Buffalo Films: Star-filled ‘The Panic’ to close the fest

By M. Faust

The Buffalo International Film Festival, which begins next week at venues around Buffalo, has announced its opening and closing night films. 

Kicking things off on Friday, Oct. 10, at the North Park Theater will be the world premiere of Baristas Vs. Billionaires, a documentary about the fight by employees at the Elmwood Avenue Starbucks to unionize. That they eventually succeeded in 2022 was despite fierce opposition from former CEO Howard Schultz. 

Baristas Vs. Billionaires was written and directed by veteran documentarian Mark Mori, an Oscar nominee for his 1991 feature Building Bombs and an Emmy winner for the 2000 television documentary special Kent State, the Day the War Came Home. Mori and producer Alec Baldwin will be on hand to present the film. 

They will also appear at a panel discussion about the making of the film and the issues involved. This will be held prior to the screening on Oct. 10 at 4 p.m. at the studios of Buffalo Toronto Public Media, 140 Lower Terrace St. The event is free and open to the public. You can reserve a seat at the BIFF website; if you can’t make it, it will be live streamed to social media platforms and the BIFF website.

The Festival closes on Thursday, Oct. 16, with The Panic, starring Cary Elwes, Colm Meaney, Tim Daly, Malcolm McDowell and Christiana Dell’Anna, star of Cabrini. Filmed in Buffalo in June 2024, the historical drama relates the Panic of 1907, in which the actions of a group of unscrupulous bankers and businessmen brought the American economy to the verge of collapse. Dell’Anna will be present along with writer/director Daniel Adams, co-star Anastasiya Mitrunen and producer Michael Mailer for a post-film Q&A.

Advance tickets for both screenings are strongly recommended, though the really smart thing to do is buy the Festival Pass, which gets you into everything for all for only $80. The festival will feature over 200 feature films, shorts and episodic works from 37 countries. Screening venues include the historic North Park Theatre, Hallwalls Contemporary Arts Center, Buffalo Toronto Public Media (WNED Studios), and Burchfield Penney Arts Center. 

Buffalo Hive film writer M. Faust is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Buffalo International Film Festival.