Jonathan Groff and Karan Soni helped kick off NewFest, New York’s LGBTQ+ film festival, Thursday with the East Coast premiere of their new romantic comedy, “A Nice Indian Boy.”
Directed by Roshan Sethi, the film is a tender cross-cultural love story between an Indian American doctor, Naveen (Soni), and Jay (Groff), a white photographer who was raised by Indian parents. “A Nice Indian Boy” marks Groff’s much-anticipated return to the big screen following his Tony-winning run in the smash Broadway revival of “Merrily We Roll Along.”
NewFest’s closing night film, “Emilia Pérez,” is drawing similar levels of buzz ahead of its Oct. 22 screening. The dark comedy-musical hybrid stars Karla Sofía Gascón, Selena Gomez and Zoe Saldaña and is considered an awards season frontrunner.
Such starry screenings, however, are just a fragment of NewFest’s lineup. The 2024 festival includes a total of 143 feature films, documentaries and shorts, representing 30 countries from around the world.
HuffPost spoke to NewFest organizers about this year’s highlights and their personal recommendations.
“Fanatical: The Catfishing of Tegan and Sara”
“Our documentary centerpiece is an absolute must for lovers of Tegan and Sara and true crime storytelling. Directed with compassion by queer filmmaker and investigator Erin Lee Carr (‘Britney vs. Spears’), this compelling documentary shares the intimate yet sprawling tale of identity hack and deceit that impacted the musician duo and numerous loyal fans of theirs. And let’s just say we’re expecting special guests to be there for a riveting Q&A!”
— Nick McCarthy, director of programming
“Shorts: Women’s Night Out”
“Get ready for seven sapphic shorts by women and nonbinary directors, featuring a stuck snowbank, fraying friendship, hellish driving lesson, a self-assured sex worker, a sari store clerk, hot summer heat and the realities of a fading memory at the end of a long-lived life.”
— Anita Raswant, programming manager
“Abdellah Taïa has been reckoning with queerness within the prism of Arabic and Muslim culture for decades in his work as a writer and filmmaker. With the beguiling ‘Cabo Negro,’ he upends expectations by delivering both a sly examination of homophobia and sex tourism and an ambiguously sexy vacation thriller. Exquisite.”
— Murtada Elfadl, senior programmer
“The World According to Allee Willis”
“Even if you haven’t heard Allee Willis’ name, you’ve definitely heard the iconic songs she’s written, including Earth, Wind & Fire’s ‘September,’ Pet Shop Boys’ ‘What Have I Done to Deserve This?’ and the most famous sitcom theme of all time for ‘Friends.’ Having sold over 60 million records, Willis is a Grammy-winning songwriter and artist who’s made an outsized impact on pop culture with little recognition to show for it.
This delightful documentary is an overdue celebration, and a charming love note from life partner Prudence Fenton and their many colorful friends. Enjoy a joyous dive into Allee’s zany LA parties—frequented by Elvira, Paul Reubens, Debbie Harry and Cyndi Lauper—that reminds us to ‘never let the lyric get in the way of a groove.’”
— Kim Garcia, technical director and programmer
“Veneno: Dressed in Blue”
“The new season of the internationally acclaimed series sees the lead, Valeria ― portrayed brilliantly by Lola Rodriguez ― begin a new quest to uncover the lost history of trans women in Spain, diving deep into the 1983 Spanish documentary, ‘Dressed in Blue.’
‘Veneno: Dressed in Blue’ is a life-affirming love letter to queer and trans history. It reminds us of the importance of preserving our narratives and honoring those who have paved the way for future generations.”
— Anto(n) Astudillo, programmer
“Told with bleeding romanticism reminiscent of ‘Merchant Ivory’ and intricate gothic poetry, ‘Lilies Not For Me’ shines an unflinching light at a dark and mostly unknown period of gay history. Having its U.S. Premiere at NewFest, this handsome film serves as a reminder that despite the many historical attempts to change our very core, it is through our love stories that we have continued to live on. It will make you swoon.”
— Jorge Molina, programmer and industry coordinator
NewFest 2024 runs through Sunday, Oct. 22. Watch the festival trailer below.