Hey! The annual Milwaukee Film Festival is happening a little early this year—like, May 6-20 early. Once again, the fest is all-virtual, meaning 89 can’t-miss feature films (Tom Petty, Somewhere You Feel Free!) and oodles of can’t-miss shorts programs (The Best Damn F*#@ing Midnight Program Ever. Sh*t!) will be available for viewing in the comfort of your own home. Find out how the whole thing works HERE. Passes are on sale NOW. Individual tickets go on sale beginning May 6.

HERE‘s the full program! (Download a PDF HERE.) Below you’ll find synopses and trailers for the Milwaukee Record-sponsored Cinema Hooligante program. What’s Cinema Hooligante? It’s the program for “the grownups who never grew up, the weirdos who never needed normal, and the unicorns who just want to have fun,” says Milwaukee Film. Enjoy!

BABY
Spain / 2021 / 103 min / No Dialogue

Baby is a dark fairytale about an addict mother who, in desperation, sells her newborn to traffickers. She quickly regrets the decision and ventures into an eerie forest to get him back. Inspired by Guillermo del Toro and the Brothers Grimm, Basque filmmaker Juanma Bajo Ulloa constructs a world that is equal parts grotesque and beautiful. This macabre tale is told entirely without dialogue and stars Rosie Day (Outlander), Harriet Sansom Harris (Desperate Housewives), and Natalia Tena (Game Of Thrones, Harry Potter).

DIR Juanma Bajo Ulloa
PROD Juanma Bajo Ulloa
SCR Juanma Bajo Ulloa, Elisa Marinas

COMING HOME IN THE DARK
New Zealand / 2021 / 93 min / English

Hoaggie and his family are having a delightful trip in the stunning New Zealand wilderness when they’re approached by two mysterious strangers. It quickly becomes apparent this duo has malicious intent. While Hoaggie claims to have no idea why, he has a sneaking suspicion that his unsavory past has come back to haunt him. The brutality and terror that unfolds will have you second guessing that summer road trip you have planned. WISCONSIN ONLY

DIR James Ashcroft
PROD Desray Armstrong, Catherine Fitzgerald, Mike Minogue
SCR James Ashcroft, Eli Kent, Owen Marshall

I BLAME SOCIETY
USA / 2020 / 84 min / English

Stretching the ‘fake it ’til you make it’ ethos to its breaking point, I Blame Society is a whip-smart satire that takes a machete to the vacuous Hollywood machine. Director Gillian Wallace Horvat plays struggling filmmaker…Gillian Wallace Horvat, who in the process of fleshing out her mockumentary about committing the perfect murder accrues a very real body count, warping her vision into something more madness than method.

DIR Gillian Wallace Horvat
PROD Michelle Craig, Mette-Marie Kongsved, Laura Tunstall, Monte Zajicek
SCR Gillian Wallace Horvat, Chase Williamson

THE DJINN
USA / 2021 / 82 min / English, American Sign with English subtitles

Dylan and his dad have just moved to start a new life after the tragic loss of his mother. Dylan finds a mysterious book in a closet and reads about the Djinn, a magical beast that can grant wishes. Dylan is mute, so he wishes for a voice, but he fails to realize that he has to survive the night at the mercy of the monster. WISCONSIN ONLY

DIR David Charbonier, Justin Powell
PROD Carter Armstrong, Ryan Scaringe, Meghan Weinstein
SCR David Charbonier, Justin Powell

THE LAST MATINEE (Al morir la matinée)
Argentina, Uruguay / 2020 / 88 min / Spanish with English subtitles

Giallo is alive and well in Uruguay. A murderer is stalking the audience of a rundown movie theatre in Montevideo. As the viewers are savagely picked off one by one, the heroic projectionist decides to save the day and face this deranged killer. A movie made for movie lovers, you’ll have a blast finding references to filmmakers like Dario Argento and Bigas Luna. Bathed in blood and neon, The Last Matinee never pulls a punch. WISCONSIN ONLY

DIR Maximiliano Contenti
PROD Maximiliano Contenti, Lucía Gaviglio Salkind, Alina Kaplan
SCR Maximiliano Contenti, Manuel Facal

THE PINK CLOUD
Brazil / 2021 / 105 min / English, Portuguese with English subtitles

A mysterious and toxic pink cloud has enveloped the Earth and everyone is forced to hide indoors. Giovana ends up hunkering down with a one-night-stand, but little does she know that he will be her companion for years to come. Taking the quarantine lifestyle to the extreme, you’ll laugh and cry at all-too familiar situations. This dystopian drama hits so close to home, you won’t believe it was filmed in 2019.

DIR Iuli Gerbase
SCR Iuli Gerbase, Vicente Moreno