Middleburg Film Festival 2024 Lineup to Include ‘Blitz,’ ‘Emilia Perez,’ ‘Conclave’

Virginia’s Middleburg Film Festival, now in its 12th year, is set to open this October with the Apple Original film “Blitz” starring Saoirse Ronan. Director Steve McQueen will be honored with the festival’s Visionary Director award.

Set during World War II, “Blitz” follows the journey of George (Elliott Heffernan), a 9-year-old boy whose mother Rita (Ronan) sends him to safety in the English countryside. George, defiant and determined to return home to Rita and his grandfather Gerald (Paul Weller) in East London, embarks on an adventure, only to find himself in peril, as a distraught Rita searches for her missing son.

Jacques Audiard’s “Emilia Perez” will be the festival’s Friday Spotlight film. Karla Sofía Gascón stars as a fearsome drug lord who embraces her true self as a woman. The Spanish-language film earned one of Cannes’ longest standing ovations and went on to win the Jury Prize, on top of the best actress prize for the ensemble cast, including Gascón, Zoe Saldaña, Selena Gomez and Adriana Paz. The movie was bought by Netflix for the U.S. and the U.K. following its Cannes premiere. Saldaña will be recognized with the Festival’s Spotlight Actor Award for her transformative role as Rita.

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Focus Features’ “Conclave” is set as the Saturday night centerpiece screening. Directed by Edward Berger, the film follows the conclave process of selecting the new Pope. Ralph Fiennes plays Cardinal Lawrence and is tasked with running the covert process after the unexpected death of the beloved Pope. Lawrence uncovers a trail of deep secrets left in the dead Pope’s wake, secrets that could shake the foundations of the church. The ensemble cast includes Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow, Lucian Msamati, and Isabella Rossellini. Rossellini will join Berger at the festival to receive the Agnès Varda Trailblazing Film Artist award.

“Blitz” will be a co-presentation with the British Embassy and will be introduced by British Ambassador to the United States Karen Pierce who will be in attendance to receive the festival’s inaugural Film Diplomacy award in recognition of her longstanding commitment to the film industry and the power of film to both “increase our understanding of the world and one another and foster the global creative economy,” the festival said. Acting Under-Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Lee Satterfield will present the award to the Ambassador.

The Middleburg Film Festival, in collaboration with the U.S. Department of State through the United States’ flagship film diplomacy program American Film Showcase, will host a delegation of leading Kenyan and Nigerian filmmakers. Kunle Afolayan (Nigeria), Bolanle Austen Peters (Nigeria), Kenneth Ambani (Kenya) and Philip Karanja (Kenya) will share selections of their work and participate in a conversation focused on connecting with global audiences and the important role of film in the wider creative economy. The State Department’s American Film Showcase is implemented and produced by the USC School of Cinematic Arts.

Individual tickets go on sale in early October when the schedule and full slate are announced.