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Therapy is heralded by millions as a way to work through the tangle of our innermost feelings and air grievances without judgement, making it a bountiful foundation for Daniel Sinclair’s tonal mash-up The Breakthrough. Greta Lee and Ben Sinclair play a fractured couple who are the embodiment of an unbalanced modern day relationship, but with Sinclair deftly flipping expected gender roles, placing the male partner in the role of domesticity suffocating his creativity whilst his female counterpart, earning all of the money, continues to come home late from work. The Breakthrough is set over Christmas, a supposed time of time of goodwill and joy but here serves as a shining reminder of the couple’s simmering distaste for one another. The Breakthrough is deviously funny and sharp at every turn and also serves as a pertinent reminder of the benefits of composting. Ahead of the film’s online premiere...

SeriesFest is expanding its commitment to female-forward initiatives, renewing its partnership with Shondaland, introducing an Executive Elevation Mentorship Program and presenting a live-streamed roundtable discussion about the current state of parity in the industry, Variety has learned exclusively.

Additionally, Christina Yr Jun has won the Women Writing Competition, which comes from SeriesFest in partnership with Big Swing Productions.

“We’re excited to broaden our initiatives and provide real opportunities for minorities who are still very much underrepresented in the television landscape,” said SeriesFest founders Randi Kleiner and Kaily Smith Westbrook in a joint statement. “While statistics are showing an improvement, there’s still a long way to go. As two women who have experienced challenges first-hand, we will continue to put this conversation front and center to raise awareness, and most importantly, opportunities. We’re grateful to have such inspirational industry leaders participate in our mission.”

SeriesFest and Shondaland are...

If “Joker” explores the genesis of a villain, “Balloon” — in which a young boy develops superpowers to fight his bullies — depicts the making of a hero.

Superhero movies have dominated mass media for the last 15 years, with no sign of slowing down. While Todd Phillips’ Joaquin Phoenix vehicle would like to position itself as an outsider of the genre, there’s no denying that its connection to DC Comics’ pre-existing intellectual property played a large part in the movie’s massive box-office success. In his emotionally vivid and delicately rendered short, queer filmmaker Jeremy Merrifield has crafted a timely critique of the superhero mythos, offering an alternative world that prizes softness and sensitivity over brute strength.

The film follows a 14-year-old boy named Sam (Jonah Beres) who is being bullied in between his school’s surreal active shooter drills. Amidst pressure to “hit back” and his closest friend abandoning him,...

Michael Almereyda will be in Berlin and discuss Experimenter on the opening night of the eighth edition of Unknown Pleasures, the festival of American Independent Film. Brigitta Wagner will be on hand for screenings of Rosehill with Kate Chamuris and Josephine Decker and Patrick Wang will be in town for the first screening of The Grief of Others. There'll be a special program of films by Ed Pincus plus Frederick Wiseman's In Jackson Heights, Travis Wilkerson's Machine Gun or Typewriter?, Thom Andersen's Juke: Passages from the Films of Spencer Williams, Stephen Cone's Henry Gamble's Birthday Party, Paul Thomas Anderson's Junun and Nathan Silver's Stinking Heaven. » - David Hudson...

Michael Almereyda will be in Berlin and discuss Experimenter on the opening night of the eighth edition of Unknown Pleasures, the festival of American Independent Film. Brigitta Wagner will be on hand for screenings of Rosehill with Kate Chamuris and Josephine Decker and Patrick Wang will be in town for the first screening of The Grief of Others. There'll be a special program of films by Ed Pincus plus Frederick Wiseman's In Jackson Heights, Travis Wilkerson's Machine Gun or Typewriter?, Thom Andersen's Juke: Passages from the Films of Spencer Williams, Stephen Cone's Henry Gamble's Birthday Party, Paul Thomas Anderson's Junun and Nathan Silver's Stinking Heaven. » - David Hudson...

Brigitta Wagner's Rosehill, starring newcomer Kate Chamuris and filmmaker Josephine Decker, flows so smoothly from idea to idea, moment to moment, texture to texture that its depth and breadth doesn't really begin to sink in until the final credits roll. I talk with Brigitta Wagner about her background in Europe and the States, teaching film history, her two books and her remarkable debut feature, which premiered in Atlanta and will screen at the Sidewalk Film Festival before opening the New Jersey Film Festival on September 11. » - David Hudson...

Brigitta Wagner's Rosehill, starring newcomer Kate Chamuris and filmmaker Josephine Decker, flows so smoothly from idea to idea, moment to moment, texture to texture that its depth and breadth doesn't really begin to sink in until the final credits roll. I talk with Brigitta Wagner about her background in Europe and the States, teaching film history, her two books and her remarkable debut feature, which premiered in Atlanta and will screen at the Sidewalk Film Festival before opening the New Jersey Film Festival on September 11. » - David Hudson...

Set to kick off March 20, the 39th annual Atlanta Film Festival will feature dozens of narrative features, documentaries, and shorts over its exciting 10-day span. Films star the likes of James Franco, among others, and the festival will offer a sneak peek of HBO’s “Game of Thrones,” Season 5. Here are the five films we’re anticipating the most, all making their world premieres at Atlff! “Montedoro”This international feature was directed by Antonello Faretta and tells the story of an American woman who travels to a mysterious town in Southern Italy after the death of her adopted parents. Her exploration of her past becomes a mythic journey toward self-discovery, all set against fantastic (and fantastical) Italian scenery. “Rosehill”Brigitta Wagner directed this narrative feature about old friends—one an actor, one a sex researcher—reuniting in rural Indiana. A self-proclaimed “wo(e)mance,” “Rosehill” follows the women on an...