The Downtown Film Festival 2025 Captures the Spirit of New York Indie Cinema

Film

Oct 13

*(left to right) Jeff Ross, Julia Fox, Kevin Cline, Charlotte Ercoli*

If you’re looking for a bright spot in a pessimistic cultural moment, attend an independent film festival. It’s easy to get sucked into a world of superheroes and sequels, but there’s a world of offbeat indies waiting to be explored.

The Downtown Festival adeptly blends the glamor of The Roxy Cinema, which regularly hosts a live jazz band under moody lighting in the evenings, with the down-to-earth feel of watching a film with its creators.

Welcome Party

The festival kicked off Thursday evening with a spirited welcome party at Soho Live. Previously Santos Party House, it’s an intimate basement venue with spotty cell service, decadent bathrooms, and a disco ball. People puffed cigarettes in a mock patio, a couple made out ferociously on the dance floor–it all felt a bit retro.

Around 10:30, director Abel Ferrara and his band The Flyz took the stage. Ferrera, who is a 74-year-old Bronx native, and his bandmates performed some deliciously raunchy rock and roll originals to a smoky room of industry professionals and film lovers. Guests were still rolling in to welcome the festival when I left the venue around midnight.

Fior Di Latte

One of my most anticipated films of the festival was Charlotte Ercoli’s feature debut Fior Di Latte. It’s a strange, surrealist journey of a loser playwright (Tim Heidecker) who attempts to recapture the magic of an Italian vacation by huffing perfume as his life spirals further into chaos.

The film first premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in June, capturing the attention of Brat’s own Charli XCX. At Downtown Fest, it played to a sold-out crowd followed by a Q&A with Ercoli, Kevin Cline, and Julia Fox. Both Fox and Kline said they chose the project because it was unlike anything they’d seen before.

Atropia

Later that evening, I caught Hailey Gates’ (former host of Viceland) directorial debut Atropia, which won the Grand Jury prize for U.S. Dramatic Competition at Sundance. The film features Alia Shawkat as Fayruz, an actor in an immersive military training camp, and Callum Turner as her love interest. While Gates kept the ending opaque, the film took sharp aim at Bush-era war mongering and the blind patriotism that followed.

Situations

Sunday night, I braved the rain for Greg Vrotsos’ Situations. Described as a “love letter to LA”, Vrotsos plays Nick––a man reeling from a messy breakup. The screening was filled with cast members and crew, who cheered, laughed, and cried as the movie played. I sat directly behind Vrotsos, who sipped a PBR before his Q&A with journalist Ezra Marcus.

Still to Come

This evening I’m headed to Gus Dapperton’s The Isdal Man, followed directly by Anthony Di Mieri’s I Love New York. Later this week, I have my eyes on Sabrina Greco's Lockjaw, Tee Park's Cece's Interlude, and a series of shorts called “Shadows Within”.

The Downtown festival is the perfect evening out for the movie-loving New Yorker. It’s a chance to rub elbows with indie filmmakers and see something unique in a gorgeous theater in Soho. You can still purchase tickets on the website through October 19th.

Emi Grant

Emi is a Brooklyn-based writer who recently graduated with her MFA in nonfiction writing from the New School. Her work examines the intersections between pop culture, social justice, and identity. She has written for publications such as Polyester Magazine, the Film Magazine, and Magnetic Magazine. You can find her on Substack and Instagram.