonprofit Woodstock Film Festival has been celebrating independent film from both local and international filmmakers since 2000, when Blaustein and co-founder Laurent Retjo planned their first festival. Now, with Blaustein helming the ship on her own, the organization also acts as a launchpad for aspiring filmmakers. Year-round programs including panels and masterclasses provide a space for creatives to nurture and cultivate their skills.

The festival has also been an economic engine for the small town of Woodstock in recent years, bringing in thousands of guests. Films are screened at the historic Tinker Street Cinema, Bearsville Theater, Saugerties’ Orpheum Theater, the Woodstock Playhouse, Rosendale Theatre and more, and the town’s businesses and establishments kick into high gear for the five-day event each fall.

“Every single year, without exception, we have all these new people who have never been here before,” said Blaustein. “They come and they fall in love with the area.”

Those attending come from far and wide, but though the festival is a nationally recognized event, it is also a catalyst for community involvement. Volunteers and film-lovers from around the Hudson Valley have joined the team to put on films and panels at the festival for years.

“It’s just really wonderful for those who live here, because it’s this very special weekend once a year where they can see all these great films and meet all these wonderful people,” said Blaustein. “And many of those films they’ll never get a chance to see anywhere else.”