How Rhode Island’s Biggest Movie Showcase Became the “Fyre of Film Festivals”

Was RIIFF “The Fyre Festival of Film Festivals”?

Every film festival has an occasional hiccup — remember the infamous screening of Reservoir Dogs at Sundance in 1992 when the lights came up before the movie ended? That said, according to one group of filmmakers, there was something going on at the Rhode Island International Film Festival this year that’s potentially more serious than the occasional slip-up. A slew of moviemakers has been telling Rambling Reporter that the six-day August event in Providence — which serves as a qualifying event for a bunch of Academy Awards short categories — was an unmitigated mess this year. “The Fyre Festival of film festivals” is how one of them describes it. According to on-the-ground reports, there were a bunch of technical snafus including films not filling up screens and one initially playing with sound and no picture. There’s been some disappointment over audience attendance, as well. “There were seven people in my screening,” sighs one filmmaker. “Two of them were drunk and left.” Most  maddening to participants, though, was the chaotic planning and communication, with the official schedule posting just days before the opening, leaving film teams scrambling to make travel plans. Multiple participating filmmakers griped to THR — which, full disclosure, was an official partner of this year’s festival — that they received no response from RIIFF to their many inquiring emails and calls about their screenings, forcing some to reach out for information over social media. “To be honest,” says one, “I don’t know if my film would have ever been put on the schedule unless I had posted publicly.” Several filmmakers say they are writing to the Academy complaining about their experiences. RIIFF executive director Shawn Quirk admits to problems but notes that the festival is “in transition” after the 2022 death of its founder, George T. Marshall, and is still getting back on its feet after COVID. He says submissions for 2025 are up 20 percent and promises next year’s festival will be “our best year yet.” — Katie Kilkenny

Friends for Sale! (or at Least Their Sweaters and Sofas)

A rare opportunity for Friends fans to own a piece of the iconic sitcom approaches with “Friends: The One With the 30th Anniversary Auction,” hosted Sept. 23 by Julien’s in Gardena. Some of the most coveted items for sale are meticulous reproductions, including the Central Perk sign (current bid: $4,000) and the Geller Cup trophy made out of a Troll doll ($2,250). But there are a good number of originals in the mix, including the gray turtleneck sweater Jennifer Aniston’s Rachel Green wore in season seven’s “The One With the Truth About London” ($4,000). If that isn’t in your budget, you can always dress like Central Perk barista Gunther by owning his purple shirt and yellow tie ($600). The item expected to fetch the highest bid, though, is a reproduction of the sofa. “It’s an important piece and where a lot of the action on the show happened,” says Laura Woolley, Julien’s head of consignments & appraisals. “If you have always wanted an orange button-tufted velvet couch with a tassel bottom, now is your moment.” Bidding on the couch is now at $8,000 (the original isn’t for sale but can be visited on the Warner Bros. studio tour). — Seth Abramovitch

Taylor Sheridan Lands His Dream Job: Selling Steaks

The Sheridanverse, the sprawl of cowboy shows and spinoffs spawned by Yellowstone creator Taylor Sheridan, has jumped dimensions into the real world and — perhaps inevitably — reached the ultimate freewheeling frontier town, Las Vegas. Last weekend, the actor-writer-director-heartland whisperer held a star-studded opening for his new Four Sixes Ranch Steakhouse, a pop-up restaurant at the Wynn. The celebrity cattle call included Harrison Ford, Demi Moore, Rumer and Scout LaRue Willis, Jeremy Renner, Ben Foster, Andy Garcia and daughter Alessandra, and Antoine Fuqua. The menu is built around beef sourced from Sheridan’s 6666 Ranch in Guthrie, Texas — which he, along with a group of investors, purchased in 2022 for a reported $200 million. Sheridan had already been selling 6666 branded sauces, seasonings, grills, clothes, jewelry and more. But, if you believe him, hawking steak was his endgame all along: “Operating restaurants that serve beef raised off my ranch has been a goal of mine from the beginning,” he says. “I dreamed of doing this long before I dreamed of being an actor or storyteller.” — Melinda Sheckells

This story appeared in the Sept. 19 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. Click here to subscribe.