¡Hola Cine!
Latinx stories from around the world, and not just in Spanish, celebrating the many Latinx cultures, histories, identities and languages.
Age Range: 9
Best of the Fest
Drumroll, please…these are the highest-rated shorts of NYICFF 2025! Even we don’t know what’s going to be in this program—but we do know it’s going to be great! Join us for a special program of this year’s audience favorite and award-winning shorts!
Moominvalley
Just in time to celebrate their 80th anniversary (and they don’t look a day over…however old they’re supposed to be!), our Moominfriends return for more all-new adventures. In Moominpappa and Aunt Jane, Moominpappa mustn’t let a surprise visit from his formidable Aunt spoil his book launch party. Then, Little My and Snorkmaiden head to the Lonely Mountains to confront a solitary bogeywoman in Song of the Groke. Finally, an SOS from an old friend sends Moominpappa and Moomintroll on a rescue mission into the frozen wilderness in Moominpappa the Great Explorer.
The Legend of Ochi
See it before it hits theaters! In a remote northern village, Yuri is raised to never go outside and to fear the reclusive forest creatures known as the ochi. When a baby ochi is left behind by its pack, she embarks on the adventure of a lifetime to reunite it with its family. The latest feature from A24 (NYICFF favorite Marcel the Shell with Shoes On) and the producers of Everything Everywhere All at Once is written and directed by Isaiah Saxon and features Finn Wolfhard, Willem Dafoe, Emily Watson, and Helena Zengel.
¡Salta!
Based on the NYICFF 2017 short film Einstein-Rosen! Óscar and Teo get along, but they have their share of little arguments: who’s messing with the other’s stuff, how to spend the holiday, whether or not their mother got lost in time after finding a hidden wormhole—typical brotherly subjects. Their differences are only more pronounced among the other neighborhood kids. Teo’s out playing soccer, going to dances, and hanging out at the cinema, while Óscar’s more content sorting through their scientist mother’s notes looking for clues. Things reach a boiling point when a fight leads Teo to sneak out in 1989, only to return to their shared bedroom…in 2022. Once they both settle from the shock of reuniting (Óscar finally understanding Teo’s disappearance, Teo in awe of his Óscar’s smartphone), they can focus on getting Teo back home. The problem? They’ll need to find a completely different wormhole to get him there. Luckily, Óscar is now a physicist. The brothers, together with some familiar faces from their (sometimes distant) past, must find their way to each other across timelines in order to set things right.
Science on Screen® is an initiative of the Coolidge Corner Theatre, with major support from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.
Science on Screen® is an initiative of the Coolidge Corner Theatre, with major support from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.
Living Large
Like most 12-year-olds, Ben’s life is filled with his many passions. At home, he’s a true gourmand, cooking up elaborate meals for himself and his mom. At school, he’s a charmer who’s always ready with a quick one-liner. After school, he fronts a rock band with his friends and video chats with his dad. But when the school nurse sends him home with a note about his weight, being well-rounded takes on new meaning. The bullies at school who tease them only make matters worse—in front of his crush, no less! Ben’s parents encourage his healthier habits, though Grandma has her doubts, and his friends just want him to focus on the upcoming talent show. He’ll need to quiet all the voices but his own in order to find out what truly matters to him. Living Large has all of the hallmarks of a classic teen comedy, right down to a cafeteria food fight and a wardrobe malfunction at the local pool. But this quietly empowering film takes its Freaks and Geeks vibes to new depths with cleverly animated characters and an original soundtrack (hip-hop! moody rock!) that captures the ups and downs of growing up.
Savages
From the director of NYICFF 2017’s My Life as a Zucchini, comes yet another deeply moving stop-motion story of a found family. Keria lives on the edge of Borneo’s tropical rainforest with her father, where aggressive deforestation has become the backdrop of their daily life. When an orangutan is killed by loggers, they take him under their care. Then another visitor comes to upend Keria’s life: her Penan cousin, Selaï, who is temporarily leaving behind hunting and gathering for reading and writing. At school she tries to cast him off, embarrassed by his not-so-smooth transition to modern life. But her father reminds her that “family is sacred,” so when he slinks off into the forest, she follows after him. It isn’t long before they’re lost, and Selaï only knows the way back to his indigenous home. Soon Keria learns the ways of her people and reconnects with her relatives. When the loggers threaten her new home, she is determined not to let them destroy it. The forest, her aunt explains, is like their mother—and family is sacred, after all.
Hola, Frida
March 15th screening will be in English, and is recommended for ages 6+ Little Frida is the sunlight of her small Mexican village, where she spends her days carousing through the market, befriending a neighborhood street dog, and playing class clown. When a polio diagnosis casts a cloud over her spirit, she is forced into the solitude of her bedroom. But it’s there that she finds solace in her imagination, a world brimming with color, flowers, and possibilities. When she is finally well enough to reenter the world, it’s this inner spirit that guides her through the hardships in her life. Hola Frida recreates the early life of Frida Kahlo with the brightness and whimsy of her famous oeuvre alongside some unexpected plot points (like an athletic training montage!) to paint a portrait of the artist’s childhood. A true Girls’ POV story if there ever was one, this biopic frames freedom, feminism, and the zeitgeist of 20th century Mexico through the eyes of one sparkling, vibrant young girl.
A Boat in the Garden
1950, France. François doesn’t quite understand his stepfather, Pierre. He’s serious, but not cold. He’s quiet, but holds strong opinions. The two don’t know how to talk to each other. One day, François observes Pierre working in the garden on a massive structure. Some light snooping reveals Pierre’s master plan, a boat. Not just any boat: it’s an exact (well, almost exact) replica of Spray, the sloop legendary sailor Joshua Slocum took on the first solo trip around the world. Soon François is obsessed with Slocum’s story. Noticing their shared interest, Pierre enlists him to help with construction. So begins a yearslong quest to finish the grand vessel. Though interspersed with epic scenes from Slocum’s original journey, A Boat in the Garden is less a swashbuckling adventure than a tender slice-of-life story. Fans of Jean-François Laguionie’s The Painting (NYICFF 2012) and The Prince’s Voyage (NYICFF 2017) will recognize his trademark, brush-stroked animation. A score of jaunty accordion music provides the soundtrack to this mediation on a young man’s journey to find his father, and himself.
Opening Night: Hola Frida
Totto-Chan: The Little Girl at the Window
“Sit down! Stop talking. Pay attention!” School is hard enough, but little Totto-Chan just can’t seem to be still. Inquisitive by nature, she’s constantly inspired by the world around her—and in 1940s Japan, the wonders of Western modernization bring new and exciting ways to traditional Japanese life. When her behavior proves to be too distracting to the rest of the class (according to her teachers, at least), her parents make it their mission to find the right place for her. Totto-Chan is no ordinary child, and her new school takes place in no ordinary classroom but in an old street car. Her classmates are equally extraordinary, each with their own abilities and ways of thinking. With a schoolmaster that affirms rather than tamps down their joyous curiosity, Totto-Chan and her classmates flourish in an environment filled with acceptance and freedom of expression. The coming changes to Japan will make adjusting to new life all the more challenging, but Totto-Chan, charming, chaotic, sometimes troublemaking, and often irrepressible, will be just fine as long as she can be herself. Based on the best-selling memoir of famous Japanese television personality Tetsuko Kuroyanagi, Totto-Chan is a tender reminder the things that make us different are the very things that make us special.
A Boat in the Garden
Centerpiece: The Legend of Ochi
Dog Man
Part dog, part man, all hero. From DreamWorks Animation comes the canine-crime-fighting film adaptation of Dav Pilkey’s New York Times bestselling phenomenon: Dog Man.
When a faithful police dog and his human police officer owner are injured together on the job, a harebrained but life-saving surgery fuses the two of them together and Dog Man is born. Dog Man is sworn to protect and serve—and fetch, sit, and roll over. Featuring the voices of Pete Davidson, Lil Red Howrey, Isla Fisher, Poppy Liu, Stephen Root, Billy Boyd, and Ricky Gervais.
Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl
Gromit’s concern that Wallace is becoming too dependent on his inventions proves justified, when Wallace invents a “smart” gnome that seems to develop a mind of its own. When it emerges that a vengeful figure from the past might be masterminding things, it falls to Gromit to battle sinister forces and save his master… or Wallace may never be able to invent again!
Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl Preview Screening + Q&A
Gromit’s concern that Wallace is becoming too dependent on his inventions proves justified, when Wallace invents a “smart” gnome that seems to develop a mind of its own. When it emerges that a vengeful figure from the past might be masterminding things, it falls to Gromit to battle sinister forces and save his master… or Wallace may never be able to invent again!
FLOW with Filmmaker Q&A
A wondrous journey through realms natural and mystical, Flow follows a courageous cat after his home is devastated by a great flood. Teaming up with a capybara, a lemur, a bird, and a dog to navigate a boat in search of dry land, they must rely on trust, courage, and wits to survive the perils of a newly aquatic planet.
PLUS: Stay after the film for Science on Screen<sup>®</sup>: Making Waves with Sound and Image, an exclusive Q&A with co-writer and producer Matīss Kaža.
Science on Screen® is an initiative of the Coolidge Corner Theatre, with major support from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.
FLOW
A wondrous journey through realms natural and mystical, Flow follows a courageous cat after his home is devastated by a great flood. Teaming up with a capybara, a lemur, a bird, and a dog to navigate a boat in search of dry land, they must rely on trust, courage, and wits to survive the perils of a newly aquatic planet.
PLUS: Stay after the film for Science on Screen®: Making Waves with Sound and Image, an exclusive Q&A with co-writer and producer Matīss Kaža.
Science on Screen® is an initiative of the Coolidge Corner Theatre, with major support from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.
PLUS: Stay after the film for Science on Screen®: Making Waves with Sound and Image, an exclusive Q&A with co-writer and producer Matīss Kaža.
Science on Screen® is an initiative of the Coolidge Corner Theatre, with major support from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.
The Wild Robot
Based on the beloved bestseller by Peter Brown, this epic adventure follows the journey of a robot—ROZZUM unit 7134, “Roz” for short — that is shipwrecked on an uninhabited island. There she must learn to adapt to the harsh surroundings, gradually building relationships with the animals on the island and becoming the adoptive parent of an orphaned gosling.
A powerful story about the discovery of self, a thrilling examination of the bridge between technology and nature, and a moving exploration of what it means to be alive and connected to all living things, The Wild Robot features an all-star voice cast led by Academy Award winner Lupita Nyong’o. Also starring Pedro Pascal, Catherine O’Hara, Bill Nighy, Kit Connor, Stephanie Hsu, and more. Directed by three-time Academy Award nominee Chris Sanders (How to Train Your Dragon).
Special Preview: The Wild Robot
The Imaginary
Studio Ponoc’s The Imaginary portrays the depths of humanity and creativity through the eyes of young Amanda and her imaginary companion, Rudger. Their fantastical adventures launched from her attic, lead them to discover a magical world of creatures and places never before seen until a sinister force threatens to destroy their imaginary world and the friendship within it.
Note: some slightly scary scenes might be intense for younger viewers
Note: some slightly scary scenes might be intense for younger viewers
IF
From writer and director John Krasinski, IF is about a girl who discovers that she can see everyone’s imaginary friends — and what she does with that superpower — as she embarks on a magical adventure to reconnect forgotten IFs with their kids. IF stars Cailey Fleming, Ryan Reynolds, John Krasinski, Fiona Shaw, and the voices of Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Louis Gossett Jr. and Steve Carell alongside many more as the wonderfully unique characters that reflect the incredible power of a child’s imagination.
Swimming with Wings
New to The Netherlands, a young Israeli girl learns how to swim with clothes on.
Rice
When a young man moves into a new home, his neighbors notice that he’s in need of food and comfort.
Kilig!
A reluctant Filipino American girl takes a trip with her mother to Palawan to visit family. Their priorities clash at first, but there’s something in the water.
Canta Santiago
A young mariachi faces his first performance alone and discovers his brother has always been by his side.
My name is Edgar and I Have a Cow
When Edgar rescues a newborn calf from a food factory, he learns that raising a cow isn’t as easy as it seems.
Ceiba Y Sus Raíces Taínas
Disaster strikes the island of Puerto Rico as Guabancex, Spirit of Chaos, leads a hurricane. Only Ceiba can prevent catastrophic doom.