UK
Director: Nigel Cole

Rita (Sally Hawkins, Happy-Go-Lucky) is one of 187 women from all walks of life who work for the Ford Motor Company in 1960s England. Paid less than their male peers while enduring the condescension of their supervisors, the plucky sisterhood, led by Rita, agitates for their right to fair pay. Capturing the imagination of the public and the attention of progressive politician Barbara Castle (Miranda Richardson) with their fight for equality, these courageous women must stand together to win a victory for women everywhere.

113 min.

Czech Republic
Director: Alice Nellis

Sparkling with humor, pathos, and beguiling imagery, this ensemble drama captures the modern agonies of raising a family as four couples try to cope with their particular realities. As three of these couples struggle with the tough decisions presented by their impending parenthood and the fourth mourns the accidental death of their child, Mamas & Papas takes shape as an intimate, authentic exploration of the joys and heartaches of being a parent.

Czech with subtitles, 110 min.

France
Director: Christophe Honoré

From the lauded director of Love Songs comes this steamy exploration of the aesthetics and emotions underlying sexual intimacy. After his lover Omar (Omar Ben Sellem) breaks up with him, the gorgeous, musclebound Emmanuel (French porn star François Sagat) embarks on an erotic tour of Paris. Both men try to forget each other through a series of passionate trysts, but are the physical delights they find elsewhere enough to heal the rift that has opened between them? Mature audiences only.

French with subtitles, 72 min.

USA
Director: Miguel Silveira

Manbird is a poetic ode to the folkloric “pigeon man” of Chicago’s Lincoln Square.

9 min.

Israel
Director: Avi Nesher

Teenage Arik’s attitudes toward life and love undergo seismic shifts during one remarkable summer in the newly formed state of Israel when he begins an apprenticeship under slick professional matchmaker and Holocaust survivor Yankale Bride. Bride, who lives in a district full of other survivors, uses Arik to gather information on potential clients. He prides himself on giving clients “what they need, not what they want,” but his and Arik’s own love lives are far from simple.

Hebrew with subtitles, 104 min.