Montclair Filmfest reveals stories of a superman, a legendary singer and more – Mosaic

It is the festival within the festival.

The Montclair Film Festival presents a diverse selection of films over four days as part of the North To Shore Festival, which is celebrating its second year this year.

Starting June 10 and running through June 30, a variety of events are taking place in Asbury Park, Atlantic City and Newark. Concerts range from hip-hop to doo-wop, and the community comes together for panel discussions on art, technology and health—all under the umbrella of New Jersey’s diversity.

Governor Phil Murphy wanted to highlight the diversity of the state’s people and arts and worked with arts groups and sponsors to organize the festival. Like the overall theme of N2S, the films are inclusive.

North 2 Shore: Full Coverage

“Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story” opens the Montclair Film Summer Showcase on Thursday, June 27, and “Luther: Never Too Much” closes on Sunday, June 30. All 24 films will be shown at The Clairidge, a six-screen theater at 486 Bloomfield Ave., Montclair.

“1-800-On-Her-Own” (June 28) looks at how singer-songwriter Ani DiFranco has influenced musicians. “Sing Sing” (June 28) focuses on the power of art and features incarcerated men creating a show.

“Sugarcane” (June 28) is a personal and heartbreaking account of the Canadian Indian boarding school and the evils that befall the children there. In “Widow Cliquot” (June 29), a widow dares to defy tradition, takes over the family business and revolutionizes the champagne industry.

The closing film is Luther: Never Too Much, about the late, great Luther Vandross, whose velvety voice is probably responsible for one or two baby booms. Also screening that same evening are Janet Planet, about a teenage child in 1991, and 20,000 Kinds of Bees, about a family’s love for their child whose gender assignment does not match expectations.

Other films screening on closing night include “Between the Temples,” in which Jason Schwartzman plays a cantor struggling with losing his voice and possibly his faith, and “XCD: The Story of Cancel Culture,” which is executive produced by comedian Trevor Noah.

Tickets are $17 for the public and $15 for Montclair Film members.

Each day offers a carefully curated mix, and that’s the work of Tom Hall, artistic director and co-director of Montclair Film and The Clairidge Cinema in Montclair. In a Zoom with Mosiac, Hall chats about his selections for the festival. What follows has been edited for brevity.

Q: What was your goal in programming the North To Shore Festival? And is it different from the Montclair Film Festival??

A wide range of contemporary films that basically haven’t come out in theaters yet, new releases, things that are coming out that we’re excited to show. The Montclair Film Festival was in May before COVID, and we’re used to the spring window. That’s exactly what our program would look like if that still existed.

It’s a smaller program. It’s more intimate. It’s a weekend. We’re not using all the venues we normally use, but we hope that this will make it more manageable and accessible so people can try out what we do.

Q: What advice do you have for someone going through the list and thinking about what they want to see?

You’ll never be able to see everything! So I recommend just taking some time until you feel like, “Okay, this is time I can take.” Try something that narrows down your choices.

Q: What connections are there to New Jersey?

We’re very close to Dawn Porter, who directed the film with Luther Vandross. And we have Dory Previn (“Dory Previn: On My Way to Where” (June 29), who was born in New Jersey and whose filmmaker Julia Greenberg lives in Essex County.

We also have a local film producer, Amy Hobby, an Atlantic County resident who has worked on three of our films (“1-800-on-Her Own,” “Dory Previn: On My Way to Where,” and “XCLD: The Story of Cancel Culture”).

We’re really striving for things that are accessible beyond the Jersey part. We’re bringing filmmakers and films to New Jersey.

Q: The The North To Shore Festival strives for diversity; how do these films fit into that?

We have several films directed by women. We have several films directed by people of color. We have films that focus on Pride and related issues in June. For our Asian American films, we’re working with AAPI New Jersey. We have musical films. We have films about international immigration issues. It’s a very diverse range of films that I think reflect the interests of our community.

We also have personal films and comedies. We just try to find a wide variety of things that hopefully have something for everyone. Not every film is for everyone, but I think everyone should have one or two films that they can watch.

More North 2 Shore stories from Mosaic:

Raffle of tickets for North 2 Shore

North 2 Shore: Keyshia Cole, Trey Songz and their guests bring “love” to Atlantic City

North 2 Shore: Soulful sounds in Asbury Park support the start of NJ’s most important three-week festival

Mosaic provides comprehensive coverage of the North 2 Shore Festival, including previews, artist profiles, and ticket giveaways.

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