The 34th Palm Springs International Film Festival took place from January 5 to 16, 2023, in Palm Springs, California, United States. The festival opened with the world premiere of Kyle Marvin's comedy film 80 for Brady and closed with Stephen Frears' biographical film The Lost King.
Background and special awards Throughout December 2022, several special awards were announced, which were presented at the Opening Gala on January 5, 2023, at the Palm Springs Convention Center. Actors Austin Butler and Danielle Deadwyler were honored with the Breakthrough Performance Award, for their performances in Elvis and for Till, respectively. Steven Spielberg's The Fabelmans received the Vanguard Award, Brendan Fraser received the Spotlight Award, Sarah Polley received the Director of the Year award for Women Talking and Viola Davis received the chairman's Award. Desert Palm Achievement Awards were presented to Cate Blanchett for Tár and Colin Farrell for The Banshees of Inisherin, while Michelle Yeoh and Bill Nighy received the International Star Actress and International Star Actor awards respectively.
The following day, on January 6, the Variety'''s 10 Directors to Watch brunch took place at the Parker Palm Springs, where four Creative Impact awards were presented: Creative Impact in Acting Award to Angela Bassett; Creative Impact in Screenwriting Award to Rian Johnson; Creative Impact in Directing Award to Baz Luhrmann; and Creative Impact in Breakthrough Performance Award to Brian Tyree Henry for Causeway.
Juries The juries consists of the following members:
FIPRESCI International Film Jury Robert Horton, historian and programmer at Scarecrow Video Project and member of the National Society of Film Critics. Andrew Kendall, Head of the Department of Language and Cultural Studies at the University of Guyana. Anders Larsson, Swedish critic, poet and festival director of Lund Fantastic Film Festival
Ibero-American Jury Manuel Betancourt, Colombian culture writer. Trey Shields, programmer of the Philadelphia Film Society and Philadelphia Film Festival. Rebecca Sun, senior editor of diversity and inclusion at The Hollywood Reporter.
Documentary Jury Diana Cadavid, Colombian-Canadian film curator and International Programmer for the Toronto International Film Festival. Amir George, American filmmaker. Robin Robinson, Senior Programmer at the Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival.
New Voices New Visions Violet Lucca, web editor and digital director at Harper's Magazine. Monica Trasandes, Uruguayan-American director of Spanish-Language & Latinx Media & Representation at GLAAD. Lauren Wissot, film critic, journalist, filmmaker and programmer.
Bridging the Borders Keely Badger, Executive Director of MOZAIK. Bambadjan Bamba, actor, filmmaker and immigrant rights advocate. Marcy Garriott, independent documentary filmmaker. Vladek Juszkiewicz, founder of the Polish Film Festival Los Angeles. Granaz Moussavi, Iranian writer and literary critic Bijan Tehrani, founder and director of I, Immigrant and founder of Cinema Without Borders (CWB) and CineEqual.
Sections The films selected for each section are as follows:
Awards Buzz – Best International Feature Film Submissions The following section consists of submissions for Best International Feature Film at the 95th Academy Awards: English title Original title Director(s) Production countrie(s) Ajoomma 花路阿朱妈 He Shuming Singapore Alcarràs Carla Simón Spain All Quiet on the Western Front Im Westen nichts Neues Edward Berger Germany Argentina, 1985 Santiago Mitre Argentina Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths Bardo, falsa crónica de unas cuantas verdades Alejandro G. Iñárritu Mexico Beautiful Beings Berdreymi Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson Iceland Blanquita Fernando Guzzoni Chile Boy from Heaven صبي من الجنة Tarik Saleh Sweden Cinema Sabaya סינמה סבאיא Orit Fouks Rotem Israel Close Lukas Dhont Belgium Corsage Marie Kreutzer Austria Darkling Мрак Dušan Milić Serbia Decision to Leave 헤어질 결심 Park Chan-wook South Korea EO IO Jerzy Skolimowski Poland Eternal Spring 长春 Jason Loftus Canada Holy Spider عنکبوت مقدس Ali Abbasi Denmark Il Boemo Petr Václav Czech Republic Joyland جوائے لینڈ Saim Sadiq Pakistan Kalev Ove Musting Estonia Klondike Клондайк Maryna Er Gorbach Ukraine Last Film Show Pan Nalin India Mars One Marte Um Gabriel Martins Brazil Mediterranean Fever Maha Haj Palestine Nostalgia Mario Martone Italy Return to Seoul Retour à Séoul Davy Chou Cambodia Saint Omer Alice Diop France The Blue Caftan أزرق القفطان Maryam Touzani Morocco The Happiest Man in the World Najsreḱniot Čovek na Svetot Teona Strugar Mitevska North Macedonia The Quiet Girl An Cailín Ciúin Colm Bairéad Ireland Under the Fig Trees تحت الشجرة Erige Sehiri Tunisia Utama Alejandro Loayza Grisi Bolivia Victim Oběť Michal Blaško Slovakia War Sailor Krigsseileren Gunnar Vikene Norway World War III جنگ جهانی سوم Houman Seyyedi Iran You Won't Be Alone Goran Stolevski Australia Highlighted title indicates the section winner.
Talking Pictures The following films were selected to be screened as part of the Talking Pictures section, each with discussion panels with their directors, writers and actors: English title Original title Director(s) Production countrie(s) Alice, Darling Mary Nighy United States, Canada Chevalier Stephen Williams United States The Banshees of Inisherin Martin McDonagh Ireland, United Kingdom, United States Moving On Paul Weitz United States
Modern Masters The following films were selected to be screened as part of the Modern Masters section, consisting of new films by well-established directors: English title Original title Director(s) Production countrie(s) All the Beauty and the Bloodshed Laura Poitras United States Broker 브로커 Hirokazu Kore-eda South Korea A Compassionate Spy Steve James United States, United Kingdom Hilma Lasse Hallström Sweden No Bears خرس نیست Jafar Panahi Iran One Fine Morning Un beau matin Mia Hansen-Løve France, United Kingdom, Germany R.M.N. Cristian Mungiu Romania, France, Belgium, Sweden Salvatore: Shoemaker of Dreams Luca Guadagnino Italy Tori and Lokita Tori et Lokita Dardenne brothers Belgium. France
New Voices New Visions The following films were selected to be screened as part of the New Voices New Visions section: English title Original title Director(s) Production countrie(s) Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe Aitch Alberto United States Butterfly Vision Бачення метелика Maksim Nakonechnyi Croatia, Czech Republic, Sweden, Ukraine The Damned Don't Cry Les damnés ne pleurent pas Fyzal Boulifa France, Belgium, Morocco How to Blow Up a Pipeline Daniel Goldhaber United States Love According to Dalva Dalva Emmanuelle Nicot Belgium, France Our Father, the Devil Ellie Foumbi United States Riceboy Sleeps Anthony Shim Canada Snow and the Bear Kar ve Ayı Selcen Ergun Turkey, Germany, Serbia Susie Searches Sophie Kargman United States, United Kingdom Highlighted title indicates the section winner.
True Stories The following films were selected to be screened as part of the True Stories section: English title Original title Director(s) Production countrie(s) 1341 Frames of Love and War 1341 Framim Mehamatzlema Shel Micha Bar-Am Ran Tal Israel All That Breathes Shaunak Sen India, United Kingdom Anxious Nation Vanessa Roth, Laura Morton United States The Art of Eating: The Life of M.F.K. Fisher Gregory M. Bezat Bella Bridget Murnane Body Parts Kristy Guevara-Flanagan, Helen Hood Scheer Born in Chicago Bob Sarles, John Anderson Butterfly in the Sky Bradford Thomason, Brett Whitcomb The Caviar Connection La Caviar Connection Benoît Bringer France Crows Are White Ahsen Nadeem Japan, Ireland, United States Desperate Souls, Dark City and the Legend of Midnight Cowboy Nancy Buirski United States The Grab Gabriela Cowperthwaite I Like It Here Ralph Arlyck Lakota Nation vs. United States Jesse Short Bull, Laura Tomaselli Lift David Petersen Liquor Store Dreams So Yun Um Of Medicine and Miracles Ross Kauffman Roberta Antonino D'Ambrosio Shot in the Arm Scott Hamilton Kennedy Split at the Root Linda Goldstein Knowlton Subject Camilla Hall, Jennifer Tiexiera The Thief Collector Allison Otto To Kill a Tiger Nisha Pahuja Canada Turn Every Page: The Adventures of Robert Caro and Robert Gottlieb Lizzie Gottlieb United States Highlighted title indicates the section winner.
Cine Latino The following films were selected to be screened as part of the Cine Latino section: English title Original title Director(s) Production countrie(s) 1976 Manuela Martelli Chile, United States Huesera: The Bone Woman Huesera Michelle Garza Cervera Mexico, Peru I Have Electric Dreams Tengo sueños eléctricos Valentina Maurel Costa Rica, Belgium, France Sublime Mariano Biasin Argentina The Substitute El suplente Diego Lerman Argentina, Italy, France, Spain, Mexico Highlighted title indicates the section winner.
Queer Cinema Today & The Gayla The following films were selected to be screened as part of the Queer Cinema Today section and The Gayla: English title Original title Director(s) Production countrie(s) 1946: The Mistranslation that Shifted Culture Sharon "Rocky" Roggio United States, Canada Casa Susanna Sebastien Lifshitz United States Eismayer David Wagner Austria Esther Newton Made Me Gay Jean Carlomusto United States God Save the Queens Jordan Danger Mama Bears Daresha Kyi My Emptiness and I Mi vacío y yo Adrián Silvestre Spain Nelly & Nadine Magnus Gertten Sweden, Belgium, Norway Punch Welby Ings New Zealand, United States Winter Boy Le Lycéen Christophe Honoré France You Can Live Forever Mark Slutsky, Sarah Watts Canada
World Cinema Now The following films were selected to be screened as part of the World Cinema Now section: English title Original title Director(s) Production countrie(s) Back Then Zupa nic Kinga Dębska Poland Before, Now & Then Nana Kamila Andini Indonesia Burning Days Kurak Günler Emin Alper Turkey, France, Germany, Netherlands, Greece, Croatia Concerned Citizen Idan Haguel Israel, United States Dirty, Difficult, Dangerous Wissam Charaf France, Italy, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Qatar Driving Madeleine Une belle course Christian Carion France Emily Frances O'Connor United States Freaks Out Gabriele Mainetti Italy, Belgium Golden Years Die goldenen Jahre Barbara Kulcsar Switzerland Greener Pastures Matan Guggenheim, Assaf Abiri Israel Gyeong-ah's Daughter 경아의 딸 Kim Jung-eun South Korea Haute Couture Sylvia Ohayon France Juniper Matthew J. Saville New Zealand Linoleum Colin West United States Lullaby Cinco lobitos Alauda Ruiz de Azúa Spain Max, Min & Meowzaki N Padmakumar United States Melchior the Apothecary Apteeker Melchior Elmo Nüganen Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Germany My Neighbor Adolf Leonid Prudovsky Israel, Colombia, Poland My Sailor, My Love Rakkaani merikapteeni Klaus Härö Finland, Ireland Next Sohee 다음 소희 July Jung South Korea Paris Memories Revoir Paris Alice Winocour France Simone Veil, A Woman of the Century Simone, le voyage du siècle Olivier Dahan France Somewhere in Queens Ray Romano United States Stonewalling 石门 Huang Ji, Ryuji Otsuka Japan Talia's Journey Christophe Rolin Belgium, Senegal, Luxembourg The Beasts As bestas Rodrigo Sorogoyen Spain, France The Judgement De veroordeling Sander Burger Netherlands, Germany The Origin of Evil L'Origine du mal Sébastien Marnier France, Canada The Storyteller Anant Narayan Mahadevan India The Word Slovo Beata Parkanová Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland Viking Stéphane Lafleur Canada Where Life Begins Alla vita Stéphane Freiss Italy Without Her بی رویا Arian Vazirdaftari Iran, Germany
Local Spotlight The following films were selected to be screened as part of the Local Spotlight section: English title Original title Director(s) Production countrie(s) Don't Worry Darling Olivia Wilde United States Racist Trees Sara Newens, Mina T. Son
Notes
Awards