Hawaii 2024 Announces First Wave

Notable as “the only statewide film festival in the U.S. across an archipelago” (?!), the 44th Hawai’I International Film Festival presented by Halekulani (HIFF44), is scheduled for October 2-November 10 in the State of Hawai’i.

They are announcing their full lineup today at their official site, and we were provided an advance peek. All I can say is: it’s a whopper, so allow me to quote liberally from the official release.

“Now entering its 44th year, HIFF is the premiere cinematic event in the Pacific and annually attracts more than 50,000 film enthusiasts from around the state, the nation and throughout the world. Heralded as ‘one of the Top 50 Film Festivals around the world,’ according to Variety, HIFF is an Academy AwardsⓇ qualifying film festival that is mission driven to entertain, enlighten and inspire through the medium of film and creative content from around the world with a special focus on Hawai’i made and Pacific Islander films and filmmaking.

— 92 Features, 114 Shorts. 40 World Premieres. 31 US Premieres
— Festival of record for latest in Asian and Pacific Rim cinema
— Partnerships w/ Nia Tero, Pacific Islanders in Communications & Firelight Media to present to present multiple films about Indigenous perspectives, Narrative sovereignty, and championing cultural identity in Pasifika and Indigenous stories
— Prestige TV: SHOGUN, LOST (Hawai’i premiere of Getting LOST documentary w/ special guests), and INTERIOR CHINATOWN
— Very big Hong Kong representation with several world premieres and Hong Kong star Sandra Ng honored
— Other honorees (confirmed so far): Stanley Nelson (Vision in Film Award); Temuera Morrison (Trailblazer); Justin Marks & Rachel Kondo (Career Achievement); Jimmy O Yang & Charles Yu on behalf of “Interior Chinatown” (Maverick)
— Large and robust HIFILM, the Festival’s industry strand focusing on artists services, workforce development, and also great for just the film fan to learn more about BTS of film production including former Disney animators and directors Ron Clements, John Musker (MOANA, HERCULES, THE LITTLE MERMAID, ALADDIN) & Osnat Schurer (formerly of Pixar now CCO at Baobab Studios) to talk about the creation of Moana Universe”

Whew! That’s a lot. But the Hawaii International Film Festival has long enjoyed a good reputation as a welcoming festival for filmmakers and guests, so if you’re in Hawaii (or anywhere else in the world), here is your itinerary for October.

Visit the official site for the complete lineup.