2025 DC LABOR FILMFEST: May 1–29
AFI Silver Theatre, 8633 Colesville Road, Silver Spring, MD
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2025 DC Labor FilmFest flyer
Organized and presented by the Labor Heritage Foundation and the AFI Silver, this annual series features a wide-ranging selection of films about work, workers and the wider issues affecting workers' lives.
AFI Member passes accepted. AFI Member discount available for union members (must present union card).
LILLY - Thurs, May 1, 7:00 (Opening Night)
An ordinary woman’s fight for equal pay becomes a historic journey to the Supreme Court and beyond in LILLY—a powerful story of love, justice, and the cost of activism.
Watch trailer here
CALAMITY [KALAMITA] Fri, May 2, 4:45; Sat, May 3, 4:30; Sun, May 4, 8:15; Mon, May 5, 2:30; Tue, May 6, 12:30; Thurs, May 8, 2:15
Several years after her return from political exile, Věra Chytilová delivered Calamity (1982)—a subversive sex comedy turned sharp satire of Communist-era bureaucracy, following a hapless train conductor tangled in romance, red tape, and snowy chaos.
Watch trailer here
CLOCKWATCHERS - Mon, May 5, 6:50
OFFICE SPACE meets GIRLFRIENDS in Clockwatchers (1997), a sharp, bittersweet workplace dramedy about four temps, office politics, and the bonds that hold under pressure.
Watch trailer here
THE LAST SHOWGIRL - Sun, May 11, 2:00
Pamela Anderson stars in The Last Showgirl, a tender, funny, and bittersweet tale of aging, identity, and chosen family set behind the glittering lights of Las Vegas.
Watch trailer here
BLUE SUN PALACE - Mon, May 12, 6:45
Set within a Flushing massage parlor, Blue Sun Palace follows Amy and Didi—two immigrant women bound by sisterhood, survival, and sacrifice—whose bond is tested when tragedy strikes on Lunar New Year. Anchored by powerful performances and co-starring Lee Kang-sheng, this intimate drama explores love, loss, and the quiet strength of those far from home.
Watch trailer here
LA COCINA - Wed, May 14, 6:40
Alonso Ruizpalacios (A Cop Movie, Güeros) reinvents The Kitchen as a gripping, Cassavetes-style pressure cooker set in a frenetic Times Square restaurant, where undocumented workers chase the American dream. With Raúl Briones and Rooney Mara leading a stellar ensemble, this tragicomic drama simmers with class conflict, stolen dreams, and the heat that builds when everything’s on the line.
Watch trailer here
MANTHAN [THE CHURNING] - Sat, May 17, 1:30; Wed, May 21, 6:45
A landmark in Indian cinema and a stirring tribute to collective action, Manthan (1976) was the country’s first crowdfunded film—funded by 500,000 farmers donating two rupees each. Inspired by the real-life milk cooperative movement led by Verghese Kurien, this powerful drama follows a young veterinarian (Girish Karnad) who helps transform an impoverished village through a dairy cooperative. A bold critique of caste and inequality, Manthan returns in a stunning new restoration.
Watch trailer here
NINE TO FIVE - Sun, May 18, 2:00
In the iconic workplace comedy Nine to Five, Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, and Dolly Parton team up to take down their sexist boss and transform office life with equality-driven reforms. A hilarious and empowering caper that became a box office smash, the film sparked a hit TV series and a Broadway musical—cementing its legacy as a feminist classic.
Watch trailer here
SEPTEMBER 5 - Tue, May 20, 7:00
Set during the 1972 Munich Olympics, Tim Fehlbaum’s gripping drama follows ABC Sports head Roone Arledge (Peter Sarsgaard) as his team navigates the unfolding hostage crisis with bold, risky tactics that blur the line between journalistic urgency and ethical responsibility.
Watch trailer here
BLESS THEIR LITTLE HEARTS - Thu, May 22, 6:45
A landmark of the LA Rebellion, Bless Their Little Hearts is a raw, deeply moving portrait of Black working-class life, capturing one man's struggle with unemployment, pride, and family in 1980s Los Angeles.
Watch trailer here
GOOD NIGHT, AND GOOD LUCK - Tues, May 27, 6:45
Good Night, and Good Luck follows journalist Edward R. Murrow as he takes on Senator McCarthy during the 1950s Red Scare, risking everything to stand up for the truth.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pv4s0wdDOK0
STRIKE (1925) [СТАЧКА] [STACHKA] - Thurs, May 29, 7:00
Closing Night | Silent with live musical accompaniment by Andrew Earle Simpson
In Sergei Eisenstein’s groundbreaking debut, factory workers in Tsarist Russia rise up after a comrade’s tragic death, igniting a bold vision of revolutionary cinema.
Watch trailer here