Visiting Lecturer Carolyn Michelle Smith recently had the U.S. premiere of her film, “Familiar Touch” at the New Directors/New Films Film Festival at Lincoln Center in early April. The film stars Kathleen Chalfant, Carolyn Michelle, H. John Benjamin, Andy McQueen, and London Garcia. It was written and directed by Sarah Friedland.
The film follows Chalfant’s Ruth as she’s checked into an assisted living facility due to Dementia. The film premiered at the 81st International Venice Film Festival in September of 2024 and earned three of the highest awards at the Orizzonti Competition, including Best Director, Best Actress for Chalfant, and the Lion of the Future award, given to the best debut film at the festival. The New Directors/New Films Film Festival is presented by the Museum of Modern Art and Film at Lincoln Center, and took place from April 2 to the 13th. Beginning in 1972, the festival showcases new and emerging filmmakers with distinctive visions and risk-taking works that highlight the vitality and potential of cinema.
According to the festival website, “Friedland builds her drama through sharp honesty, and tough as its material may be, few films are so tonally flexible, so able to turn on a dime: stray moments of tenderness, humility, even absurdity poke through, with a love and care for Ruth shown by characters and creators alike. Familiar Touch portends the arrival of major directorial talent.”
Carolyn Michelle hopes “audiences are reminded that the power of connection is resonant at every stage of our lives. Also, often Alzheimer's and Dementia can be negatively portrayed as a crippling experience, but this film finds the joy and light of the condition when it comes to Ruth's sense of hope. As I've had a friendship with Sarah Friedland for over 10 years now, we've been in close conversation about what aging looks like in our community, and among our loved ones. For myself, it was my mother who had Dementia, while I was her caretaker. The same moments of joy and light that our lead Kathleen Chalfant finds in the playing of Ruth, are the same moments I was able to experience with my own mother as she navigated her sense of wonder and confusion through the condition. I hope audiences understand there can be wonder in every stage of our lived experience.”
The film is set to premieres in movie theaters nationwide on 6/20/2025. To learn more about the film and Carolyn Michelle’s work, follow along on Instagram at @familiartouch and @that_carolynmichelle.
Emma Alexander ’26 is a communications assistant in the Department of Performing and Media Arts.
