AIFF2025 - Sunday's Features

I'm trying to cover the Feature films showing at the Anchorage International Film Festival.  Here are the features - both narrative and documentary - playing on Sunday Dec. 7. 

Hide — Ian Sciacaluga

This is a UK film.

From Letterboxd:

"Angie, an illustrator, is focused on a new assignment - a graphic novel of magical realism. She uses her work to escape the reality of her fractious marriage to Edward, whose behaviour has become erratic under pressure from his failing business. Unexpectedly, Angie’s estranged mother dies. Inflamed by her death, Angie’s sister, Molly, makes an explosive revelation about the sisters’ family past, conjuring up memories of a childhood trauma that torment Angie’s mind and invade her illustrations. Her real and fictional worlds ominously fuse and come alive in the nightmarish woods of her horrific childhood. It’s up to her creative mind to release her from her damning past."

From an interview with director Ian Sciacaluga at Art Film Awards:

"What inspired you to pursue a career in filmmaking?

I was mesmerised by Steven Spielberg’s “Close Encounter sof the Third Kind” when I saw it as a 12 year-old back in 1979 (it came out in 1978). It was a magical and, almost religious, experience for me and the first time that I felt I was being manipulated by a person behind the camera. It was a realisation that this medium called film could make true any story of imagination you could muster for a big audience and you could turn dreams into a celluloid reality with incredible worlds and unforgettable characters. As I grew older and acquired a Braun 561 Super 8 camera, I learned about, not only techniques, but the importance of themes and subtexts, character arcs and mise en scenes to convey narratives, which made the medium of film all the more fascinating and arousing."

Sunday, Dec. 7, 1pm Alaska Experience Theater

Also at 1pm is You're No Indian, at the Museum,  I touched on that here.  

A Little Fellow: The Legacy of A.P. Giannini — Davide Fiore

From Collective Eye Films: 

"Before banks in the U.S. had a branch on every corner, they were an exclusive service for the wealthy. For the poor, working, and immigrant class, saving money was as unreliable as stashing it under a mattress. But at the turn of the 20th century, Amadeo Peter (A.P.) Giannini, son of Italian immigrants, revolutionized the industry with his small Bank of Italy in San Francisco.

As a first-generation Italian-American, his goal was to serve “the little fellow” and breed prosperity within his immigrant community. But, by building trust and giving loans on a simple handshake, he created one of the largest banks in the country – Bank of America.

A Little Fellow tells the story of a man who struck fear into the heart of Wall Street while having everyday people in mind. Known as “People’s banker,” he gave a friendly face to a greedy industry. As one of the first investors in Hollywood, the Golden Gate Bridge, and Hewlett-Packard, his forward-thinking helped the country through two World Wars and the Great Depression."

From an interview with director Davide Fiore at Adobe Blog:

"How and where did you first learn to edit?

Back in high school, I had this little side gig — pranking my teachers. Nothing too crazy, just a couple of cameras, some staged scenes, and a whole lot of sneaky fun. It was my version of "no harm, no foul." I'd film the whole thing and then dive into editing. Honestly, editing was like a game to me at first, just figuring out what crazy stuff I could create.

Fast forward to college, and I decided to level up. I did 3 years of Virtual and Digital Design. I got my hands on Adobe Premiere and After Effects — those were my new toys. That’s when I first met motion graphics. It was 2008, 2009, and I was like, “Wait, this is magic, right?” That’s when I realized editing wasn't just about cutting footage, it was about making the impossible look cool." 

Sun, Dec 07 2025 3:30pm  Anchorage Museum 

The Ladder is at 6pm at Museum.  I posted on The Ladder here.

Crystal Cross - Richie James Follin

From Letterboxd:  

Synopsis

SOMETIMES LOVE MEANS NOT KILLING YOURSELF.

A quirky Christian singer and a suicidal dad drive cross-country, forging an unlikely bond through bad decisions, bizarre roadside attractions, and an all-original soundtrack. “Crystal Cross” is a hilarious, bittersweet road trip about two lost souls finding comfort (but not salvation) in each other’s messes.

Reviewer  Movieswithame at the Austin Film Festival begins:

In Richie James Follin’s Crystal Cross, you can actually sense the joy of making it radiating through the screen. It’s a road movie, a love story, a dark comedy, but more than anything, it’s a film that feels handmade in the best possible way. There’s a rawness to it that can’t be faked. Every frame, every imperfect camera wobble, every sun-flared highway shot carries the energy of a filmmaker who’s figuring it out as he goes, and somehow, that ends up being the film’s greatest strength.

Sun, Dec 07 2025 8:30pm  Anchorage Museum

Also at 8:30 pm - at Alaska Experience Theater - is The Mariana Trench which I posted about here

I'm getting a bit sleepy, so if anyone finds some errors - particularly when and where a film is showing, please let me know.  Thanks.  Just two more days to go.