A feature film that shot in Wilmington in 2024 has gotten some international attention, and will soon screen in the Port City.
"Capsized," an independent movie written and directed by Lindsey Ryan, had its world premiere Aug. 15 at the Edinburgh International Film Festival, or EIFF, in Scotland.
It was one of 10 feature-length world premieres at EIFF in competition for a cash prize of more than $65,000. The prize ultimately went to the film "Skintown."
In November, "Capsized" will play in Wilmington for the Cucalorus Film Festival, scheduled for Nov. 18-22. Screening dates and times have yet to be announced.
The movie is about a dysfunctional family that goes on vacation aboard a house boat, only to discover that they're in severe financial straits
because of the irresponsible actions of the family patriarch, played by Rhys Ifans ("Notting Hill," "The Amazing Spider-Man").
The top-notch cast includes Lily Rabe (TV's "American Horror Story"), Sarah Catherine Hook ("The White Lotus"), Griffin Gluck ("American Vandal," "Tall Girl") and child actress Ada Bland ("Rabbit, Rabbit").
Also in the cast are current and former Wilmington actors Sean Parker, Jon Stafford, Holli Saperstein, Ron Fallica and Jack Landry.
According to past StarNews reporting, "Capsized" features extensive shots of the Atlantic Ocean and coastal North Carolina locations.
Ryan's previous work includes the short film "Seasick," a festival hit that starred Pauline Chalamet, older sister of actor Timothée Chalamet.
Producers of "Capsized" include Oscar winner Dan Janvey of "Nomadland," "Janet Planet" and "Beasts of the Southern Wild"; Paul Mezey and Andrew Goldman of Oscar-nominated animated film "Marcel the Shell with Shoes On"; and executive producer Sara McFarlane of Oscar-nominated short film "Red, White and Blue."
According to its description on the EIFF website, "Capsized" has "an easygoing charm, affection for its complex characters and a real sense of place. … Lindsey Ryan’s beautifully filmed and hilarious American indie debut tackles a very contemporary story of economic uncertainty with optimism, warmth and humor."
A review of the movie's festival run in Screen Daily called it a "modest, bittersweet debut" and noted "similarities to 'Little Miss Sunshine'and (other) award-winning comedy-dramas about families combating tough times."
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Ryan said the movie's influences are as diverse as "Jaws" and, perhaps surprisingly, TV sitcom "Gilligan's Island" in "the way that it feels campy and nostalgic and trapped on an island."
Ryan told The Hollywood Reporter the movie shot in a real boat on the water with "the Coast Guard … keeping a keen eye on their every move."
Along with "Capsized," two other feature films with Wilmington connections will screen at this year's Cucalorus Film Festival.
Writer-director Erica Dunton’s thriller "Pretty Ugly," which is set in Wilmington and was filmed here in 2025, screens Saturday, Nov. 21, at Thalian Hall as the festival's headlining film.
Dunton’s seventh feature stars Nicola Peltz Beckham, Jazzy De Lisser (a co-writer) and Mary Stuart Masterson in the story of a complex relationship between a cosmetology student and her mother that unravels when a high-profile influencer's return to town coincides with a sudden murder.
Also screening at Cucalorus in November is horror thriller "Henry’s Ebb." Writer-director Thomas Mendolia's feature debut co-stars Wilmington actor Banks Repeta of "Armageddon Time" and "The Black Phone."
John Staton is the arts and culture reporter for the StarNews. You can reach him at jstaton@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Wilmington-shot film gets international premiere, to screen locally
