New York Film Festival Unveils Spotlight Slate With Tom McCarthy’s ‘A Statement,’ Jonathan Glazer’s ‘Joy of Joys’ and More

The New York Film Festival has revealed its Spotlight lineup for the 64th edition and the section is stacked with fall’s most buzzy names and titles.

At the top of the list is Tom McCarthy, writer and director of best picture winner “Spotlight” (2015), who returns with “A Statement.” Described as a gripping ensemble piece built around a pivotal 1980 conference on the threat of climate change, it’s one of the slate’s most significant additions. Set for release from Sony Pictures Classics, the film boasts a deep bench that includes Paul Giamatti, John Turturro, Paul Rudd, Amy Ryan, Evan Peters and Tatiana Maslany.

Jonathan Glazer, coming off the seismic acclaim of the international feature Oscar winner “The Zone of Interest,” reunites with composer Mica Levi for “Joy of Joys,” a documentary chronicling the recording of a star-studded charity album for children in conflict zones.

As previously announced, Takashi Yamazaki’s “Godzilla Minus Zero” landed the Spotlight Gala slot on Sept. 26, the follow-up to the franchise’s recent visual effects Oscar winner.

The section also brings films that debuted on the Croisette to Lincoln Center. Romanian auteur and NYFF regular Cristian Mungiu arrives with “Fjord,” the Renate Reinsve and Sebastian Stan drama that won this year’s Palme d’Or. Jordan Firstman makes a splashy directorial debut with the New York-set comedy “Club Kid.” And Louis Clichy’s hand-painted animated feature “Iron Boy,” winner of Un Certain Regard Special Jury Prize, adds a rare bit of art-house animation to the mix.

Werner Herzog returns to NYFF with “Bucking Fastard,” which will have its world premiere at the upcoming Venice Film Festival and stars real-life sisters Kate and Rooney Mara. It marks the filmmaker’s first festival appearance in more than four decades, since “Fitzcarraldo” closed the fest back in 1982.

Along with his role in “A Statement,” Turturro delivers towering work as a familiar New York archetype in Noah Segan’s poignant “The Only Living Pickpocket in New York.” Julianne Moore and Paul Giamatti star in “The Debut,” Jesse Eisenberg’s buzzy musical and comic love letter to the theater. And André Gregory — now in his 90s — performs Samuel Beckett alongside longtime collaborators Larry Pine and Gerry Bamman in “One More Time,” a documentary he co-directed with Cindy Kleine.

Beyond “Joy of Joys,” which hands London schoolkids cameras to capture the making of War Child Records’ benefit album “HELP (2)” at Abbey Road, Spotlight includes other nonfiction films such as Maiken Baird’s rigorous archival portrait “Edward Said: Between Worlds” and “Making Marie Antoinette,” the late Eleanor Coppola’s behind-the-scenes account of daughter Sofia’s 2006 feature, which premiered at NYFF 20 years ago. Albert Serra rounds out the nonfiction offerings with “Sixteen Moments of My Life,” a concert film capturing German film and fashion legend Ingrid Caven in Paris.

Two shorts programs anchor the section. In Spotlight Shorts, “The Secret Agent” director Kleber Mendonça Filho debuts “South of Tehran,” the inaugural film of the festival’s new NYFF Encounters initiative, alongside work from Kamal Aljafari, Jia Zhangke, Camilo Restrepo and Morgan Fisher. In New York Shorts, “Aftersun” director Charlotte Wells returns with the world premiere of “New York Never Let Me Down,” screening with films by Eliza Barry Callahan, Heather Landsman, Fanny Texier and J. Wortham.

In all, the section spans 13 features and 10 shorts. NYFF64 runs Sept. 25 through Oct. 12 at Lincoln Center and venues across all five boroughs.

Spotlight Gala“Godzilla Minus Zero” (dir. Takashi Yamazaki)

Spotlight“Bucking Fastard” (dir. Werner Herzog)“Club Kid” (dir. Jordan Firstman)“The Debut” (dir. Jesse Eisenberg)“Edward Said: Between Worlds” (dir. Maiken Baird)“Fjord” (dir. Cristian Mungiu)“Iron Boy” (dir. Louis Clichy)“Joy of Joys” (dir. Jonathan Glazer)“Making Marie Antoinette” (dir. Eleanor Coppola)“One More Time” (dir. Cindy Kleine and André Gregory)“The Only Living Pickpocket in New York” (dir. Noah Segan)“Sixteen Moments of My Life” (dir. Albert Serra)“A Statement” (dir. Tom McCarthy)

Spotlight Shorts“South of Tehran” (dir. Kleber Mendonça Filho)“Masao Adachi Takes a Passport Photo” (dir. Kamal Aljafari)“A Stolen Movie” (dir. Camilo Restrepo)“Torino Shadow” (dir. Jia Zhangke)“Screening Room” (dir. Morgan Fisher)

New York Shorts“The People’s Beach” (dir. J. Wortham)“ee” (dir. Heather Landsman)“The House Call” (dir. Eliza Barry Callahan)“A Woman’s Place Is Everywhere” (dir. Fanny Texier)“New York Never Let Me Down” (dir. Charlotte Wells)

Main Slate“9 Temples to Heaven” (dir. Sompot Chidgasornpongse)“All of a Sudden” (dir. Ryusuke Hamaguchi)“Bitter Christmas” (dir. Pedro Almodóvar)“Clarissa” (dir. Arie Esiri and Chuko Esiri)“Dao” (dir. Alain Gomis)“The Day She Returns” (dir. Hong Sangsoo)“I Deserve a Lover Whose Every Rise Sets Fiery Dooms Raging Across the Skies” (dir. Mani Haghighi)“The Diary of a Chambermaid” (dir. Radu Jude)“Double Freedom” (dir. Lisandro Alonso)“The Dreamed Adventure” (dir. Valeska Grisebach)“Everything Else Is Noise” (dir. Nicolás Pereda)“Every time” (dir. Sandra Wollner)“Fatherland” (dir. Paweł Pawlikowski)“Godzilla Minus Zero” (dir. Takashi Yamazaki)“La Gradiva” (dir. Marine Atlan)“I Rarely Wake Up Dreaming” (dir. Isabelle Stever)“The Loneliest Man in Town” (dir. Tizza Covi and Rainer Frimmel)“A Long Winter” (dir. Andrew Haigh)“The Man I Love” (dir. Ira Sachs)“A Man of His Time” (dir. Emmanuel Marre)“Minotaur” (dir. Andrey Zvyagintsev)“Misty Green” (dir. Chris Rock)“My Undesirable Friends: Part II — Exile” (dir. Julia Loktev)“My Wife Cries” (dir. Angela Schanelec)“Nowhere to Lay My Eyes” (dir. Hong Sangsoo)“Once Upon a Time in Harlem” (dir. William Greaves and David Greaves)“Possible Love” (dir. Lee Chang-dong)“Rose” (dir. Markus Schleinzer)“Tender Loving Care” (dir. Mike Leigh)“The Unknown” (dir. Arthur Harari)