HippCinema announces August lineup, featuring independent film, documentary, and a special guest screening
Press release from The Hippodrome Theatre
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The Hippodrome Theatre’s independent cinema program, HippCinema, today announced its August film slate, bringing eight new titles to Gainesville audiences — spanning comedy, drama, documentary, musical, and horror. The month’s programming includes a filmed capture of the Tony Award-winning musical Hadestown and a special-event screening featuring filmmakers in attendance for post-film discussion.
Maddie’s Secret
NR | Comedy/Drama | 1h 38m | Screening Aug 6–16
MADDIE’S SECRET is comedian, writer, and actor John Early’s critically acclaimed directorial debut starring himself as Maddie, a plucky dishwasher who leaps to viral superstardom at a trendy food content creation company. While her life seems picturesque — complete with an adoring husband (Eric Rahill), ride-or-die best friend (Kate Berlant) and a cupboard full of woman-owned ethically-sourced chili crisp to boot — mounting professional pressures threaten to reawaken a hidden secret from her troubled past. A pitch-perfect blend of satire, melodrama, daring tonal shifts, and intimate performances, the film marks a bold new voice in contemporary cinema.
The Invite
R | Comedy | 1h 47m | Screening Aug 6–16
Joe and Angela’s (Seth Rogen and Olivia Wilde) marriage is on thin ice. When they invite their enigmatic upstairs neighbors (Penélope Cruz and Edward Norton) for a dinner party, the night spirals into unexpected places. Have they reignited the spark or lit the match that burns it all down? Directed by Olivia Wilde.
Hadestown
NR | Musical | 2h 21m | Screening Aug 21–23
The live theater capture of the hit musical Hadestown, which won eight Tony Awards in 2019 including Best Musical and the 2020 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album, featuring the five original principals of the Broadway company. The genre-defying musical blends modern American folk music with New Orleans-inspired jazz to reimagine a sweeping ancient tale. Following two intertwining love stories — that of young dreamers Orpheus and Eurydice, and that of King Hades and his wife Persephone — Hadestown invites audiences on a hell-raising journey to the underworld and back.
Steal This Story, Please!
NR | Documentary | 1h 42m | Screening Aug 20–30
Undeterred by armed soldiers, smooth-talking politicians, and riot police, journalist Amy Goodman has reported some of the most consequential stories of our time. Steal This Story, Please! is a gripping portrait of the trailblazer whose unwavering commitment to truth-telling spans three decades of turbulent history. Oscar-nominated filmmakers Carl Deal and Tia Lessin (Trouble the Water, The Janes) take us behind the scenes with the warm, wisecracking granddaughter of an Orthodox rabbi as she navigates a news landscape reshaped by technology, corporate consolidation, and political assaults on truth itself.
Reading Lolita in Tehran
NR | Drama | 1h 47m | Screening Aug 20–29
The screen adaptation of Azar Nafisi’s beloved memoir tells her story as a literature professor in revolutionary Iran who, amidst censorship and religious extremism, gathers seven of her most dedicated female students to immerse themselves in banned literary classics. A film by Eran Riklis starring Golshifteh Farahani (Paterson), Zar Amir (Holy Spider), and Mina Kavani (No Bears).
Cocktails & Classics: La Bamba
PG-13 | Musical/Drama | 1h 34m (1987) | Screening Aug 22
Los Angeles teenager Ritchie Valens becomes an overnight rock ‘n’ roll success in 1958, thanks to a love ballad called Donna that he wrote for his girlfriend whose parents didn’t want her to date a Latino boy. But as his star rises, Valens has conflicts with his jealous brother, Bob, and becomes haunted by a recurring nightmare of a plane crash just as he begins his first national tour alongside Buddy Holly. HippCinema brings La Bamba to the theater in honor of the documentary screening the following week about the film’s director — American Pachuco: The Legend of Luis Valdez. The producer and director of the documentary will be in attendance for the Saturday, August 29 | 6:00 screening. (Specialty cocktail included in every ticket purchase)
Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma
R | Horror | 1h 52m | Screening Aug 28–Sept 6
A new kind of horror remake from Jane Schoenbrun (I Saw the TV Glow), starring Hannah Einbinder and Gillian Anderson. After years of slapdash sequels and waning fandom, the Camp Miasma slasher franchise is handed over to an enthusiastic young director for resurrection. But when she visits the original’s star, a now-reclusive actress shrouded in mystery, the two women fall into a blood-soaked world of desire, fear, and delirium.
American Pachuco: The Legend of Luis Valdez
NR | Documentary | 1h 32m | Screening Aug 29–Sept 6
Luis Valdez elevates Chicano narratives to cinema through Zoot Suit and La Bamba, overcoming political and industry pushback to create landmark films that broaden and honor America’s cultural story. Special Event: Saturday, August 29 | 6:00 — Producer Lauren DeFillippo and Director David Alvarado will be in attendance to introduce the film and participate in a post-film screening discussion.