THE PENGUIN LESSONS

Inspired by the true story of a disillusioned Englishman who went to work in a school in Argentina in 1976. Expecting an easy ride, Tom discovers a divided nation and a class of unteachable students. However, after he rescues a penguin from an oil-slicked beach, his life is turned upside-down.

JANE AUSTEN WRECKED MY LIFE

Agathe, hopelessly clumsy yet charming and full of contradictions, finds herself in desperate singlehood. Her dream is to experience love akin to a Jane Austen novel and her ultimate aspiration is to become a writer. Instead, she spends her days selling books in the legendary British Bookshop, Shakespeare & Co, in Paris. Invited to the Jane Austen Writers’ Residency in England, she must confront her insecurities to finally fulfill her ambition of becoming a novelist and put an end to wasting her sentimental life.

“At a time when practically the entire rom-com genre has gravitated to streaming, this bilingual theatrical offering from Sony Pictures Classics feels like the best kind of throwback.” – Variety

JAWS @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story

Wendy Benchley will join us for a discussion following the June 22 event

The Martha’s Vineyard Film Society, in partnership with National Geographic and Amblin Documentaries, is proud to present an exclusive, members-only preview of JAWS @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story, a powerful new documentary that dives deep into the making of a cultural phenomenon and the legacy it sparked for ocean conservation.

This officially authorized, behind-the-scenes documentary uncovers the untold stories of Jaws — from malfunctioning mechanical sharks and stormy seas to the creative genius that forever changed cinema and our collective relationship with sharks.

FILMUSIC ALL-ACCESS PASS

The MV Film Society presents a week of feature films and musical performances that celebrate the convergence of music, culture, and film.  

This pass grants you entrance to all the films playing at the MV Film Center during the festival

BECOMING LED ZEPPELIN

Becoming Led Zeppelin explores the origins of this iconic group and their meteoric rise in just one year against all the odds.

Powered by awe-inspiring, psychedelic, never-before-seen footage, performances, and music, Bernard MacMahon’s experiential cinematic odyssey explores Led Zeppelin’s creative, musical, and personal origin story. The film is told in Led Zeppelin’s own words and is the first officially sanctioned film on the group.

"The next great Rock n Roll documentary has arrived. Fantastic." - Fort Worth Report

ONE TO ONE: JOHN & YOKO

An expansive and revelatory inside look at John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s life in Greenwich Village in the early 1970s, ONE TO ONE: JOHN & YOKO delivers an immersive cinematic experience that brings to life electrifying, never-before-seen material and newly restored footage of John and Yoko’s only full-length concert. Featuring mind-blowing music newly remixed and produced by Sean Ono Lennon, the film is a seismic revelation that will challenge pre-existing notions of the iconic couple.

BROTHER VERSES BROTHER

From Executive Producer Francis Ford Coppola

Inspired by Francis Coppola's concept of Live Cinema, "Brother Verses Brother" is a radically personal musical odyssey. Combative twin musicians hunt for their dying poet father, in an improvisation performed by the director's own family, in a single unbroken shot through the streets of San Francisco. One brother seeks love and excitement, while the other seeks to disappear into his music. But as night falls and their father remains missing, their frantic safari leads them from the secret haunts of the Beat poets into the heart of their family. Their tale becomes a testament to the power of music, brotherhood, & the lifeblood of a city -- experienced by the viewer in real-time.

LIVINGSTON TAYLOR LIVE IN CONCERT

We are honored to to have Livingston Taylor performing for the first time at the MV Film Center. Livingston is a Martha’s Vineyard resident and when not performing can be found sometimes watching films at the Film Center as a film society member.

Livingston Taylor picked up his first guitar at the age of 13, which began a 50-year career that has encompassed performance, songwriting, and teaching. Born in Boston and raised in North Carolina, Livingston is the fourth child in a very musical family that includes Alex, James, Kate, and Hugh. Livingston recorded his first record at the age of 18 and has continued to create well crafted, introspective, and original songs that have earned him listeners worldwide.

STEVE HYTNER LIVE STAND UP COMEDY

LIVE STAND UP COMEDY PERFORMANCE BY STEVE HYTNER

AKA “Kenny Bania” from Seinfeld! “That’s Gold Jerry!”

Also seen in Modern Family, Two and a Half Men and iZombie

Steve Hytner has made an indelible impression on both the large and small screens.

DEAF PRESIDENT NOW

Followed by a discussion with co-director Davis Guggenheim in person!

"Deaf President Now!" recounts the eight days of historic protests held at Gallaudet University in 1988 after the school's board of trustees appointed a hearing president over several very qualified Deaf candidates. After a week of rallies, boycotts and protests, the students of Gallaudet University triumph as the hearing president resigns and beloved dean Dr. I. King Jordan becomes the university's first Deaf president. The protests marked a pivotal moment in civil rights history, with an impact that extended well beyond the Gallaudet campus, and paved the way for the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

BECOMING KATHARINE GRAHAM

Becoming Katharine Graham tells the story of a painfully shy woman's accidental rise to power and how it changed history. After a family tragedy, Kay evolved from a "doormat wife" into a legendary newspaper publisher. Nixon's nemesis during Watergate, she fought for truth, broke barriers in a sexist world, and won a Pulitzer Prize, inspiring generations with her courage and resilience.

DOC WEEK: THE STRINGER

A former Saigon photo editor plagued by a 52-year secret courageously makes a stunning admission, setting off a gripping two-year investigation into five decades of buried secrets behind one of the Vietnam War’s most iconic photographs. Acclaimed war photographer Gary Knight and journalists Fiona Turner, Terri Lichstein, and Lê Vân embark on a relentless search to locate and seek justice for a man known only as “the stringer.”

The work of photographers during the Vietnam War exposed the horrors committed against the civilian population to a Western audience largely unaware of the scale of the atrocities. The iconic photograph, The Terror of War, also known as Napalm Girl, was shocking in its depiction of the violence experienced by children, prompting global protests and calls to end the war. But a claim by a former Associated Press photo editor raises doubts over the image’s origins. Bao Nguyen’s film follows a relentless journey to find the truth, locating a photographer known only as ‘the stringer’ who claims he took the photo, throwing the AP photographer credit into question. In following this investigation Nguyen’s film tackles racial injustice and journalistic ethics as it questions why Vietnamese photographers’ essential contribution to this conflict have not found their place in history.

THE LIBRARIANS

Librarians emerge as first responders in the fight for democracy and our First Amendment Rights. As they well know, controlling the flow of ideas means control over communities.

In Texas, the Krause List targets 850 books focused on race and LGBTQia+ stories – triggering sweeping book bans across the U.S. at an unprecedented rate. As tensions escalate, librarians connect the dots from heated school and library board meetings nationwide to lay bare the underpinnings of White Christian Nationalism fueling the censorship efforts. Despite facing harassment, threats, and laws aimed at criminalizing their work – the librarians’ rallying cry for freedom to read is a chilling cautionary tale.

JON STETSON: PSYCHIC, MIND-BLOWING COMEDY SHOW

Jon Stetson returns to the Film Center stage

5 TIME WHITEHOUSE PERFORMER AND THE INSPIRATION FOR THE CBS SHOW “THE MENTALIST” JON STETSON RETURNS TO MARTHA'S VINEYARD!

There is simply NO other audience interactive performer like Jon Stetson. Known across the globe as America’s Master Mentalist, Jon knows what you’re thinking. No, he really does! What is The Stetson Experience? A truly mindblowing, crowd-pleasing, audience interactive mix of magic, mind reading, and amazing mystery all packaged together and delivered by an engaging and very funny comedic personality.

Kevin and Jackie Flynn’s:
 Brothers From Another Mother Comedy Tour

Both Flynn’s began their comedy careers in Boston’s red hot comedy scene in the late 80’s. It was not long before they were both headlining comedy clubs from NY to LA and everywhere in between. 

Jackie Flynn currently is a regular character in the Hit TV series LOUDERMILK. Jackie recently completed shooting,  THE WORLD’S GREATEST BEER RUN in Thailand , starring Russell Crowe, Bill Murray and Zac Ephron, due in theaters and Apple TV summer of 2022. 

Jackie is truly a "comic's comic" whose refreshingly unique brand of sarcastic observational humor puts him in a class all his own, apart from the many derivative cookie cutter comics plying the airways today. Audiences young and old appreciate his wit and rapid-fire "take no prisoners" delivery.

Kevin Flynn, as a writer, actor, producer and comedian, has done it all. As an actor Flynn has appeared in a number of movies including the  The Heartbreak Kid with Ben Stiller, Me, Myself and Irene with Jim Carey as well as starring as one of  the series “most popular boyfriends” as voted by viewers, on HBO’s hit series  SEX AND THE CITY.  Kevin is also the Executive Director of The Nantucket Comedy Festival in support of a non-profit “Stand-Up and Learn”, an ongoing project that teaches school kids self-confidence through stand-up. Kevin is currently touring nationally with his latest one-man show, FEAR OF HEIGHTS-A VERY FUNNY PHOBIA.