Stony Brook Film Festival sets 2026 lineup

The 31st annual Stony Brook Film Festival announced its full lineup of 36 films from 23 countries, with in-person appearances from actors Jake Lacy, Daniel Brühl and Adèle Exarchopoulos, plus an encore screening of the acclaimed local drama "Westhampton."

Passes are on sale for the competition, which runs July 16-25. Individual tickets go on sale July 1.

The festival opens with "Once Upon My Mother," a French-language drama based on Roland Perez’s autobiographical novel about his mother’s determination to see him overcome the club foot he was born with. The schedule also includes "A Mosquito in the Ear," starring Jake Lacy and Nazanin Boniadi as a couple trying to adopt a reluctant 4-year-old in Goa, and "Downbeat," about a struggling drummer in Boston. The closing night film is "Hello Betty," a biopic starring Sarah Spale as Emmi Creola, the Swiss advertising copywriter whose fictional spokeswoman, Betty Bossi, grew into a national icon.

A free, encore screening of "Westhampton" is scheduled for July 26 at the Avram Theater in Southampton with director Christian Nilsson, of East Moriches, taking part in a Q&A. The story of a troubled young filmmaker (Finn Wittrock, "American Horror Story") who returns to the East End to confront the memories of a fatal car accident he caused, "Westhampton" held its premiere at the Tribeca Festival in 2025 and won the Jury Award for Directing at Stony Brook's festival last year. The film is due for theatrical release July 10.

For tickets and more information, go to stonybrookfilmfestival.com.

By Rafer Guzmán

rafer.guzman@newsday.com