FilmColumbia 2018, Columbia County’s premier annual cultural event, marked its 19th year of “small town, big movies” in Chatham, NY, October 20-28. The nine-day festival presented 50 world-class independent and international films, plus post-screening Q&As with acclaimed artists and special tributes and events, all presented by the Crandell Theatre.

For the third consecutive year, the festival presented a special tribute to an acclaimed artist with ties to Columbia County. The honoree for 2018 is Brian Cox, a resident of Columbia County since 1965. His award-winning and exceptionally broad range of work has been showcased in some 200 movies and television programs.

The geographic and artistic scope of FilmColumbia 2018 and the signature eclecticism and richness of its offerings was on display via feature and documentary films hailing from nearly 20 countries, as well as the latest releases from award-winning directors Steve McQueen, Frederick Wiseman, Asghar Farhadi, and Morgan Neville, and a remarkable collection of offerings ranging from a newly completed film begun by Orson Welles, a drama from a former South Korean Minister of Culture and the directorial debut of actor Paul Dano that was a darling at Sundance in 2018. The festival also featured standout performances by many of the world’s most lauded actors including Javier Bardem, Juliette Binoche, Penelope Cruz, Paul Dano, Viola Davis, Robert Duvall, Jake Gyllenhaal, Regina Hall, Dennis Hopper, John Huston, Melissa McCarthy, Carey Mulligan, Liam Neeson, Estelle Parsons, Rosamund Pike, Mary Kay Place, Michelle Rodriguez, Emma Thompson, and Stanley Tucci.

Among other especially noteworthy FilmColumbia 2018 offerings were Shoplifters, written and directed by Japanese filmmaker Hirokau Kore-eda. Also of note are The Hate U Give, based on a wrenching bestseller and inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement, Widows from Oscar-winning director Steve McQueen, featuring Viola Davis, Michelle Rodriguez, Liam Neeson and Robert Duvall; and Cold War, from Oscar winner and this year’s Best Director at Cannes Pawel Pawlikowski. The “Sneak Peek” was The Green Book.

FilmColumbia is programmed by Peter Biskind, the executive and co-artistic director of FilmColumbia 2018, and co-artistic director Laurence Kardish. Biskind is an author, film historian, contributing editor at Vanity Fair and Esquire, and past executive editor of Premiere magazine. Kardish is senior curator emeritus for film and media at New York’s Museum of Modern Art. Calliope Nicholas is the managing director of the festival.

Check back September, 2019 for updates about the 20^th FilmColumbia festival or sign up for our email updates by clicking the button below.