The Sweet East

64th TIFF: Greek Premiere

The cinematographer known for his distinctive visual style in several prominent independent American films of the past decade (Listen Up Philip, Good Time), transitions to directing, embarking on an episodic journey through the indescribable socio-political chaos that characterizes present-day United States. When high school student Lillian (played by Never Rarely Sometimes Always's Talia Ryder) ditches a boring school trip, she transforms into a modern-day Alice in Wonderland. In her journey, she encounters a wide array of characters, ranging from white supremacists and racist academics to jihadists, punk outcasts, and socially conscious artists. A wildly eccentric Americana, as fragmented as the mutually exclusive heterogeneities that compose the US itself. At every juncture of this journey, the question lingers: where and when exactly did the famed American Dream vanish?

Screening Schedule

No physical screenings scheduled.

Direction: Sean Price Williams

Script: Nick Pinkerton

Cinematography: Sean Price Williams

Editing: Stephen Gurewitz

Sound: Dean Hurley

Music: Paul Grimstad

Actors: Talia Ryder, Earl Cave, Simon Rex, Ayo Edebiri, Jeremy O. Harris, Jacob Elordi, Rish Shah

Production: Marathon Street, Base 12

Producers: Craig Butta, Alex Coco, Alex Ross Perry

Costumes: Jocelyn Pierce

Production Design: Madeline Sadowski

Executive producer: Jimmy Kaltreider, David Kaplan

Make Up: Nat Carlson

Format: DCP

Color: Color

Production Country: USA

Production Year: 2023

Duration: 104'

Contact: The Match Factory

Awards/Distinctions: Revelations Prize, Jury Prize – Deauville Film Festival 2023

Sean Price Williams

Internationally renowned US cinematographer Sean Price Williams (Good Time; Funny Pages; Listen Up Philip) was described by The New Yorker as “the cinematographer for many of the best and most significant independent films of the past decade.” Sean has shot films for directors including Abel Ferrara and Josh and Benny Safdie, lighting actors such as Ethan Hawke, Elisabeth Moss, Jon Hamm, Geena Davis, and Robert Pattinson. In his directorial debut The Sweet East, he collaborated with screenwriter and notorious film critic Nicholas Pinkerton, with whom he shares a period of employment at the now-defunct Kim’s Video Store in East Village, NYC.