Screen Time

Grab some popcorn and clear your schedules—Boston boasts enough film festivals to keep you on the edge of your seat this spring.

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  1. 1. Boston Turkish Film Festival // March 16-April 23

The first of its kind in North America, the Boston Turkish Film Festival returns to the Museum of Fine Arts for its 16th year. The lineup’s 25 films include Mr. Muhsin, Yavuz Turgul’s award-winning 1987 drama about the unlikely partnership between a middle-aged music producer and a young singer. See the North American premiere of the digitally restored version on March 24, when star Uğur Yücel will be in attendance to collect an Excellence in Turkish Cinema award. bostonturkishfilmfestival.org

2. Boston Underground Film Festival // March 22-26

It makes sense that the documentary about musician Suzanne Ciani should make its East Coast debut at the Boston Underground Film Festival. The Grammy-nominated artist studied at both the Longy School of Music and Wellesley College, and it was during a field trip to MIT that she first recognized an interest in the intersection of music and technology. A Life in Waves chronicles how Ciani turned her love for the Buchla synthesizer and electronic music into a career, lending sounds to everything from Coca-Cola commercials to Atari and pinball machines. She heads back to town for a closing night screening at Harvard Film Archive, plus a Q&A with director Brett Whitcomb. bostonunderground.org

3. Irish Film Festival Boston // March 23-26

A film about a young ex-con determined to prove her friends wrong and find a plus-one to a wedding makes its U.S. debut at the Irish Film Festival Boston alongside 40-plus other films. The Dublin- and Drogheda-shot A Date for Mad Mary is co-writer/director Darren Thornton’s first feature film—one that started out as a touring one-woman theater production before it was adapted for the screen. See it at the Somerville Theatre on March 24. irishfilmfestival.com

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4. ReelAbilities Film Festival // March 29-April 6

Dedicated to showcasing films by and about people with disabilities, the ReelAbilities Film Festival is screening 10 selections this year, including one story that’s especially close to home. Marathon: The Patriots Day Bombing, an HBO film directed by seasoned doc duo Ricki Stern and Annie Sundberg, uses exclusive interviews and home movies to chronicle the emotional and physical rehabilitations of those injured in the 2013 attacks. Stick around after the closing night screening at the Somerville Theatre for a discussion with subjects Patrick Downes and Jessica Kensky. boston.reelabilities.org

5. Wicked Queer: Boston’s LGBT Film Festival // March 30-April 9

Wicked Queer kicks off this year with an opening night movie about a Pakistani lesbian who falls for a Mexican woman in spite of her Muslim mother’s attempts to find her a husband. Director Jennifer Reeder’s Signature Move follows 30-something immigration attorney Zaynab as she grapples with familial obligations and expectations, finding her own escapes through love and lucha libre wrestling. Catch the screening on March 30 at the ICA. wickedqueer.org

6. Boston International Film Festival // April 13-17

A star-studded film from director James Gray and executive producer Brad Pitt starts things off for the Boston International Film Festival. Charlie Hunnam, Robert Pattinson, Sienna Miller and Tom Holland star in The Lost City of Z, an adaptation of the best-seller by David Grann that tells the true story of a 20th-century British explorer whose discovery of an Amazonian civilization ultimately leads to his mysterious disappearance. Don’t miss the opening night black-tie gala screening at AMC Loews Boston Common on April 13, followed by a week of short and feature film presentations. bostoniff.org

THE IMPROPER’S 2017 SPRING ARTS PREVIEW: COMEDY | THEATER | VISUAL ARTS | DANCE | MUSIC


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