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Sunday, October 8 through Wednesday, October 11, 2023 The Woods Hole Film Festival returns to the Cotuit Center for the Arts on Sunday, October 8 through Wednesday, October 11 presenting the 2023 Edition of the BEST OF THE FEST screening series. This four-night, seven screening event includes five feature films and two shorts programs of award winners from the 2023 summer festival. The BEST OF THE FEST screening series is an annual event and includes films that won the Audience, Jury and Director’s Choice awards from the recently concluded 32 Woods Hole Film Festival. According to Festival Director Judith Laster, “We are thrilled to be able to continue our long-standing annual BEST OF THE FEST screenings at Cotuit Center for the Arts and we are pleased to present this slate of award-winning films again to audiences on Cape Cod. We look forward to this collaboration each year and to expanding our reach to new audiences.” Tickets are $16 and $12 for members and are on sale in advance via at www.artsonthecape.org and at the Box Office at Cotuit Center for the Arts. Cotuit Center for the Arts is located at, 4404 Falmouth Road, Cotuit, MA (508) 428-0669. About the Films: Sunday, October 8 • 7pm ARIEL - BACK TO BUENOS AIRES Narrative Feature by Alison Murray (Canada/Argentina, 2022) Winner: Audience Award, Best Feature Narrative Against the backdrop of the glamorous tango clubs of Buenos Aires, a brother and sister uncover dark family secrets and the reason why their parents emigrated to Canada. Sponsored by the Woods Hole Diversity Advisory Committee for Hispanic History Month Monday, October 9 • 6pm PATROL Documentary Feature by Camilo de Castro & Brad Allgood (Nicaragua, 2023) Winner: Jury Award, Best Feature Documentary An emerging crisis in one of the last remaining rainforests in Central America ignites a heroic mission in PATROL. When illegal cattle ranchers decimate large swaths of rainforest, indigenous rangers join forces with an American conservationist and undercover journalists to expose the dark world of conflict beef. Sponsored by the Woodwell Climate Research Center Monday, October 9 • 8pm AWARD-WINNING SHORTS 1 Six award-winning drama, comedy, documentary and animated short films DECIDING VOTE by Jeremy Workman and Robert Lyons, USA, 20 mins. 2023, winner Jury award, Best Short Documentary DRAGON POETS OF BOSTON by Gordon LePage, USA, 9 mins, 2023, runner up Audience Award, Best Short Comedy MANO by Brittany Biggs, USA, 10 mins, 2023, winner Audience Award, Best Animated Short SEEDS OF CHANGE by Maximilian Armstrong, USA, 27 mins., winner Audience Award, Best Short Documentary THE BOND by Jahmil Eady, USA, 16 mins., runner up Audience Award, Best Short Drama THE VACATION by Jarreau Carrillo, USA, 10 mins., winner Jury Award, Best Short Comedy Tuesday, October 10 • 6pm AWARD-WINNING SHORTS 2 Five award-winning drama, comedy, documentary and animated short films CLAM SHACK BLUES by Matt Ott, USA, 12 mins, 2nd runner up Jury Award, Best Short Comedy CONFESSIONS by Stephanie Kaznocha, USA, 11 mins., winner, audience award, Best Short Comedy FOREIGN UNCLE by Sining Xiang, USA/China, 20 mins, Director's Choice Award, Best Youth Actor in a Short Film. MISOPHONIA by Linda Wingerter, USA, 9 mins., runner up Jury Award, Best Animated Short NAKAM by Andreas Kessler, Germany, 34 mins., audience award, Best Short Drama Tuesday, October 10 • 8pm LAKELANDS Narrative Feature by Robert Higgins & Patrick McGivney (Ireland, 2023) Winner: Jury Award, Best Dramatic Feature Lakelands takes place in a small town in the midlands of Ireland – the sort of place where Gaelic football is religion and identity is defined by what one can do on the pitch. The film tells the story of Cian Reilly, a young Gaelic footballer who struggles to come to terms with a career-ending injury after a violent attack on a night out. At the same time, he begins a friendship with Grace, a nurse who is back in town to look after her ailing father. Cian tries to find meaning in other areas of life, but the pull from the team and pressure from the town is too strong. He soon finds himself risking it all by returning to football against the doctor’s orders and considering seeking retribution against his assailants. The film depicts youth culture in the midlands that hasn’t been seen in Irish cinema ever before. Sponsored by Liam Maguire’s and YouthInk Wednesday, October 11 • 6pm DUSTY & STONES Documentary Feature by Jesse Rudoy (USA, 2022) Runner up: Jury Award, Best Feature Documentary Dusty & Stones intimately chronicles the remarkable ride of cousins Gazi “Dusty” Simelane and Linda “Stones” Msibi, a determined duo of struggling country singers from the tiny African Kingdom of Eswatini (formerly Swaziland) who long for their big break. When they are unexpectedly invited to record their songs in Nashville and to compete in a Texas battle of the bands, Dusty and Stones embark on their long-awaited first pilgrimage to the ancestral heart of country music. Over a momentous ten-day road trip through the American South, Dusty and Stones bring their music to life in a top Nashville recording studio, explore the storied locales of their favorite country songs, and excitedly engage with the culture they’ve long felt part of from afar. But this sense of kinship is abruptly thrown into question when Dusty and Stones arrive in the small town of Jefferson, Texas to compete in the battle of the bands. There, the hostile leader of the local backing band threatens to derail their debut American performance. As their family and friends back home wait for good news, a shell-shocked Dusty and Stones take the stage and fight to bring home an award for Swaziland. Wednesday, October 11 • 8pm 26.2 to LIFE Documentary Feature by Christine Yoo (USA, 2022) Winner: Audience Award, Best Documentary Feature & Best of the Fest Every year, the San Quentin Marathon gathers crowds of participants for its challenging 26.2 mile course. Some run for life, some for freedom, some to prove how much they’ve transformed. For all the incarcerated members of the prison's 1000 mile club, running is a way to transcend prison politics and be defined by more than just their past crimes. Sponsored by the Falmouth Road Race, The Run House and Charles River Apparel The Festival is supported in part by a grant from the Massachusetts Cultural Council, the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod and the National Endowment for the Arts, the Woods Hole Foundation, the Falmouth Fund of the Cape Cod Foundation and the Martha’s Vineyard Bank Charitable Foundation. For more information email info@woodsholefilmfestival.org or call (508) 495-3456.